Crisis

Simon was startled, nearly dropping the clothes drying pole in his hand. The face of the corpse that had lifted up was swollen and purplish, with a fine layer of white fuzz growing on its surface. Its eyes, wide open, lacked pupils, only showing the whites. The mouth was gaping wide, as if gasping for air.

The corpse's arms trembled, seeming to struggle to rise from the water. Suddenly, it sank sharply downward, as if a tremendous force had pulled it down into the depths. With a "gulp," the corpse disappeared into the water, leaving only ripples on the surface.

In just a few seconds, Simon widened his eyes, watching as the corpse sank suddenly and became a dark shadow beneath the water, disappearing entirely from view. He felt his limbs turn cold, stepping back in shock, and quickly closed the window, his face pale.

"There's something in the water... Besides that corpse, there's something else. Just now... something dragged that corpse down into the depths..."

Simon's lips trembled slightly as he muttered softly, retreating to the coffee table and clutching tightly onto the knife and hammer. Finally, a slight sense of relief washed over him.

He thought of the female corpse he had seen earlier, with signs of being gnawed on her chest, abdomen, and legs, flesh torn and bloodied. At that moment, he suspected whether there were carnivorous fish or other aquatic creatures in the water feeding on corpses. Combined with the recent events, Simon harbored a dreadful suspicion.

Beneath the surface of these waters lurked an immensely terrifying creature, capable of consuming corpses. Judging from the speed at which it dragged the body down just now, this mysterious aquatic creature was formidable indeed—able to swiftly pull a floating corpse into the depths, disappearing without a trace. Its strength was great, and its size unquestionably substantial.

"Surely it couldn't be something like a crocodile or shark..."

Simon gazed out over the endless expanse of water, a faint sense of despair creeping into his heart as this terrifying conjecture took hold in his mind.

With an entire city submerged, the appearance of fierce animals like sharks or crocodiles in these waters wouldn't surprise Simon, but for him, it would be fatal.

He had worked hard to construct a raft, intending to leave early the next morning to find other survivors and seek help. However, if such a terrifying creature truly inhabited these waters, it would complicate matters. Escaping on the raft would be no different from walking into death.

"Must I remain here? Supplies are limited; I can endure for at most four days," Simon pondered for a long while, unable to think of a better solution. He could only secure all the windows along the balcony row, then proceeded to check and tightly lock the remaining windows.

Yet, he understood deep down that being on the thirtieth floor without burglar-proof windows meant that if another corpse like the one during the day underwent necrosis, it could easily break through the glass and crawl inside. As for the mysterious creature concealed within the water, despite pondering for a long time, he had no clue whatsoever. His only hope lay in the creature being confined to the water, unable to venture ashore like the necrotic bodies.

Once Simon confirmed all doors and windows were locked, he watched as the night grew darker. He took out instant noodles, bread, and biscuits from the refrigerator and found a travel backpack. Packing all the food into the bag, he prepared for any sudden emergencies that might require him to hastily flee without time to gather supplies.

As the room grew darker, Simon lay on the sofa, clutching his knife and hammer. In the midst of the dark night, he lay with eyes open, a strong sense of foreboding filling his heart. He feared tonight might bring trouble.

As if to confirm his foreboding, suddenly, footsteps echoed down the corridor outside his door.

The sound of footsteps was not loud, yet in the silent night, it resonated distinctly.

Simon immediately tensed up, gripping the knife and hammer as he rose from the sofa.

On the thirtieth floor, he had not seen a single living soul. How could there be footsteps in the corridor? Could it be...

Step by step, the footsteps approached his direction.

Unable to bear it any longer, Simon moved cautiously in the darkness towards the direction of the security door. He wanted to peek through the peephole and see what was causing the footsteps outside.

In just a few short steps, Simon's palms were sweaty, clutching the knife and hammer tightly. In his mind, he kept reassuring himself repeatedly, gaining courage.

"Even if it's a necrotic transformation, there's nothing to fear. Apart from its frightening appearance, its movements are clumsy and stiff, not a match for me..."

He repeated these thoughts over and over in his mind, as if hypnotizing himself, continuously reinforcing his resolve. Finally, he reached the door and peered through the peephole.

At that moment, the footsteps outside ceased, as if the person who had been walking had stopped.

Peering through the peephole, Simon saw nothing but darkness outside, unable to discern anything.

It was then he realized both the corridor outside and his room were shrouded in darkness, devoid of light, rendering the peephole useless in revealing the situation outside.

Just then, a sharp "crack" sounded from the balcony, the unmistakable noise of shattered glass.

In the midst of this deathly silence, the sudden sound seemed especially jarring, causing Simon to shudder involuntarily, his entire body trembling. He swiftly turned his head and saw that a window on the balcony had shattered, with two arms reaching in from outside, clutching onto the window frame. A swollen, purplish face emerged, bearing signs of extensive gnawing. One eye bulged grotesquely from its socket, connected by tendons, dangling from the cheek where it had not been devoured. The remaining half of its face, covered in a fine layer of white fur, had an eye devoid of pupils, staring fixedly at Simon in the darkness like a fish out of water. Its mouth moved unconsciously, opening and closing, presenting a ghastly sight.

Despite having had most of its face gnawed away, Simon immediately recognized him as the floating corpse he had seen earlier in the water outside the balcony. At that time, the face was still intact before being dragged under and disappearing. He couldn't imagine it reappearing now, smashing through a window and attempting to crawl inside.

Drawing from his experience confronting the female corpse earlier, Simon, though still filled with fear, rushed forward. Seeing the creature, once a corpse, now a monster, he had noticed its obvious weaknesses: stiff joints and clumsy movements, far from agile.

As Simon charged, the creature had just begun to push its head through the broken window. Gripping the hammer tightly in his right hand, he swung it down towards the creature's head.

The creature raised its arms, shielding its face, and the hammer struck one of its arms heavily.

"Dear readers, I am sorry that when publishing, because of the setting of regular updates, the release time of several chapters has been mistaken, which has affected everyone's reading. I am very sorry. Now the order has been re-adjusted, I hope you enjoy reading!"