Players, Please Board the Train

A kick infused with the power of the Stampeding Buffalo slammed into the mutant’s bloodied face, shattering its facial bones and twisting its features beyond recognition.

Yet even like this, it still clutched onto Wu Qiuyi’s entrails, refusing to let go. As it staggered backward, the bright red organ dragged along the ground, causing Wu Qiuyi to cough up a mouthful of blood.

Xu Huo raised his sword and sliced off its arm, then kicked it hard, sending it flying away!

The disfigured, armless mutant rolled two meters before suddenly flipping over and lunging ferociously at him without a shred of fear for death!

Concerned for Wu Qiuyi’s safety and unwilling to let the mutant escape directly, Xu Huo grabbed a handful of his own clothes and threw them at the mutant. He sidestepped its charge and, as it lunged past, pulled out a lighter and set it ablaze!

Ke Liang and Shen Yi had already arrived outside the door. The two of them used spring ropes to entangle the mutant, which was thrashing wildly while engulfed in flames. They dragged it to nearby rubble and pinned it under the collapsed building.

Gu Yu took advantage of the moment to grab a large stone and frantically smashed it onto the mutant’s head. The cracking sounds were indistinguishable—whether it was the stone or the mutant’s skull breaking. Only when its struggling weakened did she stop.

By then, the mutant’s head was drenched in blood. Half its body was buried under the rubble, with the exposed parts of its clothing almost burned away. Only some fibers stuck to its skin still smoldered, scorching the flesh into a curled, charred blackness.

The mutant didn’t move.

“Dead, right?” Gu Yu panted heavily, worried enough to want to strike it a couple more times. Unexpectedly, the bloodied mutant suddenly raised its upper body and lunged at her!Startled, Gu Yu plopped down on the ground and instinctively kicked out, jamming her toe right into its mouth!

She couldn’t help but shout out. All mutants carry toxins. If bitten, she could suffer full-body necrosis and weaken to death!

She kicked the mutant’s head away with her other foot, took off her shoe, and hopped to the side to carefully check her foot. “Please, no wounds, please, no wounds… no bite!”

Assured she wasn’t hurt, she looked back at the ground.

The mutant lay face down with the shoe in its mouth, no longer moving, as if biting off the shoe had been its last bit of strength.

Ke Liang rummaged through the rubble and pulled out a kitchen knife, then chopped off the mutant’s head directly.

“Now it’s truly dead.”

Watching the deformed head roll far away, everyone was still shaken to the core. The mutant’s vitality was so strong that until the body was severed from the head, one couldn’t afford to let their guard down!

“The one that made the noise just now must be this mutant, right? How did it get out?” Shen Yi packed up the spring ropes and asked.

“One escaped. Could the others have gotten out too?” Ke Liang asked.

“Probably not,” Gu Yu twitched her eyelids. “If the other two escaped, they should have shown up by now!”

The group exchanged uneasy glances. At that moment, Shen Xin suddenly remembered Wu Qiuyi. “Go check on Wu Qiuyi! She’s injured!”

Gu Yu and Ke Liang hurried into the shop, while Shen Yi supported Shen Xin inside. But as soon as they entered, everyone froze.

Wu Qiuyi was leaning against Xu Huo’s arm, coughing up blood nonstop. She was practically soaked in her own blood. Despite having pressure applied to her abdominal wound, blood still trickled steadily out. Her clothes and the floor were drenched in blood, the entire visible area a thick, bloody red… It was unimaginable how so much blood could pour out of one person!

“How could this…” Ke Liang’s lips trembled. He had been upstairs and hadn’t seen the attack on Wu Qiuyi. He had thought her injuries were light, never expecting such a tragic scene!

Not just him—all their pupils quivered violently at the sight. Especially since Wu Qiuyi was still coughing up blood, the Evolver’s tenacious vitality hadn’t allowed her to die immediately after severe injury. Instead, she was enduring excruciating pain, struggling on the verge of death.

“I… I have a healing potion…” Gu Yu trembled as she pulled out the remaining half bottle, but suddenly noticed several empty bottles lying by Xu Huo’s feet.

“It’s useless.” Xu Huo set Wu Qiuyi down and, with a bloodied hand, grabbed a small package from the corner. Under her desperate gaze, he took out a photo and placed it on her chest, then lifted her hand to rest on it.

Wu Qiuyi clenched the photo, seeming to smile faintly before blood foam trickled from her mouth. Her eyes glazed over, staring blankly at the ceiling as her breath gradually faded away.

Everyone, whether standing or crouching, had tears welling up. Shen Xin even burst into sobs. “Why did this happen? We already killed the strongest mutant…”

Shen Yi comforted his sister. “It was an accident. Nobody could have predicted this.”

Xu Huo closed Wu Qiuyi’s eyelids and stood up. “I’m going to check the Pit Cage entrances, and look for Lin Pei and Wang Chaoqing while I’m at it.”

Gu Yu snapped back to reality. “I’ll go with you. It’s unsafe alone.”

“Split up.” Ke Liang said, “You two check the Pit Cages. I’ll look for people. Shen Xin’s injured and can’t move well. Shen Yi, take her to the Gas Station… Bring Wu Qiuyi along too. We can’t leave her alone here.”

“Be careful.” Xu Huo said with a meaningful glance, “The mutants may not have escaped on their own.”

Gu Yu and the others tensed, immediately thinking of the person who had ambushed Xu Huo earlier. Wang Chaoqing and Lin Pei were missing, and coincidentally, another mutant had escaped.

Ke Liang’s face darkened with terrifying gloom. “If this was deliberate, I’ll make sure Wu Qiuyi’s death is avenged.”

Xu Huo said nothing, glanced at the fallen woman, and turned to leave.

Gu Yu followed closely behind him.

The two walked in silence until they reached the nearest Pit Cage. Sure enough, the metal panel had been broken open, the cage entrance wide open, and knives scattered everywhere.

“This looks like it was broken by force.” Gu Yu examined the metal plate uncertainly. The edges of the break were jagged, without cut marks. This black metal was extremely tough; without tools, players rarely managed to break it.

Xu Huo wasn’t sure either, so they proceeded to check the next Pit Cage.

Fortunately, the other two Pit Cages were intact, their seals firmly closed.

“Could it be due to distance?” Gu Yu said, “These two Pit Cages are farther from the Gas Station, so maybe the mutants’ reactions weren’t as intense.”

“Not necessarily.” Xu Huo pointed at dust marks on the edge. “These show mutants tried to break the metal plates here too, but failed.”

“Since we heard the noise, it’s unreasonable for only the closest mutant to escape. Look at the melted metal—any signs of fractures?”

Gu Yu leaned in for a closer look. “None at all! See, I told you my item isn’t that lousy!”

“So you think one of Lin Pei or Wang Chaoqing released the mutant?” She turned back to ask. “But why would they do that? Given the previous situation, if mutants escaped, everyone would be in danger.”

“Once the mutant leaves the Pit Cage, it quickly returns. As long as you avoid its active period, the danger is almost zero.” Xu Huo explained. “Though it was perilous earlier, no danger came to those who weren’t there.”

Gu Yu was silent for two seconds. “Wang Chaoqing doesn’t look like the type. You think it was Lin Pei?”

Xu Huo sneered coldly. “We’ll find out when we get back. He should be at the Gas Station by now.”