David's Fear

The supermarket manager approached Li Wei with trembling hands and asked, "Everyone, calm down! Sir, did you see monsters appearing in the fog? How... how did you get through the white mist?"

The panicked crowd gradually calmed down, all eyes fixing on Li Wei's face. The supermarket fell silent again.

Before Li Wei could answer, Carmody, who had been hiding in the back, stepped forward first to make her presence known.

She took out her Old Testament, held it before her forehead, and prayed devoutly. Then she cried out, "Those are Death's minions! The Lord's wrath has descended upon us! We will all be swallowed by the radiance of the white mist, and the world will be destroyed!"

"Oh, give it a rest. The fog's only covering the town. It had already stopped moving by the time I came back, and you're talking about the whole world? Hah!"

The scoff interrupted Mrs. Carmody's sermon and made her old face burn.

Li Wei pulled out the five dollars from his pocket and slapped them onto the checkout counter. He picked up a pack of cigarettes, lit one for himself, and only then said, "There really are monsters outside. You still want to go out there without guns?"

After sweeping his gaze across everyone's expressions, he continued, "Those monsters are a little strange. Don't ask me about them. I don't know what they are either. Just stay here. That's the right choice."

The customers understood now. Going outside meant delivering themselves straight to the monsters, and they immediately became dejected.

After being publicly embarrassed by Li Wei, Mrs. Carmody grew somewhat angry from shame. Pointing at Li Wei's nose, she cursed, "You heathen! The Lord's wrath will surely fall upon you. Judgment Day will come!"

Li Wei turned and picked up a can of some unknown drink. Looking at the supermarket manager, he asked, "Can I drink this?"

Mrs. Carmody, having been ignored, wore an angry expression. But she soon turned away and recited the Bible to calm herself.

"Of course. All right, everyone, please clean up first! Pick up the broken bottles and glass to avoid injuries. There are medical supplies in aisle three." Knowing they would be trapped here for the time being, the supermarket manager had everyone clean up the mess caused by the shaking and wait inside for rescue.

Someone suddenly tugged on Li Wei's pant leg. Anna, still holding the little black bear, had somehow returned to his side. She whispered, "Mr. Demon, can you come over for a moment?"

Li Wei nodded and followed Anna toward a corner of the supermarket.

Anna's mother, Isha Bell, was a very traditional and conservative woman. She first apologized to Li Wei, then thanked him.

She apologized for the misunderstanding and was grateful that Li Wei had brought her daughter over.

Then she picked up the little black bear, intending to return it to Li Wei.

"No need. I gave it to Anna, and she likes it too, doesn't she? Just be careful not to get bitten. It hasn't had its shots." Li Wei waved his hand. He had no desire to keep a bear. It was useless and got in the way.

If he wanted a pet, he might as well make a Hunter. It would not only be obedient, but also especially imposing. Other than being ugly, there was really nothing wrong with it.

Anna was also strongly against her mother giving away the little black bear. Somewhat angry, she tugged at her mother's long skirt and cried desperately, "No! Mr. Demon gave it to me! Give it back!"

With her daughter crying on one side and Li Wei refusing on the other, Isha finally sighed, placed the little black bear back on the ground, and shook out her arms.

The little black bear was not that small anymore. It weighed at least seven or eight kilograms.

The spreading white mist made many people in the supermarket uneasy. Tonight was destined to be a sleepless night. Li Wei also chose not to leave the supermarket, since he could mooch free food here.

The monsters outside were nothing but pure biomass. He still did not know what use the slime he could create had. Rather than tire himself out hunting those monsters, he might as well enjoy some good food first. He had a feeling the white mist outside would not disappear anytime soon.

He sampled many things from the shelves and also found a grill and some charcoal. Before long, he was grilling fresh chilled steaks inside the supermarket.

A perfectly dire situation had been forcibly turned into a barbecue party by Li Wei.

The supermarket manager did not stop him. He even took two steaks for himself. There were plenty of steaks in the supermarket, and with the power out, they would spoil if no one ate them. They might as well eat them now!

The aroma of steak continued to drift through the supermarket. Some people worried it would attract the monsters, but no one here understood monsters better than Li Wei!

He said it was fine, and no one could argue with him, because only he had seen the monsters.

Under Li Wei's influence, many people seemed to have forgotten the threat outside. One after another, they drank and made merry, enjoying themselves immensely.

Meanwhile, David sat with the terrified Billy between two shelves in aisle six, casually chatting with four elderly people.

Just as their conversation was growing lively, Li Wei and Ollie walked over and greeted them warmly.

Seeing Billy lying with his head on David's thigh, Li Wei gave a teasing "Yo" and said, "You're still acting spoiled at your age? Aren't you embarrassed? How old are you?"

Though David was unhappy inside, he still stroked Billy's head and answered, "Seven."

To his surprise, Li Wei squatted down and met Billy's eyes, saying in amazement, "You're already seven, yet you're hiding in an adult's arms like a little puppy. That's not very manly, is it?"

After looking into Li Wei's eyes for a moment, Billy moved away from David's thigh with an expression on the verge of tears. He sat on the floor by himself and glared at Li Wei unhappily.

"Hey, that's more like it!" Li Wei grinned wickedly and vigorously ruffled Billy's hair. Then he took several boxes of curry from the shelf and asked them, "Does anyone want curry rice? If there's nothing wrong with this curry, it should taste pretty good."

His behavior worsened David's already foul mood, but David did not want to clash with anyone at a time like this, so he did not stop him.

Grandma Repla, her head full of white hair, raised a shriveled hand like an old tree branch and said with a smile, "If possible, please give me a serving. Not too much, though. An old woman can't eat much. Thank you!"

"No problem!"

The others said they did not want any. They had no appetite.

After Li Wei left, David put an arm around Billy's shoulder and wanted him to lie back down. Billy still had a slight fever, and sitting like that was not good for him.

"He's gone, champ. Lie down again. It'll be all right."

Unable to hold out any longer, Billy hesitated for a moment before lying back down.

Ollie, who had not left yet, looked at Billy with concern. "How is he?"

David continued stroking Billy's hair and sighed softly. "He still has a bit of a fever."

Amanda Dumfrey, the town's new third-grade teacher, had arrived only three years ago. She was an utterly ordinary woman, ordinary in appearance and dress, and gave people an ordinary impression.

But she loved children. At that moment, she volunteered to get medicine for Billy. "I'll get him some aspirin."

"Aisle three." Ollie pointed the enthusiastic teacher in the right direction.

David gave Amanda a friendly smile. Compared to that strange Asian man, people like her were much easier to get along with.

Then he looked at kind-hearted Ollie and asked where he could find a blanket. He wanted to get one for Billy.

"Home goods, uh... in the storage room!" After saying that, Ollie stood up, crossed the aisle, and told them, "I still need to check on the others. If anything happens, just call for me!"

With that, Ollie left directly, preparing to check on the other people.

David temporarily entrusted Billy to Mrs. Turman, who sat across from him in a women's suit with a kind expression, then headed toward the storage room.

The storage room was in a corner of the supermarket. It required passing through two doors, and its soundproofing was good. The supermarket's high-powered generator was currently inside it.

The moment David entered the storage room, he caught an unpleasant smell in the air. It was something like a mixture of gasoline and hot air, making his head spin.

He pulled a clean cloth from a nearby shelf and covered his nose. Following the smell, he found the generator behind a wire fence and discovered that it was overloaded. White smoke kept rising from it, while the display showed that the stored power was already full.

He approached the wire gate and shut off the generator.

"Oh... shit!"

The instant he pressed the switch, the lights in the storage room went out as well, leaving only a few pitifully dim emergency lights still working.

David felt his way through the pitch-black surroundings, trying to leave. Unluckily, he bumped into things twice in a row, then fell, nearly kissing the hard concrete floor.

He pulled out his phone and used the weak light of the flip phone to illuminate a little of the floor. Just as he was about to start looking for blankets, the rolling shutter door behind him suddenly made a sound...

David stiffly turned his head toward the rolling shutter, lit by a single emergency lamp. Thinking of the monsters in the white mist, he secretly swallowed.

Something seemed to be pressing against the other side of the shutter. It was being pushed in from outside, bulging inward with a rattling sound.

A strange, indescribable noise entered David's ears through the gap beneath the door. It sounded like two hands coated in detergent twisting together and rubbing frantically, carrying an unsettling slickness.

The sound grew louder and louder, and the shutter shook more and more violently. Terrified beyond measure, David turned and ran toward the supermarket interior, not daring to remain alone for even one more second!