Chapter 36: 36: Exploring the Supermarket
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When the monster charged into the range of the Lamp Tree Crystals' light, its movements became even more violent, but this also allowed Zhu Xiong to make out its appearance clearly.
It was a robust Tentacle-faced Monster with blood holes all over its face, and long tentacles stretching out about one or two meters, writhing like pitch-black snakes, making the roaring sound even more terrifying.
Zhu Xiong's heart sank, his hands trembling slightly. Although it was unrecognizable, he knew this person—it was his old friend, Niu Aiguo.
"Roar"
The roar awoke Zhu Xiong, and the Tentacle-faced Monster that had transformed from Niu Aiguo was already less than five meters away from him, and another Corpse Monster was also charging quickly, almost ready to pounce.
Su Han saw his expression and signaled the Four-armed Corpse to step forward and intercept the monster.
"I'll do it myself."
Su Han was startled, then watched as Zhu Xiong, gripping a steel pipe, and his Contractor, rushed forth. The Contractor Corpse pounced on the other rushing Corpse, pinning it to the ground, and the cleaver in its hand hacked down continuously, blood and flesh splattering.
Meanwhile, Zhu Xiong, going solo, faced the Tentacle-faced Monster head-on.
"Swoosh"
The tentacles of the Tentacle-faced Monster, like water snakes that had caught the scent of blood, shot straight toward Zhu Xiong.
"Get the hell away from me"
Zhu Xiong gathered all his strength into his body and struck hard with the rod. Swinging with great force, it was as though he wielded a sword, severing several tentacles.
The tentacles fell to the ground, writhing and oozing slime.
Zhu Xiong stepped forward, almost crushing them underfoot, swinging the steel pipe ferociously down onto the body of the Tentacle-faced Monster, a crack resounding as bones broke and the creature was beaten to the ground.
"Always bragging, never saw you tough it out once, how did you even turn into a monster?"
As he rambled, it was as if old friends were catching up, but his blows were heavy, each one heavier than the last, all directed at the head of the Tentacle-faced Monster.
"No need to boast now. I'll send you off first, brother. The rest of us won't have to wait to see who goes next."
Zhu Xiong struck hard with the steel pipe on its forehead, a dull sound ringing out, and the Tentacle-faced Monster made no further sound.
With the monster killed, Zhu Xiong stopped moving as if acupoints had been struck, staring at the blood flowing onto the ground.
"You guys move the stuff, I need a smoke first."
Zhu Xiong was silent for a while, his voice very low, his hands trembling slightly, whether from exhaustion or sorrow, as he pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his bosom.
Su Han nodded, then said to the others behind him, "Move the supplies and load the important stuff onto the truck."
"Understood, I'm on it."
Yan Meiyu immediately organized the team, and several people started to scavenge for materials inside the automotive repair shop.
Food, naturally, there wouldn't be much. What mattered were tools that could be used for processing.
Welders, cutters... as well as various materials like steel pipes were quickly loaded onto the truck; these could be used to modify vehicles.
Zhu Xiong lit several cigarettes, one for himself and another placed in front of Niu Aiguo.
"Brother, you're gone."
It only took a bit more than ten minutes, not a long time. Although the large machines were heavy, the strength of the Four-armed Corpse was immense, and it could easily move them, so loading was swift.
"Su Han, two trucks, and I can't drive both."
But now there was a problem, who could drive two vehicles?
Zhu Xiong didn't want to give up either truck, not because he was greedy, but because the trucks' height, weight, and cargo capacity were far superior to those of a private car, and they were much more useful in this post-apocalyptic world.
"Let's try first, and if that doesn't work..."
"Actually, I can drive a truck."
It was then, unexpectedly, that the stocky Guo Gang spoke up.
He was somewhat shy, smiling with an honest expression: "I used to work in car repair, it's pretty much my old profession."
Su Han hadn't expected Guo Gang to have this skill, so he said, "You drive the other one."
Zhu Xiong tossed the truck keys to Guo Gang, and then the group split into two, all hopping onto the trucks, turning back to rendezvous with Cheng Zhenyong and the others.
Seeing Su Han's return, Cheng Zhenyong finally breathed a sigh of relief, organizing everyone back into the vehicles, and then they headed towards Lihua Supermarket.
Lihua Supermarket was not far, just about three hundred meters away.
As the convoy approached, barely discerning the shopfront of Lihua Supermarket through the mist, suddenly a scream rang out, and Su Han's expression instantly turned grim.
"It's a human scream, coming from the supermarket."
Zhu Xiong's expression was solemn, and he slammed on the brakes.
"Get out of the truck, and check the situation."
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Both of them immediately got out of the car, and the entire convoy behind them promptly disembarked, weapons gripped tightly in their hands.
"Let's check the supermarket; there might be something going on."
Cheng Zhenyong nodded, then quickly called his team to order. The formation was almost the same as when they left, but there were more Contractors now.
As they approached the supermarket, the light from the Lamp Tree Crystals dispersed the fog, allowing them to see the façade of the supermarket clearly.
The shattered glass doors and collapsed shelves showed the unrest that had occurred here.
Fortunately, there were still supplies left.
"Be careful, everyone."
After this warning, Su Han led the group inside, his voice blending with the rustle of merchandise they stepped on.
There was no light in the supermarket, only darkness, and the only source illuminating the area was the Lamp Tree Crystal in Su Han's hand. There were disordered shelves everywhere, with goods scattered on the floor.
"Run! Run fast!"
All of a sudden, a roaring voice arose, and this time Su Han heard it clearly, "On the second floor!"
He commanded the Four-armed Corpse to rush forward with big strides, and the others, not daring to fall behind, quickly followed him toward the staircase.
The closer they got to the staircase, the more clear the urgent footsteps, screams, and sounds of panic became. As Su Han reached the second floor, he saw an extremely chaotic scene.
Under the dim yellow glow, a large amount of merchandise was overturned on the floor, scattered around in the mess. Amidst this chaos, a Spider Monster about three meters tall was attacking a group of corpses, and behind it were more than twenty pitch-black spiders about half a meter tall, their split mouths clicking noisily as tentacles resembling those of an octopus emerged.
They were besieging a group of people, about twenty or so, including both the young and the elderly. Each of them wielded a weapon, fighting off the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders and desperately trying to prevent being surrounded.
"Run!"
The man leading them shouted repeatedly to run, but the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders were already close to encircling them. A middle-aged man with graying hair was caught off guard, and his stick flew out of his hand as he fought one of the spiders.
Two Tentacle-mouthed Spiders immediately seized the opportunity and pounced on him. Their sticky tentacles wrapped around his arms, and under those tentacles, beak-like jaws sliced through the man's flesh, causing blood to spurt out.
Another Tentacle-mouthed Spider aimed straight for his throat, and with one bite, a gash appeared on his neck, blood spraying out and staining the ferocious spider red.
With an opening created, the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders continued to press the attack, and the group of people suddenly found themselves in crisis.
They had Contractors among them, but the Contractors' Angel Envoys were almost all occupied with blocking the Spider Monster. Now, the only ones who could fight these spiders were the people themselves.
Screams resonated, chaos ensued, it was a complete disarray.
'Is that a Lamp Tree Crystal?!'
Su Han's pupils contracted, his gaze fixed on the leading man, who was clutching a slightly smaller Lamp Tree Crystal in his hand, the faint yellow light emanating from it.
"Take action"
Without hesitation, seeing the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders beginning their slaughter, he ordered the Four-armed Corpse to move, charging straight at the even larger Spider Monster.
Cheng Zhenyong and the others were also startled by the scene before them, but upon hearing Su Han's order, they immediately made a decisive move. More than a dozen Contractors directed their Corpse Envoys to charge at the swarm of Tentacle-mouthed Spiders.
More than a dozen Corpse Envoys rushed forward, their large hands grabbing the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders and then forcefully throwing them, leaving the spider swarm dazed and disoriented.
Encouraged by the turn of events, the leading man shouted, "Quick, kill them!"
With weapons in hand, they immediately attacked the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders with all their might. With their combined efforts, they managed to kill several of them.
Cheng Zhenyong, Zhu Xiong, and others joined forces, wielding their weapons to collaborate with the corpses in attack. Together, nearly forty-five corpses and people now held the advantage, killing most of the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders.
"Boom"
As the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders were forced back, Su Han's Four-armed Corpse was already wrestling with the Spider Monster. This Spider Monster was slightly larger than the one on the 20th floor and even stronger, quite formidable among the First-level Intermediate.
More importantly, it could control creatures like the Tentacle-mouthed Spiders to fight in coordination.
The Monster's sharp spider legs came at the Four-armed Corpse like piercing spears with swift speed, casting two dark shadows.
The Corpse's dorsal arms opened up and grasped the spider's spear-like legs tightly, like iron hoops.
Both exerted their strength at the same time, each trying to overpower the other.
If it was just a matter of leg strength, the six-legged Spider Monster would naturally have the advantage, with a stable and solid stance.
However, that was just the addition of four legs, and the Four-armed Corpse was even stronger.
"Clang"
Sharp claws clanged as the Corpse's lower arms shot out metallic claws and then swung them forcefully, aiming to slash at the Spider Monster's second pair of legs.
The Spider Monster attempted to dodge, but its first pair of legs were already held tight by the Four-armed Corpse; there was no escape.
Its legs were severed in an instant, a painful scream erupting from the Monster as it stumbled, blood dripping onto the floor.
The remaining dozen or so Tentacle-mouthed Spiders, hearing the Spider Monster's agonized howls, immediately broke away from the struggle with the corpse envoys and charged at the Four-armed Corpse.