However, this was heading toward the outskirts; in the direction of the city center, not a single vehicle was entering. Even so, the road was far from clear, as countless cars were driving against the flow, all heading out of the city. The two-lane road had effectively become a single lane, and even the lanes intended for inbound traffic were jammed solid. It was a mystery how Wang Xia had managed to drive the massive bus into the side road earlier; looking at the current situation, moving even an inch seemed impossible.

Zheng Zha sat in the empty seat directly behind Wang Xia, staring dumbfounded at the main thoroughfare ahead. After a long silence, he asked Wang Xia, "How did you manage to get the bus onto that side road earlier? It looks completely impassable now."

Wang Xia let out a wry smile. "The bus was parked on the roadside back then, but by the time we got into the driver's seat, the road was already packed solid. We had no choice but to drive onto the sidewalk. The police seem to have vanished anyway... But now, even the sidewalk is full. I truly don't know how we're supposed to proceed."

War of the Worlds—a truly classic, spectacular sci-fi blockbuster. Although Zheng Zha and the others didn't know it was this specific horror film beforehand, they had watched such classic movies countless times in the real world.

In the original movie plot, although the outbound roads were hopelessly gridlocked, preventing most citizens from leaving before the aerial fortress bombardment, in the original film's continuity...

The inbound roads were never congested. How could they be completely blocked in both directions like this? Everyone looked toward Zheng Zha and Chu Xuan. Zheng Zha, in turn, looked at Chu Xuan, but this man was completely absorbed in his laptop, oblivious to everything happening around him. Even the newcomer girl, Yang Xuelin, was captivated beside him, constantly pointing at the screen and asking questions. Meanwhile, Lin Juntian was speaking English to Imhotep with an air of familiarity, but the handsome bald man utterly ignored him, rendering all his efforts useless.

Zheng Zha sighed and said to Wang Xia, "There's no other way. Force our way through. With a bus this large, we shouldn't fear those small private cars."

"Alright! Let's push through. If we have to, we'll ram them. Damn it, at a time like this, we're racing against death; who cares about such things anymore? If any police show up, we'll crash through them too!"

Wang Xia didn't waste words. This group had already survived multiple horror movie worlds; they knew exactly what needed to be done and what didn't. Since the priority was reaching the White House on time, there was no need to fear police or anyone else. If this horror film hadn't specifically banned the use of single-person flying devices, they could have been there in under a minute using the Green Goblin's skateboard! Furthermore, they had no reason to fear mere police officers...

Except for the members of the Central Continent Team, the two newcomers froze instantly, and even Mr. and Mrs. Imhotep were stunned. But before anyone could voice an objection, Wang Xia, under the perceived command, drove the bus forward with reckless abandon.

With a loud bang, a black sedan driving toward them was knocked several meters aside, crashing into several other small cars. The road was so severely congested that the gaps between vehicles were less than twenty centimeters. A massive bus plowing its way through such a tight space—this scenario belonged only in explosive action films. Immediately, the entire street erupted in shouts of curses and screams of pain. In reality, such minor impacts wouldn't kill anyone; most drivers were merely terrified.

Lin Juntian was also terrified, his face completely pale. He turned to Wang Xia and said, "Is this alright? Is doing this okay? What if we run into the police? We don't have passports or any identification on us. What if they think we are illegal immigrants or terrorists? If they think we’re terrorists, we could be shot dead on the street! Stop, please! We can walk there."

Wang Xia ignored him, and the other members of the team were too lazy to engage. Only Zheng Zha suddenly laughed and grabbed his collar. "Right, with all that English you speak, and your appearance suggesting you move in high society... You must have been to Washington before, right? Do you know the way to the White House?"

Lin Juntian stared blankly at Zheng Zha, then nodded. "I know the way, yes, but if we go like this, I think we're inviting trouble on the road... Maybe we should just walk? It’s only a few hours from here..."

Zheng Zha continued smiling. "No problem, no problem. A lot can happen in a few hours. This isn't the real world, remember? This is a Reincarnation World. When a decision must be made, make it decisively, or you will suffer the consequences. Since you want to join the Central Continent Team, you need to learn how to survive in the Reincarnation World before you're officially in. Obstacles like American police... can be overcome with force."

"Overcome with force?" Lin Juntian asked dumbly.

Zheng Zha continued nodding with a smile. "It's what we call 'breaking finesse with strength.' Heh heh... Remember, anything can happen in the Reincarnation World. You have no guarantee of life safety here, so eliminate all those ordinary thoughts from your real-world mindset. There is no good or evil here; there is only survival... The only thing worth cherishing is the teammate beside you. Once we confirm you are our partner, we will fight to keep you alive with our lives. But if we determine you are not our partner... I will kill you the next second!"

As Zheng Zha spoke, he radiated palpable pressure. Although his face was smiling, there was no warmth in his eyes. Even ordinary people could sense the killing intent in his words. Lin Juntian’s handsome face turned even paler with fright.

Then Zheng Zha patted his shoulder. "Don't worry. As long as you become our partner, we will fight side by side, ha ha ha. You look a bit weak right now, but after going through a few more horror film worlds, you'll certainly become a great warrior in the Central Continent Team, ha ha ha..."

As Zheng Zha withdrew his imposing aura, Lin Juntian began to sweat, laughing awkwardly. Before he could speak, Zheng Zha continued, "If it’s for survival, for all of us to survive together... I could kill everyone in front of us... but that situation would only arise in a moment of absolute despair. It would only happen when it’s either them or us. Ha ha ha..."

Listening to Zheng Zha's words, which were half genuine threat and half psychological manipulation, Lin Juntian completely tuned out what the bus was doing. He didn't even notice the violent shaking and jolting, instead staring blankly, processing Zheng Zha's speech. The rest of the team was content to relax.

They silently watched the bus crash its way through, forcibly carving a path through the congested road.

After more than a minute, Lin Juntian snapped out of his daze. He was, after all, a relatively smart person. Seeing the other teammates looking completely unfazed, he decided not to press the issue further. He curbed his constant English chatter and began diligently pointing out the direction to the White House.

The bus continued to move forward. The American police, whose appearance everyone had been anticipating, finally showed up. A patrol car pulled up on the roadside, its siren just beginning to wail, when suddenly the entire street—and many people far in the distance—erupted in clamorous shouts. The noise was so loud it drowned out the siren, startling everyone inside the bus.

Cheng Xiao immediately exclaimed, "What's going on? Are these Americans overreacting? Haven't they seen someone run a red light before?"... "It seems we weren't running a red light, and their shouting doesn't seem directly related to us."

Zheng Zha leaned his head out of the window. High above them, a circular flying saucer-like craft was suspended in the air—precisely, hovering a thousand meters above the ground, positioned directly over the bus.

Zheng Zha studied the circular craft intently, about to turn and say something, when Chu Xuan's voice came from an adjacent window. "Eh, did you feel it? After unlocking the fourth stage of the Gene Lock, you should have felt a spiritual scan... The ones in the saucer are the West Sea Team. They've come to confirm our location."

Hearing this, everyone's nerves instantly tensed. They were all crammed into this small bus. If the craft overhead fired a single shot, most of them would be finished. In an instant, Zheng Zha gripped his Hu Po Blade, braced one hand on the window frame, and prepared to jump out while saying, "Chu Xuan, release the Yellow Turban Warrior! Carry me into the air. It’s parked a kilometer high; without the Green Goblin's skateboard, I can't reach that altitude! Damn it, I didn't expect the Yellow Turban Warrior to be useful so soon!" Saying this, he turned to leap out of the window.

Unexpectedly, Chu Xuan reached out and stopped him. "It's fine. We should be safe right now... Do you remember the 'Main God's' restriction that prevents us from leaving the city within an hour of the bombardment? Even without single-person flying gear, the 'Main God' has many ways to cover vast distances quickly, such as skills like Shifting Earth Technique (Suo Di Shu). That's why the 'Main God' restricts us for this period. In essence, during this time, we are confined within the city, which the 'Main God' intends as a chance for weaker teams to catch up—it's similar to the concept of 'momentum' (Shi). During this period, the West Sea Team can certainly scout and find us... But similarly, during this period, they are invincible, and their formidable protective shielding would protect them, while attacks from above could wipe out most teams. The 'Main God' couldn't design such an exaggerated imbalance of 'momentum.' I believe they must have restrictions too, perhaps forbidding them from attacking us until an hour before the bombardment. Right now, there's a ninety percent chance we are absolutely safe!"

Before Chu Xuan finished speaking, the flying saucer high above them continued its flight. It sped past the bus's location at an incredible velocity until it disappeared behind the shadows of the skyscrapers, out of sight of everyone inside.

Zheng Zha took a deep breath, put away the Hu Po Blade, and then looked at Lin Juntian. "Which direction is the White House?"

Lin Juntian was still somewhat dazed. His mindset hadn't fully adapted to this Reincarnation World. From the bus ramming its way forward, to Zheng Zha's intimidation, and now the UFO incident, he had been thoroughly shaken into a stupor. It was only when Zheng Zha asked again that he instinctively looked around and pointed in the direction the saucer had flown. "The White House should be that way, just keep going down this road, and then slightly veer toward that..."

Before he could finish, Zheng Zha grabbed him by the collar. Although Lin Juntian was slightly taller than Zheng Zha, the overwhelming imbalance in strength allowed Zheng Zha to lift him effortlessly.

"Everyone hurry and catch up! I have a bad feeling about this. In any case, I’m heading to the White House first. Everyone look out for yourselves... Zero Point, never mind the massive aerial fortress for now. This smaller saucer, though it has a shield, surely isn't supported by infinite mental energy like the Eva Unit-01, right? Your Demon Eye should be useful. Be ready; if the saucer attacks, counterattack immediately, understood?" Zheng Zha stood at the window opening, turned back to the others, and instructed.

Zero Point didn't speak much; he took out his Gauss Sniper Rifle and nodded silently. Zheng Zha felt reassured; among everyone, he trusted Zero Point the most, perhaps even more than Chu Xuan... that man who possessed ability but lacked credibility.

"Then... I'm off."

Zheng Zha, dragging the struggling Lin Juntian, leaped lightly out of the window. He tapped lightly on the roof of another car, and in a few bounds, he had cleared a distance of over ten meters. After several more such jumps, he vanished from sight, leaving behind a street filled with exclamations like "Chinese Kung Fu," "Spider-Man," and "Superman."

Jumping to...