Elynn took the Stone Axe, his gaze fixed on the Cult Leader.
The two men, whose faces were strikingly similar, stared intently at each other, and a strange atmosphere spread between them.
However, the expected hesitation did not appear; Elynn decisively swung the first axe.
He forcefully cut open the Cult Leader's face, leaving a long, diagonal scar that stretched from his right eyebrow to his left jaw, with the flesh turning outwards.
The air solidified for a moment; it seemed the Cult Leader only then realized the injury on his face, covering it with his hands and letting out a piercing scream.
Did Elynn and the Cult Leader have a grudge?
Of course, they did.
From the very beginning, when the doctrine was tampered with, Elynn had no choice.
The organization founded by the Cult Leader was a mental asylum, and Elynn was not a manager like the Supporters; he was also a patient under control.
He was caught between the Zealots, the Supporterss, and the Cult Leader, with clarity mixed with confusion; he was the one who suffered the most.
Looking at the Cult Leader's face, Elynn seemed to be saying goodbye to his past self with the axe.
From the initial clumsy first swing, Elynn gradually learned to find vital spots, burying the axe into the side of the Cult Leader's neck.
Blood dripped, he had missed again.
The Cult Leader's body trembled as he covered his neck and rolled over, crawling towards the shore.
His five fingers dug deep into the sand, every crawl forward taking all his strength.
Another axe fell on his back; he stumbled but dared not stop.
Tears welled in Elynn's eyes, perhaps crying for himself, and then another axe came down.
By the time the seawater covered the Cult Leader's knees, his back was already a gruesome sight, covered in wounds.
Elynn slowly approached the Cult Leader, holding the Stone Axe. He looked down at the Cult Leader, gripping the axe handle with both hands, raising the axe high.
With his back to the light shining from the shore, in the Cult Leader's dilated pupils, the axe fell heavily!
Chhh--
With a dull thud, blood dyed the foam washing the shore red.
The Cult Leader, who once controlled the entire North Carolina, fell after dawn broke.
Elynn, holding the blood-stained Stone Axe, gasped for breath.
The Stone Axe slipped from his hand, and a feeling of exhaustion instantly hit him; he collapsed beside the Cult Leader's corpse.
A shadow fell over his head; Elynn looked up and saw Shawn walk past him.
Shawn picked up the Stone Axe, slammed it hard into the Cult Leader's head, and then looked at Elynn.
"If you don't penetrate the brain, it will still get up; you should try to learn all of this."
Shawn looked at his slightly dazed eyes.
"Come with me, come back south with me; you can start over."
Shawn patted his shoulder and stood up, walking towards the Zealots.
...
Half a day passed.
The remaining Zealots were still gathering from various parts of North Carolina.
While screening, they were also collecting supplies from the entire villa complex.
It was just a pity that no traces of large amounts of fentanyl were found nearby.
It wasn't until evening that the raging flames gradually died down.
When Shawn stood at a high point and looked into the distance, he finally understood where the Cult Leader had gotten the information about the supermarket.
A long convoy of large cargo trucks came from the end of the road, all of them.
From the bumping sounds, it was not difficult to tell that the cargo compartments were full of things.
When Shawn and Elynn appeared before this group of Zealots, it took them some time to accept reality, bowing their heads to Shawn.
When Shawn opened the back compartment of the first cargo truck, what greeted their eyes were precisely the supplies seen in that large supermarket back then.
It turned out that when Shawn and others were traveling north from Tennessee, the Zealots had already discovered the supermarket and informed the Cult Leader.
However, he probably did not expect that these supplies would go through a big circle and eventually fall back into Shawn's hands.
Closing the compartment, Shawn patted it twice, unable to help but chuckle.
"Merle's nose must be twisted in anger now, right?"
...
South Carolina, Supermarket.
When Merle kicked open the glass door of the supermarket and saw the entire supermarket completely emptied, he was dumbfounded.
"Those damn, cursed supplies! Where the hell did they all go?!"
Merle walked into the supermarket, unable to help but curse.
He had been thinking he could have a drink tonight while Shawn was away.
Who knew the entire supermarket was cleaner than his grandmother's teeth, not a single thing left.
Behind him, Daryl, Tallahassee, and Columbus walked in, followed by a group of people from Alexandria led by Diana.
As everyone stared blankly at the scene, Daryl kicked an empty soda can away.
"What else can be done? If it's gone, it's gone."
Daryl was more accepting than Merle.
He sat down, placed his crossbow beside him, and leaned against the supermarket shelf with his hands behind his head, closing his eyes.
"Upstairs, under that pile of rotten vegetables, I hid some; maybe if you're lucky, you can still find them now."
Daryl opened one eye and glanced at Merle, who immediately beamed.
On his already slightly reddish skin, two apple-like cheeks protruded slightly, making him look irresistibly funny.
Merle turned and left, and Diana came over with her people.
"Actually, we brought a lot of alcohol in our car too." She looked at Daryl.
"No."
"The things in here are his spoils of war... You'll understand once you get to know him."
Diana sat beside Daryl.
"What should we do next?"
"Wait." Daryl didn't even open his eyes: "Shawn said he would be back by dawn, and he will definitely be back; there's no doubt about that."
"Shawn's promises have never disappointed us, so we just need to wait until tomorrow morning, and then we can prepare to set off."
Daryl's tone was firm, but as he spoke, his throat bobbed twice, perhaps he too was using this reason to convince himself.
Diana was silent for a few seconds, then continued to ask.
"Prison... What kind of place is it?"
When Diana mentioned this, Daryl was no longer sleepy.
He opened his eyes and looked directly at the ceiling of the second floor of the supermarket; at that moment, there was a crashing sound coming from above, perhaps the bottle of alcohol Daryl had hidden had also been searched away.
A glimmer of nostalgia and longing appeared in Daryl's eyes.
"Prison, ah, that's a place you wouldn't want to leave once you arrive. The living conditions might not compare to Alexandria, but the sense of security it brings is unprecedented."
He ran his hand through his long hair and coolly glanced at Diana.
"Your decision is correct; as long as you are in Prison, you will be able to ensure the safety of yourselves and your families to the greatest extent possible, there is no doubt about that."
"Shawn has his own arrangements; once you get used to life there, your future days will only get better and better."
"You seem to trust Shawn very much?"
"No one has taught me more than him; not just me, all of us trust him, he is our family."
As he spoke, Daryl unconsciously tilted his neck, as if proudly announcing this news to Diana.
"That's good."
Diana's gaze lengthened, filled with an emotion called envy.
-------------------------
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