In the shadows, Great Bone gasped violently, staring blankly at the black tide that had already approached his face.
Like an iron wall erected to reach the sky, it was now virtually upon him.
In this environment, which could be called Hell, staring at death inching ever closer, no matter how tough-minded, would it not be difficult to resist the coming of despair?
But just as he was about to disregard the dangers around him and flee from his hiding spot, he discovered... the surging black tide had stopped.
The contracting Joyful Framework regained stability, all its power converging in this comparatively tiny district within the city's original horrific range.
The retreating black tide was a mere inch from his nose.
A line between life and death.
Cold sweat dripped from Great Bone's forehead as he gasped heavily.
It wasn't until then that he realized the screams and wails of Ghosts outside had vanished without a trace.
Deathly silence had arrived.
Only the continuous peals of thunder and roars from behind the iron clouds in the sky remained, as White Wolf bellowed and heaven and earth quaked, but this narrow mortal world had regained its calm.
In the uncomfortably prolonged silence, the survivors looked at each other.
"Is it over?" Great Bone swallowed hard, looking to his teammate.
Tian Minjing hesitated for a moment. "Probably."
The number of surviving contestants finally settled at a remarkably low 40, then disappeared.
In its place, at the end of the street, in front of the dilapidated Palace City, a light soared from the ground.
The light expanded, stretching out and forming an archway. Within, an ancient door opened with a ROAR, awaiting the survivors' arrival.
"The Door of Victory…" Tian Minjing paused, his voice tinged with surprise, unable to keep it from going off-key. "The Door of Victory has opened!"
The cruel battle royale was finally over.
They could at last leave this unending nightmare with their spoils of war.
Both men gasped intensely, wiped their faces, and struggled to contain their roller-coaster emotions, almost embracing and weeping.
"Let's go, grab your gear." Great Bone impatiently packed up, patting his teammate on the shoulder. In just a few days, two complete strangers had become close, trustworthy companions—like a miracle.
"When we get back, come visit the Northeast! I'll treat you to licking iron bars and pork stew with glass noodles!"
"...Don't celebrate too soon." Tian Minjing hoisted his backpack, cautiously poking his head out. He stared at the silent streets but found no obstructions or dangers, raising his eyebrows in surprise. "Huh, I thought, given the committee's usual antics, they'd make us run into the door while being chased by Demons and Ghosts. Didn't expect it to be this easy, huh?"
"As long as we can get through, let's move, quickly."
Great Bone could hardly wait. As a casual contestant, he had never expected much; making it into the top seventy-two was already an unexpected joy. He wasn't asking for more.
But as he took a step forward, everything in front of him suddenly changed.
This wasn't any sinister illusion, because the Door of Victory remained open, right where it was, without any change or tremor. All they had to do was walk through it to leave this place.
But as everything before him suddenly shed its disguise, he smelled a blood stench so thick it was almost suffocating.
A chilling red covered every inch of the street.
The sewers were blocked. Blood, submerging his ankles, rippled, constantly washing over pale, contorted faces. Corpses littered the ground.
Whether fierce monsters, eerie Ghosts, or repulsive creatures and Abyss Heterogeneous—at this moment, all living things were completely disintegrated, brutally torn to pieces, and scattered all over the street.
Along with countless Golden Coins dropped by the contestants.
Great Bone stood frozen in place, overwhelmed by the sight of the sea of blood and mountain of corpses. He shivered uncontrollably in the face of the chilling onslaught.
It was as if a sick grandmother had finally shed her disguise and turned into a hungry wolf. Everything became unbelievable.
But when he finally noticed the figure walking through the blood, for some reason, what emerged in his heart was a sense of relief.
He finally understood why the monsters had disappeared: a more terrifying monster... had appeared before him.
"Hmm?" Luo Xian turned around, looking puzzled. "Is there still a rat hiding here?"
In the deathly silence, Great Bone stood rigid.
He watched her walk closer step by step. He should have run, or at the very least, fought back, a desperate struggle to the end. But somehow, just by seeing her white dress, he felt as if his consciousness was being torn apart, sinking into that seemingly gentle smile, melting into endless darkness.
What on earth... is this thing?
He closed his eyes, and amid his teammate's screams of terror, he heard the sound of his own skull shattering.
.
The sound of breaking echoed twice, followed by the dull THUD of bodies hitting the ground.
Luo Xian raised her hand, wiping off the blood that had landed on her face.
"Now, I can finally... take a break for a while."
She sighed deeply, bent down to strenuously pull the broken blade from a shattered skull, and staggered back a step, looking utterly exhausted.
Then she turned to the side and asked in a soft voice, "Little Amber, where do you plan to go?"
"..."
Amid the dead silence, the Teenage Girl who had been tiptoeing away from the shadows froze in place.