Chapter 209
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Chapter 209: The Believer
Sweat dripped down Instructor Hong’s face. Just as the flames were about to engulf them both, the fire behind them suddenly vanished!
A brief feeling of suffocation enveloped Instructor Hong’s body, but it lasted less than a second before completely disappearing, as if it had never existed. Only the lingering heat in the air proved that an underground inferno had once raged here.
It was Shen Qingzhu…
Instructor Hong gritted his teeth, moving upward through the passage bit by bit. After what seemed like an eternity, a faint light appeared above his head.
It was the beam of a flashlight.
“There’s someone down there! It looks like Hong Hao!” voices called faintly from above.
The flashlight beams converged on Instructor Hong as figures rapidly descended – instructors with rappelling ropes attached to their waists.
Seeing those familiar faces, Instructor Hong finally breathed a sigh of relief. His tense body could no longer hold on, sweat dripping like a waterfall from his soaked uniform.
The instructors quickly took the unconscious Baili Pangpang, equipped them both with rappelling gear, said something into their radios, and slowly began ascending.
“Instructor Hong, Instructor Hong! Are you alright?!” Han Li checked Instructor Hong’s condition anxiously as they ascended.
Instructor Hong, his consciousness hazy, waved his hand. “I’m fine, just exhausted… but there’s still someone down there.”
Hearing this, Han Li exchanged glances with two other instructors. They nodded and continued descending to search for the last person.
“How far are we from the surface?” Instructor Hong asked weakly.
“200 meters. Another 200 meters and we’ll reach the surface.” Han Li looked down at the bottomless cave. “How deep is this place?”
“Two kilometers.”
“Two kilometers?!” Han Li’s eyes widened in disbelief. “How did you manage to climb up?!”
Instructor Hong shook his head, indicating he didn’t want to talk.
Han Li seemed to realize something and stared up at the sky in silence.
Their equipment… wasn’t sufficient for descending two kilometers.
However, he didn’t share this observation with Instructor Hong.
Soon after, Instructor Hong and Baili Pangpang were brought back to the surface and immediately placed on stretchers, carried out of the mountain by medical personnel.
Later.
Outside Jinan Mountain, Yuan Gang silently watched as Baili Pangpang and Instructor Hong were loaded into ambulances, which drove away with wailing sirens.
The vehicle carrying Lin Qiye had departed ten minutes earlier.
“Sir, the team searching for Shen Qingzhu has returned,” Han Li ran to his side and reported. “Our rappelling equipment only reached one kilometer down. Then two instructors took the risk of using tools to descend to the cave bottom.”
“But…”
“But what?” Yuan Gang’s brows furrowed slightly.
“The cave created by the [Absolute Earth Domain] has completely collapsed. Everything is buried under rock and soil – they couldn’t find Shen Qingzhu anywhere…”
“And according to the life detection equipment, there are no life signs in the underground cave.”
Han Li took a deep breath. “Based on Instructor Hong’s description of events, Shen Qingzhu… can be confirmed as having sacrificed himself.”
Yuan Gang’s fists clenched tightly. He looked back at Jinan Mountain shrouded in darkness, and after a long moment, slowly said:
“Let’s withdraw… leave the rest to the cleanup crew.”
…
The night gradually receded.
In the deathly silent Jinan Mountain, a faint light penetrated the dark clouds, shining upon the stretching desolate peaks.
The heavy rain gradually lessened to a drizzle, dropping onto the disaster-struck mountain and falling to the ground through verdant leaves.
Time flowed on.
The dark clouds dispersed as the sun blazed high.
As the sun slowly sank into the western mountains, the twilight dusk fell between the peaks, seeming to drape everything in a thin golden veil.
In a desolate wasteland, a cocoon buried in the soil trembled slightly, as if a new life was about to emerge.
From the west, a bewitching figure slowly emerged from nothingness – long hair, phoenix eyes, tailcoat – noble and elegant.
He was one of the three gods of the Ancient God Church, Klein boundary, [Murmur].
“The projection’s aura disappeared underground here.” Murmur looked down at the soil, his gaze seeming to penetrate the thick earth.
“The projection’s soul was destroyed in a very strange way. And since then, my mind…” Murmur’s brows furrowed tightly. He shook his head without finishing.
“What exactly happened he- PATRICK!! LET’S GO CATCH JELLYFISH!!”
Murmur’s words cut off halfway as his entire face twisted violently. Sharp, eerie sounds emerged from his throat as his arms suddenly spread wide, an exaggerated smile appearing on his face.
Slap!
A crisp sound rang out as Murmur slapped his own face. He lowered his head, breathing heavily, his neck red and his eyes full of anger and confusion.
“Damn it! What… what’s happening to me?!”
He roared in frustration, clutching his head as if trying to rip something out.
After a few minutes, he finally calmed down. The previous panic and rage had vanished, replaced by coolness and composure.
“Whatever you are… I will strangle you. I won’t let you torment my soul anymore.” Murmur frowned as he muttered. “Everything started when that projection vanished. Something must have happened here.”
He reached out and placed his palm on the ground, slowly closing his eyes.
“The state underground… a Flame Vein Dragon? There was actually a Flame Vein Dragon here… Ma Yitian, that waste, is indeed dead. Hmph, and also… eh?”
Murmur started, opening his eyes with a hint of confusion.
After hesitating for a moment, he reached out and grabbed at the air, seeming to extract something from underground. The next moment, a charred body appeared before his eyes.
The body had been burned beyond recognition by flames, showing no signs of life. One leg had been completely carbonized to ash, and even the facial features were unrecognizable.
“Burned like this, yet still breathing?” Surprise appeared on Murmur’s face as he carefully examined the body before him, his eyes glowing slightly.
“Good potential, a promising seed…”
His lips curved upward as he looked down at the unrecognizable Shen Qingzhu and spoke slowly:
“I know you can still hear me. Your talent is impressive, and surviving such injuries is miraculous… I’ve decided to give you a chance.”
Murmur leaned close to Shen Qingzhu’s ear and said each word distinctly:
“A chance to abandon your past and be reborn. I can heal all your injuries completely, I can help you become stronger faster!”
“All I ask is that you believe in me, become… my [Believer].”
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