CHAPTER 21

In an instant, the car was swallowed, and we crashed into a cave that resembled a pool of muddy water.

I turned on the car lights, and the pink flesh kept squeezing, pressing against the windshield, and crushing the front of the car.

Li Haohao lifted her arm, ready to run out, but I held her back and let her grip the lever. The roof of the car was almost impossible to push open. I lifted my foot and managed to create a gap. The soft flesh of the worm was about to squeeze in. I pushed something out, and splatters of bl*od sprayed onto my face as the wall of the cavity viol.ently convulsed.

The viol.ent shaking made it almost impossible for me to stand steadily, and I fell back into the car. I lost my grip, and in a panic, I reached out again to grab it. I was pulled out halfway by the wriggling flesh, and Li Haohao clung to my leg, trying to pull me back into the car.

Something deeply pierced into the flesh, and the car lights flickered. Our car floated in the opposite direction like a small boat.

Inside the worm's body, there was an abnormally foul smell. When I snapped back to reality, I was already pulled out of the car. Li Haohao flashed the car lights rapidly, like blinking eyes. Suddenly, everything tightened around us, and the lights disappeared. I stepped on something slippery and extremely slick, causing my feet to slip. But I desperately pushed into the flesh, still unable to pierce through.

I felt for my gun, but it seemed to be soaked with water or perhaps due to my intense shaking, I couldn't open the holster. All I could do was thrust my body forward, hanging upside down in the cavity like a spider.

Would Li Haohao be able to escape safely? Did she have the ability to protect herself against this monstrous creature?

In reality, I probably believed that she could handle it. Without me, maybe she would have fewer concerns—although it's true that she had been becoming increasingly carefree.

But I still anxiously worried about Li Haohao's death. If she were to be digested here and turned into fertilizer for the worm, I would feel incredibly foolish.

I took a deep breath.

The advantage in dealing with this worm was that it hadn't affected my sanity, it just had an increased size and attack power.

I dropped down, pulled something out, and brought out some bl*ody flesh. Seizing the opportunity, I stabbed diagonally again. With my left hand, I tore open the wound.

The shaking under my feet was like an earthquake, making it difficult for me to maintain a grip. The soft flesh kept squeezing and crushing my bones. But the more intense the situation, the more I could anchor myself and exert strength. I pulled out my gun and aimed at the wound I had torn open.

Boom! A hole was blasted through the worm's wall.

Drip, drip...

The car lights came on, and fragments of flesh splattered around. I squinted my eyes.

Underneath the tracks, it wasn't the worm's mouthparts being crushed, but pale hands belonging to men, women, and children. These hands inexplicably grew out from inside the worm, holding up the car—it wasn't driving towards us, but it was being carried towards us, like a coffin revered in awe.

She poked her head out of the car roof, her delicate arms adorned with sparkling gold bead strings. I grabbed her arm and was pulled back into the car.

"You're quite strong." that's all I could say, closing my eyes and trying my best not to think about those branch-like hands.

Li Haohao didn't say anything, boom—

A ray of light permeated through my eyelids, and I opened my eyes. The setting sun cast a golden glow, with earthworm holes tearing it into pieces, one section short and the other terrifyingly long. The longer segment rolled and disappeared into the waves of grass.

The tracks slammed heavily onto the ground. I turned back to grab the plastic bucket. Despite the pressure, it surprisingly held up, but the bucket was now completely shattered and unusable.

Almost my entire body was covered in the smily residue of the earthworm, and the car was a mess.

Li Haohao crouched by the half-destroyed road, poking at the remains of the worm with her finger, and she tore off a small piece and put it in her mouth.

"Li Haohao, that's unsanitary."

She sucked on her fingers, then turned and looked at me pitifully. "Hungry."

Worms are considered protein, right... I thought to myself. I've eaten worms before, but not ones that have turned into monsters like this.

Li Haohao untied the completely rotten and broken bucket and gave it a hard pat, making it at least look like a bucket.

Then she walked over and reached out for a weapon.

She cut off large chunks of the enormous worm meat and placed them in the bucket, covering it with a lid. The plastic bucket deformed significantly, and the lid wouldn't close. She struggled for a while before finally managing to close it.

It was getting dark, and it's not safe to stay outside at night—I remembered that rule. The night harbors dangers that perhaps no one can handle, whether it's pollution or monsters, I don't know.

The car sped away, but even so, before reaching the outpost, the car headlights flickered eerily four times. As expected, I unintentionally ran over another person, but I couldn't worry about that now. I closed the gate of the outpost, carrying the bucket and running inside, ignoring the abnormalities, but still feeling a bit anxious.

The worm meat needed to be stored in the cold storage. I entered the outpost with the bucket, but Li Haohao stood motionless at the doorway.

"Come inside."

"Look." Li Haohao suddenly pointed to the sky.

"Li Haohao."

"Look!" she emphasized, waving her hand at me. Reluctantly, I walked over.

She pointed at the bl*od-red moon in the sky, surrounded by no stars. That bl*od-red moon seemed to be gazing at us. It felt terrifying, yet somewhat familiar. After all, it had been a long time since I had seen the night sky.

"The wind, it feels so nice." Li Haohao spread her arms wide.

The night breeze was indeed pleasant. I looked at Li Haohao and touched her vest. It was almost dry.

"Come inside and soak in the water."

"I want to stay outside." Li Haohao made the request assertively. I looked at her, she looked at me, and we were at a standstill. The moisture evaporated, and Li Haohao's lips began to turn white. The scales on her back spread open. I spread my hands, determining that she had lost this round. I planned to carry her into the basin.

However, Li Haohao firmly pushed me away with her hands on her hips.

"The wind will dry you out outside."

"The moon." Li Haohao pointed above our heads.

Then she ran into the courtyard and stamped her feet, which had grown webbed toes. "Courtyard."

I squinted my eyes. "Wind."

She pointed outside the outpost. "The lawn."

She ran back and pulled me. "Barbecue."

And just like that, I was dragged out of the courtyard, facing the challenge posed by Li Haohao, feeling completely clueless.

Where should we barbecue? What should we use to cook? Where should we do it?

And she insisted on this when her fish tail was afraid of being without water. I put on a stern expression, and Li Haohao's mouth split into a smile. "He Ran, you're so great."

To live up to that "greatness", I started thinking of a solution.

Before pouring both buckets of water into the circulation machine, I took a bit of water in a basin and placed it in the center of the courtyard, allowing Li Haohao to sit cross-legged with her tail in it.

The ground floor was not closed, a serious violation of the rules. It was unsafe and didn't follow the process, but it allowed some light to shine outside, creating a rectangular area of brightness.

"Light can attract things from the darkness." I reminded her. Li Haohao opened her mouth wide, as if she could devour all the danger, appearing carefree.

I accepted this fact. I gradually accepted that Li Haohao's level of peculiarity was deeper than I had imagined. I didn't know if this was her pollution of me. I upheld normal order, but Li Haohao turned my order into a different kind of normal—a new normal.

In the distance, there were faint roars and cries of the monsters. Li Haohao sat in the basin, pointing at the worm meat, her eyes shining.

I wouldn't let Li Haohao down.

At the beginning, Li Haohao was silent and reserved, full of vigilance.

I asked her, "What's your name?"

She just raised her head, revealing a modest smile.

At that time, not long after I had killed Zhao Xinyan and Lin Buxiu, I was the only one left in the outpost.

I warmly welcomed Li Haohao, although my demeanor only appeared as if I was asking for her name, like a stern and indifferent ordinary researcher. I said hello while intentionally not asking too clearly.

In the end, I decided to call her Li Haohao. Li Haohao was good, so I called her Li Haohao. When she heard these three self-proclaimed syllables, she nodded in agreement.

I named her. This monster became my only companion in the outpost.

I opened the rooms of the others and took their shoes.

Shoes and a small amount of trash, such as plastic bags, paper bags, and wood shavings, I piled them up in the courtyard.

There was no grill, so I dismantled the almost scrapped car and poured its fuel into the larger vehicle, driving it out of the garage.

Li Haohao moistened the tip of her tail with water and watched me drive out.

I took out a new packet of salt from underground and placed it beside me. Sweat and worm slime stuck to my body, and I dampened a towel to wipe myself off.

I stacked the shoes under the suspended steel bucket and cleaned the bucket's interior.

Li Haohao splashed the water around. "Wow!"

"Don't waste water." I reminded her.

I poured out the worm meat and piled it on a waterproof cloth. Li Haohao started cutting the meat, slicing the worm meat into fist-sized chunks.

There wasn't much cooking oil, and expecting to cover the bucket with a layer of it was a pipe dream. But I still applied a bit and threw the worm meat into it.

I ignited it with paper and wood shavings. The shoes emitted a mechanical stench, and the flames engulfed them, gradually melting the soles.

Under the rectangular brightness, Li Haohao clapped her hands and used something as a makeshift meat fork, constantly stirring the worm meat in the bucket.

The bucket quickly heated up, and I put two more shoes into the fire.

Burning the shoes, I slowly recalled those people. They were blurry, almost forgettable, but I could remember them vaguely. I burned the shoes of my companions just like that.

They won't be coming back.

Sizzling, the worm meat emitted the smell of burning, and Li Haohao suddenly leaned forward in the basin. I was afraid she couldn't resist reaching out her hand to touch the scorching bucket, so I went back and grabbed two stools, placing them together. I lifted her up a bit, making it easier for her to see the doneness of the meat.

Chunks of worm meat tumbled in the excavator bucket. It wasn't the aroma of beef or lamb, but rather a scent that fell somewhere between the fishy odor and the aroma of grilled oil.

Slowly, the scent seemed to change, turning into a peculiar meaty aroma. Li Haohao licked her lips, watching the worm meat shrink and turn golden brown.

I grabbed a handful of salt and sprinkled it in. Li Haohao couldn't wait and immediately skewered a piece and put it in her mouth.

"It's hot."

She impatiently swallowed it whole, her eyes brimming with vigorous appetite.

I watched as Li Haohao devoured piece after piece, and eventually, she crouched down, cat-like, and used her hands to grab meat from the bucket and stuff it into her mouth. When she became too eager, her mouth suddenly split open, as big as two fists, and she stuffed all the meat in at once.

Her tail soaked in the water twitched occasionally. She sweated profusely, anxiously, as if someone was competing with her, as if she wished she could dive into the bucket and stuff herself with half a bucket of worm meat—more than her own body size.

But she still wasn't satisfied. When I helped her pick up the last piece of meat and made it easier for her to take, she suddenly turned her head and glared at me.

Her eyes were pitch-black, without pupils. Her lips split open and she lunged at me, ready to bite.

I closed my eyes. This was the scene I had long anticipated.

But when I snapped back to reality, Li Haohao was only biting my finger as if she was eating a skewer, tearing the meat apart mechanically. She chewed it twice and eagerly swallowed the meat fragments.

Haa...

She made a strange exhalation, always turning her head to look at me as if I was interfering with her eating.

But it didn't seem like she was looking at me, rather, it was as if she was looking behind me—the outpost was behind me.

I didn't turn around.

"Hungry."

It didn't come from her throat, it sounded more like a voice coming from her stomach, as if many people were shouting in hunger inside her belly.

"There's still half a bucket." I pointed, indicating that I would give her more to eat, then went to clean the burnt part under the bucket.

But Li Haohao couldn't wait. She grabbed my arm, and the voice from her stomach kept pleading with me, "Hungry, hungry, hungry. Want to eat meat, eat meat, eat meat..."

Sizzle...

The worm meat was cooked in the bucket. I crouched down and threw one or two pairs of shoes into the fire, watching the flames climb and flicker, smelling the scent of burnt rubber.

"Water." Li Haohao's voice brought me back to my senses. I took a cup of water and poured it down her nape.

She slowly curled up, and I ran my fingers through her hair.

"I don't want to eat anymore. Let's go inside." she suddenly said.

"We've already started grilling."

"Do you want to eat some?" Her voice was weak, her arms flailing. I poured water on her back and said to her back that I didn't want to eat.

Li Haohao fell silent for a while, then said, "I won't go into your room today."

I wouldn't believe her even if she promised hundreds of times.

"I'll find a way to make sure you're full." I said.

Li Haohao shook her head, closed her eyes slightly, and suddenly became quiet, which I found quite unsettling.

As she ate the remaining meat, she became much more refined in her manners. I buried half of the fire, and Li Haohao ate slowly. I tore off the dried worm slime from her hair and threw it into the fire.

In the darkness, there didn't seem to be anything approaching. I sat on the steps in front of the door, rubbing my hands and the slime off my shoulders, wondering if I should go for water in a few days.

I just hoped that she wouldn't transform into something related to water again.

Now that she had become a fish, and it was normal for fish to eat worms, I thought to myself.

Slowly, I closed my eyes, with only the sound of the fire and Li Haohao's chewing in my ears.

After the meal, I buried the fire pit with soil, drove the excavator back to the garage, wiped it clean with a towel, and threw the wet towel into the basement's trash bin.

Li Haohao was full, having eaten almost twice her body size in food, yet her belly remained flat, her figure still fragile. She seemed a bit better in spirits but spoke listlessly, "I'll rest now."

"Remember to brush your teeth."

She hummed in response, and I heard her fuss for a while before going back to the men's changing room.

Back in my room, I changed clothes and took out the work log from the locked drawer. I clipped a hair strand on one of the pages, so a light touch would make it fall.

Then I closed my eyes and went to sleep.

In the middle of the night, I woke up, turned on the light, and felt no sense of being watched.

The work log hadn't been touched. I took out the hair strand, went downstairs, and halfway through, something suddenly blocked my path.

It felt like the sound of a heartbeat.

Thump-thump.

It seemed to come from the ceiling and also from the floor, as if the walls were trembling, as if I was right in the middle of a heart.

I remembered that the door on the first floor had been open for a long time. I didn't know if something had entered or not. I remembered closing it when I came back.

I wanted to go downstairs to investigate, but when I reached the second floor, an unspeakable terror suddenly enveloped me.

There was a strange intuition that there was something on the first floor that I couldn't bear to look at.

But there was wind, wind pouring in from the first floor.

The door opened.

With my eyes closed, I held onto the handrail and walked down the stairs. The sound of my heartbeat, thump-thump, echoed in my ears.

"Li Haohao?" I called out. 

Li Haohao seemed to be ill, "He Ran?"

"Aren't you asleep?"

"Mm," she replied, her voice tired. "I ate too much, He Ran. I feel off."

"Is it time for something new to grow?"

"Not worms... I ate something strange..."

"What?"

"When we were grilling, something was watching us."

She paused for a moment. "After I ate it, I realized it was something from the outpost."

With my eyes closed, I couldn't determine what Li Haohao was like at the moment or what the situation was.

"I told you we should've have gone out to eat," I found the handrail and slowly went upstairs. "Next time, we'll stay in the kitchen, and I'll fry something for you in a frying pan."

"My light bulb is broken, and I used up a lot of things going out... I'm very hungry..."

Her words were abstract, but surprisingly, I could understand: she had expended too much.

"Eating this thing makes me uncomfortable. It doesn't digest well... It's difficult." She struggled to piece together her words to describe her feelings.

Cause and effect, because she had expended too much, she couldn't handle the new thing she ate.

"What was it from the outpost?" I thought, there must be a way I can help her.

"Close your eyes."

"Mhm."

"Touch me."

I lifted my hand, and Li Haohao appeared in front of me, seemingly out of nowhere.

I casually pressed my hand against her shoulder, and the scales had disappeared without me noticing. Both of my hands rested on her shoulders, and I moved upward, feeling her neck.

Behind her neck, beyond the hair, there was something fuzzy and alive, moving.

With a gentle touch, beneath the layer of flesh, I felt a round, slippery thing moving. Underneath the flesh, there was a furry seam.

Continuing to move upward from the back of her head, I reached her ears, and further forward were her eyes.

I confirmed it. Those two things at the back of her head were indeed eyes.

I paused, and Li Haohao grabbed hold of my wrist. In the palm of her hand were two protruding living things, and I immediately realized they were two closed eyes.

Those closed-eyed hands pulled me, guiding my touch towards her lower back.

"Eight eyes."

"Mhm."

"Okay." I didn't say anything else, but I felt like I might collapse at any moment.

But Li Haohao hugged my waist and whispered, "Keep your eyes closed and don't open them. The extra eyes I have will help you. I'll guide you back to your room."

She stepped into my room, at a time when I wasn't sleeping.

She sat on my bed.

With my eyes closed, I felt eyes gradually opening in my mind.

Li Haohao quickly retreated and closed the door.

Eyes from the outpost.

It wasn't Zhao Xinyan, it wasn't Zhan Yicheng, it wasn't Lin Buxiu. Who was related to the eyes?

"Who is the pollutant? We vote in the meeting."

I stood up.

On the day before they died, the others held a meeting and voted to confine me to the room.

But I realized that a pair of eyes had been watching me all along, peering through the airtight crack of the door, sneaking in through every crevice.

It was the outpost commander.

She had eaten the outpost commander.

Daomiao A4C2 Outpost Commander, Wu Wang.

In an instant, I was on the fourth floor, but suddenly it felt like I had entered the basement. The walls of the basement came alive, opening countless eyes that stared at me unblinkingly.

But I had my eyes closed—behind me was the cold storage...?

I touched the back of my head and felt an open eye.

I covered it and collapsed heavily onto my own bed.

I tore open the bedsheet and tied off the eye at the back of my head.

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