novelhk Chapter 25 Goodbye
Chapter 25 Goodbye
He heard Xisang muttering something.
Mold had climbed up Sisang's back. He looked listless, his head drooping, and he seemed to be muttering something.
Because he was too far away to hear clearly, Ron mustered his courage and approached, slowly crouching down.
As if sensing someone approaching, Sissan suddenly raised his head, baring his teeth, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Ron. Ron was startled by this sudden action and jumped back a step.
A moment later, after realizing that the person who came was Ron, and seemingly afraid of hurting him, Sissan suddenly curled up his body away from Ron.
Seemingly due to unease, he swayed back and forth, appearing to be in very poor condition.
"Don't come any closer!" Xisang clutched his head, his voice rising, clearly in great pain.
"You stay here, I'll figure something out. Don't worry, everything will be alright." Seeing that Xisang was still alive, Ron breathed a sigh of relief. Although his mental state wasn't very good, at least he hadn't become like those ghostly things.
Just as Ron got up, intending to return, Sissan spoke up.
"Lawson! I...I don't know...what Quaid did to him exactly, but he...his mental state has been deteriorating."
Xisang grinned as fine mycelium climbed up his back and neck, instantly corroding and festering his skin. His facial features were contorted in pain.
Ron didn't know what that feeling was like, but a fine layer of goosebumps rose on his arms.
"You mean... Quaid used some special methods on him, like... mental intervention?"
Ron felt he was close to finding the answer. He remembered the unusual bruises on Lawson's forehead and arms, as well as needle marks.
"He kept muttering his child's name in his cell...and kept trying to remember other things, but he couldn't recall anything."
As Xisang continued talking to himself, in just a short while, orange-red mold had already climbed onto his face, his cheekbones began to collapse due to corrosion, and black powder floated out from his collapsed and cracked cheeks.
"We're all dead..." After the left eye was covered, the eyeball seemed to melt like a sugar ball, quickly turning into blood that flowed down the festering eye socket.
Sissan looked up at Ron with his only remaining eye.
Ron seemed to have gotten used to this level of nausea, and showed no signs of discomfort.
Ron saw an emotion beyond despair in Sissan's eyes—a sense of relief, a relief that came from knowing his death was inevitable.
"Please save him... It's been two years. I've developed some feelings for him. As someone who is also a child... I might be able to understand his feelings." A mouthful of blood spurted from Xisang's mouth, and his voice became extremely hoarse and sorrowful.
Ron stood in front of Sissan without saying a word, just listening quietly.
"And...I'm sorry...I...Quide's informant...Quide asked about you..." Mold quickly covered his neck, and as his vocal cords were slowly eroded, his voice began to become faint and less clear.
Ron had no choice but to crouch down again and get even closer.
Xisang still had something to say, but by this time most of his neck had turned to ash, and he could no longer speak; his lower body had also dissipated.
Finally, Sissan had no choice but to use all his strength to raise his almost carbonized hand and point it at Ron's chest, before it turned completely into ashes in Ron's gaze.
"Goodbye." Ron looked at the knotted jacket hanging on the pipe. The knot in the center of the jacket was now empty. He said goodbye, then stood up and walked resolutely outside.
Su Zixu and Lao Zeng were mixing disinfectant when, shortly after, they saw Ron come out from inside.
Both of them noticed that his expression wasn't good, and realizing that now was not the time for idle chatter, they told Ron to start discussing the current issue.
Ron mentioned to the two that the mold was seeping from Zone 3, which most likely meant that some kind of emergency had occurred in Zone 3.
"But how to get in is a problem. Let alone getting in, in this environment, we'll all die soon," Old Zeng said, expressing his opinion first.
"Protective suits and face shields," Su Zixu continued.
The three of them couldn't think of where to find these two items, so Ron mentioned the insect pupae in the storage room to them.
According to Yiluon, since the pupae can adapt to this environment, they must also have a physiological system for breathing in this environment, which might be useful.
Although it sounds a bit far-fetched, there's no better solution at the moment.
Without hesitation, the three of them prepared the medicine and headed to the storage room.
Su Zixu and Lao Zeng both frowned when they saw the silkworm pupa. The larva inside the cocoon was now larger and more active than before, with its densely packed hooked legs and mouthparts constantly wearing away at the gelatinous layer.
The three of them simply wrapped themselves in bed sheets and put on several layers of cleaning gloves. After they were fully equipped, they began to clean the shelves.
After removing most of the mold from the shelf, the three of them worked together to move the shelf aside, revealing three pupae growing on the wall.
Old Zeng drew the dagger from his waist, stepped forward, and pierced the pupa's outer shell. With a "pop—squeak," a sweet and fishy smell gushed out from the opening.
The larvae seemed to sense the danger and began to frantically thrash around inside the pupa.
Seeing that the depth was not enough, Lao Zeng exerted his strength again and slid downwards. As the shell cracked, semi-solidified vernix caseosa spilled out of the pupa, emitting a smell like the entrails of a dead fish that had been exposed to the scorching sun for three days.
Sensing the threat, the larvae began to emerge from the crack, their serrated teeth scraping against each other, making a sound like animal cartilage being chewed up.
At this point, Old Zeng couldn't care less about anything else. Seeing the insect crawling out, he quickly made another move.
"Don't stab its mouth and chest!" Ron shouted.
However, it was too late. With a swift movement, the blade had already completely penetrated the insect's... let's just call it its neck.
"Crunch—crunch—crunch," the dying insect convulsed violently, emitting a chilling groan.
Having learned from the first one, dealing with the next two wasn't too difficult. After some effort, the three insects were placed in front of Ron.
Taking the knife from Lao Zeng, Su Zixu fetched a flashlight to illuminate Ron's path. He carefully cut open the insect's chest cavity and then gently removed its lungs.
Then, taking advantage of the momentum, it cut off the remaining tissue along with the insect's mouthparts.
After washing it with water, Ron spent some time making a simple breathing filter.
I tried it on, and sure enough, it was ruined because Lao Zeng had punctured the insect's throat. Luckily, the other two I made were usable.
Since there were only two breathing devices, the three discussed it and decided that Ron would continue to clean the mold in the laundry room, while Lao Zeng and Su Zixu would go to District Three to find a solution.
"Hopefully we'll be luckier this time." Old Zeng adjusted his breathing apparatus; the sweet, fishy smell made him feel nauseous.