I want to kill my roommate.

As soon as this thought came to mind, I swallowed it silently.

My roommate for rent is called Li Xiaoli, 25 years old this year, 152 cm tall. After graduating from college, she never looked for a job, spending all day and night playing games in the rental house and also liking to play social apps like momo.

She is not clean, leaving takeout bags to pile up until they are moldy and maggot-infested before throwing them away. I have never seen her wash her clothes, and there is a stinky smell in the room that permeates the entire living room.

What's even more outrageous is that she brings men she meets on social apps back home in the middle of the night. The sound from their room can be heard clearly in our poorly soundproofed rental house, often keeping me up all night.

One day, she excitedly told me that her online boyfriend "Lonely Wolf" was coming to see her.

As soon as I got home, Li Xiaoli eagerly showed me a photo. The photo showed a very spirited man, dressed in a suit that a successful person would wear, wearing an exquisite watch, and with his hair styled with gel.

Li Xiaoli smiled and said, "Jealous? Not only is he tall and handsome, but he is also the manager of a top 100 company in the country. We have been in an online relationship for three months!"

I was not affected by her excitement but asked, "Where are you two planning to meet? Have you chosen a location?"

"We have decided." Li Xiaoli said shyly, "I sent him our location, and he said he would be here tonight."

My expression turned cold, "Why at home again?"

"Oh, you know that hotels here are expensive. It's more convenient to be at home." Li Xiaoli glanced at me reproachfully, "Our place is so messy, I need to clean up a bit."

I sneered. Her idea of "cleaning up" meant locking all her dirty clothes in the closet, throwing all the takeout boxes downstairs, washing her greasy hair, and spraying perfume in every room.

Not wanting to be poisoned by her inferior perfume, I slammed the door and prepared to go to bed early.

But as soon as I closed my eyes, I had a very strange dream.

It was a pure white room, everyone wearing white coats, white gloves, and white masks, saying things I couldn't understand.

I seemed to be locked in a transparent container, surrounded by many white, breathless giant animals, their dirty fur barely discernible. A man in a white coat took one of the animals, injected it with liquid using a syringe, and then returned it to the container.

The animal soon began to convulse, then went mad, running wildly in the container, even biting its fellow animals, staining the bottom of the container red with blood. A miserable noise rang out, and the man in the white coat observed the animal through the transparent container, nodding in satisfaction.

In my impression, those in white coats are usually doctors. But after a quick glance, I knew he couldn't be a doctor because of his wrinkled brow and the malice in his eyes, like a poisonous snake spitting out venom in the mist...that couldn't be the eyes of a doctor.

When I woke up, the night outside had become pitch black.

I realized that I had slept for a long time. I tried to check the time on my phone, only to see a flood of messages on the main screen.

During the time I was asleep, my family and friends had sent me numerous messages. The top message was from my mother, saying, "Don't go out..."

My mother had made dozens of voice calls, but since I didn't answer, she sent a voice message, "Xiaojin, I heard that some terrifying epidemic has broken out in that area, it's really frightening. We can't stay there. Your dad and I are going back to our hometown to avoid it for a few days. You stay at home these days, no matter what, don't go out, remember?"

I checked the news, and all I saw was information about the epidemic.

The host on the news broadcast said solemnly, "Today, a large-scale malignant virus has broken out in our city. Since this morning, the City First People's Hospital has received nearly a hundred cases of patients with similar symptoms and severe conditions. This disease is highly contagious, with large black spots appearing on the bodies of the infected individuals, accompanied by severe attacks and biting behavior. Citizens must be vigilant, and stay indoors."

Opening the door, I saw Li Xiaoli sitting alone on the sofa. I asked, "Where is your online boyfriend? Hasn't he come to see you?"

"He didn't come." Li Xiaoli's voice was hoarse. "The virus situation is too severe. He said he couldn't come here."

"Virus?" I raised my voice. "What virus?"

"Haven't you seen the news? There's a terrifying virus spreading outside." Li Xiaoli said, "It's said that people who get infected with this disease will lose their minds like dogs, biting everyone they see. Once bitten, one will be infected. It's like hell outside now."

"Dogs don't just bite people, only rabid dogs do." I chuckled. "You've been playing games too much. How could there be such a disease?"

"It's true." Li Xiaoli trembled and said, "I went downstairs earlier to pick up the takeout, and I saw a deliveryman being bitten by a security guard. That security guard looked grotesque, and when he saw me, he rushed towards me. Fortunately, I ran fast; otherwise, I would've been in trouble by now!"

"It's okay." I nodded. "Why don't you turn on the lights? It's so dark in here, isn't it uncomfortable?"

"No! Don't turn on the lights!" Li Xiaoli's voice became sharp. "Those things like light. If you turn on the lights, they will come looking for us!"

"Then I won't turn on the lights. You seem so scared..."

Before I could finish speaking, there was a sudden urgent knocking on the door. Then, a familiar voice sounded, "Xiaojin, are you home? Mom is coming in!"

Hearing this voice, Li Xiaoli recoiled in fear, almost trying to bury herself in the sofa.

My expression also turned solemn.

At that moment, my phone received a message: "Do not open the door, the person outside is not human!"

The message was from an unknown number. I ignored the banging on the door and replied, "Why do you say that? Who is outside?"

There was no reply on the other end.

I walked straight to the door. The knocking on the door intensified, and the voice, which was ninety percent similar to my mother's, called out desperately, "Open the door, open the door quickly!"

"Xiaojin, mom forgot the keys!"

"Quick, open the door! There are many monsters behind mom! Save me!"

"Don't open the door." As I reached for the doorknob, my phone vibrated again.

I typed, "Who are you? How do you know my situation?"

The other side immediately replied with two words: "Xu Jing."

Xu Jing is my classmate since childhood and also my only friend with whom I communicate more.

"Why should I believe you?"

A call came in from the other side. I went to the room to get my Bluetooth headset, and the familiar voice from my memory came through the earpiece, "It's me, I am Xu Jing."

Without responding, I asked, "Xu Jing, at your seventeenth birthday, was the toy teddy bear I gave you green or white?"

He quickly replied, "On my seventeenth birthday, you didn't give me any teddy bear. You said I lacked manliness, so you gave me the butcher knife your uncle used before and two pounds of pig's head meat."

I nodded, "Right, at that time, your mom even said that pig's head meat is delicious, praising me for being considerate."

There was a silence for a moment, then he spoke, "My mom didn't praise you. That day, my mom was shocked, she went to your house, pointed at you and scolded you, and told me not to have any more contact with you."

Finally, I breathed a sigh of relief, "It's really you, Xu Jing. But how do you know about my situation at home?"

"You may not believe it." Xu Jing said, "I am currently trapped in a room surrounded by large screens, each screen live-streaming your current situation."

"Live-streaming my situation? Or is it real-time tracking?" I became serious, "Can you escape from there? Try calling the police."

"It's useless, I've tried everything. There is no exit in the room, and my phone can only connect to your number."

"Since you can see my surroundings clearly, tell me, what's outside the door?" I asked.

"Outside the door is a humanoid monster, with a very long neck covered with mouths, it seems like it can mimic various human voices. It is now looking inside through the peephole, watching you."

I leaned against the door, facing a red eye. The creature seemed to sense a human presence and began to pound on the door even more vigorously.

"Wasn't this a contagious disease? What is this thing?"

"It's the free gift with the contagious disease. Now it's chaotic outside, people are in chaos, no one knows what's going on."

I nodded, "How many of these creatures are outside? Are they at each door of every household?"

"No, it's only outside your door. The corridors elsewhere only have ordinary infected people."

"It seems I'm enjoying the VIP treatment."

"Perhaps things are even worse than you think."

Xu Jing: "Turn around and pretend to casually glance around. Don't look directly at the window, there is a painter crouching on the air-conditioner unit outside the window. He is observing you through the security mesh, waiting for the right moment to climb in."

I turned my head casually and indeed saw a shaking helmet on the windowsill.

"But we can think of ways to deal with those. The painter outside the window has been observing you but hasn't dared to come in yet. He must be wary of something else." Xu Jing smiled wryly, "The most troublesome thing at the moment is..."

He hesitated.

I sighed and pressed the light switch:

"The worst thing is this thing in my room."

The bright light shone down, revealing Li Xiaoli hiding in the corner of the sofa, covered in horrifying large black spots, which were particularly striking under the bright light.

She was trembling all over, with large patches of dried blood on her face, her eyes filled with black and red blood vessels, eerily similar to the red in the cat's eye. At this moment, those eyes were staring at me with malice.