Chapter 104: The Silenti Swarm, Escape

Chapter 104: Chapter 104: The Silenti Swarm, Escape

The Silenti appeared.

The next second, two solid, terrifying beams of ghastly green light erupted from its eyes without warning. They instantly struck Howard Dawson’s outstretched arm and the side of his body, which were just inches away!

"Holy shit! What the hell is this light?!"

Startled by the sudden green light, Howard Dawson violently jerked his hand back.

However, it was too late.

The other Players, who had managed to dodge, watched in horror as the parts of Howard Dawson’s body caught in the green light—his fingers, arm, shoulder, and even half his face—visibly lost their flesh-and-blood color, turning a stiff, grayish-white.

Moreover, this horrifying transformation was rapidly spreading across his entire body!

Howard Dawson himself finally realized something was wrong.

He tried to move his fingers, only to find they were as heavy as lead and completely numb.

He looked down and saw that his palm had turned into lifeless stone.

In that instant, terror seized his heart.

"No... no! My hand won’t move! Is this... Petrification?! Save me! Can anyone save me?!!"

He let out a shrill, desperate scream, trying to cry for help, but his voice became slurred and indistinct as his jaw began to petrify.

As everyone watched in horror, Howard Dawson, frozen in a posture of terrified pleading, solidified completely from the outside in. He finally became a lifelike, grayish-white stone statue radiating an aura of despair, standing silently in the dilapidated stairwell.

The Silenti vibrated its wings, let out a triumphant hiss, and flew higher. Its cold, gray eyes scanned the other "prey" below.

In that moment, without any need for explanation, all the surviving Players instantly understood.

The horrifying source of the countless stone statues littering this apocalyptic world was this very creature before them—seemingly small, yet unbelievably lethal.

"Run! That shriek just now was definitely a call for its companions!"

Chester Donovan was the first to react. His voice held an unprecedented urgency as he abandoned all pretense of leadership, spun around, and bolted out of the stairwell.

Faced with this terrifying, petrifying creature, some chose to flee, while others chose to fight back.

A red glint flashed in Grisha’s eyes. Without a shred of hesitation, she bit down hard on her fingertip.

A crimson bead of blood welled up. Instead of dripping, it pulsed like a living thing at her fingertip, rapidly condensing and stretching until, in an instant, it transformed into a blood-red whip nearly a meter long with an incredibly sharp edge.

She swung her arm, and the blood whip tore through the air with a piercing shriek, striking the Silenti that had just attacked with pinpoint accuracy.

"CRACK!"

The sharp crack of shattering stone rang out, accompanied by the Silenti’s short, shrill cry.

The seemingly ferocious Imp was shattered by the single blow, breaking apart into several grayish-white stone fragments that clattered onto the mossy ground.

Even Grisha, the one who had attacked, was momentarily stunned. A flicker of surprise crossed her pale face.

’This thing... I didn’t expect its defenses to be so weak. Surprisingly easy to kill!’

She muttered to herself, subconsciously moving to inspect the strange "corpse," perhaps to collect some materials.

At that moment, however, Sean Chandler, who had been on high alert, felt his ears twitch. His superhuman hearing picked up a sound from all directions—a dense, hair-raising cacophony of flapping wings and shrieks, rapidly closing in.

"No time to look! A huge swarm of creatures is closing in fast! They must be the companions that monster summoned! Go, now!" Sean Chandler yelled, his voice strained with anxiety.

At his words, a terrifying image instantly flashed through Seraphina Sullivan’s mind.

Hundreds, even thousands, of Silenti swarming in like a plague of locusts. Countless pairs of eerie green eyes lighting up simultaneously, weaving a deadly web of Petrification beams!

Under an attack like that, they would have nowhere to run. They’d instantly become new stone statues in this dead city, trapped in this instance forever!

"Run!" The word was practically forced through her gritted teeth, filled with absolute resolve.

The same terrifying scene flashed through everyone’s minds. Their survival instincts kicked into overdrive, and they cared for nothing else. Like startled birds, they burst into a panicked sprint, each scrambling in a direction they thought was safe.

In the chaos, Seraphina Sullivan and Sean Chandler subconsciously chose the same direction. Seeing this, Dexter Luther followed them without a moment’s hesitation.

Surprisingly, after a brief moment of hesitation, Grisha’s form flickered, and she too chose their escape route.

The four of them plunged into a narrow alley almost simultaneously, desperately putting distance between themselves and their previous location.

Less than thirty seconds after they fled, the dilapidated stairwell and the surrounding area were engulfed by what looked like a suddenly appearing, grayish-white storm cloud.

A dense tide of Silenti poured in from every corner and window. They hissed, their gray eyes glinting in the dim light. Their sheer numbers were enough to make one’s skin crawl and choke them with despair.

As she sprinted, Seraphina Sullivan subconsciously glanced back, using the Remote Locking Ability of her Analysis Glasses.

The glasses’ display was instantly flooded with icons representing the dangerous Imps—so many they nearly blotted out the entire area behind them!

Even though she was prepared for it, seeing the terrifying, locust-like swarm with her own eyes made Seraphina Sullivan gasp. Her heart nearly stopped.

"Faster! They’re here! There are terrifyingly many of them!" she urged the others, pushing her own speed to its absolute limit.

The shadow of death pursued them, as tangible as a physical thing.

All four moved at speeds far exceeding ordinary people. Weaving through the dead, dilapidated streets and alleys, they soon spotted a half-collapsed entrance leading underground.

With no time to think, the four of them filed inside, taking cover in the relative concealment of the shadows.

He had barely caught his breath when Dexter Luther’s expression hardened. "We have to block the entrance!" he growled.

With a wave of his right hand, he instantly activated his Talent Ability, Shield.

The dry moss and dark green vines clinging to the walls and shattered doorframe of the entrance suddenly squirmed as if injected with life!

They grew at a visible, frenzied pace, weaving together and hardening. In the blink of an eye, they formed a thick, tough shield of vines.

Under Dexter Luther’s Control, the shield sealed the entrance to their hiding place tight, leaving only the faintest cracks for light to filter through. It also perfectly blocked any sound or Aura from escaping.

The instant the vine Shield formed, the hair-raising sound of wings and shrieks swept in from outside. It passed over their hiding spot like a tidal wave before gradually receding, eventually vanishing into the depths of the dead city.

After listening intently for a long while, Dexter Luther finally let out a long sigh of relief once he was sure the terrifying sound had completely faded.

His tense body relaxed, and he subconsciously wiped away the cold sweat that wasn’t there.

"Phew... we’re safe for now."