The dim room echoed with the sound of screams.
Mu Ziqing leaned against the relatively clean bed, combing her golden hair, her snow-white long legs dangling idly. She regarded the blood pooling on the floor without a flicker of emotion.
Yan Ye crossed his arms, his pristine white suit spotless as he leaned against the doorframe, saying coolly, "Hurry it up."
"Understood, brother."
Yan Feng smiled faintly and, with a backhand motion, plunged the dagger in his hand downward.
A sharp crack rang out, and blood sprayed everywhere.
A young man drenched in blood was pinned against the wall by a flaming spear.
His left eye was pierced clean through by a dagger.
"I'm guessing he's out of intel by now?"
From the rear, someone gloated, "He's said everything he could say."
Another person sneered, "Indeed. Really shortsighted of him. We were already close to being stranded, and the idiot opened the door to ambush us and steal our supplies. As a result, it only took Captain Yan less than half a minute to clean him up."
Yan Ye had restrained his strength during the battle at the inn and only started taking it seriously after the group entered the Great Ruins.
Taking care of a Second Rank Fallen took him less than thirty seconds.
The Fallen, pinned to the wall, was on his last breaths.
Yan Feng sighed, casually slashing his throat with the dagger.
The Fallen slumped over, lifeless.
"Alright, since he's said everything there was to say, we'll leave it at that."
Yan Ye remarked indifferently, "Now we know some of the rules for this Forbidden Zone. Considering the association never informed us, I'm more inclined to think of this as a trial—a trial of life and death. While there could be traitors, it's unlikely the captains would go down so easily. The higher-ups wouldn't play games with this."
"Next, I propose we push directly into the depths of the Forbidden Zone to locate Hasegawa Shinichi."
He paused. "I will kill him myself, and this will be our team's honor."
Yan Feng and Mu Ziqing turned their gazes toward the group.
"Does anyone object?"
Yan Ye scanned the room.
With the captains missing, the Heavenly Master, who was on the verge of breaking through to Third Rank, was their greatest hope.
The group of survivors had no choice but to rely on him.
Yan Ye's gaze locked onto the last person. "Now, Li Xun, hand over your Blue Blood."
In the corner of the room, Li Xun's condition looked severely weakened. Upon hearing this, his expression drastically changed. "Why?!"
"Why? Because your brother has already succumbed to corruption, and you, too, are pursuing the Divine Path. Your Purification Stones have been depleted. If you resort to Ghost Transformation again, you'll likely fall as well, won't you? Outside, that might've been acceptable, but in the Forbidden Zone, where contamination is rampant, we can't trust you. That's why you need to surrender your Blue Blood."
Yan Feng played with the dagger in his hand, smiling. "After all, some of our members' Blue Blood has already been taken."
At that moment, Li Xun realized that every gaze in the room was fixed on him.
"No. You can't do this! I need the Blue Blood to restore my spirituality; otherwise, I'll have no means to protect myself here. Trust me, I won't use Ghost Transformation again. I swear!"
Li Xun's voice became feverish as he growled, "I don't want to become a Fallen; I just want to survive!"
But no one paid him any mind.
At this moment, he noticed the way they looked at him had changed.
It was the same gaze they'd given the son of the Fallen earlier.
Yan Ye raised a finger. In the air, Water Elements began to gather, forming a violently pulsating droplet.
"Moving forward, we'll face the leader of the Fallen Organization, Hasegawa Shinichi."
He paused. "We need sufficient combat strength. You haven't Fallen, but your brother has. I can't guarantee that, after succumbing, you'll have the courage to end yourself, so we must prepare in advance."
Li Xun's face turned pale, his pupils brimming with immense fear.
Yan Feng smiled, circling behind him and forcefully patting his shoulder. "If you'd known it would come to this, why act so rashly? Blame yourself and your brother for taking the Divine Path. We simply can't trust you!"
As dawn broke, the black mist dissipated.
Gu Jianlin followed a group from the shelter, crossing a junkyard and the ruins as they headed southward.
It was now 5:30 in the morning, and Black Cloud City remained cloaked in dark clouds. The humid sea breeze carried a faint salty tang, an unintentional chill seeping deep into their bones.
Including him, there were seven men in total.
Aside from Uncle Mu, there were five warehouse guards, all of them strong and sturdy.
The elderly, weak, and sick had been forcibly left behind to move supplies and prepare for evacuation.
Even Cheng Youyu was eager to come along but was ultimately left behind.
The second group had all been afflicted with spiritual toxins and needed rest.
To be honest, if it were possible, Gu Jianlin felt he could've done this alone. He didn't aim to offend his fellow shelter survivors or his teammates—he simply thought of them all as burdens, equally and unreservedly.
He just needed to move forward, wipe out the Grave Digger Organization...
Finally kill Hasegawa Shinichi...
Rescue the people from the shelter...
And look for clues about the Kui.
If it wasn't for needing someone to lead the way, he would've gone off on his own.
"I've heard the association's operation this time is aimed at eradicating the Fallen Organization within Black Cloud City. They've supposedly sent six Captain Levels, along with the assistance of six Deputy Captains. Even with the Grave Digger Organization leveraging Gu Masters, it's impossible for them to wipe out everyone overnight. I suspect the captains must have other missions."