Chapter 475 - 472: Don’t Stop

Chapter 475: Chapter 472: Don’t Stop

Immersed in the lukewarm liquid, Zhou Chao’s thoughts became a complete blur.

"Run, just run..." he muttered unconsciously.

"Don’t stop..."

He could no longer tell if it was paste or liquid. Zhou Chao felt his breathing grow labored, but thankfully, a cool breeze helped him rally his spirits.

Zhou Chao struggled forward in the bloody water, the captain’s encouragement echoing in his ears.

He felt as if he were trapped in a mire, surrounded only by a GURGLE GURGLE sound. The voices of his teammates grew increasingly faint.

The bloody water forced its way into his nose. This time, not even the cool breeze could save him. Zhou Chao immediately began to choke and cough.

The metallic scent of blood flooded his senses, and the tears he’d been holding back burst forth once more.

Like a drowning man, Zhou Chao thrashed madly in the bloody water.

Until a rough hand seized him, forcefully yanking him out of the bloody mire.

Zhou Chao rubbed his eyes, which were gummed shut with blood. He blinked them open, dazed, and the captain’s face came into view.

The captain said nothing. He just patted Zhou Chao’s shoulder before turning to rescue the other squad members.

"Captain..." Zhou Chao wanted to thank him but was suddenly wracked by a coughing fit.

Bent over, he coughed and dry-heaved violently. The coppery taste of blood rose in his throat again. He had never felt so wretched.

Zhou Chao only felt a little better after he coughed up a thick, viscous fluid.

Gasping for breath, he looked up. The vibrant green leaves above seemed to celebrate his narrow escape from death.

’Did I make it out?’

Zhou Chao took a deep breath, letting the clean forest air fill his lungs.

He glanced back, only to see the barren woods right behind the bloody mire. They hadn’t gotten far from it at all.

’So it really was a trap.’

If they hadn’t listened to the captain and had kept moving forward, they would have stepped out of the shadows and straight into the cage of light again, never to escape. All their previous efforts would have been wasted.

Just as Zhou Chao was sighing in relief, he saw several squad members lift a pitch-black, charred husk from the bloody water. White smoke was still rising from it.

"What is that?" Zhou Chao drew closer, stunned.

His heart leaped into his throat when he saw the hairdryer clutched in the charred thing’s hand.

He recognized that relic...

"Xiaoli..."

The hairdryer was still blowing cool air. Xiaoli’s hand, now just a charred claw, gripped it in a death lock, refusing to let go even at the very end.

The other squad members tried with all their might, but they couldn’t pry the hairdryer from the charred hand.

"Just break his hand," the captain said tonelessly from the side.

"But, Captain..."

"And his dog tag. Remember to take it and give it to his family." The captain turned away, unable to look at the charred remains any longer. He seemed unnaturally calm, but his trembling hand betrayed him.

Zhou Chao watched this scene in a stupor.

The pitch-black, charred body, the squad members crawling one by one from the bloody water...

’Is he dead? Is Xiaoli really dead? But his hairdryer is still running.’

The man who had just handed him water, a living, breathing teammate, was now a shriveled, charred husk.

Zhou Chao’s vision blurred with tears again. He stared at the charred body as it was carried away. He wanted to say something, but his mouth was dry, and only a hoarse croak escaped when he opened it.

White smoke drifted upward, and the smell of blood mingled with the faint scent of burnt carbon. The mix of odors irritated Zhou Chao’s throat, sending him into another coughing fit.

"COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!"

This coughing fit was even more violent. Tears streamed down his face as a wave of dizziness washed over him. He could feel his teammates patting his back, their concerned voices asking if he was alright, but all he could hear was a dull buzzing.

...

"COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!"

Zhou Chao tore off his mask and coughed up a glob of thick, foul blood, speckled with black, granular char.

He collapsed to the ground in agony, gasping for breath.

His pale, youthful face was completely drained of color. Zhou Chao’s eyes were wide, staring intently at the ground as countless phantoms flashed before him. He thought he saw figures overlapping one another before vanishing without a trace.

"I..."

Zhou Chao’s expression slowly calmed, and his muddled thoughts began to clear. Yet, his hands were clenched tightly on the ground, unable to release the lingering horror.

"Feeling any better?" Li Luo’s voice came from his side.

"Much better..." After spitting out the blockage in his throat, the tightness in Zhou Chao’s chest eased, and the surging emotions were suppressed.

"You were spouting nonsense the whole time. What exactly happened?" Li Luo pressed.

"So that’s what it was. I understand now." Zhou Chao’s gaze was no longer vacant.

He struggled to his feet, wiped the grime from the corner of his mouth, and put his mask back on.

"I was attacked by an Activated Being."

"What Activated Being?" Li Luo asked, looking around in confusion.

"Activated Fear," Zhou Chao said, patting down his clothes. He explained, "It’s a thing that can trigger the fears in a person’s heart—it can even make those fears manifest."

Li Luo was stunned. "Even fear can be activated?"

"Of course," Zhou Chao said grimly. "Anything can be activated. That’s what Activation Contamination is. The Activated Fog from before was attacked by Activated Fear. That’s why it kept trying to escape."

As he spoke, Zhou Chao glanced at the glowing Holy Sword in Li Luo’s hand.

"What did you do just now?"

"I pressed the Holy Sword to your forehead."

"I see. No wonder I could break free from the fear..." Zhou Chao nodded in understanding. "Thanks."

He looked around and said grimly, "We need to get out of here. The fear will probably attack again."

After hearing Zhou Chao’s explanation, Li Luo also realized the gravity of the situation and quickly agreed.

...

’Activated... Fear?’

Hearing Zhou Chao’s words, Mo Ling didn’t quite process them at first.

’Could it be that those flying insects were also attacked by Activated Fear?’

’Even emotions can be activated?’

’What else is Activation Contamination incapable of?’

’Zhou Chao’s reaction just now certainly made it seem like he’d seen something terrifying.’

’Fear?’

’The insects were attacked by fear, which is why they were flying around erratically. But their intelligence is too low, so the amount of fear they can process is limited. This causes them to switch between states of normalcy and frenzy—flying wildly one moment, stopping the next, in a constant cycle.’

’Humans, on the other hand, fall into a deep-seated fear from which they cannot escape.’

’Zhou Chao must have seen something truly horrifying just now.’

Mo Ling recalled Zhou Chao’s earlier delirium.

’Mo Ling had no way of knowing what Zhou Chao had seen, but the most important thing now was for them to leave this area.’

However, they hadn’t gotten far before a horde of frenzied Activated Beings appeared up ahead, swarming toward Li Luo and Zhou Chao as if they’d lost their minds.

The moment Mo Ling saw these Activated Beings, they understood. The creatures had been completely consumed by terror, becoming mere puppets driven by fear.