Rotting Land: Survive

Chapter 830: Chapter 815: Retrying Yao Ruyi (5)

"It’s been a long time, and I can’t remember everything too clearly. But during the first week, the sanctuary was quite peaceful; nothing special happened. Everyone had just settled down from their deadly escape, each adjusting their moods and getting used to the new environment. Yet, somehow, rumors started spreading from the sports management."

"Rumors? What kind?" Yao Ruyi asked, his storytelling style was so engaging that it was hard to think he hadn’t even graduated from elementary school. Even he probably didn’t realize how he had successfully piqued the curiosity of those in front of him.

"They said that people were mysteriously disappearing from the base, and it all happened during nighttime." Yao Ruyi paused intentionally for Old Xu and the others to digest and ask questions.

As expected, Old Xu, being from the military background, thought the rumor was complete nonsense unless Yao Ruyi was lying; how could people disappear from a place under military management?

It would be somewhat understandable if there were casualties due to fighting, but disappearing without cause from a fully enclosed sports hall—that’s nonsense, isn’t it?

Therefore, he had no choice but to ask again, "So what was the result? Is the rumor true?"

"Hmph!" Yao Ruyi snorted coldly and said straightforwardly, "It’s true!"

"True?" Even Tang Xiaoquan, who had been calm all along, found it unbelievable. A minute ago, he thought it was just a rumor, but now, Yao Ruyi’s certainty made him furrow his brows in concern.

"There were indeed many people in the sanctuary, but initially only about a hundred or so. So missing someone couldn’t go unnoticed easily, especially since most came with families, unlike me, who was alone," Yao Ruyi said with a lonely shake of his head.

"Didn’t the military investigate the matter?"

"Investigate? How could I know? Anyway, they did interview some people."

"Was there a conclusion? They can’t just let it go unresolved, right?"

"Yes, a notice was posted. The conclusion was simple: it said that the missing persons had opened a passage from the base to the outside world and escaped."

"Nonsense!" Old Xu slammed his hand on the table. "What kind of logic is this? Opening a passage? Is that possible? What was the military doing?"

Looking at the fuming Old Xu, Yao Ruyi smiled helplessly, "Haha, Captain Xu also thinks it’s unreliable, huh? But these are the facts, the investigation result given by the sports hall management. Not only that, after the incident, they enforced stricter control, confiscated almost all our tools and knives, and started arresting so-called rebels and suspects. Yet, the disappearances continued unabated. Every few days, someone would vanish."

"What? More?" If earlier, Old Xu and the others barely accepted what Yao Ruyi said, now...

"This time, the military’s explanation won’t be that people tunneled out, will it?"

Faced with Old Xu’s question, Yao Ruyi spread his hands, smiling bitterly, "They didn’t say that this time!"

"So what did they say?"

"Haha." Yao Ruyi sighed deeply, shaking his head.

"No way, not even an explanation?" Old Lin inexplicably connected this scenario with previous experiences at the sports hall under Dai Sha’s management.

"None, nothing. And because many were arrested from the last incident, survivors avoided discussing disappearances to keep out of trouble."

"Okay, no explanation—surely the military will take some measures to prevent it?" Old Lin pursued stubbornly.

"Yes, measures were taken; night patrols were strengthened, but..."

"No effect?"

"Worse!" Yao Ruyi’s four simple words struck fear in the three present.

"It’s odd, isn’t it? But it didn’t affect me directly, so I was only slightly scared, not taking it to heart. Until one night, I went out to relieve myself and found two brothers from my tent sitting dazedly on the ground. When they tremblingly recounted their experiences from half an hour ago, I realized the gravity of the situation."

"What happened? Did your two brothers see something?" Tang Xiaoquan asked tensely, sensing the fog was about to clear and the truth about to be revealed.

"They had woken to use the toilet but on their way found several figures in military uniforms dragging a large white burlap sack in the dark towards the players’ locker room. Crucially, they saw something struggling violently inside the sack, suspecting it might be a person. Then, the shadowy figures seemed to detect their movement and shouted ’Who!’ After hearing no response, they hurried off."

After Yao Ruyi finished speaking, Tang Xiaoquan intuitively connected this to the previous disappearances, but he dared not confirm it. If true, it would mean his parents might be in grave danger.

While hope lingered, reality was harsh. Yao Ruyi continued his tale without pause, "After hearing the brothers’ story, I realized the disappeared might well be the military’s doing. Coupled with their perfunctory handling earlier, I increasingly believed it. But knowing is one thing; wanting to escape this place is impossible. Not only can’t we overcome the tall surrounding walls, but also the intensified guard layers after the incidents made escape futile. Running away was clearly not an option. Luckily, knowing the truth allowed us to plan accordingly, so seven brothers in the tent agreed not to publicize it yet, just keep acting normal as if nothing had happened."

"However, our thoughts were naïve. Just a day later, those two brothers were summoned by the military and never returned. Since then, the remaining brothers in the tent lived in constant fear, afraid to leave the tent and worried about disappearing mysteriously."

"This nerve-wracking time lasted about a week. Perhaps the military didn’t extract anything from those two brothers since they didn’t come to the tent for more arrests. But our mental state was collapsing; we only thought about leaving the damned sports hall," Yao Ruyi said, letting his shoulders droop slightly despite the time passed, still showing the significant impact the event had on him. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets, monthly tickets. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)