33: Chapter 33 Something's Wrong

The moment those 'Things' heard the alarm, they immediately sprinted toward the sound. Ye Qingqing took advantage of the distraction to dash madly toward the upper floors.

However, Ye Qingqing had underestimated one thing.

There was more than one 'Thing' in this building, and the alarm was actually quite loud.

As Ye Qingqing ran upstairs, the 'Things' from the 11th floor also started coming down. With nowhere to hide, she had no choice but to duck into her space.

Once all those 'Things' had run toward the alarm, Ye Qingqing slipped out of the space and hurried upward.

Just as she reached the 12th floor, a hand suddenly reached out and touched her shoulder. By reflex, Ye Qingqing instinctively tried to duck back into her space, fearing that one of those 'Things' had found her.

But as soon as she caught a whiff of that familiar minty scent, her racing heart immediately settled down.

By the light of the emergency lamps in the hallway, Ye Qingqing saw Huo Sixian gesture for her to be quiet. Then, feeling a sense of warmth on her wrist, she let Huo Sixian pull her into a storage room.

The storage room was very small, but it had a door and a lock—unlike the other shops that only had doors without any security.

This storage room was indeed much safer.

Inside the storage room, besides Huo Sixian and Ye Qingqing, the other four were all present.

Li Wenzhuo was injured, and a heavy scent of blood permeated the air. Ye Qingqing couldn't help but feel worried; with such a strong smell of blood, hadn't those 'Things' picked up the scent?

Huo Sixian made a silencing gesture to Ye Qingqing. Having made it up from downstairs, she was naturally no fool; she knew those 'Things' relied on hearing and smell to track their prey.

Huo Sixian pulled a phone out of his bag and tapped out a message: "Don't speak. They can hear us, but they can't see."

Ye Qingqing nodded to show she understood. Then, she pulled a phone out of her bag—actually from her space.

She also tapped out a response to Huo Sixian.

"I noticed those monsters rely on hearing and smell..."

After typing this, Ye Qingqing took a roll of gauze and some Povidone-iodine from her space and handed them to Li Wenzhuo.

A flash of surprise crossed Huo Sixian's face when he saw her produce the gauze and Povidone-iodine. Ye Qingqing was actually afraid they would suspect her.

After all, having Povidone-iodine and gauze appear out of thin air didn't really make sense.

So, Ye Qingqing hurriedly typed on her screen: "I found them while searching for supplies just now!"

Ye Qingqing was truly terrified that the others would suspect her, so her speed in 'proving' herself was incredibly fast. However, after seeing it, Huo Sixian only gave her a grateful smile.

Looking at Huo Sixian's smile, Ye Qingqing suddenly felt like she was protesting too much; she awkwardly wished she could undo what had just happened.

"They don't seem to be able to smell," Huo Sixian slowly typed. Kong Ziyi was busy bandaging Li Wenzhuo. Li Wenzhuo's injuries were not minor; in fact, where those things had scratched him, the wounds were even seeping black blood.

No matter how they disinfected it, they couldn't get rid of it. Seeing this, Kong Ziyi's heart began to panic. Actually, Ye Qingqing had Hydrogen peroxide in her space; although using it to disinfect wounds is irritating, it was the best choice in this situation.

But at this moment, Ye Qingqing didn't dare take it out, fearing she would be suspected.

"Li Wenzhuo's state isn't right."

Kong Ziyi snatched Huo Sixian's phone and typed these words on the screen.

Lu Huan and Meng Hangfei also frowned deeply at the situation. Things had changed too quickly. Who could have known that after not stepping out for just ten days or so, the world outside would turn into this? Moreover, those 'Things' were clearly not something that could be accepted by normal human understanding.

Huo Sixian reached out to feel Li Wenzhuo's forehead; it was alarmingly hot. He actually had a fever.

Ye Qingqing wanted to take some Fever reducers from her space, but in the current situation, taking them out would arouse suspicion.

Yet, looking at Li Wenzhuo's condition, she felt that if he didn't get medicine, he might not make it through the day.

Not only that, but as Li Wenzhuo's fever raged, his body suddenly convulsed, and a low growl even escaped his mouth. When Ye Qingqing, Huo Sixian, and the others heard the sound coming from Li Wenzhuo...

Their expressions all darkened, and a string in their minds pulled tight. Ye Qingqing prayed in her heart that it wouldn't be what she imagined.

But things often turn out exactly as one fears. When Li Wenzhuo's body convulsed violently, Huo Sixian was the first to react, pulling Ye Qingqing behind him to protect her. Then he began gathering their things, picking up the Flashlight and self-defense tools.

When Li Wenzhuo's body stopped convulsing and black veins bulged on his face, no one present dared to move. Everyone had clearly seen what had just happened.

They had watched with their own eyes... as their former friend turned into a monster.

And it happened right under their noses.

Li Wenzhuo's transformation took only a few minutes. First, his skin turned grey at a visible speed. His eyes rolled upward continuously until the black pupils gradually vanished, replaced by a dead, stagnant grey.

The skin on his face rippled wildly, as if something were about to grow out from underneath. It bubbled and surged like boiling water in a pot, rising and falling. When everything finally settled, black veins appeared across his face.

Even the nails on his hands and feet gradually grew longer and sharper, eventually stained with a layer of color, turning completely black.

If one looked closely, there was a hint of red within that blackness, looking extremely eerie.

Kong Ziyi was on the verge of breaking down because he was the one who had bandaged Li Wenzhuo. He felt a deep sense of remorse; if only he had cleaned the wounds faster, would Li Wenzhuo have avoided turning into a monster?

Ye Qingqing felt as if her breathing had stopped. Because Li Wenzhuo had turned like this after being scratched by that 'Thing's' claws...

It meant that 'Thing' carried a risk of contagion. So now, seeing Li Wenzhuo—the Li Wenzhuo who was no longer himself—she felt a surge of dread.

In fact, Ye Qingqing vaguely felt like escaping this storage room.

The storage room wasn't large. If this 'Li Wenzhuo' lost control, no one present would be spared.

Kong Ziyi and the others were filled with grief and wanted to go forward to check on Li Wenzhuo, but their reason reminded them not to be impulsive.