Zhang Yuqiu’s sharp cry carried the fierce spirit of Sun Erniang. Xiao Shu flinched back, letting out an awkward, forced laugh, wishing she could dig a hole and bury her face in it.

“What’s wrong?” Xiaoyu was just about to look out when the hospital bed with its casters and mop handle rolled to a stop just outside the doorway, hovering a safe three feet off the ground. “Well, well, a veritable heroine. We owe our brief chance at survival today entirely to Ms. Zhang’s timely rescue. We shall not fail your trust in the future.” With that, he pulled Xiao Shu, one in front and one behind, onto the bed. Each grabbed a mop to use as a makeshift paddle, laboriously propelling themselves across the dry ground while enduring the sickening squelch-squelch sound of the Undead Worms being flattened beneath the wheels.

When they reached a spot about two feet short of the basement threshold, no amount of frantic paddling with the mops would move the bed forward an inch. Xiao Shu leaned down to peer over the edge, and her blood ran cold, raising goosebumps all over her body.

The front caster was jammed fast on a human forearm bone. The surrounding Man-Eating Undead Worms, having caught the scent of two living souls, were already swarming up the four legs of the bed like ants on a mission. In less than a minute, the bed—once their precarious high ground—was about to be completely overrun by the enemy.

Xiao Shu made a lightning-fast decision. She unbuckled the leather belt at her waist, fastening one end of the buckle to the bedrail, and clamped the other end firmly between her teeth. She kicked off with her legs, leaping up to grasp the rusted door lintel. With a mighty heave of her body, she wrenched the wheeled bed free from the entrapment of the bone until the casters rumbled loudly over the frame. Only then did she release her grip, dropping onto the bed with a thud. She was drenched in sweat. Looking at her hand again, which was already raw and bleeding, the new strain added risks of further pain and infection.

“You’re this badly injured and you still intervened?” Before either of them could properly dismount, Zhang Yuqiu rushed over, gently prying open Xiao Shu’s palm and frowning as she examined the damage for a long moment.

Xiaoyu, sitting behind Xiao Shu on the bed, had intended to wait for her to get off before he followed. But now, with their palms facing each other, both were suddenly lost in a daze. He felt awkward, unsure whether to move left or right. Finally, feigning a deep cough, he gently nudged Xiao Shu’s back.

“I’m fine, fine, fine…” Xiao Shu’s face was flushed crimson. She repeated "fine" three times, gently drawing her hand from Zhang Yuqiu’s grasp. Using the support of Xiaoyu’s hands resting on her shoulders, she jumped down from the bed.

Xiaoyu landed shortly after. The horde of Man-Eating Undead Worms that had been assaulting the bed immediately sensed the prey escaping. They swiftly abandoned the legs of the cot and surged toward the three of them like a rising tide.

“Run!” “Run!” “Run!” The three shouted in unison. Zhang Yuqiu led the charge, while Xiaoyu and Xiao Shu supported each other, scrambling past gulleys filled with the worms, fleeing for their very lives.

Just as they reached the mouth of the parking garage, a dilapidated jalopy, somehow still possessing all four wheels, screeched to a halt in front of them. Xiaoyu blinked, realizing that the person they had just been analyzing—Li Taiming—had materialized right on cue. He waved them toward the open rear section, which could only accommodate standing passengers. Before anyone could fully stabilize themselves, he slammed the accelerator down. The car shot out of the 45-degree downward slope of the exit with a roar, rocketing away from the disgusting Man-Eating Undead Worms in a cloud of dust.