Chapter 6
"Leave the umbrella here. I'm leaving first."
Taking the key to the courtyard handed to her by Wen Lan, Ji Dongzang agreed to look after the stray cats and dogs she had taken in.
As she stepped out of Lake International, the scattered mutants on the street immediately pounced on her, including a swift mutant cat.
They don't seem to be doing it to spread the virus or smell life, but simply for fun and to enjoy the thrill of hunting prey.
Ji Dongzang started running and most of the pursuers were quickly shaken off, except for one mutant man and the mutant cat, who kept chasing him.
Rushing onto an empty street, Ji Dongzang suddenly stopped in his tracks. He had to deal with the mutated cat first! It was small, agile, and had extremely fast reactions, making it difficult to hit with a knife.
She decisively sheathed her knife, flipped the electric shock switch, and, gripping the crackling electric baton in her right hand, swung it wildly at the approaching gray figure. At the same time, she kept a sharp eye on the mutant waiting nearby, distracting herself and on guard.
In a flash, the mutated cat was struck by the high-voltage current, letting out a shrill howl and instantly freezing. This was a golden opportunity! Ji Dongzang's left hand flashed with a cold light, and he stabbed the scalpel into the mutated cat's neck with precise and ruthless precision.
Without even taking a breath, she turned around and swung the electric baton across, fiercely hitting the approaching mutant. Unexpectedly, the mutant suddenly covered his head, staggered back a step, and then uttered a muffled whimper, turning around and trying to escape!
A hint of surprise flashed across Ji Dongzang's eyes, but his movements were even faster. With a flick of his wrist, the claw knife shot out like an arrow from a bow, accurately ending the mutant's life from behind.
She quickly collected the scalpel and claw knife, wiped the sweat from her forehead, identified the direction, and walked quickly towards the small shopping mall where the axe and backpack were stored.
Upstairs, Wen Lan's eyes followed Ji Dongzang until she was sure she had safely disappeared around the corner.
She turned and walked into the bathroom, letting the warm water wash away her tense nerves. A moment later, she sat down at the table, her fingertips lingering on the open diary. For a moment, she slowly turned a new page...
The interior of the mall was filled with silence and dust.
Ji Dongzang stepped onto the second floor, his footsteps echoing softly in the empty space. Suddenly, a figure lying on all fours suddenly jumped out from the shadows and pounced on him!
It was the lady in the flowered shirt from the barbershop! Ji Dongzang recognized the signature green flowered shirt, as well as her hair, once meticulously permed but now cropped short and uneven. But the most disturbing thing about her was the change—her muzzle bulged forward, elongated and deformed, like some canine.
However, she did not launch an attack. Instead, she froze in place in an extremely awkward posture, her body shaking violently and suppressed sobs coming from her throat, as if she was using all her strength to fight some violent instinct in her body.
It felt like there were two consciousnesses in her body, fighting for control.
Ji Dongzang was stunned for a moment and had no idea how to respond. He could only stand in front of the other person helplessly like a student who was punished.
After a long while, the violent trembling finally subsided. Wu Cailing let out a long, trembling breath and, unsteadily, stood up using her legs to support herself.
She subconsciously patted her chest to breathe smoothly, turned her gaze to Ji Dongzang, and forced an extremely awkward smile on her face: "Hehe...hehe...don't be afraid, I'm not crazy! A good person, a very good person!" She tried hard to emphasize, trying to prove that she was "harmless".
Ji Dongzang suppressed his surprise and asked curiously, "How did you become like this? What does this... 'mutation' feel like?"
"'Mutation'?!" Wu Cailing seemed very surprised by this word.
"I chose the name myself," Ji Dongzang explained. "What on earth have you been through?"
"I don't know either!" Wu Cailing looked bewildered. "I suddenly felt... that I had to walk on my stomach to be comfortable, and I couldn't control the urge to crawl! It took a lot of effort to pull myself back..." She described incoherently.
Ji Dongzang nodded silently. She had just witnessed all of this. She then moved on to the more crucial question: "When did you see me? I mean, did you recognize me?"
"Of course I recognized you!" Wu Cailing's emotions suddenly became excited, and a glimmer of hope flashed in her eyes. "As soon as you went up to the second floor, I 'knew' it was you! I haven't attacked you yet. You said that I'm like this... does it mean that I'm okay? I won't turn into that kind of monster, right?" She eagerly sought reassurance.
"Maybe," Ji Dongzang nodded, with a hint of comfort in his tone that he himself didn't even notice, "Relax." She couldn't make any more promises.
Ji Dongzang found the corner where he had hidden his backpack and axe before, and put the equipment back on his back.
The two exchanged names. Wu Cailing generously provided hot water, allowing Ji Dongzang to make a bowl of instant noodles. She also grabbed a bottle of Coke and inserted a straw from a pile of AD calcium milk.
I found a relatively clean table on the second floor and sat down, then began to rest after the winter storage.
Her phone had already run out of battery, so she took out a power bank and connected it to the power cord, and the screen lit up with the startup screen.
Hunger surged in her, and she missed golden fried eggs and hot meat. But right now, she needed medicine and to go to Jiangning Village to check on the stray cats and dogs that Wen Lan had entrusted to her.
I can only endure it temporarily.
She considered staying in Wen Lan's courtyard for a while. This meant she would need to find a working car to transport the necessary supplies. She also needed to ask Wen Lan if they needed more food.
As his thoughts drifted, Ji Dongzang unconsciously stared at the black screen of his phone, which had not yet fully lit up, and looked at his profile, which was covered in dust but still could not hide his handsomeness.
At this moment, a bowl of steaming, golden fried shrimp paste was gently placed on the table.
Ji Dongzang's attention was instantly attracted, the corners of his mouth rose uncontrollably, and he looked at Wu Cailing in surprise.
Wu Cailing rolled her eyes and said unhappily, "I fried these while cooking the noodles. I put too much oil in them, so they're greasy. It's a waste if you can't finish them. You got a bargain." After saying that, she turned around and was about to leave.
"Thank you, Sister Cailing!" A crisp voice of thanks rang out, and then Wu Cailing felt a loud kiss on the cheek from a girl who was half a head taller than her.
Her body stiffened, the tips of her ears turned slightly red, and without turning her head, she said, "I'm so annoyed!" and walked back to her corner with slightly messy steps, leaving behind only her back as she tried hard to maintain a "resigned" attitude.
The next morning, the light was dim.
Ji Dongzang gripped his axe tightly, carried his backpack, and walked out of the small shopping mall where he was temporarily staying.
Wu Cailing stood at the door, tightly holding the electric baton and several spare batteries left to her by Ji Dongzang, and watched the figure disappear with complicated eyes.
The city is like a huge maze of ruins.
Ji Dongzang ran and hid all the way, alert to the dangers that might lurk in every corner.
Finally, a small pharmacy came into view.
The glass door shattered to the ground, and the store was dead silent, with only dust floating slowly in the light that came in.
As you enter the store, the pharmacy is divided into left and right sides.
The left side shows drugs for female biological research, the right side shows drugs for male biological research. And in the middle area, there are undifferentiated drugs, equipment, and disinfectants...
With a clear goal in mind, she quickly swept up disinfectants and various hemostatic and bandage supplies, filling her backpack and the large shopping bag she found.
For other medicines, she selected some commonly used types.
Carrying two large bags of heavy medicine and his own backpack, Ji Dongzang carefully returned to the door of the pharmacy.
Her gaze swept over the scattered figures wandering the street, finally locking onto a few cars parked on the side of the road. The doors of one van were ajar, as if the owner had abandoned the vehicle in a panic. The key was even in the ignition, gleaming with a faint metallic sheen.
She crouched down and moved closer, quickly stuffed the supplies into the car, then got in herself and closed the door behind her.
The interior was adequate. She quickly checked: the engine started smoothly, and the fuel gauge showed more than half a tank. The seat's comfort and angle were clearly designed for a female figure—the owner was a woman. This realization filled Ji Dongzang with an indescribable feeling, and she silently cursed herself for taking advantage of the situation.
The engine roared awake, and the van rolled over the broken road, drove out of the dead city, and headed towards the small village of Jiangning nestled in the mountains and by the water.
The monotonous hum of the wheels rolled, intertwined with the desolate scenery passing by outside the window. After nearly seven hours of continuous driving, the tense nerves and the stiffness brought on by maintaining the same posture for so long finally made Ji Dongzang feel an unbearable fatigue.
As dusk fell, two dilapidated adobe houses nestled together appeared ahead. Ji Dongzang slowed down the car and stared at them for a moment.
In the end, her wariness of unknown risks outweighed her desire for a moment of peace, and she did not stay.
She drove further away until the house completely disappeared from sight, then stopped beside a remote dirt road covered with wild vegetables. She turned off the engine, and the world suddenly fell silent.
She pushed open the car door, leaned against the car body tiredly, and looked up at the behemoth that occupied half of the night sky - Theia.
The alien planet's light was eerie in the twilight, its massive outline seemingly imminent. It continuously broadcast its meaningless whispers to Earth.
Ji Dongzang stared at it, always feeling that it was waiting for some unknown opportunity.
A fatal moment that is enough to allow it to break free from the constraints of gravity and completely "throw" or "embrace" itself into the arms of the earth.
Jiangning Village, according to Wen Lan, has long been an empty village, with only the small courtyard she rented deep inside to shelter the homeless animals.
Dong Zang drove deeper into the silent dead village. The engine sound was replaced by the shrill howling of cats and dogs, a mixture of pain and rage. She followed the heart-wrenching sound and finally stopped in front of a courtyard.
Unlike other dilapidated cottages, this courtyard had obviously been carefully renovated, with high walls and closed gates.
Ji Dongzang didn't rush to open the door. She took a few steps back, used the momentum to push herself up, and nimbly climbed up the two-meter-high courtyard wall next to her. She crouched on the top of the wall and peered inside.
shocking!
Under a huge dead tree, the corpses of cats and dogs were piled up in various shapes and sizes.
Some of them retained their original appearance, while others underwent strange changes.
However, the fighting did not stop, and fierce howling and collision sounds were coming from the other end of the yard.
Ji Dongzang held her breath and moved carefully along the top of the wall. In the narrow angle formed by the house and the outer wall, she finally saw the participants in the bloody fight: five terrifying beasts, baring their teeth at each other, growling threateningly, and maintaining a posture ready to pounce at any time.
The air was filled with a strong smell of blood and violence.
With the appearance of the uninvited guest Dongzang, the tense battle situation came to a sudden halt.
Several pairs of eyes flashing with murderous intent glanced at her warily, but their primary hostility was still firmly locked on each other. They could only continue to confront the mortal enemy in front of them while distracting themselves to guard against her.
Ji Dongzang thought about it and decided to keep his troops in place.
She calmly observed these creatures beyond common sense. Without exception, their bodies had expanded to sizes far exceeding those of adult humans, and had undergone certain distortions:
A giant beast that looked like a cat but not a cat, and a leopard but not a leopard: it was several times larger than the mutated cats she had hunted before, with wiry muscles and sharp claws like hooks.
A "gorilla dog" that looks like a human standing up: its forelimbs are extremely strong and developed, almost able to support its body and walk like a gorilla, with its fangs exposed.
A giant cockroach with only half of its body left: sticky liquid flowed from the broken wound, the remaining limbs still stubbornly supported it, and its compound eyes flashed with crazy light.
A giant Dalmatian with its claws and fangs suddenly expanding: the originally cute spots were deformed by the expanding muscles, and the four claws became as huge and sharp as a tiger's.
A black ant of astonishing size: almost as tall as an adult, its shell gleaming with an oily luster, and its pair of strong mandibles opening and closing, making a crisp clicking sound.
An absurd question flashed through Ji Dongzang's mind: How does the respiratory system of such a huge insect support its activities?
Seeing that Ji Dongzang seemed to have no intention of intervening, he just silently retreated a little distance, and the balance of confrontation was instantly broken!
The giant leopard-like cat took the lead in attacking!
It turned into a swift afterimage and pounced on the black giant ant, accurately biting one of the giant ant's relatively slender hind leg joints, and then swung its head wildly, trying to tear it apart.
Almost at the same time, the half cockroach also dragged its remaining body and crawled to the other side of the giant ant at an astonishing speed, intending to join in the biting.
However, the cockroach's attack was intercepted! The gorilla-dog growled, and its powerful forelimbs fiercely slammed into the cockroach's broken shell. The giant Dalmatian also roared, and used its burgeoning claws to block the cockroach's path.
Elsewhere, the giant black ant, enraged by the ocelot's bite, exploded with agility belying its bulk. Its powerful forelimbs grabbed the ocelot's body, lifting it completely off the ground!
Under Ji Dongzang's astonished gaze, the giant ant swung a flesh-and-blood hammer, slamming the ocelot against the hard ground. "Bang! Bang!" Each impact was accompanied by the dull thud of shattered bones and shrill howls.
Seeing the ocelot's flesh and blood blurred by the heavy blows and its movements gradually weakening, the gorilla dog that had been restraining the cockroach finally couldn't hold back any longer.
It gave up on the opponent in front of it, let out a deafening roar, and slammed its huge body into the black giant ant, using its thick forelimbs to go straight for the giant ant's relatively fragile head!
The giant ant reacted extremely quickly. At the critical moment, it suddenly turned its head to dodge and at the same time used the almost shapeless ocelot body in its claws as a weapon, throwing it fiercely at the oncoming gorilla dog.
"Bang!"
The bloody leopard cat and the gorilla dog collided head-on, and the huge impact force caused both of them to roll and fall several meters away!
The black ant's compound eyes looked around angrily, taking in the five species including Ji Dongzang. Its huge abdominal muscles contracted violently and spasmodically, and its entire hindquarters expanded wildly at a speed visible to the naked eye, as if it were inflated.
BANG!!!
With a dull, terrifying roar, the giant ant's body suddenly exploded from within! Its glandular tissue, still mutated and stored, along with various sticky substances containing unknown toxins, erupted like a ignited biochemical bomb, transforming into a torrential rain of brown-green, pungent, and foul-smelling mucus that radiated wildly in all directions! Squirting!
Ji Dongzang instinctively leaned back, pressing herself tightly against the wall, slumping into the shadows atop it. Countless sticky "raindrops" brushed past her body, whizzing past, smashing into the wall, the ground, and distant objects with a heart-pounding "puff" sound.
The coverage area of this spray is at least several dozen meters.
After more than ten minutes, the hair-raising spraying and corrosion sounds finally stopped completely.
Ji Dongzang held her breath, carefully avoiding the brown-green slime that was still slowly flowing and bubbling on the ground. Perhaps because the ant had just completed its transformation, its toxicity had not yet reached its peak. A few drops of slime splashed onto her coat and trouser legs, causing a slight burning sensation and a sickening, slippery feeling, but no severe pain or corrosion.
She found an area sheltered by a high wall and with less mucus splashing around, and she swiftly climbed over the wall again.
At the center of the explosion, only a shriveled ant shell remained, lying empty and hollow in place like an abandoned horror sculpture.
Within a radius of dozens of meters, the ground, walls, and even the branches of the dead tree were covered with a layer of brown-green mucus, emitting a strong and pungent smell.
Not far away, the giant cockroach, only half of its body remaining, lay face up in a swamp of slime. Its outstretched wings were completely covered in slime, and its gray-brown carapace was covered in disgusting green stains.
The most deadly thing is that the mucus accurately covers the huge wound on its broken body and is constantly eroding the internal tissues.
It is completely dead.
Her gaze shifted with difficulty, settling on the farthest corner of the courtyard wall.
The leopard-like giant cat still had a breath left in its body, curled up in its dying state. Its large eyes, which might have once been round and lively, now stared blankly and lifelessly in the direction of Ji Dongzang.
There was a completely silent grayness in his eyes, as if he already knew his fate and was waiting for death to come tiredly and quietly.
The two mutated dogs disappeared without a trace, escaping from this deadly area.
However, the deathly silence did not truly envelop Jiangning Village… In the distance, the shrill howls of unknown animals and the sounds of fighting could still be heard.
Ji Dongzang stood on the high wall, overlooking the Shura field below him that was made up of slime, debris and death.
Just a moment ago, this was a battlefield where five powerful beings were fiercely confronting each other and fighting for the right to survive.
In a blink of an eye, some self-destructed in the most tragic way, some were swallowed up mercilessly, some waited for the end in despair, and some escaped by chance in the chaos.
And she, a human being standing on the edge, is a bystander and a witness.
We witnessed a primitive and cruel epic of survival belonging to these mutated behemoths - in this collapsing world, they roared and struggled with fangs, claws, and even self-destructing bodies, fighting for the slim right to continue.
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