Global Collapse

Chapter 648 Praising the Wildlife Protection Law

Outside the dilapidated tile-roofed house, a slow, deliberate footstep could be heard.

The people inside held their breath, staring at the old door without daring to move.

The room was dimly lit, making it impossible to see anything around. In the darkness, any sound is amplified many times over, and each eerie footstep felt like a needle piercing one's heart. After what seemed like an eternity, the intermittent footsteps finally faded into the distance.

After confirming that the things outside had really left, August opened her mouth and gasped for breath.

"That was close! If we hadn't run fast enough to get into this house, we probably would have been caught by the ghost." Song Tang reached out and touched his chest. Even though the footsteps outside had disappeared, he didn't dare to speak loudly, his voice barely audible.

“Those footsteps were probably made by that ghost in the woods,” August whispered. “It’s looking for us, but luckily it’s not very fast.”

“I didn’t expect to encounter a ghost as soon as I entered the dungeon,” Si Huanian said, leaning against a table to regain her strength. “What’s wrong with this dungeon? Not only did it not give us any hints, but it also made us encounter a ghost right from the start.”

August frowned deeply; he was also somewhat confused about the current situation.

They initially thought it was just a somewhat special instance, but they encountered a ghost right at the beginning of the instance, something they had never heard of before.

In a normal instance, the ghost will only start killing when the player has collected enough clues.

Therefore, most players die in the mid-to-late stages of the dungeon.

But why does this dungeon immediately put them in direct combat with monsters? Is this dungeon simply designed to kill players?

Of course, there is another possibility.

In this short period of time, someone has already discovered the key clues to this instance, which is why the ghost appeared.

In August, she suddenly remembered the bespectacled male player who had told them to run in front of the woods. At that time, everyone had only heard footsteps and hadn't seen anyone, but this male player seemed to have discovered something and immediately determined that the people in the woods weren't human. Perhaps he had found some crucial clue.

As he pondered this, he glanced at the player. He saw the other player standing in a dark corner, putting something into their pocket.

"Did you discover something?" August took a step forward and looked directly at the player in front of her whose nickname was Chu Meiren.

"No." Chu Changge didn't intend to say anything more to this player.

Song Tang also thought of Chu Changge's shout of "Run!" in front of the woods. He stepped forward and stood next to August: "You must have found something to tell us to run. Don't hide any clues. This instance is very special. We need to analyze the clues together to increase our chances of survival."

As he spoke, he took a few more steps forward, his gaze fixed on Chu Changge's pocket, as if trying to figure out what he had just put inside.

007 moved to block his view: "Personal belongings, none of your business."

Song Tang looked up at the female player blocking his view. He had already noticed that she was a professional player, a beast tamer.

The other female player next to her was also a professional player; she was a fortune teller.

This was the first time Song Tang had ever seen a professional player. He hesitated and looked away: "Did the four of you enter the dungeon together?"

"Yes," 007 replied, without saying anything more.

“You two are professional gamers, you must have professional skills!” Song Tang said in a somewhat urgent tone, “Why don’t we have a fortune teller divine how we can leave this instance?”

It would be a miracle if I could do divination!

The fortune teller gripped the pendulum tightly in his hand: "I don't have that ability."

"Then at least we can predict the general direction, such as which place might have clues, or which place is safer..." Song Tang was very anxious.

“Alright,” August suddenly interrupted Song Tang, “the most urgent thing now is to figure out why this dungeon didn’t give any hints. Is it a bug, or is this how the dungeon works? Of course, it’s also possible that the dungeon is trying to wipe us out. Speaking of which…”

August suddenly looked at 007: "You should know something, right? Before we entered the dungeon, I heard you shout 'Split up!' not far from the supermarket, as if you had already anticipated that we would enter the dungeon together."

Of course, 007 wouldn't tell him the truth.

This instance was prepared specifically for Chu Changge and Xiao Qiao on Earth; everyone else is just an innocent victim.

Earth wants to get rid of Chu Changge and Xiao Qiao.

007 can't guarantee what these three players will do after they know the truth.

After learning the truth, they will most likely harbor murderous intent towards Chu Changge and Xiao Qiao.

"Since the instance only wants to kill these two people, then as long as we kill them, the instance will be satisfied and mercifully let us leave"—that's what they might think.

Any player who wants to survive will have this thought.

It's not their fault, but if these people really had murderous intent, then there's only one solution...

"Why aren't you saying anything?" August squinted at 007. "What are you hiding from us?"

The dimly lit room was filled with a tense atmosphere, with the two groups of players appearing somewhat opposed to each other.

Realizing the awkward atmosphere, Si Huanian quickly tried to smooth things over: "Everyone, please don't be like this. This instance is too strange. We need to stick together. There's no benefit in distrusting each other at this time."

As she spoke, she patted August on the shoulder: "You and Song Tang, calm down."

After patting August on the shoulder, Si Huanian turned to look at 007 and the others. The light was too dim, and she couldn't see their expressions clearly, only their general outlines.

"You five shouldn't overthink it, we mean no harm..."

Wait a moment?
Sihua Nian suddenly stopped speaking at this point.

Five?

She looked at the five dark figures in front of her and felt a great sense of panic.

There was one more person in the room.

Chu Changge was the first to react. He grabbed the nearest 007 and rushed out.

The fortune teller reacted quickly; she sensed a foul stench behind her, as if something was approaching. The instant she caught the smell, she grabbed Xiao Qiao and ran in the direction Chu Changge and Xiao Qiao had gone.

The remaining August and Song Tang also realized what was happening.

They rushed out of the house in a frenzy.

As Song Tang stepped out of the room, he mustered up the courage to look back and saw a humanoid monster covered in pustules and with broken facial muscles.

Upon seeing the terrifying monster inside the house, he dared not linger any longer and ran frantically outside.

It was gloomy outside, with the moon and stars covered by dark clouds. They ran frantically along the uneven path. The town was eerily quiet, like a silent monster.

The two ran for several minutes until they could no longer see the outline of the house before they stopped.

They were panting heavily, leaning against a tree. They had arrived in the town, surrounded by long-abandoned buildings. The place was dilapidated and abandoned.

Song Tang stared wide-eyed in the direction he had come from, his mouth agape: "Si Huanian... didn't Si Huanian catch up?"

August also looked at the winding path, which was pitch black: "She probably got separated from us. Didn't the other people get separated from us too?"

“Never mind her for now,” August straightened up. “Let’s find somewhere to hide. This place is too conspicuous.” He looked around. The dilapidated buildings were densely packed around him, and most of the windows were broken, leaving the inside dark and gaping holes, as if hiding terrifying ghosts.

They dared not enter those houses anymore.

“This dungeon is too strange. It threw us into a life-or-death situation right from the start. The other group of players is also strange. I guess this dungeon might be related to them in some way,” August said, looking around. “Let’s find a store with a bigger entrance and go in. That way, it’ll be easier to run around. What do you think?”

As he spoke, he looked at Song Tang, as if seeking his opinion.

But Song Tang didn't give any reply, he just stared wide-eyed at the top of his head.

In August, he subconsciously looked up and a drop of liquid fell from a tree and landed in his eye.

His vision was instantly filled with crimson. He saw a pair of crimson eyes peeking out from the gaps in the branches above him, staring intently at them.

Run! August tried to lift her leg and run away.

But for some reason, I couldn't move my feet at all.

He looked down and saw a withered, ghostly hand emerging from the ground beneath his feet, gripping his ankle tightly.

how come……

August stared in astonishment at her ankle.

How can there be so many ghosts...?

How many exactly...?

Just then, the ghostly claws were climbing up his ankles, and he saw half a rotting head emerging from the ground.

Song Tang had already fled long ago.

He was the only one left there.

Seeing the monster bursting from the ground, August trembled violently: "I can only... I can only use that..."

Song Tang, who had fled early, ran to a small hut and curled up, his whole body trembling.

"How can there be so many ghosts in this dungeon! Why...why..."

He looked toward August, trembling.

But a dilapidated building blocked his view.

Thinking of what he had just witnessed, he swallowed hard. "August... he's definitely dead. I wonder where Si Huanian is. I hope I can find her and reunite with her..."

What he didn't know was that Si Huanian hadn't run out of the small house with them.

She was still inside the house.

Si Huanian was the only living person standing in the pitch-black room. Everyone else had fled, but she remained motionless.

She stared blankly at the figure in the darkness, her mouth agape in astonishment.

“You are…” She took two steps forward in disbelief.

The monster covered in pustules opened its mouth at her.

Then, the woman's screams and the horrific sounds of chewing echoed through the night.

Chu Changge and his companions did not run too far; they stopped in front of a row of abandoned shops.

007 remained vigilant, keeping a close watch on his surroundings: "Be careful, ghosts could appear at any moment."

The fortune teller, leaning over and resting his knees, said, "There are just too many ghosts in this place. We won't live much longer!"

Moreover, this is a place with no solution.

They had no way to leave.

The fortune teller was filled with despair.

What should I do?
Must I stay here forever?
Waiting for some unknown ghost to kill you?
I'd rather just kill myself right now.

At this moment, Chu Changge suddenly spoke up: "I think there is a way to leave here."

Upon hearing this, hope shone in the fortune teller's eyes.

Chu Changge continued, "Mr. Green said there is a train that can connect seven worlds. If we find that train, we can escape this place."

He knew that Gu Mian had entered that train replica and shut it down, but he didn't know if the train had been repaired now.

“But the world is so vast, we might die at the hands of the devil before we even find the train, and besides, we’re not familiar with this place.” 007 frowned.

No, someone knows this place very well!

As she thought about it, she glanced at Xiao Qiao to the side.

But that one glance sent a chill down her spine.

A pale, naked, thin figure stood behind the other person, twisting its body strangely like a frenzied dancer. 007 saw it wrap its twisted arms around Xiao Qiao's neck.

"Xiao Qiao!" 007 called out urgently.

The fortune teller wanted to do something, but it was too late.

The slender humanoid figure had already pressed itself against Xiao Qiao's back, its deformed arms exerting a slight force.

"Click"

The fortune teller, his face pale, took a few steps back, almost unable to bear watching what was about to happen.

But the expected scene did not appear.

The sound came from the pale arms; its two white, slender arms hung limply as if their joints had been removed.

A piercing scream immediately echoed throughout the area.

"What's going on!" 007 stared in astonishment at the ghost's frantically fleeing figure.

For a moment, she thought it was Gu Mian who had arrived.

The fortune teller looked on in bewilderment at the direction the ghost had fled.

Chu Changge pushed up his glasses and looked at Xiao Qiao, who was standing there unharmed: "Wildlife Protection Law."

How could Gugu possibly give out lunchboxes! (Proudly)

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(End of this chapter)