Chapter 185: Beneath the Safe Zone

Across the safe zone, similar blasts suddenly erupted behind the defensive lines. The soldiers had been so focused on the horde in front of them that none of them noticed the danger spreading beneath their feet. BOOM! Another section of the ground collapsed.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOOOM!

Multiple explosions tore through the streets one after another. Soldiers were thrown off balance, while several who had been firing from fixed positions suddenly disappeared as the concrete beneath them gave way.

"AHHH!"

"Watch your feet!"

"Get back!"

Large holes opened across the ground, swallowing sections of the streets and defensive positions. For a brief moment, everything seemed to fall strangely quiet.

Then a foul, rotten smell began rising from below.

Dark, root-like strands of flesh slowly pushed through the broken concrete. They twitched and pulsed as they spread across the ground, making it look as though something alive was moving beneath the entire safe zone.

A soldier cautiously approached the edge of one of the holes and peered into the darkness. "What in the world...?"

From the endless darkness, something moved.

The soldier froze as a long, thin leg slowly emerged from the hole, followed by another. A twisted creature then pulled itself upward, revealing a body that resembled a massive, deformed grasshopper. Its powerful rear legs were folded tightly against its body, while several sharp limbs dug into the broken concrete as it climbed out.

"What the hell is that...?"

The creature suddenly sprang forward.

"WATCH OUT!"

WHOOSH! Its jump carried it several meters in an instant.

The soldier barely managed to raise his rifle before the creature slammed into him, its sharp limbs tearing through his body and sending him crashing onto the street.

"OPEN FIRE!"

The soldiers nearby immediately turned their weapons toward the creature.

But before they could fire, more movement came from the hole. One limb appeared, then another, then dozens more.

"They’re coming from underground!"

"Get away from the holes!"

More of the creatures crawled out, their long legs scraping against the broken concrete. Within seconds, dozens of them had spread across the streets, leaping from one position to another with terrifying speed.

"Shoot them!"

TATATATATA!

Gunfire erupted as soldiers desperately tried to bring them down, but the creatures were difficult to hit. They jumped over barricades, crawled across walls, and launched themselves between buildings, forcing the soldiers to constantly turn and adjust their aim.

One soldier fired a burst at a creature approaching from the front, unaware that another was already descending behind him.

"Behind you!" The warning came too late as the creature slammed into the soldier and dragged him into the chaos.

"Form lines!" an officer shouted. "Keep your backs together!"

The soldiers desperately tried to reorganize, but the situation was rapidly falling apart. They were already struggling against the massive horde pushing through the defensive line, and now they were being attacked from behind by creatures emerging directly from beneath their feet.

"Sir, the underground infected have surrounded us!"

"We’re losing the rear defense!"

"The infected have already passed our defenses! They’re spreading deeper into the safe zone!"

Another voice came through the radio. "They’re heading toward the residential area!"

Reports poured through the command channels one after another, each one worse than the last.

"What the hell is happening?" Commander Stephen shouted into his radio. "How did they get underneath us?"

But no one knew the answer.

Beneath the streets, the dark roots continued spreading through the soil, reaching farther and farther across the safe zone. And wherever those roots appeared, more sections of the ground began to crack.

.....

On the rooftop, Jaxon didn’t wait for the creatures to fully emerge. The moment he saw movement inside the openings, he reached into his Storage Space and pulled out three grenades.

He quickly removed the pins and tossed them into the hole.

BOOOOOOM! The explosion shook the street below as smoke, concrete, and chunks of infected flesh blasted out of the opening. Jaxon narrowed his eyes and kept his DMR trained on the hole.

’Did they really dig their way underground?’ He recognized these creatures. They were the same infected he had encountered back in Ironpoint City.

Something suddenly moved through the smoke. One after another, the creatures began crawling out, their long limbs scraping against the broken concrete as they pulled themselves onto the street.

"What in the world are those things?!" Bong-gu exclaimed, his eyes widening.

"Don’t let them get close," Jaxon shouted. "Everyone, open fire!"

The group immediately raised their weapons.

Gunfire erupted across the rooftop as the creatures began leaping between buildings. They moved incredibly fast, but they couldn’t escape the combined fire of Jaxon, Natasha, and Na-rin. Cindy and Isabel joined in as well, their fully upgraded weapons tearing through the creatures with ease..

THUP! THUP! THUP!

Jaxon’s suppressed shots struck one after another, while Natasha and Na-rin picked off anything that managed to get past him.

One of the creatures was able to slip past and suddenly leaped from a nearby building.

BANG! Na-rin’s bullet caught it in midair, sending it crashing into the street below.

Another creature climbed rapidly up the side of their building.

Natasha immediately turned toward it and raised her pistol.

BANG! It dropped before it could reach the rooftop.

Suddenly, an explosion erupted several streets away.

BOOM! The ground collapsed, creating another massive hole in the middle of the street as more of the grasshopper-like infected poured out of the opening.

"These creatures are endless," Thomas muttered as he watched them swarm across the streets. "Our ammo won’t last if this keeps up."

Na-rin’s sudden call made him glance toward her as she pointed toward a distant street. "They’re not only coming from here."

Another hole had opened several blocks away.

Jaxon raised his DMR and looked through the scope. His expression hardened as he focused on the distant scene.

Beyond the buildings, a group of soldiers was fighting behind a barricade. They were already surrounded by infected from the front, but now several of the grasshopper-like creatures were emerging directly behind them.

’If it’s happening here, then there’s a good chance it’s happening everywhere else too.’ A bad feeling suddenly settled in his chest.

Then another thought struck him. ’Elaine... Sumiko...’

His expression changed as he lowered his rifle. "We have to get back."