At the front, Arima Guijiang slowly began to step back while signaling for silence. Su Xiao wasn't a useless teammate; after nodding at Arima Guijiang, the three of them started to retreat gradually.
The reason for their cautious retreat was that after turning a corner, they found themselves facing a wide open space. In this area, there were at least a thousand monster-like creatures known as ghouls.
These ghouls looked strange and even terrifying. Their skin was dark, resembling charred coal, and it was rough to the touch. Unlike ordinary ghouls, these ones had their kagune (the biological weapon of ghouls) extended outwards, making it look like they had tails.
These monster ghouls had no red eyes; in fact, they had no eyes at all. Their eyes seemed to have degenerated, covered by a layer of grayish-white hard shell.
Although Su Xiao and the others were exposed to the ghouls, the ghouls didn't notice them. After retreating a bit further, Arima Guijiang let out a sigh of relief.
"I've seen this type of ghoul before. They hunt using sound, making them very difficult to deal with. If we disturb a group this large, we won't stand a chance."
Sure enough, Arima Guijiang knew some secrets about District 24. At least in the original story, Su Xiao had never encountered primitive ghouls or these eyeless ones.
"What should we do now?" Yuna looked at Arima Guijiang, clearly relying on him for guidance.
"Let's find another route."
Su Xiao remained silent, and Yuna didn't object. The three began searching for alternative paths, but after two hours, they discovered something.
Aside from the area with the eyeless ghouls, all four other routes were dead ends. According to the compass, the direction of the eyeless ghouls was the only way to the surface.
The three of them sat together in a corridor to discuss their options. Su Xiao had somehow pulled out a notebook and a pen.
"Here, here, and here—we haven't been to these places. From my hand-drawn map, District 24 looks a bit like a funnel. The direction leading deeper into District 24 is the wide end of the funnel, while the way to the surface is the narrow end. That's why we can find a fixed path to District 24."
After sketching in the notebook, a detailed map appeared. The map even had coordinates and a scale.
Yuna looked at Su Xiao with admiration. "How did you do that? Did you remember all the routes we took?"
Not only was Yuna, the neurotic girl, shocked, but Arima Guijiang also looked at Su Xiao in surprise.
Su Xiao quickly moved the pen in his hand. "My previous 'profession' was a bit special. I often had to sneak into places to find specific people. It's a habit from my job."
Yuna thought for a moment. "Sounds like a killer."
"Similar nature, different beliefs."
Su Xiao looked at both of them. "So, what do you think? Should we wait for the next terrain change in District 24, or take the risk to pass through that dangerous area?"
Arima Guijiang and Yuna considered it for a while.
"Our supplies won't last until the next terrain change in District 24."
Yuna and Arima Guijiang had enough food and water for four days. They could survive until the next change while starving, but their fighting ability would drop significantly.
Su Xiao had enough supplies, but he didn't want to be stuck here. Time in this derived world was precious.
"As long as we don't make any noise, those special ghouls won't notice us," Arima Guijiang said, seeming to want to take the risk.
"Then let's take the risk," Arima Guijiang and Yuna stood up.
"Since we've decided to take the risk, I have a plan," Su Xiao suddenly spoke up.
"What plan?"
"Since those ghouls sense sound, we can set up a sound source here on the map. Then we wait at this spot on the map. When the sound source goes off, it will attract the attention of those special ghouls, and we can slip through."
Su Xiao didn't want to fight the eyeless ghouls head-on. From Arima Guijiang's attitude, it was clear those ghouls were tough opponents.
"That could work; I've used similar methods before with good results."
"Where will the sound source come from?"
Su Xiao smiled and took out a phone, quickly tapping on the screen. "Let's set the time for five minutes. That should be enough."
After saying that, Su Xiao placed the phone on the ground, and the three of them quickly ran forward.
Soon, they reached a dead end close to the location of the eyeless ghouls.
Beep, beep, beep... a cheerful tune played in the distance. Yuna, the neurotic girl, actually started dancing, her hands moving rhythmically in front of her.
"Wow, it’s my favorite song, ‘The Onion Song’!"
Su Xiao was speechless at Yuna's sudden change in mood, and Arima Guijiang turned his head in surprise.
A few seconds after the music started, the sound of rapid footsteps echoed.
Boom, boom, boom...
It sounded like an army charging, and the three of them could hear it from a distance.
Before long, the sound of many footsteps grew louder. The three exchanged glances and sprinted towards the only exit.
Time was short; who knew if the eyeless ghouls would come back suddenly?
They ran quickly, with Arima Guijiang leading, Yuna in the middle, and Su Xiao at the back, maintaining their original formation.
In just a few seconds, they reached the previous corner.
Arima Guijiang suddenly stopped, raising one hand behind him, palm facing Su Xiao and Yuna.
Su Xiao immediately halted and looked towards the open space around the corner.
In that space, some eyeless ghouls were still lingering; not all of them had been drawn away.
"What do we do?" Yuna whispered.
"Stay silent and move slowly," Arima Guijiang said, walking cautiously ahead, with Yuna following closely behind him.
Su Xiao stayed in place, not moving. Arima Guijiang looked back at him in confusion.
Su Xiao pointed behind him, then at the two of them, and waved his hand forward.
The meaning was clear: moving together would make more noise, and they didn't know when the ghouls would return. One of them should go first while he stayed back.
Arima Guijiang nodded and made a careful gesture. Yuna gave a thumbs up, also staying put, waiting for Arima Guijiang to go first.
Su Xiao's decision wasn't out of selflessness; they were all in this together, and they couldn't afford any reckless actions.
Arima Guijiang moved slowly but steadily. The open space was about two hundred meters wide—not too long, but definitely not short.
In less than three minutes, Arima Guijiang successfully crossed the open space without incident.
A low growl suddenly echoed, freezing the three of them in place. It turned out to be an eyeless ghoul that had been sleeping on the ground, awakened by the kagune of its companion.
The eyeless ghoul rudely pushed aside the kagune and went back to sleep.
Yuna had made it to the center of the area, with four or five eyeless ghouls at her feet, moving very cautiously.
Su Xiao, at the back, leaned down to listen to the sounds on the ground.
It was safe; the eyeless ghouls drawn away by the sound source hadn't returned yet.
Su Xiao began to move forward slowly, each step taken with extreme care.
(End of Chapter)