Zhang Chenze's eyes were wide open, unable to utter a single word. She could only back away unconsciously.
"What's wrong?"
Qiao Jiajin's view was blocked by Zhang Chenze, so he didn't know what had happened. He only saw the haughty lawyer retreat several steps before plopping down onto the filthy ground.
"You... you..."
Zhang Chenze pointed a finger at the female clerk. The group followed her gaze and saw that the female clerk was holding a severed arm in her open palm. The arm was very small, not like that of an adult.
Moreover, the fingers on it were all distinct; it was definitely not from some animal. It seemed this female clerk had indeed cooked a baby. The baby's arm now gave off an alluring aroma.
Qi Xia saw this scene, and connecting it with the environment of this strange room, he instantly understood something.
"This is... a little piglet?"
Qi Xia asked tentatively.
"That's right," the female clerk nodded.
"Aren't you going to eat?"
With a grim face, Qi Xia asked again, "You said if we slept with you, we could eat a little piglet. Is this the kind of little piglet you meant?!"
"Mhm."
The female clerk stared blankly at Qi Xia.
"Little piglets are delicious."
The smell of blood in here was heavy. There were bloodstains on the female clerk's thighs and on the bed. If Qi Xia's guess was correct, this woman had given birth not long ago, and then cooked the child.
She asked men to sleep with her, just so she could eat the child.
"I can eat a little piglet about once a year..."
The female clerk smiled, revealing dry, yellow teeth.
"I just wanted to ask if any of you are willing to sleep with me? I can trade a pig's trotter with you..."
"We... we don't eat..."
Officer Li shook his head.
"If you're not eating... then never mind..."
She fumbled for a moment, stuffed the boiled baby arm into her clothes pocket, and wiped the grease from her hands. Zhang Chenze looked at the coat she had draped over the other woman, now sullied like this, and was speechless. Before this, she had never imagined that cooking human flesh would produce so much grease.
Tian Tian slowly walked to the female clerk's side and said to her with a complex expression, "Miss, what you ate wasn't a little piglet, it was a child..."
"A child?"
The female clerk's vacant eyes shifted.
"That is a little piglet. It suddenly rushed out and hurt me."
Everyone looked at each other, none of them knowing what to say.
"Heh... I'm hungry again."
The female clerk raised an eyebrow.
"I'm going to drink some pork soup. It's so good to be full."
After speaking, she turned around and walked back into the staff break room. Before closing the door, she seemed to remember something and said to the group with a foolish grin, "Please, choose whatever you like!" Then she shut the door heavily.
The group was silent for a long time. The atmosphere was extremely oppressive. Finally, it was Qi Xia who broke the silence.
"Everyone, even if this godforsaken place isn't destroyed in ten days, we can't return to the real World."
Qi Xia reached up and touched his forehead.
"If we have to stay here forever, we'll go mad just like her sooner or later."
This time, Officer Li did not object to Qi Xia. He too was hesitating. In this city that was clearly abnormal, under this crimson sky and ochre sun, how long could a human being maintain their sanity?
The sound of clattering cookware came from inside the room. It sounded as if the female clerk had served herself another bowl of her delicacy and was now feasting with great gusto. Separated by just a single door, a woman was eating the child she had just given birth to.
Everything about this place was too abnormal.
"I want to go out and take a look," Qi Xia spoke up.
"Aren't you curious? What exactly is this place? Who are these people? Does the city have a boundary? What's outside? How did we get here, and how are we supposed to get out?"
Rather than "curiosity," the expressions on everyone's faces looked more like fear.
"I just feel that there's danger everywhere here..."
Xiao Ran shook her head and said to Qi Xia, "Rather than go out and participate in those 'games,' I'd prefer to find a safe place to stay."
"Pretty lady, there's nothing to eat or drink here."
Qiao Jiajin rubbed his stomach.
"If we want to live, we can't really eat that little piglet, can we?"
His stance was self-evident. Rather than stay here and wait to die, he also wanted to go out and see. The nine participants now seemed to be divided into two teams.
Some wanted to go, and some wanted to stay. Doctor Zhao looked at Han Yimo beside him and said, "It's fine to go out and look, but the injured can't go. He is destined to stay here.
As a doctor, I should also stay and take care of him."
"Then I'll stay and keep you company..."
Xiao Ran said in a small voice.
"Are you tired of living?"
Qiao Jiajin shook his head.
"A patient, a helpless girl, and a doctor. Are the three of you planning to live here?"
"I'll stay too," Officer Li suddenly said.
The three of them, Doctor Zhao's group, turned to look at him, knowing that if the able-bodied Officer Li also stayed, it would naturally be safer. Officer Li nodded at Doctor Zhao and said, "This hooligan is right. It's too dangerous for the three of you to be here alone.
Not to mention those with animal masks, even if that woman inside goes crazy, you wouldn't be able to handle it." Now the number of people choosing to stay had reached four. The group's eyes then fell upon Tian Tian, Zhang Chenze, and Lin Qin.
These three women had not yet stated their positions.
"Of course I'm staying."
Zhang Chenze gave a slight smile.
"I'm a lawyer. I will not take the initiative to act before I have all the intelligence. It would cause me to make an error in judgment."
After speaking, she got up and walked over to Officer Li and Doctor Zhao's side. At this moment, Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin seemed to be the odd ones out. Wanting to go out and explore in this world that seemed fraught with peril, they were like children who hadn't grown up.
Tian Tian looked at Lin Qin beside her, then walked over to Qi Xia's side, but she remained silent. It seemed she didn't need any reason to join Qi Xia's team.
"Huh?"
The corner of Qiao Jiajin's mouth lifted.
"I thought you would stay."
"Stay?"
Tian Tian gave a bitter smile and shook her head, then pointed a finger at the ground.
"Can't you see? There's a wall here, and this wall forces me to go."
"A wall?"
Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin looked down but didn't see any "wall."
"On that side of the wall are the police, the lawyer, the doctor, the expert. And on this side of the wall are the con man, the hooligan, the prostitute."
Tian Tian's tone was flat. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and added, "Our 'factions' were decided from the very beginning, weren't they?" The expressions on Qi Xia's and Qiao Jiajin's faces flickered as they understood Tian Tian's meaning.
That's right.
Even if all nine of them were ordinary people forced to come to this place, they still had their own "factions." Qi Xia, Qiao Jiajin, and Tian Tian were all people who lived in a grey area, destined to be incompatible with the others. Now, the only one who had not chosen her "faction" was Lin Qin.
According to her identity as a "psychologist," she should have gone to the other side of the "wall." But to everyone's surprise, she slowly walked over to Qi Xia's group. Qi Xia had a faint feeling that there was something wrong with this girl, but he couldn't say what was strange about it.
"You're coming too?"
Tian Tian looked at the girl with confusion.
"You're not our kind of person. If you followed them, maybe..."
"But I am very useful."
Lin Qin covered her mouth and nose and smiled at Tian Tian, cutting her off.
"I understand human nature. I might be able to help."
Qiao Jiajin stretched and said slowly, "Alright, with two pretty ladies for company, the con man and I won't be bored."
"Don't call me a con man," Qi Xia said with a frown.
"And I don't need you all to follow me."
"Fine, fine..."
Qiao Jiajin nodded.
"When are we leaving? Now?"
"I..."
Before Qi Xia could finish, Lin Qin spoke up: "It's really getting late. I personally suggest we go out tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?"
The group turned to look out the window. The sky had indeed grown dark. The sky was even more crimson, constantly exuding a dangerous aura.