Monster Girlfriend(Apocalypse) 4

Chapter 4

Realizing a terrible fact, a patch of goosebumps rose on Xia Weishuang’s arm.

She tiptoed gently away from the door, deleted the two words on her phone, and quickly typed a new message: Suspected patient in 701, door is open, bloody footprints leading to the elevator. Everyone be careful.

The residents’ group chat was in an uproar. The mode of transmission for this disease had not yet been confirmed. With this news, no one dared to use the elevator anymore.

It wasn’t a big deal for those on the lower floors, but those on the higher floors could only hide in their homes in frustration. But no matter what, staying at home was relatively safer.

After fulfilling her duty to warn others, Xia Weishuang stopped participating in the group’s discussion. She skimmed through it; everyone in the group was also muddled and only half-understood the situation.

Some were even arguing about whether they should hoard food, and if so, how much.

Xia Weishuang stood in the entryway, clutching her phone, her eyes fixed on the front door without blinking.

After that loud thump, a long time passed with no other sound. Without a doubt, facing an unknown and terrifying presence, Xia Weishuang felt fear and dread.

She was in a silent standoff with the unknown monster outside the door.

The sky gradually darkened.

As the sun sank below the horizon, a strange sound finally came from the door again. And this time, the sound made Xia Weishuang feel an impulse to act rashly.

Squelch, squelch… The sound of soft flesh twisting and squirming, and of slime being squeezed and bubbling, scraped against the door and then moved upward.

Xia Weishuang stood frozen, trembling all over.

She had originally thought the one who had thrown itself at her door was the patient from 701, but this sound was exactly the same as the one from the night Sang Lu returned.

A faint scent of the sea breeze drifted in through the crack of the door.

Xia Weishuang stumbled forward and threw herself against the door. The cold door panel against her face quickly cooled her fiery excitement.

Xia Weishuang parted her lips slightly, breathing with all her might. How she wanted to open that door! As long as it was Sang Lu, no matter what terrifying form she had taken, she wanted to see her.

She had once fantasized countless times about Sang Lu taking her away. Now, she still longed to go with her to eternal peace.

But not now.

Right now, Little Xue was still sick.

Xia Weishuang pinched the flesh on her thigh hard, took a deep breath, and forced her chaotic emotions to calm down.

She walked behind the door, put on the security chain, and pretended to be calm, but her trembling voice had already betrayed her.

She opened the door, pulling it ajar: “Sang Lu, it’s you, isn’t it? I know you came back for me. I have so much I want to say to you—”

Her voice cut off abruptly, because looking out through the crack, the hallway was empty, save for a small, shiny stone on the floor.

Plop.

A drop of liquid dripped through the crack onto the toe of Xia Weishuang’s shoe.

Xia Weishuang reached her hand through the crack, ran it along the outside of the door, and when she pulled it back, her hand was covered in a transparent slime with a faint sea-salty smell.

She rubbed it between her fingertips, then crouched down and picked up the small, transparent stone from the floor in front of the door before closing it properly again.

It seemed Sang Lu had really come again just now, but she had mistaken her for the monster from next door and ignored her, so she had left again.

It was just like when they used to argue. When Xia Weishuang got angry and ignored her, Sang Lu would leave first, and then, just when Xia Weishuang was starting to feel uneasy, she would suddenly return with a gift.

This familiar behavior suddenly calmed Xia Weishuang’s heart.

Yes, she is Sang Lu.

What else is there to doubt?

**

Xia Weishuang washed her hands clean, put the shiny little stone in a small ziplock bag, and then took out the alcohol spray to disinfect herself.

Sang Lu’s sudden return and this sudden outbreak of infectious disease seemed unrelated at first glance, but Xia Weishuang couldn’t help but feel a strange coincidence.

Moreover, Xia Weishuang had some strange speculations in her heart about Sang Lu’s return after death.

Just in case, to keep the sick Little Xue from danger, Xia Weishuang had acted a bit cold.

Xia Weishuang cooked a hotchpotch noodle stew. Just as it was ready, Little Xue woke up, so she went to call her out to eat.

But Xia Qingxue was slow to come to the table. Xia Weishuang turned her head and saw her taking out the sticky rice and salt she had just bought today. Holding one in each hand, she was muttering something as she sprinkled them on the floor.

Xia Weishuang: “…Little Xue, that’s not going to work.”

Xia Qingxue said pitifully, “Who told you not to buy a rooster?”

Xia Weishuang: “They didn’t have any at the supermarket. Besides, Sang Lu isn’t a ghost.”

“How is she not a ghost when she’s already dead!” As soon as the words were out, Xia Qingxue realized her mistake and slapped a hand over her mouth. But that hand had just grabbed a handful of salt, and the salt crystals flew into her mouth, almost choking her.

Xia Qingxue looked at Xia Weishuang with teary eyes. Xia Weishuang didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “No need to hide it. I know. Sang Lu really is back. She came again just now.”

Xia Qingxue instantly shot up, a look of terror on her face.

Xia Weishuang: “But she left again.”

Xia Qingxue breathed a sigh of relief.

Xia Weishuang lowered her head and smiled, stirring the noodle soup in her bowl with her chopsticks. “There are no ghosts in this world, Little Xue. Don’t always believe in superstitious things.”

“Then how do you explain Sister Sang Lu?” Other than “ghost,” Xia Qingxue really couldn’t comprehend Sang Lu’s form of existence. “Three years ago, the plane crashed, the whole plane fell into the sea, and many people went missing, including Sister Sang Lu. If she were still alive, why would she only come back now? And… in the middle of the night, so strangely.”

Xia Weishuang listed, “Plane crashes where missing passengers survive are not unheard of. One, she could have been stranded on a deserted island and only recently managed to build a boat and float back to the mainland. Two, she could have been injured and infected with marine bacteria or a rare virus from the deserted island, causing her to become disoriented, her body to mutate, and to produce a fishy-smelling pus. Three, she could have been drifting at sea, picked up by human traffickers, and sold, only recently finding a way to get home, but her personality has completely changed due to the prolonged torture. Four…”

“Stop, stop, stop!” Xia Qingxue interrupted her. “Sis, don’t you think your guesses are a bit too dramatic?”

Xia Weishuang didn’t think so. “Little Xue, you’re still young and don’t understand. Reality is far more melodramatic than works of art.”

Xia Qingxue: “But this is too much of a coincidence. In four days, it’s your birth—I mean, the day Sister Sang Lu left. It will be exactly seven days since she returned. They say the seventh day is when the spirit returns!”

Xia Weishuang said, “Even if we’re talking about ghosts and spirits, the so-called seventh-day return of the spirit is usually seven days after the anniversary of their death, right?”

Xia Qingxue was speechless.

Xia Weishuang smiled and touched her forehead, finding that her temperature had dropped a lot. She said, “You’re not fully recovered yet. Don’t think so much. Eat something first.”

Xia Qingxue obediently sat at the table, held her bowl, and drank the soup, secretly glancing at the calm Xia Weishuang. Halfway through, she couldn’t hold it in anymore and asked, “Sis, don’t you have anything else to say? Sister Sang Lu is back, aren’t you going to do something?”

Xia Weishuang said calmly, “I do. After dinner, I plan to go out and find her.”

Xia Qingxue: “Pfft—”

Xia Weishuang: “Don’t spit. Here, wipe your mouth.”

Xia Qingxue put down her soup bowl and said anxiously, “What time is it for you to be going out? Besides, you have no idea what Sister Sang Lu has become! What if she’s like those patients who suddenly went crazy and attacks you, biting anyone she sees!”

“No matter what she’s become, I’ll be able to recognize her.” Xia Weishuang clenched her fists and said, “Besides, it’s possible she hasn’t been infected with that disease. If we leave her outside, it’ll be even worse if she gets infected.”

While Xia Weishuang was cooking earlier, Xia Qingxue had been scrolling through the news on her phone. She worriedly opened it to show Xia Weishuang.

“Sis, it’s too dangerous outside now. You really can’t go out. I heard there are crazy people in our building. With your skinny arms and legs, and your barely-passing 800-meter run time, you’ll be dead if you go out!”

Xia Weishuang: “…”

“And Sister Sang Lu runs much faster than you!” Xia Qingxue suddenly thought of something and said hurriedly, “She’s so smart, she can definitely take care of herself. If you go out, you’ll just be a burden, right? Besides, you still have me! Sis, my dear sister, you surely couldn’t bear to leave me at home alone, right? If anything happens to you, I won’t want to live anymore either!”

Deeply struck, Xia Weishuang had to admit that Little Xue had a point.

Seeing that her sister had humbly accepted her advice, Xia Qingxue felt very gratified. “Sis, you’re great in every way, except you’re not calm enough when it comes to Sister Sang Lu.”

That woman was like she had some kind of magic, completely bewitching Xia Weishuang. Even in death, she wouldn’t let her go.

Xia Weishuang wanted to explain, but after thinking about it, she just smiled and said nothing more.

Some things, only the person involved knows how painful they are. Guilt and longing were like mountains pressing down on her, causing her a pain like crushed bones, making it hard to breathe day after day, wishing she could just be free of it all.

Her feelings for Sang Lu, how could they be described by just “not calm enough”?

“Next time Sister Sang Lu comes, talk to her through the door first and see how she’s doing,” Xia Qingxue suggested cautiously.

“Okay, I’ll listen to you.”

**

After the sun set and the sky turned completely dark.

Human society suffered a torrential outbreak of the disease. It was as if in an instant, the entire world had descended into chaos.

Xia Weishuang and Xia Qingxue frowned as they scrolled through their phones, looking at one news article after another. Each one verified how dangerous this infectious disease was, each one was saying—stop guessing, this is zombies.

The Ministry of Health could only repeatedly emphasize that everyone should pay attention to quarantine. It had now been confirmed that this frenzied infectious disease was caused by a new type of special virus. Patients who had progressed to the stage of delirium and indiscriminate biting had already suffered irreversible damage and were no different from the dead.

Moreover, there was still no effective treatment.

Online discussions were raging. Doomsday theories became mainstream, but were quickly deleted and restricted. Yet, this couldn’t stop people’s fear. In the end, everything was in chaos.

Conspiracy theorists and theists each held their own views. If it weren’t for the fact that this disaster had broken out almost simultaneously across the globe, they would probably be slinging mud at each other again.

People were terrified.

Finally, they gave this new special virus a fitting name—Son of Satan.

Xia Weishuang’s face was grim as she kept scrolling through her phone. Just as she came across a piece of news about “suspected animal infection and mutation,” the lights and air conditioner in the room went out with a snap.

The power was out again. This time, there was no telling how long it would be before it came back on.

The Wi-Fi wasn’t working. Xia Weishuang turned off her phone. From now on, some resources had to be used sparingly.

Xia Qingxue’s face was even worse. “It seems light has an inhibitory effect on the zombie virus. Luckily you went shopping this afternoon, Sis, otherwise we’d have nothing to eat.”

Although everyone called the virus the Son of Satan, many people still referred to it as the zombie virus.

Because even the most foolish person had already discovered that the frenzied patients were no longer considered living people.

They were ignorant, felt no pain, and never tired. They had a fanatical craving for human flesh and blood, emitted the stench of rotting corpses in the high heat, and would only fall and stop moving when their brains were destroyed. They had no so-called reason, let alone any hope of being cured.

They were monsters, through and through.