The third-floor corridor, a makeshift fortress.
This was already the fourth day of the apocalypse.
Behind the pile of sundries blocking the door, soldiers and students slumped on the ground, leaning against the cold wall, their eyes hollow as they stared at the ceiling or the blood-stained floor.
No one spoke, only heavy, suppressed gasps, and the occasional, tightly controlled groans of pain from the injured.
Li Zhenguo leaned against a crack by the window, the wound on his left shoulder re-bandaged, but the seeping blood still stained the bandage red. He closed his eyes, seemingly feigning sleep, but his tightly clenched fists and slightly trembling eyelids revealed his extreme fatigue and tension.
Wang Lei sat beside him, an anti-material rifle laid across his lap, its barrel twisted and deformed, completely ruined. He lowered his head, wiping a military dagger with a blood-stained cloth, his movements mechanical and numb. Zhao Xiaowen huddled in the corner, hugging her knees, her tactical helmet placed to one side, her face bearing scratches and tear stains, her eyes unfocused as she stared at the ground.
Li Mingyu and Sun Qiang sat back to back. Li Mingyu's Buli (Brute Force) ability was severely overdrawn; his muscles ached as if torn, and he didn't even have the strength to lift a finger.
Sun Qiang's metal skin was covered with crisscrossing claw marks, and in some places, tiny cracks had even appeared, dulling its luster. Both were silent, their eyes filled with the relief of surviving a catastrophe, and… the heavy weight of the tragic sacrifices from last night.
Chen Xue huddled in the corner closest to the door, clutching Ling Chen's blood-stained tracksuit. She buried her face deep into the heavily blood-scented clothing, her shoulders silently shaking.
Lin Wei sat beside her, gently patting her back, a deep weariness and a hint of imperceptible worry in the depths of her amber pupils.
Her Discernment ability allowed her to clearly “see” the energy fluctuations remaining on the tracksuit—that wasn't just Ling Chen's blood, but also mixed with the contaminating aura of several mutated beasts… Could he truly survive such injuries?
Wu Tao and several other boys were laboriously clearing the corpses piled in the corridor, carefully moving their companions' remains to a relatively clean corner and covering them with torn curtain fabric.
The air was filled with a strong stench of decay and sorrow. Each movement was accompanied by suppressed sobs and heavy sighs.
Just then!
“Thump… thump… thump…”
An extremely faint, intermittent knocking sound suddenly came from the corridor entrance, which was blocked by sundries!
The sound was very light, but in the dead silence of the environment, it was like a thunderclap!
Everyone suddenly raised their heads! Their gazes instantly focused on the doorway!
“Who?!” Li Zhenguo instantly opened his eyes, a sharp gleam bursting forth! He abruptly stood up, grabbed the assault rifle leaning against the wall, and shouted sternly!
“It’s… it’s me…” An extremely weak voice, as if about to expire at any moment, came from outside the door, accompanied by heavy gasping and coughing, “Ling… Ling Chen…”
“Ling Chen?!” Chen Xue suddenly raised her head, an unbelievable light instantly erupting in her eyes! She practically stumbled and scrambled towards the door! “Ling Chen! Is that you?! You’re alive?!”
“Don’t move!” Li Zhenguo stopped her with a grab, his eyes as sharp as an eagle's! He motioned for Wang Lei and Zhao Xiaowen to be on alert, while he slowly approached the doorway, peering cautiously through the gaps in the pile of sundries.
Outside the door, a young man, covered in mud and black blood, his face ashen, as if he had just crawled out of hell, leaned weakly against the wall, one hand feebly patting the desk blocking the door.
His breathing was rapid and faint, and a trace of un-dried blood still hung at the corner of his mouth. It was indeed Ling Chen!
“Open the door! Open it quickly!” Chen Xue cried out, desperately trying to move the sundries blocking the door.
“Wait!” Li Zhenguo said in a deep voice, his gaze fixed on Ling Chen outside the door, “How did you survive? Below are all ghouls and rat swarms!”
His questions came like a barrage, carrying the interrogative tone unique to soldiers, and his gaze was fixed on Ling Chen's eyes, trying to find any flaw.
Ling Chen gasped, painstakingly raising his uninjured right hand, pointing towards the ventilation duct, his voice intermittent, filled with the exhaustion of surviving a catastrophe and… a hint of imperceptible relief?
“Bats… diverted the ghouls and… rats… that were chasing me…” He had to stop and gasp every few words, “They… found me in the drain… and then went crazy… attacking those… pursuers… leading them to run… east…”
He paused, as if recalling that breathtaking scene, a hint of “lingering fear” flashing in his eyes: “I… took the opportunity… to crawl back… through the ventilation shaft… cough cough…”
He coughed violently again, spitting out a few mouthfuls of phlegm streaked with blood.
“Diverted?” Li Zhenguo frowned deeply, his eyes sharp.
“Why did those bats… save you? Aren’t they only controlled by you? Weren’t you… already severely injured and unconscious at the time?”
This question was extremely sharp! It went straight to the core! Bats were controlled by Ling Chen's Beast Taming ability; it was common sense for tamed beasts to lose control when their master was unconscious! How could they actively save someone? And so accurately divert the pursuers?
Everyone's gaze instantly focused on Ling Chen, filled with doubt and… a hint of imperceptible scrutiny.
Ling Chen seemed to be stumped by the question. He froze for a moment, a trace of bewilderment and… a bitter smile appearing on his pale face? He laboriously raised his hand, pointing to the wound on his left arm, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness and weakness: “I… I don’t know either… Maybe… it was my blood… that stimulated them? Or… they… took me as their… leader? Animals sometimes protect injured companions.”
He gasped, his eyes tired and sincere (?) as he looked at Li Zhenguo: “Captain Li… I… I really don’t know… I only know… they saved my life… and then… maybe… they all died…” His voice trailed off, carrying a hint of “sadness” and “gratitude.”
Li Zhenguo stared intently into Ling Chen's eyes. Those eyes, dim from blood loss and fatigue, held a deep, calm… weariness? There was no panic, no evasion, only a kind of dazedness and weakness from surviving a catastrophe. What he said… seemed reasonable.
Animals protecting injured companions?
But… was that really the case? The doubts in Li Zhenguo's heart were not entirely dispelled. This young man… had too many mysteries about him. Severely injured and on the verge of death, dragged into the drain by the Rat King, yet he miraculously survived? Bats losing control yet coincidentally saving their master? All of this… was too coincidental.
“How are your injuries?”
Li Zhenguo continued to press, his gaze scanning Ling Chen's body like a surgeon's knife. He saw the seeping “bandage” on Ling Chen's arm, his pale face, and his weak posture… Everything seemed to fit the characteristics of severe injury.
“Cough cough… Left arm… fractured… back… bruised… internal organs… possibly… also injured…” Ling Chen answered with difficulty, his body swaying slightly, as if he might collapse at any moment.
“Water… give me… water…”
“Open the door!” Li Zhenguo finally ordered, but the vigilance in his eyes did not diminish in the slightest. He motioned for Li Mingyu and Sun Qiang to help, and together they laboriously moved the sundries blocking the door, creating a gap.
Chen Xue was the first to rush out, disregarding Ling Chen's mud and blood, and hugged him! “Ling Chen! You scared me to death! Wuwuwu…” Tears streamed down her face again.
Ling Chen “weakly” leaned against Chen Xue, letting her support him, his body trembling slightly, as if he didn't even have the strength to stand.
He raised his “lifeless” eyes, scanning Li Zhenguo, Wang Lei, Zhao Xiaowen… finally resting on Li Mingyu and Sun Qiang, a “survivor's” weak smile, extremely difficult, pulling at the corners of his mouth.
“I’m… I’m fine… I’m… back…”
Li Zhenguo walked in front of Ling Chen, his sharp gaze sweeping across his face like a searchlight. Suddenly, he spoke without warning, his voice deep and carrying an undeniable sense of oppression:
“Ling Chen, you must have already cultivated to the Bone Eater Realm, haven’t you? How many people have you killed?”
This question was like a clap of thunder from a clear sky! Instantly, everyone's hearts leaped to their throats!
Chen Xue's hand, supporting Ling Chen, tightened abruptly! Li Mingyu and Sun Qiang also instantly tensed their bodies! Lin Wei's pupils suddenly constricted, her Discernment ability subconsciously focusing on Ling Chen!
Ling Chen's body also seemed to stiffen ever so slightly. He raised his head, meeting Li Zhenguo's eyes, which seemed to be able to see through people's hearts. On his pale, weak face, a perfectly timed… bewilderment and confusion?
“Kill… kill people?” His voice was hoarse from his injuries and carried an imperceptible tremor (as if from fear at the mention of that terrifying name), “Bone Eater Realm?… Kill people?… Captain Li… you… what are you talking about?… I… I don’t understand…”
His eyes were hollow and tired, filled with the dazedness of surviving a catastrophe and fear of the unknown, as if he completely didn't understand what Li Zhenguo was saying. That trace of bewilderment and confusion was flawlessly real.
Li Zhenguo stared intently into Ling Chen's eyes, trying to find a flaw—panic, evasion, or a trace of alarm at having a secret exposed. But… there was none. In those bottomless dark eyes, there was only a dead-water-like weariness and bewilderment, and… the weakness and disarray brought by severe injuries.
Could it be… he was just overthinking it?
He was silent for a few seconds. The corridor was dead silent; everyone held their breath.
Finally, Li Zhenguo slowly shifted his gaze, his tense body relaxing slightly. He waved his hand: “Take him inside to rest. Zhou… Zhao Xiaowen, check his injuries.”
He ultimately… found no substantial evidence. Ling Chen's reaction was too “normal.” A severely injured, near-death student who miraculously escaped, showing bewilderment and fear when faced with a sudden, inexplicable question… It was perfectly normal.
“Yes!” Zhao Xiaowen quickly stepped forward and, with Chen Xue, helped the “extremely weak” Ling Chen into the fortress, seating him against the wall.
She took out the remaining disinfectant wipes and bandages, carefully treating the “shocking” abrasions on Ling Chen's arm (which were actually just superficial wounds), her movements gentle.
Ling Chen closed his eyes, letting them tend to him, his breathing faint and even, as if he had already fallen asleep. But the Soul Jade Physique's cold will was operating at high speed. That momentary probing just now… Li Zhenguo indeed had suspicions.
However… it didn't matter. As long as there was no evidence, suspicion could only remain suspicion.
He “weakly” leaned against the cold wall, and at the corner of his mouth, in the unnoticed shadow, he extremely subtly… curved upwards.
Time slowly passed in the oppressive wait.
Around noon, the sun finally struggled to penetrate the clouds, bringing a negligible warmth. The atmosphere inside the fortress remained heavy.
The food and water bought with precious lives yesterday were completely exhausted, and medicine was running low. The groans of the injured and the rumbling of hungry stomachs intertwined, reminding everyone of the cruel reality.
Suddenly!
“Vroom—!!!”
A deep, penetrating engine roar, from far to near, rolled across the sky like muffled thunder!
Immediately after!
“Thump-thump-thump-thump—!!!”
The dense, crisp sound of helicopter blades tearing through the air shattered the campus's deathly silence!
“Helicopter! It’s a helicopter!” Wu Tao, who was near the window crack, suddenly jumped up, excitedly pointing at the sky outside the window!