The Apocalypse Took Everything, This Time I Hoard It All First

Chapter 123: Chapter 123: Mutated Creepers

Her beauty seemed to exist on an entirely different plane from the apocalyptic world outside the window and their frantic escape. She radiated an ethereal spirit. He had heard that the families of top officials paid exorbitant prices for Evolution Fruits to use in various beauty diets, yet none of them could achieve the vibrant, lively aura that emanated from her!

Barry Chandler stared at her, completely captivated. He froze for a few seconds before finally speaking, his previous arrogance entirely gone. "Hello, gorgeous. I’m Barry Chandler. Chief Rivers of the Sixth District is my uncle."

"Idiot, you’ve said you have a chief for an uncle a million times! I’m not deaf!"

"No, I’m also a Space Superpower User!" Barry argued. "I’m Second Order now, with sixteen square meters of storage space! Do you have a team yet? You can join my cousin and me in the Eternity Squad. We’ll protect you from now on."

Luna Dawson turned around. She looked at Ron Rivers, who was slumped in a chair like a dead dog, and scoffed. "A piece of trash and an idiot want to protect me? The Eternity Squad has already been disbanded by your dear uncle, the Chief."

Barry, who had been looking rather smug, was visibly stunned. "What?"

Ron immediately stopped massaging his legs. He sat up straight and stared blankly at Luna. "Are you telling the truth? Was it really my dad..." As he spoke, he caught sight of Luna’s face and completely forgot what he was about to say.

He thought, "What a beautiful woman!" Even before the apocalypse, let alone after it began, he had never encountered a beauty with such a vibrant and ethereal temperament. She looked like an elf from a deep forest!

While they were still in a daze, a woman’s scream pierced the air.

"Ah!"

Cindy Sterling, who was leaning against the corner on the other side of the elevator, cried out loudly. She and Penny Page had been standing by the window, rubbing their hands together for warmth, when she suddenly felt something scratch her neck.

Luna adjusted her mask, put away her water bottle, and immediately walked over. When she arrived, she found Penny looking around frantically while Cindy cowered in the corner, trembling.

"What happened to you two?"

"There’s something here! Something just scratched me!"

"I didn’t see anything, but something definitely attacked us!" Penny peeked out the window to look, but Luna violently yanked her back.

"Don’t stick your head out."

As if validating Luna’s warning, DRIP DRIP. Several drops of black slime fell from above onto the windowsill, emitting a SIZZLE as they corroded the metal frame.

Luna reached out with her senses. The surroundings were teeming with zombies and mutated plants, making it impossible to pinpoint what had caused the slime. She frowned. "Everyone, stay away from the windows. We’re continuing upstairs."

Hearing Luna’s orders, the group immediately packed away their water bottles and followed her and the golden retriever up the stairs.

Before long, the group fought their way through the remaining zombies and finally reached the sixteenth floor. The moment they rounded the corner into the corridor, a damp, putrid stench mixed with the strange scent of plant sap filled the air, choking them and making their chests feel tight.

Most of the hospital room doors on both sides of the hallway were slightly ajar. It was terrifyingly quiet inside, save for a faint SIZZLE coming from some unsealed windows, which only made the entire floor feel even more sinister. The glass of a particular window was shattered, leaving only the frame. The pitch-black opening looked like a dormant, giant beast, with dark green shadows vaguely swaying within.

"Something’s wrong. Be careful!" John Jacobs gripped his dagger tightly, keeping his voice incredibly low.

As soon as he spoke, several dark green vines slithered through the cracks of the broken window like venomous snakes. The vines were coated in a sticky sap that dripped onto the floor with a soft PATTER. The thing had crawled in through the window next to the elevator. Its dark green vines acted like countless greedy hands, blindly groping around for the scent of living creatures.

On this floor, massive bloodstains covered the ground, walls, and doors. Extensive drag marks were also glaringly obvious to everyone, making it easy to imagine the gruesome tragedy that had occurred here. Following that, they heard a harsh SIZZLE of something corroding the floor. The sound came from an office at the end of the corridor, grating on their ears and filling their hearts with panic.

Luna signaled for Rollo to continue clearing out the remaining zombies in the hallway while she gripped the Triangular Spikes in both her hands and slowly stepped forward to investigate.

The moment she pushed the door open, everyone gasped in horror. A thick Mutated Creeper was wrapped around a human-shaped pupa of leaves. Dark red blood dripped from the foliage, thick and foul-smelling. Only a dark red head was left exposed, its skin and flesh completely corroded away. It was a scalp-tingling sight.

Seeing Luna walking forward alone, Barry temporarily forgot his fear. He immediately shamelessly followed her, hoping to use the opportunity to win her favor. He chattered endlessly, "Miss Dawson, be careful. Let me accompany you..."

He was so focused on currying favor that he paid absolutely no attention to his footing. He slipped and was tripped by a creeper vine hidden on the ground.

With a muffled THUD, the vines that had previously seemed dormant suddenly sprang to life at his touch. Like countless venomous snakes, they darted across the floor and walls, instantly lunging at the group.

"Ah! Help me!" Barry screamed, frightened out of his wits.

The vines seemed to be voice-activated. Hearing his cry, they shot straight toward him with astonishing speed. His mind went completely blank from terror. Without thinking, he violently shoved a young soldier standing next to him right into the path of the slithering vines while he himself scrambled backward, rolling and crawling away.

The young soldier had been fighting continuously for two days and was already physically exhausted. Shoved by Barry, he lost his balance and pitched forward, right on the verge of being skewered by the sharp vines.

In the nick of time, several sharp Water Blades sliced through the air. SWISH SWISH SWISH! They chopped the attacking vines to pieces. Luna had made her move.

John Jacobs reacted swiftly, grabbing his shaken teammate and pulling him back. He turned to Luna with a grateful look. "Thank you, Miss Dawson!" The vines moved far too quickly; as Second Order Superpower Users, they simply hadn’t had the time to react.

Due to Luna’s Water Blade attack, the Mutated Creepers seemed completely enraged. They whipped around wildly in a frenzy, splattering dark green sap everywhere. The entire corridor instantly became even more dangerous.

Terrified, Barry lost all interest in ogling beauties and joined the others in a frantic scramble to escape.

Holding her Triangular Spikes in both hands, Luna focused her Spirit to sense the rank of the Mutated Creepers. Her expression instantly turned grave. She actually couldn’t perceive the plant’s level!

"It’s Fourth Rank!" Luna’s nerves were taut as she shouted at the group. "It’s a set of Fourth Rank Mutated Creepers! Hide yourselves and don’t come over to cause trouble!"

Hearing this, the color drained from everyone’s faces in sheer terror.

Fourth Rank! There were only eight of them! Six Second Order users, one First Order user, and an ordinary person! How were they supposed to hide from that!

When Barry realized this, he knew they were probably doomed today. He thought, "I have to hide!"

Just then, Rollo, having finished clearing the zombies on this floor, lifted its little paw and pressed open the door to a hospital room. It let out a low growl at the group, signaling them to take shelter inside.

Luna’s twin blades swung so fast they became a blur. Retreating step by step toward the door, she yelled, "All of you, get in the room!" With that, she tossed a few submachine guns to John and his three men.

As Barry watched the flailing vines lunge at him, he shrieked, "I’m Chief Rivers’ nephew! You have to save me!"

In the chaos, several vines struck one after another. In this critical moment, he once again shoved Cindy, who was in front of him, toward the attack to buy himself a brief window to dodge. Taking advantage of the gap, he scurried into the middle of the soldiers.

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