Truth be told, Li Jiayu had almost forgotten the taste of snacks. However, now that he was seeing such a dazzling lineup of varied food items in the mart, moreover with their brightly-colored packagings...
...Potato chips, biscuits, cakes, milk tea, roasted chicken, hamburgers, milkshakes, fruit juice, fresh fruits, ice cream—
Despite the reeking scent of blood that lingered in the air, Li Jiayu could not help but drool; he had an urge to gorge himself on the feast before him.
After he finished the coffee in 2-3 mouthfuls, Li Jiayu grabbed a pack of marinated chicken drumsticks unabashedly, then ripped it open and threw the chicken directly into his agape mouth. Without paying any heed to the half-rotten, chewed corpse that laid beside him, he chewed on his food in big bites and said unhurriedly with his oily mouth,
“Ah… This is the taste. It’s been ages… Even though it can’t compare to the Crimson Crowned Beetle in taste and flavor, nor the Leaping Dragon in freshness and texture… I’ve been yearning for this taste for far too long...”
Both Hsiao Wanqing and Ran Hongxia looked at Li Jiayu strangely, utterly speechless for a moment.
‘Being in the presence of so many grotesque, foul-smelling, b.l.o.o.d.y corpses, how can this fellow… How is this abnormal and barbaric fellow still able to retain his appet.i.te?’
Lan Xiaoyue, who had already emptied her stomach, rolled her eyes. With an ashen expression on her face, she looked at the remnants of body parts and minced flesh strewn across the ground. She then turned to take a gander at the insect carca.s.ses at the entrance.
Finally, she brought her gaze to Li Jiayu. As she watched his lips as he chewed and listened to the “crack, crack, crack” sounds of the chicken bones being gnawed on, she felt her throat tighten. The next moment, she keeled over and retched once more. LXY said with a stammer,
“Li Jiayu… are you out of your mind? It’s fine if you drink coffee, but how can you bring yourself to eat marinated chicken drumsticks… It’s so disgusting. Don’t you think that consuming meat at this moment in time is very inappropriate? Don’t you think that the chicken meat resembles the disgusting flesh of dismembered humans? Piece after piece of human flesh… and covered in blood as well…”
Chu Xiang, Feng Liaoyuan, Chen Kun and the other axe-wielders, who had worked tirelessly, were exhausted. Then as they were about to grab some snacks, they inadvertently overheard LXY’s saying the words, “disgusting” and “human flesh”. When these words reached their ears, they lost their appet.i.te instantly and felt a faint sense of nausea arising.
“Isn’t it just a corpse…? The corpse can lay on the ground and I can eat my meat. Everyone is minding their own business and we’re peacefully coexisting. So, why are you vomiting?”
During his past life, Li Jiayu had spent most of his time with undead creatures and had long since become accustomed to the scent of blood. To him, this was considered rather ordinary behavior. In times of famine during the apocalypse, there had been many people who, blinded by starvation, had turned into cannibals. It was to the extent that underground organizations specializing in selling human flesh sausages existed.
However, these heretical groups would usually end up being destroyed. There had been no large military base that would allow the existence of such organizations. While Li Jiayu had been experiencing his life outside, he had come across several human slaughtering groups. However, they all inevitably faced tragic ends of being devoured by Li Jiayu’s summoned beast afterward.
This was called giving them a taste of their own medicine as retribution isn’t kind!
“Hey... I won’t say anymore, but LXY, you are too frail. Getting nauseous and disgusted so easily... Your mental const.i.tution isn’t strong enough. It’s fine if it were the others, but you’re a Shapeshifter. There will be one day when you step into the war zone.”
“I"m a g-girl. These reactions are natural, right? But I know what you’re implying… Give me some time to adapt, I’ll be numbed to it after vomiting some more...”
“En, that’s why I’m not forcing you.”
Li Jiayu tossed the meatless chicken bone to the side and used a tissue to wipe his oil glistened lips. After doing so, he spoke in an unhurried manner,
“You guys should know that after the cosmic storm swept past, many of the electrical equipment turned completely into sc.r.a.p. Factories were rendered useless, so much so that some factories even exploded. So, for a long time after this, products like these, that are commonly found in supermarkets, are probably going to go out of production.
“That is to say, once our food is used up, there will be no more to fill their place… We can’t get them even if we want to. In the future, we’ll have to survive on tree roots, insect flesh, grains, and even mutated gra.s.s…”
“Ugh, we can’t eat delicious food anymore…”
LXY’s face froze. She was someone who paid close attention to things of enjoyment. Although she had prepared herself mentally beforehand, she could not help but be taken aback.
Li Jiayu’s words dawned realization upon her. There might not be any chances to enjoy fine dining in grand hotels, nor would she be able to taste the fragrant, sweet and sour taro! No one would be able to try any delicious cuisines from throughout the world. Additionally, the urban nightlife of debauchery and corruption might vanish into thin air!
“No going to night markets, no shopping, no dancing at bars, no hunting for rich guys at the bar, no going to beauty salon… Isn’t that boring?” LXY muttered.
“Why would it not be interesting?”
A mocking smile played by Li Jiayu’s lips. The type of people he hated the most were those who complained all day but had no courage to commit suicide.
“Even though it is true that the modern and high-tech life is leaving us, it also signifies the birth of a new supernatural civilization. Whatever that modern technology isn’t able to solve will be cracked easily under supernatural forces…
“Lan Xiaoyue, you have a lot of acne and look ordinary, right? When your shape shifting has reached the third order, you’ll be able to shapeshift to whatever your mind desires. Even the faces of renowned stars won’t be a problem...
“In the case that you’re tired of being a woman, you can shrink your chest, produce a 12-inch meat rod below and go ‘do’ some woman. If you prefer excitement, maybe you can find a guy to get behind you and do a double headed plug...”
“Who?! Who wants to be a man?! You’re the one that’s a ‘double-headed plug’! You perverted man!” LXY flared up. She randomly grabbed an object by the side and hurled it toward Li Jiayu.
“Jiayu, knock it off. Pay attention to the harmony of the team,” Hsiao Wanqing reminded Li Jiayu.
“It’s none of my business. I’m merely reminding her that there’s more to life, lest she thinks it’s uninteresting…”
Li Jiayu grabbed the item LXY threw over and after he took a gander at it, he did not know whether to laugh or cry. It actually turned out to be a box of Durex.
“Cla.s.smate Lan Xiaoyue… Is this a hint you’re giving me? Too bad I’m not interested in your looks, so I won’t be your friend with benefits… Oh, I forgot to mention. In the future, men won’t use Durex and the like anymore. As for the concrete reason, you should know even if I don’t mention it. Saying it will just make you girls feel uncomfortable instead…”
Lan Xiaoyue and Ran Hongxia failed to comprehend it. They did not understand why men would stop using Durex. Hsiao Wanqing, however, understood it almost immediately. In a world where the strong survived, without the protection of the law nor the guarantee of life, Hsiao Wanqing knew what kind of miserable treatment awaited the women.
“Oh, yeah. Combatants all have pretty good physical fitness. They are definitely not weak, three-second shooters, so you can consider finding a Berserker. They’ll make you sing all night and you’ll forget everything except for indulging in the pleasure.”
“Li Jiayu! To h.e.l.l with you!” LXY got so angry that her hair spiked up like steel needles. She knew that she could not defeat Li Jiayu. Otherwise, she would have run over to bite him.
Hsiao Wanqing heaved out a sigh at the sight of this scene.
‘Li Jiayu this child… really gives others headaches. Why does he always screw around with his team members? It’s as if treating others nicely would cause him to lose a piece of his flesh. Has he not thought of being a qualified leader?’
To be frank and outspoken, saying whatever came to his mind— that is how a child acts! Li Jiayu possessed an overwhelming strength in his hands. He had gained the trust of the students and had built up a sizeable prestige. So long as he commanded it, he would be able to temporarily gain the authority of a leader over the entire Xijiang University.
‘Does he not have plans on establishing a force?’
“Hold on for a second. Li Jiayu, you mentioned mutated gra.s.s and insect meat… Those Crimson Crowned Beetles can be consumed? It does not contain any poison?...”
“Naturally, they’re not poisonous. Insect flesh has its benefits. Moreover, it’s much more delicious than pork. Just think, one eats human flesh, another eats pig feed. How can they be compared?”
For some odd reason, everyone exchanged looks in silence upon hearing Li Jiayu’s words. They could not figure out how Li Jiayu could remain so calm when mentioning “human flesh”...
“Oh, you’ve finally arrived. Could you be any slower?” Li Jiayu glanced toward the entrance of the students’ supermarket and quipped casually.
At this moment, it was estimated to be 6:20. However, under the influence of the dense thunderclouds, the light was becoming scarce. It looked like it was 5 am in the morning, with the kind of darkness that fills the sky before the sun rises.
‘Half an hour later, our surroundings will sink into complete darkness and no one will be able to do anything!’
“Pardon us, we were delayed on our journey…”
The leader of the axe-wielders was Fang Zizhou, a basketball club captain. Behind him, 70 to 80 men rushed into the students’ supermarket. After he had taken note of Li Jiayu’s annoyed gaze, he explained quickly,
“Why are there so few people?” Li Jiayu asked.
“Ugh… We had originally organized 200 men, but we encountered a problem. Before reaching the 3rd floor, over 20 men could not endure the smell of blood and their legs went limp. Afterward, one story down, half of our men retched all over the floor and could not muster any strength to walk…” Fang Zizhou shivered from the cold. His fringe was still dripping with rain water which slid slowly down his face.
“Alright, that’s enough! What a bunch of cowards... Fang Zizhou, hurry up and organize them to transport the goods to the school building. Prioritize the selection of energy abundant food and not potato chips as well as other puffed foods. There is no benefit in consuming them…
Move the sportswear on the cabinet as well as the curtains back to the school building. We can use them as blankets tonight. There seem to be thermal undergarments left over from the winter vacation in the warehouse. Go search through them… En, right. Remember to get 30 men to follow me to the girls’ dormitory to move stuff!”
Li Jiayu issued a few commands casually while stuffing a Crimson Crowned Beetle Insect Core into Fang Zizhou’s hands.
“Do it well. This is your reward. You’ll just have to lead the transport team for now. Strive to transport as much as you can. Make at least 4 to 5 trips before the sky completely darkens. The food of the entire 2000 people relies on you guys…”
Having said that, Li Jiayu turned around to face Chu Xiang and Chen Kun.
“The two of you should remain here to guard the transport team. In the case that an insect emerges, 2 to 3 Venomous Spiders should pose no threat to you guys. If a Crimson Crowned Beetle appears, do not fight recklessly. Let the transport team escape, then inform me and I’ll deal with it. Understand?!”
“Understood, you should be careful as well.”
Chu Xiang and Chen Kun obediently stayed behind to protect the transport team. Meanwhile, Li Jiayu ushered the remaining members as they charged towards the women’s dormitory, not far away from the transport team.
The various miracles Li Jiayu showed during the journey made the 30 transport members gawk at him in awe.
‘Holy c.r.a.p! Such a terrifying creature as the Crimson Crowned Beetle and he dealt with it in just 2 to 3 moves as though it was a piglet! So domineering! Such prestige!’
They watched Li Jiayu’s back with feverish gazes. If Li Jiayu did not treat them so coldly, they might imitate wuxia novel scenes where the characters kowtow to get the expert to teach them.
There was a total of seven floors in the females’ dormitory building. The first three floors had long since been ravaged by the insects with not a single survivor in sight. The dormitory, previously a place of fantasy for the boys, had turned into an earthly purgatory.
The underwear of beauties had been strewn across the ground by the insects and their heads had been chewed into a state resembling pulpy persimmons. One could vaguely picture the scenes of springtime and exposed underwear from their uncovered, incomplete corpses. However, it was likely that no one was interested in these types of visions.
“d.a.m.n it… You guys are d.a.m.ned… Beautiful sisters… were harmed by you...”
Dark Octopus’s fury peaked. It flailed its tentacles anxiously beside the dismembered female corpses and attempted to piece them back together. However, how would that be possible? More than half of their bodies had already entered the insects’ stomachs... The more Dark Octopus thought about, the angrier it got, the more the octopus’ body expanded! In the end, it rushed past Li Jiayu and scrambled into the room that had the insects. Dark Octopus grabbed a television, a computer, an air conditioning unit and the like, then smashed the two Venomous Spiders into a meaty paste!
Still unsatisfied, Dark Octopus rushed into another room and coiled its tentacles around a Scythe Beetle. It was as though Dark Octopus had been injected with steroids. Exerting all of its strength, its soft octopus body tensed up into blocks of hard muscle, squeezing the Scythe Beetle to death!
Li Jiayu watched on dumbfoundedly. He had no clue that Dark Octopus possessed so much power after going into a berserk state. He used a single tentacle to squeeze a Scythe Beetle, which had a tough carapace, to death. How terrifying was that?
“Kill… Kill… Kill. You shall die… Revenge for beautiful sisters…”
Dark Octopus could only see red and lost all control! It no longer heeded Li Jiayu’s commands. With metaphorical bared fangs and claws, it targeted at an insect and began its killing spree, completely releasing its dark nature. Dark Octopus was literally a killing machine. At times, it fought too fiercely and a single brandish of its tentacle split open the wall. Even wooden beds had been thrown off the balcony!
Under Li Jiayu’s and Dark Octopus’ vehement joint a.s.sault, the insects on the first three floors were quickly eradicated. The girls on the fourth story had already suffered an attack from the insects and half of them had lost their lives in the process.
As more than ten rooms were about to succ.u.mb to the crisis, Li Jiayu took the lead like a meteor and killed his way to the fourth story. Brandishing his sword along the corridor, he killed five Venomous Spiders. After that, with the help of his crew that rushed from the back, he turned the remaining Morpher Worm and Crimson Crowned Beetle into ice sculptures!
“Alright, ladies. You’re safe now. The insects have been eliminated. You can open your doors.”
Li Jiayu knocked on the door and after a long while, a timid girl pulled apart her room’s curtains fearfully and stole a glance. When she saw the malevolent and grotesque insects being stepped on by a certain white-haired man, she was stunned into place.
Shortly after, a screech resembling neither astonishment nor joy escaped her parted lips. She then ushered the dorm mates behind her and said a few words incoherently. Later, she opened the door emotionally and rushed into Li Jiayu’s embrace while she burst into tears.
“Alright, everything’s okay. The insects are dead, so don’t cry.” Li Jiayu patted the girl’s back. His body shrank backward slightly as he separated himself from the girl. Indeed, he did not wish to have any relations with a stranger.
“They are all dead! We just heard the terrible screams as well as angry and pleading voices! Xiao Lu, Luan Feng and Xi Yao, they are my only good friends in cla.s.s! They’re dead! Why did it turn out like this? Where did those insects come from?!”
That girl cried into a messy puddle, then spoke too fast and choked herself on her saliva. She hit her chest bitterly with tears streaking down her face. The girls behind her also had crestfallen expressions and vented their inner emotions.
“……”
As Li Jiayu faced these girls, who had collapsed on the inside, and listened to their cries, Li Jiayu knew that nothing he said would make a difference. So, Li Jiayu pulled out Hsiao Wanqing onto the scene and issued her some thoughtful work to do, namely to coax the girls. He then ushered out the girls residing on the 5th, 6th, and 7th floors. After telling them a bit about the apocalypse, Li Jiayu then got the transport team to move the items in the girls’ dorm: quilts; winter clothes; undergarments; underpants; snacks; and so on.
Everything that could be used was shoved into boxes and moved!The girls, who had almost ended up in the stomachs of the bugs, were frightened and traumatized. Not a single word went through, so the boys from the transport team helped them clean up. Thankfully, the girls on the 5th, 6th, and 7th floors did not wet themselves and were emotionally steady to listen to orders.
“Ugh. Li Jiayu, you ordered them to bring all their underwear, but what’s the use of that?” Feng Liaoyuan asked stealthily as he looked at the bustling female students.
“Idiot, there are so many girls who soiled themselves… Don’t you think we should bring them new pairs?”
“True, brother is wise, worthy of being a woman’s confidante…”
“Less nonsense! I have no interest towards these girls!”
“Even if you’re not interested in them, it doesn’t mean they don’t have any interest in you. Since the ancient times, women have loved heroes. They also love snowflakes and you fit both requirements…”
“Are you done talking or not?! If you have so much time to idle and gossip, you might as well think about ‘Volcanic Eruption and Flowing Lava’. Hurry up and train so you can conjure your Fire Spells!”
“Okay…”Feng Liaoyuan, who embarra.s.sed himself, did not dare utter a second word nor continue gossipping.
Dark Octopus cried; its pair of bra.s.s-like eyes were streaked with warm tears. It looked at the girls who were busy with moving the clothes, then turned to look at the bra.s.siere and panties of varying colors hung on the balcony. It straightened its chest and put on a liberal and righteous expression, then said with gusto,
“Such... a beautiful scene… If only pretty sisters… can live peacefully… I… am willing to do… anything…”After more than ten minutes, the survivors in the girls’ dormitory finally finished cleaning.
They then hurried to the school building under the lead of Feng Liaoyuan and the other choppers.After the liberation of the girls’ dormitory and the largest student supermarket, tonight’s mission had been accomplished. Despite there being other school and laboratory buildings as well as the boys’ dormitory being in imminent peril, Li Jiayu and the others had no other choice. After all, the sky had already darkened. It was almost nightfall and trudging forth would only increase the risks.
Not to mention… the worms had already been ravaging for a long period of time. The several thousand casualties should have sated their appet.i.te and l.u.s.t for destruction. Since they had already eaten their fill, they should not feel an urge for destruction for a while. So, Li Jiayu and crew could rest for tonight, then set out to liberate the other buildings tomorrow.However, when Li Jiayu and crew pa.s.sed by the gymnasium, they heard a faint cry. It resembled the sound of a woman weeping, yet also moaning but even more so like a female ghost laughing!
“What sound is that?”
Li Jiayu suddenly looked toward the gymnasium. It was usually where the dance hall was located, specially provided for students to dance. Though, at the moment, the door was shut tightly. There should have been quite a large number of girls dancing. However, it was likely that they shut the door only after the apocalypse struck.
‘There are probably many frightened people inside. Alright, since it’s along the way, we’ll tell them to run to the school building without delay.’
Seeing Li Jiayu was head toward the dance hall, Hsiao Wanqing and crew were momentarily stunned. They soon followed as well, but suddenly—
There was a change in the situation! A wilted yellow vine drilled out from the gaps in the metal door and headed directly straight towards Li Jiayu with terrifyingly fast speed!“En? Abyssal Devil Vine? Low tier trash, die for me!”