Chapter 2: Widow (2)
On the other side, Lu Shen, no, the alien , continued to gaze at them with its dark eyes.
Coming back from the dead, possessing another body, such a thing couldn't possibly happen. Lu Ran was an atheist, even when his father was alive, he wasn't afraid, let alone a dead person.
Lu Ran frowned and instinctively protected Shi Long behind him, placing his hand on the butt of his gun at his waist and said coldly, "Lu Shen, what kind of trick are you playing, acting like a zombie in a movie?"
The alien didn't speak, it moved its nose, turned its stiff head, and looked in their direction.
The scent was so good.
The smell was so good.
Lu Shen's palm opened and closed, his neck turning with a clicking sound, taking a step forward, and stepping out of the coffin.
"Stop!" Lu Ran pulled out his gun, his slender fingers resting on the trigger, and shouted sharply, "Or I'll shoot!"
The alien species couldn't understand his language, it only knew that the delicious scent was ahead of it.
It manipulated Lu Shen's body, step by step, moving forward.
"Bang!"
Lu Ran fired his gun.
His hands were steady as a rock, and the bullet hit Lu Shen's thigh.
But this shot had no effect at all. Lu Shen seemed to feel no pain at all; he ran faster and faster, more and more urgently. He became more proficient with each step, to the point that it was unimaginable. Lu Shen's old and obese body was running With such agile movements, it seemed like the creature was about to reach the two of them.
"Boom, boom, boom!" Without hesitation, Lu Ran fired several shots, all hitting Lu Shen's forehead.
Lu Shen's head exploded, scattering red and white brain matter all over the ground. His fat and bloated body remained standing, while his skull rolled down with a soft thud, revealing the white bones beneath.
Lu Ran clicked his tongue in annoyance, ready to fire again, when he noticed a dark, viscous substance oozing from Lu Shen's neck and falling to the ground with a splat.
The substance was sticky, about the size of a fist, and as black as paint, but had an inorganic sheen that seemed to absorb all surrounding light. It curved slightly, using its "eyes" to observe the world around it.
It was searching for the source of that enticing fragrance.
The creature scanned the black coffin, the hanging white funeral banners, the standing eulogies, and the burning candles with its "eyes." And then, it abruptly paused as its gaze landed on a figure standing behind Lu Ran.
It "saw" the captivating and delicate silhouette behind Lu Ran.
A subtle electric current surged through the creature. It didn't understand what it meant to be beautiful or ugly, or even what humans were, but it instinctively felt drawn to the attractiveness of that individual.
That person was... his mate.
Before Lu Ran could react, the black slime surged towards him like lightning.
"What the hell is this thing?!" Lu Ran cursed loudly, raising his gun to keep shooting. However, the target of the slime was not him.
Like a nimble ball, it headed directly towards the beautiful and delicate figure in white mourning attire standing behind Lu Ran.
Shilong panicked and tried to dodge, but his untrained body couldn't match the speed of the creature.
The black slime moved swiftly towards Shilong's face, and just when Shilong thought he was going to be disfigured, the slime suddenly slowed down when it was only centimeters away from his nose. It sank downward with a soft sound, hitting Shilong's chest.
The slime had a corrosive exterior, and upon contact with the mourning attire, it instantly ate through the rough fabric, creating a large tear.
Shilong's pupils dilated, and his heart felt like it was about to stop beating. Was he going to become a mindless monster controlled by the creature, just like Lu Shen?
In that split second, Lu Ran reached out with both hands, without hesitation, and tried to peel the black slime off Shilong's body.
Shilong, being the widow of the deceased, was wearing cotton mourning attire. The fabric was fragile, and Lu Ran's forceful actions resulted in a tearing sound as he ripped a large hole in it.
Both the creature and Lu Ran paused simultaneously.
The creature was like a famished wolf seeing meat, pouncing on Shilong. The slime extended and elongated, forming a vine-like shape that tightly wrapped around Shilong, layer upon layer.
It hurt so much...
With his slender figure and little flesh on his waist to begin with, the tendrils squeezing him were exerting too much force. Shilong couldn't breathe anymore, and he didn't have the strength to remove the creature from his body. Tears welled up in his eyes, staining his long and thick eyelashes.
Was he going to die like this?
Dying within a few hours of arriving in this world would make him the worst player in history.
[FIRE.]
Shilong: "...What?"
The system's cold mechanical voice pierced his mind. [The creature is afraid of fire.]
It's afraid of fire!
Shilong suddenly opened his eyes, tears still glistening on his long lashes. He squeezed out a few words from his throat. "Candles... Lu Ran, quickly use the candles to burn it!!"
Lu Ran swiftly turned around, grabbing the candle from the altar and igniting the black tendrils.
Suddenly, both of them seemed to hear a faint scream. The black tendrils struggled, losing control, and let go of their grip on Shilong, falling to the ground like a wriggling black worm.
Lu Ran raised his shoe and stomped on the black tendrils, grinding them forcefully into the ground. "What the hell is this thing? I'll cut you up and study you!"
The tentacle's uncontrollable reaction to the fire was only temporary. Before Lu Ran could even finish speaking, it slipped away like a flexible snake, climbing up the pillar and hiding in the shadows where the light couldn't reach, then disappearing without a trace.
It is still too weak to possess its mate.
But when it becomes stronger... When it becomes stronger, it will surely come back to find its mate.
Its mate that belongs only to it.
"Damn it!" Lu Ran cursed. "Let it escape!"
He frowned and turned to look at Lu Shen, who had already been shattered into pieces. What the hell was this thing?!
No one could answer him.
Lu Ran exhaled sharply and angrily put his gun back in its holster. Shi Long still hadn't regained his senses, with tears streaming down his snowy cheeks and redness at the corners of his eyes, looking pitifully scared.
Indeed, Shi Long was terrified. Experiencing the fear of a horror game firsthand was completely different from knowing the background story from the system's text.
Seeing firsthand the abilities of the creature that were beyond human comprehension, Shi Long, who had lived a sheltered life, felt his hands trembling.
The creature could kill Lu Shen with such methods, and it could do the same to him.
It was thanks to 9617 reminding him that the creature was afraid of fire that he narrowly escaped with his life.
Shi Long's beautiful face wrinkled, and he stammered, "9617, thank you. If we encounter danger again, will you protect me?"
The system responded with its cold mechanical voice, [No.]
Shi Long didn't give up and pleaded, "Can you at least give me a hint for clearing the game?"
[No.]
"Wuwu, not even a little bit?"
[The system adheres to principles of fairness, objectivity, and rationality and does not provide special treatment.]
"But... you just reminded me that the creature is afraid of fire."
[ ... ]
Shi Long: "...?"
After a while, the system finally replied, [That was a newbie welfare, a one-time thing. There won't be any more.]
"Okay..." Shi Long's disappointment was evident as he drooped his mouth, his beautiful eyes also sagging, like an abandoned puppy.
All of these heart-stopping events happened in just a few seconds. Lu Ran's subordinates heard the gunshot and immediately rushed into the hall, only to see Lu Shen's brain matter and blood splattered on the floor. They gasped in shock, "Boss, what happened? Did something happen to you guys?"
One of the subordinates turned his head and saw Shi Long huddled on the side, about to say something but choked on his words.
Oh...
His subordinates couldn't help but speculate.
The funeral hall, his deceased father, the delicate little beauty.
Unbelievable, unbelievable.
Who would have thought that their boss, who usually seems uninterested in women, is actually into this kind of thing! He usually would drive away all the pretty girls who stick to him, but he's into this!
Lu Ran frowned unhappily, "What are you thinking?"
"Nothing!" His subordinate instinctively replied, "I really didn't notice your interest in these beautiful boy's!"
Lu Ran: "..."
Shi Long: "..."
Lu Ran was doused with a bucket of dirty water by his subordinate, and he was furious, his eyebrows standing up, "What the fuck are you thinking? I didn't do anything!"
Subordinate: "Yes, yes, you're right. It was the poor quality of the clothes that caused them to tear; and Lu Shen's body came out by itself, it's all because he
didn't die completely. You didn't do anything!"
But...
The subordinate hesitated for a moment, and for the sake of his boss's happiness, he still spoke up, "If you like it, I suggest using lower temperatures so that it won't hurt the little mistress, and you can also enjoy it."
The subordinate said sincerely, "Look, the little mistress skin has turned red from being burned."
Lu Ran subconsciously looked down at the candle in his hand, used to burn the black sticky substance, the wax was still slowly flowing; then he looked at Shi Long, whose skin was visibly red from being tightly bound.
Lu Ran: "..."
Lu Ran: "Fuck!!!"