"So, Brother Su, what exactly is this place?"
An Nan slightly extended his hand and pushed the wooden cabin’s window open a bit more, broadening their line of sight this time.
They could see that the entire Sky Dome was a dark red, and everything in the distance was obscured by indistinct fog.
"I’m not sure," said Su Qi calmly, his gaze also drifting towards the sky:
"That must be the miasma they were talking about."
if this place was the same world as the small town he first entered in the instance,
Su Qi definitely couldn’t recognize it.
he wasn’t in the same place, and he had only stayed in that small town, and besides... it probably had undergone drastic changes by now.
An Nan, looking at the dark red sky and the distant fog, felt uneasy, "I can sense a dangerous aura from there, it doesn’t seem to be simple."
"Of course, it’s not simple," Su Qi spoke lightly, "The middle-aged man who came in before wasn’t an ordinary person but a solid Seventh Rank in strength. He was surprised that we woke up in that miasma, which goes to show... that place has a dangerous influence even on people of the same strength."
"Anyway, don’t oversimplify this world."
And Su Qi had also noticed that the middle-aged man mentioned outsiders, it seems that other people had also entered this place.
someone knocked gently at the door.
"You outsiders, your food."
Su Qi opened the door, and standing there was a dirt-smudged youth with a few freckles, not very powerful but also around the Ninth Rank in strength.
He brought the food in and placed it on the table.
"This food of yours..."
An Nan suddenly paused, "Why does it feel strange... all colorful?"
He looked at the food with a weird feeling, the items seemingly emitting a sinister smoke.
Facing An Nan’s questioning, the youth didn’t show any guilt but simply shook his head lightly,
"If you don’t understand the rules of this world, to survive, to get through that fog, you have to accept things ."
"Also, what stage do you think we’re at? It would be pointless to play the old poison-in-food game now," Su Qi managed a smile,
"Then please explain."
The youth earnestly said, "This world has been greatly polluted, and all food ingredients can only be obtained from a polluted environment. Whether it is polluted plants or animals, eating food made from these can better... resist the pollution."
The youth also slowly took out the jerky from his pocket, which also had the scent of pollution, and put it into his mouth, "Everyone is the same."
After the youth left,
An Nan stared at the food, deep in thought.
"Brother Su, what do you think, was he lying?"
"No, he wasn’t lying. In a polluted world, the most terrifying thing is spiritual pollution, which can pervade every aspect, and this food helps them gain strength and some spiritual resistance."
"But if it exceeds the critical value, they won’t be able to resist the pollution and will become polluted monsters."
An Nan was stupefied, "Brother Su, how do you know so much?"
Su Qi gave a noncommittal chuckle.
Because, damn it, I’m all too familiar with this!
The second instance was encountering the Tentacle Man in the... apartment, a world that was polluted and falling apart.
Wherever the pollution spread, there was mental collapse and all kinds of bizarre monsters, and the tenants in the apartment could only live by hunting every day.
This was... precisely the same deal!
"Go ahead and eat. This stuff is harmless to us, it really can enhance spiritual resistance and provide some strength."
An Nan nodded, not harboring any suspicions, took a few bites, and then nodded, "The flavor seems quite good."
"What about you, Brother Su?"
"I’ll make some snail rice noodles."
An Nan wasn’t a main user of spiritual power, he needed resistance against pollution to prevent his spiritual power from decreasing too quickly.
And Su Qi didn’t need this at all.
He was far too familiar with this pollution.
What’s certain is, this world must be related to the Evil God, after all, Brother Evil God is the source of pollution, the source of downfall!
After finishing the meal,
Su Qi and An Nan didn’t continue to linger inside the wooden cabin but pushed the door open and walked outside.
There was no obstacle.
This small town could probably accommodate two to three thousand people, and although most of those who remained seemed to have become more than just ordinary people under the influence of the polluted food, possessing at least the Strength of Sequence Nine,
they were all incapable of forming a combat force, just women, children, and the frail elderly.
Only someone with the Strength like that of the middle-aged man from before could be considered combat personnel in this small town.
Right after the bell rang, they seemed to have received some kind of message, and they were now not in the town, apparently having entered the fog.
"Let’s go, let’s check out the place where the bell was rung."
Although this town was not the same as the original one, it was clearly... from the same world, with a similar style.
And the people around them were not like the... Butcher, Hunter, Woodcutter, and other Killing Demons from before, with murderous glints in their eyes.
Instead, they were cowardly and silent, without asking questions.
"It feels like everyone’s spiritual state is very fragile," An Nan said in a deep voice, "Is it really because of the pollution?"
"Normal. Living here day and night, with the constant threat of unknown dangers, it’s no wonder everyone’s spirit is affected."
It was in Su Qi’s second entry into the world where Tentacle Man lived, in that Final Home.
Nevertheless, some people were still training and practicing.
When Su Qi approached the place where the bell had rung, An Nan paused slightly, "To find a church in such a place?"
Su Qi, on the other hand, squinted at the church built beneath the bell tower,
The various patterns on the church looked very familiar indeed.
The church seemed to be sealed off, with no worship occurring, and something inside appeared to need protection.
Su Qi looked a few times when... a soft voice came through.
"This place suppresses the pollution around it, and there is a certain Strength inside that keeps the Demons from daring to come close."
Su Qi turned his head.
Two others had appeared beside them, seemingly outsiders as well, wearing clothes that were out of place in this environment.
"You guys..." An Nan had just begun to express his confusion.
"Let me introduce myself." One of them, wearing a hat, gently took it off, "My name is... Rab."
"And I am..." Another person had a handsome face and an impressive air about him.
Su Qi paused, "Rado?"
Holding his forehead, he said, "I freaking go by, Lu Fan."
"We are also from outside, but we came earlier than you... You are probably the latest outsiders we’ve seen."
Su Qi paused, "The latest? How long has it been since the first group entered here?"
"It’s been about a week."
"Then wouldn’t we be far behind?" Su Qi murmured while stroking his chin.
"...behind?" Rab shook his head gently, smiling warmly, "Everything here is not simple, everyone is desperately exploring, with no gains, there’s no such thing as being behind."
An Nan couldn’t help but interject from the side, "So, gentlemen, can you tell us what exactly is going on here?"
Rab said softly, "But, there’s no need for us to tell, you will understand soon enough, because... the ones who went out to fight should be returning."
They turned their gaze towards the distance!
There were huge figures seemingly colliding in the fog; the middle-aged man from before was rapidly leaping towards the town!
Huge Demons roared, fiercely trying to step into the town!
Despite their wretched and wary demeanour, the middle-aged man and his people did not hide!
From the church at the very center of the town, a tremendous force burst forth, flashing with a brilliant White Light!
The shadow of an...axe suddenly appeared!
Repelling the giant that sought to step inside!