manynovel Chapter 237: Epilogue, The
Chapter 237: Epilogue, The
Bang!A tremendous force struck from behind.
As if shoved violently by someone, Cheng Ye flew straight through the Light Gate.
Because he was not wearing a Chamber suit, he crashed into the Demonic Eye Sponge's Chamber barrier the very next second. The impact was so heavy that it made his chest tighten.
Subsequently, his body slid slowly to the ground, like he was pressed against a slippery wall.
It was on purpose!
Tan Ming definitely did that on purpose!
'That bastard,' Cheng Ye cursed inwardly. He stood up and patted his back, but suddenly, an unprecedented sense of emptiness surged through him.
'I feel so weak!'
Without the blood-red Withering Battle Armor wrapping his body, even while wearing the Extinction-level protective Obsidian Battle Armor, that feeling of weakness continued to wash over his nerves in waves.
It was as if he had suddenly regressed from having bones of steel and iron flesh to a mere mortal body of flesh and blood. The drop was far more pronounced than simply unequipping a physique talent. Feeling it more closely, even the passive threat of the Demonic Eye Sponge could seep through to him. He had absolutely zero sense of security!
However.
Cheng Ye subconsciously raised his hands, his gaze falling on the backs of them.
On the back of his right hand, the pale green Life Force Rune flickered slightly under his stare, as if responding to him.
And on the back of his left hand, there was astonishingly an extra dark red Withering Rune!
The two Runes, one green and one red, complemented each other on his skin. Not only did they lack the slightest bit of conflict, but they also exuded a harmonious fluctuation of life and death relying on each other, a cycle of flourishing and withering.
'Life Force and Withering can actually coexist?'
Cheng Ye's spirits immediately lifted. His unfocused eyes refocused, and the corners of his mouth could not help but turn up.
'This is amazing!'
'Old Tan, I... I really didn't misjudge you!'
He never expected that Tan Ming would actually agree in the end and bestow both Runes upon him!
His left hand could summon the Bloodshadow Legion, while his right hand could control the Life Force...
'Wait a minute. If I summon the Bloodshadow Legion to help with land reclamation, planting, and harvesting, wouldn't that also be a fusion of ideals?'
Cheng Ye rejoiced inwardly, his fingertips gently rubbing the Runes on the backs of his hands.
Even through the battle armor, he could clearly feel that the two Runes had not yet reached a fully activated state. The Collector had only analyzed their general functions. The specific control methods and task details would probably only be unlocked after the battle between Tan Ming and the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch concluded.
At this thought, Cheng Ye suddenly froze as the last glimpse he caught before passing through the Light Gate flashed through his mind.
At that time, the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch on the surface of the lake seemed to have undergone a Transformation as well?
It had similarly transformed into a white mist giant about a hundred meters tall. Dense Life Force swirled around it, and its imposing aura was not the slightest bit weaker than Tan Ming's blood-red humanoid form.
"No wonder Tan Ming insisted on accumulating enough energy before starting the final showdown..."
Cheng Ye frowned, a sudden wave of terror surging in his heart.
Hadn't the energy level of the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch already been weakened to an extremely low degree by him? But judging from the might of that Transformation, it was clearly not as simple as it appeared on the surface!
Just how long had this Immortal Item been hiding beneath the Whitewater River?
Or how much power had it accumulated while roaming elsewhere?
Its external energy, the Crab-men and the dense forest's Life Force, had indeed been thoroughly depleted. Yet, an oceanic amount of energy was still hidden inside it! It was likely not much less than the total energy contained within a hundred thousand Crab-men!
Facing such a thing, if they did not have Tan Ming's help, could he and Rocook really have successfully contained it?
As the question surfaced in his mind, Cheng Ye could not help but shake his head. The answer was absolutely certain.
It was an almost impossible challenge to complete.
Even if he ignored the outbreak time of its Mental Pollution and relied on the Heart-Protecting Fire with all his might, slowly stalling for time to continuously drain its energy...
As long as the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch sensed him and cast a single targeted pollution attack, he would die in there.
And even if he eventually managed to exhaust the conch's energy without being noticed, besides him making it out alive, everyone else would undoubtedly die in Dabo Town.
"As expected, Containment of an Infection Source cannot be achieved through brute force alone. You have to find ways to recruit allies and leverage other forces to strike it,"
Cheng Ye concluded silently. "More importantly, information is key. If I hadn't known about Tan Ming's existence, the true situation inside the Rongdong, or the actual form and energy reserves of the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch, this Containment would have been completely impossible."
The mention of information inevitably made his teeth itch with hatred, subconsciously thinking of Yueye Shelter City.
If Yueye hadn't deliberately concealed critical information about the Rongdong, they wouldn't have fallen into such a passive state from the very beginning.
If the intel had been shared promptly, simply by searching for the tracks of those missing persons along the way, it wouldn't have been hard to locate the residual Poisonous Water Crystals, the activity traces of the Crab-men, or even discover the Demonic Eye Sponge beneath the Whitewater River ahead of time.
But Yueye specifically hid this piece of intel, turning the thousands of people participating in the assessment into guinea pigs to test the dangers.
Even the four Inspectors almost died in their "own territory" less than a hundred kilometers away from Happiness City.
Fortunately, he had discovered the existence of the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch in time. Otherwise, if this Immortal Item completely erupted and formed a Disaster-level or even Ruin-level Infection Tide, the fallout wouldn't be limited to just Dabo Town.
The entirety of Happiness City, and even the southern part of Shi Province, would suffer. At that point, even dragging the City Lord of Yueye Shelter City out and executing them a hundred times wouldn't be enough to vent his hatred.
Of course, once the news of this incident got out, even if Yueye Shelter City didn't die, they would be skinned alive!
Cheng Ye put on the Chamber suit set aside earlier. His fingers rubbed the Runes on the back of his hand. He paused, then spoke softly toward the Light Gate:
"Lord Tan, I'm heading out first. If you don't care for the fragments of the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch, just send me a message when the time comes, and I'll come back in to contain them!"
He didn't care if Tan Ming could hear him. After speaking, he turned and walked back.
Passing through the large and small tunnels of the Chamber, his body scaled with the space, gradually restoring his height to the five meters he was before entering.
Cheng Ye gave a gentle shake, shrinking his physique back down to his original height, and soon arrived at the first layer of the Chamber.
Just as he was preparing to leave through the breach, his gaze inadvertently swept over the Demonic Eye Sponge in the corner, and he immediately froze.
It vanished!
Previously, there were clearly three Runes embedded within the Demonic Eye Sponge's body—one large and two small.
But at this moment, the large Rune emitting a faint blue halo was nowhere to be seen. Only the two dim, small Runes remained embedded in the sponge's body.
'Did the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch actively withdraw the Rune?'
'Or was the Demonic Eye Sponge's energy no longer sufficient to maintain the large Rune's operation, forcing it to retract?'
"I still need to raise my Rank. If my Rank goes up one more level, I might be able to collect it,"
Cheng Ye sighed with a bit of regret.
Fortunately, all of the Demonic Eye Sponge's Traits had already been gathered, including the Water and Earth Chamber Patterns.
Later on, as long as he had abundant energy, he could completely use exchanged Information Degree to manifest and collect this large Rune, so it wasn't a total loss.
As for his Rank.
Cheng Ye immediately summoned his interface and switched to his personal page:
[Collector: Cheng Ye]
[Current Rank: Lv.2 Rising Star (91.3/100)]
[Life Tier: 2]
[Skills: ---]
[Abilities: ---]
[Not Yet Unlocked]
[Evaluation: Life Tier...]
He was only 8.7 Information Degree away from Lv.3, just a sliver away from completing the breakthrough!
Furthermore, this didn't even account for the bonus from the two Tan Ming Runes on the back of his hands, nor the progress that containing the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch's fragments would provide later.
Once the matter in the Rongdong was concluded, there was a high probability he would directly advance to Lv.3 and unlock more interface privileges.
Suppressing the anticipation in his heart, Cheng Ye took one last look at the Demonic Eye Sponge, swapped his Iron Physique for the Fish-Mimicking State, and turned to walk out of the Chamber breach.
The remaining hundred or so tentacles were all drooping on the ground, sickly and looking utterly devoid of vitality.
Cheng Ye pondered for a moment. In the end, he didn't attack the Demonic Eye Sponge again, but instead swam toward the surface of the water.
Right now, Tan Ming and the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch were fighting fiercely in the Rongdong. The Demonic Eye Sponge was the key vessel sealing the Rongdong. If he messed with it and caused the vessel to collapse, the shockwaves from the clash between those two transcendent monsters would transmit above ground.
That would truly result in an unimaginable catastrophe. It was best not to complicate matters.
He would leave it as is. He would wait for them to finish fighting, wait until the fragments of the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch were contained.
By then, the Demonic Eye Sponge would lack the support of the Immortal Item. It wouldn't be able to run even if it wanted to, and could only remain underwater for him to harvest. There was no need to take unnecessary risks right now.
Activating his Accelerated Energy with a whoosh, his body shot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring.
It wasn't until his mouth and nose broke the surface, allowing fresh air to rush into his lungs, that he completely shook off that oppressive combat aura.
Cheng Ye looked up, only to see the setting sun slowly sinking over the distant horizon. The orange-red afterglow blanketed the surface of the water, and even the ripples that welled up were dyed with a layer of golden light.
Dozens of somewhat mischievous black-and-white striped fish formed a school, swimming leisurely around him, suddenly bringing a bit of life back to the water.
He was stunned for a moment. His originally tense and stiff gaze gradually softened.
"I survived... another day!"
In this damn wasteland, danger always descended without warning, offering no one even a fraction of time to prepare.
One second you could be mapping out the construction plans for Dabo Town, and the next you could be facing the threat of a Ruin-level Infection Source.
By comparison, his previous days in Happiness City, even when on duty at the Inspection Station dealing with sporadic Infected Bodies, felt as relaxing as a vacation.
Facing the setting sun, Cheng Ye took several deep breaths in a row. His nerves completely unwound, and his body was instantly enveloped by a sense of lethargy.
Endless exhaustion and weariness washed over his mind in waves, making his eyelids feel so heavy he could barely keep them open.
From last night until now, operating continuously for the better part of a day, both his mental and physical Stamina had been overdrawn to the absolute limit.
He floated on the water's surface, letting the orange-red sunset glow fall on his face as he enjoyed this rare moment of tranquility.
At this moment, he didn't need to think about the threat of Infection Sources, didn't need to agonize over the dilemma of containing the Immortal Item, nor did he need to ponder shortcuts to improve his Strength.
Just by staying quiet and feeling the solidity of simply "being alive," he felt an unprecedented sense of happiness.
It wasn't until the sun completely sank below the horizon and the sky was cloaked in familiar darkness, with the cool evening breeze rippling the water's surface, that he slowly swam toward the inlet.
After climbing ashore, he had only walked two steps up before he saw Rocook sleeping soundly, leaning against the dock wall.
Rocook seemed to be having a nightmare. His brow was tightly furrowed, and his lips trembled slightly, as if he were seeing some terrifying sight.
Cheng Ye deliberately stepped heavier, his shoe soles making distinct "Tap, tap" sounds on the stone-paved path.
Only then did Rocook jolt awake, his hand instantly reaching for the short knife by his side. His eyes swept the surroundings vigilantly. Once he saw clearly that the newcomer was Cheng Ye, he let out a long breath of relief, leaning against the wall as he stumbled to his feet.
"Inspector Cheng, how is the Immortal Item underwater?" His voice carried the hoarseness of someone just woken up, but his eyes were locked tightly onto Cheng Ye's face, trying to catch an answer from his expression.
"Don't worry, everything is fine." Cheng Ye smiled, reaching out to first dispel his Obsidian Battle Armor.
The black film clinging to his body peeled away, and the surrounding world instantly became "real" again.
The smell of moisture in the air, the cold touch of the flagstone path under his feet, the flowing sound of the distant river, the Residents clinking and clanking their tools—all of it flooded clearly into his perception, no longer muffled as it was when wrapped in the battle armor.
He greedily relished this vividness. First, he touched the bluestone wall next to him, and then his fingertips found the crack he had stepped on earlier, before he continued, "Tan Ming has already started fighting the Immortal Item. Once they finish, we'll just go down and contain it."
"Tan Ming and the Immortal Item?" Rocook repeated numbly. A flash of unbelievable surprise instantly darted through his eyes. "Does that mean our Containment mission is almost complete?"
"You could... say that." Cheng Ye nodded. He paused, then added, "Unless Tan Ming loses."
"Tan Ming can't possibly lose!"
Rocook blurted out subconsciously. Only after saying it did he chuckle awkwardly and correct himself, "I mean, Tan Ming must not lose!"
"Look at you worrying about him." Cheng Ye was momentarily taken aback, then shook his head with a laugh. "Let's go. We'll head back to town to rest first. A fight between those two monsters won't be decided so quickly."
A battle at that level couldn't be ended just by one side firing an energy wave and the other countering with an ultimate move.
Judging from the process of stockpiling energy, Tan Ming and the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch would most likely fight until one party completely exhausted its energy before the final victor was determined.
After all, a battle of Belief pertained to the very foundation of their existence; neither side could possibly surrender directly to the other's Belief.
Who knew how long this process would last, but regardless, it was far safer than him and Rocook forcing their way down.
Returning to the town, perhaps the thought that "the dust had settled" had completely lifted the psychological burden off him. Cheng Ye didn't even have the mind to inspect the changes in the red and blue zones over the whole day, or to soothe the emotions of the Residents.
At this moment, he only had one thought in his head: to retreat into his own small space, enjoy some solitary time, and slowly savor the grounded feeling of survival after a disaster.
And the Sentry Tower built in the parking lot was undoubtedly the best choice.
Elevated away from the noise on the ground, the cramped space provided a full sense of security where he wouldn't be disturbed by anyone.
First, he returned to the truck to charge the Collector.
"Go up and rest. I'll take over from here," Rocook personally escorted him to the base of the Sentry Tower, assuring him with a solemn tone.
By now, Cheng Ye barely even had the strength to speak. He simply waved a hand and slowly climbed up the ladder to the Sentry Tower. As soon as he stood firm, a wave of dizziness hit him, and he took the opportunity to just sit down on the wooden floor.
His body, nourished by the Life Force he absorbed earlier, felt not the slightest Hunger Sensation.
He lacked the energy to check on the conditions of the Earth-Shrinking Giant Louse and the Heart-Protecting Fire inside his Spiritual Body Space. His sole desire right now was to just collapse and sleep.
He looked up at the night sky. Scattered stars were gradually emerging, like crushed diamonds sprinkled across black velvet.
"Good night, wasteland!"
As his voice faded.
He leaned against the Sentry Tower's wooden railing, closed his eyes, and fell into a deep slumber.
It was the deepest sleep he had ever experienced. The Wild Grass Totem on his chest suddenly emitted a faint green glow. The gentle halo slowly spread, almost enveloping half of his body.
Exhale.
Inhale.
The green light brightened and dimmed in rhythm with his breathing.
It spread from his shoulders down to his waist and abdomen, then withdrew from his limbs back to his chest. This cyclical pattern amazingly persisted throughout the entire night.
It wasn't until the horizon turned the pale white of a fish's belly that the green light slowly receded, thoroughly merging back into the totem.
As the faint morning light filtered through the cracks of the Sentry Tower and caressed his face, Cheng Ye unconsciously shifted his posture, lying flat on the floor as he continued to sleep soundly.
However, after transitioning from deep sleep to a lighter slumber, inevitably, dreams quietly crept in.
In his dream.
He was no longer a human struggling to survive in the wasteland, but had transformed into a terrifying existence on par with Tan Ming.
With a raise of his hand, thousands of his subordinate Bloodshadow Legion troops moved at his command, charging fearlessly toward the Infection Sources with Death-Defying bravery.
With a press of his palm, whether it was a ferocious Immortal Item or a troublesome Ruin-level Infection Source, everything turned to ash within his grasp.
He could soar freely in the sky, going wherever he pleased. Even the Divine Mountain "Mount Everest" depicted on the Torch resident Badge could be rapidly scaled with a single thought.
"What else can stand in my way?"
Standing at the peak of the snowy mountain and overlooking the magnificent rivers and mountains beneath his feet, Cheng Ye couldn't help but put his hands on his hips and laugh out loud.
At this moment, he felt like the strongest person in the world, with nothing capable of threatening him.
But just as that thought arose, a streak of faint black light suddenly streaked across the sky.
The S5 virus had broken out!
It was a terrifying virus specifically evolved to target an uncontrolled Transcendent like him.
In just a few short seconds, that world-destroying power within him receded like the tide. His body became weak once more, tumbling back to the state of an ordinary person.
What alarmed him even more was when he looked up at the night sky.
The "Behemoth" that brought a Catastrophic Disaster to humanity a century ago and triggered the world's drastic upheaval was actually hovering in the heavens once again, blotting out the sky and sun, bringing a suffocating Sense of Oppression.
"What? The Behemoth!"
Cheng Ye panicked, waving his hands wildly to dispel the terrifying image before his eyes, but his right hand heavily slammed into the wooden wall of the Sentry Tower, issuing a muffled "Thump."
The noise yanked him from his nightmare back to reality. Cheng Ye's eyes snapped open. His pupils instinctively contracted and focused as he looked outside the Sentry Tower. The sky remained an impenetrably dense black.
In a daze, he actually had the illusion that he hadn't slept long at all, as if he had been jolted awake by a nightmare right after lying down.
But the sensation coming from his body couldn't lie. That bone-deep exhaustion from before had largely faded, leaving only a trace of lethargy, and even his mind felt much clearer.
Cheng Ye didn't rush to get up. Instead, he lay quietly on the wooden floor, letting the residual fragments of the dream dissipate from his mind.
A few minutes later, he reached over to grab the Defense Terminal next to him, illuminating the screen to glance at the time.
Sure enough, he had slept for an entire day. It was now the night of the fourth day since the assessment began.
According to the rules originally announced by the Inspection Station, the outcome of the assessment should have been declared at noon today.
But the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch's unexpected interference had not only disrupted all plans, but even the deadline for the assessment had become blurry, with no clear end time in sight.
"It's been past seventy-two hours. The Mental Pollution from the conch isn't about to break out, is it..."
Cheng Ye's heart suddenly tightened.
Unable to lie there any longer, he immediately scrambled up, grabbed the ladder, and quickly descended from the Sentry Tower.
But after taking only a few steps, Cheng Ye's pace slowly halted, and his tense expression unconsciously softened.
There was no anticipated chaos, no panic, and absolutely no signs of Mental Pollution erupting.
Although there were only scattered silhouettes of Patrol Teams flickering outside the residential units in the parking lot, as he walked from the alley near the Supermarket to the main road, he could instantly see nearly a thousand Residents gathered in the center of the town.
In the central clearing, vines had been set ablaze.
The raging flames resembled an impromptu bonfire party. The blazing firelight, wrapped in billowing thick smoke, soared into the sky. Nearly a thousand people were gathered around the glow, yet their faces surprisingly lacked much sorrow.
Someone had taken a microphone and was standing by the fire, passionately recounting amusing anecdotes of past adventures in the wasteland, occasionally interweaving thrilling encounters or tossing out humorous punchlines.
The entire scene was exceptionally harmonious. Applause and cheers occasionally drifted over on the night breeze, dispersing the gloom of the night.
Cheng Ye stood rooted in place, watching for a moment. His gaze swept through the crowd, yet he couldn't spot the figures of Rocook or Garcia.
Instead, he saw Wang Kang leading a Patrol Team back from the street corner. The moment the other party saw him standing in front of the Supermarket, he immediately picked up his pace and jogged over.
"Brother Cheng! You're finally awake!" Wang Kang ran up to him, his tone filled with urgency. His eyes constantly scanned him up and down before he finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, just... way too tired." As Cheng Ye spoke, he couldn't help but let out another yawn. He turned his gaze to the nearby bonfire. "What are they doing?"
"Passing the time during the night and livening up the atmosphere so everyone doesn't just sit in their rooms letting their imaginations run wild until they panic," Wang Kang said. He first waved his hand, instructing the Patrol Team to continue securing the perimeter. Once the team members were far enough away, he forced a bitter smile and lowered his voice, his expression far graver than before.
Seeing that bitter smile, Cheng Ye's heart skipped a beat as he pressed, "Where's Rocook? What about Garcia? Why aren't they here?"
"Their... conditions have been getting worse and worse." Wang Kang sighed, a rare look of complexity crossing his face. "Garcia 'planted' himself in the open lot in the west of town, saying it would ease his pain. And Rocook... Brother Cheng, you'd better just go take a look for yourself."
Cheng Ye's heart sank involuntarily.
It was the fourth day. After Rocook used the Source Heart Flesh Iron, he was fast approaching the 72-hour Outbreak Stage.
He didn't go see Rocook right away. Instead, he first turned to walk toward the river. "I need to check the situation underwater first. Wait for me for a few minutes."
Arriving at the Riverside, he quickly donned his Obsidian Battle Armor and leaped into the water.
An unexpected situation had occurred!
Although the purple barrier the Demonic Eye Sponge had previously used to seal the Rongdong was gone, at the cave's entrance, a streak of blood-red energy had replaced it. Like a thin membrane, it sealed the entrance shut so tightly that not a single trace of aura could leak out.
A full day and night had passed, yet Tan Ming and the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch surprisingly hadn't determined a victor yet?
Cheng Ye gritted his teeth, temporarily suppressing the doubts in his heart. He floated back to the surface, unequipped the battle armor, and hurriedly followed Wang Kang toward the eastern end of town.
Rebar and rusty iron salvaged from the Ruins of buildings, along with some scattered recyclables, were piled up in a wasteland not far from the truck.
Even before getting close, Cheng Ye's expression grew somewhat grim.
In the dark of the night, Rocook was sprawled in front of that pile of rebar in a bizarre posture. Gripping a wrist-thick piece of rusty rebar in one hand, he was feeding it into his mouth bite by bite. First, he slowly licked the rust with his tongue, and then he gnawed at it bit by bit with his teeth.
"Crunch—"
The teeth-aching crunching noise was exceptionally jarring in the quiet night, setting one's teeth on edge. Yet he was actually able to bite right through the tough steel rebar, chewing it into small chunks.
It was just that swallowing was abnormally difficult. With every gulp, a faint rust-colored light would burst from beneath his skin. Whenever the light flashed, his body would tremble uncontrollably, as if he were enduring immense pain.
Hearing the approaching footsteps, Rocook turned his head with great difficulty.
The moment their eyes met, Cheng Ye felt his mind buzz. His vision suddenly blurred. Was... was this still Rocook?
Was this... even human anymore?
Yesterday, although he had been rusty-red all over and reeked of iron, he could still barely maintain a human form.
But a day and a night later, only a sliver of a human silhouette remained on his face.
Where his skin should have been, dark brown rust crept all over, stacking in layers like dried blood. Even his eyelids were fused shut by heavy iron crusts, revealing only a sliver of murky gray light from the gaps. Even focusing his sight had become an arduous task.
He wanted to speak, but his jaw merely emitted "Clack, clack" metallic grinding sounds, like rusted gears being forced to turn.
From the cracked gap of his mouth, not a single drop of blood seeped out. Only fine iron flakes fell, making a faint rustling sound as they hit the ground.
The rust on his neck had already spread to his collarbones. His originally protruding Adam's apple had turned into a sharply angled lump of iron, sliding up and down with his faint breaths. Every movement brought an ear-piercing scraping noise, as if it would jam completely in the next second.
His hands, dangling by his sides, had nails that had long since morphed into sharp iron spikes. The skin at his knuckles was entirely encased in iron shells. Both arms looked just like rigidly straight iron pipes on the verge of rusting away.
This Parasitism of the Source Heart Flesh Iron was actually assimilating a vibrant, living being into cold Metal at a speed visible to the naked eye!
"Cheng... Cheng..." Rocook squeezed out the words with extreme difficulty. Before his voice fell, dark red "teardrops" suddenly seeped from the corners of his eyes.
Those were not tears, but liquid beads of molten iron. They slid down the rust, leaving two dark trails on his cheeks.
He hadn't died on the battlefield containing an Infection Source, nor had he died in the crisis facing the Immortal Item.
Instead, during this Gap of waiting, he had to helplessly watch his own life march step by step toward ruin.
"Can you still hold on?" Cheng Ye forcefully shook his head, suppressing the shock and sorrow in his heart. Gritting his teeth, he walked over and reached out to support Rocook.
The moment his hands made contact, all he felt was the icy chill of iron, as if he were holding up a massive, heavy hunk of metal.
Rocook's body had long lost the weight of a normal human. Every inch of him was filled with Metal, so heavy that it made Cheng Ye's arms go numb.
"I..." Rocook opened his mouth, but could no longer form a complete sentence. Looking into Cheng Ye's eyes, that little bit of murky gray light was dimming bit by bit, like a candle about to snuff out.
He struggled with all his might, eventually managing to squeeze out a few final words, "I'm... prepared..."
"Wang Kang, hurry up and help me hold him!" Cheng Ye couldn't help but roar in anger.
Waiting for Wang Kang to sprint over and help support Rocook, Cheng Ye immediately broke into a stride, sprinting toward the truck not far away.
Charging into the truck's cabin, he grabbed an empty cup and frantically pulled out a portion of Living Water Essence from his Pendant.
These damned Infection Sources!
Dammit!
What 'Benign Infection Source'? This was poison! It was a poison even more terrifying than virulent Infection Sources!
They had clearly already seen the dawn of victory. Was he really going to fall at the final moment before the night ended?
If he just held on until Tan Ming finished fighting the Immortal Item and the fragments of the conch were contained, this nightmare would end.
But... but why?
Cheng Ye felt powerless once again. This powerlessness was far more intense than when he faced the Myriad Command Earth Dharma Conch!
It was the insignificance of life in the face of absolute despair, the hopelessness where even struggling seemed laughable when an invisible giant hand clamped down on one's throat.
Clutching the cup, Cheng Ye took massive strides back, his footsteps even stumbling slightly.
But halfway back, his steps suddenly staggered to a halt. His pupils shrank sharply, almost unable to believe the sight before his eyes.
After seeing him one last time, it was as if Rocook had lost all hope to keep holding on, as if after saying those final words, he completely lost the will to live.
He slumped straight to the ground, his body losing all support. Like a literal lump of solid iron, he smashed heavily against the dirt, so stiff it defied description, and went completely silent.
Wang Kang was still holding the posture of supporting him, sitting paralyzed on the side. His eyes were filled with blank shock and bewilderment, forgetting even to breathe.
Rocook... died?
Cheng Ye stood frozen in place, his eye sockets stinging uncontrollably. Without a formal farewell, without the chance to have one more hearty chat about their ideals for the future, not even a single complete sentence... this Third-stage Inspector, his comrade who had fought side-by-side with him to contain the Immortal Item, simply fell silently by the Garbage Pile at the east end of the town.
His body was still slowly mutating. The final trace of his human form was on the verge of being swallowed by thick rust, leaving behind only the cold contour of Metal.
The night wind suddenly picked up, sweeping up the fine iron flakes from the ground.
They landed on Cheng Ye's face and the backs of his hands, making a soft "Rustle, rustle" sound.
The sound was very light, like a whispered mourning.
Or perhaps... it was Rocook using this special way to bid his final farewell.