Chapter 374 - 179: Encounter

Chapter 374: Chapter 179: Encounter

An SUV was tearing across the desolate wilderness.

The wheels rolled over the pitted, uneven ground, kicking up clouds of dust. The withered yellow grass bent and broke under the tires, sending a long trail of dirt billowing up behind the vehicle.

A little over a hundred meters behind the SUV, a monster was in hot pursuit.

It was a massive monster, standing a full two meters tall and over three meters long. Its body was covered in grayish-brown scales, but its most striking feature was the row of protruding bone spikes that ran from its neck all the way to its tail, bobbing up and down as it ran.

It was incredibly fast, and the distance between it and the SUV had already shrunk to less than a hundred meters.

In the passenger seat, a man leaned halfway out the window. He held an old rifle in both hands, the muzzle aimed at the pursuing monster behind them, and repeatedly pulled the trigger.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Gunshots echoed across the wilderness, but the SUV was bucking too violently, constantly bouncing up and down and swaying from side to side. The man’s body lurched with the motion, making it impossible to get a steady aim. The bullets flew wide, not even coming close to the monster.

"Bingbing, try to drive a little steadier!"

After failing to hit the monster with several shots, the man pulled himself back into the passenger seat, shouting as he reloaded his magazine. His voice was laced with anxiety, and his forehead was slick with sweat.

The woman at the wheel didn’t even turn her head. Her hands were locked in a death grip on the steering wheel, her eyes glued to the path ahead. Her face was also covered in sweat, and the wind whipped her hair into a tangled mess, but her gaze remained intensely focused on the road.

"How am I supposed to keep it steady on a road this bad!" the woman shot back, her voice sharp with irritation. "You wanna drive?!"

The words had barely left her mouth when the SUV ran over a large rock. The entire vehicle jumped violently into the air before slamming back down. The man in the passenger seat was nearly thrown from the vehicle, saved only by his seatbelt.

"Slow down!"

"Slow down and we’re dead!"

As they argued, the SUV’s jostling only grew more violent.

The man’s name was Zhong, and the woman driving was Bingbing. They were both members of a nearby survivor settlement. They were supposed to be on a supply run with their team today, but things had gone horribly wrong.

Zhong finished reloading and glanced at the rearview mirror again.

The monster was still in pursuit, now only about seventy or eighty meters away. He could even make out the sharp teeth in its mouth.

"Shit, how can this thing be so fast," Zhong cursed.

Bingbing didn’t answer. She was busy maneuvering around a pile of scree up ahead. The SUV carved an arc around the edge of the pile; its tires skidded for a moment before finding purchase again.

"How many bullets do you have left?" Bingbing asked.

Zhong patted the ammo pouch on his belt. "Three mags left. Fifteen rounds."

"Is that enough?"

"Like hell it is," Zhong said with a bitter laugh. "I just fired a bunch of rounds and didn’t hit a thing. The way this damn car is bouncing, a god couldn’t make this shot."

Bingbing was silent for a moment. "Then make them count. Wait until it’s closer to shoot."

"Closer? Any closer and it’ll be chewing on our bumper."

"Then do you have a better idea?"

Zhong didn’t answer. He really didn’t have one.

They were both silent for a few seconds. The only sounds were the roar of the engine and the grinding of the wheels against the earth.

"Do you think... Old Zhang and the others got away?" Zhong suddenly asked.

Bingbing’s expression darkened. Old Zhang was their teammate, and also the only Superpower User on their squad. When they first encountered the monster, he had been the first to charge forward, trying to buy the others time to escape. But the monster was too powerful. He had barely reached it before it swatted him aside with a single claw, and he hadn’t moved since.

The rest of them had scattered and fled. One monster had gone after the other teammates, while this one had been chasing their vehicle relentlessly.

"I don’t know," Bingbing said. "Let’s hope they made it."

Zhong fell silent.

He glanced at the rearview mirror again. The monster was closer now. Instead of slowing, it seemed to be getting even faster. Its blood-red eyes were locked onto the SUV, and a low growl rumbled from its throat.

Zhong took a deep breath, once again leaning halfway out the window to aim at the monster behind them.

But the SUV was still bucking, and his sights kept wavering. He struggled to steady his arms, trying to anticipate the rhythm of the vehicle’s jolts.

BANG!

Another shot.

The bullet went wide.

BANG!

Another miss.

Zhong gritted his teeth and kept firing.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Three quick shots, all of them misses.

The monster was even closer now, only about fifty meters away. Zhong could make out the patterns on its scales and even the saliva dripping from its maw.

"Fuck!" Zhong cursed, ducking back inside to quickly swap magazines.

His hands were trembling. He knew if he didn’t score a hit soon, the monster would catch them in a minute or two at most. Then he and his teammate would both be dead.

"Bingbing..." Zhong began, wanting to say something.

But just then, they both heard a strange humming sound coming from the distance.

It was a strange sound, like the whirring of some kind of machine, but not exactly. It was a low, continuous drone.

"What’s that sound?" Zhong froze for a second, looking all around.

The surrounding area was just endless wilderness; there was nothing in sight. ’Where is that sound coming from?’

Bingbing had heard it too. Her eyes scanned the horizon, but she couldn’t see anything either.

"Is something coming?" she asked.

Zhong shook his head. "I don’t know, but it doesn’t sound like it’s coming from the ground..."