The Little Merman in the Apocalypse 3
Assistant Xiao Zhou entered with a tray of freshly washed vegetables and fruits.
He noticed a puddle of water on the floor, possibly splashed by a playful dolphin.
“Captain Chu, what brings you here?”
His voice trembled; facing this fearsome man, no one could remain calm.
Chu Weilin’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t answer. His fingers clenched as if holding something.
The man slipped his right hand into his pocket and left without a backward glance.
His strides were so swift.
Xiao Zhou almost sensed a hint of retreat in Chu Weilin’s departing figure.
But how could that be?
Captain Chu had once carved a bloody path through a horde of zombies alone. A man who feared not death, what could unsettle him?
Qiao Han was meticulous by nature, his clothes always pristine and pure white, free of dust.
Now, his garment was casually tossed over a chair’s back, with noticeable creases at the hem.
Xiao Zhou scratched his head in bewilderment.
The strange atmosphere in the lab hadn’t dissipated. What on earth had happened while he was away?
He couldn’t fathom it.
“Doctor, should we feed the little merman now?”
“Yes.”
With the man’s concise reply, Xiao Zhou approached Su Luo.
The little merman, who had been fine earlier, now lay listlessly at the bottom of the tank, his clear eyes slightly red, glaring at him.
“What’s wrong?”
Xiao Zhou assumed Su Luo was still adjusting to the new environment, unaware that scales had fallen from the young merman’s tail.
The assistant first offered some ripe, juicy tomatoes, which looked quite appetizing.
But Su Luo merely watched them drift to the tank’s bottom with the water current.
He didn’t eat.
“It seems mermen aren’t vegetarians. Let’s try something else.”
The assistant had prepared for this and took out a piece of fresh fish meat, still bleeding. But before he could offer it, he noticed the little merman’s fingers gripping the seaweed tightly.
Su Luo’s delicate brows furrowed deeply, and he blew irregular bubbles from his mouth.
“No!”
Xiao Zhou picked up the fish meat again, waving it in front of the boy, forcing a smile onto his face.
“This is really tasty. Try it, I’m not lying.”
After all, every merman he had ever fed ate meat. Perhaps Su Luo had never tasted fresh fish before.
The man’s patient coaxing failed.
The boy worried that the frightening-looking blood chunk would be thrown into his little home, dirtying the seawater.
So, enduring the slight sting, he swam to the tomatoes and picked them up.
“Nom!”
He ate them bite by bite, wasting nothing.
With his chewing motions.
Assistant Xiao Zhou meticulously recorded the boy’s eating process and noticed something unusual.
Su Luo didn’t have the sharp, terrifying teeth of other male mermen. His four small teeth were shorter than a fingernail, no wonder…
Xiao Zhou couldn’t help but look at the boy with sympathy.
Incomplete development, lacking hunting ability, hence the preference for vegetables.
The piercing alarm mixed with flashing red lights indicated a special situation, an S-class merman downstairs was rioting.
Qiao Han’s eyes darkened, but he remained calm in the face of this sudden event.
He grabbed a special syringe and decisively stood up to leave.
“You stay here, make sure to take good care of them, especially that merman.
Instructions.
Don’t worry, Doctor.
After the man closed the door, he left without pause.
Xiao Zhou was about to dispose of the uneaten food when he suddenly smelled a strange fragrance and fainted with his eyes closed.
The boy watched in confusion, his long hair swaying in the water.
His exquisitely beautiful face pressed against the glass wall, his webbed fingers slightly spread.
A man and a woman in research uniforms entered amidst the chaos.
Qi Yu cautiously surveyed the area, ensuring no one was around before acting. He lowered his voice.
“You search over there, don’t miss anything.”
Zhao Zilin felt a bit nervous too. The dimly lit room was filled with countless marine creatures curiously watching her.
She inwardly cursed the lousy quest. Surviving thirty days was already challenging, with zombies everywhere outside.
She had gone through great lengths to infiltrate the Base, now she needed to find a potion to cure the zombie virus.
“Where is it?”
Zhao Zilin rummaged through the place, careful not to leave traces that might be noticed.
Su Luo lay in the glass tank, watching for a while, confirming they were his teammates, and wanted to collaborate.
But…
The little merman’s odd behavior startled Qi Yu.
The boy’s porcelain-like skin became even more flawless under the water’s embrace, his light-colored glassy eyes as pure as a blank sheet of paper, without a trace of impurity.
Like a spirit from the deep sea, accidentally straying into the human world.
After locking eyes.
Qi Yu involuntarily approached.
“Hey, where are you going?”
Zhao Zilin’s words snapped him back to reality, and the man shook his head, “So strange.”
He felt it was just his mind playing tricks.
He listened intently to the sounds in the corridor outside, while also focusing on the strange labeled test tubes in front of him.
“What’s it writing mean?”
Qi Yu couldn’t understand the patterns the little merman’s pale pink fingertips were drawing, and he hissed.
“Is it trying to report us?”
That possibility couldn’t be ruled out, but the two ignored it and quickened their search.
The boy looked blankly at the words he had written on the glass, crooked and messy—I’m a player too, take me with you.
He had chosen to write instead of speaking, fearing being overheard, but didn’t expect his handwriting to be too messy to recognize.
In the quiet space, a voice suddenly emerged.
“Hey…”
The boy barely uttered the first word before Zhao Zilin, startled, dropped the red test tube she was holding.
The woman quickly raised her head to ask Qi Yu.
“Did you hear someone speaking?”
The man glanced at the time, wanting to leave quickly with his companion. He frowned and looked at Su Luo again.
“This merman is acting strange.”
His words stirred the boy’s emotions, finally drawing attention to himself.
But Qi Yu’s next words frightened Su Luo into hiding at the bottom of the tank.
“To avoid complications, let’s just kill it.”
The man took out an item, approaching the trembling little merman step by step.
Su Luo instantly dismissed the idea of seeking teammates, sensing danger.
He darted into the seaweed nest, trying to hide, but his tail was too long to fit. His delicate eyelashes trembled, and his lips turned pale from being pressed together.
Just as Qi Yu’s murderous intent arose, a sudden splash of water drenched him.
“Ugh, what the heck?”
Following the source.
A mischievous gray-white dolphin had slightly lifted the lid on its head, spitting water at Qi Yu.
“Blah blah blah…”
The man wiped the fishy water from his face, gritting his teeth as he approached Su Luo again.
“Splash splash splash…”
This time was worse, as a bundle of green seaweed covered Qi Yu’s face.
The pink jellyfish in the glass tank swam even more joyfully, its transparent tentacles preparing for a second attack.
The enraged man suffered repeated setbacks, his clothes filthy, unable to hold back his foul language.
“Damn it, weren’t these supposed to be non-aggressive, gentle species?!”
Zhao Zilin suppressed a laugh, helping him clean the seaweed fragments from his head.
Su Luo felt scared and pitifully hid, not daring to come out.
Zhao Zilin realized this and hesitated for a moment, stopping Qi Yu.
“We’re running out of time, let’s go.”
The woman covered the items in her arms, restored the scene, and quietly led Qi Yu out, glancing back at Su Luo still hiding at the bottom of the glass tank.
Her lips moved, but she didn’t have time to say anything.
The lab returned to silence, and Su Luo saw a note and some object left at the table’s edge.
Did she forget to take it?
The boy’s eyes curved with a smile as he tried to climb out of the glass tank to take a look, but failed.
The little dolphin blinked its round, black-and-white eyes at him.
“Bloop bloop?”
Su Luo had a bold idea, pointing towards the note, speaking softly.
“Can you… bring me that thing over there?”
He didn’t expect a response, but the little dolphin just tilted its head and bounced out.
It bounced a few times on the floor like a small ball, grabbing the note and unknown object with its mouth.
The pink jellyfish tapped the glass tank—someone was coming.
The little dolphin hurriedly sped up.
Before the door opened, it tossed the items into Su Luo’s hands.
The once bustling streets were now in ruins.
Billowing smoke filled the sky, a heavy haze covering the city.
By the shattered glass windows lay the mangled remains of humans devoured by zombies.
At the entrance of a relatively intact large supermarket.
“Quick, quick, everyone inside! They’re coming.”
Women, the elderly, and young people all ran frantically, trying to rush inside.
The distant roars of zombies grew closer.
People were on edge, doing whatever it took to survive. Those trampled to the ground couldn’t get up, only crying and wailing.
Amidst the chaos, someone whistled.
Following the gaze.
Outside the supermarket, Huang Mao and a few others, armed and guarding, wore mischievous smirks.
He tossed his finished cigarette to the ground, crushing it.
“Sorry, folks, this supermarket is ours for now.”
In life-and-death situations, no one would miss a chance to survive. Some tried to force their way in despite the blockade.
“Get lost, you bastard! Move aside.”
Unexpectedly, a merciless shot pierced through his chest.
The man’s shocked expression froze as he collapsed heavily.
This served as a warning to the others, that Huang Mao and his group were ruthless outlaws.
They didn’t care about anyone’s life or death.
“Brother, please, let me in.”
When force didn’t work, they tried pleading.
A man resembling a lawyer knelt on the ground, begging for his life, only to have a thick spit land on his face.
“Bah, it was lawyers like you who sent me to prison back then. Want to come in? No way!”
Sharp-eyed people could already see the zombie horde shambling down the street.
Some had twisted necks, others with intestines hanging out, terrifying and gruesome.
The nearest building was a kilometer away, and no one dared to gamble their life on whether it was safe.
A tall, burly man lazily yawned as he stepped out.
He had a buzz cut, with a prominent scar running from his forehead across his chin.
His massive frame still putting on clothes, exuding an impatient and violent aura as if disturbed.
“What’s all this noise? Do you all have a death wish?”
The scar-faced man was Sang Biao, and the beautiful woman who followed him out was Xiao Mei.
Xiao Mei wore a form-fitting dress, her makeup impeccable. She gently flicked her hair, her red lips curving into a smile.
“Brother Biao, don’t be mad, haven’t I made you happy yet~”
She nestled against the scar-faced man’s chest like a docile bird.
The woman’s long legs beneath her dress were enticingly pale, completely unlike the ragged survivors of the apocalypse.
“Brother Biao, maybe we should just drive them all away. More people mean less resources.”
Huang Mao and Xiao Mei exchanged a glance, respectfully suggesting.
But the scar-faced man didn’t immediately agree. He was so tall he had to duck slightly to avoid hitting the doorframe.
Fastening his belt, the man’s hawk-like dark eyes scanned the survivors wanting to enter the supermarket.
His gaze lingered briefly on a few young, attractive girls.
Xiao Mei was still adjusting her clothes.
Seeing this, her smile stiffened as she blocked Sang Biao’s view.
Her manicured fingers traced circles on the man’s chest, her tone slightly coquettish.
“Naughty brother, you just praised me as your favorite little darling, hmph~”
The scar-faced man pinched Xiao Mei’s chin, moving her aside, losing his previous gentle patience.
“Only women under forty can come in, the rest get lost!”
His words carried an obvious implication, playing with a highly aggressive machine gun in his hand.
Like a hunter, he leisurely leaned against the wall, waiting for the helpless lambs to make their choice.
Xiao Mei silently cursed “dog man” before resuming her pretty smile, standing by Sang Biao’s side.
Watching the zombies draw closer.
A man resembling a construction worker, called Da Liu.
He gritted his teeth, picked up a steel pipe, and struck Huang Mao’s back when he wasn’t looking, breaking bones with a “crack.”
“Ouch, damn it!”
After Huang Mao fell, Da Liu shouted loudly, “Everyone, let’s break in together, don’t wait to die!”
With his rallying cry, more and more people were ready to act.
“Bang!”
A bloody hole appeared on Da Liu’s forehead. He didn’t even have time to dodge, the steel pipe in his hand rolling far away.
The girl closest to him had been hesitating, but seeing the red and white brain matter on her shoulder, her pupils shrank in terror.
Her whole body trembled, her mind ceased to function, crawling to Sang Biao’s feet as he put away his gun.
“Please don’t kill me, I’ll be obedient.”
When Qi Yu and Zhao Zilin returned, they sidestepped the corpses on the ground, speaking in hushed tones.
“Brother Biao, this is what we brought back.”
They handed all the bullets in their bag to Sang Biao.
The man rubbed his unshaven stubble, revealing a satisfied smile, patting Qi Yu’s shoulder.
“Good job, I knew you wouldn’t disappoint me, go on in.”