Chapter 989 - 15: Waterworld
Kong Hou lay on Li Jiali’s shoulder, looking back, and saw the rose-red toxic fog rapidly spreading toward them. The pedestrians on the street were all running for their lives, all rushing back to their homes. The shops along the street slammed their doors shut and hurriedly stuffed things into the cracks. Urgent, chaotic footsteps, screams, and the piercing wail of alarms echoing down the street blended into one.
Li Jiali ran while holding Kong Hou in her arms. Hearing Li Jiali’s increasingly heavy breathing, Kong Hou felt a growing anxiety.
"Put me down," Kong Hou said.
Li Jiali ignored Kong Hou’s words and kept running with her in her arms.
The rose-red toxic fog was like a strange, malevolent beast, endlessly devouring everything in the Swamp District.
From within the dense mist came screams of agony, cries for help, but no one went to save them—no one could. Once this toxic fog touched you, it would quickly corrode your skin, then your muscles, your bones...
Kong Hou watched the rose-red toxic fog behind them draw closer and closer, and the screams around them grew more and more frequent. Her heart was burning with panic, but even more with helplessness. If her power were still there, they wouldn’t be this helpless, wouldn’t be this powerless.
"Don’t be afraid, I’m here." Li Jiali panted heavily, yet her tone remained gentle.
Kong Hou’s emotions were impossibly tangled in that moment.
"We’re almost there." Li Jiali spoke again, continuing to reassure Kong Hou.
Kong Hou clung tightly to Li Jiali, gritting her teeth, watching the toxic fog draw nearer and nearer, frowning as if lost in thought.
Suddenly, the spread of the rose-red toxic fog behind them surged, racing toward them at high speed.
"The fog is almost on us—put me down, you can drop me and run on your own!" Kong Hou slapped anxiously at Li Jiali’s back as she spoke.
Li Jiali turned a deaf ear, still not looking back, and kept running with Kong Hou in her arms.
"Put me down!" Kong Hou saw the rose-red fog almost upon them and shouted in panic. This foolish human, she could put her down and run for her life! If it went on like this, they were both going to die.
The rose-red dense fog was about to engulf their backs when, at that very moment, Li Jiali finally got the door open, carried Kong Hou inside, shut the door behind them, put Kong Hou down, and deftly grabbed the cloth kept by the door, stuffing it into the crack at the threshold. Then she stood up and quickly sealed the gaps in the windows before finally sitting down and hurriedly taking off her shoes.
Kong Hou saw Li Jiali’s heel and cried out, "You’re hurt."
Li Jiali looked up at Kong Hou and forced a weak smile. "It’s fine, just a little bit. I’ll cut off this bit of skin and it’ll be okay." As she spoke, Li Jiali had already taken out a scalpel and sliced off the patch of corroded flesh on her heel, then swiftly bandaged it. By the time she finished, her forehead was beaded with cold sweat.
Kong Hou looked at Li Jiali after she finished tending to the wound. She bit her lip, then suddenly shouted, "You could’ve completely just left me and run by yourself! We don’t even know each other! Why would you risk your life to protect me?"
Li Jiali looked at Kong Hou, still smiling gently. "I’m not going to leave you behind."
"You’re—you’re unbelievably stupid! I, I... I don’t need protection from a weak human...!!" Kong Hou almost screamed the words. She didn’t know why, but the moment she shouted them, it felt like something clogged up her chest, sour and aching, making her unbearably sad.