The Alien's slender tail whipped across a zombie like a steel lash, instantly bursting its head.
After Little Black cleared the remaining scattered zombies on the third floor of the mall, it even courteously stood on its hind legs and used its claws to help Tao Yu open the doors of the shops ahead.
Meanwhile, Tao Yu was stocking up like a shopper on a spree, his backpack bulging on his back.
Besides himself, Cao Shaolin, who hopped along behind him, also carried a large pack, as did the Alien, Little Black.
"Zero-cost shopping can be addictive."
Tao Yu began to pick and choose as he entered the store.
The shops he selected were mostly still in order.
Even though a few months had passed and gathered some dust, it wasn't too much.
At this moment, Tao Yu had changed out of his combat suit with burn marks to a set of climbing gear, while Cao Shaolin trailing bouncily behind was now wearing a loose set of sportswear, complete with an eyepatch over one eye.
Beyond that, they also packed a good amount of daily necessities, like toothpaste and toothbrushes, among other miscellaneous items.
After returning to the settlement, he planned to add some items to his family's home supplies.
"That should be about enough."
After picking out a set for his mother and sister-in-law, Tao Yu stuffed everything into his backpack.
Then, looking at Cao Shaolin with an eyepatch covering his face, he felt somewhat regretful.
Zombies could shadow-fuse and blend into shadows, but only their carried personal equipment would merge, while anything like a backpack would fall off.
Traveling between the Abyss and the real world, one could bring 'followers,' but the requirements were strict.
One must achieve 'complete control' to travel back and forth, and there was only one spot allowed, with size limits too; huge beasts couldn't be taken, and if there were multiple, one would have to bring them back in separate trips.
'Complete control' essentially meant that if ordered to commit suicide, the 'follower' would comply immediately.
Furthermore, if one couldn't meet this requirement and any changes occurred, even if the 'follower' had been brought back, it could not be taken again.
Currently, even Little Black had not met this criterion, but Cao Shaolin did.
However, Tao Yu usually stashed Cao Shaolin into his shadow, which likely wouldn't take up the spot, nor did he wish to reveal him carelessly.
Now, letting him out was more about getting accustomed to control and, incidentally, to have him carry some things.
"Las Vegas is the only oasis nearby, forty kilometers to the southeast is Hoover Dam, they can even supply electricity, but these are still a bit too far from the military base, so what is most needed now..."
Tao Yu did not consider himself to be exceptionally intelligent. Apart from being fortunate, he felt that his worldly experience from his past life simply gave him a little more knowledge than the Outsiders.
Essentially, he still considered himself an honest, simple, hardworking, and loyal person from the outskirts.
Slap, slap~
With two whip-like lashes of its tail and a couple of slaps with its upright stance, Alien Little Black cleared the zombies that had wandered to the entrance, and Tao Yu stepped out of the shopping mall's main door.
A dozen meters outside the door, there were still some zombies wandering around.
But Little Black, already familiar with the habits of zombies, was very cautious and made no noise.
Upon reaching the door, Tao Yu took the backpack from Cao Shaolin and hung it on Little Black's tail.
As Yuan Force flowed in, the black tendrils that emerged from Cao Shaolin's mouth, nose, and armpits merged back into Tao Yu's shadow the next moment.
Then, one man and one Alien started heading to a nearby alley and climbed upwards.
The most convenient way to avoid the zombie horde was still through the rooftops.
After a few leaps, they arrived at an area where zombies were not densely packed.
There, a black Jeep Wrangler was parked.
Beside the Wrangler lay the bodies of a dozen zombies, which Tao Yu had found for temporary transport.
"I remember the West City Trio, those three guys, seemed to have found a good spot, which is why they were looking for cannon fodder..."
Tao Yu climbed into the vehicle, let Little Black into the spacious backseat, and threw the backpack onto the seat.
The initial rift between the West City Trio and Jack was over using some native cannon fodder to lure away zombies from a gas station.
It seemed there were some trucks used for hauling goods there.
Since he didn't know how to pick goods, it made sense to just take what was already loaded, saving time on both procurement and loading...
With the Skill "Riding" at his disposal, Tao Yu stepped on the gas pedal, immediately roaring off in the general direction.
The gas station should still be quite visible...
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