Mutant monkey troop

The night was always full of danger.

Although Xu Duoduo had become a zombie, for some reason she still felt sleepy. She had managed to stay awake for the past ten days or so, yet now drowsiness was setting in. Once the others finished dinner, she put away all the insulated cups, then found somewhere to curl up and doze.

The survivors in the factory did the same after dinner, finding places to rest right where they were. But no one stayed alone; nearly everyone huddled in groups.

Wang Weihu and Bai Shu rested while Qin Luo and Chen Xiaofei took the first watch. Those two would guard the first half of the night, and Wang Weihu and Bai Shu would take the second.

The thunderstorm outside had passed, giving way to heavy rain mixed with hail that clattered against the factory building, sometimes striking with a loud bang.

But the survivors felt reassured. At least someone was protecting them.

They could finally get a peaceful night's sleep.

They were far too naive. After nightfall, Qin Luo and Chen Xiaofei grew visibly alert, no longer bickering or making idle conversation.

Xu Duoduo could sense how tense they were, too. Guessing that the night would be dangerous, she didn't dare fall deeply asleep.

The little zombie closed her eyes to conserve her energy.

Not far away, Wang Weihu snored loudly, while Bai Shu slept soundly against the wall beside him.

Chen Xiaofei patrolled the area, keeping watch. Qin Luo chose a central position and sat on a shipping container, loading magazines. From there, he could respond quickly no matter where trouble broke out.

The thunderstorm had knocked out the factory's power earlier, leaving only dim emergency lights.

Xu Duoduo had assumed the first threat would come from something else-zombies, perhaps, or some other mutated creature. She never expected it to start among the survivors. The moment an unnatural growl rose from their side, a gunshot split the quiet night, followed by screams.

"Aaaah!! It tried to bite me to death! Why are there still zombies here?!"

"What? There's a zombie?!"

The survivors had all looked no different from ordinary people before. They had also been checked repeatedly before boarding the vehicles; anyone without wounds could board and travel to the survivor base.

But there were always tiny wounds that escaped notice, as well as people who concealed their discomfort, clinging to the hope that nothing would happen to them.

The result was that they turned into zombies and bit people-and zombies were far more agile at night than during the day.

Panic swept through the survivors.

"Quiet. Anyone experiencing a fever or feeling unwell, step forward now."

Qin Luo put away his gun and jumped straight down from the shipping container, sweeping his gaze over the survivors. They, too, had realized that someone among them had been infected with the zombie virus, so they scattered in fear, no longer daring to huddle together.

Chen Xiaofei's baby face turned serious as well. He walked over and explained, "Early symptoms of infection with the zombie virus include sluggish thinking, stiff limbs, a low fever, or bleeding in the throat. At night, you'll develop cravings for blood and raw meat. Anyone feeling unwell, please step forward now. Otherwise, you'll end up hurting your companions."

The survivors exchanged looks. Some were terrified, some hesitated, and some bit their lips and clenched their fists. Eventually, three people stepped forward, one after another.

One woman tugged at her husband, signaling for him not to go. Crying and shaking her head, she whispered, "Don't go. You only have a fever. You aren't infected with the zombie virus. Please, I'm begging you, don't go. You're all I have left."

Seeing this, some immediately moved away from the couple, while others couldn't bear to keep watching.

Chen Xiaofei was already heading toward them. The woman was on the verge of breaking down, clinging to her husband and refusing to let go, while the man worried that he might hurt his wife.

They would have to talk her through this, too.

Meanwhile, Qin Luo had the others showing symptoms stay apart in a corner. Their eyes were already beginning to glaze over, yet they seemed increasingly agitated, and their skin was turning bluish-white.

Xu Duoduo couldn't resist peeking out. She had also noticed that her body was more agile at night than during the day. But Qin Luo's senses were far too sharp. The instant she poked her head out, she met his cool, calculating stare...

He scared the life out of this zombie!!

Her mind froze for a second. That look alone told her that if she made even the slightest move to hurt them, he would probably shoot her dead. Even her spatial ability would be useless then.

A zombie that hurt people was even more terrifying if it possessed an ability.

Fortunately, her eyes were clear and innocent enough. After one glance at her, Qin Luo relaxed, his expression losing its chill. Instead, he tilted his head, signaling for her to stay hidden and stop peeking.

Fine.

Sorry for intruding.

Xu Duoduo quietly shrank back and hugged herself tight, wishing she could stuff herself into a crack. She was even a little frightened. She had nearly lost her life.

After a bout of commotion among the survivors, they finally managed to separate into two groups. But since no one had expected the virus to have an incubation period, they no longer dared gather recklessly.

Soon, their surroundings fell quiet again. But several gunshots rang out during the second half of the night, occasionally mixed with sounds of panic. Those infected survivors still died, and the others couldn't help bursting into sobs again.

They had thought they were safe, only to discover that things weren't nearly as safe as they had imagined.

Xu Duoduo trembled several times at the gunshots, too. She had no heartbeat, yet she was almost scared into having one. Later, she realized her nerves were simply stretched too tight.

It wasn't her heart pounding, but her nerves twitching. The next incident involved that woman. Her husband had tried desperately to hold on, but he still couldn't escape the virus. His entire body had begun to mutate. When Chen Xiaofei raised his gun, the woman screamed and tried to throw herself toward him.

Her piercing scream made everyone's skin crawl. Suddenly, a chorus of shrieks rose outside the factory as well, their pitches painfully high as they called back and forth. Someone cried out in terror, "Aah! Why are there monkeys here?!"

The factory descended into chaos.

Wang Weihu and Bai Shu woke as well. Without missing a beat, both sprang up and looked straight toward the source of the noise.

Something kept pounding against the main door, while claws scraped at the sheet metal overhead. The screeching, grating noise made everyone's skin crawl.

Xu Duoduo looked up again and discovered that a monkey had smashed a window with a rock. She found herself staring straight into its face-or perhaps it could no longer be called a monkey. Its face was hideously distorted, its teeth enlarged, its eyes blood-red. Its claws were impossibly long and razor-sharp.

The other survivors naturally noticed, too, and the sight brought another wave of piercing screams.

There was no helping it.

They were all ordinary people. They couldn't possibly remain unafraid; their reactions were almost entirely instinctive.

But the screams only excited the mutant monkey troop, and they shrieked wildly in response.

Wang Weihu roared at the survivors to quiet down. "Everyone get together and find somewhere to hide! If you're scattered all over, we can't protect you one by one!"

He had already shot several monkeys dead as he spoke. Bai Shu took a more hands-on approach, grabbing the survivors one at a time and hauling them aside, herding them into one place.

Chen Xiaofei hurried over to help Bai Shu protect the survivors, while Wang Weihu helped clear out the mutant monkey troop. "Fuck, how did we end up running into these troublesome bastards?!"

As for Qin Luo, he was slaughtering them single-handedly. Eventually, he simply switched to a double-edged blade. He moved far faster than the monkeys could react, killing several with a single slash. The ground was slick with blood.