Deep in the Living

Chapter 619 Signal
"Excuse me, sir/madam, how can I help you?"

Although the waiter noticed something was off about the customer who had suddenly barged in, he still kindly went over to him. After all, his little shop had been open in the City of Sin for a long time without ever having any problems.

There have been quite a few troublemakers, but they were quickly dealt with by the staff dressed in question marks. Everyone knows that Mr. Question Mark is secretly keeping an eye on this pizza shop.

Just as the waiter was about to approach this strange customer... *smack!*

His wrist was suddenly grabbed.

Turning my head, I saw it was the same customer from before, wearing a sack-like headband, still chewing on a pizza.

"Get everyone out of the store, including the store manager."

"You are!"

At this moment, the question mark on the bag's head has appeared, and its identity is no longer hidden.

Mr. Question Mark sensed an aura he had never seen before, a scent that didn't belong to the corner. Although it was very faint, he had to treat it with caution.

The shop assistant used a mental connection to quickly inform the boss, and the shop was completely evacuated within seconds.

As for the problematic guest, he remained sitting in the corner, constantly scratching the back of his hand, scratching at the dense pores that covered that area.

Even if the skin is scratched open, even if the flesh is torn off, these tiny holes will still remain.

It seems to still be breathing.

It seemed as if one could hear the whistling wind from deep within.

Snapped!
Mr. Question Mark snapped his fingers.

The other party immediately stopped scratching, turned around, sat up straight, revealing a young man's face, looking like a monster that hadn't been in the corner for long.

"Rock, Paper, Scissors"

A simple two-player game is about to begin, and participants cannot quit.

Despite the seemingly fair game, Mr. Question Mark can actually guarantee a 100% win rate.

By observing a person's facial features, scratching behavior, and panicked expression, one can basically tell what the other person is going to do.

Even without the analysis and reference of these external behaviors, he can make a judgment the moment the other party makes a move.

There was no suspense whatsoever.

Mr. Question Mark wins the game.

However, the outcome of the game isn't life or death; rather, the loser has to show their body to the winner.

The suspicious guest immediately began to strip off all his clothes, displaying himself in a starfish shape in front of Mr. Question Mark.

The other person only had this unusual small hole on the back of their right hand.

Mr. Question Mark was also quite cautious, neither killing the other party nor making any physical contact, but simply observing from a distance.

During his time in Whirlpool Town, Mr. Question Mark met many comic book enthusiasts and learned a lot about their characteristics.

However, the vibrant little holes that seem to breathe are completely different on a sensory level, appearing to be an unusual and abnormal structure.

But it shares a commonality with comics.
【abyss】

"Although these pores are very small and dense, they can be seen as an 'abyss' from a microscopic perspective."

Moreover, the hole seems to be alive, an independent life form, and what it corresponds to is not the creature's flesh and blood, but an unknown, deep space.

What!?"

While Mr. Question Mark was observing, something unbelievable happened.

The man's body actually began to move; to be precise, his arms started to move, as if desperately wanting to scratch the incredibly itchy little hole in his flesh.

What appears to be normal behavior is terrifying in Mr. Question Mark's eyes.

Currently, we are in the "punishment phase" after the game ends. Even if someone of the same level loses to him in the game, they will have to bear the corresponding punishment. Their freedom will be completely taken away, and they will not have control over their bodies.

Before me was a monster that wasn't even a mature plant, yet it managed to seize control of my body and try to scratch an itch.

Mr. Question Mark sensed a potential, enormous crisis.

He crouched down and drew a question mark on the floor.

follow closely,

The floor began to change its structure under the influence of the question mark, and even the cement on the ground rose up, attempting to completely seal the monster.

Just as the lockdown was about to be completed, Mr. Question Mark heard a sound.

Pa~pa~
It sounded like the webbed feet of a toad crawling, as if something was about to crawl out from deep within.

seal up!
A massive coffin had been formed, completely sealing the person inside.

The surface of the sealed coffin is also marked with red question mark structures, indicating that the substance has been locked, forming an independent internal game space.

To escape, you must complete a challenging single-player game inside.

But the next second,
Tiny holes began to appear on the surface of the sealed coffin.
one,
two,

three,

Rapid spread,
Even the red question mark was filled with holes.

Snap, snap—the sound of flippers crawling came again, and something was about to emerge from among these dense holes.

"Able to ignore my rules of the game? Of all the teachers in Whirlpool Town, only Teacher Ma can do that... This isn't about being a comic book owner, it's something else!"
The clown wasn't exaggerating; something really did come.

I must bring this back with me.

Mr. Question Mark turned and headed towards the restaurant's front door. As his palm touched the doorknob, a question mark structure quickly appeared on the door's surface.

The portal has been constructed.

click!
When Mr. Question Mark turned the lock, his expression changed; he could sense that the so-called teleportation had not taken effect.

The area outside is neither Whirlpool Town nor the surrounding area of ​​Whirlpool Town.

It's still just the City of Sin, the alleyway outside the pizzeria.

Upon closer inspection,
The question mark structure on the door had somehow developed small holes. "Could it be that these little holes have fully recognized the [question mark] characteristic and can indiscriminately infect all question marks?"

Thinking of this,

Mr. Question Mark decisively removed his mask and threw it on the ground.

Strangely, no small hole appeared on the question mark on the bag's head; everything seemed normal, and he quickly came to another conclusion.

"Ordinary question mark structures are unaffected, but as long as I use a question mark to trigger related capabilities, the question mark itself will be affected."

Has my ability been completely interfered with?
This meant I could only return via the whirlpool; thankfully, the distance wasn't too far.

Just as Mr. Question Mark finished his brief moment of thought, something seemed to have crawled out and was standing behind him.

run.

He was in charge of the morning run every day, and his speed was just as fast. He rushed out of the street and headed towards the vortex teleportation point inside the company.

During the run,

There were no pursuers behind them.

The weird thing is,
Mr. Question Mark could still hear the sound of webbed feet crawling. Looking towards the different sources of the sound, he saw a very horrifying scene.

At least one in seven ordinary residents on city streets have developed dense pores in some part of their bodies, and this number is increasing.

Sounds emanated from every hole in the structure, all of them watching him.

"It happened!"

Mr. Question Mark suddenly realized a problem.

“I came to the company this morning to hand over my authority, and then went to the pizza shop for lunch. I didn’t see anything unusual during the whole process… but it was from the moment I met the first infected person at the pizza shop that I started to see something unusual.”

Within minutes, the virus spread rapidly throughout the city.

At this rate, covering the entire corner wouldn't take long. I must get back as soon as possible, and then everyone should inform their respective organizations.

Rushing back to the company,

Because the headgear was removed,

With his short, dark green hair and handsome face, Mr. Question Mark was not recognized by the employees at first glance.

But as he released his aura, his identity was naturally revealed.

It was the first time the employees had seen their boss's face, and they all stood there stunned.

Mr. Question Mark showed no sign of relaxing; he could still hear the crawling sound and immediately rushed to his private elevator.

Ding!
The elevator door opens.

Mr. Question Mark did not go inside.

The elevator operator inside, though addressing the boss immediately, was scratching her abdomen. What seemed like an unintentional act sent chills down Mr. Question's spine.

He immediately switched to the emergency exit.

The weird thing is,
No matter how fast he climbed the stairs, the crawling sound in his ears did not diminish; the thing was always following him.

at last,

Mr. Question Mark arrived at the corresponding floor and started a game where the employees on that floor fought each other so that he could reach the door of the teleportation room undisturbed.

The entire escape went smoothly and effortlessly.

Looking at the constantly churning black vortex in front of him,
Mr. Question Mark raised his right foot to step on it, but just before making contact, he suddenly stopped and withdrew his foot.

Standing at the door, motionless.

Calm down and listen carefully to the crawling sounds that keep appearing in your ears.

The voice that sounded like it was coming from the surroundings or from someone else, upon closer inspection, turned out to be coming from Mr. Question Mark's own ear.

"I see. The spread wasn't that fast. You guys had already taken over the City of Sin, but you deliberately hid it at first and didn't make it public."

All that I've done is to wait for my return.

All of my company's employees were infected long ago, and I had physical contact with them this morning when I was handling the handover of authority.

Do you want to use me as a medium to directly reach the interior of Whirlpool Town?

She's somewhat clever... but that's about it.

Indeed, my life has been too safe; I haven't encountered danger for a long time, and you all tricked me. But... choosing to come to this corner will definitely be your biggest regret.

The voice just fell,

Mr. Question Mark felt an itching sensation around his ears, which were already covered with tiny holes that allowed him to breathe.

He remained completely unmoved, showing no change in expression.

After quickly confirming that there were no holes in his tongue or palm, he decisively ripped the tongue out of his mouth.

A light toss
Then he threw the intact tongue into the whirlpool.

The biomass test on the tongue was successful and it was immediately transmitted.

follow closely,

Vortex Town then closed the teleportation channel to the City of Sin, and the vortex array in front of them quickly disappeared.

Mr. Question Mark remained calm and leaned against the wall.

He lit a cigarette he had treasured for a long time, and the tobacco inside all had a curved structure resembling a question mark.

quickly,

Mr. Question Mark was covered in holes, and he disappeared instantly.

Only a half-smoked cigarette remained...

(End of this chapter)