Ten Day Ultimatum

"So disgusting..." Qiao Jiajin scowled, eyeing the filthy muck on the floor. "This stench... is it shit?"
Shit?
Qi Xia abruptly turned his head to look at Qiao Jiajin.

That was... an interesting perspective.
In other words, besides the nine of them and the animal-masked freaks, there might be someone else here.
Or something.

Whoever—or whatever—it was, it had been holed up here for a long time. Long enough to crap all over the place.
Despite scouring every inch of the store, they found no needles, no thread, no gauze. There wasn’t even a clinic or pharmacy nearby. Wandering aimlessly could get them killed, and Han Yimo might not last much longer.
"What now..." Police Officer Li muttered, hands on his hips, glancing at Doctor Zhao like he was hoping for a miracle.

But before the doctor could answer, a faint creak echoed behind the cashier’s counter.
The staff room door was inching open.
All nine of them froze and took a few quick steps back, eyes fixed on the slowly widening gap.
A figure emerged — gaunt and crooked. A woman, or what was left of one. Her body was skeletal, face sunken, her eyes bulging like they were about to fall out of her skull.

Her lips cracked as she stared at them, confused. After a moment, clarity seemed to return. She tugged at her filthy, sagging clothes and rasped, voice like sandpaper,
"Welcome..."
Wel...come?
Police Officer Li squinted, trying to make sense of it.
"Are... you the shop assistant?"

The woman nodded. "Yes."
No one spoke. The whole thing was absurd. Even if she was a human, what was she doing “working” in this wreck of a store?
Seeing them frozen, the shop assistant tried again:
"Feel free to look around."

It was a phrase meant for customers. But here? There was nothing left to browse — the shelves were bare, the remaining items rotten and crawling with grime.
Her eyes stayed fixed on them — wide, glassy, dead. The women in the group shifted uncomfortably under her stare.
"Do you have any needles and thread?" Qi Xia asked flatly, as if her appearance didn’t faze him.

"Needle... and thread?" Her glassy eyes twitched as she mimed threading a needle with her gnarled fingers. "You mean... that kind?"
Only then did everyone notice the black, dried blood caked under her fingernails. It looked crusted deep into her skin.
Qi Xia stepped forward, unfazed.
"Yes. That kind. Do you have any to sell?"
"Swindler, you..." Qiao Jiajin muttered, voice cracking. Just yesterday, he thought of himself as brave. Now he couldn’t even look this woman in the eye.
"Qi Xia, can’t you tell? This woman’s wrong."

"So what?" Qi Xia replied coldly. "Things can’t get any worse."
The woman hesitated—then suddenly shoved aside the counter partition and charged out toward them.
Only then did her full figure come into view. Her filthy white blouse clung to her bones like a shroud on a corpse. It was smeared with old grease and something darker—possibly blood. The shirt hung almost to her knees, and she seemed to be wearing nothing underneath. Her legs were smeared with dirt and more dried blood.

Qi Xia reflexively stepped back, but her grip clamped down on his wrist—dry and strong like the roots of an ancient tree.
"I have them!!" she shrieked, flashing yellow teeth. "Needles and thread! Right this way!"
She tugged insistently toward the staff room.

Everyone recoiled.
With that grip—and that look in her eyes—going anywhere alone with her seemed like a death wish.
"Forget it! We’re not buying anything!" Qiao Jiajin barked, trying to pry her hand away. "Let go!"

But the woman ignored him. She kept dragging Qi Xia along, her grin spreading wider and wider.
"There’s needle and thread in there! I’ll show you!"
She was stronger than either of them could’ve imagined. Stronger than both Qi Xia and Qiao Jiajin combined.
"Hey!! A little help?!" Qiao Jiajin yelled, twisting around toward Officer Li and Doctor Zhao.

The two snapped out of their stupor and rushed forward.
The shop assistant moved faster.
Qi Xia was yanked toward the door, muscles straining in resistance, but he couldn’t break her grip.

After a few stumbling steps, they crossed into the back room.
Doctor Zhao and Officer Li tried to pull him back, but at that moment the shop assistant let go.
"Ah!"
They stumbled backward, barely regaining their footing.

The woman didn’t even look at them. She turned her back and began rifling through the room.
The four men scanned the space, eyes wide.
Compared to outside, the room was almost... livable. A rusty folding bed lay in the corner, its sheets yellow and stiff. A large stain of fresh blood soaked into the mattress. In another corner, an iron cooking pot sat atop a burner, bubbling with something white. The faint scent of broth floated through the room.

She ignored them all, tearing through an old wooden trunk.
"Where is it... needle and thread..."
Out came canned food, torn magazines, rusty pans, kitchen knives...
Qiao Jiajin rubbed his nose, eyeing the pot.
"You know... I’m starving," he muttered to Qi Xia. "If she weren’t completely deranged, I’d ask for a bite."

Qi Xia glanced at the pot. Something pale and fleshy boiled inside.
He swallowed.
"You’d eat that?" Officer Li asked, raising an eyebrow. "God knows what the hell’s in there..."

"But it smells kind of good."
He wasn’t wrong. The room smelled better than the rest of the building.
Qiao Jiajin hesitated, then asked,
"What are you cooking?"

The shop assistant answered without looking up.
"A little piglet."
"Piglet?"
That actually piqued his interest. He took a step toward the pot.

Then—
"Ah! Found it!" the woman cried.
She spun around, holding something in both hands like a trophy. Her face was lit up with twisted joy.
"Look! Needle and thread!"

Officer Li stepped forward—and immediately froze.
That wasn’t needle and thread.
It was a rusted fish hook and a tangled wad of fishing line.
He turned to Doctor Zhao and gave him a look.

The doctor took a slow step forward, forcing a calm tone.
"Miss... do you ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) have any other kinds of needles and thread?"
The shop assistant shook her head.
"No. Just this. Will you buy it?"