CRASH!
At the same moment, a monstrous arm smashed through the door.
This was no human limb—thick, muscular, and covered in sinister bronze scales, its four clawed fingers ended in razor-sharp talons.
Gao Yang barely managed to shove Fatty Jun aside as the claws slashed through the air, grazing his left arm.
The scent of blood sent the claws into a frenzied tremor. With terrifying ease, the creature shredded the door like cardboard.
Footsteps crunched over splintered wood.
The room's main light was off, leaving only a dim, oppressive red glow.
"Three... three of you..." The voice—Auntie He's—was a grotesque mix of excitement and lamentation. "All mine..."
Gao Yang crouched behind the waterbed, clamping a hand over Fatty Jun's mouth to stifle his whimpers. His fingers grew wet with the fat man's terrified tears.
Through the ceiling mirror's reflection, Gao Yang saw their enemy.
Auntie He—a frail-looking woman in her fifties, dressed in a cleaner's uniform—had undergone a horrifying transformation. Her limbs had swollen into monstrous, scaled appendages, bursting through her clothes.
Then, with a sickening squelch, a thick, serpentine tail erupted from her spine, dragging behind her like a living creature.
She was now something between a human and a lizard.
Gao Yang's blood ran cold.
In that moment, he remembered crushing a cockroach under his slipper—how it had scurried under the bed, only to be flushed out and squashed without mercy.
Now I'm the cockroach.
Their only hope? Qing Ling, hidden somewhere in the room.
Ten agonizing seconds passed.
Swish-swish-swish!
Three daggers shot from the shadows, aiming for Auntie He's eyes.
She blocked effortlessly, the blades clattering harmlessly to the floor.
A feint.
Qing Lung lunged from the wardrobe, her tangdao aimed straight for the beast's heart.
Auntie He caught the blade mid-air, claws screeching against steel.
With a furious cry, Qing Ling channeled every ounce of strength into the thrust—
BAM!
The impact slammed Auntie He against the wall, but her grip on the blade held firm.
The beast's tail lashed out, striking Qing Ling's ribs and sending her crashing through the glass shower door.
Seizing the opening, Fatty Jun flung a blanket over Auntie He's head—then promptly tripped over his own feet, landing flat on his back in a puddle of viscous fluid.
"P-please... Mom... help..." He flailed like a beached fish.
Auntie He shredded the blanket—just as three more daggers found her eyes.
SQUELCH.
Blood gushed from the ruined sockets.
While the beast writhed, Gao Yang moved.
—You're useless.
—Nothing you do matters. So don't overthink it.
—Just go through the motions.
This bizarre pep talk somehow steadied his nerves.
He snatched the fallen tangdao, severed a hairdryer's cord, and jammed the plug into an outlet.
Not enough reach.
Gritting his teeth, he stabbed Auntie He's thigh—just deep enough to anchor the blade.
As the beast yanked at the sword, Qing Ling—bleeding from the mouth—used her Metal ability to hold it in place.
Gao Yang pressed the live wire to the blade.
ZZZT!
Auntie He convulsed, collapsing to her knees.
Another jolt.
Qing Ling wrenched the sword free and drove it into the beast's chest.
With Gao Yang's added weight, the blade pierced through—
THUNK.
Pinned to the wall, Auntie He spasmed once... then went still.
Gao Yang vomited.
Fatty Jun barricaded the ruined door. "Thank god this floor's empty."
"You said there was only one room left!"
"Business sucks," Fatty Jun admitted, healing Gao Yang's arm. "Bro..."
"I'm younger than you."
"From today, you're my real brother." He glanced at Qing Ling. "And she's my sis-in-law!"
Qing Ling's exhaustion did nothing to dampen her murderous aura.
"Bro, how'd you know Auntie He was fake?" Fatty Jun asked.
"Sound." Gao Yang wiped his mouth. "Real cleaners have carts. I never heard wheels."
"Genius!" Fatty Jun slapped his thigh. "Why didn't I think of that?"
"Of course! My bro's a damn prodigy!"
Gao Yang spun around.
The voice belonged to none other than—
Wang Zikai.