The Mutant Cluster

In the mist, pairs of green eyes were slowly drawing near.

The faint lights looked like ghost fires or the souls of the dead, radiating gloom and killing intent.

With a wolf howl that nearly pierced my eardrums, the speed of those green eyes began to accelerate.

Soon, the full appearance of the first mutant was revealed in the convoy’s lights.

A monster one meter high and two meters long.

Sparse hair, bleeding skin, a bald tail, and dense teeth overflowing from its long, narrow mouth.

Even standing on the truck, more than twenty meters away from that wolf-like monster, the pungent stench still assaulted my sense of smell.

“A mutant cluster. Creatures that were social before mutation usually retain this habit after mutation. What’s before us should be a wolf pack. Usually C-class mutants, not hard to deal with.”

I didn’t notice when Su Yanlan had opened her eyes again.

Along with her voice, the soldiers below began to open fire.

Muzzle flashes and gunshots appeared in the fog once more.

That first wolf was very fast.

The soldiers, whose training wasn’t actually very strict, couldn’t hit with every shot.

But relying on a dense enough net of firepower, the wolf was killed just as it rushed to the front of the truck, then swept into a sieve by bullets.

Bullets passed through the wolf’s flesh and struck the reinforced body of the truck, making muffled metallic thuds.

The pairs of eyes in the mist quickly scattered after hearing the gunshots, but they didn’t flee.

Instead, they slowly attempted to surround the convoy.

During this time, the soldiers standing in the cargo bed tried firing into the vines and bushes on both sides of the road as the wolf pack changed positions, but it was ultimately futile.

It wasn’t until a soldier threw a grenade to the right side of the road that another mutant was finally killed.

The corpse was shattered.

Blurry chunks of flesh were blasted into the air, splashing outwards.

Internal organs and severed limbs, emitting bursts of foul stench, fell onto the soldiers.

I touched my shoulder; a drop of black blood appeared in my palm.

I felt my body turn cold and hurriedly wiped this disgusting thing on the truck’s iron skin.

My cheek felt a sting.

I touched it with my other hand, and bright red blood appeared on my fingertips.

This was my own blood, completely different from the mutant’s blood.

The wound on my face must have been scratched by flying bone fragments.

Fortunately, the wound wasn’t large or deep, so it shouldn’t leave a scar.

“Don’t get too entangled. Defend while moving.”

Su Yanlan’s voice, gentle but firm, conveyed the order to the soldiers who were suppressing the wolf pack with firepower.

I could roughly guess her thoughts.

We probably couldn’t afford a drawn-out battle, otherwise, it was extremely likely to attract more mutants.

Although shooting alertly while advancing would make the soldiers’ already poor aim even worse.

But relying on a firepower net composed of over a hundred people, maybe there wouldn’t be any major problems?

“…”

Standing quietly in the cargo bed, I listened to the sound of the engine starting, the gunshots of the soldiers, the footsteps, and the sound of tires crushing mutant corpses.

Watching those trees in the darkness slowly move backward, the green eyes drifting near and far.

I didn’t know what I should do.

“Miss Qin Yue, why are you still standing?”

Beside me, Su Yanlan pulled my hand, forcing me to sit down, my head lower than the side wall of the cargo bed.

Right, I didn’t have a gun.

Standing up, I couldn’t shoot at the mutants chasing the convoy outside, and I would only hinder the other soldiers with weapons.

After thinking for a moment, I found that I really had nothing to do.

So I took out the anti-radiation medicine the Leader gave me from my pocket and observed it by the light of a flashlight.

I hesitated again and again, but finally opened the cap and poured one out.

The red pill lay in my palm, light as a feather, as if it would fly away at any moment.

Suppressing the uneasiness in my heart, I swallowed it in one gulp.

It was very bitter, followed by a sensation of dizziness.

Why take the anti-radiation medicine?

I didn’t know. Maybe because of the wound on my face.

Afraid that the small cut made by the mutant creature’s bone fragment would take my life, I took the medicine.

My knowledge regarding mutant creatures was only superficial; I wasn’t clear on how severe the consequences of being wounded by them would be.

If I remembered correctly, Su Yanlan had also cut me with scissors stained with mutant blood?

At that time, I didn’t have medicine on hand, so naturally, I couldn’t worry about it.

Because worrying was useless.

My thoughts woke from contemplation, and I looked at Su Yanlan beside me; she was also quietly looking at me.

Time passed little by little, and the side effects of the drug seemed to be emerging.

A wave of nausea, an indescribable urge to vomit.

Acid surged in my throat, but I swallowed it back.

The spicy sensation nearly brought me to tears.

I couldn’t vomit. I hadn’t eaten much food to begin with; I couldn’t throw it up.

After a good while, the urge to vomit finally dissipated, but my hands and feet started to get cold.

My body alternated between hot and cold, and I rubbed against the side wall in unbearable discomfort.

Su Yanlan noticed my abnormal state, but she didn’t speak again, only gently wiping the cold sweat from my forehead.

This didn’t alleviate the discomfort in my body.

“It hurts so much…”

The gunshots beside me were still ringing non-stop.

The continuous noise was almost driving me crazy.

I could endure it before, but now, suffering under the drug’s side effects, I couldn’t bear it anymore.

I curled up my body, lying down on that green rain tarp.

Su Yanlan made room for me; she stood straight, quietly watching outside the vehicle.

“It hurts so much, it hurts so much.”

I clenched my teeth, repeating this sentence in a low voice without stopping.

My limbs started to spasm a little, unable to exert strength.

Following that was pain.

The iron sheet before my eyes wasn’t clean; it was full of dust.

The dark environment made me feel oppressed.

Hah, the Leader’s stuff really can’t be trusted…

Su Yanlan’s hand reached into my pocket, but I, dying of discomfort, didn’t have the excess energy to ask what she was doing.

After tossing and turning for a long time, I felt a little bit of warmth.

Barely opening my eyes, which had closed unknowingly due to the torture of the side effects, I saw Su Yanlan squatting in front of me, holding a lit match in her hand.

How much warmth can a trivial match emit?

Moreover, a little warmth couldn’t alleviate my pain.

“Th… thank you.”

Pursersing my lips, I still thanked her.

Enduring the discomfort, I stood up unsteadily.

Useless concern. Su Yanlan is indeed a very gentle person, but she can’t help the current me.

Leaning my upper body on the side wall, the wind blowing through my hair, carrying the chill unique to winter, made me feel a little better.

But only a little.

Outside the vehicle, the wolf pack began to fear losing track of their prey because of the convoy’s movement.

They no longer hid but began to charge the soldiers’ formation from both sides.

The gunshots began to be mixed with wails, curses, and the sound of flesh being torn apart.

Both the wolf pack and the soldiers began to suffer losses.

But undoubtedly, among the corpses lying on the ground, there were more wolves than humans.

Suffering to the extreme, it seemed my senses became clearer.

Every sound became distinct in my ears.