The Cul-de-Sac Confrontation

With my head bowed and cold sweat trickling down, I found myself paralyzed, unsure of what to do besides remaining utterly still.

The creature that had just assaulted me was a grotesque mass of flesh, writhing with an innumerable tangle of tentacles.

Why couldn’t I simply pass out? Was this a perverse consequence of being utterly consumed by fear?

‘I have to escape, or else my life will… truly end here.’

“Hey! Can you hear me, kid?”

Grandma’s voice suddenly resonated within my mind, startling me so completely that I could do nothing but widen my eyes.

“Say nothing now; simply follow my instructions.” Grandma’s voice carried an undeniable gravity, brooking no refusal, and in my current predicament, I had no other option.

‘Understood,’ I silently affirmed, hoping Grandma would hear me.

“It’s coming!”

At her warning, I instinctively glanced back, only to see a tentacle-like appendage rapidly lashing out towards me, severing another lock of my hair!

“Don’t look back, you fool! Just follow my lead!” Grandma’s voice sharpened, becoming distinctly sterner.

“Ah! My apologies!”

Pushing aside my terror of the monstrous entity, I gritted my teeth, immediately spun around, and awaited her command.

“Now! Pivot sharply to your left and bolt! Run towards that passage!”

No sooner had she finished speaking than I forcefully and swiftly turned my body to the left. In that same instant, a tentacle lunged precisely where my right shoulder had been, leaving a small crater in the floor!

I broke into a desperate sprint, straining towards the passage before me. This was clearly not the mall’s exit, but I had no time to dwell on such details; preserving my life was paramount!

CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!

The tentacles relentlessly stabbed behind me, rapidly pockmarking the mall’s floor and walls in a terrifying display of destruction.

“Leap with your left foot!”

Without a moment’s thought, I complied, my eyes darting to confirm that a fresh hole had indeed erupted precisely where I had stood moments before!

‘That was too close! My left foot nearly vanished!’

I ran forward with all my might, nearing the passage. Yet, the corridor presented two diverging paths—left and right. Which way should I go?

“Turn left at the upcoming entrance; be cautious.” Mercifully, the instruction arrived.

I braced myself to veer left, but my speed was so immense that, to avoid colliding with the wall, I leveraged my momentum for an unsteady display of ‘flying over eaves and walking on walls’ (TL Note: A Wuxia martial arts maneuver, akin to parkour, involving running along walls). The relentless stabs of the tentacles mirrored my trajectory, tearing through both the ground and the wall in their wake.

“These are all straight paths; run at your absolute fastest and don’t stop until you reach the very end!”

“Understood! Ha—ha—ha—” As I landed from the wall, I gasped for breath, striving to regain the momentum I had lost during my brief ascent, and bolted forward with renewed urgency.

****

The tentacles’ assaults gradually lessened. Was I finally shaking them off? I couldn’t afford to be complacent; I resolved to run all the way to the end of the corridor.

“Haah—haah—ha—ah—” I bent at the waist, hands braced on my knees, gasping for air, my disheveled hair clinging to my face with sweat.

For more than ten seconds, I hadn’t heard the destructive sounds of walls or floors giving way. I had successfully reached the end of the passage, though it was a dead end—Grandma had led me straight into a cul-de-sac.

I lifted my gaze, surmising this was an unfinished storefront, littered with sand and paint buckets. Though unlit and somewhat dark, visibility remained sufficient.

‘Grandma, what exactly is happening? What was that grotesque, terrifying entity? And you possess telepathy?’ I mentally questioned. Given how she had just guided me, I knew she could hear my thoughts.

“There’s no time for extensive explanations now. She and I are currently evacuating the remaining people in the mall. You need to mentally prepare yourself, then go confront that thing in hand-to-hand combat and destroy it.”

****

My expression utterly froze.

“What?!” I shrieked, my voice echoing against the walls of the deserted cul-de-sac.

“Don’t worry! It might sting a little, but it’s nothing serious; trust me!” Grandma’s words were imbued with profound sincerity, making it clear she wasn’t lying.

Yet,

“This is no time for jokes, Grandma!” I shouted once more into the confined space.

‘In this situation, I could very well die!’

“I’m not joking with you! Among everyone present, your combat strength is the highest. Muster your courage, go up there, and annihilate it!”

“Hurry! Otherwise, the firefighters, responding to what they believe is a false alarm, will arrive, and we absolutely cannot involve ordinary civilians!”

Leaning against the wall, I listened to Grandma’s insistent prodding, my mind racing to process everything that had just occurred.

‘She didn’t lead me into this cul-de-sac solely to force me to deal with that monster, did she?!’

‘Is this real? I can’t believe it!’

I moistened my parched lips, then silently conveyed my thoughts to Grandma:

‘Grandma… I’m… I’m so scared…’

Grandma offered no reply…

SMASH!

Abruptly, the wall beside my foot burst open, and a tentacle coiled itself around my right leg.

“Eh?! Whoa!” I shrieked, my cry mingling with the sound of my body being violently flung into the adjacent wall.

CRACK!

The wall exploded outwards from where I’d struck it, and I plummeted to the ground amidst a shower of debris.

“Ugh…” I groaned, a wave of negativity washing over me. ‘With an impact this severe, surely every bone in my body must be shattered.’

I forced my eyes open and tentatively attempted to move my limbs.

“Huh?”

‘How could this be…?’

‘It doesn’t seem to hurt?!’

I twisted my head, clenched my fists, and wiggled my legs…

‘It truly doesn’t hurt in the slightest!’

‘Could everything Grandma said be true? Can I actually defeat it?’ Astonished by the resilience of my own body, I began to ponder the possibilities.

SMASH!

A tentacle suddenly shot out right past my ear, incidentally shearing off another few strands of my hair!

I stared dumbfounded, my eyes askance at the grotesque sight before me, my train of thought abruptly derailed…

‘I can beat it!’

‘I can beat it!’

‘Beat it!’

‘It!’

‘I’ll be damned if I can beat it!’

‘Who has time to ponder such things now? I’m absolutely terrified!’

I scrambled clumsily to my feet, then began to run aimlessly in a panic.

[Youth, believe in yourself! You’re just an ordinary person! You absolutely cannot create miracles!][Run!][Now, just abandon a man’s dignity!][Good thing you’re a woman!][Wai-yah!]

A chaotic jumble of thoughts swirled within my mind.

“Hey! Why are you running, you fool? Didn’t I tell you that you wouldn’t get hurt? If you don’t finish it off soon, innocent bystanders will get dragged into this!”

“I’m terrified!” I cried out, my eyes squeezed tightly shut.

“You… you fool…”

Grandma’s tone dipped, tinged with a hint of dejection, before she uttered something truly astonishing:

“I’ll be frank with you… She and I were actually swallowed by this monster while we were evacuating people. However, we’re not completely dead yet. If you can eliminate it swiftly… we might still be saved. I held back this information earlier, fearing it would worry you, but now there’s no more time. Hurry, or else… truly… everything… will… be… too late…”

Grandma’s voice gradually faded, as if truly dissolving into nothingness.

“Grandma!”

“Grandma!”

“Grandma!”

“Answer me!” I cried out desperately, but only an unsettling silence met my pleas.

‘Damn it! Was Grandma truly devoured?’

‘There’s already… no time left!’

I clenched my fists and gritted my teeth, desperately trying to banish the creeping tendrils of fear.

Though tears welled in my eyes and fear gnawed at me, Grandma was far more important! I *had* to save her!

“Ah!” I halted my frantic escape, spun around, and launched a desperate punch at the monster.

My impulsive action proved disastrous. The tentacles, incredibly agile, fluidly dodged my fist. My swing met only air, and my body lost its precarious balance. Instantly, several more tentacles erupted from the ground, coiling around my arms, thighs, and waist. I was caught!

‘Damn it! Time is running out!’

Ignoring my frantic urgency, the tentacles hoisted me high and began to violently thrash me around. The nausea was overwhelming; I felt on the verge of vomiting!

Forcing myself to suppress the sickening sensation, I racked my brain, desperately trying to figure out how to grab hold of it and smash it to pieces!

Speed was definitely not my advantage; even if I could inflict damage, it would be meaningless if I couldn’t land a hit. Yet, it also couldn’t truly harm me. At this rate, it would never end!

‘If I could just get an opportunity to attack at extremely close range… That’s it! “Swallow”!’

Grandma said they were swallowed! There’s still a way!

Perhaps it had grown bored of toying with me? The tentacles flung me downward with immense force, slamming me into the ground.

CRASH!

The impact was far greater than when I’d been thrown against the wall. The entire visible floor was obliterated, and I bounced twice on the ground before finally coming to a stop.

I lay motionless on the ground, playing dead, hoping the monster would attempt to “swallow” me.

A few tentacles prodded me before retracting, presumably to confirm whether I would resist further.

I subtly opened my eyes, assessing the situation. The retracted tentacles gathered not far away, seemingly fusing together. The mass of tentacles gradually coalesced into a colossal, pulsating chunk of flesh, its surface resembling giant blood vessels—the same form it had taken when it first attacked me.

I choked back my revulsion, waiting for my chance.

It wriggled its tentacles, inching closer to me. When it was less than half a meter away, a portion of its tentacles began to transform again. This time, they merged to form an arm-like appendage that seized my hair, lifting me to a height where only my tiptoes grazed the ground, continuously drawing me closer to its main body.

‘I was just worrying about how I’d grab you, you disgusting thing!’

The moment was ripe!

I flung my eyes open, glaring furiously at the monster before me, and with swift precision, clamped both hands onto the main body of the flesh mass! The arm-like appendage gripping my hair released me, as the creature seemed to realize something was amiss and began to change its shape.

But how could I possibly allow you that opportunity?

“Aaaaaaaaaaaah!”

With a resolve born of desperation, I executed the most damaging grappling technique I knew—a German suplex—slamming the monster violently onto the ground!

A deafening roar, unlike any sound before, erupted beside my head. The surroundings seemed to shake and crumble, and my vision gradually blurred into darkness…