Chapter 87 Monster

While Lei Bao was plotting against Ruan Ning, Ruan Ning was also plotting against him. She used fire to melt the door that isolated the high-risk samples.

The intensely hot, reddish-white flames condensing within the blaze precisely scorched the twisted latch and hinges of the heavy metal door. A pungent odor of molten metal and burnt paint filled the air, mingling with the strange smell seeping from the cracks in the door, creating a nauseating atmosphere.

"Creak... Clang!"

With a sickening creaking sound and a final, heavy thud, the entire heavy metal door was violently smashed open by the fire's head, fueled by the residual heat of the flames, and tilted inward.

It was a large, square hall, much more spacious than the outer corridor, which should have been a sterile isolation observation area or operating room. But now, it resembled a forgotten nightmare workshop.

The first thing that flooded my nostrils was the pungent, almost solidified formaldehyde mixed with the stench of corpses and some indescribable, sweet, fishy smell of decaying organic matter.

The ground was covered with a sticky, strangely colored stain that felt like it would stick to the soles of your shoes if you stepped on it.

The sight before their eyes made Zhou Min and Lin Yan, who were used to the horrors of the apocalypse, gasp instantly, their faces turning pale and their stomachs churning.

In the center and around the hall, several large, broken glass culture tanks lay scattered, containing murky liquid and unidentifiable flocculent matter. Operating tables, restraints, and grotesque instruments connected by wires and tubes lay askew on the floor, covered in dried, dark brown stains.

What's most chilling are the "figures" that sway at the edge of the light.

They are difficult to describe accurately in words.

It seems that in the early days of the apocalypse, researchers here (perhaps to study viruses, perhaps to create biological weapons, or perhaps just to conduct crazy experiments) forcibly fused or modified zombies with various animals.

One of them still largely maintained the outline of a human, but its arms... no, they could no longer be called arms, but rather two insect limbs covered with gray-black chitinous shells and ending in sharp bony spikes, were now unconsciously scraping the ground, making a crisp "clattering" sound.

Its head was twisted, with one half of its face still retaining human features, while the other half was covered with an eye-like structure similar to that of a beetle, reflecting an eerie seven-colored luster under the light.

The other "clump" looked more like a large dog's corpse crudely pieced together onto a zombie that had lost its lower body.

Part of the dog's fur had fallen off, revealing stitches and purplish-black rotting muscle underneath. Its four legs (two human legs twisted and deformed, and two dog legs with their joints reversed) supported its body in a disproportionate manner. The skin at the neck joint was torn open, and there were two heads—one a rotting human head drooping, and the other a dog head with its mouth wide open, revealing jagged, sharp teeth, emitting a strange sound that was a mixture of a "hoarse" sound and a low, canine whimper from its throat.

In the corner, a hunched, crawling monster had a huge, shriveled sac-like structure resembling the abdomen of a spider embedded in its back, with several thin, segmented appendages extending from its ribs to support it on the ground.

Its movement is entirely insect-like, involving leaping and crawling at great speed. When swept past, it "whooshes" into the shadows, leaving only a trail of wet, sticky marks.

Others had lizard-like scales and tails, yet dragged around festering human-shaped upper bodies; some had faces fused with bird beaks, dripping slime with each opening and closing...

They seem to have lost most of their "living" characteristics, and are more like living, twisted, and painful corpses driven by some kind of residual virus or modified energy.

There is no reason, only chaotic instincts and a violent reaction to external stimuli (such as light, the scent of living things).

"Ugh—" Zhou Min could no longer hold back and bent over to dry heave.

Lin Yan's hand gripping the knife bulged with veins as she suppressed her discomfort and fear, her voice strained: "What...what the hell are these things?!"

Even the raging fire showed a rare hint of apprehension. It lowered its body, the flames flickering on its surface, and a low growl from its throat carried an unprecedented level of vigilance.

The aura emanating from these monsters was chaotic and filthy, unlike that of pure zombies or mutated beasts, which made it uneasy.

Ruan Ning's pupils contracted, and her cold gaze swept over these deformed products born in the laboratory.

She had heard rumors about the insane experiments conducted in the early days of the apocalypse in her previous life, but what she saw with her own eyes was still horrifying. The "creation" of these monsters must have been accompanied by unimaginable pain and the annihilation of humanity.

Just then, it seemed that the stimulation of light and the presence of living people had reached a critical point.

The half-human monster with insect-like arthropods suddenly raised its head, which was half covered by a shimmering eye, and let out a sharp, eerie shriek, somewhere between a human scream and an insect's hiss!

"Eee-ga!!!"

It's like a signal!

All the deformed monsters in the hall, whether they had been wandering aimlessly or lurking in the shadows, had now come to life! In all sorts of twisted and grotesque forms, filled with overwhelming resentment and chaotic killing intent, they rushed madly toward the light and the scent of fresh flesh and blood at the entrance!

Its movement, a blend of animal and zombie characteristics, varied in speed and unpredictable in trajectory, adding to the terror!

Ruan Ning turned and ran away with Zhou Min, Lin Yan, and Da Huo.

The stairwell leading from the first basement level to the second basement level was filled with a chilling echo of various inhuman screams and heavy, dragging footsteps.

Ruan Ning's eyes were as cold as iron. He swung his Tang-style sword and unleashed a solid water blade, severing a humanoid monster with a lizard tail and scales that lunged at him in half. Blood and entrails splattered on the wall.

She moved swiftly, using the fan-shaped flames spewed by the fire to repel several monsters surging from the other side, shouting urgently, "Lin Yan! Zhou Min! Upstairs! To the ground! Quickly!"

"Ruan Ning, you—" Lin Yan said urgently, cleaving a slow-moving but incredibly strong stitched monster in two with a single slash.

"Proceed according to plan! Let's go!" Ruan Ning interrupted her, her tone leaving no room for argument and carrying a sense of urgency.

Zhou Min's face was deathly pale, her mental energy severely depleted, but she knew that hesitation now would only be a burden. She gritted her teeth and grabbed Lin Yan: "Let's go! Trust her!"

The two stopped fighting, turned around, and ran up the stairs, their footsteps quickly fading into the distance.

Seeing them leave, Ruan Ning immediately rushed towards the stairwell leading to the second basement level with Da Huo. Behind her, a large swarm of enraged, twisted laboratory monsters swarmed like maggots, their target clearly the nearest living beings—Ruan Ning and Da Huo.

Rushing down the stairs, the scene on the second basement level was similar to the first basement level, but it seemed to be more focused on office areas and some core equipment rooms. The lighting was equally dim, and an unpleasant odor permeated the air.

Ruan Ning did not linger. Her powerful mental energy instantly spread out like an invisible tide, firmly enveloping and shielding herself and the aura, energy fluctuations, and even heartbeat and body temperature of the fire, simulating a state of near "emptiness".

This is one of the advanced applications she explored after her mental strength reached the third level. Although it cannot be sustained and consumes a lot of energy, it is enough to turn the tide at critical moments.