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Chapter 19 — Nightmare
A shrill, piercing scream tore through the silence of the night.
Mo Chu and Li Chen exchanged a glance. In the same instant, they pushed open the car doors and stepped out. A sharp clang sounded as Mo Chu drew the dagger from her waist.
Little Jin tried to follow, but Mo Chu shut him back inside.
They had both absorbed crystal cores before. Little Jin hadn’t absorbed a single one yet—and whatever was coming, it was clearly not simple.
The scream had come from Kang Xingchi’s side. After that single cry, there was nothing else. No one knew whether the person was still alive.
At the same time, chaos erupted from that direction. Even from a distance, Mo Chu could hear the commotion, and her brows tightened.
The situation was unclear. They didn’t know what was attacking, or whether the victim was alive or dead. And yet the group had already fallen into disorder—only making it easier for whatever was there to take more lives in the confusion.
Mo Chu signaled to Li Chen. He nodded. The two of them moved forward without a sound.
As they approached, Kang Xingchi’s voice cut through the night.
Cold. Sharp. Nothing like her earlier careless, carefree tone.
“Everyone stay in the cars. No talking. Count and see who’s missing.”
A moment later, someone whispered, “Xu Shishi and Zhao Jie are gone.”
Another voice followed, trembling slightly. “The scream just now… it sounded like Xu Shishi. Then where’s Zhao Jie?”
That question hung in the air—unnaturally chilling.
Everything went silent for a heartbeat.
Then someone began to cry softly.
“Stop crying. No noise.” Kang Xingchi’s voice turned even harsher. “I’m getting out. Stay in the cars. Anyone who steps out without permission—dead or alive—I won’t care.”
The crying stopped instantly.
Her car door opened.
And just as she stepped out, she met Mo Chu and the others head-on.
Both sides froze for a split second—close enough that a fight almost broke out on instinct.
But they all reacted quickly, withdrawing just in time.
Kang Xingchi glanced at Mo Chu. Mo Chu silently pointed toward the direction of the scream.
Kang Xingchi nodded.
Without a word, the three of them moved forward.
No one spoke. No footsteps betrayed them.
Only the dead stillness of the night surrounded them as they advanced toward the source.
They hadn’t gone far when they heard it—
A strange chewing sound, coming from behind a tree.
Along with it, a thick, nauseating stench of blood.
Undead stench.
Mo Chu’s expression sharpened instantly.
A zombie.
All three of them stopped at the same time.
Night offered no light. Zombies were not bound by sight—darkness meant nothing to them. But for humans, it was another matter entirely.
Then—
Behind them, the sound of an engine starting abruptly shattered the silence.
At the exact same moment, the chewing stopped.
Mo Chu cursed inwardly.
Idiot.
She grabbed Li Chen and Kang Xingchi and pulled them back a step.
The next instant—
A violent, rotten gust of wind swept through the space where they had just stood.
Fast.
Too fast.
Mo Chu’s skin prickled. Her voice rang out sharply.
“Li Chen!”
A burst of blazing fire erupted from Li Chen’s palm, illuminating the night in an instant.
And revealing the thing that had been less than half a step away from them.
A zombie.
Li Chen reacted immediately. Firelines shot out, wrapping tightly around its ankles and yanking it sideways, interrupting its charge.
Mo Chu didn’t hesitate.
Dagger in hand, she shot forward.
Her movements were razor-fast. She ducked the claw that swung toward her, slipped behind the zombie, and locked an arm around its back. In the same motion, she raised her dagger toward the back of its head.
But this one was faster than the one they had seen in Lin City.
It twisted violently.
The blade missed.
And Mo Chu was flung backward, hitting the ground.
At the same time, Li Chen tightened his control. Two firelines snapped out, binding the zombie’s limbs.
And Kang Xingchi moved.
Mo Chu caught the blur of her motion out of the corner of her eye.
Kang Xingchi’s body surged forward—and as she ran, her exposed skin gradually transformed.
Silver.
Metallic.
From legs to arms to face, her entire body turned into something inhumanly hard and gleaming. By the time she reached the zombie, she looked like a humanoid machine forged from steel.
She didn’t dodge.
She threw a punch straight into the zombie’s claw.
CLANG—!
A sound like metal striking metal exploded in the air.
Mo Chu froze for a fraction of a second.
That ability…
In her previous life, “Iron Woman” Kang Xingchi was famous for exactly this—full-body metal transformation. Later on, her body became so strong she could fight zombies barehanded.
Mo Chu exhaled slowly.
So it really was her.
This world really was too small.
But there was no time to think further.
Li Chen restrained the zombie again. Kang Xingchi pressed in close. The fire tightened around its limbs.
Everything aligned perfectly.
Now.
Mo Chu moved.
She leapt forward in one motion, clamping the zombie’s head and driving the dagger straight down.
This time, there was no resistance.
She felt it—something hard inside its skull.
Without hesitation, she twisted.
A crystal-clear core was pulled free, along with a spray of dark green fluid.
It landed in her palm.
At the same time, the zombie collapsed.
Li Chen’s flames surged, engulfing its body completely. A foul stench spread through the air.
None of them cared.
For a moment, the three of them stood there in the firelight, looking at each other—each of them covered in dirt and chaos from the fight.
Then, unexpectedly, Mo Chu and Kang Xingchi both laughed.
Even Li Chen’s lips curved slightly.
Kang Xingchi glanced at Li Chen. “Your friend’s pretty strong.”
As she spoke, the metallic sheen on her skin faded, returning to human flesh.
Mo Chu looked at Li Chen as well.
He hadn’t moved much during the fight—but his role had been decisive.
Without his suppression, the zombie wouldn’t have been contained so easily.
Five-element abilities… truly lived up to their reputation.
Mo Chu smiled faintly. “I’ll thank you on his behalf.”
Kang Xingchi waved it off. “No. I should be thanking him.”
But then her expression cooled.
She looked toward the distance.
Mo Chu followed her gaze.
Kang Xingchi’s car was gone.
No trace left.
No need to guess who had driven it away.
The irony was almost laughable—they had fled, but not far enough to feel safe. They had simply retreated and watched from a distance.
Now, seeing that the danger was over, they slowly drove back.
Kang Xingchi let out a cold scoff.
She turned away and walked toward the tree where the scream had come from.
Mo Chu and Li Chen followed.
Under the tree lay two bodies.
One was no longer even fully intact—clearly the one who had screamed earlier.
Xu Shishi.
The other was still whole, though unconscious.
Kang Xingchi glanced at him and laughed faintly. “Lucky. Just fainted.”
Fainting had spared him.
Mo Chu watched silently.
Then she asked softly, “And them?”
Kang Xingchi’s expression darkened. She rubbed her hair in irritation.
“Annoying.”
Mo Chu didn’t press further.
Some distances didn’t need crossing.
When Kang Xingchi’s unreliable teammates finally returned, Mo Chu and Li Chen left.
As they walked back, they heard fragments of conversation behind them.
A man’s voice, coaxing. “Xing’er, we really didn’t mean to leave. We were afraid we’d get in your way.”
Kang Xingchi replied flatly, “I said no one goes out at night. So tell me—how did Xu Shishi and Zhao Jie end up outside?”
A woman’s voice, shaky. “T-they’re a couple… Xu Shishi went out first, and Zhao Jie followed…”
Kang Xingchi: “So they died for sex.”
Her boyfriend immediately cut in. “Xing’er, they’re already dead.”
Mo Chu shook her head quietly.
No wonder she had never heard in her previous life that Kang Xingchi had a boyfriend.
Back in the car, Little Jin nearly clawed the door apart in panic.
The moment they returned, Li Chen picked him up and placed him in the driver’s seat.
Mo Chu glanced at Li Chen. “You sleep in the back later. We’ll switch.”
He shook his head. “You sleep.”
Mo Chu hesitated, but said nothing more.
Later that night, Kang Xingchi’s group decided to leave immediately, fearing another attack.
Before they departed, Kang Xingchi even knocked on Mo Chu’s window to say goodbye.
Mo Chu watched her go.
Honestly, she felt Kang Xingchi hadn’t been persuaded.
She had simply been annoyed into leaving.
Later, Li Chen fell asleep.
But Mo Chu lay awake in the back seat, staring at the darkness.
Thinking about Kang Xingchi.
In her previous life, that name had been infamous—almost as much as Li Chen’s.
Li Chen was feared for cruelty and strength.
Kang Xingchi was feared for something else entirely.
She only did things for money.
As long as the price was right, she would kill anyone. Dirty work, clean work—she didn’t care.
The most memorable case was when someone paid her to kill Li Chen.
Not to succeed—but to test her “Iron Woman” reputation. To see if she would dare.
She did.
And then Li Chen hunted her across thousands of miles—from desert to coastal city—until she was forced to ally with his enemy.
Even then, she still collected the payment.
And even demanded double from the client.
From that moment on, no one dared provoke her.
Just like no one dared provoke Li Chen.
One was willing to take lives.
The other didn’t care about losing his own.
In a way, they were both terrifying.
But the Kang Xingchi she saw today…
Mo Chu was still thinking when a low groan came from the front seat.
She startled and sat up immediately.
Li Chen’s eyes were closed. His face was flushed, expression tight with pain.
Mo Chu reached out instinctively. “Li Chen?”
The moment she touched him, her wrist was seized.
She didn’t struggle.
Instead, she studied him quietly.
And slowly realized—
He wasn’t injured.
He was dreaming.
A nightmare.
