The World Below Surface

he flat they were in and then return to their own world a week later at ground zero.
That was why they were desperate to protect Lu Yan, but if Lu Yan died, who would go in with them? Would they have to carry the body on their backs if they found the location?

Of course, once they had entered the flat, Lu Yan's life was not so important.
As long as he could “stay” in the apartment, what did it matter if he was dead or alive?

The dead would be more obedient.

He Lou was already prepared to let Lu Yan be “quieted” if he insisted on going out after entering the flat.

He had been through too many life-and-death situations and had survived with many lives in his hands.
After all, every mission is a life-and-death experience, with some unlucky ones dying on the way.

Therefore, when they encountered the blood mist underground, they thought it was just a minor hurdle on the way.
Who knew it would lead to them not even being able to enter Lu Yan's flat now?

This was clearly a hidden mission! How could they have imagined that there would be two simultaneous missions?

If they didn't enter Lu Yan's flat at the required time ……
the consequences would be unthinkable!

What is the way of life ……?

The blood fog, the carriage, the woman's poster, the song ……

Who is this “woman”? Does the blood fog have anything to do with her? Is she the one who sang the song?

“Brother Lou, do something quickly!

“Yes! All our lives depend on you; you can't just run away alone!”

“Have you thought of anything at all?”

He Lou was a little angry, “Have you guys said enough?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he was shocked to realise something was wrong.

He shouldn't have been angry.
Anger affects one's sanity, so why would he be mad at a few prodding words?

And these people ……
were also people who had returned from several missions, more or less capable of taking charge of their own.
Even if they wanted to finish him off, they should have used him as a shield before terrorising him, so why would he be angry over this little thing?

Anger ……

The thought flashed through his mind when a steep pain shot through his back.

“Fuck you! Putting on a face every day and acting like a boss, I'm going to get you killed today!” It was a tall, thin man in a sweatshirt in the group.
After he threw the stone, his eyes had turned completely red, and he pulled a dagger from his waist, aiming it at He Lou's back and about to lunge.

The others looked at each other coldly, eyes full of malice and intense anger.

“Kill him! Kill him!!!”

“Kill him! We'll be able to get out!”

Seeing that Li Fang Zhi's eyes were also about to glow red, Li Fang Yu raised her hand and gave her sister a slap, “Calm down!”

The crowd slowly surrounded He Lou, who took a few deep breaths and similarly drew his folding knife from his sleeve.

Lu Yan hurriedly lunged over and stopped the tall, thin man, “Calm down!”

“Get lost! You let go! I'll kill him!!!” The man he had pounced on struggled angrily.
He was so strong that he tried several times to thrust the tip of the knife at Lu Yan, who had the same irritation welling up in him.
He dodged the dagger and punched the tall thin man hard in the face, knocking him to the ground.

He could stop one, but not the second, and the others had long-standing grievances and resentment.

He Lou drew his folding knife but did not strike, but gasped and crossed it in front of him.

The song ……
angry ……

They smiled after the first song ……

He yelled, “Everybody calm down! This song is not right!!!”

“The song causes our emotions to fluctuate.
The first song was a joy; now it's anger.
Calm down!”

Joy, anger, mourning and disgust be next?

Don't dare bet on it.

A loud bellow more or less woke everyone up for a moment.
The others gasped and struggled to contain their impulses, except for the tall, thin man who had been knocked down by Lu Yan.
He slowly rose from the ground.

His limbs were already stiff, his gaze grim, his face gradually turning blue and white, his cheeks deeply sunken, his mouth salivating unnaturally at the corners, and his breath coming in ragged gasps.

He didn't look like a living person anymore.

Rather, he looked ……
like a zombie.

He rose from the ground and slowly turned his head.
A pair of black eyes deadly stare at Lu Yan.

“Old Wu (武)! Stop him!!!” Li Fang Yu screamed in defiance of her image.

Old Wu, the tallest man in the group, was the closest to the tall, thin man and slowly lifted his head at the sound of his voice, striding towards the two men.
Lu Yan, however, did not feel saved at all.
He did not hesitate to duck behind the pole beside him!

Old Wu, the one in the group whose pace he saw was not right, was walking on tiptoe!

Almost simultaneously, Old Wu turned a corner and accelerated straight at him.
Lu Yan was hurrying to dodge, and the other man's outstretched hands fell on a telephone pole.

On the pole, there was a poster of a woman.

Lu Yan gasped, his eyes fixed on Old Wu, and one of his hands touched the woman's face.

The woman on the poster instantly changed her face.

Or rather, all the women on the posters from all sides began to turn pale, their faces grim and blue, their eyes focused on that one hand.

Not one of them?

Lu Yan guessed as he dodged the tall, thin man.

The next thing he knew, the woman's bright red lips were grinning from her face to her ears, and the hand was reaching for the poster bit by bit.

And then the sound of chewing resumed.

The woman's expression calmed down, and she stayed still on the poster.

The blood mist around her likewise dispersed considerably.

This did not reassure the group.
For no reason other than that, the little friend who had been able to communicate and work together without any problems had turned into a monster of some unknown species in an instant.
He, or more appropriately “it”, had stiffened his limbs, his hands were flat in the air, his knees were stiff, and he was jumping, jumping, jumping after the group.

Old Wu was dead, and the tall, thin man had become a monster.
In a flash, two more members were lost.

Counting Lu Yan, only eleven of the initial fifteen remained!

If they couldn't think of a way out, all eleven would likely break down here.

“Everyone, be careful! Don't let it scratch you!” The yellow-haired young man shouted.

In the old Hong Kong movies, if one was scratched or bitten by a zombie, the injured one would likewise be infected as a zombie.
Although this might differ from the zombies in Hong Kong movies, no one wanted to check whether it was true.
Just look at the other person's long nails that were green and dripping with an unknown liquid.

It was not long before the transformation, its movements were still a bit stiff and slow, and the big guy could still turn and dodge so that it could not pounce.
The later the transformation, the more sensitive and athletic its movements became, the less able they were to avoid, and the more we brushed against the sharp nails from time to time.

Even more frightening was that it possessed a certain degree of intelligence.
Everyone tried to repeat the same trick as Lu Yan had done before, but they did not fall for it.

He Lou, and the others thought about things as they dodged.

It seemed that the woman on the poster didn't distinguish whether the prey was a human or anything else, and as long as it came across it, it ate it up.
Every time it devoured, the blood mist would dissipate, and the song would subside.
Judging by the pattern of power and timing, a new round must be even more horrific and bloody.

It was as if it could gain some sort of sustenance from that flesh and blood.