The weather was clear. In the afternoon, when Cheng Yunze and his group arrived at the island’s center with grim expressions, Hong Haocheng led three uneasy individuals near that location as well.
“Brother, turn back before it’s too late. We’ll never kill the monster even if we go there.” Crying, Cui Rong, lugging the meteor hammer, pleaded.
“I’ve made thorough arrangements. Don’t worry.”
The three carrying dried provisions didn’t believe a single word.
“These guys are pretty decent at dragging the monster out. Once they enter, we’ll follow them in.”
Rumble!
The smaller but formidable Bound Spirit was pulled far away.
As it turned out, when all the experts in the city united their efforts, the plan was relatively easy to execute—even though there were still those who sacrificed their lives for it.
From the shadows in the distance, someone from the Four-Phase Team yelled, “Hurry, now’s the time! Use a Speed Sphere and charge!”
Hundreds of meters away, a group of twenty to thirty people crushed their Ability Spheres, dashing toward the rocky door frame at the center—faster than a champion sprinter.
This crowd passed through the other side of the hill. Though bones littered the hillside, and everyone knew a Timeline Weapon might be present, they paid it no attention.
Because no one would waste their hard-earned time picking up mere sesame seeds.
As the last of the opponents entered, Hong Haocheng stood up. “Now, it’s our turn!”
A faint earthy yellow halo lit up around his pupils.
“Go!” he said in a tone that brooked no opposition, charging forward ahead of everyone.
In the distance, the people who had risked their lives to drag the monster were cheering within the model.
{Cheng Yunze succeeded!}
{Thirty-two people made it in! A first in history! Our city is definitely getting several Virtual Zero weapons this time!}
Watching the nearby financing model perspective, countless voices buzzed with excitement; some were even tipping the streamers with 1R, 2R.
They had already begun dreaming that their team would own a Virtual Zero Timeline Weapon in no time!
The few people nearby were about to leave when suddenly a stir of gasps erupted around them.
“Something’s happening!”
“Is that?”
Through telepathic links, hundreds watching this scene saw a figure as agile as a leopard suddenly appear from the distant grass, dashing toward the gate!
Behind him, another figure was struggling to chase.
The una selected members of the Snake Formation Group and the Longteng Group instantly recognized the obscure outline of the figure in front.
Jiang Junyi abruptly straightened up from the hidden bushes, his eyes wide with disbelief as he stared at the lithe figure in the distance.
“It’s him!”
The bearded man aside, a female team member covered her own gasp with her hand.
“It’s that newbie!”
With a whoosh, countless clamors erupted in the model.
{Who the hell is that guy! Did he slip in by fishing in troubled waters, or had he been lurking deep on the island all along?}
“Even if someone lured the monsters away today, it would only clear one path, not draw all the creatures on the entire island to the other side like that night.”
“Who is he!”
One of Wang Qianjue’s team members squinted for a while, then exclaimed in shock:
“Looks like that boat thief!”
“Could he be the one who went deep into the island twice some time ago!”
“I’ve seen them before—that kid sold fish and chocolate on the lake! And there are three of them.”
“Catch the other three and we’ll find out who that guy is!”
A cacophony of voices ran wildly through several models. Soon, opinions started to converge. Zhang Miao and the other two, eavesdropping from within the model, knew better than to stay put. They crushed their acceleration orbs and bolted after Hong Haocheng, who was already far ahead.
Die later or get skinned alive now—this move decided it all!
“AHHHHHH!!!”
Seeing the Bound Spirit, which had been lured far away, sense the commotion here and start abandoning its prey to return, as well as a silver model-bound figure drawing closer, Cui Rong didn’t dare to hesitate. He swung his meteor hammer and sprinted after them.
When they saw that three more people were actually following toward the gate, everyone watching was taken aback. Some who knew the trio immediately recognized them.
Cui Rong, Zhang Miao, and Li Yongqin! None of them were supposed to be able to enter the island with their ordinary abilities!
“Stop!”
“Halt!”
“Good heavens, why do those two weapons in their hands have fine, rippling wave patterns!”
“Virtual Zero Weapon!”
In an instant, countless people went wild within the model links. Those who had diffused time-sequence financing could already hear nearly a thousand voices in their own models, indicating that many had pulled others into this diffused link!
In this squad that could be counted on one hand, they actually had two Virtual Zero Weapons!
Moreover, the young man about to charge through the door at the front held a weapon whose color fluctuated back and forth!
At this moment, more than half of the city’s population has learned of the island’s actual situation through waves of spreading time-sequence financing and model declarations, and has joined the viewing.
Among the teams helping the Four-Phase Team pull away the monsters, a few members of the Red Model gritted their teeth, tears welling up in their eyes, sensing the lively figure through the radio-like model “declarations.”
The Four-Phase Team entered City 11 without bringing even a single Red Model member in.
And now…
However, one person suddenly appeared where no one could have anticipated, and this person was none other than a member of the Red Model who had been suppressed in this city to the point of having almost no chance to recover!
Hong Haocheng’s eyes shimmered like black gemstones with rippling waves of light as several figures rushed in from the side, their movements stirring the air with restlessness, trying to stop him from entering.
“Get out of the way!”
Spotting two individuals on motorcycles speeding at nearly a hundred yards, the Boy crouched low before springing up, instantly appearing before them.
“I know you long to become a part of me.”
The Boy seemed to possess a mysterious power as he pulled at the neck of the tall, thin young man at the front, extracting a nimble and ethereal line of energy.
Hearing this voice as cold as a wild beast and seeing these pupils glowing with earthy-yellow halos, the person beside the tall, thin young man instantly felt every pore on his body bursting.
“Bloodline! Run!”
He didn’t even bother about his tall, thin teammate beside him, turned around, and rushed outward, colliding head-on with the three slower ones behind him.
Hong Haocheng did not devour this person’s “Sail-Ink Drawing” evolved from the soul. After seeing Zhang Miao and the other two rush through the main entrance, he tossed away the energy line in his hand, and for the first time, his chest expanded with red model lines.
The dark red thin lines instantly spread across the vast lake surface in a triangular formation, startling the whole area.
[I heard your voices. Farewell.]
The model instantly severed.
But in that brief moment, several people had already connected in.
Within seconds, in various dilapidated buildings across the city, countless people first looked stunned, then wildly laughed, jumped, and waved their arms cheering.
{The Four-Phase Team wants all the city’s experts to help…}
{One of our guys alone got it done!}
{Hahaha, white model trash!}
The flickering red model spread chaotically with intense emotions…
……
What is the world behind that door?
Behind the door was not City No. 11, but a chaotic, strange land filled with upside-down and spinning fragments.
“Yunze, this seems to be some sort of overlapping zone.”
“There’s a light curtain over there.”
Cheng Yunze said, “That thing is the boundary gate to City No. 11. We’re in a peculiar space now. Let’s get out quickly; staying here too long might be bad.”
Light curtains shot up, scattered near and far.
Just as the group of over thirty people stepped into the nearest light curtain, Hong Haocheng’s figure appeared not far away in this space.
Hong Haocheng glanced at the four people beside him.
Wait! Four people?!
Among the four silhouettes, Hong Haocheng screamed at the unfamiliar figure, “Who are you!”
“Hmph.” The man chuckled, “Everyone, after hiding for so long, you’ve still been caught by me. Let’s go. I’ll go along and stay with you over there.”
Hong Haocheng immediately understood—this man, undeterred by his threats, had followed them in.
He looked around at the various light curtains.
“Split up and run!” The four of them darted off in an instant.
The one who had followed them looked left and right. Seeing this team’s four members all sprinting off in different directions using speed balls, he couldn’t decide which way to chase.
“Damn it!” Grinding his teeth, the man quickly turned back while he still had time.
……
The four met again beside a light curtain.
Inside it was like a mirage, projecting a scene of a desolate city—it was City No. 11.
Li Yongqin mused, “It seems passing through different light curtains can lead to different parts of the city.”
“What a mysterious space.”
After Hong Haocheng stepped through this light curtain, he stood as if waking from a dream in the very city he had just been watching. The surrounding chaos had vanished, but behind him loomed a building entrance door with a faint energy vortex on its surface.
{You have all arrived at the City of Vortex Spirits.}
{Through any psionic gate within the city, you may return to where you came from.}
Cui Rong and the other two stepped out one by one, gazing at the energy vortex that hung in the sky like dark clouds. A calm, slow psychic voice echoed in their minds, making the introduction.
The four of them widened their eyes. This was the real District 11. The faint roars around them made their faces twitch in alarm.
“Are you telling me monsters of that gate-guard level are everywhere here?”
“What do we do now?”
“Since we’re already here.” Hong Haocheng glanced around, then said, “Ration the food carefully. Give me two or three days. I want to scout out the terrain of this place.”
The other three, empty-handed except for weapons, exchanged glances. Li Yongqin said,
“Haocheng, the three of us are no good in a fight. We really can’t help much here. Let us search for resources in this place instead. I’m sure we’ll find things left behind by the experts of District 11.”
“As for the food problem…”
Even though the surroundings were overgrown, plants were thriving. We might find something to fill our bellies.
“Hang in there a few more days. It’s already mid-September. By then, we can get food from Cruxspace.”
“Right, that’s the plan.”
Hong Haocheng nodded with a rather bold spirit, “Looks like you’ve already figured out my perfect plan.”
“……”
Thump! Thump! A heavy sound of footsteps came.
The face of the elated Hong Haocheng suddenly changed.
“Big one’s coming! Run!”
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