[Fifth Day Dawn, County Bank Underground Vault]
Buzz...
In the silent underground vault, the aftershocks of the mysterious energy oscillations still reverberated in the dome. Broken stones tumbled down from the damaged ceiling, landing on the remains of the Corrupt Vine Python.
Chen Kong slumped in a heap of rubble, his hands braced against the rocks behind him, his palms aching from the sharp stone fragments.
His chest heaved violently, each breath pulling at the dull pain in his ribs.
The pressure that had nearly crushed his bones when the giant snake constricted him had not fully dissipated. A sour, rotten smell of vine sap still lingered in his throat, making even his saliva taste acrid.
However, compared to his minor injuries, he was more curious about the sudden mysterious energy fluctuation.
He looked up, seeing the monstrous snake, which had just been so arrogant, now reduced to withered gray-green vines scattered everywhere. Fragments covered in corrosive sap landed on the ground, quickly losing moisture and crumbling into powder that dissipated with a pinch.
"So... what exactly just happened?"
Chen Kong raised a hand to wipe the dust off his face, using his right hand to clean the dry blood from the corner of his mouth, speaking with lingering fear.
His heart was still uncontrollably pounding as he recalled the torrent of energy that had streaked across the sky-pit.
That power was too immense; so strong that merely being grazed by the aftershock almost caused his entire Star Energy to collapse.
What concerned him even more was that within that savage energy, he distinctly captured a familiar 'vector aura,' exactly like the fluctuation when Tendo manipulated Star Energy.
Moreover, when that energy torrent struck the giant snake, even space itself rippled, as if two deities had clashed in a distant space-time, and the residual might coincidentally flattened the threat before them.
"Tendo definitely had a hand in it."
Mi Yao leaned against a nearby steel bar; the bandage on his shoulder was already stained with blood.
He bit open the tab of an energy drink can, took a large gulp, and analyzed, "But besides Tendo's vector control, that energy also contained a very tyrannical sense of engulfment. I believe this energy was produced after Tendo fought that person."
Chen Kong nodded at Mi Yao's words, then took out a Sweet Dream Candy from his pocket and ate it.
When they first landed on the island, Jing Liuli had left three Sweet Dream Candies for everyone, just in case.
The healing power contained in the Sweet Dream Candy coursed through his body, slowly mending the hairline fractures in his ribs, causing his originally pale complexion to visibly become warm and rosy.
As the two rested, Vivian offered her own assessment.
"If I'm not mistaken, that should be residual energy that accidentally spilled over from other space-time layers."
Her mechanical pupils flickered with faint blue scanning light as she slowly walked to the location of the giant snake's corpse and crouched down.
Touching the faintly visible energy film on the ground before her, she analyzed with conviction, "My quantum detector shows that the space-time coordinates here briefly overlapped three minutes ago, like two pages of paper being forcibly pressed together, causing ink to seep onto the other page."
"You mean..."
Mi Yao suddenly sat up straight, the energy drink can crushed in his hand.
"The 'space-time interlayer' where Brother Tendo is also encountered a situation similar to ours? That power was the aftermath of their battle, 'seeping' to us through the cracks of the space-time overlap?"
Vivian turned around, the mechanical circuits behind her ear glowing with steady blue light, data rapidly refreshing on her retina.
"The probability exceeds seventy percent. The nature of Longevity Island's cycle is a disruption of space-time anchors. The space-time layers in different regions are inherently unstable, and high-intensity combat can easily trigger this kind of 'energy leakage'."
Vivian paused and added, "Moreover, the characteristics of that engulfing energy have a 63% overlap with the 'Gluttony' Star Source feature of President Enite, according to the Star Envoy Association's data."
"The President? He came to Longevity Island?"
Mi Yao's eyes widened, feeling that Vivian's analysis sounded too absurd and audacious.
After all, if Enite had really come here, what need would there be for them to explore Longevity Island?
Enite alone would be enough to flatten the entire island countless times over.
Perhaps even Vivian found her own inference a bit absurd, so she shook her head and said, "It's just an assessment, not necessarily accurate."
"But regardless of the situation, one thing is certain: Tendo and the others must have been far ahead of us a long time ago."
By now, no one still regarded the exploration of Longevity Island as a trial.
After all, what kind of trial sees two-thirds of the students dying right away, with the remaining one-third's whereabouts unknown?
With such trial intensity, their ability to leave here alive was already a miracle amidst misfortune.
But the more abnormal the trial process, the more it reflected the power of Tendo and his group.
Although they were unclear where Tendo and the others were now or what exactly they were doing.
Just the exaggerated energy aftershock was enough to make them realize that what Tendo and his group were doing was definitely something unimaginable for ordinary people.
"As expected, this world of monsters... is something we ordinary people simply cannot imagine or understand."
Chen Kong couldn't help but smile, which tugged at his rib injury, making him gasp in pain.
Looking at his distressed expression, Mi Yao scoffed, "Stop the theatrics. You should be grateful you managed to save your own life, kid."
Chen Kong did not refute, knowing that Mi Yao spoke the truth.
Especially since Mi Yao had genuinely saved his life just moments ago; a couple of sarcastic remarks were nothing.
After a brief rest, Chen Kong tried to move his body. He felt that aside from the persistent dull ache in his ribs, the surface wounds on his limbs were starting to heal under the nourishment of the Sweet Dream Candy's energy.
He looked up at Mi Yao and asked with concern, "How are you? Is the shoulder wound serious?"
"A minor thing."
Mi Yao patted his bandaged shoulder. Although his complexion was still somewhat pale, his eyes were bright.
Perhaps sensing Chen Kong's thoughts, Mi Yao said expressionlessly, "Cut out that disgusting look. I wasn't thinking much just now. I just thought that if one person fewer was around, my subsequent exploration danger level would greatly increase, that's all."
Chen Kong smiled without saying anything.
He had realized that while Mi Yao was always verbally unsparing, when push came to shove, he wouldn't easily betray a teammate.
Just as Chen Kong was thinking this, Vivian suddenly stepped forward and placed her hand on his chest, much to his slight embarrassment.
"The third rib is slightly fractured, no internal injuries. Surface wounds are also healing..."
After confirming that Chen Kong was physically fine, Vivian withdrew her hand.
"Rest for ten minutes, then we set off. Any problems?"
"No problem."
Chen Kong stood up, brushing the dust off his combat uniform, causing debris and vine fragments to fall off.
He looked into the depths of the vault. The space rift there was clearer than before. The opening, which was originally just a fine seam, had now expanded enough for three people to pass through side-by-side. The edges of the rift flickered with pale purple space-time energy, like a flowing star river.
On the other side of the rift, dense black tree canopies could be vaguely seen.
The smell of damp earth mixed with a peculiar floral fragrance drifted in through the rift, forming a stark contrast to the foul stench inside the vault.
Vivian's scanning light penetrated the rift, and her brow furrowed slightly: "The energy fluctuation on the other side is stable, but the biological signals are very dense, and... I estimate it won't be much easier than this county town."
Mi Yao flattened the empty energy drink can and stuffed it into his tactical backpack.
"No matter how dangerous it is, that's our only 'exit'."
Saying this, Mi Yao shook the gaming device in his hand. The 'mission guidance' arrow on the screen was pointing towards the rift.
"Besides, all our clues point accurately to that place. If we want to leave this eerie island, that's where we must go."
"That's right."
Chen Kong replied, looking toward the unfamiliar jungle behind the rift.
"Let's go. It's already the sixth day since we landed on the island, leaving less than two days until the seventh day the little raccoon administrator mentioned."
"In addition to finding a way to leave here, we must also ensure we board the departing ship on time."
"Otherwise, I can't guarantee I'll survive to the next seventh day."
With these words, Chen Kong took the lead and walked toward the space rift, his tactical boots making steady sounds on the ground.
Mi Yao and Vivian followed closely, the faint glow of the mechanical device and the eerie green light of the gaming device intertwining at the edge of the rift, forming a small band of light.
The moment the three figures fully stepped into the rift, the aftershocks in the vault completely dissipated. The falling stones stopped, as if the shocking battle just now was merely a brief illusion left behind by the space-time overlap.
On the other side of the rift, the mysterious jungle shrouded in darkness and floral fragrance slowly unfolded its full appearance.
The moment the three passed through the rift, a dense, herbaceous smell rushed over, carrying the dampness of morning dew.
Chen Kong instinctively squinted. Before his eyes was a dense jungle. Towering ancient trees were wrapped with pale purple rose vines. The ground was covered with thick fallen leaves, rustling softly when stepped upon.
Not far ahead of them, a 'wild boar' the size of a large truck lay dead on the ground.
The wild boar's hide was covered in fine vines, and there was a precisely placed penetrating wound on its forehead. Pale green sap was seeping from the wound.
"This is..."
Mi Yao crouched down and reached out to touch the wild boar's corpse; it was still warm.
"Killed in one blow, clean and decisive technique."
The condition of this monstrous wild boar was highly similar to that of the giant snake in the vault, clearly suffering from the same type of mutation.
Although they didn't know the wild boar's specific strength, by comparing its size difference with the giant snake in the vault, it was clear that this guy was most likely not a simple opponent either.
"Let's go. I feel the situation here might be more complicated and dangerous than we thought."
"Mhm."
After a brief observation, the three set off again.
As they ventured deeper into this unfamiliar jungle, more and more monster corpses appeared before them.
These monster corpses included 'Corrupt Vine Wolves' scorched black by lightning, with not a single patch of good skin left on their bodies.
There was a 'Thorn Giant' with a wound as smooth as a mirror, as if it had been instantly decapitated by a sharp blade.
And a 'Vine Spider' with no visible wounds but completely devoid of life, seemingly killed while sleeping.
"It should be Liuli's technique."
Looking at the manner of the spider's death, Chen Kong, who was familiar with Jing Liuli's abilities, gave his assessment immediately.
"Mhm."
Vivian nodded, then carefully observed the many corpses before her, the quantum information library in her mind frantically referencing the files of other students.
"The electrocution blackening should be Caroline's technique, and the clean, decisive slash should be Tendo's doing."
"Judging by the degree of decomposition of these corpses, these monsters have been dead for at least more than a day."
"In other words, Tendo and the others should have arrived here at least a day before us."
As she spoke, Vivian stood up and looked toward the depths of the jungle.
The rose vines there were even denser, and the pale purple petals sparkled among the trees, like stars covering the branches.
"Let's go. By following these traces, we should be able to regroup with the others soon."
Chen Kong nodded, then followed Vivian's gaze.
In that direction, there were clear signs of a major battle.
All sorts of strange monster corpses were scattered along the path. Dense vines had been neatly cut down to clear a small path, evidently cleaned up deliberately.
The purpose was to point out a clear route and direction for those arriving later.
Although they were still unclear what lay ahead, out of absolute trust in Tendo, both Chen Kong and Mi Yao noticeably quickened their pace.
After all, Tendo had proven time and again that any problem, in his presence... was not a problem.
With this thought, the three quickly proceeded along the path.
However, what they didn't expect was that the first people they encountered on this path were not Tendo, but two familiar faces.
Bang!
Liu Ma forced back the mutated large gorilla in front of him with a punch, then looked back in Isabel's direction.
Isabel was currently surrounded by a group of strangely shaped small monkeys.
These small monkeys were covered in specialized vines, and their eyes were blood-red.
Although their Star Energy level was not high, they were agile and possessed astonishing vitality.
Even with broken hands and feet, they could slowly recover within a certain time frame, proving to be extremely troublesome.
"Damn it, why are these monsters like cockroaches? They're impossible to kill!"
Isabel froze two of the small monkeys, then couldn't help but curse in anger.
These small monkeys were utterly mediocre in strength, yet their vitality, which was completely disproportionate to their level, successfully frustrated her.
She had never encountered such an unreasonable existence, seemingly weak yet fiercely tenacious in life.
Killing each one took a great deal of effort.
However, despite her complaints, Vivian still focused her main attention on Liu Ma.
Because these monsters' vitality was proportional to their size!