The food’s counterattack
by M1zushiUnder the dim moonlight, the Resource Manager shifted his legs impatiently.
His knees seemed to be moving upwards, lengthening his lower legs and causing the fabric of his pants to strain at the middle.
An Yu, listening intently to the sound of fibers stretching, murmured to himself, “After a whole day under the light, is the first stage of mutation finally completed?”
As soon as he spoke, the Resource Manager’s sleeves and pant legs tore apart simultaneously, and enormous mantis legs unfurled, slashing towards him!
An Yu sprang up and flipped back, landing lightly.
Through the dust swirling in the air, he crouched with one hand on the ground, staring at his opponent.
The surprised Resource Manager exclaimed, “A mediocre low-income maggot like you could actually dodge that.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
Indeed, his experience was limited, so he remembered everything he had seen.
The Resource Manager’s attack pattern was identical to that of the mantis aberrant from earlier today.
In the faint light, the swaying shadow of a scythe-like limb was cast on the ground. An Yu spoke slowly, “You must have forged the survival guide, right? Mantis aberrants require light to initiate their mutation. This light is the catalyst for the first-stage mutation. After completing the first stage, they start cannibalizing each other. Not only do you have to compete with jellyfish for food, but you also have to kill your own kind. This mechanism directly forces District 53 into a constant upheaval, threatening your position.”
“What you did was…” An Yu looked up at the Resource Manager. “First, you used the survival guide to trick everyone into turning on the lights, initiating their mutations. Then, before they could figure out the rules, you traded their light sources for food, ensuring they distorted slower than you, becoming your food reserves for the next stage.”
The Resource Manager excitedly waved his scythe-like limbs. “It seems like you’ve encountered a guy who completed the first-stage mutation. But how did you suspect me?”
“It’s the opposite.” An Yu said.
“What’s the opposite?”
“The logic is the opposite.” An Yu looked past the grotesque figure towards the corridor behind him. “Everyone knows that you’re the most despicable person.”
The stench in the room gave him a momentary illusion of being back in his low-income dormitory. He even saw Ling Qiu talking in front of him. Ling Qiu had indeed taught him many things; those incessant naggings over all these years had gradually seeped into his subconscious.
He stared into the dark corridor, “My neighbor once said, ‘Nobility is an evil person’s most clumsy lie.’ When disaster is imminent, you actually took us in and gave us bread right away. Isn’t that absurd?”
“So, you’ve been suspicious of me from the start… I never noticed you in the slums,” the Resource Manager’s voice gradually became hoarse. “You’re right. You are all my food reserves. Isn’t that the same for both humans and mantises?”
“That’s correct. But, sir—” An Yu’s gaze suddenly snapped back to the Resource Manager’s face. His golden eyes narrowed swiftly until they were mere slits.
He sighed, “We, the food, also have the right to be dissatisfied with the rules, don’t we?”
Before the sigh had fully escaped his lips, the scythe-like limb suddenly slashed down!
The moment An Yu dodged, the sharp blade shifted from a heavy strike to a sweeping slash. He rolled aside but was immediately lifted by another limb and slammed against the wall!
With a loud crash, his body rebounded heavily off the wall, only to be pinned back by the scythe limb again!
An Yu’s heartbeat spiraled out of control and his carotid artery throbbing wildly as it was pressed against the mantis leg blade.
“A human body cannot possibly challenge an aberrant,” the Resource Manager watched him darkly. “Didn’t your neighbor teach you that?”
An Yu raised his head, “No, he didn’t.”
Dust from the wall fell into his hair as he held his breath, pushing against the scythe limb with all his might. Millimeter by millimeter, centimeter by centimeter, the gap between the two scythes widened and veins bulged at his temples.
Suddenly, the Resource Manager withdrew his strength! As An Yu broke free and leaped up, another strike came down towards his shoulder!
— An Yu was directly slammed from the air, his knee hitting the ground hard!
The heavy scythe limb pressed him onto the ground and a massive shadow loomed over him as he knelt at its feet, gasping for breath as if on the verge of death.
“A familiar scene,” the Resource Manager sneered, his scythe limb poised above An Yu’s head. “It seems the people of District 53 will always be my food.”
An Yu took deep breaths, again and again, until his lungs felt like they were about to burst and his heartbeat finally calmed.
He whispered, “What knelt here ten years ago was indeed food.”
After a moment of silence, he suddenly lifted his head, facing the sharp blade directly.
“But today, the world has changed.”
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“Today, I just want to kneel here one more time before ending you.”
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Zhang! Sparks flew as the blade scraped against the mantis’ joints!
Don't scrape
Don't copy
Ten years ago, Ling Qiu had taken him away from the resource station, spitting out ash as he said, “Kneeling is not shameful. As long as you achieve your goal, kneeling is just a posture of victory.”
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An Yu grabbed the Resource Manager by the neck, “Speak! Where is Xiao You? Where is Ling Qiu!”
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A struggling scythe scratched the back of An Yu’s ear and blood dripped down, but he didn’t notice. He only felt as if the space around him was fluctuating.
Don't scrape
Don't copy
The Resource Manager’s remaining right eye stared at the wall—there were photos of this little girl pasted everywhere in the house, but he couldn’t remember who she was. On a rainy night two days ago, she suddenly appeared outside the resource station, being chased by a jellyfish creature. She banged on the door, screaming for her father, but he only felt puzzled.
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The Resource Manager looked back at the blood dripping behind An Yu’s ear. “I find it hard to suppress my desire for you. Are you sure you’re not one of us?”
Sure enough, the brain circuit is the same as that thing on the shuttle bus.
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He suddenly yanked the knife out and slit his throat with a swift motion!
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A tall figure emerged from the darkness.
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The only sound in the quiet room was his heavy breathing.
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The Brain said that encouraging An Yu to express himself more could improve his social skills.
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Don't scrape
“There are already enough people who are unable to stand up under these so-called rules,” he softly repeated Qin Zhilu’s words from earlier. “Wasn’t that your implicit command?”
Qin Zhilu was surprised for a moment, then chuckled lightly.
“Looks obedient on the surface, but shifts the blame.”
Using the handkerchief, he lifted An Yu’s chin and began to wipe the blood from his face, standing right in front of him.
The cold leather scent suppressed the stench around him.
An Yu looked up at Qin Zhilu in the dim light. Those black eyes could sometimes be suffocating, yet at other times, they offered a sense of safety.
For example, like now.
“You have a certain quality,” Qin Zhilu suddenly said.
“What?”
“A bit of humanity and a lot of ferocity.” He was born to be a hunter.
“But you still need to grow,” Qin Zhilu stated objectively. “You’re too timid. I’ve never seen anyone react so strongly to killing something that hasn’t even fully mutated yet.”
An Yu felt he was being criticized and murmured, “Once I understand my abilities better, this won’t happen.”
Suddenly feeling a little depressed, he said, “It’s a pity Xiao You isn’t here. I can’t ask the Housing Manager to fulfill his promise.”
The hand wiping his face paused for a moment before continuing. Qin Zhilu spoke up, “A permanent residence apartment.”
“What?”
“A reward for taking down the Resource Manager by yourself. You get to choose the location and the style.”
An Yu was stunned for a moment, his eyes trembled, and he subconsciously wanted to get up.
“Don’t move,” Qin Zhilu frowned. “You’re still dirty.”
He finished cleaning the blood off An Yu’s face, then brushed his hair aside. He paused, “You have a scar behind your ear.”
It was a scar about four centimeters long, smooth but still vividly red.
An Yu thought for a moment before saying, “Oh, I’ve had it since I was a kid.”
The leather gloves brushed against the outer ear as he adjusted An Yu’s earpiece, which had loosened during the fight.
The room was too quiet and An Yu calmed down and finally remembered how he should act.
So when the handkerchief touched the back of his ear again, he hissed softly, “It hurts, sir.”
Qin Zhilu’s movement froze, and after a while, he seemed to laugh softly before continuing to wipe the wound. “I found the cabin notes in the warehouse.”
“Cabin notes?”
“Basic knowledge. The military is stationed in the Main City’s makeshift cabins, so their messages during communication blackouts are called cabin notes.” Qin Zhilu handed him a stack of papers. “The Resource Manager got hold of a military pen, but he had never seen real cabin notes, so he mistakenly used the format for documents exchanged between the Main City and Bait City when docking supplies.”
An Yu thought to himself, it turns out the commander had seen through the lie from the very beginning.
The ink on the paper was blurred by blood, but the deep strokes were still legible.
[Military #142059, Second Lieutenant Zhang Xun, in District 53.]
The miasma has dispersed the squad and the signal was lost. I will leave this cabin note here.
Jellyfish creatures have merged with the rain and infiltrated the water systems, making this city highly exposed.
However, the jellyfish seemed to be limited—they will perish if they cannot merge with a human within 8 hours.
The power suddenly came back on, and I felt my limbs stiffen. I have been wearing a protective suit the entire time and haven’t seen any arthropods.
The situation is dire, and I need to find the power station while I am still lucid.
This should be my last message.
I wish the companions behind me a successful defense.
Order above all.
[Military #150833, Lieutenant Chen Lufeng, in District 53.]
I found the cabin note at the power station, but I did not find Second Lieutenant Zhang Xun.
The energy core is missing; there must be a super-aberrant causing trouble in the shadows.
My limbs are also beginning to stiffen. I have seen a mantis-like human, but I didn’t see the mantis itself.
My consciousness is fading, and the hunger at night is unbearable. Eating normal food seems to delay the mutation, but I have a stronger craving for eating my own kind.
I’m sorry, Second Lieutenant Zhang Xun, I too will perish in this genetic plunder.
But I will minimize my threat to humanity.
I wish the companions behind me a successful defense.
Order above all.
[Military #129674, Major Chris, in District 53.]
I am the commander of this operation. I found the cabin notes on Lieutenant Chen Lufeng’s body. Lieutenant Chen Lufeng died after a decisive act of self-determination, with no significant mutation at the time of death.
After obtaining this note, I also started experiencing limb stiffness.
I suspect that the mutation gene is encoded in the electrical energy and radiates onto people.
My shoulders have already crusted over, but there is no entropy increase. This is an unprecedented distortion phenomenon.
I have decided to abandon my human identity and undergo rapid mutation. Humanity needs to witness this firsthand to learn and defeat it.
I will leave the cabin notes to Sergeant Ling Qiu, who will track my changes and figure out this bizarre distortion.
It is cruel for both of us, but it is what we ought to do.
I wish the companions behind me a successful defense.
Order above all.
There is one last page.
In the dim light, An Yu lowered his gaze. He didn’t want to turn to the next page.
If Ling Qiu were here, he would probably be surprised by his sudden sadness.
Qin Zhilu’s wrist paused. “Shall I read it first?”
An Yu shook his head, “Let’s read it together, sir.”
The next note filled a whole page.
[Military #215001, Reserve Sergeant Ling Qiu, in District 53.]
I received the cabin notes from Major Chris, who had already started to transform into a mantis.
After hunting down six mantis people, he completed the torso and head mutations.
After the torso mutation, Major Chris essentially lost his human will.
Upon completing the head mutation, he froze on the ground and ceased all activity. For the sake of caution, I didn’t go forward to check.
During the day, I hid in a residential building and encountered a group of smart kids; I had to find food for them.
After dark, I came out of the building, but Major Chris had disappeared.
The Resource Manager was very resistant to my advice about the lights; something was off with him, and I had to leave.
I will leave the cabin notes in the warehouse, and I believe there will be companions passing by later.
Ling Qiu is not dead.
An Yu breathed a sigh of relief and looked at the at the small words at the bottom of the page.
- The city has multiple distortion sources, and the danger level is: water bugs < jellyfish < mantis.
- Water bugs are non-infectious, jellyfish can merge with human genes, and mantises are more complex, but their final state remains unobserved.
- There is a delay in the increase of genetic entropy; do not blindly trust the terminal’s detection function.
- Super-aberrants tend to use multiple defenses to hide themselves. There is a high probability that there are more powerful distorted creatures in the inner city, so please be very cautious.
“Your neighbor is quite exceptional,” Qin Zhilu commented as he opened his terminal and entered Ling Qiu’s military ID.
The photo on the profile page was taken when Ling Qiu was sitting at the door of the low-income dormitory on the day he received his military uniform. He was full of ambition and a flame medal was affixed next to his profile picture—the first place of the recruits in the 2150 class.
An Yu gazed at that long-lost smile, somewhat dazed.
At the end of the note, Ling Qiu had written:
District 53 is beyond saving, but this is my home, and An Yu is my only family.
Human order is noble; even if District 53 falls, it still remains equally noble.
Snowflake fragments
[Ling Qiu(1/3)]
[The Vast World]
The slum courtyard is a small square.
Standing at the bottom of the well and looking up, the decaying and dilapidated buildings stretch straight to the sky. If you stare long enough, you might mistake this as the entirety of the world.
Only An Yu likes this place.
He enjoys the narrow corners, which makes him feel safe. Whenever I talk about how big the world outside is, he gets a bit anxious.
To be honest, I felt a bit anxious too when I first stepped into the Main City.
But soon enough, my name jumped to the top of the list of new recruits in the Main City military.
Those peers who came from the Main City’s wealthy families called me the King of Recruits.
I can’t wait for the training to end so I can give An Yu a long call, if he’s awake by then.
I need to let him know that the world outside is indeed vast.
But it is not insurmountable.
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