Chen Yifei scanned his surroundings, avoiding the streets already cleared by Xi Renjie, and headed straight for the most chaotic direction.
So far, Cold Frost Street and Cold Snow Street had been completely cleared by Chen Yifei. Before leaving, he instructed the residents to lock their doors and windows, to remain silent no matter what happened, and never to open the door without caution, as this was the safest approach according to the disasters' killing patterns.
At this point, Chen Yifei's authority had taken effect. Not a single person on either street dared to question his orders. They nodded vigorously like chickens pecking at grains and promptly locked themselves indoors.
Chen Yifei even felt that even if an earthquake struck and collapsed their houses at this moment, none of them would dare to run outside.
Along the way, he encountered panicked residents fleeing wildly through the streets aimlessly. If he encountered those controlled by shadows, he would immediately eliminate them. If they were not controlled, he would usher them into empty houses and warn them not to wander aimlessly.
Chen Yifei traversed street after street, littered with shattered bodies. The further he ventured towards the outskirts, the more corpses he found. Most of them had been forcibly broken into their homes and killed, or slaughtered en masse by the disasters hiding in shadows as they fled in groups.
Compared to these streets, the damage on Cold Frost Street could be considered a "harmless" clearance.
"Huff..."
In the midst of the ruined streets, Chen Yifei pulled his dagger out of a charred carcass, exhaling deeply.
Over two hours had passed since the disaster invasion began. Chen Yifei couldn't remember how many of these "meat chickens" he had killed. His dagger hand felt weak, and he had emptied several magazines from his pistol. Even the wounds he had inflicted on himself earlier had almost healed.
Even the [Blood Cloak] was struggling to keep up with such intense combat, and a profound fatigue overwhelmed him.
As Chen Yifei mechanically held his dagger and walked towards the next street, his nose twitched slightly, causing him to abruptly stop.
"It smells so good..." Chen Yifei muttered to himself.
A long-lost sparkle appeared in his somber eyes as he turned and surveyed his surroundings, instinctively moving towards the source of the alluring aroma.
In this neighborhood permeated with the stench of blood, this aroma stood out like a bonfire in the midst of extreme cold, so conspicuous and warm that one couldn't help but be drawn to it. Chen Yifei quickened his pace, traversing half a street before finally stopping in front of a shattered house.
It was a liquor shop, its door smashed open, revealing a gruesome scene of blood and mutilated limbs. A fierce blaze raged from deep within the house, as if something was ablaze.
Chen Yifei furrowed his brows, tightened his grip on his dagger, and stepped inside.
The interior of the shop was in complete disarray. The burly shopkeeper, armed with a burning black staff, was shouting and frantically bashing a carcass pinned under debris with it.
As the fiery staff struck, half of the carcass was engulfed in flames, emitting the rich aroma that had drawn Chen Yifei.
"Die! Die! Die!!"
"Dammit! I'm not someone you can mess with easily!"
"Want to eat me? Let me scorch your mouth first!"
The shopkeeper grabbed a nearby jar of liquor, took a gulp, and spat it onto the tip of his staff, causing the flames to balloon several times in size. Gathering his courage, he thrust the blazing end into the carcass's mouth!
Swallowing the flames, the carcass thrashed violently, its shrill screams echoing through the shop, causing the shopkeeper's ears to ring.
Boom!!
In excruciating pain, the carcass somehow managed to wriggle free from the debris, its half-burnt body stumbling and crashing into furniture as it charged towards the shopkeeper!
Startled by its sudden movement, the shopkeeper's face paled. He tried to pull out the burning staff but had no chance. Like being hit by a blazing train, he was slammed into the wall behind him.
Just then, a black figure darted in front of him!
A powerful kick sent the heavy carcass flying into the corner. The shopkeeper felt a gust of wind brush past his face as the centipede was kicked aside.
Gritting his teeth against the pain in his chest, he looked up to see a young man clad in a black trench coat standing calmly before him, gazing thoughtfully at the burning shadow centipede.
Chen Yifei glanced at him. "Can you still move?"
"Uh, yeah, I think so."
"Find a place to hide."
After saying this, Chen Yifei ignored him and walked straight towards the carcass.
In the corner of the room, the mostly charred carcass writhed frantically, no longer displaying its original ferocity and eeriness. Chen Yifei casually pulled the staff out of its mouth, eliciting another painful scream.
Chen Yifei stared at it intently, frozen like a statue.
Disturbed by the centipede's screams, the shopkeeper instinctively covered his ears. He was about to say something when he saw the figure in the black trench coat swallow.
"Sir..."
"Don't you find it aromatic?" Chen Yifei suddenly spoke up.
The shopkeeper froze.
He stared blankly at the writhing, charred centipede. Perhaps due to the flames, the air was permeated with the acrid smell of burning plastic.
"What did you say?" He thought he must have misheard.
"Never mind."
Chen Yifei waved his hand. "You can go now."
"Don't you need my help? I'm not a law enforcer, but I can fight." The shopkeeper finally voiced his true thoughts.
He was indeed capable of fighting and possessed intelligence. Becoming a law enforcer had been his dream since he was young... Unfortunately, his family's finances couldn't support his aspirations. And this law enforcer standing before him might be his only shortcut to realizing that dream.
Chen Yifei had no time for small talk and tersely repeated, "Go."
Seeing Chen Yifei's indifferent attitude, the shopkeeper's eyes flickered with disappointment. With his head bowed, he eventually left the shop.
Left alone, Chen Yifei finally relaxed. Facing the aroma-filled roasted chicken, he couldn't help but swallow again.
From a distance, Chen Yifei hadn't felt much, but standing before this fire-roasted carcass, his physiological reactions were uncontrollable. The perfect blend of liquor and chicken under the flames exuded an intoxicating fragrance, sweet without being cloying, reminiscent of the Hua Diao chicken Chen Yifei used to enjoy.
Exhausted and ravenous, Chen Yifei's mouth began to water at the scent of this liquor-infused roasted chicken.
His rationality told him it was a disaster and absolutely not edible. Who knew what lurked within its body? Bacteria? Parasites? Or something else? Yet, despite this, he couldn't help but take steps towards the roasted chicken...