Chapter 106: Leaving the Research Institute

The three of them did not walk long; in just over ten minutes, they reached the supply area.

A supply vehicle was already packed to the brim. Li Daoran frowned and said, "Are you going on vacation or fleeing for your lives? Why bring so much stuff?"

"These are all necessities," Kang Chao insisted, still unconvinced, unable to stop himself from retorting.

Ignoring him, Li Daoran stepped onto the vehicle and began tossing items off. Toothbrushes, toothpaste, clothes, a small table—he worked with such swiftness that soon only some seasonings, a set of cookware, and a single bundle of clothing remained. He did not discard a single scrap of food.

With just that clearing, the vehicle was more than half empty. Disregarding the grumbling of the others, Li Daoran stepped down to haul over two crates of energy cells. He then tossed his yellow exoskeleton armor onto the vehicle, which took up a significant amount of space. He proceeded to strip off the armor and replace all its spent energy cells with fresh ones, working in silence, completely absorbed in his own task.

"Stop bickering!" Yuan Muye shouted in a low voice, instantly silencing the group. "Get in the vehicle. Let’s go. Which one of you knows how to drive?"

The students looked at one another, then turned to their teachers. The teachers exchanged glances before finally fixing their eyes on Li Daoran.

By then, Li Daoran had finished replacing the energy cells and was checking his exoskeleton for wear. Thanks to its synthetic skin, there was virtually no visible damage; the armor possessed a self-repair function, meaning as long as it had sufficient energy and material, it was essentially indestructible.

Seeing the others staring at him, Li Daoran tapped his head and said, "Don't look at me, I can't drive. Ask your boss; he was just bragging about racing cars when he was young, so driving a supply truck shouldn't be a problem."

"That was a motorcycle," Yuan Muye countered, clearly lacking confidence in driving the supply vehicle.

"It’s all the same—they’re both vehicles. You’re kidding me, right? You spent all this time preparing, and not one of you can drive? Why did you even bother loading the truck?" Li Daoran shrugged. He truly did not know how to drive; he hadn't finished university, hadn't even taken a driving test, and had never touched a steering wheel in his life.

"Who would have thought that none of us could drive? I never had the time to learn," Ke Jin said, trying to ease the awkward atmosphere.

Everyone present—students and teachers alike—had spent their entire lives devoted to research within the Skynet system. Not a single one of them knew how to operate a vehicle.

Finally, Yuan Muye sighed. "I'll do it. I just don't know how different this vehicle is from the ones I used to drive. How long has it been since I last drove? I've forgotten, but it’s still better than you lot who haven't even touched one."

Li Daoran felt a headache coming on. It was hard to imagine that in such a high-tech world, a dean, four professors, and over a dozen students couldn't produce a single person capable of driving.

"You go ahead, I'll follow behind. I won't ride in the vehicle; I have my exoskeleton, I can move fast enough," Li Daoran said, patting his armor.

"Get in. You sit next to me, and the others stand in the back. To think the people I brought are a bunch of blockheads—if I don't clear space for you, where would you sit? On the roof? You have the nerve to complain after packing the vehicle so full. I thought you were prepared to drive several vehicles, but no. A bunch of useless fools! It’s a good thing young Brother Daoran saw through your incompetence and cleared a spot for you—hurry up and thank him!" Yuan Muye pointed his finger at each of them, scolding them with a mix of frustration and disappointment.

"No, I'll drive a separate vehicle," Kang Chao said, turning his head away in refusal.

"Hmm, not bad, not entirely hopeless—just a bit dense," Li Daoran said, wiping off a wild fruit and taking a bite; it was surprisingly sweet.

"What do you mean by that!" Kang Chao glared at him.

"Nothing special, just exactly what I said. If you understand, good; if not, that's your problem." Li Daoran finished the fruit in a few bites and began putting on his armor.

Yuan Muye walked over to Kang Chao and smacked the back of his head. "Get in, you little brat. Don't cause trouble for me."

The others watched Yuan Muye in shock, as if seeing him for the first time; they had no idea he had such a rough, unruly side.

Kang Chao’s lips moved, but Tian Ye pulled him into the vehicle, and the hatch sealed shut.

Li Daoran opened the front door and found the interior quite spacious; there was more than enough room for both Yuan Muye and himself. Looking at the interior, he noticed it didn't feel overly high-tech—it wasn't much different from the vehicles on Water Blue Star, save for a central console and a few extra buttons.

Once inside, Yuan Muye gripped the steering wheel, took a deep breath, and tapped at the central console. After a series of quick operations, his expression relaxed, and he let out a sigh of relief.

"Xiaomi, initiate," Yuan Muye said.

"Understood. ZIMQ-2684 at your service. Please set the driving mode."

"Autopilot."

"Understood. Please set the route."

Yuan Muye glanced at Li Daoran.

Li Daoran watched the console with curiosity. So the vehicle had an autopilot function, and it was voice-activated? They should have said so earlier.

"We don't have a route yet, but we definitely cannot head north. There is an armored battalion to the north. I don't know how far their surveillance range extends, and taking a vehicle like this through there is too dangerous. It's already late. If the research institute weren't so dangerous, we would have waited until tomorrow morning. Honestly, I'm concerned that you all won't get any rest here. So, we need to find a place to rest tonight. You're more familiar with this area than I am—you choose. Tomorrow, I will scout the surroundings before we decide which direction to head." Li Daoran shifted uncomfortably; he wore the exoskeleton for protection, but sitting in the vehicle, even with enough space, was still somewhat restrictive.

Yuan Muye pondered for a moment. "Black Bear Cave."

"Black Bear Cave located automatically. Please confirm the route."

A small map projected onto the screen. Yuan Muye traced a path with his finger.

"Please confirm speed and travel mode."

"100 km/h, ground-level travel, silent mode," Yuan Muye commanded.

"Understood. Configuration complete. Please wait; estimated time of arrival is three hours."

Suddenly, the supply vehicle hovered about five centimeters off the ground and shot forward like an arrow from a bow.

"Whoa, so it can fly? Why even have wheels then?" Li Daoran seemed surprised. Although he had ridden an air-bus when he first arrived in the Daoran World, he hadn't expected the supply truck to be capable of flight.

"You really lack common sense sometimes. I don't even know how to explain things to you," Yuan Muye said with a frown. He found Li Daoran's repeated lack of basic knowledge quite strange. Nothing about his behavior or speech suggested he was a savage, yet he seemed ignorant of facts that even primary school students knew.

"If you don't know how to explain, then explain from the beginning. We have plenty of time—well, or maybe very little," Li Daoran said as he removed his helmet, revealing his head and struggling to climb out of the exoskeleton. To be honest, he trusted the AI driver far more than he trusted the old man.