The Appearance of Wu Duan

Aside from a few wandering zombies near the stairwell, Heming had not encountered any other enemies on the second floor. He was eager to confirm whether there were any other survivors left in the building, and since the second floor housed the broadcasting room, that was exactly where he and Sheni were headed.

A gas canister was now positioned in front of a window on the second floor; once Heming returned, he could figure out a way to get it down to the ground level. For now, the two were searching for the broadcasting room. If Heming's earlier deduction held true, then the more strategically significant a location was, the more likely one was to encounter new or high-level enemies.

There had been the red monster at the main entrance, the high-level chainsaw zombie in the ventilation shaft, and the high-level kitchen zombies and transparent spiders in the cafeteria. Yet, why hadn't they met any new enemies in the weapon shop? Perhaps that was simply how things were set up.

If the broadcasting room contained a brand-new type of threat, could it be the same thing those other people had encountered? Something that could fly? They would have to approach with extreme caution this time. If they truly ran into something airborne, they would have to rely on the gun in Sheni's hands and the two daggers Heming carried to resolve the situation.

"Sheni, if we run into something that flies, you need to aim carefully before you shoot. I'll find a way to draw their attention. You try to hit their wings or air sacs—whatever they use to fly. As long as we bring them down, they'll be easy to handle!" Heming laid out the plan he had already formulated.

Sheni nodded and continued to follow close behind him.

As they drew nearer to the broadcasting room, dozens of zombies appeared in their path. Fortunately, Heming had grown accustomed to dealing with them; in a few swift motions, he dismembered the creatures. Sheni kept her gun ready, her machete hanging at her waist; she wouldn't use the blade unless absolutely necessary.

The door to the broadcasting room was open. Heming stood outside and took a cursory glance; there didn't seem to be anything inside. He stepped in first, and Sheni followed.

He looked around, but there appeared to be no enemies. Sheni kept a vigilant watch on their surroundings while Heming reached out to grab the microphone.

"Wait, Heming, look over there. Is there something next to the microphone?" Sheni had noticed the area near the mic; she felt as though there was a cluster of small things there.

"Ah, Sheni, don't shoot. These guys are invisible. Let's try to back out first. If they chase us, we'll run toward the stairwell and I'll use the gas canister to finish them off." Heming spoke with extreme caution as he slowly retreated.

Once Sheni had backed out, Heming noticed that the things hadn't followed them. They seemed to be asleep. The broadcasting equipment was unusable for now unless he dealt with these creatures, but he couldn't be sure what they were or what could kill them.

"Heming, I think those things are insects—moths or maybe mosquitoes. If I'm not mistaken, they must be afraid of fire. If we can find something to start a fire, we should be able to wipe them out!" Sheni shared her thoughts.

In truth, Heming had also considered whether they were moths or similar creatures. But if he used fire, what if he damaged the broadcasting equipment? He couldn't dwell on that now; if he left these things here, they might harm someone else later. In any case, he had to contact Rie first!

Heming pulled out the radio and spoke.

"Rie, Rie, this is Heming. Please respond if you receive this!"

"Heming... this is Rie... please state your business... we are currently searching for survivors in the buildings near the police station..."

"Oh, we've discovered a new type of enemy. As far as I can tell, they only live in the broadcasting room. They're transparent, but if you look closely, you can see them. I suspect they're some kind of insect and should be vulnerable to fire. Keep an eye out if you find any!"

"...Not good... I'll contact you later... a few people are heading toward our broadcasting room... I have to go check it out..."

Heming put the radio away and walked over to the floor map at the second-floor landing. He wanted to find a place that sold alcohol or something similar. As luck would have it, not far past the broadcasting room, there was a shop specializing in such supplies.

They walked the entire way without running, as both feared that loud noises might wake those things up; they could only move with the utmost stealth.

There were no zombies on the path this time. Upon reaching their destination, however, Heming began to regret it. A brand-new monster was waiting for them. The creature was shrouded in green gas, and one could vaguely make out the shape of a humanoid being.

"Careful, this thing is a ranged attacker!" Heming suddenly shouted.

From within the green gas, a spike about ten centimeters long shot out. It was green in color and likely coated in poison.

Heming dodged the projectile quickly, pulled out a dagger, aimed, and threw it with all his might.

Swish. The dagger struck the green monster directly, and it collapsed to the ground. Sheni watched from behind, speechless. These creatures were becoming more numerous and increasingly difficult to fathom.

Heming walked up to the green monster to retrieve his dagger. In reality, he wanted to see the creature's true form, but unfortunately, the monster melted the moment it died.

Heming took out the radio once more.

"Rie, Rie, if you're busy, no need to reply. I've discovered another new enemy. This one is surrounded by green gas and attacks by throwing poison spikes. However, it's very fragile; I killed it with a single throw of my dagger."

"Heming... received... please be careful."

After putting the radio away, Heming entered the shop and began crafting Molotov cocktails.

Carrying four Molotovs, Heming returned to the broadcasting room. To be safe, both of them stood outside.

Crash, crash. Two Molotovs landed inside the broadcasting room and exploded. A massive roar and a burst of flames instantly filled the room.

After the fire died down, Heming entered. Just as he had hoped, those things had been burned to nothing, and the broadcasting equipment had sustained no significant damage.

After a brief adjustment, Heming picked up the microphone.

"Hello, hello. If there is anyone left in this building, please come to the first-floor lobby. There are two of us here, and we have figured out a way to leave."

"We can wait for you for one hour. If no one comes, we will eliminate the zombies outside the front entrance and force our way out of the building."

"If there are any survivors, please come to the first-floor lobby as soon as possible."

In the first-floor lobby, Heming and Sheni waited anxiously. Even though the chances of anyone coming were slim, there was nothing else to be done. Every extra person meant more strength.

"Heming... Heming... huff... please respond if you receive this..." Rie's voice suddenly crackled over the radio.

"This is Heming, I receive you. Rie, please go ahead!"

"We have discovered the most dangerous enemy yet... they have the appearance of humans... exactly the same... they will chat with you, they will fight zombies on their own... they will give you information... they will even use firearms... there is currently only one way to identify them... they do not turn their heads... if you call them from behind, they will turn their entire bodies... they will not turn their heads..."

Heming didn't reply. He looked at Sheni, drew his Japanese sword, and said, "Turn around, quickly."

Sheni followed his instructions and turned around, then turned her head back to look at him.

Seeing Sheni's head-turning motion, Heming felt a weight lift from his heart.

"I understand. You be careful, too. We'll be able to leave this building soon, and I'll get to the police station as quickly as I can."

"Understood... let's keep in touch..."

Heming and Sheni continued to wait. When Heming prepared to apologize for what he had asked Sheni to do, she smiled and waved it off; she understood his reasoning.

An hour passed, and indeed, not a single person had come.

Heming and Sheni had no choice but to head to the second floor, tossing the prepared gas canisters a fair distance away. With a multitude of zombies gathered below, they had no need to fear the canisters exploding from the impact; the four canisters were scattered wide, and Heming then ran to the alcohol shop to craft several Molotov cocktails.

He aimed to throw the Molotovs as far as possible, targeting the intersection to prevent zombies from rushing in after the explosion, while also containing those already inside.

A thunderous roar echoed out... Heming hurled all the Molotov cocktails, followed immediately by a single gunshot.

Sheni struck the gas canisters with pinpoint accuracy. With four consecutive bangs—boom, boom, boom, boom—every single canister detonated.