On the flatbed cart.

In addition to Zhao Xiaoyan, Chen Mu also placed two large pieces of plastic, each about the size of a person. The main purpose was to create various suitable containers when needed.

The storage room was originally part of the cafeteria, so the straight-line distance between the two places was not far, but there were many twists and turns, requiring them to walk along a long cement path.

Although they could take a shortcut through the grass, the journey would be much shorter, but the path was difficult to traverse for the flatbed cart. Moreover, the dangers lurking in the grass made it shudder-inducing to even think about.

Zhao Xiaoyan sat on the cart for a while, then got off to walk on her own. When she felt tired, she would return to the cart.

During the journey, they encountered several waves of ants.

As Tang Jing had said, the large black ants commonly found in classrooms were actually not that common. The ants they were encountering now, even though they were small animals compared to humans, were the mainstream species.

Despite their small size, their numbers were terrifying, and these ants didn't care about their opponents' size. Whenever they encountered something edible, they would go up and take a bite.

Thus, the three of them always avoided walking directly through them.

Fortunately, they only encountered a few waves of ants, and as long as they didn't get too close, they could avoid provoking them.

They walked for about two hours.

Finally, they arrived in front of the main building of the cafeteria.

The cafeteria's main building had three floors and covered an area of 1500 square meters. Normally, it provided lunch for over a thousand teachers and students of Ziwei High School, making it one of the most familiar places for the students.

However, they had never been to the kitchen area before.

On the side of the back door, there were several small doors for the cafeteria staff to enter and exit, all tightly closed. Additionally, three to four steps obstructed the trio's progress.

Only a goods truck passage was available for them to pass through.

The overall terrain of the cafeteria was relatively high, and this passage was a slope of about 30 degrees, making it feel like climbing a small hill for the current tiny humans.

The three of them avoided the middle friction zone and ascended along the right side.

Zhao Xiaoyan got off the cart and walked on her own, while Wei Dalei pushed the flatbed cart and climbed up effortlessly, even faster than Chen Mu.

This several-meter-long slope took them nearly twenty minutes with occasional stops and walks.

When they finally reached the top, looking down gave them a feeling of standing on a mountain top and overlooking below.

"Go over there," Chen Mu pointed to the double door entrance on the right side.

Most of the doors inside the cafeteria were integrated, without gaps, to prevent insects and rodents. However, one of the double doors that used to transport goods was partially open at the left side.

Perhaps some staff were still working here when the disaster struck.

The entire cafeteria was silent.

The ceiling was much higher than the storage room, even taller than a classroom.As they walked inside, a cold air swept over them.

The ground, eroded by oil for a long time, became sticky and even a little clingy to the feet.

"I've never been here before," Zhao Xiaoyan felt both anxious and curious.

"We haven't been here for long. But in another week or two, after the vegetables and food stored in the cafeteria rot, it will attract many flies and insects. That's why I'm eager to come here early and try to move as many supplies as possible at once."

"It should be fine for now, right?"

"Don't be careless."

"What if we encounter mice?" Zhao Xiaoyan unconsciously moved closer to Wei Dalei.

"I told you not to follow," Wei Dalei grinned happily.

Chen Mu sighed, thinking that if it weren't for the apocalypse, this guy would remain single for life.

"It's been such a long time, it's normal for the cafeteria to have mice, so we need to be as fast as possible..." Before the words even finished, Zhao Xiaoyan's face turned pale, and she opened her mouth wide, staring behind Chen Mu.

Chen Mu didn't even have time to turn around, taking one swift step towards the flatbed cart and reaching for the giant piece of plastic. In the next moment, the plastic suddenly transformed, instantly turning into a semi-circular cover that enclosed Zhao Xiaoyan, Wei Dalei, and himself.

Only at that moment did Chen Mu dare to look back.

It was a cockroach the size of a car.

Its entire body was shiny, and its rapidly twitching antennae were like whips. The fine hairs on its six legs were clearly visible.

Wei Dalei hadn't even reacted yet.

Zhao Xiaoyan, on the other hand, was so scared that she sat directly on the ground.

"What the heck!"

When Old Wei finally noticed and looked back, he also staggered back in fear. Although he had a reckless personality, he was still just an ordinary person. Anyone would be scared when seeing this scene.

Chen Mu waited until the plastic cover took effect and then pressed a handle inside to tightly seal it.

Honestly, even his calves were trembling involuntarily.

The reason why humans always regard insects as hypothetical enemies in science fiction works is that insects' appearance is the most discomforting to people.

Even if they hadn't been shrunk, most humans would still instinctively dislike and fear cockroaches.

Especially this kind of American cockroach found in the South, which can grow up to 3 centimeters in length and run as fast as sports cars, causing countless northerners who come to the South for the first time to have mental breakdowns.

And, most importantly...

This guy!

It can fly!

When it's forced, it might just fly right up to your face and ask if you're scared.Even if you killed it with a slipper, the splattering juices would make you feel nauseous for the whole day.

This is a cockroach.

It doesn't eat people.

But it can disgust people to death.

For Chen Mu and his companions, even though this cockroach in front of them is just an ordinary one, it's larger than all of them combined. Even if it doesn't bite people, it could knock someone half-dead just by running into them.

"Will it...will it eat people?" Zhao Xiaoyan stammered.

Chen Mu admired her for being able to speak in such a situation.

Wei Dalei, on the other hand, was bolder and had his favorite girl beside him. He took a step forward, standing in front of Zhao Xiaoyan, and raised his wolf-tooth club. He was ready to fight head-on if Chen Mu's plastic cover couldn't hold the cockroach back.

"It should be fine; it can't get in," Chen Mu reassured them.

"If it comes in, I'll smash it with my club!" Wei Dalei tightened his grip on his weapon, as if he was boosting his own courage.

Fortunately, cockroaches aren't particularly aggressive insects. This cockroach, Little Strong (a common nickname for cockroaches in Chinese), circled around the plastic cover a few times, as if it smelled something, but it couldn't reach the food.

Finally, it shook its antennae a few times and crawled away.

The three of them let out a sigh of relief together.

"Oh my god!"

Wei Dalei's momentum deflated, and he almost collapsed. He was about to make a few sarcastic remarks, but when he saw Zhao Xiaoyan by his side, he immediately stood upright, pretending to be tough, "Next time, watch me smash it to death!"

Chen Mu also felt a sense of exhaustion from surviving a near-death experience. Although cockroaches usually don't prey on live creatures, the instinctive fear when faced with them was not something they could easily resist.

Humans are still too fragile, especially in the psychological aspect.

"How about you two? Do we continue, or should we go back first?" Chen Mu quickly adjusted himself, but he didn't know how the other two were doing, especially Zhao Xiaoyan.

Wei Dalei looked at Zhao Xiaoyan with a bit of difficulty.

However, before he could say anything, the girl who had been scared and sitting on the ground had already stood up. After taking a deep breath, she said seriously, "I'm okay."

Wei Dalei smiled, "Then let's continue!"

"Alright."

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