The Cat King's Home

Time was passing swiftly, and soon the sun would set. The gates of the shelter slammed shut. Tom and Li Qiang crawled out of the toy car, dusting themselves off, and exchanged smiles with the two bodyguards emerging from another toy car.

Taking advantage of daylight, Tom decided to drive around the square a few times to familiarize himself with the surroundings. The two bodyguards agreed to accompany him. Despite Chen Geng's reluctance, he reluctantly got into the car upon their insistence. Uncle Wu Zun, on the other hand, was cooperative. So, the six of them, in two cars, drove out of the shelter.

Along the way, Uncle Wu Zun enthusiastically explained the directions and destinations of the four roads leading from the square and what was around them.

They also stopped by a convenience store near the square, but it was closed and inaccessible.

The population in the entire urban village was dense. Now that humans had shrunk, it didn't make sense for only a few people to be left.

Whether their heads exploded and died before shrinking or were eaten by insects and animals afterward, neither scenario was good because it would accelerate biological mutations. Since the day of shrinking, which was now the seventh day, the longer the time passed, the more biological mutations occurred, making it increasingly dangerous for outsiders. Tom and the others could only pray that the Hexing Group's Hex-wing aircraft, "Jingwei," would come to pick them up soon and take them away from this cursed place to live in a tall and sturdy shelter.

During the journey, Tom talked about several escape routes, which impressed the two bodyguards with his preparedness for any danger. Initially silent, the bodyguards gradually began discussing combat precautions with him.

Upon returning to the shelter, Tom had gathered some information. For example, the one who was stunned when attempting to break into the exchange room earlier was No. 3, and the other was No. 4. They were both Shen Jiayi's personal bodyguards, seemingly belonging to a department called the Special Operations Department.

For instance, the four shelters they had checked along the way were not as large as the one they were staying in, but their internal facilities were basically the same.

According to the attitude of the general manager, when the Jingwei arrived to pick them up, there would likely be one or two heavy weapons on board, just in case.

Li Qiang eagerly requested a handgun from the bodyguards, for more assistance in combat situations, but was refused. According to regulations, civilians were not allowed to possess their firearms unless in emergencies. No. 4 kindly gave him a dagger, exceptionally sharp and sturdy, far superior to Tom's makeshift dagger made from a penknife.

Tom showed the hollow spike to the bodyguard for inspection, and No. 3 was amazed. The material of this thing was even better than their dagger. Both of them marveled at the terrifying evolution of organisms. Their daggers required complex industrial processes and special materials to make, while a mosquito, just because it had sucked blood, could mutate into such a sharp and hard spike.

At night, the shelter was still brightly lit, but no survivors came seeking refuge, intensifying Tom's unease.

It was highly likely that the Jingwei wouldn't arrive before the shelter folded. So, Tom discussed with them where it would be better to hide. Uncle Wu Zun suggested going to his house.

"My house is very close to the square. We'll be able to see the plane when it comes!" Wu Zun pointed to a five-story building directly opposite the square. "There's a small entrance next to the gate of my house. We can slip in from there. Although there are ants, with your weapons, you should be able to handle them, right?"

Mutant ants were old adversaries for Tom. Now with the enhanced strength from the ruby, and two armed bodyguards, even if there were more ants, they could manage.

The two bodyguards agreed to the proposal after Tom recounted their encounter in the rental building.

As for matches and gunpowder, they had prepared them when they were at the supermarket and kept them on the electric car.

After checking their equipment and confirming the condition of the electric car, everyone found a corner to rest. They had to conserve their energy. If the Jingwei hadn't arrived by two o'clock in the morning, they would have to leave the shelter and wait at Wu Zun's house.

Safe sleep always passes quickly. When the time came at 1:59 a.m. on April 13th, the fourth warning sounded inside the shelter, reminding everyone to leave as soon as possible. The shelter was about to fold and descend underground.

After double-checking their belongings and stocking up on food, they boarded the two electric cars and drove out of the shelter's gates.

Outside at night, there were quite a few mosquitoes. Bathed in the bright lights, the six could see mosquitoes hovering in the air, but fortunately, these mosquitoes were not mutants, and they were not bold enough to attack.

The two electric cars sped towards the five-story building across the square. Along the way, some cockroaches chased after them, but their speed couldn't match that of the electric cars, so they fell behind and were soon left far behind.

Sure enough, there was a small entrance next to Wu Zun's house gate, but there was a spring-loaded barrier blocking it from the inside, which couldn't be easily pushed open. However, this didn't stump Tom. With triple strength, he pushed open the barrier, and the two electric cars entered one after another.

"This is the entrance I specially left for my cat to come and go. Haha, my cat is the boss around here, a true Cat King!"

As soon as he heard it was a cat, Li Qiang's face changed. After being tormented by Ah Huang last night, he was already scared to death. "Uncle... you have a cat at home, why didn't you say so earlier? Ah Huang alone is terrifying enough, and now a Cat King..."

Uncle Wu Zun waved his hand. "It's okay. That cat died last month. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare to bring you guys home."

Approaching the stairs, everyone got off the electric cars and started climbing. Tom remained vigilant while climbing, keeping an eye out for ants or cockroaches that might suddenly appear from a corner.

The ascent to the second floor was smooth and without any threats. However, midway to the third floor, a dozen or so large ants descended towards them, all appearing to be mutated worker ants.

Without a word, Tom drew his big knife and charged forward.

Even without triple strength, he could hold his own against large ants, but now with triple strength, dealing with these clumsy ants was like cutting grass.

Amidst the astonished gazes of the others, he effortlessly dispatched each ant with a single stroke. These ants were clumsy and didn't retreat. The lure of human flesh made them rely only on their large pincers to attack, easily sliced apart by Tom's blade.

As he was left with only one ant to kill, Tom had a sudden idea. He took out a green crystal from his backpack and pressed it directly onto the ant's head.

At first, the ant struggled, but soon it obediently lay on the ground motionless.

These large ants hadn't received any clear instructions; they were simply attracted by the scent of Tom and the others.

Tom had once had a mental communication with a mutated ant queen in the rental building. From her memories, he gained a lot of knowledge about their life. Similarly, he absorbed a lot of information about the organization and management of ant colonies. This included how to use pheromones to guide ants to act according to the queen's wishes.

At that time, the queen had used a complex pheromone to suppress her ants' craving for human flesh, making them obediently watch humans without attacking. Now, Tom tried to simulate that pheromone in the mind of this large worker ant, attempting to tame it.

After releasing his hand, he tightened his grip on the big knife, warily watching the large ant.

The ant lowered its body and waved its antennae, appearing very docile. Tom straddled onto its back, and it offered no resistance.

"Success!"

"Wow, An Ge, you can control ants too!" Li Qiang was digging gemstones from the ant's head, quite surprised by what he saw. "Control a few more."

Tom smiled and dismounted from the ant.

The ant was too short, and riding on it wouldn't help climb walls. Just now, he had merely simulated a type of pheromone to imitate control. As he rode it, Tom simulated another type of pheromone, directing the worker ant to go to the third floor and fight with other worker ants.

Without looking back, the mutated worker ant climbed to the third floor, apparently responding well to this simulated pheromone.

Seeing Tom's skill, not only were the two bodyguards surprised, but even Chen Geng, who resented Tom for leaving him in the second batch, secretly admired him, thinking, "This guy can lead people to kill in the shelter. He's got some skills."

Li Qiang collected a large number of gemstones, red, green, and yellow, laughing heartily. Previously, it took much effort to get gemstones, but now he collected a bunch with minimal effort.

Tom replaced the new red gemstone and continued climbing with the others.

Arriving at the third floor, he approached a door near the stairs and bent down to look through the crack. Sure enough, he saw the ant he had controlled fighting with several small ants. Although it was mutated and large, it was outnumbered and adept at relying on numbers to overcome its enemies, so it couldn't gain the upper hand.

Tom waved, indicating the others to quickly pass through, and then followed. At least, this ant bought them some time.

Upon reaching the fourth floor, the situation wasn't as smooth. Five large cockroaches crawled towards them from under the door crack, all jet black and obviously mutated.

Initially, Tom had relied on gecko biscuits to deal with cockroaches. Now, with triple strength, it should have been easier, but facing five at once was still challenging. Fortunately, he had two armed helpers.

As soon as the cockroaches emerged, Bodyguards No. 3 and No. 4 immediately raised their guns and released the safety.

Automatic rifles fired continuously, and three cockroaches were killed in the charge, leaving two, one of which was injured.

The carapace of mutated cockroaches was extremely tough, definitely not something they could handle easily. Last time, Tom had only managed to kill them by stabbing into their mouths while they were gaping in a show of intimidation. If they hadn't opened their mouths so wide, his needle wouldn't have pierced through their chewing mouthparts.

But now, with triple strength, Tom grasped the hollow spike from the mutated mosquito and seized the opportunity to thrust it into the cockroach's mouthparts. Once, twice, and it immediately pierced through.

"Li Qiang! Needle!" Tom controlled the cockroach while ordering Li Qiang.