Three days passed in darkness and a suffocating silence.
Hunger was no longer a mere hollowness in the stomach; it had become a monster clawing at the mind. Thien Lang, with his newly evolved body requiring immense energy, was enduring the most brutal form of torture.
He lay curled in the corner of the bunker, his claws raking the concrete floor, gouging deep, jagged trenches. His once-radiant jade eyes were now murky, occasionally flickering with a feral crimson glint. He had already gnawed a wooden table leg to splinters and swallowed metal tin cans, yet the hunger continued to howl.
"Grrrr… urgh…"
Thien Lang's agonized whimpering made Thien Anh's chest tighten. He glanced at Thien Thanh. The small serpent remained coiled and calm—cold-blooded reptiles possessed a superior capacity for fasting—yet the look she gave Thien Lang was filled with profound worry.
"I can't let him starve, and I can't let him go mad."
Thien Anh whispered. He drew the dagger from his hip and stepped toward Thien Lang.
"Master…" Thien Lang looked up at him, his voice raspy and frail. "Stay back… Ki… Ki is afraid he won't be able to hold back…"
"Shut up."
Thien Anh barked softly, then decisively pressed the blade against his own wrist.
Slice!
Fresh blood sprayed out—deep, dark crimson with a heavy metallic tang. He held his wrist over a large aluminum bowl.
"Drink."
The scent of blood ignited Thien Lang's razor-sharp senses. He trembled, trying to recoil, but primal hunger overruled his reason. He lunged forward, lapping up his master's scalding, fresh blood.
Thien Anh's blood, enriched by mutant meat and celestial essence, seemed to carry a source of pure energy. As Thien Lang drank, his muscles relaxed, the red tint in his eyes dissolved, and his breathing stabilized.
"Your turn."
Thien Thanh slithered over. Lacking hands to cut, she bit her own tail. A stream of pale green blood flowed out, merging into the bowl with Thien Anh's crimson.
"My blood only has a mild toxin, but it's incredibly nourishing. Drink up, you derpy Mutt."
Thien Lang looked at his two friends, his eyes shimmering with moisture. He said nothing, merely bowing his head to drain the bowl of the family's "blood sacrifice."
...
Two days later.
The water receded.
Through the few remaining surveillance feeds, Thien Anh saw the water level had dropped below the entrance steps. The earth was exposed, carpeted in thick mud and rotting carcasses.
"Let's move."
Thien Anh donned his backpack and checked his ammunition. He carefully rigged a grenade trap at the bunker hatch—a welcoming gift for anyone looking to scavenge.
The steel door creaked open. A gust of damp, putrid air hit his nostrils.
The world outside had been completely terraformed. Collapsed buildings had become concrete islands amidst a sea of mud. Bloated human and animal corpses remained snagged in the branches of uprooted trees.
"North, two miles. The scent of blood is overwhelming," Thien Lang sniffed the air, his voice strong once again.
Thien Anh looked out at the low-lying area before them. What used to be the street leading into the residential district had been transformed into a massive, murky lake.
"No need to go far. Look under the surface."
The water rippled incessantly. Massive, dark silhouettes prowled beneath.
"Mutant fish. Judging by those dorsal fins, they're likely Alligator Gars or Giant Snakeheads," Thien Anh narrowed his eyes, assessing the threat. "Extremely dangerous to go in."
"Hmph, just some common minnows."
Thien Thanh slithered out from Thien Anh's collar, her forked tongue flicking with arrogance. "Let me show you two an 'apocalyptic seafood harvest'—serpent style."
With that, she launched herself like a green arrow, diving straight into the turbid depths.
Thien Thanh swam to the center of the lake and unhinged her jaw. A stream of deep violet liquid was spat out, dissolving rapidly into the current.
One second. Two seconds. Three.
SPLASH! RUMBLE!
The water began to boil like a deep-fryer.
A multitude of gargantuan creatures breached the surface, thrashing in a blind frenzy. Giant blue prawns as thick as a man's calf, river crabs with shells the size of serving platters, and catfish and snakeheads over two meters long. Struck by the neurotoxin, they were paralyzed, floating belly-up until a section of the street was turned white with carcasses.
"Impressive," Thien Anh whistled in admiration. "Your venom is more potent than industrial pesticide."
Thien Lang stood by his side, saliva already dripping onto the mud. "Can… I… eat now?"
"Go ahead. But be careful, Thanh's venom is no joke."
"Don't worry. Resistance built."
Thien Lang didn't wait another second. He let out an excited roar and vaulted into the water.
KABOOM!
A three-meter water column sprayed into the air. Thien Lang acted like a living submarine, charging into the gargantuan buffet.
CRUNCH! SNAP!
The sound of prawn shells shattering and fish bones splintering rang out crisply. Thien Lang ate like a mechanized grinder. A two-meter mutant snakehead tried to thrash away, but Thien Lang clamped its head, crushing it and swallowing it in a single rhythmic motion.
Thien Thanh swam back to shore, scaling Thien Anh's shoulder. She said boastfully, "See? I told you. That Mutt eats like a monster; his stomach must contain the entire universe."
Thien Anh chuckled, moving to step toward the water's edge to retrieve a mutant crawfish for grilling.
"Watch out!" Thien Lang abruptly stopped eating, barking a sharp warning as his hackles stood on end.
WHOOSH!
From beneath the layer of floating carcasses, a gargantuan silhouette suddenly erupted.
Not a fish. It was a Mutated Water Serpent—a Titanoboa. Its body was as thick as an oil drum, reaching over twenty meters in length, covered in slick, ash-grey scales that blended perfectly with the mud.
It unhinged a massive maw lined with jagged fangs, lunging directly at Thien Anh with the velocity of a high-speed train.
The distance was only five meters.
The stench of rot blasted Thien Anh squarely in the face.