The walls around the restroom had no mutants clinging to them, but the ground outside the villa was piled full of them.
At a glance there was not even a sliver of space, the swarm fused tight with the forest growth. In other words, walking out across the ground was impossible.
And that was only outside. Inside the villa, every corner was also crammed with all kinds of mutants.
The sight gave Lan Jin the sudden illusion that she was a mouse in a trap. The villa was the cage, luring them in and waiting. Once inside, they would never leave.
But they were not mice. There was always a way.
They watched from the restroom for a while. After everyone understood what lay below, Pei Xin said, "Do we have a plane? Can we go by air?"
Captain Zhang was speechless. "Where do you want me to find a plane? Grow a pair of wings. That would be faster."
Pei Xin choked, then muttered, "That works too."
…
Whether it worked or not was another matter. With those things outside, Lan Jin truly could not set foot on them. Not a single step.
"I will never, never, never walk on them. Absolutely not."
Lao Shi said dryly, "We are getting ahead of ourselves. We have not even gotten out of the restroom. Getting out is simple. Take down the security bars and climb down."
Ling Jiang leaned out for a look and said, "It is passable below. We do not have to step on them. Lan Jin can kill the ones beneath the window first. I will freeze them in a sheet. We walk on the ice. We don't touch the bodies and we move fast."
It was a roundabout plan, but it would work. Even dead, those bodies were soft. Step on them and you would slip. Freeze them, and an ice surface would carry them out quickly and with fewer falls.
"Good. Do it. Take the bars off."
Heavy work like that fell by default to Lao Gao and Huang Jinghe.
To be honest, if they did not need to hide their true strength, either one of them could have ripped the welded frame down alone with a casual pull.
…
The bars came off easily. As soon as they were free, Lao Gao hurled the frame from the fourth floor. It smashed down on several mutant beasts. The injured creatures howled, pain tipping their agitation into frenzy. The forest echoed with noise.
Lao Shi ignored the uproar and moved to throw out their knotted ropes when a band of green light swept slowly across the air. Pei Xin reacted first, grabbed Lao Shi with all her strength, and yanked him back inside.
Pei Xin's terrified face said it all. The slow sweep of green outside needed no explanation. Captain Zhang looked from the window to the group and asked tensely, "That is the green light, right? The one that turns people into mutants? We are inside, but there is no glass. Did the light reach you? Did it touch anyone?"
Captain Zhang stood near the restroom door, the farthest point from the window. Even without glass, the light could not reach him. The one closest to the opening was Lao Shi.
Everyone looked at Lao Shi.
To be honest, Lao Shi had been startled too. He had pulled back fast, but his hand had brushed the green light for a moment, a trace so small only Lao Shi noticed it. There was no need to say that aloud. The base, the team…
Lao Shi kept his face calm. Lao Shi said, "No. Pei Xin moved fast. I never went out. The light did not touch me."
Everyone exhaled at once.
Captain Zhang quickly checked with the others nearest the window. Each answer was the same. No one had been swept.
…
While they all watched the green light with wary eyes, Lao Shi, who had already been touched by it, suddenly felt bold. Lao Shi leaned out again, watched the glow drift away, and, after confirming no movement outside, asked, "Do you know how often that light appears? If it sweeps mutants again, what happens to them?"
Pei Xin and Xi Yu both shook their heads. "We really do not know. After we got out, information was scarce. Later teams were sent in, but most never returned. We have no idea what repeated exposure does."
Even so, the urge to leave was urgent.
Lao Shi said, "No more hesitating. While the light has passed, we go. We leave the forest."
Captain Zhang agreed. He said, "We climb down slowly. Lan Jin, kill the ones under the window from here. Ling Jiang, follow Lao Shi and freeze the whole patch solid."
While the two of them started down, Lan Jin closed her eyes and electrocuted the mutants below one by one.
After a chorus of howls, the forest fell briefly quiet. The green light faded and vanished into the trees.
Staring down at the new ice sheet, Lan Jin still shouted a warning. Lan Jin said, "I killed the ones outside. Inside the villa I cannot see. Some may still be alive. Be careful."
Lan Jin had just finished when Ling Jiang flicked a hand and froze the villa's main door shut.
Trained as they were, the group moved fast. They dropped to the ice and, following Lao Shi's lead, sprinted downhill at top speed.
But the mutants kept coming, pouring toward them from every side. Lan Jin's lightning was fierce, but there were too many. One lapse, and a huge mutant hit them from behind.
The team was not helpless. Even without abilities, their skills and weapons could still hold the line.
They fought while running, step by bruising step, until at last they reached the crossroads where more than two hundred people had first been separated.