Jing Shu calmly wiped her mouth, her fingers lingering for a second to ensure no trace of the meal remained. These people were unbelievable; they could distinguish what she had eaten from the faintest, most fleeting scent in the air. It was borderline creepy. It seemed she would have to find a way to air herself out or use a neutralizing spray before stepping out of the villa next time.
"Alright, everyone is here, right? Let's begin the report. Ahem."
As soon as Xiao Shuai spoke into the microphone, his voice amplified and distorted slightly by the aging speakers, the hall quieted down. There were still a few whispers here and there, but for the most part, every ear was strained. Everyone cared about what was going on. After being trapped for days in the freezing dark, the constant pressure was starting to wear on their nerves.
"What I'm about to say is very important. Please remember it carefully," Xiao Shuai said, his face pale in the single spotlight. "Three hours ago, a man and a woman ignored the curfew and went outside.
They were probably trying to find a place to do something private. They were dragged into the mud by an unknown creature and disappeared. When our people went to rescue them, all they found were some shredded clothes and the echoes of their screams."
There wasn't much of a reaction at first. Two people had died, but death wasn't unusual anymore. Compared to the actual loss of life, people were more curious about who the two victims were.
Sleeping in a communal area with absolutely no privacy meant it wasn't surprising that people would risk the cold for a moment alone. It had been years since the end of the world began, and tragedies like this were no longer rare.
"You think this is normal? That it doesn't matter?" Xiao Shuai leaned into the microphone, his eyes scanning the dark rows of people.
"At first, we thought the same. We thought they were just unfortunate victims. We were going to report it and identify them. But here is the problem: three hours have passed, and we still haven't confirmed who they are. Why? Because more of those creatures showed up."
He paused, letting the silence stretch until it felt heavy. "Strange-looking things, covered in black mud, started crawling out of the fast-moving mudflow. They grabbed our rescuers and tried to drag them under as well."
The crowd shifted, a collective shiver running through the room.
"We fired our guns, but it was like shooting into thick mud—it had almost no effect at all. We could only watch as they pulled our people into the black sludge and disappeared. We gathered more men, brought torches, electric batons, and all kinds of weapons. After a fight, the creatures left behind ten corpses and retreated into the flow. But we lost three more people, and five were badly injured."
He gestured toward the side of the stage. "There are a lot of these creatures. They are like wild beasts—strong, fast, and amphibious. Bullets don't work well on them, but they are afraid of light, fire, and electricity. Now, take a look at these bodies. After an examination, we have confirmed they are a new product of the end times."
With a wave of his hand, several mutated corpses were carried onto the stage and dumped under the light. Under the dim, flickering glow, they looked grotesque and terrifying. Each one was over two meters long, their skin a dull, mottled gray.
Without the moisture of the mud to keep them supple, they had dried up quickly, but their skeletal structure remained horrifyingly clear. Their bodies resembled fish skeletons, but they possessed overlapping rows of teeth and two powerful, clawed limbs. They looked like a twisted combination of a deep-sea fish, a lizard, and an oversized head that took up nearly half of their entire form.
Jing Shu frowned, her fingers tapping a slow, rhythmic beat against the arm of her chair. She had never seen anything like this before. She must have slept too deeply last night; only a few of her bugs and snakes had been stationed outside the tower, and they hadn't raised any alarms.
Their intelligence was too low for complex surveillance. Unless her life was directly threatened or she gave a specific command, they wouldn't react, nor would they record events for her to review later.
"After a basic analysis, we conclude they are all-eating Darklife," Xiao Shuai continued. "They can survive just by consuming the minerals in the mud. There's no clear distinction between male and female, and their reproduction method is unknown. They are extremely dangerous and will hunt any living creature they encounter. You can think of them as evolved, amphibious sharks with claws and stronger teeth."
Xiao Shuai relayed everything exactly as he had been instructed, without hiding a single detail. Originally, the leadership had considered softening the report to avoid a mass panic, but in the end, they decided the full truth was necessary. If they didn't make the threat clear, people wouldn't take the curfew seriously.
After hearing the description, Jing Shu quietly released more snakes from her sleeves. They vanished into the shadows, heading for the building's exterior with a new command: if they encountered the Darklife, they were to alert her immediately.
"In a situation like this, you have to tell the truth. Scare them a bit so they stay inside and stop causing trouble." That had been Jun Jia's reasoning, and it worked perfectly.
Once Xiao Shuai finished speaking and displayed the shriveled bodies, the hall erupted in a wave of noise. It wasn't just about how dangerous the creatures were; it was the realization that something that ate people was circling the building, and worse, it could climb.
Xiao Shuai seemed satisfied with the reaction and leaned forward. "Do you know what this means? It's like we are on a giant ship, drifting at sea, surrounded by sharks. And these sharks can crawl onto land to pick off anyone who strays alone."
A wave of fear spread through the crowd. Before, they had only felt the slow-burning anxiety of being trapped. Now, it had turned into a immediate terror.
"So from now on, unless you have a permit, no one is allowed to leave the building. Anyone who violates this will be thrown into the water to feed the sharks," Xiao Shuai said lightly, almost cheerfully. But no one objected. At this point, no one wanted to step foot outside anyway. Staying inside the dark, crowded tower suddenly felt like the only safe choice in the world.
"Oh, and one more thing," Xiao Shuai added, his voice dropping an octave. "Because of the large number of people, food is running low. Boss Lü has decided to double all food prices."
"What? How can that be? We are already out of money!" a man shouted from the back.
"Yeah, it's expensive and tastes awful already," another woman added. "It's hard to even swallow!"
"They have already mixed mud into the flour!"
Xiao Shuai nodded as if he expected the complaints. "That's why we need five hundred volunteers to build defensive barriers and traps around the building. Those who participate will receive three free meals a day."
The offer hung in the air. If they didn't volunteer, many people wouldn't be able to afford to eat. If they did go, they would be working in the very place where the Darklife hunted.
"Don't worry, we have identified the weaknesses of the Darklife. We will ensure your safety."
The most conflicted group in the room was Jing Shu's former classmates. They simply didn't have the virtual currency to survive a price hike.
"Wait, has anyone seen Cheng Long?" a girl whispered.
"He isn't here. I didn't see him this morning at roll call."
"Where is he? Wasn't he with Sister Tang Yuan?"
Tang Yuan's voice trembled as she spoke. "He said he was going to help Ba Ge last night…"
Jin Baba's voice came from the side, sharp and dismissive. "Don't drag me into this. If I needed help, I would ask Lan Shao. I haven't seen him."
Everyone went quiet. Where had Cheng Long gone? Could one of the missing people from the mudslide be him? His wife, Tang Yuan, sat frozen in her chair, her eyes wide.
Jing Shu shook her head slowly. She didn't even know what to say to them. This whole thing felt absurd.