Chapter 15 There are Abnormal Creatures in the Community (3)

Her dad was eating and watching short videos, when Ye Nai heard him gasp in alarm after following a tacky short drama for a while, even dropping his chopsticks.

"What's the matter? Is there poison in the noodles?"

"Quick, look at the phone, the phone. They found another mound in the neighborhood just like yesterday!"

"Ah...?"

Ye Nai, too anxious to even set down her bowl, hurriedly grabbed her charging phone from on top of her wardrobe.

The chat group for her building was already frantically updating with messages.

Just like yesterday, there were pictures providing solid evidence, but unlike yesterday, the panic among neighbors was more intense; many were talking about how they had called the emergency number countless times, and now they couldn't even get through.

While yesterday some people were still in the mood to gawk, today everybody was worried about whether their own building would be in danger.

That's because the photos showed that today's mounds were between Buildings 12 and 13.

Out of the 20 buildings in the complex, Ye Nai lived in Building 16, which was some distance from the troubled Buildings 12 and 13—not far enough to be entirely reassuring, especially with everyone in the neighborhood suspecting that more mysterious creatures might be running rampant underground. How could that not cause panic?

"This is bad news. People from those two buildings will definitely have to move out temporarily, and they can't come back until the situation is completely resolved. I wonder if we'll have to move out of Building 16."

"We're not moving, absolutely not. Where could our family of six possibly go? To a temporary shelter? Those places don't have private toilets, just communal taps and public bathrooms. How am I supposed to use the bathroom in that condition?" Her dad slammed the table, visibly agitated.

"What if it's confirmed that there's a monster under our building too? We'd have to move out whether we want to or not. At best, we could choose where to go: either stay with relatives or if we have money, at a hotel. If we don't have anything, then to the shelter it is. At least it's bearable now in the summer, we can get through any hardship, but in winter it would be a disaster."

"A hotel stay—if we absolutely have to move, then it'll be to a hotel."

"How much would it cost for six people in a hotel? Can six people fit in one standard room? And we have no idea how many days we'd need to stay."

Her dad calmed down and fell silent.

If they were forced to stay in a hotel due to such an incident, it was unclear how many days it would be, and the spending could be limitless.

Temporary shelters were free but unpleasant, and none of the relatives had enough spare room to take in their entire family.

The only solution was to stay put and not move from their home.

Ye Nai put her phone down, urging her dad to finish his meal and retreat to his room to worry. She cleared their dishes, and while washing up, she checked the situation in the "Space."

During the time it took to eat a bowl of noodles, the "fluffy balls" that had fallen in had filled every gap in the Space, and more kept coming in—always in large clusters.

Had the Fungal Mycelium discovered a monster's birthing chamber?

Ye Nai wasn't panicked; according to the amount of energy fed back by the mycelium, she could tell that there was currently no danger or anomaly under her building.

Since the foundation of the building was very deep, spores couldn't penetrate it, so they built a safety perimeter around the whole building instead. The energy they returned was that of ordinary organic matter, like fallen leaves or passing insects. The energy of the unusual creatures was so immense that she couldn't possibly miss it.

If one actually made its way there, it'd be like home delivery. It didn't matter if the Space got too crowded; she'd kill it and leave it on the ground for professionals to collect. That would also reassure the neighbors.

After tidying up the kitchen and dining table and checking her phone again, the latest news was that the military had arrived with numerous high-definition photos; the entire neighborhood was sealed off, drones carrying loudspeakers flew high, and from the speakers came repeated announcements that the military would soon clear the abnormal creatures in the neighborhood. Residents were instructed to stay inside and not venture out to avoid accidental injury.

When Ye Nai saw the photo of the military vehicle entering the neighborhood, she immediately recalled the spores of the Fungal Mycelium, keeping only those under her own building, not withdrawing this security line until the very last moment.

Collecting the spores was merely a precaution, thinking it better to do less rather than more. Spores are too small to be seen with the naked eye, but the Fungal Mycelium that grows from them is visible, just like the white fuzz on tofu, the green mold on cakes, and the black spots on walls, all of which are fungal mycelium of different fungi.

With so many people arriving now, it was unnecessary to incite wild speculation by allowing them to see a large amount of Fungal Mycelium.

Since she had been determined not to be an Awakener when everyone else awakened, she would certainly not take this opportunity to confess that she was hiding a superpower unknown to others. The very thought was thrilling.

Ye Nai sent a message to her mother, telling her the latest news about the community. Her mom quickly took leave and rushed to the school to pick up the three children to her workplace, planning to return home once the lockdown was lifted.

Her leaders and colleagues were all understanding of the situation. In these troubled times, it wasn't uncommon for an abnormal creature to enter the city, and anyone could encounter such an unfortunate event. It was also beneficial for one's social reputation to extend conveniences when possible.

By this time, the neighborhood was becoming livelier and livelier.

Awakeners took action to build defensive lines between the buildings, trying to force the rampaging subterranean creatures into the open before driving them out.

Ye Nai lay on the balcony watching the action below, colorful offensive superpowers making quite a spectacle, but they seemed to be of little effect.

The ground around neighboring Buildings 15 and 17 showed bulges, but Building 16 remained intact. Ye Nai's security line played a significant role, as any abnormal creature that approached was attacked by the Fungal Mycelium, which decomposed their flesh.

Like any creature, when attacked without being able to identify the assailant, it's instinct to flee and not approach again.

Seeing the Awakeners struggling in vain to drive the creatures to the surface, Ye Nai decided to lend them a hand; otherwise, if too much time passed, someone might notice the anomaly of Building 16.

She extended her hand, releasing a large number of superpower spores, directing them to follow the underground energy, chasing and gnawing at the abnormal creatures, driving them out, but careful not to expose the Fungal Mycelium.

Her spores responded as if directly commanded by her, easily entering the underground through the messy network of cracks in the ground. In less than three minutes, two thick, scaleless elongated things broke through the surface. Before they fully climbed out, the warriors waiting in a tight circle immediately opened fire and killed them.

Ye Nai took the opportunity to retrieve the spores from underground.

Neighbors left and right and on the floors above and below, who were also leaning on the balcony to watch, let out wave after wave of exclamations.

"My God, what is that?!"

"Are those giant earthworms that mutated locally?"

"Yuck, are earthworms this disgusting when they're enlarged?"

"No matter what, they're finally driven out. Our building won't collapse now."

"Are we sure there are only those two down there?"

"In our area, it should just be these two. The ground seems quiet now."

"Indeed."

"Right, right, it should be safe now."

"Our building is fine, though. They fought fiercely, but they've always been quite far from our building. The few in the front should be the most at ease now."

"Haha, yes, we are pretty lucky."