Death's Oil Painting

Shen Feng felt every hair on his body stand on end. Though the bonfire beside him scorched his skin, he felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

What the fuck is that thing!?

It looked exactly like a person who had been skinned alive!

Why could it still move!?

"Ah----"

Suddenly, the skinned humanoid creature below threw back its head and let out a shrill scream!

The crimson muscles of its face pulled apart, revealing an utterly terrifying smile. With a leap, it jumped onto the outside ledge of the second-floor window and began climbing toward Shen Feng's window!

"Human? Back off! Stop!" Shen Feng shouted.

The Skinner's eyes suddenly shifted, and it roared again, "Burn... burn you!"

This thing... could talk!?

Before Shen Feng could think further, the Skinner leaped toward his window!

Shen Feng swung the gun around and pulled the trigger.

Boom!

With a deafening blast, the shotgun blew a bowl-sized hole through the Skinner's body, sending it crashing from the air to the ground.

A flash of clarity appeared in the Skinner's eyes, followed by a faint smile of relief. Then it fell completely silent.

Shen Feng had just breathed a sigh of relief when waves of snarls came from the dark street outside, followed by dense, hurried footsteps.

Lit by starlight and the faint glow of the fire, ghostly figures came toward the police station building.

They were all those monsters!

What the hell are these things!?

Shen Feng took out his phone and opened "Real Doomsday Game." A notification immediately appeared:

Stone Statue Apocalypse mutated creature discovered: Skinner. Side quest notification: Find the cause of the Skinner mutation and collect ten Skinner brain tissue samples. Does the player accept?

Completing the mission will grant generous rewards. If the player refuses the mission, they will receive an unknown punishment.

This is a fucking mandatory mission, and you still have the nerve to ask whether I accept!?

"Accept!" Shen Feng roared as he pressed the button. He set the phone aside, then grabbed the various weapons from the ground and tossed them into the corner before frantically dragging the tables and chairs in the lobby.

The Skinners were outside. It was already too late to run, and even if he wanted to find a new defensive position, there was no time to take all the weapons with him.

He could only fight where he stood!

Shen Feng yanked a heavy solid-wood table to the ground and laid it across in front of himself, then placed several chairs ahead of it.

Together with the wall at the corner, the tables and chairs formed a crude fortification.

Shen Feng released the safeties on the submachine gun and both pistols, laying them all before him. He also placed the ammunition and grenades within easy reach.

And fire!

Shen Feng stepped forward, intending to add more wood to the bonfire, when the floor-to-ceiling window shattered with a crash. A Skinner had already smashed through it and leaped inside.

The sharp glass sliced through the Skinner's tissue, especially the exposed blood vessels. Blood poured everywhere, yet the Skinner seemed not to feel it at all as it charged madly at Shen Feng!

Shen Feng braced the shotgun stock against his shoulder, aimed at the Skinner, and pulled the trigger!

Boom!

The gunshot echoed through the empty building. The Skinner's head was struck by a spray of pellets and burst apart!

Crash! Clang!

Another burst of noise came with disorderly footsteps. Three Skinners appeared before Shen Feng from two directions and lunged at him together.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Shen Feng fired three shots in succession, and the three Skinners fell. But they were simply too close—the last Skinner was already less than a meter away.

Running footsteps sounded again. This time, five Skinners emerged from the corridor, roaring as they charged together.

The Skinners' bodies seemed to be adhesive. Two of them actually crawled sideways along the walls.

They were far too fast. The instant they appeared, they were practically right in front of him!

Shen Feng had just raised the submachine gun. His eyes widened as he immediately pulled the trigger at the skinless monsters!

Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat... Muzzle flashes flickered. The powerful recoil numbed Shen Feng's hands, making the barrel buck wildly. All thirty rounds were fired in less than three seconds!

Fortunately, they were close enough. All five Skinners were hit by bullets and fell to the ground with wails.

Shen Feng immediately changed magazines and fired another burst toward the window, knocking down the three Skinners that had just climbed in. Then he discarded the submachine gun and picked up a pistol.

Though the three Skinners were wounded, they had not died completely. As if they could not feel pain, they climbed back up and charged Shen Feng again, only to have their speed blocked by the tables and chairs.

Shen Feng immediately pulled the trigger and fired repeatedly, finishing off the three Skinners.

By now, he had realized that although these Skinners looked terrifying, aside from being much faster than ordinary people, they were not particularly resilient.

Once injured, they would bleed and fall just like anyone else!

And if their vital points were hit, they would die quickly as well.

His expression grim, Shen Feng picked up the shotgun and loaded it again. He stepped over the massive office desk before him, walked up to a Skinner still snarling and struggling, and pulled the trigger without expression.

A series of gunshots followed, and the remaining Skinners that still had breath in them were completely dealt with.

The bonfire, out of fuel, finally went out, and the entire lobby suddenly darkened.

Holding his breath, Shen Feng stood by the window with the shotgun in hand. He carefully watched the dark lobby, listening for every faint sound and guarding against the appearance of more enemies.

He stood utterly still, as though he too had transformed into a stone statue.

Faint starlight spilled in through the window, shining on the guns and blood like an oil painting by Death.

After nearly ten minutes, when he could no longer hear any sounds from the Skinners and was certain there were no more threats nearby, Shen Feng finally began moving slowly through the darkness. He lowered his head and felt around in a pool of blood until he found a plastic card.

He tucked both pistols back into his waistband, picked up his backpack, packed away the grenades, and held the shotgun as he lit a torch made from a table leg and canned oil. Then he quickly returned to the building's police equipment room.

After closing and bolting the door, he piled a heap of heavy shields and body armor against it to block the iron door. Only then did Shen Feng start a small fire, lay out a bed with shields, his backpack, and body armor, and slowly sit down.

His heart was still pounding like a drum. His hands and shoulders had been numbed by the recoil and ached terribly, yet he did not dare loosen his grip on the gun.

This world was different from what he had imagined.

It did not only contain those beasts and viruses. There were also monsters called Skinners!

How had these monsters appeared?

Why could they still speak?

And every time a Skinner died, its eyes seemed to carry a sense of relief. What exactly was going on?

He had only been in this world for a single day, yet the mysteries kept multiplying. Shen Feng felt as if he had fallen into a fog.

And what had been that light he saw in the distant building just now?

Could there still be survivors!?

He fumbled through his pocket and pulled out a yellowed, damaged plastic card still attached to a plastic cord. It was the one he had picked up from a Skinner earlier.

That monster had been so crazed, yet it had still kept this thing on it. It must have been important.

Shen Feng held it close to the fire and examined it carefully. Blurred words gradually came into view:

Qi City Epidemic Prevention Center, Level One Incinerator Operator Li Chao