Rise Of The Wasteland Chapter 113 - Cataclysm Journal

Chapter 113        Cataclysm Journal

Zhou Qingfeng took a closer look at the Republic of New York’s flyer and found out that there really existed a list of so-called cabinet members. He did not know more than half of the names on it, but his name ‘Victor Hugo’ was indeed on the list. A photo of him, which was exactly the same as the previous one used by the media reports, was printed beside his name as well.

I’m f***ed!

Zhou Qingfeng could not do anything except grumble about it. Meanwhile, Katrina took the flyer from his hand and threw a few glances at it, after which she instantly burst into laughter.

“Is that laugh really necessary?” Zhou Qingfeng was triggered by her laugh.

However, Katrina continued to promote the flyer as she mocked him, “This is the price for being too famous. We’re a team of four, and everyone in our team is a war veteran except for you, yet you have the highest popularity. You’re now even used by the gangsters for advertis.e.m.e.nt.”

Katrina could not stop smiling! When she laughed, Butcher naturally joined in on the fun, and even Mox, who was usually as boring as a rock, grinned cheerfully.

“You guys are so lame.” Zhou Qingfeng s.n.a.t.c.hed the flyer from Katrina resentfully. He then looked at Los Zetas’ photo and muttered, “You better pray that I won’t find an opportunity, or else I’ll turn your presidential inauguration ceremony into a farce.”

Butcher curbed his laughter as he said, “The supplies I grabbed today were originally prepared by the members of Zetas for their boss. Zetas is expanding their territories rapidly. They have total numerical superiority, so I’m afraid that they will soon come for us.”

The problem was actually very troublesome, as the two sides were not even on par. Only four people on Zhou Qingfeng’s side could actually battle, as the others were all weak, old, or need further training. On the other hand, Zetas was able to gather over hundreds of thugs with ease.

“We have several other problems too,” Butcher continued. “The Zetas is interested as well in the NYPD Headquarters. They are currently negotiating with the other gangs camping in the buildings nearby, and are trying to incorporate them into the Zetas. They even publicly declared that anyone who would dare to oppose them will be killed. I have a feeling that with their influence at this moment, they might be able to succeed sooner rather than later.”

“So, do we consider ourselves as people who oppose them?” asked Zhou Qingfeng. He threw a glance at his surroundings. “I believe that no one from us will join them, right? It’ll only be an act of defiling yourself anyway.”

Butcher went silent as he stared at his other three companions, while Katrina thought deeply about it. She knew that Zetas would become a huge threat in the future, so it would not be that easy to decline them. Only Mox, who usually did not speak at all, said, “I hate gangsters.”

After Mox expressed his opinion, Butcher nodded as he said, “Los Zetas is too ambitious, so it’s not necessarily a good thing for us to join them. However, for now, they’re too powerful, so we might need to stay away from them.”

“We need to obtain the equipment from the NYPD Headquarters before we can come to a conclusion.” Zhou Qingfeng still insisted on carrying out his initial plan.

Mox then said once again, “Seven days. We need at least seven days, but we can start tonight.”

They had finally come to a conclusion. Regardless of the outcome for the NYPD Headquarters in seven days, Zhou Qingfeng and the others would leave Downtown Manhattan in order to stay away from Zetas. After all, Zetas had the numerical superiority. Coupled with their large amount of reinforcements, there was no way Zhou Qingfeng and his team could oppose them.

Before they left, Butcher took out a thick stack of newspapers from his shirt and threw it on the table. “This is what I got when I interrogated the prisoners today. We somehow got ourselves a newspaper in this terrible world—‘Cataclysm Journal’.”

Although it was intended to be a newspaper, it looked like a thick book instead. Zhou Qingfeng held it in his hand, flipped a few pages, before finally saying, “Why do they still bother with publishing newspapers? Aren’t they afraid of losing money?”

“You’re wrong. There’s now a flourishing market for newspapers, and everyone is buying them frantically.” Butcher had already finished reading the newspaper, as he commented, “In these days, people need tons of information. They need to learn how to survive, how to escape, how to seek refuge, how to find food, and even how to search for their own family. The newspaper is a weekly publication that is issued once in seven days. All the information printed in the newspaper is actually very valuable.”

There were more than a hundred pages to the newspaper, but three-fourths of the content was actually flooded with search notices. Most of them were looking for other people, but there were some who were looking for their lost pets.

This is the first issue of ‘Cataclysm Journal’, and hence the printing was very poor in quality. Their company was located in the Brooklyn area. They also established a short-wave radio station that broadcasted 24 hours a day. On the front page of the newspaper, they first described the advent of the cataclysm with a very serious tone. They then began to warn readers what they need to pay attention to.

A large number of articles began to emerge and they all served the same purpose—introducing the current situation in New York to the public. They came up with a summary of the current situation of all five districts within New York. Staten Island had closed down completely; a majority of the people in Bronx District had fled; the people in Queens were terrified; and the people in Brooklyn were full of joy. The unluckiest area across the entirety of New York was Manhattan, which was currently being run by thugs from Brooklyn.

The people in both Upper Manhattan and Downtown Manhattan were panicked and lost. Downtown Manhattan was worse between the two, as it had already turned into a living h.e.l.l.

The newspaper even warned the people to either flee from New York or join an asylum organization. They also listed a large number of inst.i.tutions that were willing to host the victims. Zhou Qingfeng was not interested in the newspaper, so he pa.s.sed it to Katrina.

However, Katrina was shocked when she read the newspaper. “Victor, since when did you form an ‘Armed Nun Society’? The newspaper even rated the society as five stars and promoted it to everyone in Manhattan who’s seeking help.

“The reporter said that he personally went to the Armed Nun Society and considered it a trustworthy organization. The review above says, ‘While joining the Armed Nun Society does not allow you to live a life exactly the same as before the end of the world, it at least provides you a safe haven’. ”

“What?” Zhou Qingfeng was shocked once again, as he then asked in confusion, “I’ve never formed any society, let alone something named ‘Armed Nun Society’. I don’t even know what a nun is. Is that something I can f***?”

Katrina pa.s.sed the newspaper back to Zhou Qingfeng and pointed the article to him. “The article clearly stated that Victor Hugo is one of the founders of the Armed Nun Society. It even claimed that Victor Hugo is the strongest warrior of the society and is able to fight against any thugs.”

“Mother f***er! How dare they make such absurd claims?” Zhou Qingfeng grabbed the newspaper, read it carefully, and indeed found out that it stated, “Although Victor Hugo was a criminal before the arrival of the cataclysm, he will now be the protector of the society under the work of G.o.d.

“Victor Hugo has a powerful and unmatched fighting ability, and he’ll be the guardian of our world. People will now be able to survive even the worst night. We have reason to believe that this young man is a trustworthy saint.”

What—f***!

Since when did I become a saint? This whole thing is simply ridiculous!