Before everything goes out

...

"This corrupting characteristic is what we call 'human-orientation'."

The adjutant adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses.

Under the woman's calm gaze, he continued his explanation.

"Or to be more precise, this is a kind of 'model reflex,' where some corrupted entities, whether biological or physical, will exhibit imitations of humans after they have decomposed to a certain extent."

The motives are currently unclear, but I personally believe that this imitation stems from the inherent hostility of the corrupted towards humanity. The reason for imitation is to better infiltrate human society.

"You were transferred from the Investigation Division to the Investigation Team, so you must understand this very well."

"Of course, this is one of the most troublesome characteristics of the corrupted."

The woman nodded.

"So, in your opinion, how far has this enormous consciousness chimera beneath our feet... Tai Sui, penetrated?"

"Conceptual corruptibles often lack physical form and may not even have the conditions for imitation at all. Therefore, they need to condense from a liquid state into a solid state, then differentiate into reproductive organs, and regenerate a human child in the truest sense..."

The adjutant turned his head and looked outside the tent.

In the rain, more villagers gathered and left carrying supplies amidst the noise.

An old man, an old woman, or a young man.

You can see them at all ages, except for children.

The oldest among them is nearing adulthood, clearly born before the catastrophe.

"Based on my speculation, the Tai Sui has successfully conceived its offspring and is hiding in this village."

The adjutant's vision gradually cleared.

...

...

In the rain.

A crowd gathered in front of several large shipping containers, creating chaos.

Although the ringed individuals had promised that the supplies would not be taken away and that they didn't need to rush to move them home, their ingrained instincts still made them unconsciously fight over them.

Mainly because I'm terrified of being poor.

In the ten years since the catastrophe, they have never seen or used these wonderful things.

Even before the catastrophe, these things were considered distant to them.

"Hey! Leave the gauze here!"

Wang Guodong was squeezed in the middle, watching helplessly as an old man left happily, carrying all sorts of things.

Among them was the medical gauze he needed.

"Damn it! You grabbed it without even looking at what it was! You might not be able to eat the gauze!"

As the old man hurried away, Wang Guodong cursed a couple of times.

However, the scene was chaotic, and soon his cursing was drowned out by the laughter of the people around him.

"It's alright, Dr. Wang. These things will be redistributed when the village chief returns tonight."

From the side came Lin Wen's comforting voice.

With Liu Yongxiao absent, the village has indeed become less orderly.

Wang Guodong was aware of this.

Just like the various supplies that the village originally had: rice, flour, grains, or kerosene and seasonings.

These items were produced by individual households, collected together, and then distributed as reasonably as possible under the leadership of Liu Yongxiao.

Because Liu Yongxiao was able to control the situation, he was able to maintain order even when the villagers had some complaints.

As for now...

With so many people involved, it would be too much trouble to handle; we'd have to wait until Liu Yongxiao returns to the village before making a decision.

"Yes, I know, I was just in a hurry. Here, Teacher Lin, take this back for your child."

Dr. Wang snatched a box of cookies from several hands on the cargo box.

Ladyfingers, strawberry flavor.

"Thanks."

Lin Wen tucked the cookies into her bosom to keep them dry from the rain.

Then, under Niu Wenbing's cover, she picked out a lot more things from the cargo box.

Candy, cookies, soft drinks.

And some beautifully packaged items with English writing on them that made it impossible to tell what they were.

"Xiao Wu and the others should like the steamed buns."

Clutching various surprises in her arms, Lin Wen walked briskly towards home, when she heard a shout behind her.

"Folks, wait a moment!"

A man with a gun shouted at the crowd.

Although there was no hostility in the shout, given the previous actions of the ringers, the villagers immediately stopped what they were doing and stood obediently in place.

"Gentlemen, I have one more request."

A calm woman's voice came from inside the tent.

Then the rings lined up on both sides, and the woman in the hooded raincoat walked out from among them.

Gentle and elegant.

She looks relatively young, but there are fine crow's feet at the corners of her eyes.

From the expression on his face, Lin Wen could even detect a hint of kindness.

To be honest, she had never met anyone like that before.

She had never seen such a person in person; they only existed in the television she remembered.

Under the watchful eyes of the villagers, the woman did not reveal what her "request" was, but instead asked:

"My question is, are there any children in Shuanghe Village?"

These words were spoken.

The villagers present suddenly changed their expressions.

Recalling the scenes of the rings kidnapping people, they immediately had a strong sense of foreboding.

Especially Lin Wen.

She froze in the crowd, her face instantly turning pale.

"Don't worry, everyone."

Sensing the change in the atmosphere, the woman smiled and explained.

"I'm just curious, with so many people in Shuanghe Village, and several rounds of people coming to collect supplies, why haven't I seen any children?"

Child?

In our village, only Teacher Lin's family has children.

Among the crowd, some people glanced at Lin Wen, but no one spoke.

After a moment of silence, one of the villagers asked the woman:

"What if there were? Would you kidnap people like before?"

The woman froze for a moment.

Judging from her expression, she wasn't offended; she simply shook her head and addressed the crowd:

"Please believe me, we have already disciplined the team that violated the rules before, and the supplies we sent are a form of compensation for you. However..."

Rainwater dripped down the brim of the woman's hat.

She paused for a moment, then changed the subject.

"However, this time, we do want to borrow a few children from you, but rest assured, I guarantee that the previous situation will never happen again..."

I guarantee you with my integrity that I will return all the borrowed children within two months. So, everyone, where are the children from your village?

After the woman finished speaking, the crowd remained silent.

Dozens of villagers stood in the rain, carrying supplies. Although they didn't speak, the women's faces showed their resistance.

These villagers had lost faith in Huanzi's identity.

The stalemate continued, creating a delicate atmosphere.

Not long after, a short man stepped out from the crowd.

"In that case, we can't help you with this. You can take these things back; we don't want them."

Niu Wenbing stepped forward and, under the watchful eyes of the group of people, put the various items he was carrying back into the cargo box.

His actions quickly alerted the villagers.

It turns out that this was all part of a transaction from beginning to end.

These supplies were not compensation from the kidnappers out of kindness, but rather a prelude to the abduction of the children.

Recalling the seven mutated corpses from before, and thinking of Lin Wen's children...

The villagers looked at each other, their arms heavy with various things. Though reluctant, they hesitated for a moment before stepping forward one by one.

"Fine, I'll give it back to you."

"Brother Niu is right, we don't want these things, and you shouldn't take our people with you!"

"It's not that we don't trust you, it's just that our village is already small, and if we let a few more people go, we really won't be able to make a living."

"Exactly, it doesn't matter if the food and clothes are a little less luxurious, the most important thing is that people are alive."

Under the watchful eyes of the rings, the villagers returned the supplies they had previously taken.

among them.

After returning the items, Feng Xiuhui even shouted at the woman:

"Sister, I think you're a reasonable person. We don't need the things, so please don't make things difficult for us."

The woman did not respond.

He simply watched all of this with a blank expression until the few crates inside the tent were refilled.

"Brother Niu, thank you..."

Lin Wen breathed a sigh of relief amidst the crowd, but her face remained tense.

She knew this woman wasn't so easy to deal with. If returning the items would really solve the problem, then so many of the rings wouldn't have come.

really.

This awkward silence didn't last long. Just as the villagers were about to disperse, they turned around and realized that they were already subtly surrounded by the rings.