Chapter 248: The danger saw me, so that means it saw danger too!
Why didn’t the One-Eyed Kid and some of the other chosen ones just send the eerie crows up to buy time right away?
Well, they had another option. You could also say they still had an ace up their sleeve.
They could summon the black liquid of the Final Bird. If they could just find a way to get that black liquid onto the mutated, eerie beetle, then the Final Bird would descend.
Just from the name “Final Bird,” you can guess it’s definitely a top-tier, ceiling-level fighting force.
No matter how much that mutated, eerie beetle mutated or evolved, it wouldn’t be a match for something at that level.
But the question was, would it be worth using it here? That mutated, eerie beetle didn’t look like some kind of hidden boss that needed to be killed. If they used the item here, what would they do if they ran into danger later?
And besides, just how to get the liquid onto the beetle was a problem in itself.
When the Final Bird would actually show up was also unknown.
Just as the One-Eyed Kid was weighing his options, the noise in the sky woke up Zhang Yangqing, who had been napping in the passenger seat.
He’d been tired from sitting in the car all morning, and now that he finally had a chance to rest, something was bothering him again, right?
Actually, the One-Eyed Kid had never doubted his partner’s abilities. He was also very good at following orders, basically doing whatever Zhang Yangqing said.
But this time, he hesitated for a few seconds.
It wasn’t that he didn’t believe in Zhang Yangqing’s skill, but all Zhang Yangqing had shown so far was the ability to kill Fierce Ghosts with his sword.
He had unbeatable combat power against humanoid eerie beings, but that was just against humanoid ones.
The One-Eyed Kid knew he was far inferior to his partner, but he didn’t think Zhang Yangqing could handle the giant flying thing behind them.
Because even the eerie crows, powerful creatures themselves, were trembling with fear.
The terrifying pressure from that mutated, eerie beetle was so strong that even the One-Eyed Kid in his prime would have just run away, and he wouldn’t have known if he could escape.
Seeing Zhang Yangqing still looking sleepy, like he hadn’t quite woken up,
The One-Eyed Kid did something unprecedented: he asked, “Are you sure? Maybe you should take a look back there first and see what it is.”
Zhang Yangqing couldn’t even be bothered to look. He just said, “I told you to stop, so stop. Why all the useless talk?”
The One-Eyed Kid: “…”
Just those few simple words, and the One-Eyed Kid felt an immense sense of dominance.
Zhang Yangqing wasn’t deliberately projecting any aura, but that natural, invincible presence that comes with being strong was enough to make every living thing around him tremble with fear.
What he was saying was: it doesn’t matter what’s back there. Whatever danger it is, the fact that this danger has seen me means that it has also seen danger.
Even though the mutated, eerie beetle gave the One-Eyed Kid a feeling of death, the presence of the partner in the passenger seat seemed even more terrifying.
His tone wasn’t a suggestion; it was telling you what to do.
This time, the One-Eyed Kid still chose to follow Zhang Yangqing’s command. He cranked the steering wheel, sending the car into a drifting stop.
That off-road vehicle shot across the road like a shooting star, or like an elegant swan dancing gracefully on a lake.
The tires left deep marks on the ground during the sudden stop.
When the off-road vehicle came to a halt, Zhang Yangqing stepped out coolly. His clothes flapped loudly in the wind, and dust kicked up behind him.
The mutated, eerie beetle didn’t seem to expect the car in front to stop. It had been flying with so much force that it overshot, sailing right over the top of the off-road vehicle and kicking up a huge blast of air.
It took a moment for it to turn around and come back.
Getting tricked again seemed to make it even angrier. The speed of its wing flaps intensified.
The enormous gusts of air made the trees nearby sway dangerously, looking like they might fall over any second.
Even the One-Eyed Kid, sitting inside the car, felt like a candle flickering in the wind.
It was his first time seeing the mutated, eerie beetle up close after its mutation.
It looked completely different from before.
Its shiny black, giant body, over ten meters long, was like a towering mountain in the sky.
The overwhelming pressure it gave off was suffocating.
“Can anyone really fight a terrifying creature like this?” the One-Eyed Kid couldn’t help but doubt.
If they had tried to run just now, they might have made it.
Now, running wasn’t even an option.
In the One-Eyed Kid’s understanding, the mutated, eerie beetle was already an invincible existence.
Even the two eerie crows behind them had their heads down, covering their heads with their wings, not daring to face this behemoth.
The smell of death was overwhelming, filling the One-Eyed Kid’s heart.
When Zhang Yangqing got out, the One-Eyed Kid wondered why he was taking out his weapon.
Zhang Yangqing just stood in front of the off-road vehicle. He looked like he didn’t see any danger at all.
It was the calmness of a strong person, or maybe the bearing of someone who stands apart from the world.
It felt like, whether the sky fell or the earth split open, it was nothing special in his eyes.
That terrifying mutated, eerie beetle was just like a fly buzzing its wings hard in front of him.
No matter how scary a fly is, it’s still just a fly.
At that moment, the One-Eyed Kid suddenly looked up at the beetle.
Even though he couldn’t see it, he felt like the beetle was trembling slightly.
Was this thing also feeling that something wasn’t right?
Had its animal instincts picked up on something?
Under normal circumstances, wouldn’t it just attack its target directly?
Since when did this thing become so docile and reasonable?
No, it wasn’t that it was docile. It was sizing up the combat power of the human in front of it.
Because the mutated, eerie beetle couldn’t figure out the strength of the person before it. It was confused.
The One-Eyed Kid saw his partner just standing there, and that alone was enough to make this terrifying thing in the sky too afraid to advance.
That’s the kind of power that stands alone in the world.
In that instant, even the One-Eyed Kid felt like the beetle didn’t have much chance of winning.
He didn’t know how he knew, but he just had that feeling.
To put it precisely, the gap in levels was just too huge!
From Zhang Yangqing’s back, the One-Eyed Kid could even sense a hint of helplessness that comes with being a true master.
“It seems he disdains to even make a move. I’m sorry, it’s because I’m too weak,” the One-Eyed Kid said with a bitter smile, feeling ashamed that he had doubted Zhang Yangqing even for a moment.
He still didn’t know exactly what level Zhang Yangqing’s strength was at, but he knew it was a level he could never reach.
But an animal is still an animal. The mutated, eerie beetle started using its rage to dispel its fear.
It rose up into the air, its body surrounded by terrifying black energy.
That black energy kept gathering on its wings. The dark energy in the void trembled, making every living thing for miles around feel fear in their hearts.
This one attack would be enough to wipe out any powerful Fierce Ghost-level creature on the entire screen.
“ROAR!”
The beetle let out a ground-shaking roar. The sound waves alone made the earth crack.
Its power shook the heavens, like the end of the world was coming!
Just as the mutated, eerie beetle reached its absolute peak and was about to lock onto its target for a devastating blast, it realized the target had disappeared.
Zhang Yangqing saw that its wind-up was taking too long and couldn’t be bothered to wait for it to waste more time.
“I usually don’t like interrupting other people’s spellcasting, but now I want to go back to sleep, so sorry about this.”
Zhang Yangqing stepped onto thin air, moving as fast as a cicada in eight steps, closing the distance in an instant.
In a flash, he was right on top of the beetle’s head.
“This is the price you pay for waking me up.”
With that, Zhang Yangqing lifted his right foot slightly, then brought it down.
Instantly, his blood and energy surged, and the power of heaven rippled outward.
At the spot where Zhang Yangqing’s foot landed, the void shook and ripples spread out.
Golden energy raged wildly inside the beetle’s body.
The beetle, which had seemed nearly invincible just a moment ago, had its body shattered into pieces, crumbling apart from that single, seemingly effortless step!
The look of terror on its head, which fell off first, was frozen solid on its face.
It couldn’t imagine dying so cleanly, even at its peak!
As it fell, the beetle’s head also began to crack apart, finally disappearing.
As the beetle’s enormous body fell like a plume of black smoke, Zhang Yangqing was already at the car door.
He opened the door, sat down in the passenger seat, all in one smooth motion.
The beetle that had given so many chosen ones headaches was now reduced to ashes.
All of this happened within just a few seconds. The One-Eyed Kid’s eyes were still wide open. Before he could even process it, the beetle was dead.
How did it feel like Zhang Yangqing killing the beetle was even easier than the beetle killing him?
Even though he had defeated this incredibly strong beetle, the One-Eyed Kid noticed no trace of joy on Zhang Yangqing’s face.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Zhang Yangqing acted like he had just done something as trivial as swatting a fly. It was insignificant.
The One-Eyed Kid swallowed the words of praise that had risen to his lips.
He had actually imagined a scene where Zhang Yangqing would wield his sword and battle the beetle for 800 rounds.
He’d even thought about whether he should help out.
But now he realized his thoughts were a bit unnecessary.
That kind of power – the ability to make those terrifying, seemingly invincible monsters vanish with just a simple gesture.
The strength Zhang Yangqing displayed left an indelible, shocking impression on the One-Eyed Kid’s heart.
He gripped the steering wheel, stepped on the gas, and continued doing what he needed to do.
Zhang Yangqing’s power was so great that it was even making his partner feel inferior.
The One-Eyed Kid had thought that by doing some things, he was at least contributing equally to the team.
At least in terms of making contributions, they were probably about the same, right?
But now it seemed the difference was huge, not just a little bit.
He started to hate that he hadn’t done a good enough job. He could have found a better way to leave safely. The beetle was a problem he should have solved while crossing the bridge. Now he had to bother his teammate, and his pride stung.
Why didn’t Zhang Yangqing’s teammates from the last round care? Because from the beginning, they knew they were useless, just accessories hanging onto this powerful person’s leg.
If you see yourself as a useless accessory, what pride do you have?
Zhang Yangqing didn’t overthink it. He suppressed the sweet taste rising in his throat.
Even though he had only mobilized a tiny bit of spiritual energy, not even half of the “less than one-tenth” he had available,
It seemed that any mobilization at all would trigger backlash.
Luckily, he didn’t use much this time, so the backlash wasn’t too bad.
“This virus is really something. Won’t even let me use a tenth of my power. How stingy,” Zhang Yangqing muttered to himself.
But if other supernatural beings heard that, they’d probably spit blood.
They are using supernatural power just to run away, and you’re complaining that you can’t use enough to kill the enemy?
At this stage, some other chosen ones were even wondering if this part was just the horror tale world’s way of taking back the eerie crows.
There was no way to save the crows. The beetle wouldn’t let the off-road vehicles leave until it had killed all the eerie crows.
The beetle probably could have caught the chosen ones’ vehicles if it wanted to; it just looked down on them.
That’s why so many supernatural beings were gritting their teeth in anger.
Outside of this place, every single one of them was a powerful force in their own right. And here, they were being looked down upon by some stinking bug.
The stronger a supernatural being is, the worse their temper. They get revenge for the slightest grievance!
Those who made it past this level looked at their maps, ready to head for the next big city.
It seemed that once they got there, they could find a hospital.
No matter what, finding the doctor mentioned in the intel and getting rid of the virus was the key.
They drove carefully. There were still a few hours to go.
They wanted to reach the big city early so they’d have more time to prepare.
And just then, the chosen ones in the second and third tiers started having accidents again.
The third-tier chosen ones were still at the rehabilitation center.
This made the viewers sigh. The first tier is almost done with the level, and you’re still in the starting area? What are you even doing?
Are you treating the horror tale world like a place that gives you free room and board?
But the viewers also felt a mix of disappointment and frustration. Many of these chosen ones were coming in for the first time, and a lot of them were supernatural beings. Their experience and way of thinking were naturally different from ordinary people’s.
They always looked for deeper meanings. For example, Andyeb from the Pyramid Country figured out the secret of the paintings on the fourth floor and was granted the ability to communicate with insects by the horror tale world.
This ability was actually incredibly powerful. Used well, this level would be a piece of cake.
But here’s the crucial explanation needed: the viewers in Pyramid Country had expected Andyeb to have an amazing performance this time, the kind of “slow burn, then surpass everyone ahead” deal.
But then their expert, Rahman, poured cold water on that idea.
Rahman said: “He has the ability to communicate with insects, not the ability to command them.”
Rahman didn’t say more, but that sentence was enough to calm the viewers down.
Think about level two: if a mutated, eerie insect in the parking lot says it wants to kill you, even if you understand it, what can you do?
To not die, you’d need to satisfy its request. But who knows what these mutated, eerie insects want?
Or maybe it’s just hungry and wants to eat you. No other requests. Then you can’t really negotiate.
Besides that, some chosen ones unlocked the secret of the third floor – the seven colored doors.
The patients in those rooms were special types. They had special abilities, you could call them psychic powers.
For example, they could use limb extension/contraction or organ duplication without triggering the virus backlash.
Don’t let that sound scary. You could duplicate a pair of eyes and put them on the back of your head to see behind you.
You could duplicate hands and feet, then use limb extension to touch dangerous places from a distance.
These could also help improve a chosen one’s survival rate in the horror tale world.
After all, if they used the powers they brought in from outside, the virus backlash would make them cough up blood. Using these skills wouldn’t cause much of a problem.
That meant that if the chosen ones fulfilled their requests, the patients would teach them how to use these skills.
Those were some of the side quests in the rehabilitation center.
In the horror tale world, completing side quests usually gets you some benefits.
Were there no side quests near the parking lot in level two?
Of course there were. Some chosen ones who had already left the parking lot were working on them.
One of the side quests involved the fact that there were still some residents left in the city outside the parking lot.
If you rescued some residents who seemed useful and had passes, you could increase your team’s size and thus your fighting strength.
But without exception, the chosen ones didn’t seem interested in this side quest. They all chose to stay near the hospital and kill the people smashing cars.
In an apocalyptic situation like this, no one wanted to take that risk.
Because after you save someone, you have to make sure they won’t attack you.
You’d also have to go back into the parking lot to find enough food, then come back out again.
That takes a lot of time and also puts you in danger.
So no chosen one was kind-hearted enough to do this quest.
Because even the dumbest chosen ones in the second stage knew one thing:
People who aren’t mentioned in the rules can’t be trusted.
And as for those who did trust people not mentioned in the rules – didn’t they all die at the hands of that blonde guy in the first level?
Those who made it out knew, more or less, that in a plague disaster like this, you can only rely on yourself.
Zhang Yangqing was just exceptionally skilled and daring. Plus, the One-Eyed Kid was on the same boat, so he was trustworthy.
Look at the first-tier chosen ones. Every single one is ruthless.
They’re all the type who would kill anyone but themselves.
If you’re not ruthless, you can’t keep up with the first tier.
There was also a second side quest at this stage, which a few chosen ones were working on.
Mixing a so-called “suppression potion.”
This required complex experiments and a lot of patience.
First, the chosen ones needed to thoroughly search the hospital to find the formula for the suppression potion.
Remember the medical ambulance in the underground parking lot?
By that level, many chosen ones had noticed there were other potions besides the disinfectant.
Those potions had symbols on them they couldn’t read.
The chosen ones could only identify the disinfectant by its smell.
But if you mixed these potions in a certain ratio, you could get the suppression potion.
The suppression potion was meant to stop the virus’s invasion.
It would allow the chosen ones to regain maybe 20% or 30% of their original power.
To do this, they needed to find a well-preserved laboratory with the equipment to mix potions and enough of the base potions.
If necessary, they could even go back to the underground parking lot.
It was very troublesome. By the time they mixed it, the faster chosen ones would probably have already cleared the level and left.
If a chosen one came in just to grind for a high score, they should just follow the main quest.
Don’t think completing side quests will only give you rewards. This is the horror tale world. You can run into danger during side quests too, and delaying the main quest means things around you can change drastically.
So, smart and capable chosen ones will choose to leave early.
If you just want to survive and you have some skills, you can choose to do side quests. That can indeed improve your chances of staying alive.
As time passed, the two chosen ones who had fallen behind from the first tier had now caught up to roughly the same progress as the second tier and arrived at the prison town.
The true first tier only had thirteen chosen ones.
More precisely, only six of them were currently in a position to potentially get an SSSS rating or higher.
The first-tier vehicles sped along the highway.
In the fading light of dusk, the cars’ bodies shimmered.
Looking at the scenery around them, they felt like they should be reaching their destination city soon.
Because there were some fresh corpses by the roadside.
Even just glancing at them, experienced chosen ones could tell these people hadn’t been dead long.
A few days at most.
After seeing so many corpses, or killing so many people themselves,
Even if you’re not an expert, you can roughly tell the time.
As the setting sun was about to disappear, the chosen ones rounded a bend and saw a massive city before them.
But seeing this, many chosen ones and viewers swallowed nervously.
“This doesn’t feel right. Did I take a wrong turn?” muttered Hilde, the Hans Country supernatural being.
He slowed his car down slightly, observing the city in the distance.
He kept comparing it to the map in his hand. He hadn’t been speeding today; he’d been driving normally.
Besides, he wasn’t someone who got lost easily. It was just one road. Where else could he go?
If the map was correct, then something must have happened to this city during the time it took him to get here.
And it wasn’t just him. Even Zhang Yangqing noticed something strange.
The setting sun was still out, and the horizon still had some brightness.
But this big city was shrouded in a dark, reddish haze.
It couldn’t be just the sunset’s reflection.
You couldn’t see what was happening inside at all. You could only see occasional flashes of light, like some kind of terrifying creature opening its eyes.
The overall tone of the city seemed much darker than other places.
The reason the chosen ones were starting to suspect something was because the map had a seemingly irrelevant sentence on it:
[This is a scenic summer resort.]
There were plenty of these “useless” messages. The chosen ones hadn’t paid them any attention at first.
But now, it wasn’t exactly scenic. It was actually kind of scary.
The joy of finding a place to rest and the worry of facing unknown dangers filled the chosen ones’ hearts.
“Was it the plague? Or some kind of attack?” that question popped into the chosen ones’ heads.
But they were still far away. They decided to get closer first for a look.
And also try to find any rules nearby. Once they found the rules, they’d have a baseline.
Sure enough, on a lit-up billboard by the side of the road, the chosen ones found the rules.
The rules seemed to appear in a fairly noticeable way.
Otherwise, some careless chosen ones might easily just drive right past them on a dim road like this at dusk.
Zhang Yangqing told the One-Eyed Kid to stop. He rolled down his window and looked at the billboard for a while.
[Rule 1: In this city, only doctors wearing purple armbands will not despise patients. However, only doctors wearing black armbands have the means to treat the virus.]
[Rule 2: No matter who it is, if they have three different types of the virus in their body at the same time, they will die immediately.]
[Rule 3: If you cannot enter the city, you can find an abandoned temple outside the city. That place will not be attacked by insects.]
[Rule 4: Pay close attention to the wells here. When you see the moon appear in a well, stay far away as quickly as possible!]
[Rule 5: To enter the insect nest, you must find a guide.]
[Rule 6: A hatched insect will regard the first person it sees as its mother.]
[Rule 7: The blue potion can quickly hatch eggs. The green potion can quickly kill eggs.]
[Rule 8: Insect-type creatures cannot be infected by the virus, even if they disguise themselves as humans.]
[Rule 9: The mother insect is extremely hungry after laying eggs. She will not refuse Wu Gan fruit.]
[Rule 10: When you have completely cleared all the viruses from your body, you may clear the level.]
