Chapter 35: Courting Death

Meanwhile.

Less than a hundred meters away from the murky waters where Han Ning was located, inside a crooked, dilapidated hotel building, two figures faintly emerged from behind a window covered in cracks.

"Looks like another Awakened drawn here by the ships from Egret Port. His abilities... they seem quite interesting."

The speaker was a young man with shoulder-length hair, wearing a dark jacket. He leaned sideways, peering cautiously through a gap in the broken window, his gaze locked on the direction of Han Ning.

"Do you think he can shake off the influence of the white mist?" the man in the jacket asked casually.

"Hard to say."

Standing right next to him was a sturdier man wearing a dusty, hooded windbreaker. His hood was pulled low, obscuring part of his brow and eyes. In his hand, he gripped a pair of military binoculars with a heavily scratched surface, also carefully observing Han Ning.

"Even you and I can’t resist the influence of these monsters. To break free from them, one needs a special type of Awakened. I don’t think he has the means," the sturdy man judged.

The man in the jacket smiled slightly. "Want to make a bet?"

"How? You don't actually think he can get out, do you?" the sturdy man asked, puzzled.

"No, no, I share your opinion. Let's bet on how long he can struggle." The man in the jacket glanced at the mechanical watch on his wrist and chuckled. "Ten minutes. I bet he won't last ten minutes. Anything under ten minutes and I win. The wager is that pack of Furong Wang cigarettes you have in your collection."

"Damn it! I knew you were eyeing my Furong Wang." The sturdy man cursed under his breath, then muttered to himself, "His abilities are unique; he can move freely in the water and control the crocodilian lizards. Maybe he can last longer than ten minutes..."

"Fine, you've got a bet. If he lasts more than ten minutes or manages to break free from the monster's control, I lose. If you lose, I want your five live chickens."

"This is the apocalypse. A pack of Furong Wang isn't worth five live chickens—three at most," the man in the jacket shook his head.

"Deal!"

***

Han Ning ignored the woman calling for help from the nearby shop. He signaled to Xuebing and continued to swim in the direction from which he had come.

"Save me... please save me..."

But as he moved further away from the shop, the voice did not disappear. Instead, it grew clearer, as if someone were whispering right against the nape of his neck.

"Save me..." The woman's voice suddenly rose in pitch.

"Ugh..."

Han Ning’s vision went dark; he nearly collapsed. The voice felt like countless cold, thin needles piercing his skull from all directions, rampaging through his brain cavity and leaving him dizzy and disoriented.

"Damn it!" Han Ning was forced to stop swimming. He hovered in place, gasping for air.

Something was wrong. Terribly wrong.

It wasn't a matter of speed. He realized that no matter how hard he paddled, every time he looked up, the silhouette of the shop crushed by a massive slab of concrete would loom in the murky mist, as if he were just circling in the same spot.

"I must have run into a 'ghost wall' trap."

Han Ning stopped struggling and floated, observing his surroundings with a tense expression. Only the legendary ghost wall could explain this phenomenon that defied the laws of physics. He was trapped in this stretch of water by some invisible force.

At this moment, Xuebing’s state was even worse than his.

"Awoo!"

The creature seemed possessed, biting, lunging, and whipping its tail at empty air. Its sharp claws tore through the murky water, hitting nothing. It seemed to be locked in a life-or-death struggle with an invisible enemy. Through their mental link, Han Ning could feel Xuebing’s chaotic emotions.

"Calm down, Xuebing!"

"Roar! Roar!"

Xuebing remained unmoved, continuing to lash at the water.

"Save me... save me..."

Even though Han Ning had stopped struggling, the eerie female voice did not vanish. On the contrary, it became increasingly unbridled. This time, the voice no longer echoed in his ears; it resonated directly and eerily within his mind.

"Why... won't you save me?"

"It's so cold here... so dark..."

The voice carried a peculiar, invasive power.

"Hiss..."

Han Ning couldn't help but groan as his vision began to twist and spin. The murky floodwaters, the rolling white mist, the wreckage of distant buildings—everything around him seemed to be kneaded and deformed by a giant invisible hand, appearing surreal and grotesque.

Under his feet, he no longer felt the solid support of the water; instead, cold silt was dragging him down, and countless pale hands reached out from the mud to grab his ankles. Xuebing’s frantic roars also became blurred and distorted.

"This is clearly a mental attack. It’s affecting my mind."

Dazed and confused, Han Ning realized that this was something targeting his mental state.

In his muddled state, he recalled the description of "Nature's Blessing" on his panel. This skill not only facilitated biological evolution but also possessed the effect of mental purification.

At this critical juncture, he didn't hesitate. Han Ning pinched his thigh hard; the sharp pain brought a sliver of clarity. Suppressing the vertigo that made the world spin, he attempted to activate Nature's Blessing.

*Whoosh!*

Instantly, a subtle, emerald-green halo radiating the essence of life enveloped his body.

【Spirit Power: 15/25 → 12/25】

【Nature's Blessing (Primary) Proficiency +1, Current 21/200】

The pure, bright radiance washed over every corner of his consciousness.

*Hum!*

It was as if a layer of viscous, filthy oil film had been instantly scrubbed away by the emerald light.

Han Ning’s expression shifted. The distorted imagery and the venomous shrieking in his mind dissipated completely.

The rolling white mist continued to silently devour everything ahead, and dense raindrops pelted the water, splashing into tiny droplets. The world had returned to its true form.

Less than a meter in front of him, beneath the murky surface, an ugly monster was floating in a grotesque posture, pressed right against him.

Its skin was a gray-white, like that of a dead fish, covered in festering sores and slimy mucus. Large patches of skin had peeled away, revealing dark red muscle tissue underneath. It wore a tattered white dress that seemed fused to its rotting flesh. Its limbs were twisted and deformed; it was currently clawing at the silt and rubble on the riverbed, supporting its entire body in a spider-like stance.

The head was the same pale, bleeding face of the woman from the hallucination. It was tilted upward at an angle that defied all physiological structures. On the festering face, there were only eyes—no whites, the eyeballs were pure black, locked firmly onto Han Ning’s throat.

"Ga... ga..."

The monster parted its rotting lips, letting out a wheezing, viscous sound. A stench, a mix of corpse rot and the fishy smell of stagnant silt, washed over him.

"You're courting death!"

The moment he saw the true form of this thing, Han Ning didn't waste a single word; he swung his right arm forward with a violent thrust.

Since it had revealed its "health bar," what was there left to fear?