In the pitch-black stairwell, not a trace of light could be seen, as if the darkness stretched on endlessly.
Suddenly, the dense darkness was broken. A beam of light shone in, followed by another, until the entire stairwell was illuminated.
Empty.
Safe, proceed.
This was the minus three level. The lights had reached the wall ahead, and the elevator was on the left.
The stairwell connecting the underground garage had a door, opening inwards.
He peered out. The passage showed no zombie activity, but the commotion and the lights had already attracted the attention of the zombies in the underground garage.
Lin Yuan did not hesitate. He picked up a small bottle of cooking oil and poured a little onto the hinges.
"Turn off the flashlight."
Darkness descended again, and the sound of footsteps grew closer.
Two seconds later, Lin Yuan closed the door. The lubricated hinges made no creaking sound as they smoothly closed.
Lin Yuan turned on his own flashlight and inserted the upper and lower bolts. A stool was handed to him from behind, propping against the door while also bracing against the stairs.
He made a hand gesture to retreat, to the next stairwell.
The zombies, alerted to the disturbance, had run to this area. The disturbance was no longer within their sensory range, so they lingered for a while before scattering.
Lin Yuan and his team had gone from the first floor to the minus three. If they had just said "turn off the flashlight," there would still be a chance for the zombies to track them.
The entire combat team successfully closed the door connecting the stairwell to the underground garage of Building No. 1.
Next was Building No. 2, with the same tactics and formation.
"This is the last door, everyone, put in some effort."
Wang Zhihai and Zhao Mengnan could still hold on, only panting slightly. This level was far less strenuous than their Hell Week training.
"Understood."
Continuing downwards, the flashlight illuminated the stairwell almost as brightly as daytime. As they reached the platform between the minus two and minus three levels, Lin Yuan felt something was wrong. A chill shot up from the soles of his feet. He raised his hand, clenched his fist, and signaled for them to stop and be alert.
Looking down, a layer of yellowish-black slime had already grown to their feet. They quickly retreated to the stairs.
He put his axe aside, pulled himself along the wall, and shone his flashlight outwards. He checked the situation below. A thick network of yellowish-black mycelia, as thick as the roots of a hundred-year-old tree, had covered the entire stairwell from the minus three level to the platform. What lay further down, outside the stairwell entrance, was unclear.
He gestured to retreat. They could not advance further. They needed to go up and discuss.
Without making a sound, everyone slowly backed away.
Returning to the first floor, Wang Zhihai finally asked, "Captain, what happened just now?"
"There's something below, it looks like that thing from the old town that hadn't fully developed. Those slime growths are as thick as tree roots, though the ones below are yellowish-green. I think it's not wise to go down rashly, so I want everyone to discuss how to deal with it."
The unknown is often the most terrifying because you don't know its weaknesses, its strengths or weaknesses, or even what it is.
The six of them gathered, all thinking. Mu Qingtian suddenly had an idea.
"Captain, if people can't go down easily, can we send other things down? Like remote-controlled cars?"
Lin Yuan and the others turned to look at Mu Qingtian, then considered the practicalities. "The idea is feasible, but this is a stairwell. How can we get a remote-controlled car down?"
"I know about that. Yesterday, while choosing blankets with Wu Tian, I saw a remote-controlled car on the seventh floor. That type of remote-controlled car can rotate its front and rear parts, and its wheels are large. The car body is long enough, and it can stand upright. I bought one for my brother; it can climb stairs! And it can go down stairs!" Mu Qingtian said confidently.
Brother?
Hearing this, Lin Yuan suddenly remembered that he hadn't asked where their families were.
He had originally been afraid of reopening their wounds and wanted them to bring it up themselves, but no one had. This made Lin Yuan feel that their families might not be in this county.
Sensing Lin Yuan's gaze, Mu Qingtian smiled and said, "My brother and parents are in Tianfu. I don't know if they were rescued. We didn't bring our phones on missions."
"My family is also in Tianfu. The situation there is unclear. Meng Nan, he only has one younger sister," Wang Zhihai said, looking at Zhao Mengnan and choosing his words carefully.
Zhao Mengnan waved his hand, indicating it was fine. "Well, my parents died in a car accident when An Jing was fifteen. I was still in police academy at the time. Sigh, An Jing's current state is largely my responsibility."
Only Zhu Mingjun's mind almost didn't keep up. Weren't they discussing how to deal with the thing on the minus three level? Why had it suddenly jumped to exchanging family histories?
He immediately realized that he should probably share his own story too. "Ahem, my parents are in the capital. They were rescued by the Liaozhou Peninsula Military Security Zone during the evacuation. My grandfather is in my hometown. I don't know the situation; no one answers the phone. Maybe, he's no longer with us."
However, he quickly cheered up. "It's okay. Grandfather lived to be almost 102 years old. It's time for him to rest. At least it's a joyous passing."
Patting Zhu Mingjun's shoulder, Lin Yuan sighed, "Everyone, stay strong. First, we have to survive to have a chance to see them. Alright, back to the topic. Qingtian, you mentioned using a remote-controlled car. Do we need to tie a mobile phone to the car as well?"
Mu Qingtian nodded. "That's the only way. There are no gaps between these stairs, so it's difficult to operate with a rope."
"Okay, I'll have Wu Tian accompany you to get it," he said, then opened the intercom. "Mengyao, ask Sister Zhou Ping to accompany you to our warehouse to get some batteries, one of each model. Then meet your sister on the seventh floor of Building No. 2."
Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, the intercom crackled to life. "Okay, Lin Yuan Ge, received. We're on our way."
Lin Yuan and the others waited in place, facing the stairwell entrance, guarding against any zombies or other entities that might rush out.
About ten minutes later, Wu Tian and Mu Qingtian came down carrying a large bag.
The bag contained a large remote-controlled car, about the size of a laptop or slightly larger. Its wheels were even taller than the car body, and there was a distinct groove in the middle, presumably for rotation.
Its car body was flat, and combined with those large wheels, it didn't quite look like a car anymore. But after all, it was a toy, designed for fun.
Tied to the car body was likely Wu Tian's phone. That girl also used his solar power bank to charge it occasionally and take photos.
The camera was facing outwards, and a piece of wood was tied to the phone to prevent accidental touches.
Mu Qingtian picked up the remote control and tested it, performing several standing rotations. She was quite skilled.
It seemed that, like Wu Tian, she was an expert at entertaining children at home when she had free time!
After a brief adjustment, they went down again, but their positions had changed. Mu Qingtian stood behind Lin Yuan, controlling the remote-controlled car as it moved downwards under the flashlight's beam.
The two even extended half their bodies, watching the remote-controlled car reach the designated spot outside the stairwell entrance. They had the remote-controlled car rotate slowly in place. A few crisp cracking sounds were heard from below, like something breaking.
Lin Yuan gestured for the remote-controlled car to return quickly.
Illuminated by the flashlight, the remote-controlled car wobbled back. Just as it was about to climb, several clearer tearing sounds echoed, and a pair of devilish red eyes appeared in the darkness beyond the flashlight's reach.
Pure as red jade.
A Night Demon?!!!
The zombie, with some characteristics of a Night Demon, roared, its voice carrying far in the silent garage.
Then, it lunged past the remote-controlled car, intending to rush up.
It was only then that the flashlight beam illuminated it. There were no abnormal growths, just a lot of mushroom growth.
Lin Yuan breathed a sigh of relief. Damn, it scared me to death. It's just a fully formed fungal monster.
"I'll hold off the first wave of impact. You guys provide cover."
He then walked to the stairwell platform, facing the charging zombie directly.
The zombie did not fall, only staggered slightly.
Then, there was no then.
It ran headfirst into Lin Yuan's constructed copper wall, then with a "duang" sound, its head buzzed.
Unable to stand steady, it stumbled again with a "derderder" sound. As Lin Yuan was about to step forward to finish it off, he noticed something wrong under his feet.
Why were the soles of his shoes sticky and gooey?
He quickly retreated back. "Deploy the barricades!"
Wang Zhihai and Zhao Mengnan quickly cleared a path. After Lin Yuan retreated, they wedged the barricades onto the stairwell platform, one side against the wall and the other against the stair treads, forming a diagonal line.
After all, this wasn't a stairwell entrance; there were places to brace on both sides.
Having escaped, Lin Yuan quickly shone his light on the soles of his shoes. Only a thin layer had been corroded. Without further liquid contact, it gradually stopped.
"Everyone, be careful. The secretions of this slime are corrosive."
At this moment, Lin Yuan felt a bit frustrated. Why were there always things that disrupted his attempts to stabilize, train, recuperate, and cultivate his land?
If it weren't for the fear of hidden dangers, he really wanted to burn this thing to ashes!