Great Ghoul
As Lu Yuan ran, he scanned the streets on both sides.
He's looking for something.
The buildings in North Spinning District are all low wooden houses and stone workshops, most of which have their doors and windows tightly closed, and some have been torn open by Ghoul.
No.
The wooden house couldn't stop it.
They ran about thirty meters further.
A two-story stone building appeared on the left side of the street.
Stone walls, iron gates, and very small windows.
It resembles the management office of some kind of warehouse or workshop.
The door was closed.
But the iron lock was mostly rusted.
"There!"
Lu Yuan changed direction and rushed towards the stone building.
Boer understood his intention in an instant.
"Everyone turn left! Enter the building!"
Nine people changed direction at the same time.
Lu Yuan rushed to the iron gate and kicked it hard.
The rusted iron lock snapped open, and the door sprang inward, slamming against the wall with a loud metallic clang.
"Go! Hurry!"
They crawled in one after another.
Boer was the last to enter, and as he went in, he turned around and fired another shot in the direction of the Ghoul.
Bang!
The most recent Ghoul was hit in the shoulder by a silver bullet and staggered.
Lu Yuan and Boer simultaneously braced themselves against the iron gate.
The moment the door slammed shut, a series of loud banging sounds came from outside.
Bang bang bang bang...
The entire iron gate was shaking.
"Withstand!"
Two melee fighters rushed forward and slammed their shoulders against the door.
The iron gate emitted a piercing metallic groan as the Ghoul rammed into it, and dust fell in clumps from the hinges.
But the door wasn't broken.
The combination of stone walls and iron gates is much sturdier than a wooden house.
Moreover, the ground here is still made of copper alloy.
The bacterial layer did not spread here.
The copper suppression is still in effect.
The impact outside the door lasted for more than ten seconds, then gradually weakened.
It's not that we've given up.
They're looking for another entry point.
Lu Yuan looked around.
The first floor of the stone building is a spacious hall with four walls and no back door.
There were two small windows with very narrow openings, just enough for Ghoul to squeeze through.
There's a wooden staircase leading up to the second floor, but now is not the time to go up.
Outside the window, a gray-red figure could be seen moving quickly.
They are surrounding the building.
"Medicine."
Lu Yuan pulled out the small, unlabeled bottle from his waist.
The second bottle that Laurina gave me.
The bottle without a name.
[Target detected: Unnamed (created by Laurina)]
[A modified "invisibility" potion, seemingly capable of blocking perception?]
Lu Yuan held the bottle up. Whether his team could survive depended entirely on how effective this potion was!
"Everyone, come closer."
Lu Yuan's voice was very low.
"Squeeze them together, the tighter the better."
Boer didn't ask why.
He glanced at the bottle in Lu Yuan's hand, then turned and gestured to convey the order.
The nine people quickly gathered in a corner of the hall, back to back against the wall, shoulder to shoulder.
Melee fighters are in the outer circle, and firearms fighters are in the inner circle.
Everyone held their breath.
Lu Yuan unscrewed the bottle stopper.
A faint, almost undetectable scent wafted from the bottle opening.
It doesn't smell like medicine; rather, it's more like the peculiar aroma of some kind of mineral mixed with unusual herbs, ground to an extremely fine powder.
Lu Yuan evenly sprinkled the medicine on the heads and shoulders of the nine people.
The liquid quickly penetrates and disappears upon contact with skin and fabric.
At the same time, grayish-white text flickered at the edge of my field of vision.
[Status: Perception Shield (Temporary)... Duration Unknown]
Lu Yuan made a shushing gesture.
Then everyone stopped moving.
Outside the iron gate, the sound of claws scraping against the stone wall grew closer.
Sizzle...
A Ghoul's head poked its head through the window.
Beneath that smooth membrane, the head slowly turned, as if scanning the room with some sense beyond sight.
Its mouth opened a crack.
Moist air is inhaled through the space between the three layers of teeth and then slowly exhaled.
Smell.
Lu Yuan was less than three meters away from it.
He could clearly see the raised temporal bone beneath its fascia, and the bits of flesh stuck between its teeth.
All nine people were desperately trying to suppress their breathing.
But the heartbeat couldn't be suppressed. Fortunately, these Ghoul didn't seem to have ears, or perhaps the invisibility effect of the potion was too good.
The Ghoul's head lingered at the window for five seconds.
Then it shrank back.
No findings were found.
But this is only the first one.
The iron gate was pushed from the outside.
The door wobbled, and the hinges creaked.
A grayish-red claw squeezed into the gap, its five deformed fingers scratching wildly in the air.
Then it shrank back.
Another one peeked in through the window.
This one is bigger than the previous one.
Much larger.
Its head almost filled the entire window, and its shoulders were so wide that they made the stone bricks of the window frame crack.
The grayish-red membrane was no longer a thin layer.
Instead, it was a thick, almost Chitin- like covering, its surface covered with dark, nodular protrusions.
Its mouth splits open wider than that of a normal Ghoul.
It also has a fourth layer of teeth, with the innermost layer curving inwards, like some kind of meat grinder.
At the edge of my field of vision, the grayish-white text pulsed violently.
[Detection Target: Great Ghoul (Mutation Subspecies)]
[Classification: A Mutation individual among Ghoul. A special mutated version resulting from long-term, large-scale consumption of its own kind. Its size, strength, and sensory abilities far surpass those of ordinary Ghoul. It possesses a certain degree of group leadership ability.]
[Weakness: Holy items (resistance is stronger than that of regular Ghoul)]
[Forbidden Studies - Seeker: +0.2...]
Eat their own kind.
Lu Yuan stared at that line of text.
"Mutations resulting from consuming large numbers of their own kind!?"
"Just how many Ghoul roam this underground?!"
Lu Yuan's gaze shifted from the Gray-White Text to the enormous head visible through the window.
The giant Ghoul was still sniffing around, unwilling to give up.
It's more meticulous than the previous one.
Its head slowly turned from side to side, and a low snoring sound came from between its mouths, like a bellows.
Lu Yuan's right hand quietly gripped the handle of the Revolver.
If it spots you, shoot it in the mouth first, then try to break out.
However, it's highly likely that Boer and the others won't survive.
The Great Ghoul's head suddenly stopped.
It glanced towards the corner.
Just like that.
Lu Yuan could almost feel some kind of invisible sensation sweeping across his body.
Then, it withdrew its head.
The window was empty again.
Heavy footsteps sounded outside, gradually fading into the distance.
The other Ghoul followed suit and left.
The sound of claws corroding copper rang out again.
The rustling sounds outside converged from all directions and receded towards the cave entrance.
They probably couldn't withstand the corrosion from the copper and chose to return to their nests.
Once the Great Ghoul left, the rest followed.
Group control.
Really.
Lu Yuan never loosened his grip on the Revolver.
He only slowly released his fingers when the last trace of clawing sound disappeared into the night wind.
My palms were sweaty.
Boer silently let out a long sigh.
His hands were trembling.
The hall remained silent for a long time.
No one spoke.
Because everyone had just seen that enormous head.
Lu Yuan leaned against the wall in the darkness, with only one thought in his mind.
They live by eating their own kind.
How many ordinary Great Ghoul Ghoul need to eat?
How many years has the Bronze City stood?
How many generations has the world beneath the copper floor produced?
What covered the entire cave wall inside that cave entrance was just the tip of the iceberg.
The actual number might not even be enough to contain this city.
Without effective measures, Bronze City is probably doomed.