Having jumped across the river and parked the car, Lu Xi'an glanced back, seeing that the young boy, Gou, had already been carried a distance away by the swift current.

The boy struggles in the river, which is inevitable.

No matter how determined one is to die, at the edge of life and death, survival instincts compel one to struggle.

Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei didn't bother with the boy.

Even if the boy did not jump into the river, he was close to dying anyway. Saving him might not necessarily be a good deed; perhaps it would just cause him more suffering.

"Get in the car, let's go."

Lu Xi'an said to Yao Wei.

Yao Wei nodded and said, "Okay."

After getting in the car, she glanced at the Resonant Gene Scanner again.

The red dot was still at the edge of the map on the scanner, but this time it remained fixed at the far east position without wandering.

Lu Xi'an asked, "Do you think… is this just one person, or is he the only one visible on the map while others are outside it?"

Yao Wei shook her head: "I don't know."

Lu Xi'an said: "Anyway, as before, we just need to be cautious. Being careful usually isn't wrong."

Seeing the person at the edge of the map in the Resonant Gene Scanner, Lu Xi'an wasn't particularly tense, just maintaining a habitual vigilance.

"Okay."

Yao Wei nodded in agreement with Lu Xi'an's words.

Throughout their journey from north to south, both Yao Wei and Lu Xi'an have been growing. Through multiple battles and the assistance of the Fungus Stone and the guidebook, their strength has significantly increased compared to the beginning.

With such strength, they are capable of handling most crises.

Even against two Type A and two Type C Neo-Humans, along with one Type D Neo-Human, they could win when prepared.

This was absolutely unimaginable before.

——Remember when they first arrived at the 923 Base, even dealing with one Type A Neo-Human supported by a Type C Neo-Human was challenging.

Therefore, Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei are acutely aware of the level their strength has reached now.

But regardless of the increase in strength, they habitually maintain vigilance.

Like when they were in Fengcheng County, even as Neo-Humans with overwhelming advantage over ordinary people, they chose caution to prevent incidents that might damage their car and supplies.

When attacked by ordinary people, their first choice wasn't to fight back but to flee.

Upon encountering a city, sensing people inside, they would choose to go around rather than rely on their strength to engage.

——Of course, part of the reason was that they didn't have the Resonant Gene Scanner then, unable to determine if there were Neo-Humans among them.

But even if they were sure there were no Neo-Humans among the targets, Lu Xi'an thought that both he and Yao Wei would remain vigilant.

The difference is merely between being cautious and extremely cautious.

Danger always remains unknown; even with the Resonant Gene Scanner, they cannot be certain they have discovered all unknowns.

Therefore, vigilance is necessary.

Being vigilant is a good habit, in such a world they cannot afford to be fearless, but they must be cautious.

They drove south and soon saw Liangshan Village, which the boy, Gou, referred to as the "Sickness Village."

People lived in the Sickness Village; as the RV approached the village, Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei could hear many noises.

There were sounds of heavy breathing, coughing, moaning, screams, and cries of despair.

This village was indeed a sickness village; hearing it from afar, one could sense the despair mixed in those voices.

Lu Xi'an thought it understandable why the boy chose to jump into the river so calmly. Living in such an environment, dying in the river might be a form of relief...

Without hesitation, Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei decided it was best to bypass this sickness village.

They could not be sure whether the injuries and ailments people had in this village were infectious, and if by chance any disease was contagious and they, as Neo-Humans, were not immune, it would be disastrous.

They drove around the village, with Lu Xi'an comparing the Resonant Gene Scanner to the World Map One, saying: "We should have left Coastal City and entered Jiangdong City now.

"I see this Liangshan Village is at the very edge of Coastal City, once past it is Jiangdong City.

"To the west, Jiangnan City is separated from Coastal City and Jiangdong City by East Yin Mountain. Biyun County, Daze County, and Tingxi County belong to Jiangnan.

"According to the boy's words, we should be somewhat cautious about these three counties. But once past East Yin Pass, we don't need to worry as much, until we reach the southernmost part of East Yin Mountain where there's Shannan Pass.

"Just be cautious there. We won't head to Jiangnan, just go straight down from Jiangdong to Jiannan."

"Okay."

Yao Wei continued driving the car, nodding as she listened to Lu Xi'an.

But as Lu Xi'an spoke, he suddenly fell silent, jumped backward from the central console, leaving the front passenger seat, and approached the Resonant Gene Scanner to examine it closely.

Yao Wei glanced back through the rear-view mirror and saw Lu Xi'an looking seriously focused, asking, "What's wrong?"

Lu Xi'an frowned and said, "I just noticed… that red dot has always been at the location downstream of the Guanhai River."

"Ah?!"

Yao Wei was slightly surprised.

The Resonant Gene Scanner map didn't have any rivers marked, just simple outlines and directions, so Lu Xi'an hadn't noticed before.

Now, after taking a closer look at the Resonant Gene Scanner map and glancing at the paged map in "World Map One," he finally discovered something.

He opened "World Map One," held it up, placed it next to the Resonant Gene Scanner map, carefully compared and confirmed, saying: "No problem, the map's direction indeed points to the downstream of the Guanhai River.

"The Guanhai River's course is very straight, if it hasn't been altered over the years, then this Neo-Human must be downstream of the Guanhai River."

"Hmm."

Yao Wei was nodding while driving.

Lu Xi'an asked again: "Do you think... it's a coincidence, or is there another reason?

"This red dot is not moving anymore, it's like it's guarding the downstream of the river. Could it be waiting specifically for that Gou?

"He... wouldn't want to fish up Gou to eat, right?"

"I don't know."

Yao Wei replied.

In this world, anything is possible, eating corpses is nothing out of the ordinary.

But Neo-Humans are considered superior beings in this world, how could it be possible for them to hide downstream of a river, eagerly waiting for patients' corpses?

Never mind, don't think about it...

After all, when you think about it, it's quite normal. Can't Neo-Humans eat corpses?

In this world, Neo-Humans are also bizarre and varied, there's people like me, people like Yao Wei, people like Luo Ping, people like Tang, people like the one in Mengxin City who died upon meeting...

It's not unusual for someone to wait at the mouth of the river like a brown bear waiting for the returning salmon, waiting for the corpses from Sickness Village.

"Let's just hope that Gou doesn't end up in the hands of the Neo-Human."

Lu Xi'an sighed and said.

That Gou chose to jump into the river to avoid becoming someone else's food, but if despite this brave leap, he ends up as food for others, it would be too tragic.

The red dot on the eastern edge of the Resonant Gene Scanner map finally disappeared. Lu Xi'an returned to the passenger seat and continued directing Yao Wei.

Their car hadn't gone far when they heard a "rustle" in the surrounding woods along the road, quick and agitated, with a hint of nervousness, soon calming down.

Lu Xi'an heard someone seem to say "Don't move, don't move, wait for them to pass by," but someone accidentally coughed afterwards.

These people should also be from Sickness Village, coming out to the wilderness to find some food.

For Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei, driving an RV through there, they were like dangerous, ferocious beasts, encountering them meant certain death.

The car shook as it drove through, the leaves on both sides rustling in the wind, seemingly drowning out any sounds from the woods.

Lu Xi'an figured that this "rustle" covered all other noises and ignored the people hiding in the wilderness who didn't dare move, instructing Yao Wei to keep driving forward.

He joked with Yao Wei: "For once, we are being regarded as the bad guys."

But despite joking, he remained vigilant, clutching a small stone in his hand.

Yao Wei said: "If we didn't speak earlier, that Gou would also have thought us bad guys."

"True..."

Lu Xi'an replied.

He knew full well that for some people, no matter how much they communicated or lowered their stance, those people wouldn't see them as good people.

——Just like the people they met when they first entered Pingchuan City.

But Lu Xi'an didn't actually care much. As long as Yao Wei sees him as a good person, that's enough, well... also Chai Xin, Luo Ping, and those from the 923 Institute.

Prejudice in people's hearts is like a mountain, and moving mountains often requires the spirit of Yu Gong.

But moving a mountain is too exhausting, and Lu Xi'an didn't want to endure that.

He glanced back, and the forest behind was calm and seemingly lifeless.

Before the RV was far enough away, they probably didn't dare move at all.

Ordinary people seeing Neo-Humans are like mice seeing cats.

——Among these people, there naturally wouldn't be any Neo-Humans.

Lu Xi'an even checked the map on the Resonant Gene Scanner to confirm.

But upon confirming, he was slightly startled.

On the east side of the map, a red dot had reappeared.

The red dot was moving westward along the river, not at the speed of a Type A Neo-Human running, but it wasn't slow either, reminding Lu Xi'an suddenly of the Fish Rider in Jianshan City.

For this reason, the red dot was able to re-enter the Resonant Gene Scanner's map.

——It should still be that red dot, at least judging by the direction and the movement route on the map, it should be.

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