The Voice (Long Chapter, Bonus Chapter for Alliance Leader Foolish Paper Crane, Abyss Deep)

The sound of various objects breaking kept coming from the fifth floor of the Teaching Building.

Tables, chairs, windows, and even walls.

A fierce and bizarre battle is taking place on this floor.

Using her exceptional agility and speed, the class monitor moved between classrooms in the long corridor, but the pursuers relentlessly closed in on her.

No matter what kind of attack the squad leader launches, no matter how she pierces with her claws, no matter how she hides, she cannot stop or even delay this "pursuit".

I have tried to fight head-on many times.

Luo Di seemed unkillable, unaffected by any injuries to his body. It was as if as long as that spine existed, he would continue to hunt him down like a serial killer.

After several battles, the squad leader no longer dared to confront them head-on.

However, the whole process was a bit strange.

Even if Luo Di underwent an unknown change, with his physical functions experiencing a terrifying enhancement and he gaining a hunting instinct like a primal beast,

However, the squad leader still has the advantage in terms of speed.

The current environment is also a "gap". As the class leader who is one of the builders of the gap, he also occupies a geographical advantage.

If she felt outmatched, she could use her speed advantage to escape quickly, leave the Teaching Building, hide in a corner of the school, and conceal herself again using her strongest camouflage ability.

but,

The squad leader, however, did not choose the "escape" option.

Or perhaps she already knew that the advancement in the rift was about to end, and now only she and Teacher Guo were left. Even if they tried to escape, they would be caught by the vortex in the sky, and the entire campus was full of Teacher Guo's spies.

Or there might be some other reason...

After going around in circles, half an hour had passed.

Back in the classroom of Class 5, Senior High.

The class monitor immediately closed and locked the front door the moment he entered the classroom.

But the next second, boom!

The classroom door was kicked open, the hinges broke, and the class monitor was thrown backward, briefly losing his balance.

Whoosh! The Zombie Blade with black hair flew over at the same time the iron gate was kicked open.

Click!

The fanged blade slashed directly into the squad leader's abdomen.

The immense force of the throw carried the squad leader's body heavily into the opposite wall.

After a dull, loud thud,

Wow!

Another mouthful of blood spurted out.

This was the sergeant's umpteenth time spitting blood, and the umpteenth time he had been injured during hunts.

The squad leader immediately pulled out the Zombie Blade was completely embedded in her body, tore off a piece of his own skin and wrapped it around the blade, taking the opportunity to hide the threatening weapon behind his back.

Just as she was about to get up and continue her escape,

His body, which had just stood up, suddenly fell as if out of control, and he landed on his bottom.

Trying to get up again, the same thing happened.

This time, he didn't even get halfway up before sitting down again.

The squad leader looked at her arms, hands, and finger bones, which were difficult to heal due to multiple comminuted fractures.

Although the Investigator uniform and the corner helped maintain the overall appearance, it had now reached its limit. The whole hand was trembling wildly, and even grasping was very difficult.

A strange sensation came from my abdomen.

His entire abdomen was almost ripped open by the throwing knife, and even the investigator's clothing was damaged, revealing the various internal organs.

Blood began to spread across the ground.

"Has my body really deteriorated to this extent?"

It's strange, I was somewhat bewildered throughout the entire chase, just like those humans in the movies who unknowingly end up with multiple stab wounds.

Very good..."

The squad leader's expression didn't change much; he simply watched everything calmly before gradually moving his gaze upwards.

The heatwave has already arrived.

Similarly covered in wounds, with multiple cuts and penetrating injuries on his body, Luo Di had returned to the classroom.

Supported by the spine, it maintains full mobility and even undertakes the basic functions of some organs.

It seemed to sense that its prey's ability to move had been stripped away.

Luo Di stopped running and started walking with the same steps as in the movie.

The sound of each footstep hitting the ground seemed to correspond to the final Countdown of the prey's life.

The class monitor, leaning against the wall, simply looked at the other person with her best-kept fake smile, as if she had completely given up, or perhaps she was admiring something.

Snap!

Finally, he took a step and stood in front of the class monitor.

Luo Di did not execute him immediately because he had no weapon in his hand.

The killer's obsession was ingrained in his mind, and the final execution had to be carried out with a knife.

The Zombie Blade, which the class monitor had collected, was placed on her lower back, easily visible.

Luo Di could only bend down, lower his head, and reach for the squad leader's lower back.

Because of this action of drawing the knife,

His head almost rested on the class monitor's shoulder.

Remove the skin covering the Zombie Blade, and grasp the handle firmly.

call...

Luo Di exhaled a deep breath, his breath dry and filled with ashes.

Since even such a flawed attempt to retrieve the knife failed to elicit resistance from the squad leader, it's clear the other party had completely lost their ability to act; all that remained was the final execution.

The spine leads the bent-over body to slowly move upwards.

Just as Luo Di's face was about to move away from the squad leader's shoulder...

Click~

The squad leader's hands, which were already shattered, moved incredibly fast, as if they had never been injured at all, and they were aimed at Luo Di's head.

but,

Luo Di's spine did not respond in any way, nor did his tongue tap in his mouth, nor did it initiate any form of counterattack.

The reason is simple: he did not sense any murderous intent.

Snap!

The claws did not cut through or penetrate the skull.

The scarred hands gently cupped Luo Di's face.

Because their heads were very close together and neither of them resisted, the class monitor only needed to exert a little force to pull Luo Di's face close to hers, less than an inch apart.

Even such a slight pulling motion completely shattered the squad leader's right hand, which fell to the ground and slowly dissipated.

However, this also brought the two face to face.

The squad leader used all his strength to prop his weak body forward and gently pressed his cold lips against the wall, but he quickly ran out of strength and leaned back against the wall.

Although it was only a fleeting contact, a tiny white dot appeared in Luo Di's pupils, which were covered in black, and his confused consciousness cleared up slightly.

call...

When they parted,

The squad leader's expression changed, becoming unlike anything he had ever done before.

It was a very natural smile, just like the smile I gave when I first approached Luo Di a year ago and invited him to participate in the practice.

Tears welled up.

It keeps flowing.

"If only I could have met you sooner, if only I could have met you sooner... no, there is no 'if only'. I am already very content to have met you before everything ended."

Did you know?

A year ago, I would have nightmares every night, dreams of terrifying things guided by whispers, whether it was my father, myself, or the depths of the Corner.

But after the winter vacation ended six months ago,

I had a dream.

I dreamt of you, I dreamt that I went to your house again, and I dreamt that we sat together and talked about many things.

I can even taste the flavor of this dream; it's as delicious as the food you cook...

That night, for the first time, I found the feeling of being human, for the first time I felt alive, and for the first time I didn't hate my own body.

That's about it~ After you kill me, remember to take Xiao Ying to the infirmary.

I avoided vital organs, neither piercing the heart nor damaging major blood vessels. I simply took the opportunity to inject the anesthetic that Xiao Gao had brought, without overdosing.

Xiao Gao really came at the worst possible time. Even if I wanted to kill that Skin Bag Woman, it wouldn't be easy... cough cough cough!

This time, there's a true monster among those advancing through the rifts. Rather than being a stepping stone for others, I'd rather be your stepping stone. And indeed, you didn't disappoint me; you're the most special one. I knew I wouldn't be wrong.

The mark of hell was already in effect from the very beginning, and the world you connected to doesn't seem to be the simplest form of hell—that's wonderful.

Words trembled slightly from Luo Di's dry lips.

"You... intended to die by my hand from the very beginning."

The class monitor didn't respond, but just stared at him quietly, as if he could watch him a little longer if he didn't speak.

She had bled out of her abdomen and was still alive only because of her powerful body as Pseudo-Human.

Suddenly,

The class monitor's expression changed, becoming extremely serious, as if he had made some kind of decision.

With the last of her strength, she raised her arm and grabbed Luo Di's collar.

Promise me one thing.

You are always unwilling to face things that have already happened and are already certain.

It's like she already guessed my problem, but kept choosing to avoid it because of our relationship.

Even when I cut off Xiao Gao's head right in front of you, you still hesitated when you swung your knife at me. Fortunately, Xiao Ying's arrival made you make up your mind.

Escape is the choice of the weak.

After I die, this promotion will end, the school will reopen, and it will be time for you to face what has already happened.

When I went to your house that day, I could smell the odor you had masked with cleaning agents.

Stop running away. Since it's already happened, face it. Live well from now on... Remember to talk more, don't always keep it all bottled up inside.

The squad leader's last words seemed to touch a chord deep within Luo Di's memory, causing the white dots in his pupils to dilate and return to their normal shape.

The squad leader gradually died during this process.

Those usually bright and sparkling eyes now looked unfocused and lifeless, and their tear ducts no longer secreted any tears.

"Wu Wen ..."

Luo Di looked at his lifeless squad leader, at his drooping head.

He did not shed a tear.

Without hesitation,

He raised the butcher's knife high and slashed down diagonally.

Whoosh!

Luo Di held a pituitary gland that was already rotten and blackened, with cracks in the corners of its surface.

Feeling the lingering warmth of the pituitary gland,

Standing before the cold corpse,

Standing in the classroom where the two had spent three years,

Swallow it in one gulp.

The vortex-like black curtain that had enveloped the Fourth Middle School dissipated at this moment, and the flow of time inside and outside remained consistent.

The parents who were still waiting outside the school gates for the physical education exam to finish sensed a certain unrest.

They also subconsciously looked towards the campus.

Suddenly, someone noticed something unusual: a figure seemed to leap down from the top of the Teaching Building near the school gate, scale the wall, and quickly disappear at the end of the road.

[No. 13 Resettlement Community]

The occupancy rate is less than 30%.

With his back bulging outwards, Luo Di rushed from the entrance of the residential area to the innermost apartment building, and the whole process went unnoticed by anyone.

Take out the key,

Open the door,

The father's voice immediately came from inside:

"You did well on the exam. Keep it up!"

Then I heard my mother's voice again.

"Be careful on the road."

Then my sister's voice came through.

"Luo Di, I'm taking Mom and Dad out to play. I'm leaving the house in your care."

Luo Di habitually took off his shoes and put on slippers.

Through the partition of the shoe-changing area, you could barely see the backs of the parents sitting at the dining table, a rather heartwarming scene.

But as Luo Di entered the restaurant, the situation completely changed.

Three mummified corpses, still covered in fresh soil and emitting a foul odor, sat upright around the dining table, none of them headless.

Three tape recorders were inserted around their necks, which would periodically play the same conversation on repeat.

Luo Di remained expressionless as he watched this scene. He simply returned to his bedroom and glanced at the shovel, still covered in mud, hidden under the bed.

This time,

He no longer needed to send his family on trips, and he no longer reached for the shovel.

Arriving at the desk,

I took out my pen, opened my diary, turned to a brand new page, and carefully recorded the events of the day, not missing a single word.

The camera pans out of the bedroom.

Arriving at the shoe cabinet by the front door,

Compared to a year ago when a family photo of the four of them was displayed here, there is now a brand new photo decorated with an exquisite wooden frame, which is Luo Di's first photo with his friends.

The hot pot pot, overturned in mid-air during an arm-wrestling match, occupies the center of the image.

On the left of the photo is Anna, her face filled with terror, yet desperately trying to salvage the situation.

In the upper right corner of the photo is Gao Yuxuan, sitting calmly at the very back.

In the bottom left corner of the photo is the class monitor, laughing heartily without any pretense or burden.

And on the right side of the photo, Luo Di is smiling in front of his friends for the first time.

At this time,

A sound came from inside the room.

A series of clicks of the tongue at a fixed frequency came from the bedroom.

Ta~

Ta~

Ta~