Chapter 337: The golden fruit 48.

The next floor had been turned into a makeshift clinic.

Tables had been pushed together.

Medical supplies were stacked in cabinets.

Empty bottles covered the ground.

A red cross had been painted on the wall.

There were sleeping areas too.

Most were empty.

One was not.

An old man sat beside a dead battery lamp.

He looked up when they entered.

He had white hair, a dirty coat, and a small pistol resting beside his chair.

He did not point it at them.

"You are going up."

Bai Li nodded.

"Yes."

"You know what is waiting?"

"Not exactly."

The old man smiled.

"That is probably better."

Yan Cijin glanced around.

"How long have you been here?"

"Long enough to stop counting."

"Why stay?"

"I am not stupid enough to go higher."

Bai Li looked toward the stairwell.

"How bad is it?"

The old man laughed.

"The lower levels belong to people. The middle levels belong to monsters. The upper levels belong to things that used to be monsters."

Yan Cijin raised an eyebrow.

"That clears everything up."

The old man pointed upward.

"The closer you get to that fruit, the more everything changes."

Bai Li looked at him.

"What have you seen?"

"Not enough."

"Explain."

He shook his head.

"People become obsessed. Zombies stop chasing people and start climbing. Monsters stop fighting each other and start waiting. Even humans forget to eat when they think the fruit is near."

Yan Cijin looked at Bai Li.

Bai Li looked back.

The old man smiled.

"You two still look normal."

Bai Li smiled.

"That is good."

"For now."

They moved on.

Behind them, the old man called out.

"Do not let it choose for you."

Bai Li stopped.

She turned slightly.

"Choose what?"

The old man only smiled.

"You will understand."

Bai Li continued walking.

Yan Cijin was quiet until they entered the stairwell.

"You are thinking about that."

"Yes."

"Do you believe him?"

"Not the way he means it."

"What do you think he meant?"

Bai Li shrugged.

"Maybe the fruit does not only give power. Maybe it has a will."

Yan Cijin frowned.

"That would be annoying."

Bai Li smiled.

"Very."

The stairwell climbed another two floors before it became blocked.

A mass of concrete had collapsed across the steps.

Bai Li touched the rubble.

"Too much."

Yan Cijin looked upward.

"There is another route."

They found a maintenance hatch.

It opened into a narrow crawlspace between the walls.

The space was barely wide enough for one person.

Yan Cijin looked at Bai Li.

"You first."

"Ladies first?"

"You are the one who breaks doors."

Bai Li smiled and went inside.

The crawlspace was dark.

Dust floated around them.

At one point, something small brushed Bai Li’s boot.

She looked down.

A pale lizard-like creature stared up at her.

It had tiny wings.

Yan Cijin leaned over Bai Li’s shoulder.

"That is adorable."

The creature hissed.

Bai Li picked it up.

It immediately bit her finger.

She stared at it.

The creature stared back.

Yan Cijin covered a laugh.

"You said adorable."

"It has poor judgment."

Bai Li released it.

The creature scurried away.

They continued.

The crawlspace eventually opened above a clothing store.

They dropped through the ceiling.

A small group of zombies were feeding inside.

All of them looked up.

One stood.

Bai Li landed on a counter.

Yan Cijin landed beside her.

The zombies rushed.

The fight lasted less than a minute.

One tried to bite Yan Cijin.

She turned its head away.

Another lunged at Bai Li.

She caught its throat.

The last two attacked together.

Bai Li and Yan Cijin each took one.

Silence returned.

Bai Li looked at the broken store.

"We are making a mess."

Yan Cijin looked around.

"The mall was already a mess."

"That is true."

They found another staircase at the rear.

The upper levels were beginning to feel different.

The walls had started growing thin golden roots.

They moved slowly, curling around railings and pillars.

Some disappeared inside walls.

Others continued upward.

The sweet smell had become stronger.

Yan Cijin inhaled once.

"The fruit is definitely nearby."

"Not nearby enough."

"You want to reach it quickly?"

"Yes."

"Then stop fighting everything."

Bai Li looked at her.

"You are the one who keeps hitting things."

"Only when they attack you."

Bai Li paused.

"That is true."

Yan Cijin looked away before Bai Li could notice the small smile on her face.

They reached the next landing.

The stairwell door was covered in scratches.

Not random scratches.

Five parallel cuts repeated across the entire surface.

Bai Li touched them.

"Claws."

Yan Cijin nodded.

"Large."

"Very."

Bai Li placed her hand on the handle.

The door opened before she pulled.

Something on the other side had been leaning against it.

A body fell inward.

Human.

Dead.

The woman had been carrying a backpack.

Her hands were empty.

Her face was frozen in fear.

There were five deep wounds across her back.

Yan Cijin crouched and checked her pockets.

Nothing.

Bai Li looked at the corridor.

"Whatever killed her did not eat her."

"No."

"It was chasing something else."

A distant crash answered.

Both women looked forward.

Another crash.

Then a scream.

Human.

Bai Li moved immediately.

Yan Cijin followed.

They entered a large corridor lined with empty stores.

At the far end, a group of survivors was running.

Behind them came a huge creature.

It was shaped like a wolf but far larger.

Its body was covered in gray armor plates.

Its jaw extended almost to its chest.

The survivors were five people.

They were carrying a wounded man between them.

Bai Li stepped into the path.

The survivors almost collided with her.

"Move!" one shouted.

Bai Li did not.

The monster leaped.

She raised one hand.

The creature stopped in midair.

Its claws hung inches from her face.

Bai Li looked into its eyes.

"You are loud."

She threw it backward.

It hit a wall.

The survivors stared.

Yan Cijin stepped around Bai Li.

.

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TO BE CONTINUED.