196 Don't Attack

Xu Shanshan looked up at the dilapidated ceiling. "Should we still go up?"

"Let's go up and take a look." Several people nodded falteringly.

When everyone headed for the stairs, only Ah-Jin, the middle-aged body cultivator, stayed rooted to his spot and unblinkingly stared at the bamboo ball.

'This is… this is the bamboo ball that I personally made for my two children last time before I left again.'

'The children!' Ah-Jin looked up excitedly at the hole-ridden ceiling.

"Ah-Jin, what are you doing?" Xu Shanshan turned around and looked at him with a frown.

Daydreaming at a time like this, did he want to die?

Ah-Jin recovered his wits and suddenly bent down to pick up the bamboo ball. Then, he clamorously charged up the stairs.

"Ah-Jin!" Yang Shu, the young mystic cultivator, looked after Ah-Jin with astonishment.

Although Ah-Jin did not talk much during this journey, he obeyed and cooperated with the group and never lost his self-control like presently or run off on his own without saying a word.

"Go up," Qiao Mu said coldly.

"What's wrong with him?" Xue Xiao turned to look at Xu Shanshan and quickly said, "Eldest Senior Sister, we wanted to rush to the town's entrance as soon as we received your message, but it was too late already."

"Same here. We also lost a teammate on the way here," Yu Gui said grimly.

"Senior Sister Yu Gui, it wasn't your fault! That superhuman lost his life because he ignored your order and ran off wildly. He nearly got us into trouble!"

Yu Gui sighed. "The direr the situation, the more important it is to maintain our calm. That body cultivator who ignored Senior Sister Xu's words and ran up on his own is probably…"

Xu Shanshan frowned with displeasure on her face. "Let's go up. Watch your steps and be careful. Don't shove other people in a panic."

After she said that, Xu Shanshan solemnly handed her little junior sister to Duan Yue before turning around and telling Xue Xiao, "Junior Sister, let's lead the way."

"Yes." Xue Xiao nodded and stood shoulder to shoulder with Xu Shanshan, leading the group upstairs.

The wooden steps suffered quite serious damage and would occasionally make faint snapping noises.

Squeak, squeak. The sound under their feet caused everyone's expression to be tense and mood to be inexplicably repressed.

Suddenly, a geriatric face flickered in and out of sight at the top of the stairs.

Xu Shanshan reacted immediately, and a stream of mystic energy charged toward the face.

The mystic energy landed on the stairs' railings, and a giant chunk of the wooden railing snapped in half and fell down the stairs.

Xu Shanshan and Xue Xiao swiftly ascended the stairs with Xiong Yan and his sister closely following behind. Duan Yue led Qiao Mu to walk in the middle of the group and slowly followed them.

After the whole group reached the second level, they alertly spread to the sides and paid close attention to their dreary surroundings.

The second level was very dark. It was probably a lobby in the center, but the rooms on each side all had their wooden doors tightly shut.

Ah-Jin was currently standing in front of Xu Shanshan and Xue Xiao. He anxiously said, "D-don't attack, everyone!"

"T-they are the townspeople of Qinghe Town. Don't hurt them."

Everyone focused and discovered seven or eight people hiding behind Ah-Jin. There was old and young, male and female. One of the geriatric faces was the face that appeared at the top of the stairs earlier.

Everyone shifted into an attacking position without a smile on their tense faces.

"They are zombies?"

"No! They aren't zombies! They aren't!" Ah-Jin was pleadingly looking at Xu Shanshan while his arms tightly embraced two children around 9 or 10 years old.