Chapter 73: No Sense of Time
Only then did Xie Ning realize the car had stopped. Ji Taixian’s goofy face was framed in the window.
"Ms. Ning."
As the window rolled down, Ji Taixian’s voice grew clearer. "We’re waiting for a couple of minutes. Chen is picking up a new team member, someone with a Space Ability. He’ll be here any second—five minutes at the latest."
"We’re not taking the overpass?" Xie Ning frowned.
"Can’t take the Tai Lang Road Overpass. It’s clogged with cars. It’d be even more trouble if we got on and couldn’t get off." Ji Taixian grinned at her. "Stick with me, Ms. Ning, and don’t you worry. We’ll definitely make it to Su City within two hours."
"We’ll even be able to get lunch in Su City."
But there was no hint of a smile on Xie Ning’s face. "What’s your planned route? Have you checked the surface streets?"
"Hang on a sec." Ji Taixian turned and ran off, returning a moment later with a scholarly-looking man in gold-rimmed glasses in tow.
"Hello, I’m Lu Wei."
Xie Ning nodded. "Hello. Can you show me your planned route?"
"Of course." Lu Wei handed her a map and briefly explained their intended route.
Xie Ning listened intently, then unfolded the map and pointed. "This is a two-story supermarket?"
"That’s right. It’s the largest Tianrun Supermarket in the area. Are you thinking of stopping on the way to go in and gather supplies, Miss Xie? We’d have to ask the boss about that..."
"No," Xie Ning cut him off, her expression serious. "How far is this Tianrun Supermarket from our current location?"
"About six kilometers."
"Are there any other routes that don’t pass by the supermarket?"
’Although I don’t know why I dreamed there was a First-stage Mutated Zombie on the roof of that two-story supermarket, it’s best to take a detour to avoid wasting precious rescue time.’
"You don’t want to take the road past Tianrun Supermarket?" Lu Wei was clearly taken aback. After a moment’s thought, he said, "Then please wait a moment."
Seeing him turn and walk away, Xie Ning got out of the car.
Ji Taixian sidled up to her and asked in a low, mischievous voice, "Ms. Ning, why do we have to bypass Tianrun Supermarket?"
Xie Ning gazed into the distance, looking in the direction from her dream.
’This is a very strange feeling. Tianrun Supermarket is clearly six kilometers away, but in the dream... it felt like it was right in front of me.’
’My perspective seemed to be drifting around the supermarket, bobbing up and down. It was bizarre.’
"Ms. Ning?"
"It’s nothing." Xie Ning raised a hand to pat Ji Taixian’s shoulder. "Supermarkets are usually swarming with zombies. If we don’t want to waste time clearing them out, we should go around."
Ten minutes later, Gu Chen walked over with a tall, lean, energetic young man.
He first flashed a brilliant smile at Song You’ai in the car. "Ma’am, sorry to keep you waiting."
Song You’ai was a bit flustered by the attention and quickly waved her hands. "Not at all, we haven’t been waiting long."
"If we bypass the supermarket, it might take an extra fifteen minutes."
’Who are you calling little sister?’ Xie Ning silently rolled her eyes. "Captain Gu, you previously said five minutes. Your concept of time seems a little off."
Gu Chen blinked his charming, almond-shaped eyes. "Oh, is that so?"
"My fault, my fault, my fault!" The tall, lean young man behind Gu Chen rushed forward to take the blame. "Sorry for the wait, everyone. I’m Wu Meng. I was with the First Traffic Police Squadron."
Xie Ning raised an eyebrow at him. "So you’re the Space Ability User?"
"Whoa! So you’re really a Space Ability User." The ever-goofy Ji Taixian immediately perked up, stepping forward to clap the young man on the shoulder. "So, how big is your Space?"