The people in the room exchanged glances; it was all a bit too coincidental.
Given the circumstances, Tong Yang had no other choice but to step forward and open the door.
Aunt Liu stood at the doorway, her expression blank, and called out, "Qingqing."
"I'll go with her," Tong Yang said.
Aunt Liu replied, "The master wishes to see Qingqing alone."
Tong Yang's lips tightened. "Wait a moment," she said.
With that, she closed the door again and led Yan Qing back into the room.
"Tong Yang, what do we do? It's too dangerous for Yan Qing to go alone," Chu Shiyu worried.
Xu Junyue said, "But it's a good opportunity."
Tong Yang said solemnly, "It is indeed an opportunity."
She turned to look at Yan Qing. The young girl was quite frightened, her shoulders hunched, not daring to speak.
"Yan Qing, before we entered the parallel world, I reminded you many times and emphasized how dangerous it is, telling you to be mentally prepared before making your decision."
"Whether you're willing to help or not, I won't force you. But since we're already here, I can only give you two choices."
"First, cooperate with our actions. I can guarantee that even if the plan doesn't succeed, I'll get you back to the real world safely. Second, you return to the real world right now."
Tong Yang patted her shoulder and continued, "I won't blame you. It's just that we'll have to use forceful means to obtain the high-grade gene serum, and we won't have extra energy to look after you."
After her words, the room fell into silence.
Yan Qing pressed her lips together, tears dried on her face, her chest heaving. "I... I'm not going back."
"Then cooperate with us."
She grabbed Tong Yang's hand hanging by her side, as if drawing strength from it, and said, "Sister Tong Yang, give me a little more time."
"Alright."
"You guys, if I die, do you think the police will award me an honorary citizen medal?" Yan Qing said tearfully.
"You will leave here alive," Tong Yang stated.
Yan Qing sniffled. "Oh..."
"Alright." Ye Huai suddenly spoke up, returning their phones to them.
Xu Junyue asked, "Can we get online now?"
"Yes."
"Let me try... Hey! It really works!"
"Let's create a group chat and use voice calls."
"Can we communicate over long distances?"
Ye Huai nodded. "District One has a central satellite receiver. As long as we don't leave the area, it's possible."
"Impressive. I wonder when our place will popularize this."
"What are you thinking? Didn't you hear it's mainly for military use?"
"Enough chatter. Hurry up, let's finish this sooner."
After adding everyone to the group chat, Tong Yang asked, "Yan Qing, did you bring earphones?"
Yan Qing nodded. Her small bag contained a pair of Bluetooth earphones.
Tong Yang told her to let her hair down. "In a moment, when you leave the room, we'll communicate with you remotely and monitor the surveillance in real-time. Hide the dagger I gave you. If anything unexpected happens, protect yourself first. I'll come immediately."
Yan Qing nodded, took a deep breath, and said, "Sister Tong Yang, I understand."
"What about us?" Xu Junyue drew her watermelon knife, eager for action.
Tong Yang said, "You all find a suitable place to stay first, keep the call connected. If an incident occurs, do whatever you want, the bigger the commotion, the better."
"If your life is hanging by a thread, try to tell me the circumstances of your death before it happens. No matter what I ask you to do in the meantime, don't waste time asking why, just do as I say."
Because by then, she might have already entered a loop, and the others would only regain their memories at their point of death.
Chu Shiyu and the other who were aware of the inside story nodded. "I understand."
Tang Shuyan was very curious about her half-revealed secret, wondering what method she would use to bring them back to life, but now wasn't the right time for idle chat.
"Just listen to you."
As for Yan Qing, naturally, in this situation, if Tong Yang told her to take three steps east, she wouldn't dare take an extra centimeter.
"Then let's go. Be careful."
"No problem."
"Tong Yang, you too."
"Let's go, find an ideal vantage point. It would be great if we could figure out a way to get some explosives."
Yan Qing put on her Bluetooth earphones and let out a deep sigh. "It's just my dad from a parallel world, right? I don't believe he can actually eat me."
After saying that, she couldn't help but glance at Tong Yang.
"Sister Tong Yang, when the time comes, run fast to find me, okay?"
"Mm, I'm watching."
Yan Qing put her phone back in her bag, mustered her courage, and stood up. "Let's go! It's time for us to serve our country!"
Yan Qing walked to the door, forcefully pulled it open, and a pale face suddenly appeared, almost colliding with her.
"Qingqing, the master has already gone over," Aunt Liu's face was almost touching Yan Qing's nose, and she showed no intention of stepping back.
Looking at the face so close, Yan Qing's bravado instantly deflated. She threatened like a paper tiger, "Were you eavesdropping on us? C-careful, or I'll have Daddy fire you!"
Aunt Liu looked stunned, her pupils constricting sharply. Without warning, she knelt down and began slapping her own face repeatedly.
"I was wrong... I was wrong..."
"Smack—"
"Smack—"
She seemed to use all her strength. Clear finger marks appeared on both cheeks, quickly swelling.
A trickle of blood foam flowed from her nose, and blood seeped from the corner of her mouth. Her fingers touched the blood, immediately smearing it on her cheeks.
Yan Qing was stunned for a second, then cursed, "Are you crazy? Take me to the study!"
"And, my friends need to go out for something. Don't stop them, and don't let anyone into my room!"
"Yes, Qingqing." Aunt Liu stopped harming herself and stood up from the floor expressionlessly.
Seeing this, Tong Yang in the room actually felt relieved.
Yan Qing responded better to toughness than softness; the more she was indulged, the worse she became. Aunt Liu's act of weakness had just fueled her arrogance.
Yan Qing, along with Chu Shiyu and the others, left the room one after another. Finally, only Tong Yang and Ye Huai remained.
"Can you hear clearly?" Tong Yang, wearing her earphones, asked the others.
"We can hear."
"No problem."
"Where are you planning to go?"
Xu Junyue said, "Find a rooftop, with a wide field of view. It'll be a good chance to test the performance of this gun the police gave us."
Chu Shiyu replied, "I'll find a place to hide first."
"What about Tang Shuyan?"
"Me?" Tang Shuyan's voice was lazy. "I plan to go visiting first, talk to them about the Dao. If they don't understand the Dao, well, this humble priest also knows a bit of fist techniques."
"Won't that cause a disturbance?" Xu Junyue asked.
Tang Shuyan said, "I think you're all still too conservative. After that woman killed that person, the law enforcers just went to clean up the scene; they didn't arrest her. What does that mean? Killing isn't illegal! So as long as our identities aren't exposed and we leave the crime scene promptly, it doesn't matter how much chaos we cause."
Xu Junyue exclaimed excitedly, "You make a good point!"
"Tong Yang, I request to take direct action, no need to wait for an alarm from Yan Qing's side!"
Tong Yang frowned, recalling that the woman who had killed someone back then indeed hadn't been arrested. There were no laws to speak of in the safe zone. As long as one wasn't caught, causing some early chaos didn't seem like a bad idea.
"Alright." Tong Yang agreed. "However, you shouldn't be the only ones to trigger the alarm. Try to find a way to make the residents of the safe zone turn on each other as much as possible."
"No problem!"
"Great!"
Chu Shiyu said, "I'd rather do nothing and have Qing Qing successfully get the high-quality gene serum and leave."
Chu Shiyu was clearly a moderate, unfortunately, Tong Yang, Xu Junyue, and Tang Shuyan were all more of the radical type.
Tong Yang said, "Be careful yourselves. Once the disturbance starts, find a way to protect yourselves. If anything unexpected happens, I'll notify you all. Immediately find a place to regroup."
"Understood!"
"No problem!"
Tong Yang returned to the computer. The surveillance feed showed Yan Qing following Aunt Liu down a corridor to the other side of the villa, stopping before a tightly closed door.
"Knock knock—"
"Sir, Qing Qing is here."
Yan Qing looked nervous, clutching the hem of her clothes, her fingertips white from the pressure.
"Don't worry, I'm watching you the whole time," Tong Yang whispered.
Hearing her voice, Yan Qing instinctively wanted to reply.
"Don't speak."
"Oh..."
Yan Qing looked around uneasily, seemingly searching for the surveillance camera.
Tong Yang knew the device was extremely well-hidden, hard to detect even in the dark.
"Come in."
Ye Huai moved the mouse, switching the monitor view to inside the study.
The door in front of her slowly opened. Yan Qing's fingernails dug into her palms, and she gritted her teeth as she walked in.
Perhaps knowing Tong Yang was in a room not far away, watching her every move, gave her a slight sense of relief.
Yan Qing looked up and saw a bright, sunlit study. Her father and mother were by the desk, one sitting, one standing, the slanted light from the window falling on them.
Clearly, they had been grappling with each other in the dining room, covered in bloody wounds, but now they appeared completely unharmed, as if nothing had happened.
"Qing Qing, come here." Her mother smiled at her and beckoned.
Yan Qing hesitated for a few seconds. Suddenly, the door behind her slammed shut with a heavy thud. She instinctively glanced back.
"It's fine, Aunt Liu has left."
Tong Yang's steady voice came through the earpiece.
Yan Qing turned her head back, looking at the two people by the desk who were watching her with peaceful smiles. "Dad, Mom," she called out.
Her parents' attire was similar to reality. Apart from their strange gazes and smiles, everything seemed identical to the parents she knew.
It's just, it had been a long time since they had been together so harmoniously.
"You sneaked out again last night?" her father asked.
Yan Qing walked to the desk and muttered, "Yes, I'm sorry."
"It's alright, as long as you weren't hurt," her mother said.
Her father's tone turned stern. "We've told you many times, the world outside is dangerous. You mustn't run off like that again, understand?"
"I understand."
Her mother walked out from behind the desk, reached up to smooth the hair at Yan Qing's temple, and said, "We received the message you sent. It's a pity the anchor point escaped back to the shadow world, but it's good that you returned safely."
Yan Qing's expression froze for a moment. Tong Yang's voice came through the earpiece.
"Ask them about the deal."
Yan Qing snapped back to reality, unconsciously taking half a step back to avoid her mother's approaching hand. "Then what about the deal?" she asked.
Her mother withdrew her hand, stood still in front of her, her expression returning to calm. "That's not something we should be concerned about."
Hearing the answer, Tong Yang's frown deepened. Wasn't it District One that wanted to cooperate with the Meng Family?
"What kind of people did you bring back?" her father asked.
Tong Yang said, "Friends from the Nameless Zone."
"They are friends I met in the Nameless Zone," Yan Qing obediently repeated her words.
"Qing Qing, those people are dangerous. Don't just bring them home."
"I know."
"Come sit here."
Her mother dragged a chair over, placing it in front of the desk, and called to Yan Qing.
Looking at the chair squeezed between the two of them, Yan Qing's body stiffened.
"Can I... not go over there..." Yan Qing mumbled.
Their expressions gradually cooled.
"Why."
"Come here!"
Her father glared, looking as if he might lose his temper at any moment.
Yan Qing flinched, her shoulders trembling. Without waiting for Tong Yang's reminder, she slowly shuffled her feet and walked over.
"Good girl, sit down."
Her mother's cold hand rested on her shoulder, almost with a hint of force, pressing her down onto the chair.
She sat with her father on her left and her mother standing on her right. She didn't dare look around, trying her best to control herself from shaking.
"Are you afraid?"
Yan Qing hurriedly shook her head, afraid that a second's delay would arouse suspicion.
"Why are you afraid?"
"Aren't we family?"
Yan Qing felt like crying but had no tears. "I'm not afraid."
"Yan Qing, does Uncle Yan have a set of keys hanging from his waist?"
Hearing Tong Yang's voice, Yan Qing instinctively looked down and indeed saw a set of keys on her father.
"Ask them if you can put something in Dad's safe."
Yan Qing swallowed, glanced at her father on her left, and asked, "Can I put something in your safe?"
She tried hard to suppress the tremor in her voice. After speaking, she immediately lowered her head, not daring to look up again.
"What does Qing Qing want to put away?"
"Just... something very precious."
Yan Qing followed Tong Yang's prompt.
"Alright."
"Dad, what's the safe combination?"
Her father stared fixedly at Yan Qing until she felt her scalp prickle, then he spoke. "The combination is your birthday."
"My birthday?" Yan Qing said in surprise.
"You are our only precious daughter. The safe combination has always been your birthday."
Outside the monitor, Tong Yang and Ye Huai couldn't help but be taken aback, not expecting to learn the safe combination so easily.
However, they had checked all the surveillance feeds for the study and hadn't seen any trace of a safe.
"Dad, where is the safe? After I prepare the thing, I'll put it in myself."
Suddenly, her mother's hand on her shoulder tightened its grip. Yan Qing cried out in pain.
"Don't you know?" her father turned his head, staring at her unblinkingly.
The pain brought tears to Yan Qing's eyes. She complained, "I forgot, okay? Mom, you're hurting me."
Her mother immediately let go. "Sorry, Qing Qing, Mom hurt you."
Her father shot a glare at her mother and said coldly, "So Qing Qing forgot. She forgot."
"Yes, Qing Qing forgot, she forgot."
Yan Qing looked left, then right, finding these two people both terrifying and strange. Clearly, they would come to blows at the slightest disagreement, their wounds had mysteriously vanished, yet in front of "Yan Qing," they acted utterly indulgent.
"Qing Qing, the safe is in the cabinet next to the bookshelf. Don't open it with the combination," her father suddenly said.
Yan Qing was stunned for a moment, asking in unison with Tong Yang in her earpiece, "Why?"
Her father turned his head back, staring at the computer screen, and said, "It will trigger an alarm."
Yan Qing stared blankly, asking, "Then how can we avoid reporting it?"
"The key."
"Dad, which key?"
Yan's father said, "This one."
He took the keys from his waist and picked out a silver, serrated one.
Perhaps sensing they weren't as terrifying as she had imagined, Yan Qing tentatively said, "Can you give me the key?"
Yan's father said, "Yes."
To Yan Qing's surprise, Yan's father placed the key in front of her, saying, "After the safe is opened, you must wait an hour before opening it a second time."
"Thank you, Dad." Yan Qing clutched the key in her palm, whispering her thanks.
"Qingqing, Dad will give you anything you want," Yan's father said.
"Mom too."
In the real world, her parents satisfied all her material needs but neglected her emotional ones, rarely staying by her side. Hearing these words so abruptly left her momentarily stunned.
"Mom, Dad..."
"Yan Qing."
Tong Yang's voice came through the earpiece, seemingly reminding her of something.
"Thank you."
"Good child, no need for thanks."
"We haven't watched TV together in a long time," Yan's father said.
"Yes, stay with us for a while today."
Unexpectedly, obtaining the safe key had been simpler than anticipated, and Yan Qing hadn't encountered any danger. Tong Yang finally let out a sigh of relief.
Despite being in different environments, Yan Qing's personality in both worlds was extremely similar, so it wasn't strange that the people in the parallel world hadn't recognized her.
Moreover, Yan's father and mother in the parallel world, though their behavior seemed bizarre, truly cared about their daughter's safety, just as "Yan Qing" had said.
This way, even if Yan Qing's identity was exposed, they could use "Yan Qing" to threaten them.
Yan Qing was temporarily tied up in the study, but at least she was safe.
Xu Junyue and the other two had already reached their respective positions, ready to cause a major disturbance.
Tong Yang still didn't stop them. Perhaps if too many alarms were triggered simultaneously, Yan's father and mother, being the instructors and the instructors' spouses of the First District, would be drawn away. Yan Qing could then directly use the key to open the safe, retrieve the high-quality gene serum, and let the others seize the chance to escape, finding an absolutely safe place to leave.
In short, things were proceeding more smoothly than Tong Yang had imagined.
Suddenly, a sharp intake of breath from Yan Qing came through the earpiece.
Tong Yang looked down at the screen. Yan Qing was flanked on both sides in front of the computer monitor. The eerie glow cast on her face revealed the terror in her eyes.
Tong Yang's expression darkened, probably guessing what was playing on the computer screen. The surveillance cameras in the self-destruction game arena were broadcasting live.
Ye Huai adjusted the feed to another camera angle, and the content on the study's computer screen came into view.
Xu Junyue, with her pink-dyed hair, kicked open a bedroom door. A long-haired woman sat with her back to the entrance, a man of unknown condition lying on the floor before her.
Xu Junyue walked forward, watermelon knife resting on her shoulder. The surveillance feed almost moved in real-time with her perspective, zooming in until it showed the woman, hands covered in blood, clutching a mass of indistinct, bloody flesh, devouring it like a beast, eating with great relish.
The body on the floor had been gutted, its internal organs almost entirely consumed.
Xu Junyue made a disgusted face, raised her knife, and with one swift motion, cleaved the woman's head from her shoulders.
Simultaneously, the corresponding alarm light lit up on the computer screen.
The image was vivid and clear. The head rolled to the corner of the wall, blood splattering onto the camera lens.
Even though she recognized the extraordinary cruelty of this parallel world, Yan Qing was still frightened enough to cover her eyes.
Xu Junyue picked up the headless corpse by the neck, threw it out the window, then picked up the head, took aim at a window across the street, and hurled it inside.
"Yes! Got it in!"
At the same time, Xu Junyue's voice sounded in the earpiece.
"Xu Junyue, you're being watched," Tong Yang reminded her.
On the computer screen, Xu Junyue's movements noticeably paused as she warily scanned her surroundings.
"You can't see the monitors. Keep doing what you need to do."
Tong Yang guessed that Yan Qing's parents' purpose in having her watch the surveillance was very simple. Just as Meng Xiao had said, it was a form of entertainment for them.
"Yan Qing, have you played zombie games? This is just a full-immersion zombie game. What you're seeing could never happen in the real world, understand?"
Yan Qing, her lips pale, nodded.
"Qingqing, your friends are not good people," Yan's mother whispered softly in her ear.
The surveillance feed followed Xu Junyue to the next location. She killed everyone in her path, leaving a trail of shocking bloodstains behind, her entire person as if soaked in blood.
The command base, constantly receiving alarms, dispatched law enforcers one after another to clean up the mess for her. As expected, none of the law enforcers sanctioned Xu Junyue; their appearance was solely to clean the scene.
Realizing this, Xu Junyue became even more unrestrained. Wherever she went, corpses littered the ground. She encountered a few people who fought back along the way, but her skills were good, and with a sharp watermelon knife, she cut down anything in her path.
"Dad, I don't want to watch anymore," Yan Qing said softly.
"Alright," Yan's father agreed. "Let's switch to someone else."
He switched to another camera, and the figure of Chu Shiyu appeared on the screen.
Unlike Xu Junyue's blatant approach, Chu Shiyu, lacking professional training, quietly infiltrated a bedroom. A white-haired elderly man sat on a sofa, a white radio beside him emitting the shrill cries of a child.
He listened, utterly engrossed, his head tilted.
Chu Shiyu approached from behind him. The cries from the radio grew increasingly piercing. Just as she raised her short knife, ready to strike, the old man turned around without warning, opening a mouth full of blackened teeth to smile at her.
Seeing the old man's appearance, Chu Shiyu's body stiffened slightly. Facing those pupils with almost no whites visible, she thrust the knife forward with a thud.
A hole was pierced in the old man's cheek, blood gushing out, a rotten tooth falling to the floor.
The child's cries from the radio continued unabated. Chu Shiyu steeled herself, forcefully twisting the dagger embedded in the old man's face a full circle. The flesh instantly wrinkled like a wrung-out rag.
Then, she pulled the blade out and retreated several steps.
A gurgling sound, similar to water boiling, came from the old man's throat. Rotten teeth fell from his mouth one after another.
"Chu Shiyu, throw the radio out," Tong Yang reminded.
Understanding her meaning, Chu Shiyu picked up a blanket, wrapped the radio in it, and threw it out the window.
The child's cries immediately attracted the attention of nearby residents. They opened their windows, silently observing the situation outside. Some gradually left their rooms.
Just as "Yan Qing" had said, the people here despised each other on sight. After leaving their rooms, a mere glance was enough for them to immediately pounce on one another, using any means possible to inflict harm, not much different from the people living in the Nameless District.
The biggest difference between them is that people in the Nameless District need to fight each other for resources, while the residents of District One simply enjoy killing for its own sake.
Chu Shiyu was more cautious. After killing someone, she didn't leave the room immediately but hid behind the door to observe the situation outside. After all, in a direct confrontation, she stood little chance of winning.
Yan's father seemed dissatisfied with Chu Shiyu's performance and immediately switched to the next surveillance feed where an alarm light was flashing.
"Sir, please jump down from here," Tang Shuyan said, standing by the window, addressing a pale-faced man in the living room. The man was clutching a hammer, glaring at him menacingly.
Tang Shuyan said helplessly, "Sir, if you jump from here, neither of us loses anything. Look at those few benefactors over there, how happily they are fighting."
The man remained unmoved, raised the hammer high, and swung it at Tang Shuyan.
"Tsk!" Tang Shuyan dodged sideways impatiently. "This Daoist master is negotiating with you!"
"Off you go!"
The moment the man lunged forward, Tang Shuyan seized his arm and flung him straight out of the second-floor window.
"One should be merciful where mercy is due. This Daoist master rarely takes life lightly, lest it damage my Daoist heart..."
Thud!
Before he could finish, a seven or eight-year-old boy smashed a rusty iron basin against his head. A dull thud came through the headphones.
"Huh? What was that sound?"
"I heard it too."
Chu Shiyu and Xu Junyue weren't sure what had happened.
Tang Shuyan turned around, his expression blank as he looked at the little boy. "Although you are not human, considering your young age..."
Thud!
The boy lifted the large iron basin and struck his head again.
Tang Shuyan took a deep breath. "I advise you..."
Thud—
"What is that sound??"
"Tang Shuyan, are you any good or not?"
Thud...
Tang Shuyan reached his right hand into a small cloth bag, pulled out a sharp kitchen knife, and with a squelch, hacked it into the boy's throat.
"Sick!"
"Not killing you would unsettle my Daoist heart."
Without any psychological burden, Tang Shuyan threw the boy's still-breathing body out the window and then left the room for the next location.
As they continued causing havoc, more and more people appeared on the streets. They attacked almost anyone they saw. Those who were immobile or posed little threat became living targets, with hardly an inch of their bodies left intact.
The law enforcers who arrived in response to the alarms saw the carnage on the streets but made no move to intervene. They stood coldly on the sidelines, watching. Only after everyone was dead or had left the blood-soaked street did they choose to clean up the blood and dismembered limbs.
Despite the increasing chaos on the streets, Yan's father, an instructor of District One, took no action.
Yan Qing was squeezed between them, her eyes darting around, deliberately avoiding the screen.
Just then, the woman suddenly tilted her head, staring intently at Yan Qing's face from extremely close range, her voice eerily calm: "Qingqing, why aren't you watching?"
The man also turned to look at her.
Yan Qing immediately straightened her spine, nodding like a chicken pecking at rice. "I am, I'm watching!"
Only when Yan Qing returned her gaze to the computer screen did the two relent and look away.
Yan Qing was on pins and needles, afraid to look but also afraid not to look.
As the streets descended into greater chaos, Yan's father and mother still showed no sign of leaving. On the contrary, they seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the spectacle, watching unblinkingly.
If this continued, not to mention whether Yan Qing would have a mental breakdown, Chu Shiyu and the other two might also be in danger. She had to find a way to lure them away and get the high-quality gene serum as soon as possible.
"Ye Huai, I'll first try to lure them out of the study so Yan Qing can get the high-quality gene serum. If they refuse to leave, I'll break in and kill them. You tell me what's happening in the study."
Ye Huai nodded. "Okay."
"Can the safe's location be seen on the surveillance?"
Ye Huai adjusted the camera angle. The screen displayed a large bookcase, with a person-height cabinet door on the right. "It should be inside the cabinet."
"Good." Tong Yang nodded, slung her backpack on, and equipped herself with the handgun and dagger. "It's unclear if we'll encounter danger here. If someone breaks in and you're not confident you can leave without an episode, just let them kill you. I'll find a way to come back and save you."
Ye Huai said "Okay," paused for a moment, and asked, "Time loop?"
Tong Yang wasn't surprised he could guess this. Given the circumstances, there was no need to hide it anymore.
"Yeah."
With that, Tong Yang pushed open the bedroom door and walked out.
"Please do not leave the bedroom."
Aunt Liu stood in the hallway, her eyes icy.
Tong Yang ignored her, walking straight towards her.
"First warning."
"Please return to the bedroom."
"Second warning..."
A bullet from a silenced handgun fired at close range hit Aunt Liu in the abdomen, a bloody hole immediately spreading across her body.
She stood there, unmoving, still just staring at Tong Yang.
The moment they passed each other, Aunt Liu raised her arm, which was swiftly grabbed by Tong Yang.
Tong Yang twisted her arm behind her back, grabbed her hair, and smashed her head forcefully against the floor. With a thump, blood stained the ground.
Then, she lifted Aunt Liu's head to check the forehead wound. As expected, the wound covered in crimson liquid was healing rapidly.
How disgusting.
Tong Yang tightened her lips, drew the dagger from her waist, and slit Aunt Liu's throat. The split flesh gaped like a bloody maw, gurgling with blood, but it wasn't enough. The wound would fully heal in minutes.
Tong Yang pressed her head against the floor, using the blade to sever her throat and windpipe completely. When she reached the cervical spine, the dagger wasn't enough. She pulled out a pre-prepared kitchen knife from her backpack, raised it high, and brought it down heavily, hacking until the head was completely severed.
Then, she noticed the flesh on Aunt Liu's neck was wriggling and growing, but without finding a part to connect to the body, it couldn't complete the healing.
"Heal?" Tong Yang's fair neck and cheeks were dotted with specks of blood. She sneered, "Let's see you heal now."
Watching the girl's swift and brutal actions on the monitor, Ye Huai was momentarily stunned.
She didn't leave directly. Instead, she picked up the bloody head, left the hallway. The surveillance footage followed her outside. She cut off a tree branch, thrust it through the wide-eyed head, and planted it into the soil of a flower bed before turning to leave.
Tong Yang refused to believe it could still heal like this.
She didn't know if the high-quality gene serum could bring people back from the dead.
If it could, and the parallel world started mass-producing this serum, the real world would eventually be overrun by them one day.
"Tong Yang, the alarm is lit," Ye Huai reminded her.
In the study, the two people sitting on either side of Yan Qing suddenly changed their expressions.
"Qingqing, stay in the study and don't leave."
"We'll step out for a moment."
Yan Qing immediately breathed a sigh of relief, nodding repeatedly, afraid they might change their minds.
"Tong Yang, they've left the study. Be careful."
"Okay."
Tong Yang acknowledged and stood her ground without moving.
Her goal was to lure Yan Qing's parents out, buying Yan Qing time to open the safe and retrieve the high-quality gene serum.
Next, she just needed to stall like the others, waiting until everything was done to regroup at a safe location.
While waiting for Yan Qing's parents to arrive, a phone call came through.
Since she and the others were using a social app's voice call, the incoming call didn't disconnect them, it just muted the audio temporarily.
"Tong Le..."
Looking at the name flashing on the screen, Tong Yang unconsciously furrowed her brow.
Why was he calling her all of a sudden?
Tong Yang hesitated for a few seconds, remembering she had promised Tong Le yesterday that if her phone was on, she would answer.
In the end, she picked up the call.
"Hey, sis." Tong Le's clear voice sounded in her ear.
"What's up?"
"What are you doing? Are you out playing with Sister Shiyu?"
Tong Yang said, "Yeah, we're playing a game."
"What game? Have you eaten?"
"A holographic zombie game. Yes, I've eaten."
Just then, two figures appeared in the hallway, heading straight for Tong Yang.
Tong Yang was wearing earphones, so answering the call didn't affect her movements.
She struck first, raising her hand and firing two shots. However, the arrivals weren't Yan Qing's parents, but law enforcers in black uniforms.
"Sis, what's that sound on your end?"
"Game sound effects."
The law enforcers who were shot didn't fall immediately, but stubbornly continued to approach Tong Yang.
Tong Yang restrained one of them, her blade slicing open his skin. The wound was still healing. Had he been injected with gene serum too?
High-quality gene serum wasn't common; the law enforcers had probably been given the inferior version.
To stop the wounds from healing, Tong Yang used the same method as before, using a cleaver to directly chop off parts of their bodies.
"Sis..."
"Game sound effects."
"Did you have lunch?"
"I did! I ate with Lin Lin!"
"Alright, I'll hang up now."
"Okay! You and Sister Shiyu be careful. I'll wait for you to come back."
"Alright."
Tong Yang didn't say more and ended the call.
He usually called in the evening. Calling early today was probably because yesterday's conversation made him uneasy, so he was calling to check in.
After reconnecting the group call, Tong Yang asked, "What's the situation with Yan Qing now?"
"Dammit!" Yan Qing roared, "The cabinet door won't open! I haven't even seen the safe yet!"
Tong Yang asked, "Where are they now?"
Ye Huai said, "One is heading towards you, the other..."
"I got it open!"
Yan Qing shouted, "I finally got the cabinet door open! The safe is huge! Bigger than me!"
Ye Huai's voice turned serious, "Be careful, the woman suddenly turned back."
"What the hell?" Yan Qing gasped in a low voice, fumbling to insert the safe key into the lock.
At the same time, hurried footsteps sounded behind her.
Yan's mother stood at the doorway, her voice icy, "Qingqing, what are you doing?"
Yan Qing trembled all over, "Mom..."
Tong Yang cursed under her breath and was about to head towards the study when she ran right into Yan's father.
"Bang—"
A gunshot rang out, the bullet grazing past Tong Yang's shoulder.
She immediately sidestepped behind a pillar and fired three shots at Yan's father. Unfortunately, she hadn't handled firearms before and wasn't skilled enough. Several shots missed consecutively. Moreover, since his body could heal and he had a gun, she couldn't get close easily. They were stuck in a stalemate.
"Mom, I just wanted to take a look..." Yan Qing's panicked voice came through the earphones.
Tong Yang gritted her teeth. This couldn't go on.
"Bang—"
Just then, a gunshot sounded from not far away.
Tong Yang focused her gaze. Ye Huai stood in the hallway, smoke curling from his gun barrel. Yan's father had been shot between the eyes and fell forward.
It was unclear if his wound would heal, but Tong Yang had no energy to deal with him. After warning Ye Huai to be careful, she ran towards the study.
Ye Huai turned and went back to the bedroom to check the monitors for them.
Yan Qing watched her mother approach and instinctively took a few steps back, her body pressing against the cold safe. She said nervously, "Mom, I just wanted to see..."
"What did you want to see? Qingqing, what's wrong with you?"
Mother Yan walked up to her, eyes glaring.
"Your friend killed Aunt Liu. Didn't you always like her the most since you were little?"
Backed into a corner, Yan Qing could only shake her head, not daring to speak.
"What do you want? Let mom get it for you, okay?"
Mother Yan grabbed her hand, turned the key, and opened the safe door.
She was almost pressed against Yan Qing, her tone aggressive, "Qingqing, have you forgotten? Dad told you, you can't open the safe privately."
She was now holding a cold-glinting dagger that had appeared in her hand at some point, her expression turning ferocious.
"Who are you? Where is my Qingqing?"
"Mom! I am Qingqing... I am Qingqing..."
"You are not Qingqing!"
"Yan Qing, get away!"
By the time Tong Yang raced to the study door, Mother Yan had already thrust the knife towards Yan Qing's eye.
"Qingqing, mom will be gentle. As long as you're injured, mom will know if you're the real Qingqing..."
Hearing Tong Yang's voice and catching a glimpse of the open safe beside her out of the corner of her eye, Yan Qing bent down and scrambled inside without a second thought.
"Clang—" The safe door slammed shut.
Mother Yan stared blankly at the closed safe, murmuring, "Qingqing..."
Tong Yang breathed a sigh of relief, quickly fired a shot hitting Mother Yan in the chest, then stepped forward to turn the key. The safe, as expected, could no longer be opened.
"Yan Qing, are you okay?"
"Sister Tong Yang, I'm fine! It's spacious in here! Much safer than outside, and there's even a ventilation fan! That really scared me!"
Tong Yang said, "The safe can only be opened in an hour. We'll regroup here then."
"Okay! Sister Tong Yang, you be careful too..."
"Attention all residents of District One, the Time Anchor has appeared. Her location information will now be broadcast district-wide."
"Attention all residents of District One, the Time Anchor has appeared. Her location information will now be broadcast district-wide."
"Attention all residents of District One, the Time Anchor has appeared. Her location information will now be broadcast district-wide."
At the same time, the voice echoed from all broadcast systems in District One.
