Road Survival, I Have a Hint System!

"How is it so fast?" Zhang Tuohai was startled by the speed of the approaching cloud wall.

The cloud wall was moving at a speed of at least 40 miles per hour and would likely reach him in less than ten minutes.

Knowing the dangers of the toxic zone, Zhang Tuohai didn't dare waste any time and rushed toward the iron bridge.

As he approached the bridge, he saw two cars parked diagonally at the entrance, blocking his path. Four people were gathered around them.

These people were all wearing the same uniform, which had the same design and some flamboyant letters that Zhang Tuohai couldn’t decipher.

Each person was holding weapons like spears or baseball bats, looking menacing.

Seeing Zhang Tuohai approach, they perked up and surrounded him.

One of them, holding a baseball bat, knocked on Zhang Tuohai's car window. "Hey, kid, get out. Nice car you got there, now pay the toll."

"What did you say?" Zhang Tuohai rolled down the window and pointed his Remington shotgun at the man's chest.

"No toll, but I do have a 12-gauge shell. Want one?"

Seeing the shotgun aimed at his face, the man who had knocked on the window froze.

He had just wanted to make a little money by stopping cars, but he didn’t expect to provoke a tiger.

"Brother, it’s a misunderstanding. Really, just a misunderstanding. You’re free to go. We'll move the cars right away." The man said as he backed away, hoping to de-escalate.

The other three, seeing the shotgun, turned pale and began inching backward, looking for a chance to escape.

Bang! Zhang Tuohai fired a shot into the air.

"Stay right there! Squat over there." Zhang Tuohai pointed his gun at the group and herded them about ten meters away from the bridge.

"All of you, take off your belts," Zhang Tuohai ordered.

"Brother, if you need money or supplies, we can talk, but I’m not into that kind of thing. If you’re interested, take Lao Si over there. He’s into it, doesn’t matter if you want to be the top or the bottom." The leader pointed to a short man in their group.

The short man, barely 1.4 meters tall, with messy hair like a bird's nest, looked timid but had a hint of eagerness in his eyes.

Zhang Tuohai was disgusted.

"Get lost! I’m not into that either. Stop talking and take off your belts. Now, or I’ll shoot."

Zhang Tuohai waved the gun at them.

The group looked at each other, realizing they had no choice. Reluctantly, they took off their belts and threw them at Zhang Tuohai’s feet.

They then stood there, pitifully holding up their pants.

"Why are you holding your pants? Let them go! Hurry, or I’ll shoot!"

Zhang Tuohai kept pushing.

"This..."

The order made them hesitate.

"What, you planning to resist?" Zhang Tuohai raised his eyebrows and placed his finger on the trigger.

"No, no." They hurriedly let go of their pants, which fell to the ground.

"From the way you dress, you look tough, but underneath, you’ve got quite the fashion sense. Are you here as a team? SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward... And you, what’s with the mink thong?"

Zhang Tuohai was speechless.

A mink thong!

This was a first for him.

Just looking at it made him itch all over.

"Personal preference, just a personal preference," the short man explained awkwardly.

"Now squat down!" Zhang Tuohai kicked their belts farther away and had them squat with their hands on their heads.

The reason Zhang Tuohai made them do this was to prevent them from running away. In their current state, they'd move slower than a turtle, giving Zhang Tuohai time to deal with them.

He had a question for them.

Why were they collecting a toll here?

You can’t just block a random road and start charging people. It has to be a busy route to make money.

Otherwise, wouldn’t you starve waiting for a car to come?

However, these guys, like Zhang Tuohai, were new to this rally race. So how did they know this was a good spot to collect tolls?

Zhang Tuohai was curious.

"What makes you so sure you’d make money here? Think carefully before you answer. Don’t try to play games with me." Zhang Tuohai pressed his gun against the leader’s back.

The leader, feeling the barrel against him, nearly wet himself.

"Brother, after we got in, we opened a supply crate and found a map. We set up here because the map showed it was a main route."

"Where's the map? Hand it over!" Zhang Tuohai demanded coldly.

The leader quickly handed over the map, not daring to delay.

Zhang Tuohai stepped back a few paces and unfolded the map carefully.

Indeed, the parchment contained a detailed map.

Their location was in a corner of the map, where dozens of roads converged and crossed the iron bridge into the city’s ruins.

What surprised Zhang Tuohai the most was how massive the city's ruins were, covering almost two-thirds of the map.

Aside from the large clusters of buildings, the map also marked several zones: residential, industrial, commercial, parks, and mining areas.

What caught his eye were the orange treasure chest icons in each major zone.

“An orange chest? What kind of loot is that?” Zhang Tuohai was shocked.

Since entering the game, he had only seen white, blue, and purple chests. The purple chest he had just found contained a blueprint for a car-mounted fan.

What could be in an orange chest?

Zhang Tuohai dared not imagine.

At the very least, it had to be a car air conditioner, right?

If it didn’t have an air conditioner, that would be unfair.

Zhang Tuohai made up his mind: he had to get his hands on all five of those treasure chests.

Even if he couldn’t use them, he could sell them for a high price.

But first, these people…

A cold glint flashed in Zhang Tuohai’s eyes.

Dead men tell no tales.

"Does anyone else know about this map?" Zhang Tuohai asked coldly.

"No, it’s just us. Something this important, we wouldn’t share it with anyone. Brother, I’ve told you everything I know. Please, let us go," the leader begged.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

The answer came from Zhang Tuohai’s shotgun.

The men collapsed.

Zhang Tuohai glanced at the dark cloud approaching quickly and hurried back to the bridge, searching the two cars.

There wasn’t much of value inside, just some bread, bottled water, and low-level materials.

Oddly, he also found two pairs of stockings and a doujin book featuring a model worker.

What kind of people were these bandits?

Zhang Tuohai was baffled.

Still, he pocketed the book, claiming it was only to critique how depraved the artists were.

After scavenging all the supplies, Zhang Tuohai drove across the iron bridge into the city's ruins.