The young troublemakers finally made their move. Four shadowy figures slipped unnoticed into the ventilation duct entrance in the restroom. By the time Li Yi spotted them on the surveillance monitors, they had already crawled deep inside.
"Idiots!" Zhang Lei muttered. "They didn't even take basic protective gear!"
No one dared shout after them, fearing that any noise might spark panic among the recently calmed survivors in the underground hall. Li Yi kept a close eye on the few functioning surveillance feeds, tracking the group's path as best he could.
"The temperature sensors are spiking," Xu Peng noted, pointing to the monitor. "The readings in duct C-7 are climbing rapidly… something's wrong."
For 15 minutes, there was no sign of activity. Then, a blood-curdling scream echoed through the metal ducts, its sound amplified and distorted as it reverberated through the system. The crowd in the hall immediately grew restless.
Ten minutes later, only one of the group returned. Xiao Yang, the youngest of them, crawled out of the duct covered in blood. A horrific wound on his right arm exposed muscle and bone, as if it had been torn apart by something with immense force. The veins around the injury glowed faintly blue, spreading outward at an alarming rate.
"Clear some space!" Dr. Chen shouted, rushing to help.
When they placed Xiao Yang on a makeshift bed, the crowd recoiled. The glowing veins on his arm were now visibly pulsing, spreading the eerie blue luminescence further with each heartbeat.
"His body temperature is skyrocketing," Dr. Chen said, his voice trembling. "He's been infected."
Xiao Yang's pupils began glowing with the same eerie blue light. His body convulsed violently, as though electricity was coursing through his veins.
"They're coming! They're coming!" Xiao Yang screamed, his last coherent words. The next moment, he let out an ear-splitting screech and sprang upright with inhuman strength. Grabbing a nurse by the arm, he lifted her off the ground with one hand and hurled her into the crowd.
"Everyone, back away!" Zhang Lei shouted, but it was too late.
The mutated Xiao Yang moved with terrifying speed and power, throwing another nurse like a rag doll into a group of survivors. Chaos erupted instantly. Screams, cries, and prayers filled the air, blending into a deafening cacophony.
"Retreat!" Li Yi commanded the remaining security guards, but the infected quickly overwhelmed the survivors. Those scratched or bitten by Xiao Yang began transforming in record time.
The underground hall descended into total chaos. People ran in all directions, searching for escape routes that didn't exist. The number of infected grew exponentially, moving with unnerving coordination, as though following a programmed directive.
"This way!" Xu Peng grabbed Wang Wei's arm, pointing to an inconspicuous duct in the corner. "It leads to the equipment room and the players' locker room corridor."
Li Yi and Zhang Lei exchanged a glance and quickly made a decision. "Save as many as you can!" They split up, each trying to guide uninfected survivors toward the escape route.
In the face of disaster, human nature revealed itself. Some shoved others aside to flee, others collapsed into sobs of despair, while a few sat motionless, resigned to their fate. The suited man, now infected, lunged at a young girl hiding in a corner, his once-pristine face marred by grotesque blue veins.
"Move!" Zhang Lei cleaved through a path with his fire axe, clearing the way for others. Wang Wei and Li Yi covered the rear as Xu Peng led the group forward. Qi Shan stayed close to Wang Wei, her expression tense but determined.
As they crawled into the duct, Wang Wei looked back. The once-bustling underground hall was now a hellscape. Pulsing blue bioluminescence illuminated countless twisted faces, while the screams of the uninfected were replaced by inhuman howls.
The duct's metal cover slammed shut, sealing the nightmare behind them.
The backup duct was narrower than the main ventilation system, forcing the group to crawl in single file. Their breathing echoed loudly in the confined space, each breath a reminder of their vulnerability. At the front, Xu Peng led the way with an LED light from his toolkit, casting eerie shadows on the curved metal walls.
"This duct was originally part of the arena's drainage system," Xu Peng whispered. "It leads to the locker room hallway but passes through the main electrical room."
Suddenly, a loud bang reverberated through the duct behind them. The infected were trying to break through the sealed entrance. Each strike sent shivers through the metal walls, the vibrations amplified into a bone-chilling hum.
"They're testing different frequencies," Li Yi observed, his voice calm but urgent. "Just like they did in the ventilation ducts. They're using resonance to locate us."
The duct sloped downward near the electrical room, and the air grew damp, carrying the sharp tang of ozone. The faint hum of high-voltage currents filled the space. Xu Peng halted and gestured for caution.
"Be careful," he warned. "The high-voltage equipment here generates stray currents in the duct walls. Don't touch the metal."
As they moved cautiously, a faint glow appeared ahead. The blue light seemed to form a distorted humanoid silhouette, flickering eerily in the dark.
"Is it an infected?" Wang Wei whispered. "Waiting for us?"
"No," Xu Peng said suddenly, realization dawning. "It's the controller lights. They flicker blue as part of the system."
After carefully navigating the electrical room, the duct began to incline once more.
"Right turn here," Xu Peng instructed. "This is the final maintenance section. It leads directly to the locker room hallway."
When they finally emerged from the duct, they found themselves in a long corridor bathed in blood-red emergency lighting. A motivational banner on the wall reading "Chengdu Makes Dreams Come True" seemed almost mocking in the ominous glow.
"This way," Li Yi pointed to a set of double doors at the end of the hallway, reaching for the handle.
"This should be the U.S. team's locker room. Why is it locked?" He pulled out a staff keycard and swiped it across the reader. The red indicator flashed, then turned green.
Suddenly, hurried footsteps and the clang of metal came from inside. Zhang Lei raised his fire axe, preparing for a fight.
"Somebody outside? Please save us!" a voice called, thick with an American accent.
The door creaked open, revealing a young face. It was Jack Wilson, a backup forward for the U.S. team. His uniform was still pristine, but his expression radiated terror and exhaustion. Behind him stood another young man wearing a translator's badge, watching the doorway warily.
"Thank God! We thought everyone was dead!" Jack exclaimed. The translator, Jason Chen, quickly repeated in Mandarin, "感谢上帝,我们以为所有人都死了."
"How did you end up here?" Wang Wei asked, scanning the luxurious locker room. The space was fully equipped, including a running gaming console paused mid-match on a large screen.
Jason explained, "I came here to retrieve some documents. Jack was a substitute and stayed back playing video games. When the screams started, the electronic locks malfunctioned, trapping us inside."
"What about the rest of the team?" Li Yi pressed.
"They were all on the court," Jack said through Jason. "When the disaster began, everyone ran in different directions. Some headed for the parking lot, others followed security. We've been stuck here, watching the chaos through the monitors."
Xu Peng inspected the room. "This place has independent power from a backup generator. The water pressure in the showers is still active." He checked the lockers. "There are plenty of sports drinks and energy bars too."
"We'll rest here for now," Zhang Lei decided. "Then figure out a way to contact the outside world." He pointed to the ceiling vent. "The ventilation here is separate—it should be safe for now."
Qi Shan suddenly noticed a shallow scratch on Jack's arm. The wound was fresh, its edges tinged with an unnatural bluish hue.
Her pupils dilated as she shouted, "Wait! He's injured!"
All eyes turned to Jack's arm. Under the red emergency lights, the faint blue glow seemed to pulse, a harbinger of something far worse about to unfold.