The dim emergency lights outlined her battered form: her thin T-shirt and jeans smeared with dried, darkened blood, dust, and unknown mucus.
Her face was covered with dried blood, tear streaks, and grime, barely showing any trace of its original delicate features. Hair clung damply to her sweat-soaked forehead.
She huddled behind the door, exposing only a palm-sized portion of her small face.
Her large, round eyes were filled with unfeigned terror and confusion, her body still trembling uncontrollably, like a sparrow frightened by a storm.
Seeing only a single, frail, utterly disheveled little girl, the caution on Brother Qiang’s face instantly gave way to blatant contempt and greed.
He scoffed, flexing his thick arm, and pushed the door open another half meter.
“Damn! So it’s just a little girl?”
Brother Qiang growled, his gaze sweeping past Su Qianqian like a spotlight probing the cold storage depths.
“Hiding pretty well! What about the other one? The map shows two people!” He had obviously noticed the map markers too.
The cold air, mixed with the heavy stench of blood and a faint, indescribable scent of decay, hit them.
The chef behind Brother Qiang instinctively covered his nose.
The glasses-wearing youth quickly glanced at his phone and muttered, “Brother Qiang, the signal shows inside. That Jungler marker… Status is very weak, Severely Injured.”
Brother Qiang’s gaze immediately locked on the corner deep in the cold storage—
Lin Chen, wrapped in a thick down jacket, lay on the ground like a lifeless statue, his complexion gray, breath so weak it was almost imperceptible.
The thick bandages on his arms, soaked with dark blood, stood out grotesquely.
“Ha! So it’s just a half-dead useless snack!”
Brother Qiang relaxed completely, a cruel smile spreading across his face. He hefted his spiked bat and stepped forward to storm in.
“Little girl, be smart. Hand over all the food, drink, and valuables! Serve Brother Qiang well, maybe he’ll take you to the main survivor camp! Otherwise…”
His eyes turned cold, threat clear and unmistakable.
“Don’t, don’t come in!”
Su Qianqian shrieked, terrified, shrinking backward as if her frail body could block the doorway.
Her hands twisted together instinctively, her voice choked with sobs and tremors.
“He… he’s hurt… badly… don’t touch him… inside… inside there’s no food… only frozen dumplings… all hard…”
She babbled incoherently, eyes darting in panic, fully embodying the terrified, helpless young girl.
Yet beneath her frightened exterior, her mind raced.
Brother Qiang’s greed and brutality were obvious; the chef was negligible. The key was the glasses guy.
He understood maps.
He had brains.
And the way he looked at Lin Chen…
It was a kind of research-specimen fervor!
“No food? You’re lying!” Brother Qiang didn’t believe her at all, sneering as he reached for her arm. “Step aside! Let me see!”
The moment his calloused hand was about to touch Su Qianqian’s arm—
A piercing, bone-chilling cold shot through her consciousness like a tangible ice needle.
The chill didn’t come from the physical temperature, but from deep within the cold storage behind her.
It was as if a sleeping beast murmured in its dreams, releasing a trace of killing intent.
It was Lin Chen!
The violent frost energy in his body seemed to stir again, triggered by Brother Qiang’s malicious presence, producing subtle, uncontrolled fluctuations.
This icy stimulus, like a stone dropped into a still lake, shattered the fragile balance Su Qianqian had forced to maintain between her disguise and her fear.
“Vzzz—!”
A strange buzzing, perceptible only to Su Qianqian, exploded in her mind.
It felt like an invisible string had been violently plucked.
A cool, slightly rippling mental energy radiated uncontrollably from her, spreading outward like water waves.
The force was invisible and intangible, yet it swept over the three men at the door.
“Shhh…” Brother Qiang’s hand froze mid-air.
The sneer on his face stiffened instantly, a spine-crawling chill, as if an icy serpent had latched onto him, crawling up his vertebrae.
He instinctively took half a step back, eyes flicking toward the depths of the cold storage, then back at Su Qianqian, still terrified but seemingly unaware.
What was happening?
That momentary heart-pounding…
“Ugh!” The glasses guy reacted even more strongly.
He let out a muffled groan, his face turning pale, nearly dropping his phone.
He clutched his forehead, eyes behind the lenses wide with shock and disbelief.
It felt as if a cold stream of water had washed through his brain, slowing and muddling his thoughts. Even his clear understanding of the cold storage layout and map signals briefly blurred.
What frightened him more was the surge of uncontrollable… guilt?
Looking into Su Qianqian’s terrified eyes, he felt as though he were a heinous villain preying on a helpless, innocent creature.
The strange sensation sent shivers down his spine.
Only the chef reacted slightly, shivering and mumbling, “Why’s it suddenly so cold…”
Su Qianqian was stunned as well.
She could clearly feel the spreading mental ripple and see the fleeting shock and unease on Brother Qiang’s and the glasses guy’s faces.
Especially the glasses guy’s momentary confusion and guilt—it registered clearly in her consciousness.
This was… the effect of Radiation?
Mental… control?
Or… interference?
Her fear froze for a brief moment, but her reflexes were sharp.
Taking advantage of the precious gap while Brother Qiang and the glasses guy were distracted and slowed by the sudden Mental Interference—
“Ah! No!”
Su Qianqian screamed even more shrill, pretending to be terrified by Brother Qiang’s pause.
She stumbled backward as if off balance, but “accidentally” slammed her hand onto a nondescript red button on the inner side of the cold storage door.
It was the emergency lockdown button.
“Click! Vzzz—!”
A grating mechanical lock and the motor’s hum sounded abruptly.
The heavy silver door seemed alive, accelerating inward with immense force, creating a gust of wind.
“Shit!”
Brother Qiang, closest to the door, was caught off guard, nearly trapped by the closing panel.
He reacted quickly, shouting and leaping back, but his movement was still slightly slow—the door frame slammed hard against his outstretched arm.
“Bang!”
“Ah—!” Brother Qiang cried out, his arm instantly swelling red.
“Brother Qiang!” The glasses guy and chef also recoiled in shock.
“Clang!!!”
Under Su Qianqian’s “terrified” gaze, the heavy cold storage door crashed shut in front of them with tremendous inertia.
The lock clicked sharply and coldly, completely cutting off sight and sound between inside and out.