Chapter 334: Courtyard of Copies

“Let’s go!”

Chen Jing caught her breath, released her arm from Lu Xin’s shoulder, and started walking forward.

She was clearly exhausted, but her voice remained remarkably calm:

“The lab clearly doesn’t want to be found, so they wouldn’t *only* set up this strange pollution in the city center. We might face other attacks before we even get close. It’s time for you Spider-types to show your strengths.”

“One of you scouts ahead, the other protects me.”

…

Lu Xin nodded slightly and held out his hand. His sister obediently placed her small hand in his.

Gecko scanned the surroundings warily, then drew two guns and hurried after Chen Jing. He’d already decided: no matter the danger this time, *he* would protect the Team Leader. No one else would get the chance…

…Just as he thought this, Gecko looked up and saw Lu Xin had already positioned himself beside Chen Jing.

After a moment’s hesitation, Gecko silently moved to the front.

…Guess I’ll take point after all!

…It’s not cowardice, I’m just more specialized for this!

…

Since they were nearing the lab’s location, Chen Jing and the others moved lightly and cautiously.

Gecko led the way, instinctively hunching his back.

Here, there were no signs of drifters, only hollow darkness and silence.

The atmosphere was unsettling.

They had already seen those monsters sprouting tentacles and knew they hid within the dark surrounding buildings. Who knew if a terrifying flesh monster would suddenly burst from a pitch-black window in the next second?

This was where Gecko showed his professionalism.

Slightly hunched, he scanned left and right with wary eyes, a homemade shotgun in one hand and a dagger in the other.

A row of gun barrels poked out from his backpack, resembling the flags worn by generals on an opera stage.

With each step, his toes tapped the ground lightly as his gaze swept forward. He seemed fidgety, but Lu Xin vaguely understood: he was guarding against any changes, ensuring he could detect them instantly and either retreat or warn those behind him… It sounded professional, but looked rather like a thief sneaking around.

Lu Xin and Chen Jing followed Gecko, carefully sticking to the path he took.

In the unnervingly quiet atmosphere, they crossed two streets and an alley, drawing closer to the building.

Two minutes later, they arrived before a courtyard wall covered in vines.

A lone searchlight on the wall dimly lit the surroundings. The building connected to other residential buildings and courtyards. Much of the wall was damaged and blackened, with a cold wind constantly whistling through the gaps.

The target building seemed just across the street entrance, less than fifty meters away.

Gecko paused briefly, flicked his toe, and sent a small stone flying into the courtyard.

He waited quietly for a moment, then approached the high wall and pressed his ear against it.

Their enhanced agility and perception made Spider-types like human radar systems. Furthermore, their extraordinary body control and reflexes allowed them to handle emergencies with incredible speed.

Confirming there was no one—or anything else non-human but mobile—inside, he quickly scaled the wall.

He avoided the gaps, worried that something might be hiding in the easier spots.

With his sister’s help, Lu Xin easily climbed up and then turned around.

Chen Jing backed up a few steps, got a running start, kicked off the wall face, grabbed Lu Xin’s outstretched hand, and used the momentum to easily vault onto the wall—at least two meters high. She crouched beside Lu Xin, looking down.

Gecko happened to turn back and see this, freezing for a moment before being filled with deep regret.

I shouldn’t have scouted ahead, I should’ve insisted on staying by the leader’s side…

…That Mr. Lone Soldier guy is so devious!

The three landed quietly and looked around. Below was a spacious courtyard with a row of green plants.

Gecko still led as they moved through the greenery, preparing to cross the courtyard.

Then, they all froze suddenly.

Just moments ago, outside the wall, they had listened carefully and confirmed there were no signs of life inside.

But now, looking up, they were shocked to see the courtyard filled with people.

Row upon row, column upon column, standing perfectly straight.

They nearly packed the entire courtyard, yet made no sound, all facing away from the wall with heads bowed.

No breathing, no heartbeat, not even a pulse.

Naturally, no one could have detected them under these conditions.

…

“Are they corpses?”

Lu Xin asked in a low voice.

The figures standing rigidly in the courtyard showed no signs of life. Their sudden appearance was naturally unsettling, but if they were just corpses, it would explain things. For Ability Users, a courtyard full of corpses was somewhat reassuring… infinitely better than a courtyard full of monsters.

“Hoo…”

Gecko turned, made a “shush” gesture, and then waved his hand.

Lu Xin understood his meaning and slowly took two steps back.

But the wall was right behind him; there wasn’t much room to retreat.

Gecko tightened his grip on the gun in his right hand. He holstered the gun from his left hand into the holster on his leg but didn’t fasten the flap.

Taking slow steps forward, he gently tapped the nearest “person”.

There was no reaction.

Gecko let out a sigh of relief. Just as he was about to turn away, he heard a “click,” like the sound of turning gears.

A chill ran down his spine, and both guns were instantly back in his hands.

But just then, he saw the corpse-like figure stiffly turning around. The light from the wall behind them illuminated the person’s face, instantly evoking a nauseating, creepy feeling. It was a human face, but its two eyes, nose, two ears, and mouth were all jumbled out of order.

The nose was where the left eye should be, the left eye was where the mouth should be, an ear was where the nose should be, and the right eye was where the left ear should be. The face looked like a child’s haphazard doodle or a collage of cut-up paper scraps.

The most crucial part was that this face was somehow alive.

The eyeball where the mouth should be was rolling around rapidly, almost dizzying to watch.

It seemed like this eye was quickly scanning Gecko from every angle.

“Kaka-ka…”

Not only that, but as the eye on its face registered Gecko, all the features began shifting up and down like blocks on a Rubik’s Cube, constantly swapping places. After a dizzying exchange, all the facial features returned to their proper positions, but the shifting continued. Looking closely, they realized its entire head was composed of tiny individual blocks.

Like a fine grid.

Within this grid, each tiny block was also adjusting, protruding or receding with extreme precision.

As the adjustments continued, the face gradually transformed into… Gecko.

The face became identical to Gecko’s, down to the smallest detail.

“Holy shit…”

Gecko was stunned.

From his perspective, he had just seen the supposedly dead guy turn around, its misplaced eye staring at him.

The next moment, its features rapidly rearranged themselves into his own face.

Pretty handsome…

…But being handsome doesn’t help here!

He instantly raised the shotgun, aimed at the center of the other’s forehead, and fired with a “Bang!”

Hit square in the forehead, the figure fell rigidly backward. Only then did the last small block click into its final position.

However, as Gecko shot the cube-man in the forehead, every silent, motionless figure in the courtyard turned around. Their faces were similarly jumbled, but the moment they turned, their features began to shift and change. Tiny blocks moved rapidly, their faces becoming increasingly similar to Gecko’s.

Simultaneously, their clothes flipped up, revealing various weapons.

“Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat…”

Dense, piercing gunfire, like popping beans, instantly flooded the small courtyard as countless Geckos charged forward.

…

*Swish!*

The instant bullets rained down, Lu Xin had already spun around, grabbed Chen Jing’s arm, and pulled her behind a moss-covered ornamental rock. For an ordinary person, Chen Jing’s skills were top-notch; even in such an urgent situation, she instinctively cooperated. Moving almost faster than the bullets, they instantly used the rock for cover against the whistling projectiles.

“But Gecko…”

Lu Xin quickly peeked out and saw the courtyard in chaos.

Countless Geckos were locked in a firefight, equally agile, bullets flying everywhere. At first glance, Lu Xin could still pick out the real Gecko among the identically faced crowd by his noticeably superior speed and his uniform. But after ducking back briefly to avoid stray bullets, Lu Xin found they had all blended together.

The mimics’ skills were improving rapidly, and some were charging toward the ornamental rock.

Most importantly, even their clothes were continuously adjusting, becoming more and more similar to Gecko’s.

“Something’s wrong. Do you think…”

Lu Xin frowned and turned to look at Chen Jing.

But as he turned, he saw Chen Jing’s face rapidly adjusting too. Tiny blocks rose and fell, quickly changing her features, even her figure. Her chest flattened, her waist thickened, and even her hairstyle was morphing…

In an instant, she transformed into Gecko’s likeness and gave Lu Xin a smile.