Even so, he could not give up now.
Shi Lei braced himself and continued onward. The empty passageway was so quiet he could hear his own heartbeat. After running for roughly a hundred meters, he came upon a crossroads.
Left? Right?
Or should he keep going straight?
The Slums were exceptionally quiet tonight. He had no idea whether they were usually like this. He listened carefully as the cool night breeze brushed across his cheeks.
"Bang! Bang!"
Faint crashing sounds came from the left.
Shi Lei could not be sure whether the Lungmen Guard Department was fighting the Infected over there. But he had no better option at the moment. Raising both hands into a combat stance, ready to cast Rock Spine at any time, he hurried to the left.
After advancing twenty or thirty meters, the crashing grew clearer. Three men were frantically kicking down a door.
The motion-sensor light in the corridor had just gone out when it was triggered again, illuminating the black Originium on one man's neck.
"Don't think you can hide in there! Get out here!"
"Mom... Mom..."
"Don't come in, or I'll really do it..."
For a moment, kicking, curses, a little girl's sobs, and a woman's cries for help all rang out at once. The nearby neighbors seemed unwilling to invite trouble and kept their doors and windows tightly shut.
Shi Lei still did not know why the Infected were forcing their way into this home. It would have been one thing if he had not encountered it, but now that he had, he could not stand by.
"Bang!"
The Infected seemed physically stronger than ordinary people. After several consecutive kicks, they actually broke the door open.
Shi Lei inwardly cursed. He quickly spread his hands and activated his skill. In an instant, two Rock Spines stood side by side in the doorway, sealing off the Infected's path inside.
Visible Rock Element energy spread outward, provoking a violent reaction the moment it touched the Infected.
"Ahhh! So itchy, so hot!"
"I can't take it anymore, my ■■ is going to explode!"
They turned and spotted Shi Lei in the distance, then charged at him furiously. But before they reached him, the Originium on their bodies boiled like magma, swelling before exploding violently.
The Originium on the surface of the three men's skin exploded, damaging their internal organs and killing them on the spot.
Shi Lei remained alert for more than ten seconds, making sure no other Infected accomplices appeared. Only then did he run over to inspect the home with its ruined door.
Inside was a little girl sitting in a Wheelchair,
clinging tightly to the woman beside her. A young Rat Girl with pink hair and rodent-like features stood in front of them, sand gathering in her hands.
Using his folded map to cover the lower half of his face, Shi Lei stood in the doorway, gave the room a quick glance, and reassured them.
"Don't worry. I've dealt with them. Get somewhere safe as soon as possible."
Based on the host's performance, obtained 2 Roleplay Value.
After saying that, he turned to leave, intending to head back and choose another route. Infected had forced their way into homes here without being killed, which meant the Lungmen Guard Department's elite had not come this way.
"Sir, please wait!"
The pink-haired Rat Girl chased after him, intending to thank him. But when she caught sight of the Infected corpses from the corner of her eye, she immediately changed her mind.
"I don't live in District 25. I came to bring Xiao An some candy. It seems really dangerous here tonight. Could you escort me out?"
Shi Lei did not hesitate. He shook his head and politely refused.
"Sorry, I have other matters to attend to, so I can't protect you on the way out. If you're afraid of danger, hide at a nearby neighbor's place. The Lungmen Guard Department is eliminating the Infected tonight. This place will be safe by dawn. Also, if you truly want to thank me, don't tell anyone about me. Otherwise, it'll cause me a lot of trouble."
If protecting one Rat Girl led to the deaths of a large number of Lungmen Guard Department elites, would that not become a trolley problem between saving one person and saving many?
"Sir, please wait!"
The Rat Girl was actually not weak. She possessed Originium Arts that controlled sand, but she had never killed anyone before. When several Infected had tried to force open the door just now, she had nearly been forced to act. Fortunately, her benefactor had saved them and spared her from taking lives needlessly.
But how did he know the Infected were being eliminated tonight? Could he also be with the Lungmen Guard Department? Seeing that he was alone, Lin Yuxia offered a reasonable excuse.
"You're alone right now. Did you get separated from your unit? I know this area fairly well. I can take you to meet up with them."
Rashomon
Deep within District 25, 10:24 p.m.
Tonight's elimination operation was commanded by Senior Superintendent Jiu of the Lungmen Guard Department, who led Officer Chen and twelve elite guards. After raiding two Infected strongholds, they hurried deeper into District 25.
At that moment, the special operations squad was crossing a basketball court. This was one of the few public areas in District 25, surrounded by residential buildings. Under the moonlight, the windows looked like gaping mouths ready to devour people.
When she spotted Infected emerging from the shadows, Officer Chen immediately gripped her scabbard. At the same time, she lowered her center of gravity, ready to draw her sword at any moment. She felt not the slightest pity for these illegal entrants who threatened Lungmen's safety.
But in the next second, Officer Chen's expression turned grave. Not only were Infected appearing ahead and on both sides, but a large number had also poured out from the passage they had come through. The elimination squad had nowhere to retreat and was forced into the center of the court.
"Careful, we're surrounded! Fall back!"
Jiu scanned the area and issued orders on the spot.
"Other than Officer Chen, who may fight freely, everyone else form groups of four and tighten the formation. Once you confirm an Infected's identity, fire immediately!"
Most of the Infected wore tattered or filthy clothes. Many were empty-handed, without even a decent weapon. Like walking corpses whose souls had been hollowed out, they moved toward the squad on instinct alone.
Seeing these unfamiliar elderly people with vacant eyes, old enough to be their own parents, one elite guard swallowed hard and could not bear it.
"Ma'am, they don't have weapons. We only need to incapacitate them, right? We don't really have to kill them?"
Jiu flew into a rage as soon as she heard that. She knew that the last thing they needed right now was a teammate overflowing with misplaced compassion, and she immediately snapped.
"I'll repeat this one last time: once you confirm an Infected's identity, fire immediately! Are we supposed to let them go just because they have no weapons? Their bodies are weapons! Think about the oath you swore when you joined. If you let them go now, the people they harm later will be Lungmen's citizens!"
The elite guards' expressions darkened, and they stopped struggling with their hesitation. As the vanguard elites responsible for maintaining order in Lungmen, their superior's orders took top priority.
The rebuked guard's lips moved soundlessly as he mouthed three words: I'm sorry. Then he fired merciless bullets at the unarmed elderly people.
These Infected sent here to die were merely lackeys at best. Officer Chen knew someone else was directing the battle from behind the scenes. She held her sword across her chest and shouted.
"Surrender now! You don't even have enough weapons. You're no match for the Lungmen Guard Department!"
A window on the third floor to the west opened, and a man in black leaned out to respond.
"What a joke. Who said we had to be opponents? I witnessed the Lungmen Guard Department's thunderous methods of punishing criminals before I was infected. Every Infected standing before you now knows they will die tonight. Yet everyone chose to stay willingly. Do you know why?"
Jiu stared toward the source of the voice without saying a word.
While Officer Chen planned how to rush up to the third floor and kill the enemy leader, she called out.
"You're... from Lungmen?"
"Heh heh, Officer Chen, we so-called illegal Infected entrants were once locals born and raised in Lungmen. We were driven out, then when we came back, we became illegal entrants. What an enormous joke."
Jiu could not hide her surprise. This was the first time she had heard such news. According to intelligence gathered by her superiors, an Infected organization called Rhodes Island had risen across Terra recently. The leadership
feared it would infiltrate the Slums of Lungmen, so they had issued an extermination order.
But the Infected leader was telling an entirely different story. Who was lying?
"Most of us are severely infected. We suffer from Originium-related illness every day, and there's no cure for us anymore. Cough, cough... Everyone hopes to have some value before dying. Better yet, to burn brightly once and drag you lofty bigshots down with us! Cough, cough, make you suffer Originium-related illness too, so you can personally experience the misery we've endured all these years..."
Jiu noticed that the man was already terminally ill and gave an order.
"Chen, capture him. I want him alive!"
"Yes, ma'am."
Officer Chen had been waiting for those words. Lowering her center of gravity, she sprinted toward the west side. With a brief run-up and the heads of the Infected as footholds, she actually ran up the walls in succession toward the third floor with a movement that would have stunned even Newton!
Once she caught hold of the windowsill, she easily flipped up to the third floor, forcing him to retreat.
"Huff... Cough, cough... Hah..."
With his back against an iron door, the Infected leader watched the policewoman charging toward him. He coughed and laughed at the same time.
"Senior, you may not know me, but I know you. You graduated from Victoria Royal Guard School with straight As in every subject. You were the fastest-promoted officer among the class of '91, the 'flower of the police force.' You even broke the long-standing record for the fastest promotion from an ordinary officer to a member of the inspectorate. You used to be my idol too."
Officer Chen stared at the Infected before her, puzzled. The man had deliberately brought up their connection as fellow alumni. A simple check of the records would confirm his identity.
Yet the Infected leader seemed completely unconcerned about his personal information being exposed. He continued speaking through his coughs.
"I never believed anyone could truly understand another person's suffering. Those are all lies. Only when you truly become Infected, cough, cough, will you understand the miserable social environment we live in. I knew you could reach the third-floor windowsill, so I chose to show myself at this distance. But the others..."
Officer Chen's heart suddenly sank. Their target had not been her at all, but Jiu!
She knocked him unconscious with her scabbard, slung him over her shoulder, and swiftly leaped onto the windowsill. Just as she prepared to jump down and provide support, several elderly Infected in the crowd exploded one after another.
"No!"
In that instant, a Dark Brown Rock Pillar abruptly appeared beside Jiu. A faint brown transparent film covered all thirteen people, including her. The film was almost tangible, isolating the Originium Particles in the air.
With the Infected leader over her left shoulder and Chi Xiao in her right hand, Officer Chen leaped down from above. Almost the moment she landed, a second Dark Brown Rock Pillar appeared out of nowhere beside her, generating a shield around her.
"Jiu, you're their target!"
"Retreat first. We'll talk about everything else once we're out."
The Lungmen Guard Department elites moved quickly, withdrawing from the eastern side before the Infected could launch another wave of attacks. Since most of these elderly people were not illegal entrants, this elimination operation had completely lost its meaning and needed to be stopped immediately.
Lin Yuxia stared in disbelief as Shi Lei used his unusual Originium Arts. With just two Rock Pillars, he had saved Jiu, who could have been infected, along with many elite members of the Lungmen Guard Department.
"Please don't tell anyone about tonight."
While she stood there in a daze, Shi Lei raised his left index finger to his lips in a shushing gesture. Then he slowly retreated into the shadows until he disappeared from sight.
A Grown Daughter Won't Stay Home
Based on the host's performance, obtained 4 Roleplay Value.
Daily acquisition has reached the limit of 10 points. Current Roleplay Value: 14 points. Required for advancement: 200 points.
Shi Lei had no time to pay attention to the Embarrassing System's notification and quietly left the scene under cover of night.
Earlier, led by the Rat Girl, he had made his way toward District 25. Hearing dense gunfire, the two followed the sound and trailed behind the Infected Squad.
But the moment they peeked out, they found the Lungmen Guard Department elites surrounded. Numerous elderly Infected launched suicidal attacks, their swollen Originium threatening to explode at any moment.
At such close range, even shields could not block the Originium Particles spilling through the air. Shi Lei had no time to think and immediately used his skill to shield everyone.
But when he summoned Rock Spines, he had to spread his hands outward in a motion like drawing open curtains. That meant he could no longer use the map to cover his face.
Then, in the blink of an eye, he saw Officer Chen leap from the third floor with someone over her shoulder. Worried that something might happen to her, he hurriedly summoned a second Rock Spine.
The elite guards, having gained a moment to breathe, fled from the other side while a large group of elderly Infected pursued them relentlessly. Shi Lei was poorly positioned, and following them would have been too difficult. He felt that he had already repaid the favor of that meal, so he decided to retreat.
The Rat Girl had seen his face, which was why he had asked her to keep it secret before leaving. Shi Lei could not guarantee whether she would reveal it, but he could not kill her over that, could he?
"Tap, tap, tap..."
Rapid footsteps suddenly echoed through the corridor. The complex terrain of District 25 was like a maze.
Fortunately, he remembered the route he had taken and soon returned to the home of Xiao An, the disabled girl in the Wheelchair. As he passed by, Shi Lei glanced over and found that the security door had been kicked crooked by the Infected, leaving it unable to protect the residents.
He casually summoned two Rock Spines, one inside and one outside, clamping the warped metal section in place. Restoring it to normal was impossible, but it only needed to hold through the night.
With that done, he continued running toward the main road in District 24.
After emerging from the cramped alleyway, the greasy aroma of barbecue drifted over on the breeze. Shi Lei did not linger and followed the map back to Penguin Logistics' Safe House.
Unfortunately, he had not gotten an employee badge and did not know the code to unlock the door, so he had to make do and sleep outside for the night.
Lin Yuxia watched until he had disappeared from view before turning and leaving the scene.
The elderly Infected who had appeared tonight did not have long to live in the first place. Even if younger Infected were outraged by society, most lacked the courage to sacrifice themselves.
She traveled through streets and alleys, returning once more to Xiao An's home. When she learned that the security door had been straightened by Rock Pillars, she knew her benefactor had done it casually while passing by.
Lin Yuxia arranged another place for the mother and daughter to stay, then called someone to repair the door the next day. After finishing these trivial matters, she headed home while deep in thought.
Districts 22 through 29 of Lungmen were the Slums of the Lower City. This lawless no-man's-land was not within the Lungmen Guard Department's jurisdiction. That was why, when Shi Lei mentioned an operation tonight, she had mistakenly assumed he was with the Lungmen Guard Department.
But the facts proved otherwise.
Before you continue