Chapter 785 - 656: Hong the Fourth and His Staff Technique

"Look, Old Hong, zombies and humans are not the same species anymore. Can a human withstand fire like that?"

Duan Wuhu continued to babble away beside him, somewhat like Tang Monk chanting scriptures. He was worried Old Hong would take it too hard.

As the zombie’s body was gradually engulfed by flames, condensed into a mass of material, the heavy weight pressing on Old Hong’s heart began to loosen.

Zhao Dezhu walked up to Old Hong, handed him a cigarette, and asked, "Fellow villager, does our village have any food?"

Old Hong looked at Zhao Dezhu with reddened eyes, then nodded slightly.

An hour later, at eight-thirty in the morning.

Vehicles began to steadily drive out of Red Gully Village, from the original four, becoming eight. Besides Old Hong and Zhao Dezhu, who insisted on not driving, everyone had a car of their own!

The extra cars were filled with nothing but food!

After Zhao Dezhu asked Old Hong, Old Hong led a few people to find the warehouse. During his time in the village, he never idled. Day after day, he collected food, practiced martial arts, and at night, chatted with "friends and family"...

Forget about four cars. Even if another four cars came, they probably wouldn’t be able to load all the remaining stock.

Howling...

On the cliffs of Cloud Dragon Valley, a tall zombie watched the convoy leave, then immediately prepared to jump off the cliff, but hesitated for a moment, choosing to climb down along the mountainside. With over-knee long arms plus a pair of long legs, its speed was very quick!

"Brother Hong, what’s your full name? I don’t know it yet."

Duan Wuhu continued heading towards Mountain and Sea District with Old Hong. The closer they got to the district, the cleaner the roads seemed. At least they didn’t have to get out to clear the way, but the car speed couldn’t pick up, mostly staying around twenty kilometers an hour.

Old Hong leaned against the cold car window, a patch of mist forming in front of his mouth. Upon hearing the question, he responded, "My real name hasn’t been called in ages. In the family, I’m ranked fourth, so everyone calls me Hong the Fourth."

Through the rearview mirror, taking one last look at the dilapidated Red Gully Village, Hong the Fourth’s mood seemed to open up a bit, and he spoke a little more.

"Tsk..."

Duan Wuhu smacked his lips. Asking was no different than not asking. He chuckled, "Then I’ll call you Brother Hong. To be honest, I can’t really tell your age. Is it convenient to share?"

Hong the Fourth hesitated for a moment, seemingly calculating his age, then said, "I think it’s fifty-two, should be. How about you?"

"Me?" Duan Wuhu was stunned for a moment. He didn’t expect the other to ask back, equating curiosity with the will to survive. Being interested in things around means there’s motivation to carry on.

"I’m much younger than you, just turned thirty-six this year. Haha, it’s my zodiac year, sigh, they say during your zodiac year you have to be extra careful. In this catastrophe, what good does caution do..."

Duan Wuhu said with a bitter smile as he shook his head, and then continued, "Brother Hong, honestly, your skills are really impressive. And you’re over fifty, still very strong physically. What did you do before?"

Recalling the combat with the zombies, Hong the Fourth managed precise strikes to their weak spots without displaying killer moves. His use of weapons and control of force were impeccable!

Hong the Fourth felt the warmth of the car’s air conditioner, removed his hat, and gestured towards the wilds by the roadside, saying, "I was a shepherd before. Skills... sigh."

Speaking of skills, Hong the Fourth’s mood suddenly dropped. He pulled out a plastic bag from his tattered cotton coat, opened it, and unwrapped the leather paper inside, revealing a worn-out book.

"My dad used to say whoever wants to be a shepherd gets the family heirloom—Hong Family Staff Technique. My two sisters and big brother weren’t interested, my little brother was just three, I was in fifth grade at school, and since I didn’t want to study, I took over the shepherd stick and this staff book."

Reminiscing about distant memories, a flash of light appeared in Hong the Fourth’s eyes. All along he felt life was hard, yet never imagined one day he would yearn for tougher times, because now it’s even worse!

"Oh my! An inherited martial arts family? Seems Mr. Hong was quite the martial arts master back then, admiration!"

Duan Wuhu expressed sincere admiration. His generation was most influenced by martial arts novels, with almost everyone harboring martial arts dreams in their youth. Didn’t expect to meet a martial arts figure after the disaster.

However, Hong the Fourth’s next words doused Duan Wuhu’s fantasy.

"My dad took over the shepherd stick and staff manual from my grandpa, but he only herded sheep, just a shepherd, probably never flipped through this book, then by family rule passed it on to me."

Hong the Fourth spoke desolately of the previous generations, his words full of reminiscence, yet it all seemed a bit laughably trivial.

"Brother Hong, say no more. Last night, seeing you handle the zombies, your skills definitely have achieved something. This staff technique is undoubtedly a genuine martial arts classic!"

Duan Wuhu looked at the worn-out book in Hong the Fourth’s arms with some envy.

Unexpectedly, Hong the Fourth was very generous, directly placed the nearly falling apart Hong Family Staff Technique on the car’s central console.

"If you’re willing to learn, take it to study. I have no one to pass it on to anyway. If more people learn it, it’s better than letting it rot in the soil!"

Hong the Fourth, being a person of the new era, had a more open mind and was willing to let the family tradition shine.

Duan Wuhu was somewhat surprised, not expecting such generosity from the other. As the warm air from the vent blew over the pages, he quickly placed it on the central armrest, lest the fragile paper get damaged.

"Brother Hong, you haven’t started a family?"

"You’re probably asking about kids, right? Yes, my eldest daughter married in nearby Qita Village, and only eight people from the whole village escaped, not including my daughter. My youngest son... my youngest son also passed away that morning."

Hong the Fourth’s thick, messy eyebrows trembled slightly. He pulled out a wrinkled cigarette and lit it.

"Sigh, in these times, no need to say anything more!" Duan Wuhu shook his head, then gently patted the book of Hong Family Staff Technique and asked, "How many years have you been practicing to have such skills?"

Hong the Fourth showed a puzzled expression, saying, "Since getting the book, I started practicing. At first, not seriously. If focused, it should be from age sixteen. Maybe I’m too stupid, only able to mimic step by step, each move alone looks full of rhythm, but can’t connect them."

Recently... probably the departure of loved ones and friends had a significant impact on me. My mind opened up, the moves connected, truly making rapid progress in the past three or four months. I don’t know if the years of practice before were useful or not..."

Hong the Fourth clutched his calloused hands, his face filled with confusion.

Zhang Su and Yuwen’s speculation on human evolution was not shared with others. Perhaps some already had similar thoughts, but Duan Wuhu did not. He earnestly remarked, "Brother Hong, that’s gradual accumulation, the years of training surely helped. Slow accumulation, once erupted, you’d gain remarkable achievement!"

Hong the Fourth nodded slightly, not denying Duan Wuhu’s guess, because he didn’t understand either.

"Brother Hong, keep this book safe first. Once we reach the camp, hand it to our leader. If it boosts everyone’s abilities, the leader will reward you. I can’t take credit for this!"

Duan Wuhu was quite considerate. Hong the Fourth had suffered enough, hoping he could rely on his skills for a better life.

Yet Hong the Fourth didn’t think much of it, waved his hand, "Younger Brother Duan, all these are external matters, I don’t care."

"Hey, that’s not how to put it, Brother Hong. You’re still young. By then, hmm? Quick, quick, put the book away, seems like something’s happening ahead!"

In conversation, Duan Wuhu noticed zombies gathering far ahead, not too many, about thirty or so, extending from the road to the edge of the roadside fields. Each of them lay prostrate, actually feasting!