Everyone immediately stopped in their tracks, clamping their mouths shut.
Following Cheng Qian’s gaze, they finally realized that directly ahead of them, on the roof of a two-story red brick house, was a rooster almost as large as the house itself!
The rooster’s feathers were brick-red, blending almost perfectly with the color of the roof, and it was so massive that, even through the trees, none of them had noticed it lying there.
As if sensing the commotion, the rooster, which had been resting with its eyes closed, suddenly opened them and lifted its head.
Even from such a distance, its blood-red comb stood tall, and its sharply hooked beak glinted menacingly.
Its round, inorganic-looking eyes were red with black pupils, and when it looked at them, it sent a chilling, eerie glare, cold and lifeless.
A wave of fear ran straight through their hearts.
Someone in the group gasped sharply, and the others felt as if their legs were nailed to the ground, calves twitching uncontrollably, a strange urge to kneel overtaking them.
“Back! Run!” Ke Bei, at the rear of the group, shouted, stepping forward to grab her son and turning to flee.
Only then did everyone react, stumbling and scrambling behind them, desperately racing back the way they came.
The commotion had inevitably disturbed the rooster.
It first tilted its head back and let out a loud crow, then slowly stood up and flapped its wings violently.
The roof of the brick house was a large sun terrace, tiled for drying harvested crops, but now it served as the perch for the enormous rooster.
How long it had been lying there was unknown, but with one strong flap of its wings, a wave of thick, pungent stench blew toward the group, making their eyes water.
Fortunately, they were wearing masks; without them, the smell could have been overwhelming enough to knock someone out.
The group formation had now shifted: Ke Bei and Xiao Tian in the lead, Cheng Qian at the rear, retreating quickly along the narrow path they had just cleared.
The rooster seemed to treat their rapidly moving figures as insects, prey to hunt. With two powerful wing flaps, it leapt from the terrace and chased after them.
Despite its enormous size, it moved with agility. Its claws, thick as small tree stumps, could take strides that easily kept pace with the fleeing group.
Soon it reached behind them, pecking fiercely.
Crack! A small tree, wrist-thick, right next to Village Chief Liu, was split in two.
The falling upper half landed dangerously close to him, any closer and it could have crushed him under the tree.
“Dad!” Liu Lin screamed, grabbing his father and yanking him forcefully toward himself!
The rooster pecked repeatedly, but thanks to the dense undergrowth, no one in the group was hit.
Irritated, it let out a clucking sound from its throat and began stomping back and forth, pecking violently at the ground with each step.
The jungle floor was being torn open with each strike.
By now, the group had been driven all the way to the elementary school gate.
Between the school gate and the classroom building was a wide plaza, normally used for flag-raising ceremonies.
The ground here was paved and hardened, and there were far fewer trees than elsewhere, meaning everyone was suddenly fully exposed in front of the rooster.
“Run! Hurry up!” Old Zhou shouted at the group.
Then he charged ahead, racing toward Ke Bei and Xiao Tian.
But not everyone had his stamina. Village Chief Liu, exhausted from the sprint, was clearly at his limit.
He pushed hard against his son, Liu Lin: “Don’t worry about me! You go first!”
But Liu Lin held tightly onto his father’s arm, refusing to let go.
As they struggled, the rooster caught up to them from behind and bit down on Liu Lin’s backpack, lifting him, and the bag, into the air.
“Xiao Lin!” Village Chief Liu screamed, his voice torn with panic.
He jumped, trying to grab his son’s legs, but there was no way he could match the speed of the enormous rooster.
The rooster stood upright with Liu Lin’s backpack in its beak. Its head alone was as tall as a two-story building, and everyone craned their necks, unable to take in its full size.
It seemed to sense something off about the backpack and shook its head from side to side.
Liu Lin, held by the backpack, swung helplessly through the air like a sack.
He tried to struggle, but the backpack had been tightly secured to his waist with a safety strap to prevent it from falling off earlier.
Now, he couldn’t undo it, he could only thrash uselessly in midair.
With the rooster focused entirely on Liu Lin and the backpack, Cheng Qian quietly climbed a nearby tall tree.
The tree had thick branches, and he inched along carefully, moving closer to the rooster.
But just as Cheng Qian was about to climb close to the rooster’s neck, the backpack finally pushed it over the edge. It suddenly flapped its wings violently.
A gust of wind roared up, and the branch Cheng Qian was holding was knocked sideways.
If he hadn’t reacted quickly and gripped the branch tightly, that single flap could have thrown him from the tree!
“Xiao Lin, Xiao Lin… you beast! Come get me! Come get me! Let go of my son!”
Village Chief Liu was losing his mind. He stopped dodging and stood in front of the rooster, stomping and shouting.
He wildly waved his arms, grabbed tree branches and stones from the ground, and hurled them at the rooster, trying to draw its attention so it would go after him and spare his son.
But his target was too small. The objects he threw didn’t even register to the rooster.
It shook Liu Lin in its beak again, clucked a few times, took two stomping steps, and turned as if ready to leave.
“Everyone, get out of the way!”
Ke Bei shouted to the group.
At that moment, an iron box suddenly appeared out of nowhere in the sky and smashed down on the rooster’s head!
The box hit its comb with tremendous force, and the sharp corner of the iron sliced a deep, bloody gash across it.
Even from below, everyone could see it clearly.
Old Zhou and another teammate quickly pulled Village Chief Liu aside, clearing the area.
The rooster froze for a moment, stunned by the blow.
It clucked a couple of times, and only then realized the pain in its head.
In an instant, it went completely berserk!
Obviously in intense pain, it threw back its head and let out a roar, flinging Liu Lin and the backpack far into the air.
Flapping its wings, the rooster whipped up gusts of wind and wildly shook its head, trying to strike the iron box still falling from above with its sharp beak.
But the iron box kept swaying around the rooster, bobbing up and down, and whenever it caught the bird off guard, it smashed down hard on its head, comb, and body!
No matter how the rooster dodged left or right, it couldn’t escape.
It went completely berserk, furious to the point that it stopped caring about the iron box circling above it. Instead, it lowered its head and started pecking furiously at the people on the ground.
It had clearly realized that the source of its pain was the people below, and its anger spilled over.
Its movements were blindingly fast, each peck leaving a deep crater in the ground.
The undergrowth cracked and snapped beneath its claws, littering the area with broken branches.
Blood ran down from its comb, soaking the feathers on its head.
Pain all over its body drove it to a peak of rage. Its wings flapped violently, its claws stomped across the ground, and sharp clucks echoed from its throat, trampling the sparse wild trees and grass into chaos and exposing everyone who had been hiding behind the trees.
Frightened, the people scattered in all directions, terrified that any misstep would make them this giant rooster’s next meal.
Ke Bei held Xiao Tian tightly behind her, using her psychic power to slam the air-conditioning unit again and again onto the rooster’s head.
Although her strikes with the iron box seemed haphazard at first glance, in reality she was carefully guiding the rooster step by step toward the large tree where Cheng Qian was hiding.
Cheng Qian remained concealed in the tree.
The rooster, however, was extremely tall.
Ke Bei’s strength was limited; her psychic energy could not be sustained for long.
Keeping the iron box above the rooster’s head while also dealing damage was extremely taxing. Soon, sweat drenched her hair and clothes.
The rooster’s size also posed a serious challenge for Cheng Qian.
Without any supernatural ability or weapons, fighting such a giant beast on the ground and actually injuring it was almost impossible.
Climbing the tree was his only option.
But being in the tree meant a fixed position; he would have to wait for the rooster to come close to find the right angle for an attack.
Fortunately, his wife was there to coordinate with him.
The moment the dazed rooster rushed up to the tree, Cheng Qian leapt down, landing directly on its back, and grabbed the feathers on its neck, climbing upward.
The rooster suddenly froze.
It stood there, stunned, clearly confused about what had just happened.
Then it quickly realized something was wrong with its neck.
It instantly flew into a rage!
Furiously shaking its head, it twisted and turned, trying to peck at the human clinging to its neck with its sharp beak.
Cheng Qian ignored it and kept climbing, holding onto the feathers with all his strength, sticking to the rooster as if glued, impossible to shake off.
The rooster spun in place in anger, flapping its wings wildly, whipping up a whirlwind around it, and the acrid stench was nearly suffocating.
By now, Cheng Qian had reached the rooster’s head and grabbed its comb with both hands.
The intense pain made the rooster emit a sharp, piercing cry, and its flapping wings knocked over a swath of nearby undergrowth.
Cheng Qian held the comb tight. When the rooster lifted its head again, preparing to crow loudly, he drew the machete from his waist and slashed violently at its eye!
Splash!
A gush of blood erupted.
Even though Cheng Qian turned his head to avoid it, plenty of blood still sprayed across his face and body.
The excruciating pain in its eye made the rooster shriek in agony!
It violently shook its head, trying to fling Cheng Qian off.
At that moment, a long military bayonet suddenly appeared out of nowhere, stabbing sharply from above into its other eye!
The rooster went completely berserk!
It flapped its wings with tremendous force, stomped its claws everywhere, barreling around in a frantic attempt to escape, uttering a pitiful wail.
Meanwhile, Cheng Qian had leaned down along the rooster’s head toward its neck.
He clamped the comb tightly with his feet, held onto the feathers with one hand, and with the other hand wielded the machete, striking repeatedly and fiercely at the trachea in the rooster’s neck.
Thick streams of blood spurted out from the gaping wounds made by the machete, splattering in all directions.
The entire clearing was filled with a thick, metallic stench of blood.
At the same time, Ke Bei drove the bayonet fiercely into the rooster’s head and face!
Strike after strike, each landing left a fresh, bloody hole…
It seemed to last forever, yet at the same time only a few heartbeats passed before the giant rooster crashed to the ground with a thunderous impact, making the earth tremble, and the snapped branches crackled under the force.
The people hiding around it froze in place, their breaths caught in their throats, unable to move for a long moment.
Cheng Qian let out a long, steadying breath.
He lay on the rooster for a moment, and when his breathing calmed slightly, he lifted the hem of his shirt and roughly wiped his face, then jumped down from the beast’s back.
He strode over to Ke Bei, handing her the bayonet he had pulled from the rooster.
At the same time, his eyes quickly scanned her from head to toe, confirming that she had no injuries before he finally allowed himself to relax.
Ke Bei leaned against a tree, her complexion slightly pale, a thin sheen of sweat on her forehead.
She smiled at Cheng Qian, took the bayonet, and shook her head gently, saying, “I’m fine.”
Cheng Qian said nothing.
He stepped closer, took her hand, and held it tightly in his own.
Ke Bei’s fingers were cool, slightly trembling from fatigue after prolonged use of her abilities.
She clasped his hand in return, drawing warmth from his palm.
Seeing the rooster lying motionless, the people around finally began to shiver as they cautiously emerged from their hiding spots.
A militia member carefully stepped toward the fallen rooster, keeping a distance of two or three meters, and threw his sickle at it.
As he released it, he leapt several meters back in one motion.
Only when he was certain it wasn’t moving did he cheer, shouting, “It’s dead! Totally dead!”
The others surged forward, running over all at once.
By this time, Liu Cunzhang and Old Zhou had already rescued Liu Lin, who had been thrown by the rooster.
The young man had been lucky, though nearly unconscious from the throw, he landed among some bushes, which softened the fall. He ended up with only bruises and scrapes, and miraculously suffered no serious injuries.
Liu Cunzhang led him over to stand in front of the couple. Father and son both bowed deeply to them, tears streaming down their faces, repeatedly saying “Thank you.”
It seemed that, beyond gratitude, they couldn’t find any other words.
Ke Bei, exhausted, waved her hand at them. “No need for this. Liu Lin surviving is just his luck.”
Liu Cunzhang opened his mouth to say something else, but Cheng Qian interrupted him. “Are we still going to look for Liu Jian?”
The question plunged Liu Cunzhang into silence again.
Liu Lin’s face was still pale as a sheet, and his voice came out hoarse when he spoke.
He glanced at his father, then shook his head at Cheng Qian. “Brother, no need to look anymore. That rooster was on my second grandpa’s house just now… Liu Jian and my second grandpa…”
His voice choked, stuck in his throat, unable to continue.
After a long moment, he finally spoke for his father again. “No need to look, brother. Let’s go back.”
Liu Cunzhang turned his head aside, a faint glimmer of tears in his eyes, but he didn’t contradict his son.
In fact, seeing the damaged floors and walls in the other villagers’ homes had already prepared him for the truth, he knew the villagers must have been attacked.
The reason he wanted to check the old Liu household was simply that they had come this far, still clinging to a sliver of hope, wanting to find Liu Jian.
But now…
Everyone’s thoughts were probably the same as his. Hearing Liu Lin speak, they all remained silent.
Seeing that everyone tacitly agreed, Ke Bei changed the subject.
She lifted her chin toward the dead giant rooster. “Do you all want this chicken?”
The words shocked everyone around again!
They all turned to look at Ke Bei, expressions of disbelief on their faces.
That chicken, had eaten their fellow villagers!
Could they possibly… take it home to eat?!
Ke Bei clearly had no idea they were even entertaining such a “childish” thought. She was taken aback by their reaction, thinking she had said something outrageous.
She paused, then rephrased more calmly. “If you want it, that’s fine. But we killed this chicken, so at the very least we get half. That’s the rule.”
After saying that, she straightened up and swept her gaze over everyone, her eyes carrying an unmistakable authority.
Li Xin, having already known about her space ability and having seen Ke Bei use her powers, understood her personality a little and reacted much faster than the others.
When their eyes met, he quickly waved his hand. “Sister, I don’t want it! This chicken was killed by you and Cheng, so the meat naturally belongs to you. I didn’t help at all, so I definitely don’t want any!”
Ke Bei immediately showed a satisfied little smile toward him.
Seeing this, the others finally reacted and also shook their heads repeatedly. “No, no, we don’t want it!”
“Xiao Ke, just keep it for yourselves. We couldn’t carry it back even if we wanted to!”
“Exactly, it’s too big. We couldn’t handle it at home.”
“And in this heat, we can’t store it anyway.”
With everyone clearly stating their position, Ke Bei didn’t say anything, simply nodded faintly, maintaining her usual aloof demeanor.
But the happiness in her eyes was unmistakable.
Cheng Qian, who had always known his wife’s tendency to hoard, couldn’t help but smile at the satisfaction on her face now that her wish was fulfilled.
A huge, fat chicken was theirs, and Ke Bei was in a good mood, she was even willing to give the others a little guidance.
She pointed in the direction they had come from and said, “Along this route, aside from this chicken, we didn’t encounter any other mutated animals. I guess this was the biggest danger in the village. Now that the chicken is dead, it should be relatively safe. You can take this chance to look for supplies. Isn’t the food at the aid station running low?”
Cheng Qian also looked at Li Cunzhang. “You know this area best. Take them and gather what you can. Don’t come back empty-handed after all this effort.”
Li Cunzhang’s son had just gone through a traumatic event, and he was still visibly shaken.
Many things he couldn’t even recall.
Hearing Cheng Qian’s words, he finally reacted and quickly nodded. “Alright, alright! We’ll go now, right now!”
He still held Li Lin tightly, as if afraid that letting go would bring further misfortune.
The man, in his forties or fifties, was drenched in sweat, and his lips trembled uncontrollably.
Seeing him like that, Cheng Qian silently removed the backpack from his shoulder, took everything out, handed it to his wife, and then gave the empty bag to Li Lin.
Li Lin’s backpack had long been pecked to pieces by the giant rooster and was completely unusable.
Under Li Cunzhang’s lead, the group re-entered the village.
Once they were out of sight, Ke Bei took a moisture-proof mat out of the backpack, spread it on the ground, and lay down directly on it.
Seeing this, Xiao Tian immediately ran over and, without even taking off his shoes, lay down next to his mother, snuggling into her arms.
Cheng Qian knew his wife was probably suffering from a headache again.
Although she hadn’t specifically said so, he had already noticed over the past few days that overusing her powers always gave her a headache.
She would often hit her own head with her fists without thinking, or press hard on her temples in silence.
He quietly grabbed their son’s backpack, took out a bottle of mineral water, and handed it to his wife.
Ke Bei felt his presence, opened her eyes slightly to look at him, then shook her head. “I don’t want it. Let me lie down for a bit.”
With that, she closed her eyes again.
Her head throbbed painfully, like someone was hammering inside with all their strength.
Ke Bei also knew this wasn’t a good place to rest. Even without the large mutated beasts, there were still the mutated plants.
Even the bugs and ants in the bushes wouldn’t be lacking, but at this moment she couldn’t care.
Hearing her, Cheng Qian placed the water bottle aside, took out a bottle of mosquito repellent, and sprayed around the mat. Then he sat down beside Ke Bei.
He slipped his hands under her arms, lifted her upper body to rest on his legs, and began massaging her head with his fingers.
Ke Bei opened her eyes in surprise, looking at Cheng Qian in disbelief.
Since her rebirth, her husband had never shown her this kind of intimacy.
From her angle, Ke Bei could only see Cheng Qian’s tight jaw and the uncontrollable movement of his Adam’s apple.
Seeing the tension beneath his feigned calm expression, she couldn’t help but smile.
Ke Bei knew that Cheng Qian’s feelings for her were conflicted.
On one hand, he believed they were husband and wife, knew they were each other’s support, and should stand together, facing challenges side by side.
On the other hand, to Cheng Qian, she was probably little more than someone slightly familiar than a stranger.
After all, from the moment they met until now, they had been together for less than a week.
He couldn’t claim to have deep feelings for her yet.
Ke Bei understood that, for Cheng Qian, it was less about being husband and wife and more about being partners, comrades who could watch each other’s backs.
He might even feel that this kind of relationship wasn’t entirely right, occasionally getting caught up in inner conflicts.
But Ke Bei didn’t mind.
In this life, finding Cheng Qian, fighting side by side with him, and protecting Xiao Tian together, this was already the best outcome she could imagine.
Everything else could come in time.
Cheng Qian’s fingers pressed firmly against her scalp, feeling incredibly comforting. Ke Bei closed her eyes again, savoring this rare moment of peace.