Apocalypse King: Recruiting S-Tier Beauties With My Ruler System
Chapter 146: Trail of the Pale Beast

Chapter 146: Trail of the Pale Beast

March 20th, 9:02 AM — Longwan Mall, 1st Floor West Atrium Corridor

Mu Qinglan POV

——

After we checked the area, I could tell these monsters were killed by John and his group, but there were no signs of injuries apart from John’s.

So after we finished checking for any supplies, something he taught me to do no matter what the situation... I prepared to leave.

Zhou Xue finally came to stand beside me. Her bow lowered, her voice a whisper. "It looks like they fought an army in here."

"Yeah, but it seems they won... using John as a sacrificial shield as usual."

I knew it was petty and stupid to take my anger out here, but it’s true. These people have no idea the level John went to keep them safe. He could have only protected me, Yifei and Roulan and been selfish... but he didn’t.

"..."

The others looked sullen at my words. Well, it’s the truth. The more time I spent with him as a woman, the harder it became for me to pull away and adjust my emotions. I knew it wasn’t healthy, and my obsession with him was growing.

But I cannot help it.

I didn’t know love could feel this good, this addictive... and pleasant.

To change my mood, I slapped my cheeks and scanned the overlook one last time.

The western balconies hung open in the gloom, but no shadows moved. The shattered skylight above let in grey light. No footsteps. No sound.

Except one.

Click...

Click...

Click...

From below. Slow. Barely audible.

Claws on tile?

Or something else.

Liang Qiu stepped up beside me. "Miss Mu... should we go down there?"

No.

Yes.

We didn’t have a choice.

"Get ready," I said.

I moved first.

Back from the railing, toward the emergency stairs that spiralled down to the lower level. The metal groaned beneath my boots — not from weight, but from disuse.

Halfway down, I paused.

The wall beside the landing was marked with five streaks — thick, jagged gouges torn through plaster and brick. Each one was longer than my arm.

Something had climbed this way.

Or crawled.

I descended slowly, each step like holding my breath.

Something had died down here.

And something else had walked away from it.

The trail led down the emergency stairs — the kind mall staff used to avoid the public during restocks or fire drills. Now, it was just dust and claw marks.

However, with each step, the smell of him grew stronger. John’s blood — I could smell it in the air, warm and iron-rich, mixed with gun oil and the faint scent of sweat I remembered from the nights we’d stood side by side on the rooftop.

I bit the inside of my cheek.

Stay focused.

Zhou Xue led the others behind me, quiet but alert.

The girl never wasted a word. I respected that. Liang Mei, surprisingly, had stopped shaking. She looked more curious than afraid now. Her gaze flicked toward the darker corners like she wanted to challenge whatever was waiting there.

Maybe because he lacked confidence in his archery, Chen Xun held a short knife in both hands, knuckles pale. He didn’t speak, didn’t breathe too loud either. Maybe that made him the smartest of the bunch right now.

We reached the ground floor service hall.

A blood smear led from the stairs, sweeping low across the wall like someone had been half-dragged. I crouched next to it and pressed my fingertips near the dried edge.

Still tacky.

He wasn’t far.

But there were no bodies here and no sign of his team.

Only something else.

Another white smear — thin, like a trail left behind by something crawling or leaking. It ran from the main path and curved toward the interior halls that led to the central loading zones. The direction felt wrong.

Like something had taken a different path, not to escape.

But to hide.

Had I taken a wrong turn?

Were we chasing not John but that creature instead?

There was no answer to my thoughts... I gazed back and noticed their pale faces. Because something in my gut told me this wasn’t going to end well.

But we had to move forward.

I followed the white trail deeper.

It had thickened.

The smear on the tile wasn’t just a line anymore — it was a winding path, twisted and uneven, sometimes pooled, sometimes smeared as if whatever left it had dragged itself while leaking.

Whatever it was... it bled.

The service hall we entered had a low ceiling and no light fixtures. I tapped the side of my comm band, casting a faint beam ahead. Shadows split apart as I moved. The air here was different — not just colder. Damp. Still.

The kind of quiet you only find in sealed places.

I stepped over a fallen bucket. The smell hit harder now. Iron and disinfectant. Rot and something sharp beneath it — like ammonia, or bleach that had gone wrong.

Zhou Xue whispered from behind me, "Do you think this was the white thing?"

"No doubt," I said. "But it’s not moving fast."

That was the problem.

Was it fleeing after fighting John’s group, or was it fleeing to guide us into a trap?

I couldn’t understand the freakish monster.

We passed a series of crates covered in plastic wrap. Old electronics, maybe. I glanced down at the floor and stopped.

More white.

Not just smeared but peeled.

A ragged, translucent skin lay half-curled near the wall like something had burst or moulted.

"What the hell..." Chen Xun muttered.

He crouched to look — but didn’t touch.

Good.

Even he knew better.

I didn’t like how the residue shimmered in my light. Not wet. Not dry. Just alive.

Something had stood here and reformed.

Liang Qiu tugged on my sleeve. "Miss Mu..."

She pointed down the next hall, where something torn and forced a steel security shutter halfway up. The edges bent outward. Black streaks led through — either ash or burn marks.

From somewhere past that gap, I heard it.

A thump.

Dull.

Not urgent.

Like a body falling sideways.

My fingers itched toward the hilt of Endless Night.

I didn’t draw it yet.

Not until I saw John, or what was left of what he fought.

"We’re moving in," I said, keeping my voice steady.

Behind me, I heard Deng Hua murmur, "If something jumps out, I’m going to scream."

That made Liang Mei snort. It wasn’t a real laugh. But it was enough to calm her clear nerves... and helped the group’s morale.

We passed beneath the shutter one by one.

And the white trail was still ahead.

Leading deeper.

Somewhere inside, I prayed we weren’t following the wrong thing.

Or maybe we were.

And I didn’t care.

So long as it led me to John.

The hallway opened into a wide, dark space — clearly the main loading zone. Half the shelves had collapsed, scattering cardboard boxes, broken signage, and dusty display racks. One of the delivery doors at the far end looked buckled, as if something had crashed into it from the inside.

We moved slowly.

There was a blood smear on the floor just ahead, leading to a metal dolly tipped on its side.

I approached it, the others watching my steps.

That’s when I saw the print.

A bloodstain across the side rail — not shaped by accident, but pressed deliberately. It looked like a handprint. Five digits. Except they were stretched unnaturally long, one finger curving too far inward, like it had an extra joint.

At first, I assumed it was John’s.

But it wasn’t his shape. It wasn’t human.

The blood was his.

But the shape was that thing’s.

I stared at it for a moment longer, fingers curling tighter around my sword.

"...It used his blood."

Not spilled. Not splashed.

Used.

Liang Qiu took a step behind me. "Did it go this way?"

"No," I muttered. "It was here."

Something shifted in the dark, too far to see. A faint rustle, like skin brushing against plastic.

Whatever left that handprint was still nearby.

I drew Endless Night.

"We move together," I said. "If it shows itself—I’ll cut it down."

No matter how quiet the loading zone seemed, I knew we weren’t alone.

And if that thing had time to use his blood...

It wasn’t just watching.

That thing was hunting us, not fleeing.

It was leaving a message.

One meant for me.

And I planned to answer it.