"The game begins.

  All lights in the South Weir building had now been extinguished. Hundreds of fish-men emerged from the darkness, blocking staircases and pouring out from all directions.

  The police force split into two teams - eight members in one squad, nine in the other. Li Yuan immediately targeted the smaller eight-member team. Obviously, when harvesting leeks, one starts with the thinner patch. Eliminating the smaller team first before dealing with the larger one was, in Li Yuan's view, the most prudent approach. Especially since Chu Yang was in the nine-member team - keeping that threat for last was the safest strategy.

  Tap! Tap! Tap!

  As dense footsteps echoed around them, the police officers tried to flee but found the second floor completely blocked by fish-men. The group could only retreat to the third floor, pressing their backs against walls while aiming firearms.

  "Contact the captain! We're under fish-man attack! Repeat, fish-man engagement!"

  "What? You're facing them too?"

  "We've got nearly a hundred here!"

  "Same situation?"

  Clearly, both squads were simultaneously being assaulted by fish-man forces.

  "Damn it... Open fire!"

  As officers raised their guns, Li Yuan calmly retreated behind the fish-men ranks. The mutated creatures hesitated - though transformed, their human memories retained fear of firearms. Even fish-men could die from gunshots.

  Li Yuan frowned. "Charge! All together!"

  At his command, the fish-men's eyes glowed crimson as they swarmed forward.

  "Fire!"

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  Gunfire erupted incessantly. Fish-men struck in the head died instantly, but new replacements immediately filled the gaps. Soon a fish-man breached the defensive line, lunging through bullet hail like a rabid hound.

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  Squelch!

  "Ah!! Liu Yan!!"

  "Bastards! Fight to the death!"

  The officers emptied their magazines in desperation, but the fish-man numbers proved overwhelming. Once the creatures closed distance, all hope vanished.

  Thud!

  "Ugh..."

  A claw pierced an officer's abdomen. Wide-eyed, he jammed his gun barrel into the fish-man's mouth. "Motherfucking abomination!" Bang! Blood sprayed as the shot rang out. The remaining officers, out of ammo, were quickly overwhelmed.

  "Ah!! Captain, Team Two has been... ghhhk-!"

  The eight-member squad was annihilated, leaving only a mortally wounded middle-aged officer. Li Yuan emerged from the fish-man ranks, grabbing the man's hair to lift him like a trophy before marching toward the other battlefront.

  "Chu Yang, your fatal mistake was not finishing me with a second strike. Giving enemies second chances is like letting them fire a second bullet to correct their first miss."

  ...

  Meanwhile, the nine-member team kept advancing. Fish-men recoiled from their gunfire until Li Yuan tilted his neck and emitted a whale-like wail.

  "Ooooo~!"

  The mournful cry triggered crimson frenzy in all fish-men eyes. Like their predecessors, they charged heedless of bullets - scrambling up walls, crawling on all fours, swarming through the kill zone.

  Still insufficient.

  Li Yuan waved his hand. Fish-men from the previous massacre joined the assault, overwhelming several officers through sheer numbers.

  "Old Fang!!"

  A scream pierced the chaos as another officer ran dry on ammo. Suddenly Chu Yang scooped up a fallen pistol from the ground.

  Hm?

  Li Yuan's brow furrowed as killing intent prickled his senses. Chu Yang instantly aimed at Li Yuan and fired.

  Bang!

  The bullet flew true. Li Yuan yanked a fish-man into its path. Thud! The projectile embedded in flesh.

  "Spotted me? Too late." Li Yuan grinned, tossing aside the meat shield before hurling a bearded officer's corpse into the combat zone. The sight shattered the remaining officers' morale.

  Nine became three in moments.

  With a roar, Chu Yang's fist blasted through fish-men ranks, creating an escape route. "Fall back!"

  Yang Yan immediately helped a wounded comrade retreat toward... the third-floor restrooms - a dead-end with no windows. As fish-men moved to pursue, Li Yuan raised a restraining hand.

  "No. Let them live. Eliminate Chu Yang first."

  Simple tactical logic: A man with allies retains hope, fighting restrained. A lone survivor becomes a desperate beast - even 1% escape chance must be eliminated. Keeping two burdens would anchor Chu Yang in place.

  Chu Yang seemed oblivious, but Yang Yan recognized the trap. "Chu Yang! Leave us! Run!"

  "Can't! I-"

  "They're using us to trap you! Last request - get the truth out! Tell the authorities monsters have infiltrated society!"

  Hearing this, Li Yuan's eyes frosted. He prepared to intervene personally. Some might survive, but Chu Yang must die today - both mission requirement and personal vendetta.

  But as Li Yuan stepped forward, he froze. His senses detected... another presence in the building.