Lin Feng gave the gun in his hand a light shake, and its detailed stats were instantly displayed:

「Blast Gun LV 10/19, Red Quality」

「Upgrade Points 1/2, Damage 50, Effective Range 2 km, Remaining Bullets 100/100」

「Extra Attributes: Bullet Recovery 1/hr, Spatial Magazine 100 reserve ammo」

「Note: Can switch to Level 9 Divine-level Pistol. Normal bullets are infinite. Will automatically switch when Blast Gun ammo is depleted.」

「Evaluation: This is a repeating hand cannon with a caliber of over 20mm. Its bullets have an explosive effect, creating a one-meter-diameter blast radius on target to destroy heavy armor. Killing a target of the same tier grants Upgrade Points.」

As expected, after the Tier Jumping Upgrade to Red Quality, it was a night-and-day difference. The little pistol had become a hand cannon—a miniature, repeating grenade launcher.

Unfortunately, the reserve ammo was only one hundred rounds. By his calculations, even if every explosive round hit its mark, he could only take out thirty-three Black Spine Zergs of Level 13 or lower.

But this was only the Early Stage of Level 10. Lin Feng was confident that with subsequent upgrades, not only would its power increase exponentially, but its ammo capacity would also shoot up.

Upgrades past Level 10 were no longer based on damage dealt but explicitly required killing targets of the same tier. Just like the strengthening process for ordinary people, progress would be slower.

Lin Feng wasn’t too concerned about this. As long as he could break through the thick armor of the Black Spine Zergs, upgrading would be a breeze.

What Lin Feng hadn’t expected was that he could still switch back to the Divine-level Pistol mode after the upgrade. With its unlimited normal bullets, it solved his shortage of Light Weapons.

Otherwise, he would have had to find another ordinary pistol and start upgrading it from scratch.

After completing the weapon’s Tier Jumping Upgrade, Lin Feng didn’t immediately start his own. Having just arrived, he was unfamiliar with the rules here; it was safer to understand things first.

If his own Tier Jumping Upgrade took a lot of time or left him unable to fight, Lin Feng would need to prepare in advance—for example, by having Chen Yanyan guard him.

Lin Feng put away the unassuming pistol and retracted his Shield Armor, trying his best not to draw attention.

Seeing this, Chen Yanyan pressed a button on her side, and her Red Silver Shield Armor also retracted, converting into its Back Armor form.

Just then, Zhang Xuan and the others who had been chasing them, along with the school bus that had narrowly escaped death, arrived one after another.

Qin Hu got out and walked over directly. Since the road ahead was blocked, everyone else got out to see what was going on.

Lin Feng climbed the ladder on the back of the RV to the roof. Gazing into the distance, he couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath. The line of cars in the traffic jam was endless, stretching for more than a dozen miles.

Not only was their side of the road completely blocked, but the oncoming lanes were also choked solid with fleeing vehicles.

He had often heard on the news about the great migration before the New Year, where people would be stuck on the road for half a day. When the weather was bad, they’d be cold and hungry, forced to eat dry instant noodles.

But now, all the residents of every coastal city were migrating inland. With planes grounded and some train services suspended, the only means of transport left were vehicles, so the congestion was bound to be even worse.

At this rate, there was no telling when the traffic would start moving.

Qin Hu went up to a group of soldiers, flashed his ID, and after confirming his identity, asked a few questions. The joy of having survived their ordeal gradually turned heavy.

The soldiers who received the news were equally shocked. After a brief exchange, they hurriedly left.

Qin Hu returned and explained to the group:

"We drove too fast and too far. This isn’t where the rescue forces are; it’s just fleeing civilians. We’re currently thirty kilometers from the edge of the Zerg Race army’s activity. We should be safe for at least half a month."

Lin Feng jumped down from the RV roof and asked:

"So the Federation’s rescue forces are still tied up with the Zerg Race’s Soldier Zerg Swarm in the Hai City North District?"

Qin Hu nodded. They had driven too fast.

Or rather, in Lin Feng’s desperate, reckless driving, they had lost their way and driven over fifty kilometers in one go, ending up deep in the rear.

Lin Feng’s brow furrowed slightly.

’So that means the giant Zerg Race Mother Empress I saw in the south of the city is a new one...’

As he thought this, Lin Feng suddenly had a realization.

’It appeared in the southern suburbs, more than ten kilometers deeper than the northern battlefront... Are the Zerg Race trying to flank the Federation Army and annihilate them in one fell swoop?!’

Qin Hu looked at the young man before him with some surprise. He hadn’t expected him to be so quick-witted, or that he would know those giant land-based mother bugs were called Mother Empresses.

He himself had just learned this official new designation from the soldiers maintaining order here.

’Then again, considering his close relationship with those important researchers who were evacuated by helicopter, it makes sense,’ Qin Hu thought.

"That’s right. The staff department isn’t aware of this yet, and the army in the North District is completely in the dark..."

"It’s a good thing we got here quickly and passed on the information. It should buy them more time to retreat."

After speaking, Qin Hu looked at Lin Feng and Liu Yueqi.

"Right now, the Federation Army is in dire need of soldiers, and they welcome Enhanced People who have killed Zergs. As for a powerful Awakener like Mr. Lin, the benefits are extremely generous."

"If you’re considering it, you can ask at the recruitment office."

"I have to go report back. Everyone, have a safe trip."

With that, Qin Hu took out his phone and took a few group photos with everyone as proof of mission completion.

Then he followed a soldier and left.

Watching his retreating back, the group’s relief was short-lived. Staring at the endless line of cars, they were once again plunged into deep worry.

At that moment, the phones on everyone started ringing.

It turned out the power hadn’t been cut here, and the signal was restored.

Lin Feng took out his phone. There were dozens of missed calls, most from Sister-in-law Yurou, and some from Ding Fatty.

’Looks like they also made it to the rear safely.’

To his surprise, his mother’s apprentice, He Jie, had also called once.

Lin Feng called his sister-in-law first. The call connected in seconds.

"Hey, Sister Yurou, we escaped safely." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

A familiar voice came from the other end, Zhang Yurou responding with palpable relief:

"Good, as long as you’ve arrived. Even if you have to walk the rest of the way, you can make it."

"My dad was reassigned as the director of the Wugang Steel Plant, so they sent me directly to Steel City. It’s still quite far from you, Xiaofeng."

Lin Feng nodded. Steel City was located at the junction of the plains and the plateau. In ancient times, it was also Wulao Pass, a vital strategic point connecting the lands inside and outside the pass. From ancient to modern times, its geographical location had always been crucial.

In the modern era, large mineral deposits were discovered there, and its proximity to the coal mines of the Northern Lands led to the establishment of the Federation’s largest metallurgical production base.

With Zhang Yurou’s father being reassigned there now, his power and status were naturally different from before, especially in wartime, making his position even more prominent and important.

In that case, he didn’t need to worry about his sister-in-law’s safety.

But Lin Feng knew that returning to the monotony of a safe zone in the rear was not the life he wanted.

Even with his sister-in-law looking after him, Lin Feng would feel completely out of place. From the moment he quit his job, compromise and resignation were no longer in his vocabulary.

Moreover, Lin Feng would never cast aside his dignity to survive by relying on a woman. His abilities could only shine on the battlefield; he wasn’t the type to get stronger by mooching off someone.

Especially since his own upgrades depended on his bound offensive weapon. A safe rear area wouldn’t have enough Zergs for him to farm levels like crazy.

On the other end of the line, Zhang Yurou keenly sensed Lin Feng’s brief silence and offered words of comfort:

"It’s okay, Xiaofeng. I’ll wait for you in Steel City."

"When things aren’t so busy in a couple of days, I’ll ask my dad to get you a plane ticket back here..."

Lin Feng gently shook his head, his tone firm.

"No, I wouldn’t be much help back there."

"I can grow much faster here."

"Sister Yurou, six months. Wait for me for six months!"

"In half a year, I will definitely come to Steel City to find you myself!"

Zhang Yurou was stunned for a moment, then replied seriously:

"Okay. Don’t rush, Xiaofeng. Never mind half a year, I can wait two or three years, even ten..."

"You must promise me you’ll stay safe."

"You must come back to me, alive."

Lin Feng hummed in agreement, then spoke with a smile to lighten the mood:

"Don’t worry, Sister Yurou. It won’t take that long. My name will definitely become a household name throughout the Federation, maybe even known across the world!"

"We will definitely win this war! When that time comes, you can point at the TV and say, that’s the great hero who saved the world, the savior!"

Zhang Yurou was amused by Lin Feng and let out a little laugh.

"Alright, alright, my great hero. You should get some rest first. I’ll be waiting for your good news. Remember to call back."

After hanging up, Lin Feng called Ding Chenghai back. After a sigh of relief, he told Lin Feng to come by the Field Research Department to catch up and test some new weapons when he had time.

Lin Feng gave a few perfunctory replies and asked if there was anything to watch out for with the Tier Jumping Upgrade after nine enhancements. The other party said he would send over a research report.

Finally, Ding Fatty told him that he should let He Jie know he was alive, to score some points with her.

Ding Chenghai said thanks and hung up.

Putting his phone down, Lin Feng saw that the other survivors in their group were all on their phones, calling family or relatives to report their safety.

There were also some locals from Hai City who were the sole survivors of their families. They stared blankly at the fleeing crowd ahead, their expressions dazed and lost.

With Hai City fallen, they had naturally lost everything.

Besides Sister-in-law Yurou, it seemed Lin Feng was the same—alone, with no strings attached.

Chen Yanyan walked over and handed Lin Feng a bottle of eighty-yuan Snow Mountain natural mineral water.

There was nothing cheap in that villa.

"Your family is in the Northwest, right? Have you contacted them?"

Chen Yanyan opened a can of strawberry soda for herself and looked at the bustling traffic jam in the distance.

"I have. Sister Yurou promised to take care of them."

Lin Feng nodded, noticing a group of shirtless, tattooed men in the convoy ahead glancing over at them from time to time.

They were eyeing their group of newcomers.

So, while drinking his water, Lin Feng casually lifted the hem of his shirt, revealing the pistol in the holster on his waist.

The men saw it, took the hint, and walked away.

"Move it! Move it! No cutting in line!"

Just then, a yellow road-rescue pickup truck appeared on the emergency lane.

However, it had been commandeered by the warzone’s public security bureau. A staff member from the recruitment office was holding a megaphone, broadcasting to the stream of cars:

"Urgent notice! Urgent notice!"

"We need to recruit a batch of new soldiers for an urgent mission! Priority for those who have killed giant insects! Priority for Enhanced People! Join now and get one week’s rations and 50 liters of gasoline!"

"If you are a Superpower Awakener, report to the recruitment office now! There are even better benefits for you!"

Lin Feng put down his water bottle, feeling a gaze on him.

He turned his head. The high school girl, Liu Yueqi, was staring at him, a look of eagerness on her face.