【4】

Standard Arabic numerals, engraved on stone arches.

Hollowed-out, printed, and topped with spikes on the iron bars slowly pushed open.

On the side of the door is a wooden cart, shovel, hemp rope and sack for repairing, altering or bulldozing the cemetery.

Yi Chen put the axe and kerosene lamp on the cart together,

Exhale~ Take a deep breath,

Pushing the wooden board car,

When the rollers of the cart pressed into the soil of the cemetery, the danger did not come as expected.

Yi Chen also looked around when he stepped into the No. 4 cemetery,

At a cursory glance,

Neither any 'monsters' have been found wandering here,

There's nothing weird about it either,

Compared to other cemeteries, it feels 'decent',

Suitable temperature and humidity,

Hard, low-weeded soil,

The ratio of clearing, graves and vegetation is just right.

But

There are two special places worth noting.

1. The vegetation here, especially the trees scattered around the edges, gives the impression that they are withered and ready to break at any time...... The leaves are also shedding in patches, unlike in other cemeteries.

2. There are more than sixty graves here, more than any other cemetery,

And there is no 'uniformity' in the style of tombstones, all kinds of tombstones exist,

Stone, wood and even metal,

Rectangles, arches, crosses,

It's messy like a mass grave area,

Yi Chen pushed the wooden cart and moved between the cemeteries,

After carefully observing each passing area and further confirming that there are no 'foreign objects', the tense heartstrings relax slightly.

Followed by

The 'original distribution map' is retrieved from the brain, and the graveyard is compared to the cemetery in front of you, trying to find differences in number and order.

After all, he was born in engineering,

He was still very good at this kind of 'finding differences', and he soon got an answer, an answer that made Yi Chen shudder.

[An extra grave]

This extra grave is located in the depths,

A cross-shaped metal tombstone is inserted into the ground,

The height of the mound is the same as that of the surrounding area,

Looking at this extra grave, Yi Chen pondered:

"According to the rules, the extra graves need to be completely leveled.

If there is a corpse buried inside,

According to Regulation V., relocation to Cemetery 7, which is dedicated to the collection of unknown corpses, should be feasible.

But...... It's certainly not that simple, otherwise the original owner of this body would not have chosen to commit suicide, and he must be careful."

After confirming that there is nothing abnormal in the surroundings, it will be officially dried.

Didn't lay a hand on the metal cross,

In his view, this kind of sacred cross may have the effect of suppressing evil spirits.

Pick up the shovel from the cart and aim it at the bulging mound...... Cha!

When he was in the orphanage, he often helped with a lot of farm work in the backyard, and he was quite comfortable with the use of shovels.

Poop!

Until a loud metal crash came,

In the light of the kerosene lamp, part of the coffin lid was revealed.

"Metal coffin?"

Shovel off the top layer of soil,

The pitch-black hexagonal coffin lid seals the coffin tightly, and there is no sign of opening the coffin.

Now that you have made up your mind to solve the problem and clean up the mess,

Yi Chen faced the metal coffin in front of him and immediately found an effective fulcrum.

Try tapping,

Ga!

The sound of the lid being pried open was like a spike, piercing the curtain of silence in the cemetery.

The light from the kerosene lamp rushed into it, revealing what was inside the coffin.

"It's ......"

A naked adult male corpse,

His skin was completely green, and his decaying veins formed marble-like lines and corpse spots...... It is also covered with a large number of bryophytes.

The beads between the eyeholes are long gone, replaced by fungal flora,

These slightly wriggling mushroom umbrellas are like the compound eyes of insects.

"Mosses, fungi?

How can these things grow inside such a completely sealed metal coffin? ”

While doubting,

Yi Chen noticed another additional detail.

The corpse lay flat between the palms of the two sides,

Nail loss,

On the surface of the nail flesh, slender roots actually grow, extending to the bottom of the coffin.

It gives the feeling of being 'glued' to the bottom of the coffin.

An indescribable sense of weirdness grew in Yi Chen's heart, and even stimulated the generation of fear, giving up the idea of 'transferring corpses',

He grabbed the kerosene lamp and tried to throw it into it,

Give this monstrous corpse a 'live cremation',

Now that the idea is complete, the right hand also makes a downward throwing motion......

however

At the moment when the kerosene lamp was about to take off,

The image of the lighthouse leading the way flashed in my mind,

The intuition born in his brain told Yi Chen that the kerosene lamp, as the only light source in the cemetery, must not be destroyed.

Yi Chen, who was born in engineering, attaches great importance to and understands the meaning of so-called intuition.

【Intuition】

It is the result of the brain's ultra-rapid collection of environmental factors, integration of all memory data, including subconscious data, and comprehensive analysis under certain opportunities.

Since self-awareness can't keep up with the process, it gives the impression of an instantaneous popping up.

Some people don't take it seriously,

However, it is often a correct, valid analysis.

This instinct kept the kerosene lamp in his hand and did not throw it.

"The only light source...... I'm not sure what the real 'danger' is at the moment.

If there is a problem with the whole cemetery, if I lose the light source, I may be swallowed up by the darkness here.

Let's follow the original idea and transfer the corpse. ”

Yi Chen slapped his cheek with his hand to improve his concentration.

Pick up the shovel again,

Leaning against the wall of the coffin into it,

Try priing the corpse up and changing it to a [sitting] position...... In this case, it is convenient to carry the entire body out.

however

Something even weirder happened,

The prying process was extremely difficult, and it was not easy to pry the corpse up less than two fingers away.

Through the crevices that are pried up,

Yi Chen saw a strange picture that he would never forget......

The back of the corpse was covered with dense roots of varying thicknesses.

These roots have already penetrated the bottom of the coffin and penetrated into the depths.

pulsating,

Sucking,

Extracting,

Nutrients from the ground.

This terrible scene immediately reminded Yi Chen of the withered and dilapidated trees in the No. 4 cemetery,

"This guy is soaking the 'life' of the cemetery!"

At the same moment,

From the periphery of the cemetery came a familiar warning sound,

§Caution§

This voice is exactly the same as the thank you voice heard in Cemetery 6 before, and it is very recognizable.

Because of the high concentration of the mind,

The sudden warning sound prompted Yi Chen to instinctively roll backwards, opening up a distance of about a meter or more.

Where he had just stood, rotting rattan sprouts had appeared on the ground...... If you don't roll and dodge, I'm afraid you'll be wrapped around your feet and dragged into the coffin.

Followed by

Quack~

With the support of the roots,

The corpse in the coffin stood up,

The roots rooted in the ground are pulled out one after another, with a length of 30cm~100cm, swaying between the backs.

The fungus umbrellas in the eye sockets of the corpse are gathered together and combined into a shape similar to the eyes,

Looking directly into Yi Chen's eyes.

Between the eyes,

Yi Chen immediately understood the owner of this body-[William. Why is Behrens not willing to fight to the death, but to commit suicide.

The pain of drinking poison and dying is indeed much more comfortable than being killed by a monster, or even being sucked dry of nutrients in the body and eaten alive.

≮It's impossible to beat it≯

If it's just a zombie in a sci-fi movie, Yi Chen thinks that he can still be just right.

But the living corpse in front of you,

has far exceeded his knowledge,

In the face of such an unknown individual, if you recklessly step forward...... The next second may be instantly killed.

Run!

Without any hesitation,

The kerosene lamp was hung in a leather buckle around his waist, and he ran away.

I also conceive the best detour route in my mind.

"You'll have to take time to make a detour and make observations to figure out some of its properties...... Can't rush! Calm down and maintain a normal breathing rate!'

Just as we were about to slip out of Cemetery 4,

Bang!

Without warning,

The iron bar, which was about three meters high, slammed shut.

Yi Chen, who was in a sprinting state, kicked the iron door with one kick...... Poop!

The closed door did not move, sealing it completely inside.

Looking at the iron chain outside the door,

Yi Chen couldn't help but burst out a mouthful of national quintessence.