Chapter 376: An Inexplicable Sense of Crisis Erupts

Chapter 376: Chapter 376: An Inexplicable Sense of Crisis Erupts

Zhou Yi’s words were sincere. As the team’s guide, Yun Sheng was crucial. If any team member ran into trouble, she could provide timely psychological guidance and stabilize their condition. In an environment like this, fraught with violent and chaotic spiritual turbulence, her role was vital.

Yun Sheng understood this clearly and gave a gentle nod. "I understand. Thank you, Captain Zhou. I’ll stick close to you."

Just as they finished speaking, Lu Chen, who had gone to coordinate their operations, hurried back. Having just finalized the search and rescue zones with the frontline commander, the solemnity in his eyes had deepened. His aura was cold and taut. The moment he returned, he gathered the team and issued crisp, concise orders.

"Residual fires inside are still reigniting. The source of the spiritual contamination is concentrated in the core of the ruins, and multiple trapped individuals remain out of contact." Lu Chen spoke rapidly, not wasting a single word. "Everyone, gear up with fireproof and anti-interference equipment. We’ll advance in groups. Prioritize the rescue of survivors, and keep an eye out for any hidden devices left behind by Dark Nest. Report any anomalies immediately. No unauthorized actions."

After wrapping up his brief instructions, his gaze swept over the crowd. He took the lead, striding toward the core of the ruins where the flames blazed the brightest. "Move out. Let’s head in."

Everyone immediately sprang into action, methodically putting on their protective gear. Yun Sheng grabbed a nearby fireproof suit and quickly pulled it on. She zipped it up and fastened the safety buckles with practiced efficiency. Once properly geared up, she instinctively raised her head and looked around.

Thick smoke billowed around them as people hurried back and forth. The area was swarming with busy rescue workers and collapsed rubble. She didn’t see Si Jin or Xing Che anywhere, but she was absolutely certain that from the moment she set out on this mission, those two wouldn’t let her out of their sight for a second. They were likely hiding in the shadows nearby and wouldn’t show themselves easily.

Gathering her thoughts, Yun Sheng quickly hurried to catch up with the team.

The group closely followed Lu Chen’s footsteps, crossing the police cordon and stepping into the depths of the ruins shrouded in smoke and flames.

The further they went, the more the scorching heat waves assaulted them. Choking black smoke carrying flakes of ash blew into their faces, blurring their vision. The ground was littered with charred debris and shattered building materials that crunched underfoot. Occasionally, sparks that hadn’t completely cooled would shoot out from the broken walls, making every step perilous.

The noisy clamor of the rescue efforts on the perimeter gradually faded away. Deep within the ruins, all that remained was the crackle of burning flames, the steady footsteps of the team members, and the violent, invisible spiritual turbulence that constantly churned and eroded their minds.

As soon as they entered the core area, the surrounding spiritual contamination instantly spiked by several degrees. It was many times more intense than on the outskirts, tightly enveloping everyone.

Ever since she stepped into these burning ruins, a faint sense of panic had been lingering in Yun Sheng’s heart. An inexplicable gaze seemed to be glued to her—gloomy, obscure, and carrying an intense sense of voyeurism.

It definitely wasn’t Si Jin or Xing Che. When they looked at her, even while hiding in the shadows, it only made her feel safe. But this gaze was different. It was cold and eerie, like a hunter lurking in the dark, quietly staring at its prey. It made her tense up, filling her with an inexplicable sense of dread.

Yun Sheng paused slightly, instinctively frowning as she looked around. The rolling thick smoke obstructed her vision, and the spaces between the shattered walls were empty. She couldn’t see a single soul, yet the prying gaze didn’t lessen in the slightest.

"What’s wrong?"

Zhou Yi, who was right beside her, noticed her stop immediately. Keenly sensing that something was off, he quickly asked in a low, concerned voice.

Yun Sheng hesitated for a few seconds, her fingertips curling inward, before she finally shook her head gently. "It’s nothing, Captain Zhou."

She couldn’t explain it clearly; it was purely an instinctual feeling. She couldn’t pinpoint the source or track its trace. It just felt sinister and wrong. Without proof, voicing her concerns would only make everyone tense for no reason.

Seeing that she didn’t want to talk about it, Zhou Yi didn’t press the issue. He simply slowed his pace, deliberately staying half a step closer to her, silently raising his guard.

The group continued their advance toward the core ignition point, where the flames were the fiercest and the smoke the thickest. The further they went, the more oppressive and harsh the environment became. The blistering heat waves washed over them, baking their face masks, while the scorched smell in the air was pungent and suffocating.

The most unbearable part, however, was the invisible spiritual contamination. Its concentration skyrocketed along the way, making their chests feel tight and causing their temples to throb with pain. What had initially been scattered, negative turbulence had now condensed into a heavy, suffocating pressure, almost indistinguishable from a properly quarantined, high-risk contamination zone.

A few team members had gone completely pale, their breathing turning ragged. They were gritting their teeth and holding on purely through sheer willpower, desperately resisting the Spiritual Erosion.

Not daring to let her guard down, Yun Sheng quietly released a wisp of gentle spiritual power. It was faint but steady, enveloping the people near her to help buffer some of the impact. At the same time, she remained on high alert, keeping a close eye on their surroundings.

After walking another hundred meters, the open flames ahead gradually thinned out, replaced by massive piles of pitch-black, collapsed rubble. The air in the entire area carried a stagnant, chilling gloom, and the surrounding spiritual contamination reached its peak here.

They had finally arrived at the location of the core contamination source.

It didn’t look like an inferno, yet it was far more bizarre than the burning flames. The soil on the ground was black and hard, and the scattered equipment wreckage was entirely covered in a layer of grayish mist. Though the mist didn’t seem to be flowing to the naked eye, they could clearly sense that the spiritual turbulence of the entire area was centered around this spot, continuously spreading outward.

Lu Chen raised a hand, halting the team’s advance. His sharp gaze swept across the core of the ruins. "Everyone, stop where you are. Do not step into unknown areas blindly. The contamination source is right here under our feet."

The moment his words fell, that gloomy, prying sensation in Yun Sheng’s heart suddenly became incomparably clear and intense.

Holding the detection device in one hand, Lu Chen kept his eyes glued to the jumping numbers on the screen. He locked onto a hollow in the ruins ahead where the black mist was the thickest and the turbulence the most violent. He slowly stepped forward, ready to pinpoint the source of the contamination.

The instant he approached the black mist, Yun Sheng’s heart gave a violent lurch, and the hairs on her body stood on end. A premonition of extreme danger washed over her!

"Captain Lu, watch out!"

The warning burst from her lips. Without even thinking, she instinctively channeled all her available spiritual power. Three condensed, razor-sharp thin needles of spiritual power took shape in a flash. Carrying immense penetrative force, they shot violently toward the empty space right in front of Lu Chen, moving so fast they were nothing but blurs.

Lu Chen’s muscles instantly tensed. He stopped in his tracks and swiftly retreated.

Almost simultaneously, the black mist in front of him surged and exploded! An oppressive, freezing spiritual aura erupted with a bang, blocking Yun Sheng’s three thin needles of spiritual power.

Immediately after, a dark silhouette slowly emerged from the shadows in the blind spot of the ruins. The figure was tall and straight, surrounded by the bone-chilling coercion of an S-Class Sentinel. The aura was so overwhelmingly powerful it was suffocating.