“Countless Patients Covered in Fish Scales Twisted in Unison…”
The three of them froze.
Tong Yu’s father answered the call. Although he hadn’t turned on the speakerphone, the mechanical voice echoed through the empty hallway, amplified by the acoustics and reaching the ears of everyone present with perfect clarity.
“Warning. This is not a drill.”
“Warning. This is not a drill.”
“Warning. This is not a drill.”
“Senior Physics Teacher Tong Yang, you have been selected for emergency evacuation and relocation. The following individuals are authorized to accompany you: your wife, Yu Wan, and your daughter, Tong Yu. Please proceed to the designated shelter as instructed as soon as possible.”
“This is your final warning. This is not a drill. Do not disclose the location of the shelter to unauthorized individuals.”
“We wish you safety.”
The call ended.
The three stared at each other.
Wendy and Tong Yu, having already mentally prepared themselves, recovered first. Tong Yang, however, remained rooted to the spot, seemingly unable to process what he had just heard.
“What does that mean? Then… what about Wendy?” Tong Yu clutched her friend’s arm in panic, her voice already trembling with tears.
“Let’s go inside first.”
As the only adult present, Tong Yang forced himself to suppress the turmoil raging inside him and calmly comforted the two girls.
The iris scanner unlocked the security door.
Before the door had fully opened, hurried footsteps came rushing from inside.
Tong Yu’s mother hurried toward the entrance, her hair half undone, a phone clutched tightly in her hand. Shock still lingered across her face.
Wendy immediately understood.
As the chief neurosurgeon at the municipal hospital, her teacher’s wife had also received the apocalypse warning.
The conversation that followed between the couple confirmed her suspicion.
Since the issue they had been worrying about had resolved itself, Wendy and Tong Yu immediately told them about the note Pei Xiao had left behind.
“The classified message from the Ministry of National Security says we’re to report to 5396 Kangsong Road, West City Suburbs.”
Yu Wan frowned while looking at her phone.
“If I remember correctly, that place has supposedly been under construction as a winery by a private company for the past three years.”
Three years.
A chill crept up both Tong Yang’s and Yu Wan’s backs.
If the “winery” that had been under construction for three years was actually an apocalypse shelter…
Then how long had the people above known the apocalypse was coming?
Meanwhile, the internet remained perfectly calm.
The trending searches were still filled with celebrity gossip.
Government announcements continued reassuring the public that the abnormal weather would not have any serious impact, urging everyone to remain calm.
Above the brightly lit, bustling city, oppressive black clouds churned across the sky.
Most people had no idea danger was approaching.
They were still thinking about dinner.
Still making plans for tomorrow.
If Pei Xiao hadn’t left that note…
If Tong Yang’s family hadn’t been selected for evacuation…
Then they would have been just like everyone else.
No matter how uneasy they felt, they would have continued living their ordinary lives—
Only to greet the sudden arrival of the apocalypse with terror.
“Wendy, don’t worry.”
Mistaking her silence for fear, Yu Wan stepped forward and gently embraced her.
“For all these years, your teacher and I have always treated you as our own daughter. We’ll go together. Your teacher and I will definitely find a way to get you into the shelter too.”
Hearing those words, Wendy buried her face in Yu Wan’s embrace, responding just like an ordinary girl touched by such kindness.
Only…
Wendy slowly closed her eyes.
Once again, she heard the roar of crashing waves.
But this time, unlike before, mixed within the waves were overwhelming anxiety…
…and mournful cries.
She would accompany her teacher’s family to the shelter and make sure they escaped safely.
But she neither could nor would leave with them.
Ever since scales had begun appearing on her legs, she had noticed her eyesight becoming astonishingly sharp.
Her strength had increased.
Her reflexes had become faster and faster.
Ever since childhood, she had known she was different.
She was an orphan.
She had been found on a beach, as though the sea itself had washed her ashore.
Unlike ordinary people, she possessed sapphire-blue eyes.
Adults assumed she was mixed-race.
But the other children at the orphanage only thought she was different.
They called her a freak.
They isolated her.
Since she was little, she had repeatedly dreamed the same dream.
The dark abyss of the ocean…
Magnificent underwater structures…
Enormous crystals radiating an eerie blue glow…
It felt like the remains of another mysterious civilization.
She needed to find an answer.
The answer she had sought her entire life.
And now…
Her instincts told her…
That answer lay deep beneath the sea.
“Change of clothes, daily medicine, compressed biscuits, water…”
Tong Yang repeatedly checked the list on his phone, sweat beading across his forehead.
“Try stuffing everything tighter. See if we can squeeze in a little more.”
The confidential notice from the Ministry of National Security specified that each person could carry only one backpack, containing basic daily necessities, and that they had 24 hours to reach the shelter.
However…
The heavy storm clouds hanging overhead resembled the Sword of Damocles, ready to fall at any moment.
After discussing it, everyone agreed.
The sooner they reached the shelter…
The better.
“Let’s bring a knife too.”
Yu Wan emerged from the kitchen carrying the household knife rack, which held several different types of cleavers.
“The city hospital has admitted a lot of patients these past few days. Their bodies are covered in fish scales. It seems they all ate dead fish that washed ashore recently.”
“The higher-ups have completely suppressed the news. And now they’re talking about the apocalypse…”
“I just can’t shake this feeling that something’s terribly wrong.”
“Fish scales?”
Wendy paused.
“What kind of fish scales?”
“They’re grayish-black.”
Yu Wan frowned as the memory resurfaced.
“Kind of like the scales on grass carp sold in northern markets.”
“They’re extremely irregular—some large, some small—packed densely over the entire body, from head to toe.”
“And they secrete mucus.”
“I can ask one of my friends in the emergency department to send me a photo.”
Grayish-black.
Irregular.
Covered in mucus.
That wasn’t the same as hers.
Wendy lowered her gaze, recalling the recent news.
Huge numbers of marine animals had washed ashore dead.
Among them were many expensive deep-sea fish.
The government had quickly imposed a nationwide fishing ban, becoming one of the major reasons public panic had begun spreading.
As soon as the incident broke, Tong Yang had called both Wendy and Tong Yu, warning them not to eat seafood recently in case of viral contamination.
Who could have imagined the deaths would be so bizarre…
Or that unscrupulous vendors would secretly collect the dead fish and sell them…
Or that some people, unwilling to pass up free food, would actually take the fish home to eat.
Now it seemed…
Those fish really had been carrying something.
Whether it was radiation…
A virus…
Or something else entirely.
“Huh?”
Tong Yu was visibly terrified.
She instinctively took two steps backward and hugged Wendy’s arm tightly.
“Those people with fish scales… they’re not suddenly going to lose their minds and start eating people like zombies… are they?”
“You just reminded me of something.”
For the first time, Yu Wan didn’t scold her daughter for watching too many unrealistic horror movies.
“It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
“Everyone, change into long sleeves and long pants.”
“I’ll get masks, gloves, and protective goggles.”
Although everything pointed toward torrential rain and the ocean swallowing the land as the cause of the apocalypse…
The Ministry of National Security had never explicitly confirmed it.
Who could guarantee there wasn’t something else involved?
Especially when such a horrifying phenomenon had appeared at such a sensitive time.
In the end, all four of them bundled themselves up from head to toe.
Each person chose a kitchen knife before leaving the apartment.
Wendy selected a Jiujiang Bay butcher’s bone cleaver.
Originally designed for restaurant kitchens, Tong Yang and Yu Wan had bought one because both loved cooking.
It was meant for butchering meat and chopping large bones.
Its lethality was more than sufficient.
The weather made solar-powered hover vehicles unusable.
Fortunately, Tong Yu’s family still owned an old hybrid gasoline-electric sedan.
It might have been slower…
But under the circumstances, it was their best option.
Once inside the car, Yu Wan immediately began making phone calls.
From her parents…
To relatives…
To classmates…
To close friends…
Every conversation contained subtle hints.
Unfortunately…
Not a single person understood.
The atmosphere inside the car grew heavier with every call.
Finally, both Yu Wan and Tong Yang made video calls to their parents.
The family of three forced smiles onto their faces as they quietly said what might be their final goodbyes.
Watching them bid farewell to their loved ones, Wendy sank into thought.
What criteria had the Ministry of National Security used when selecting people for evacuation?
Judging solely from the Tong family…
Was it middle-aged professionals in critical, high-skilled occupations…
Along with their immediate family members?
But if the government had already established shelters throughout the country…
Then why had Pei Xiao—and that mysterious text message—told them to head for Northern Tibet instead?
Wendy lowered her eyes, concealing the thoughts within them.
For now…
She kept her suspicions to herself.
The Tong family lived in the eastern district.
To reach the western outskirts, they had to pass through the city’s central traffic circle.
The shortest route would have taken them directly past the municipal hospital.
To avoid any possible danger, the four deliberately chose a longer detour.
But no matter how much they circled around…
The central roundabout was unavoidable.
And because the hospital was located so close to it…
After Yu Wan’s earlier warning…
The closer they drove toward the city center…
The quieter the car became.
“Something’s wrong.”
Yu Wan gripped her phone tightly. After a long silence, she finally spoke, her voice trembling.
“Earlier, when Wendy asked me what the fish-scale patients looked like, I messaged Xiao Liu and asked her to send me a photo.”
“There was no reply.”
“Then I sent a message in my department’s group chat.”
“No one replied.”
“So I posted in the hospital-wide group chat.”
“It’s been ten minutes now…”
“Not a single person has responded.”
The car fell deathly silent, with only the sound of their breathing filling the air.
Instinctively, Tong Yang turned toward his wife in the passenger seat.
Realizing what that might mean, he immediately tried to make a U-turn and drive away.
But it was already too late.
He nearly sideswiped a car traveling beside them, forcing him to jerk the steering wheel sharply to regain control.
The driver in the adjacent lane was a bald man with severe road rage. He rolled down his window and began hurling profanities at them.
But no one inside the car had the attention to spare for his shouting.
A massive, bustling, constantly busy hospital…
How could not a single person have noticed the messages in the group chats?
Unless…
They were no longer capable of reading them.
At that moment, their speeding car finally emerged from beneath the shadow of Xinghai Mall and approached the central roundabout, giving them a clear view of what lay ahead.
To the north, in the direction of the Municipal Hospital…
Towering flames lit up the sky.
Countless vehicles had been abandoned haphazardly along the roadside.
Their doors hung wide open.
But their owners were nowhere to be seen.
Beneath the oppressive storm clouds, the streets were as dark as midnight.
The wail of approaching sirens echoed in the distance.
Then, illuminated by the car’s high beams, everyone inside finally saw them.
The streets were packed with countless patients wearing the Municipal Hospital’s gowns.
Their bodies were covered in fish scales.
Like crocodiles, they crawled across the ground on all fours.
The instant the headlights shone upon them…
Every single one of them slowly twisted their heads toward the car in perfect unison.
“I’m so thirsty…”
“I’m so thirsty…”
“I need water…”
“Give me water…”
“Water!”
They surged toward the vehicle in a frenzied crawl.
At that exact moment, Tong Yang’s and Yu Wan’s phones erupted with another shrill emergency alarm.
Emergency Notice! Emergency Notice!
Attention to all citizens currently evacuating to designated shelters. Due to an unidentified mutation occurring in multiple coastal cities, including Huaijiang, Suizhou, and Ting City, all evacuation shelters will be sealed in three hours.
All evacuees are urged to reach their designated shelters as quickly as possible.
We wish you and your family safety.
Author’s Note:
From this chapter onward, I recommend listening to “Anacreon” while reading. Yes—the very same track that’s often used in zombie apocalypse movie edits right before the disaster breaks out. I listened to it while writing this chapter, and it really captured the atmosphere. I think it’ll make the reading experience even better!