'It may look like gas but don't be fooled, Yongrui. These are spores from a common plant infected by the virus. One sniff of it and the virus will infect you faster than a zombie bite.'
Flip.
After flipping a page of his notebook, Liu Zhi started writing the next set of explanations about the spores that were believed to infect anyone that inhales it.
'These spores come from a Level-Three High-Leveled Zombie Plant that is carnivorous in nature. It may be derived from a Rafflesia but it's much larger than that. Careful, even though it's just a Level-Three, it's as large as a soccer field.'
'These Zombie Plants also grow underground so we can't detect them. Once a living entity enters its range, it makes the ground collapse, swallowing everything on top of it. That's why, when we detect spores like this, we tend to avoid the whole area where they possibly are.'
"So rabid humans aren't the only ones to worry about now? There are even rabid plants, or in this case, rabid flowers?! What has the world become?!" I told myself as I nodded towards Liu Zhi and the others.
But then again, these are all the virus's fault, or rather, the one who spread it. The virus must've mutated enough that it could now infect plants, and quite possibly animals as well. This is alarming but not as surprising.
"So where are we going?!" I screamed at the top of my lungs just so they could hear.
Liu Zhi pointed towards the exit and gestured for me to follow them.
The moment I took one step towards the door, my senses detected something ominous outside. Or maybe that was just the System warning me of the dangers ahead. Nevertheless, the warning signs prompted me to step back, completely forgetting that Liu Zhi and my party were right in front of me.
And that's when I saw the dark shadows, lurking around the waves of spores that encompassed the atmosphere.
screeeeeeeeech!
kiieeeeeehk!
kuuuhhuwhaak!
"Liu Zhi!" I screamed but my voice was muffled by the gas mask I was wearing. Based on their pained reaction, I could tell that they weren't expecting something like this to happen as well.
That's right, the outside was filled to the brim with Screechers! And not only that, there was a huge horde of rabid humans all around us. It's as if someone realized we were having meat for dinner and decided to tell the whole neighborhood!
Before Liu Zhi and the others could react, I grabbed all of them and forced them back inside the building before closing the door. I wasn't fast enough, however, since one of the Screechers managed to dig its teeth on one of Wu Yan's legs.
"WU YAN!" I screamed before I tried eliminating the Screecher out of oblivion. But Blade was relatively faster than me, quickly slashing the neck of the Screecher before it could do any more damage.
It has been so long since I saw someone get bitten by a rabid human and some sort of primal instinct awoke within me, making me almost lose all my reason.
Somehow, the notification from the System made me snap back into reality. I quickly grabbed Liu Zhi's notebook and wrote something on it.
'What's happening? Why are there a lot of rabid humans outside? Also, don't you have any first-aid kit from a bite from a rabid human?'
Upon reading what I wrote, Liu Zhi pursed his lips and stared at me with deep regret in his eyes. I could tell that there was nothing they could do about it. Even Blade, who rarely wore a different expression aside from his rigid one, was now sniffling as tears streamed down his cheeks. He badly wanted to wipe it but he knew that he couldn't remove the gas mask he was wearing. Doing so would result in the turning, after all.
Liu Zhi shook his head as he grabbed the notebook from me. He then wrote something on it.
Something that I never thought I'd see or hear from them.
'We don't, once someone was bitten, it's over for them. Even though you cut off his or her limbs, the virus just spreads too fast. It takes a bit longer to root itself in the brain but that's about it.'
Flip.
'However, we do have someone who could save her in our Shelter. Our Leader, Shen Rong, has the rare element called the Blood Element. It was just recently discovered before but it's one of the most powerful elements to ever exist.'
'Not only does it allow one to control the blood, it could also rid someone of the virus in the body assuming that the bite was just recent. However, by the time we get to the Red Sea Shelter, I mean, Wu Yan can't make it.'
The Blood Element? Did he just write the blood element?
I immediately grabbed the notebook from Liu Zhi, wondering if I saw it wrong or not. Well, I was sure that he really did write something about the Blood Element but I was too surprised that I had to recheck what he said.
If everything he said was true, then that means there's a chance I could learn more about the Blood Element if I go with them to the Red Sea Shelter. I don't know if their leader is a good-natured person or not but he probably holds all the answers that I need.
But then again, if the System knew more about the Blood Element, I would've improved on it greatly by now. This is probably a rare opportunity from the heavens.
No, I cannot be dumb enough and trust their Leader just because they are good people.
BUT! Rescuing Wu Yan comes first.
Thud thud!
My head whirled around, only to find out that the door to the building was already getting rammed by the countless rabid humans outside. For a moment, I thought I'd have plenty of time to ask them about their Leader but as it turned out, our situation has taken a turn for the worse.
"System, do you think I can do this?" I asked before going towards Wu Yan and grabbing her leg.
"How would I know? I still have no idea how the Blood Element actually works." The System panicked, fully knowing what I was about to do next.