The glass boxes offered refuge!
However, there were only three glass boxes, with Ding Chang and Ying Qiang occupying two. This left only one, and there were still six of them.
As Yumi and the others retreated, they exchanged glances. The last remaining hiding place was a target for everyone.
"Yumi," Tong Zheng suddenly spoke, "you support Wu Wen and follow behind me, and we'll leave here."
"But outside... and those insects..."
"Listen to me, go."
With that said, Tong Zheng handed Ke Wu Wen directly to Yumi, took off his jacket to wrap his hands, endured the immense pain in his body, and charged towards the exit, using his own body and hands to carve out a safe passage.
A drop of viscous fluid splattered on Tong Zheng's face. The moment the fluid made contact, the skin on his face began to rapidly decay.
"Mr. Tong?"
Hearing Yumi's worried voice, Tong Zheng did not slacken his efforts. "Don't get distracted, hurry!"
Although Yumi was worried, she was helpless. She could only carefully protect Ke Wu Wen and cautiously follow behind Tong Zheng.
Just as the three of them were about to reach the exit, Yumi heard a scream from behind. The owner of this voice was Wen Sha.
Without looking back, she knew what had happened. After all, survival was a tremendous temptation for anyone.
For most people, as long as they could survive, those around them could be stepping stones. Friends and teammates were merely temporary companions.
But some people were different, like Jing Minghe and Chi Hao, and like Tong Zheng at this very moment.
Yumi had always thought that Tong Zheng was not the type of person to sacrifice himself for others, but the reality was the complete opposite. This time, her judgment had been terribly wrong.
·
Jing Minghe appeared out of nowhere. Chi Hao rushed forward and hugged Jing Minghe tightly, "Minghe? Are you alright?"
"Hao Ge, I..."
"You saw him?" Seeing the person in his arms unharmed, Chi Hao finally calmed down and explained in a calm tone, "No one else could make you wear such an expression."
Feeling Chi Hao's presence, Jing Minghe also calmed down. Hearing Chi Hao's words, he chuckled, "You know me best, more than..."
Before Jing Minghe could finish speaking, he heard a sound from not far away. Both of them looked in that direction simultaneously. They saw Tong Zheng and the other two struggling to run towards them.
Yumi was dragging the unconscious Ke Wu Wen. Tong Zheng was covered in dark substances, and half of his face was horribly corroded.
Behind the three of them followed a group of large, black, strangely shaped insects.
"What is that?"
Jing Minghe, surprised, immediately went to help.
"Don't come closer, these insects can corrode..."
Yumi's words stopped abruptly, because she noticed that as Jing Minghe approached, the group of black insects behind them were gradually retreating.
Were they afraid of Jing Minghe?
Soon, Yumi's doubts were confirmed.
As Jing Minghe got closer and closer, the black insects all turned in unison and retreated in the direction they came from.
Jing Minghe also noticed this phenomenon. His steps faltered slightly due to the confusion in his heart, and then he quickened his pace to reach Tong Zheng and the others, reaching out to help the exhausted Tong Zheng.
No one noticed that the pendant wrapped around Jing Minghe's wrist flashed a faint blue light.
"No!"
Tong Zheng hurriedly dodged, wanting to distance himself from Jing Minghe to avoid implicating him. Unexpectedly, he lost his footing and fell towards Jing Minghe.
Jing Minghe reacted quickly and caught Tong Zheng, who was about to fall.
Yumi was about to speak to stop them when she witnessed something even more incredible.
Jing Minghe had clearly come into contact with the viscous fluid from the black insects that had splattered on Tong Zheng's jacket, yet his skin was not corroded.
"What happened?" Jing Minghe looked at Tong Zheng's disfigured side profile. "How did Brother Tong get so badly injured? Where are the others?"
Yumi quickly recounted what they had experienced to Jing Minghe. Jing Minghe frowned slightly and turned to Chi Hao, who had followed them. "Brother, take care of Brother Tong and the others first. I'll go check the situation downstairs."
"Alright, be careful yourself."
Yumi looked at Chi Hao in surprise at his words, finding it hard to believe that Chi Hao hadn't objected to Jing Minghe's decision.
After Jing Minghe helped Tong Zheng to sit down, he went downstairs directly.
Along the way, there were many black insect corpses and black viscous fluid splattered everywhere. Even the glass door was stained black halfway.
Jing Minghe stepped over the glass door, and the sight before him made him gasp. The swarm of black insects had long since vanished. In the center were three glass boxes, from which nothing could be seen, also covered in black viscous fluid.
Two horribly corroded corpses lay on the ground. One was close to a glass box, and the other was a bit further away. Both corpses were beyond recognition, with even their limbs missing. Only the tattered clothes could be used to identify them.
The corpse further away was Wen Sha, and the one close to the glass box was Yue Di.
Just as Jing Minghe was about to step forward to examine them, one of the glass boxes was opened, and a person slowly walked out.
Ding Chang emerged from the glass box. The first thing he saw was not the gruesome scene around him, but Jing Minghe, whom he did not expect to be there at this moment.
A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.
Before either of them could speak, Ying Qiang and Ban Sheng also emerged from the glass boxes. Unlike Ding Chang, who was unharmed, these two looked in terrible condition.
Ying Qiang's arms were no longer flesh and blood, only white bones remained.
Ban Sheng limped out, one of his feet, like Ying Qiang's arms, reduced to mere bone.
Their pale complexions and sweat-soaked hair clinging to their faces told onlookers how unbearable their pain was at that moment.
"Jing Minghe!"
The moment Ying Qiang saw Jing Minghe, his expression of agony instantly turned into hatred. He raised a hand that was nothing but bone and pointed at Jing Minghe.
"It was you! You brought us here!" With that, Ying Qiang suddenly lunged at Jing Minghe. "You want me dead! I'll drag you to hell with me!"
Jing Minghe felt a sense of helplessness. He understood that in this City of Death, becoming crippled was worse than dying directly, to endure torment of body and mind without any hope of survival.
Facing the irrational Ying Qiang, Jing Minghe had no intention of helping. After all, any words he spoke now would only be a mockery to Ying Qiang. Su Dan Novel Network
He did not want to get entangled with the other party any further. Here, there was no extra time or energy to waste.
Jing Minghe sidestepped the unprovoked attack from Ying Qiang with ease and said calmly, "Since you are still alive, you should think about how to leave here next."
The dodged Ying Qiang did not give up. He got up and lunged at Jing Minghe again. Just as he was about to get close to Jing Minghe, he was kicked away. Unluckily, he landed face-first, right onto the black viscous fluid.
"Ah!"
After a scream, Ying Qiang's entire face was completely corroded. Even so, he did not die and continued to struggle. The more he struggled, the more viscous fluid he came into contact with, and the faster the decay. Gradually, he completely lost his life.
Jing Minghe frowned slightly and looked at Chi Hao, who was standing beside him. "Let's go, we have to find a way to leave here."