"Crash—!"
The sharp sound of glass shattering was right by his ear, making his eardrums ache.
Lin Yue suddenly turned his head; the window on his left, covered in cracks, had shattered into a gaping hole, and a skin-and-bones Mutated Dog had crashed through the glass, squeezing its front half inside.
Its pair of sickly green eyes were fixed on Lin Yue, a low growl rumbling in its throat, and yellowish-green saliva dripped from its jagged fangs, making a sizzling corrosive sound on the dusty ground.
A fishy wind blew directly at him.
Almost at the same moment, from deep within the supermarket, the tin back door leading to the warehouse began to emit a spine-chilling metallic scraping sound: "Screech—creak—."
More than one!
They were clawing at that already unreliable door!
From the ceiling above, dull thuds mixed with the grating noise of claws scraping cement.
Clearly, more Mutated Dogs had climbed onto the roof of this two-story building and were desperately searching for a breakthrough.
"Damn it!"
Lin Yue cursed under his breath. He had expected an ambush in the convenience store, but he never dreamed he would stumble into a Mutated Dog den!
And Xuanwu was being held back by dozens of Mutated Dogs at the entrance, making it impossible for it to come to his rescue.
"Roar—!"
Outside the window, Xuanwu roared furiously, biting off the neck of one Mutated Dog, but the gap was immediately filled by more of its kind, which frantically slammed their bodies against its rock-hard shell.
It was held back.
"Ow!"
In that brief moment of Lin Yue's distraction, the Mutated Dog that had reached in through the window suddenly pushed off with its hind legs, its entire body transforming into a grey-white lightning bolt, lunging straight for his throat!
Incredibly fast!
Lin Yue's pupils suddenly constricted to a pinpoint.
At the brink of life and death, instinct overwhelmed thought.
Instead of retreating, he took a step forward, lowered his center of gravity, and swung the rubber police baton in his hand upwards with all his might!
"Bang!"
A muffled thud.
The baton landed squarely on the Mutated Dog's soft jaw.
"Awooo!"
The Mutated Dog let out a pained howl, its vicious lunge interrupted, its body flipping backward in mid-air and crashing heavily onto a row of disheveled shelves.
"Clatter—"
Cans, snacks, and various sundries scattered across the floor.
Before it could get up, Lin Yue had already followed through.
He strode forward, mounted the monster's body, raised the baton high, and brought it down on its head, again and again, with brutal force!
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
No skill, no technique, just the most primal strikes.
Sticky blood and brain matter splattered all over him.
The Mutated Dog's limbs twitched violently a few times, then quickly fell still.
Lin Yue's chest heaved violently, gasping for air, his nostrils filled with the choking smell of blood mixed with dust.
He stood up, supporting himself on his knees, glanced at the dense pack of dogs still outside the window, and then listened to the increasingly loud thumping from the warehouse door behind him.
Can't stay here!
This convenience store was a leaky sieve; he could plug one hole, but not all of them.
Once more Mutated Dogs poured in, even with three heads and six arms, he would only be slowly worn down to death in this confined space!
"Ow!"
The first Mutated Dog that had rushed in from the left finally lost its patience. Its hind leg muscles bulged, and it suddenly lunged, transforming into a blurred grey shadow, viciously biting towards Lin Yue's neck!
"Get lost!"
Lin Yue's pupils constricted. He sharply dodged to the side, lowering himself, his body twisting at an incredible angle, narrowly avoiding the fatal lunge.
At the same time, the police baton in his hand, carrying a fierce wind, swung out with all its might!
Bang!
A dull thud. The baton struck the Mutated Dog squarely on its side face.
The immense force made the monster let out a short, pained yelp, its entire body sent flying sideways, crashing into a row of potato chip shelves, and the packaging bags burst open with crackling sounds.
However, Lin Yue didn't even have time to catch his breath when another Mutated Dog silently pounced from his blind spot on the right!
"These dog bastards, they even know how to coordinate!"
Lin Yue cursed inwardly, his peripheral vision only catching a pouncing dark shadow.
He had no time to turn, only able to instinctively roll forward clumsily.
Rip—
A long gash was torn in the clothes on his back by sharp claws, and a searing, burning pain instantly erupted.
Although it was just a superficial wound, it made Lin Yue's heart sink to rock bottom.
This was only two!
There were still dozens outside!
He rolled to his feet, leaning against a shelf on the other side, his chest heaving violently, gasping for breath.
The two Mutated Dogs regained their footing, baring their fangs, and slowly closed in on him.
"No... if this continues, I'm dead for sure!"
Lin Yue's gaze quickly swept across the chaotic convenience store.
An incredibly bold, even crazy, idea flashed through his mind.
Only by being pushed to the brink of death can one find a way to live!
"Damn it, I'll risk it!"
He looked at the two Mutated Dogs pressing closer, and instead of retreating, he let out a beast-like growl from his throat and charged forward with the baton!
This abnormal behavior caused a momentary hesitation in both monsters.
Now!
Lin Yue's target was not them at all; he slammed his shoulder hard into a half-human-height snack shelf beside him.
Clang—!
The biscuits, candies, and various snacks piled on the shelf instantly engulfed the two Mutated Dogs.
Of course, Lin Yue also knew that these things had no real killing power, but they successfully impeded their movements.
"Awooo!"
The Mutated Dogs roared and struggled angrily in the pile of debris, but Lin Yue didn't even spare them a glance, turning and sprinting towards the warehouse back door of the convenience store, which had a sign that read "Staff Entrance"!
Lin Yue took a deep breath, sharply turned around, and with all his might, kicked the shelf pillar behind him!
"Boom—!!"
The domino effect occurred.
Rows of tall shelves, like collapsing city walls, brought down a sky full of dust and countless goods, one after another, crashing down behind him, onto the several Mutated Dogs that had just rushed in!
"Awooo—!"
The piercing screams were completely swallowed by the heavy roar.
This bought him a few precious seconds!
Lin Yue wasted no more time, leaping down from the shelf and landing steadily in front of the warehouse door.
"Open up for me!"
He mustered all his strength, slamming his entire body against the crumbling back door!
"Clang!"
The already shaky tin door swung open outwards!
Outside the door were two Mutated Dogs frantically clawing at it.
They had completely not expected the door to suddenly open outwards, nor had they expected their prey to voluntarily deliver itself.
After a brief moment of surprise, came overwhelming ferocity!
"Roar—!"
The closest Mutated Dog reacted the fastest, letting out a roar and pouncing like a blur.
"Now!"
This was the opportunity Lin Yue wanted; his body shot out like a cannonball, bursting through the gap between the two monsters!
As he squeezed through the gap, he could even feel the stinging pain of dog teeth grazing his arm, but his life was at stake now, so he couldn't bother with such minor injuries.
Rushing out of the narrow back alley, he saw a relatively open space ahead—this was the original plaza.
And in the center of the street, that figure like a black reef was Xuanwu, only thirty meters away from him!
Thirty meters, the distance between life and death!
"Xuanwu!!"
Lin Yue let out a roar as if expending all his strength!
This roar successfully attracted most of the Mutated Dogs besieging Xuanwu.
When they saw that the "food" that should have been trapped in the supermarket had actually run out, all the Mutated Dogs went crazy.
Abandon this hard bone that can't be chewed, and eat this fresh meat delivered to their mouths first!
"Awooo awooo awooo—!"
At least a dozen Mutated Dogs immediately changed direction, transforming into grey-white blurs, encircling Lin Yue from all sides!
Lin Yue's scalp tingled, and his adrenaline surged to its peak.
He pushed his speed to the limit, the gravel and ruins under his feet rapidly receding in his vision.
At the same time, Xuanwu, who had heard Lin Yue's call, also moved towards him.
Twenty meters!
Ten meters!
He could already smell Xuanwu's unique scent, a mix of earth and rock.
Behind him, the fastest Mutated Dog had caught up, its fierce, foul wind almost tearing at the back of his neck!
In the nick of time, Lin Yue leaped, gripping Xuanwu's rock-like rough leg armor with both hands.
The powerful impact instantly tensed his arm muscles to their limit, almost tearing them.
But he gritted his teeth, brought his other hand up, and with a sudden burst of strength from both arms, he forcefully pulled his body up!
As his feet finally landed on the broad, flat turtle shell, the sharp fangs of the first pursuing Mutated Dog were less than half a meter from his heel!