Chapter 90: The Thrill of Driving!

While the 4S dealership was still relatively safe, Su Miao had a heated scallion pancake for breakfast and a cup of yogurt. Checking the time, she saw it was eight in the morning. The rain outside had lessened, and the water was flowing steadily—ideal conditions for taking the inflatable boat.

She took out her map to confirm her position once more, then steered the inflatable boat northwest.

Four hours later, she reached the national highway marked on her map.

The highway was littered with cars, haphazardly abandoned. Their windows had all been smashed, and the gas tanks emptied—a clear aftermath of the massive traffic jams when the torrential rains began.

Originally, Su Miao had planned to take a car out of her magical space and drive for a while, but now she had no choice but to continue on foot.

By two in the afternoon, the heavy rain returned.

Unlike the previous days, this storm was bitterly cold. Su Miao checked her thermometer; the temperature had dropped to three degrees Celsius, and it was still falling.

Soon, she heard a rustling sound. Looking down, she saw small, pea-sized hailstones scattered across the ground.

Was this a hailstorm mixed with rain?

Su Miao couldn't help but shiver. It was still some time until December first.

She looked around and dashed into a nearby bus to take shelter from the rain.

Walking with a silver umbrella in this torrential downpour was already freezing. Now, with hail added to the mix, it was truly terrifying.

She absolutely had to find a place to survive the coming blizzard and extreme cold as soon as possible.

“Phew, it’s so cold!” Su Miao quickly conjured a small fireball for warmth.

The temperature was dropping too fast. She checked the thermometer again: minus five degrees Celsius.

Her eyes widened. How much time had even passed? The temperature had plunged at an alarming rate.

Was the blizzard and extreme cold arriving ahead of schedule? Or was this just a prelude?

She couldn't afford to be trapped here.

Taking off her transparent raincoat, Su Miao pulled a down jacket from her magical space, wrapped a scarf around her neck, put on gloves, and finally felt much warmer.

After waiting nearly an hour, the hail finally stopped.

The torrential rain also ceased abruptly at that moment.

But a light rain continued to fall.

Su Miao put on her transparent raincoat, raised her silver umbrella, and resumed her journey.

She walked for nearly three kilometers and arrived at a highway entrance, surprisingly finding that there were few broken-down cars on the expressway—driving was possible.

Su Miao immediately stepped onto the highway and summoned a BMW from her magical space.

The BMW’s gas tank was full; no need to refuel.

She got in, started the engine, and turned on the heater.

Connecting her phone via Bluetooth, music began to play.

Feeling the speed of the car, the warmth from the heater, and listening to cheerful music, Su Miao felt completely rejuvenated.

As the scenery sped by on both sides, she noticed that most sections of the highway were submerged by floodwaters. The yellowish flood stretched endlessly, resembling a boundless sea—utterly terrifying.

...

“Holy crap, a car!”

Beneath an overpass, six young people were busy harvesting a fifty-pound gray hare that had fallen into their trap.

“You’re kidding, right?” one of them laughed.

At a time like this, all the gas stations are empty—where could anyone find a working car?

Even if they had fuel, getting the car onto the highway would be a huge problem, since most of the roads were flooded. Even if a car could drive, it wouldn’t get far.

He noticed the others staring at the highway.

He couldn’t help but look over as well.

Sure enough, there really was a car moving at a steady pace along the expressway.

Some people near the highway began shouting, hoping the driver would notice the group under the overpass and take them away from this wretched place.

But how could the driver possibly hear them?

“Stop staring, catch the hare,” the young man leading the group said.

For a moment, he recalled the carefree days two months ago, racing cars with his reckless friends. Those days were gone now.

...

Su Miao was completely unaware of what was happening under the overpass.

She was focused on driving.

There had been numerous earthquakes over the past two months. If any highway section had collapsed due to an earthquake and she was driving too fast, it would be a catastrophe beyond imagination.

For this reason, Su Miao kept her speed around fifty kilometers per hour, ready to brake at any moment.

Fortunately, aside from occasionally having to get out and move large trucks blocking the road into her magical space, she encountered few obstacles.

After four hours of continuous driving, Su Miao pulled over at the roadside.

Night had fallen; outside, it was pitch black, making it unsafe to continue.

She looked around, then blocked both ends of the highway within a hundred meters with several large trucks from her magical space. Next to her car, she set up a four-cornered canopy and a sleeping tent.

Arranging a simple table and chairs, Su Miao took out an alcohol stove and cooked herself a pot of instant noodles, adding two eggs and a portion of cooked beef.

The aroma was irresistible.

Thirty minutes later, she put down her chopsticks, thoroughly satisfied.

Another day with a full belly.

There was nothing quite like feeling warmth return to her body.

As usual, she sprinkled a circle of potent poison around her campsite to ward off any mutated creatures, then crawled into her tent.

Unlike the previous night, this time Su Miao used a sleeping bag, cocooned inside like a caterpillar.

“Let’s hope there’s no torrential rain tomorrow,” she whispered, before drifting off into a deep sleep.

As if in response to her wish, she was woken at dawn by a torrential downpour.

With visibility less than twenty meters, Su Miao put on her down jacket and transparent raincoat, stowed away the BMW, and set out with her silver umbrella once again.

Of course, before leaving, she also reclaimed the large trucks she’d used to block the road.

They might come in handy again.

Even if not for blocking the road, they could always be used to crush something.

“It’s so cold!” Su Miao shivered in the rain.

She couldn’t help but wonder how the adorable witches in movies and anime managed to wear thin robes, short skirts, and bare their long legs in the dead of winter. Was it some kind of magic?

She desperately wanted to learn that kind of spell.

Fortunately, this bout of torrential rain only lasted three hours before stopping.

Su Miao immediately brought out the BMW and resumed driving.

Alternating between walking and driving, Su Miao finally arrived at Xi’an City.

It was a riverside city, but the entire area was low-lying, with a large lake to the northeast. Unsurprisingly, the entire city was submerged.

Most of the residents had retreated to the western mountains outside the city.

Su Miao had intended to keep driving, but ahead, a section of the expressway had been destroyed by floodwaters and earthquakes.

She had no choice but to leave the highway and continue by inflatable boat.

Fortunately, the current here wasn’t too swift.

Probably...

“Is someone there?”

After navigating for a while, Su Miao spotted what looked like a person floating in the water ahead.

Clinging to a piece of driftwood, the figure was being swept along, looking as if he could sink at any moment.

At first, she assumed it was a corpse. Given the flooding, it was all too common to see bodies in the water.

Wait...

Su Miao noticed the camouflage uniform and epaulettes.

A soldier!

Anyone else, she might have ignored. But these people risked their lives for disaster relief—Su Miao couldn’t turn a blind eye.

She would never forget how Qin Longzhang and his team had come for her at the risk of their own lives.

She immediately steered the inflatable boat over and tossed out a life ring. “Grab on!”

Hearing her call, the young soldier reached out, trying to grab the ring—but after so long in the freezing water, his body was stiff and numb. He couldn’t even perform the simple act of grasping the ring.

In that critical moment, Su Miao grabbed his hand and quietly used her mighty water spell to haul him aboard.

“Th-thank you...” the young soldier stammered, shivering.

“Don’t talk yet. Drink some hot water and suck on a piece of ginger,” Su Miao said anxiously, handing him a cup of magically heated water and a slice of ginger.

The soldier clutched the cup, trembling as he sipped. Gradually, a little warmth returned to him.

“Where’s your unit? I’ll take you there,” Su Miao asked.

He gave her a location.

Su Miao pulled out her map, found the spot, and immediately set off in that direction.

She didn’t know how long the young soldier had been in the water, but she knew she had to get him there quickly. Wearing wet clothes for too long would still mean death from hypothermia.

“Oh, right.” Something occurred to her.

She pretended to rummage through her backpack and produced a heat pack, a handful of warming patches, a bowl of self-heating instant noodles, a strip of antibiotics, and a strip of paracetamol.

“Stick the heat pack on yourself. Eat these noodles, then take a few cold tablets,” she said, opening the instant noodles, pouring in mineral water, and placing it in front of him, along with two sausages.

She stuffed the rest of the supplies into a plastic bag and handed it over.

Tears streamed down the young soldier’s face.

Earlier today, he and his comrades had gone to rescue disaster victims. They hadn’t saved many, but the survivors had brought a lot of luggage, leaving little room to stand. On the return trip, a huge wave hit, and he and his friend—standing at the edge—were washed overboard.

He remembered clearly: the survivors on the boat shouted a few things, but not a single one came back for them.

On the way back, Su Miao encountered several more disaster victims in the water.

They bobbed in the waves, crying for help.

“Help! Young soldier, you saved us earlier! Please help us!”

“Help! Please, help!”

Seeing Su Miao’s inflatable boat, some struggled desperately to get closer.

Were these the ones that soldier had saved?

Clever as she was, Su Miao quickly pieced together what had happened: the young soldier had fallen overboard during the rescue, the disaster victims had abandoned him and sailed away, only to have their boat capsize.

“Save... them...” the young soldier murmured, his voice trembling.

Su Miao didn’t respond.

He was about to speak again when he realized Su Miao was shaking even more than he was.

Without meaning to, she sped up the boat, quickly leaving the disaster victims far behind.

Su Miao was terrified...

...