The temperature inside the city was lower, but it was still far from a normal climate suitable for human habitation. Not long after sunrise, the temperature began to rise sharply.
Xu Huo chose to walk in the shade. Before he even neared the crack in the city center, he sensed someone following him. When he reached a street corner and turned around, he saw two young split-headed Aliens throwing stones at him.
He caught one with a raised hand and casually threw it back. The stones striking near them startled the two Aliens, and they turned and fled. Even the way they ran seemed very human—at least, they did not appear to be Aliens who had lost their minds.
Keeping a certain distance, he followed behind them. After watching them slip into a sewer in a small alley, he quickly lost track of them.
Even in underground spaces, as long as they were not too deep, Xu Huo could sense something. Yet the moment the two children went down, they vanished from his perception. That was not normal.
He waited outside the alley for a minute before walking in, moving aside the manhole cover, and jumping down.
The passage below was not particularly spacious. It might have been convenient for children, but it was a little cramped for an adult man like him. After forcing his way to the end of the passage, he emerged to find it branching into five separate routes.
Some of these passages were new, while others were old. Two had been dug very crudely, unlike the others, which had metal pipes laid through them. The crude ones had merely been smoothed over with paint.
However, sound carried through these passages. Even standing outside, Xu Huo could determine where the footsteps were coming from.
He chose