Embers Ad Infinitum

Chapter 721: Rest Stop

Translator: CKtalon

“There’re boats.” As the team sniper and a human who had undergone the corresponding genetic modification, Bai Chen’s ability to carry out long-distance recon was only inferior to Genava’s.

Jiang Baimian removed the binoculars from her belt and brought them in front of her eyes. Shang Jianyao did the same thing.

The two of them quickly saw the black dots Bai Chen was referring to. There were indeed boats—boats made of steel, albeit crudely.

There were many humans on each boat. Some clearly had intact legs, but they could only crawl on the deck and cast their fishing net in different directions. Some had pointy heads, and they wobbled as they carried out simple jobs. Some had additional limbs and were busy steering the boats.

For a team like the Old Task Force—which had seen and experienced much in the Ashlands—the characteristics of those humans were so obvious that they could be recognized at a glance.

Deformers!

They were similar to Subhumans; it was a tragedy caused by all kinds of pollution. Deformers had it worse because the changes in their bodies were basically useless. Furthermore, they were all different, making it difficult for them to form a stable race.

They were like disabled humans. In the Ashlands where many people starved to death every year, it was very difficult to find a place that was willing to accept them. They could only wait to be eliminated by nature like some creatures in the theory of evolution.

The former Salvation Army treated everyone equally and didn’t give up on them. However, they later stopped accepting new ones due to limited food.

To this day, such people were no longer seen other than in some areas with severe radiation pollution.

“I didn’t expect there to be many Deformers living in this lake.” Jiang Baimian sighed with emotion as she observed. “They seem to live off fishing.”

Shang Jianyao held the binoculars in one hand and stroked his chin with the other. “The problem is: where do their boats get their oil?”

It was entirely possible that some of these Deformers could read Old World books and were self-taught, thereby having the skills to repair and maintain those boats. However, humans couldn’t produce gasoline by merely rubbing their bare hands.

“There should be many islands in such a large lake. Maybe one or more islands have an oil depot built and have a lot of reserves,” Jiang Baimian casually said. “It’s also possible that caravans come here regularly and exchange fuel for specialties.”

She lowered the binoculars and latched them back on her belt. She then looked around and said, “Let’s continue forward for a while longer and not disturb these pitiful people.”

This was one reason. The other reason was that the fish in this large lake had succumbed to pollution and had severely mutated. Even if the Old Task Force stayed behind, they wouldn’t dare to taste the local delights to reduce the expenditure of supplies.

Long Yuehong and the others naturally had no objections.

The Old Task Force’s jeep followed the road by the lake that alternated between good and bad. After driving north for nearly an hour, they accidentally discovered a rest spot with a gas station beside a wide Old World road.

The building at this rest stop was well-maintained. Light even shone from the windows, dispelling the evening’s gloom.

In the Old World, such rest stops definitely had a sizable parking lot. This place was no exception. About five cars sparsely filled up the otherwise empty car park.

“Why does it feel like we’re back in the Salvation Army’s hinterlands?” Long Yuehong—whose turn was to drive—said in surprise.

Jiang Baimian—who had always been empathetic—was already sitting in the backseat. She looked out the window and said, “It even resembles some scenes presented in Old World entertainment.”

To encounter a rest spot with a gas station, a parking lot, a rest area, and all kinds of food and merchandise for sale after driving a long stretch of the highway…

Bai Chen pointed to the other side of the passenger seat. “This place seems to belong to the Salvation Army.”

“Is that so?” Jiang Baimian didn’t attempt to cross over Genava and Shang Jianyao to observe the situation on the other side. Instead, she patiently waited for Long Yuehong to turn the steering wheel. She then saw four people in the Salvation Army’s black uniforms in pairs, patrolling the rest stop’s entrance and parking lot.

These people either carried Red Maple assault rifles produced by the Salvation Army or the relatively common Short Neck submachine gun in the Ashlands. From their bearing, they did look like soldiers who had undergone formal military training and not bandits that lorded over an area.

“Isn’t it said that the Salvation Army doesn’t actually control Icefield?” Long Yuehong asked in confusion.

In other words, the Salvation Army only sent people to Icefield every summer to search for supplies and hunt wild animals. They didn’t establish long-term settlements.

Shang Jianyao scoffed. “There are exceptions to everything, just like how you’re only 1.75 meters tall after genetic enhancement…”

“We’ll know when we ask later.” Bai Chen interrupted Shang Jianyao’s recital.

After the Old Task Force parked the jeep, they left Genava behind to guard the vehicle due to their unfamiliarity with this rest stop.

Shang Jianyao went straight to a team of patrolling soldiers and was about to press his hand to his chest and shout, “For all of humanity.” However, one of the targets first pointed at the terrace houses in the rest stop with his elbow.

“Leave the questions for inside.”

He meant: Don’t interfere with my patrol or distract the guards.

“Alright.” Shang Jianyao was still rather polite when facing the Salvation Army.

After entering the house, Jiang Baimian and the others’ eyes lit up.

Amidst the whirring of the fuel generator, the energy-saving lamps emitted a white glow that illuminated the neatly arranged dining tables.

These were all four-person tables, but some were pieced together, with seven to eight people sitting around them.

Near the lobby door was a counter. Behind it stood an ordinary Ashlandic man—who wasn’t tall but relatively wide in stature. He also wore the Salvation Army’s black uniform and had a Ubei 7 at his waist.

“Do you want to see our pass?” Shang Jianyao asked casually.

The man was stunned for a moment. “If you have one.”

Jiang Baimian immediately handed over the pass that Hong Guangming had given them.

The ordinary-looking man reached out to take it and casually glanced at it. “This pass isn’t applicable for smart bots. When the corresponding four people enter settlements, they are prohibited from bringing heavy weapons, high-tech equipment, or crates.”

Uh… The man looked up and looked at Jiang Baimian and the others in surprise and solemnity.

He interpreted the two lines attached to the pass from another angle: The team opposite them really had smart bots, heavy weapons, and high-tech equipment, not devices.

“We didn’t bring anything, nor are we carrying crates.” Jiang Baimian smiled.

Compared to people of Red River ethnicity, her looks matched the preferences of Ashlandics. The man was stunned for a moment before saying, “If you meet the pass’s requirements, you can enter Beian Lake’s rest stop.”

“Are you really from the Salvation Army?” Long Yuehong asked curiously.

The man nodded, stretched out his right hand, and pressed down on his left chest. “Yes, but it doesn’t mean much to you guys. Does it mean that you guys aren’t allowed to rest here tonight and replenish your fuel and other supplies just because we aren’t from the Salvation Army?”

“There’s also a difference between being civilized and not when it comes to replenishing,” Bai Chen replied simply.

Uncivilized meant entering guns blazing.

The man was speechless. After a few seconds, he smiled and said, “You can give it a try.”

He looked confident.

“Is that so?” Shang Jianyao was eager to give it a try.

Jiang Baimian took a diagonal step forward and blocked him behind her. She smiled and said, “We’re just confused about why there’s a Salvation Army rest stop in Icefield. Oh right, how should I address you?”

The man muttered, “Chang Haijiang.”

He paused and said, “Our Salvation Army has also rebuilt many similar rest stops in Icefield. They are mainly to facilitate the resting and replenishment of our teams that come and go. Don’t tell me you think our Salvation Army only sends people to Icefield during summer?”

That’s indeed what we believed… Long Yuehong suddenly felt a little embarrassed.

Chang Haijiang pointed north. “Simply put, we established several weather observation and research stations in Icefield. People are stationed there all year round. Icefield’s climate change indirectly affects our harvests in the northern territories of the Salvation Army.”

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Shang Jianyao clapped

Jiang Baimian’s heart palpitated as she took off her tactical backpack, found a photo, and handed it to Chang Haijiang. “Have you seen this person?”

In the photo was Ding Ling’s husband, Ji Qiang.

Although Ding Ling didn’t have any additional photos, the Old Task Force had Genava. They had completed the scan back then and gathered the electronic data. After returning to Ubei, they relied on negotiables to find a specialized shop to print out the photo.

Chang Haijiang held the photo and examined it for a while. “Never seen him. What does he do?”

“Research. He’s also from your Salvation Army. He came to Icefield two years ago and never returned,” Jiang Baimian explained simply. “We were commissioned by his family to come to Icefield to find him.”

“Two years?” Chang Haijiang’s eyebrows twitched. “His unit didn’t issue a KIA notice?”

“I’m not too sure about that. Maybe the family member isn’t willing to accept it and doesn’t want to give up,” Jiang Baimian said.

Chang Haijiang accepted this explanation and nodded. “Yes, it’s a habit among Ashlandics. We want to see the body whether dead or alive.”

He looked at the photo carefully for a while. “I don’t have any impression of him.”

Just as Shang Jianyao sighed, Chang Haijiang changed the topic. “But two years ago, a strange group of people passed by. They didn’t enter the rest stop; they only sent three people in to replenish their fuel and supplies and bought a batch of cooked food. They seemed to be very wary of us for some unknown reason.. We’re all from the Salvation Army. Was there a need?”