48 All human behavior and motivation stems from the fear of death (1/2)

Why did Xu Xia's corpse disappear? And where did it go? These two questions lingered in everyone's minds.

Ren Xiaosu kept wondering about something. If the entity could make something as large as a corpse disappear without a trace, why didn't it do the same to those who were alive?

Judging by what the entity was capable of, it could easily inflict heavy casualties on the entire campsite during the dead of the night.

Something was amiss!

Everyone was sitting in the vehicles except for Ren Xiaosu, who was in the bed of the pickup truck. When they first came here, all of them were chatting, laughing, and even singing with the windows down!

But now, all of the windows were shut tight. They were afraid that something paranormal would suddenly get into the vehicles and kill everyone.

Everyone felt that the additional layer of a window between them and the wilderness would make them safer.

As Ren Xiaosu sat in the cargo bed, the woods slowly disappeared from his sight. The shadows of the swaying leaves seemed to hide a killing intent. Even Ren Xiaosu got a little frightened by it.

But what could he do? So he started eating the crackers to calm his nerves.

Whenever Ren Xiaosu thought of a conjecture that frightened him, he would eat a cracker to calm down.

Actually, Ren Xiaosu felt that sitting in either the pickup or the off-road vehicles were both just as unsafe. Now that his physical fitness had become better, and with a relatively broad view of the surroundings, he could immediately find a way out or make a plan in the event of any danger.

Nobody in the entire convoy could outrun him other than maybe Yang Xiaojin, whose stamina was unknown.

Ren Xiaosu had never considered saving the others if danger descended upon them. After all, he was not an idiot!

As their guide, not only did they not provide him with food, they even made him sit in the bed of the pickup. They were already fortunate that Ren Xiaosu did not take revenge on them!

Everyone was fleeing like there was a monster chasing after them. Liu Bu was still persuading Xu Xianchu when they got into the vehicle, ”Sir, let's turn around and give an explanation to those back at the stronghold. Surely your superior won't be so heartless as to drive you out, right?”

But Xu Xianchu did not answer him. If it were anyone other than him, his superior might not be as heartless. However, it was a different case for him.

In fact, Ren Xiaosu noticed a long time ago that Wang Congyang and Xu Xianchu, both of whom were officers in the private army, had likely offended their superiors before.

When a plight arose in the wilderness during the middle of the night, the first person they sent out was Wang Congyang. After Ren Xiaosu and Luo Xinyu requested for him to be replaced, Xu Xianchu became the next in line to be sent out by the stronghold.

The successful officers would be enjoying themselves in the stronghold. Only those who were unpopular would get ostracized and be made to perform missions in the wilderness. Why else would anyone be willing to leave home and head into battle in the middle of the night?

There was a sense of honor among soldiers before The Cataclysm happened. But Ren Xiaosu felt that these soldiers from the private army were nothing like that.

In fact, Xu Xianchu and Wang Congyang were both in awkward positions within the ranks of the private army. Their superiors were already looking to suppress them, so with a valid reason like them failing their mission this time, they would probably not be allowed to go back.

However, Ren Xiaosu still had some doubts. He glanced beside him and finally asked Yang Xiaojin in a whisper, ”Are these troops really reliable? The stronghold's defense is dependent on them, but it feels like they'll start behaving like a disorderly mob the moment they encounter any danger.”

Yang Xiaojin gave Ren Xiaosu a look and said something that sounded confusing to him. ”The Consortium's troops are the Consortium's troops. The stronghold's troops are the stronghold's troops. The Consortium does not wish for the stronghold to control a powerful military.”

Ren Xiaosu was stunned for a long time. What were the Consortium's troops like? Xu Xianchu was obviously shrewder and tougher than the other soldiers. Ren Xiaosu had never seen him smoking or slacking off on their journey thus far, and he always carried himself with dignity.

Who were the ostracized officers? Ren Xiaosu knew at least two of them. One was Wang Congyang; the other was Xu Xianchu. Without mentioning Xu Xianchu, Wang Congyang had displayed his meticulousness when he searched Ren Xiaosu back in town. He was completely different from these private troops and even showed his contempt for them in front of Ren Xiaosu.