Chapter 221 - 220: Wait for Daybreak

Chapter 221: Chapter 220: Wait for Daybreak

Since he couldn’t get through to Feng Ling’s phone, Han Xu personally made another trip to the pool hall to inform her that all nearby residents had been evacuated, not a single person left behind.

Han Xu suggested that Feng Ling get some sleep beforehand—even two hours would help her recharge.

But sleep was something you couldn’t force.

Feng Ling stared wide-eyed, waiting until late into the night.

In the meantime, there were a few minor incidents.

For instance, Duan Fei wanted to enter the Maze with Feng Ling, only to be harshly berated by Han Xu and dragged away.

A reporter tried to pilot a drone in for a close-up of Feng Ling’s face, but the Cat Owl shredded it like a chew toy.

Su Yuqing called Xu Yiming, but not daring to ask about Ye Zheng directly, she just kept beating around the bush, leaving Xu Yiming utterly confused.

And then, finally, the clock struck midnight—

The Crow opened its eyes and cawed at Huangfu Miaomiao.

A golden exclamation mark appeared right on schedule.

"It’s here," Huangfu Miaomiao said, looking at Feng Ling and asking cautiously, "...Do we accept the quest now?"

"Yeah, accept it," Feng Ling nodded.

Ye Zheng stood behind Feng Ling, her face tense, her left hand subconsciously clenched into a fist. ’If I can just find the Divine Statue in the Maze, I’ll be one step closer to becoming a normal person. But if I can’t find it...’

She regulated her breathing, trying to calm herself.

Her heart felt like it was being wrung out by an invisible rope.

’If I can’t find the Divine Statue, then I suppose I can only accept my fate... and miserably await my own death.’

...

Huangfu Miaomiao walked up to the Crow and triggered the Maze quest.

[Gods, ghosts, and all manner of spirits can be worshipped. Even flowers, grass, wood, and stone may receive offerings of incense. You solved the riddle to find this place. The trial of the Maze will now open for you. A unique reward will be granted upon successful completion—Do you accept the trial?]

Just like last time, the Maze quest popped up on Huangfu Miaomiao’s virtual screen.

Huangfu Miaomiao read the quest information aloud, word for word.

’This system isn’t so smart after all,’ Feng Ling thought. She had no idea what the riddle for this Maze was; they had found the entrance purely through trial and error. But the second half of the system’s message was identical to last time. ’It must be boilerplate text.’

Huangfu Miaomiao tapped to accept the trial.

The large golden exclamation mark above the Crow’s head transformed into a golden smiley face. The face rose into the air, expanding until it covered the entire Maze.

Feng Ling immediately stepped outside the truck and saw fog beginning to form all around.

A thin, light gray mist gradually filled the air, draping the street in a hazy veil.

The night seemed to deepen. Moments before, she could still see the outlines of the buildings, but now, all that surrounded Feng Ling was darkness and more darkness.

The temperature was dropping.

The hot and humid climate of Guangshan City was changing within the Maze, giving way to a distinct chill.

’Well, at least we’re saving on the AC bill,’ Feng Ling thought, her composure unshaken.

"There are... Pollution Bodies..." Huangfu Miaomiao whispered fearfully from inside the truck.

"Where?" Feng Ling asked.

"I... I can’t see clearly..." Huangfu Miaomiao said, staring intently outside. "They’re there one moment and gone the next. It might be because the fog is so thick."

The fog was indeed thick; even Feng Ling, who had night vision, couldn’t see clearly.

Just as she was about to ask Xu Yiming to turn on the headlights, a faint sound came from behind her. Feng Ling spun around instantly! A humanoid monster with an enormous head was lunging at her!

Feng Ling whipped out her Bone Blade! Just as the monster was about to pounce on her, the blade flashed horizontally, slicing the creature clean in two.

The danger wasn’t over, however. A second, a third, and then a fourth monster quickly darted out of the fog!

Though all of them were humanoid, they were grotesquely varied—some had massive heads, others had tiny ones; some had long torsos and short legs, others had spindly limbs and bloated stomachs.

The one thing they had in common was a thick, fleshy rat’s tail trailing behind each of them. Furthermore, none of them had faces—their heads were like tumorous lumps of flesh, and their mouths were on their necks!

It was absolutely revolting!

Feng Ling had prepared herself before entering the Maze, but the sheer vileness of the monsters was beyond anything she had imagined.

’The main reason,’ she decided, ’is that none of these monsters have any fur.’

’Without fur, they’re just like piles of meat that have sprouted limbs. Not exactly what you’d call aesthetically pleasing.’

’Compared to these hairless lumps of flesh, the Oxhead and Horseface from Sanqing Mountain, and even the Fox Demon, could be considered downright dashing.’

After Feng Ling killed four or five of the humanoid rats, the immediate area finally fell quiet.

The truck’s headlights and taillights pierced the thick fog, allowing them to see the outline of the street once more—

It was identical to the street they’d been on before.

The same shops, the same signs. Only now, the buildings were no longer inhabited by humans, but by humanoid rats with long, dragging tails.

The Crow left its cage and flew to the top of an unlit streetlight, uneasily surveying the gloomy Maze.

Feng Ling closed the cargo door and turned to Li Qing. "Something’s wrong. Didn’t you say the entrance to the Maze was supposed to be relatively safe? Why did we run into monsters the second we got here?"

Li Qing shook his head honestly. "I don’t know either. According to the system’s design, the entrance to a Maze is supposed to be the area with the lowest danger Level, aside from a safe house. No exceptions."

Xu Yiming blurted out, "So, other places are even more dangerous?"

Ye Zheng added calmly, "A few monsters like this can’t really be called dangerous. Their claws aren’t big, their teeth aren’t sharp, and their method of attack is simple. They’re easy to deal with."

"But..." Huangfu Miaomiao said, staring outside nervously. "There are so many of them..."

BANG!

Something slammed violently into the side of the truck!

"More of them already?!" Xu Yiming exclaimed in shock.

Huangfu Miaomiao, who was near a ventilation slit, said, "I can see three of them from here."

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The humanoid rats were frantically ramming the truck’s cargo bay. But, just as Ye Zheng had said, their claws weren’t big enough and their teeth weren’t sharp enough. An attack of this level alone couldn’t possibly tear through the sheet metal exterior.

Xu Yiming looked to Feng Ling. "Should I drive us somewhere else?"

Feng Ling thought for a moment, then asked Huangfu Miaomiao, "Do you see anywhere that’s glowing?"

Huangfu Miaomiao slowly shook her head.

A safe house would typically have a glowing indicator if it was within a player’s line of sight. But it was pitch-black outside, and Huangfu Miaomiao couldn’t see a thing, which meant the safe house wasn’t nearby.

Feng Ling considered their options carefully.

’If we could just pinpoint the safe house’s direction, I could have Xu Yiming drive there. But right now, all we’re facing is darkness and an unknown number of monsters.’

’If we start driving and run into monsters the size of Oxhead and Horseface, it’ll be a huge problem.’

"Let’s wait for daylight," Feng Ling said, looking at the others in the truck as she made a careful decision. "We’ll stay put for now and move out after dawn."

The words had barely left her mouth when the truck shuddered from another heavy blow!

Ye Zheng got to her feet in frustration. "I’m going out there to kill them," she said coldly.