Chapter 86: Piercing Zhan Ye
The mucus clung stubbornly to her body. Because of Zhan Ye’s frantic tearing, Su Tang’s clothes began to rip. She stopped him, urging him to stand on a patch of ground free from the slime.
Zhan Ye scanned their surroundings, his expression as grim as iron.
“This must be the thing’s lair.”
The viscous gel on her body pulsed incessantly, like countless tiny suckers greedily siphoning away her spirit power. She tried to mobilize her power to resist, only to find her limbs bound by invisible energy shackles. She couldn’t even move her fingertips, forced to watch helplessly as her spirit power was drained bit by bit.
Zhan Ye looked at Su Tang’s pale face and the disgusting gel crawling over her. No matter how hard he pulled, the substance remained fused to her skin. A sense of helplessness nearly overwhelmed him.
Suddenly, the entire cave shuddered violently. The dim environment was illuminated by a red glow, revealing countless egg-like sarcomas hanging from the ceiling. They crowded his vision, enough to make anyone’s skin crawl.
“It’s here.”
Su Tang warned Zhan Ye in a low, strained voice. That familiar, nauseating energy fluctuation was rapidly approaching them.
From the shadows, a wet, squelching sound drew closer. A massive, wrinkled body crawled out from a small side passage. It stood as high as three men, its surface coated in dripping slime. Countless flesh-colored tentacles swayed slowly around it, each tipped with a tiny eye that stared unblinkingly at Su Tang with naked greed.
This was the Cocoon’s true form.
It was far more disgusting than she had imagined. It was no longer a blurred energy mass behind a barrier, but a living, revolting monster. It had no facial features, only a massive maw filled with razor-sharp teeth that snapped open and shut, dripping corrosive saliva. The air grew thick with a pungent, fishy stench.
“Roar—”
The Cocoon let out a muffled hiss. The tentacles around its body suddenly accelerated their swaying, and one of them lunged violently toward Su Tang.
“Get back!”
Without a second thought, Zhan Ye threw himself in front of Su Tang, using his body as a shield.
But the tentacle seemed to have eyes of its own. It nimbly bypassed him and pierced straight toward the center of Su Tang’s brow. Su Tang watched the tentacle enlarge before her eyes. Imprisoned by the mass of gel, she couldn’t even tilt her head.
She could feel a massive amount of energy within that tentacle; it was aimed directly at her Sea of Consciousness. It seemed to want to plunge straight into her mind and suck her spirit power dry.
“Ugh!”
The tentacle touched her forehead. Greedy energy erupted, trying to probe into her body. Su Tang manipulated her spirit power to construct a barrier, blocking the intrusion. The violent, tearing pain made her groan, and her vision swam with black spots.
Zhan Ye erupted with all his spirit power. The Golden Eagle let out a sharp, piercing cry, its talons striking the tentacle and severing it completely.
Squelch—
The resulting slime splattered everywhere.
The Cocoon let out a roar of fury. More tentacles surged from all directions, but this time they weren’t aimed at Su Tang—they lunged toward Zhan Ye in unison. The Golden Eagle enlarged its body several times over, severing the incoming tentacles one by one.
“Roar—!”
The strike seemed to have hit a vital spot, as the Cocoon let out a low-pitched howl. Suddenly, countless cracks appeared in the energy walls of the cave, and high-level pollutants swarmed out from the fissures.
They were far larger than the low-level pollutants they had encountered before. Their carapaces were covered in dark scales, corrosive slime dripped from their claws, and their crimson eyes were locked onto Zhan Ye.
“Perfect timing.”
It was the perfect chance for revenge. Zhan Ye drew the dagger from his waist and charged at the pollutants. The Golden Eagle circled him, diving in alongside its master.
The sharp whistle of the blade cutting through the air mixed with the roars of the pollutants, echoing through the sealed core zone. Blood continued to seep from Zhan Ye’s back, every swing of his knife bringing agonizing pain. The Golden Eagle screeched as it tore through a pollutant’s claws. Scalding blood splattered against its feathers; the golden plumage had long since lost its original color, now coated in disgusting slime and gore.
“Su Tang, don’t be afraid! I said I’d protect you, and I’ll definitely get you out of here!”
Zhan Ye severed another tentacle reaching for Su Tang. Disgusting green slime splattered across his face. He raised his arm to wipe it away and gave Su Tang a faint smile before turning back into the fray.
Su Tang watched him slaughter his way through the swarm. She watched as new wounds appeared on his body, and as he refused to fall even though he was clearly at his limit. Tears fell uncontrollably. She used every ounce of strength to break free, but her spirit power felt nailed in place. She couldn’t even escape the gel on her skin.
“Don’t worry about me… Just go…”
Su Tang’s voice was weak, but it reached Zhan Ye’s ears clearly. Hearing her, Zhan Ye hacked down a pollutant beside him and turned to grin at her. His smile was stained with blood, yet it was exceptionally dazzling.
“I told you—unless I’m dead, I won’t let anything happen to you.”
He violently threw his dagger, piercing the throat of a pollutant lunging at Su Tang. Seizing the opening, he leaped forward, charging over the remains of the monsters.
Finally, he reached Su Tang. He retrieved the fallen dagger and began forcefully cutting away the gel trapping her.
Thump— Thump—
A sound continued to rumble behind them. Su Tang looked up over Zhan Ye’s shoulder. The creature that had been crawling on the ground was slowly standing up. The folds of its disgusting belly unfurled layer by layer, revealing the slime-covered torso within.
Suddenly, a sharp bone spike with a metallic glint protruded from its abdomen. It looked like a poisoned greatsword. Under Su Tang’s horrified gaze, it lunged toward them with incredible speed.
“Zhan Ye! Look out!”
Su Tang’s scream pierced the air.
Zhan Ye instinctively turned to shield Su Tang, but it was too late. The bone spike pierced cleanly through his chest, emerging from his back in a spray of scalding blood.
Splurt—
As the blade was withdrawn, blood splattered across Su Tang’s pale face.
Zhan Ye looked down at the gaping hole in his chest where blood was gushing out. He looked back at Su Tang, the light in his eyes fading bit by bit, yet he still forced a smile.
“Don’t… don’t be afraid… I’m fine…”
“I’m sorry, I might… not be able to take you out of here…”
His body slowly collapsed, his head resting on Su Tang’s lap. Warm blood flowed out, staining the energy gel beneath them crimson. The things binding Su Tang had loosened at some point. She reached out with trembling hands, wanting to hold him, but found she didn’t even have the strength to lift her arms.
Su Tang’s hands shook as her fingertips lightly touched Zhan Ye’s cooling body. Watching the blood pour from his chest, her vision went black in waves. She looked up, staring fixedly at the Cocoon standing before her. For the first time, a world-destroying hatred burned in her eyes.
“I’ll kill you…”
Su Tang’s voice was hoarse.
“I will definitely kill you…”
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