Chapter 91: Return, Super Recovery

Chapter 91: Chapter 91: Return, Super Recovery

After storing the last Growth Potatoes Tree from the underground cavern into her Space, Seraphina Sullivan didn’t dare linger for a second, immediately leading Sean Chandler and Flora in a swift retreat the way they came.

Outside the cavern, Wessuri’s howls, brimming with terrifying Spirit Power, washed over them in relentless, invisible waves.

Each howl felt like a sledgehammer blow to Seraphina Sullivan’s head. Waves of dizziness and stabbing pain washed over her, and her face grew a few shades paler.

’This Spirit Whip is terrifyingly powerful... It’s impossible to guard against,’ she thought, gritting her teeth and enduring the discomfort.

’I hope the Profession and system mission rewards from the next instance will give me a Spirit Attack or Spirit Defense Skill. Otherwise, I’ll be too vulnerable against enemies like this.’

The moment she burst out of the cavern entrance, the sight that greeted her made Seraphina Sullivan gasp.

The entire Animal Slaughterhouse had descended into absolute, frenzied chaos!

Mutated creatures stampeded everywhere!

There were Cluckers, tusked wild boars, and strange-horned sheep that had escaped from the Slaughter Pasture.

Even the ordinary pigs and sheep, which should have been caged and awaiting slaughter, now seemed to have gone mad. With bloodshot eyes, they rampaged through the grounds, smashing into buildings and attacking any Hogman or chicken-headed Supervisors they saw.

However, Seraphina Sullivan soon noticed something strange.

The animals appeared crazed, but a closer look revealed their movements weren’t completely random.

They seemed to be following some unified command, with the vast majority charging in the same direction.

Namely, toward the core area where Wessuri’s howls originated.

They were launching a near-suicidal charge!

’Something’s not right! These animals... It’s like they’re being controlled!’

Seraphina immediately recalled the intel Dustin Sullivan had mentioned.

’This Ability... Could it be that Native Person temp worker from the chicken slaughterhouse, the one with the [Animal Control] Talent?’

’Is the person who can control animals actually an insider planted by the resistance?’

’Is this a coordinated attack from the inside and out?’

Seraphina Sullivan quickly shook her head, shaking these speculations from her mind.

’Whatever their purpose is, it has nothing to do with me.’

The terrifying power Wessuri displayed made her wary. The tremor originating from the depths of her soul was unmistakable.

’Getting involved in a conflict of this magnitude means instant annihilation at the slightest misstep.’

All she wanted now was to find a safe place to hide, quietly wait out the last few hours, and then go back.

She had already gotten her hands on the instance’s most valuable resource.

She had the Growth Potatoes, and her Space was stockpiled with massive amounts of meat. Her haul was already enormous.

More importantly, her head was throbbing. The mental trauma needed time to heal, and it was no time to stir up more trouble.

Having made up her mind, Seraphina stopped watching the distant battle. Relying on her memory and understanding of the terrain, she carefully led Sean Chandler and Flora around the chaotic stampede and combat zones.

She quickly backtracked along their original path, re-entering the relatively open, but now equally chaotic, Slaughter Pasture.

At the edge of the Slaughter Pasture, she found an abandoned, half-buried tool shed. She barely managed to squeeze inside and had Sean Chandler and Flora stand guard.

Curled up in a dark corner, she endured the continuous aftershocks of Spirit Power and the distant sounds of battle, silently praying for time to pass faster.

Finally, after a wait where every second felt like a year, the system notification, like music to her ears, chimed on schedule in her mind:

[Ding! Survival time has reached seven days!]

[Ding! Main Quest completed!]

[Ding! Calculating instance rewards...]

[Ding! Gained 400 EXP!]

[Ding! Survival Game - Animal Slaughterhouse - Instance Concluded!]

[Ding! Worker Talent - Stealing Master Agreement - Ability Activated!]

[Please choose one of two abilities from the Butcher Profession: ’Butcher’s Skill’ or ’Sharpening Knife’.]

[Commencing return!]

Seraphina Sullivan let out a long sigh of relief, her taut nerves finally relaxing completely.

From the Butcher Profession, she immediately chose the [Butcher’s Skill] Skill.

In a flash of light, her figure vanished silently from the chaotic Animal Slaughterhouse.

The next moment, the familiar sensation of weightlessness and spatial transition faded. Seraphina Sullivan found herself safely back in the real world, in her small but comforting room.

The nauseating stench of blood and the frenzied sounds of slaughter were gone. In their place were the faint, clean scent of laundry detergent in her room and the patter of rain against the window.

The stark contrast in environment and the sudden release from the pressure of death made Seraphina Sullivan’s heart pound. A wave of post-survival euphoria washed over her, along with the impulse to let out a cathartic roar.

She took several deep breaths, ultimately suppressing the urge and settling for a firm pump of her fist.

’The difficulty of instances after Level 2 is insane!’

She muttered to herself, a lingering fear still gripping her as she recalled Wessuri’s Spirit Whip, Harvey Fletcher’s treachery, and how tough Buck Hogan was to deal with.

But then, an irrepressible smile spread across her face.

With great risk comes great reward, and this time, the haul was unprecedentedly bountiful!

Tons of meat, the miraculous Growth Potatoes, a new Skill, and...

’Oh, right! I haven’t checked the Random Potion from completing the full-time worker mission yet!’

Remembering this, she immediately retrieved the rewarded potion from her Space.

The potion was in a transparent glass bottle, and a clear, pale green liquid brimming with vitality sloshed inside.

[Super Recovery Potion]

[Effect: Regardless of the severity of physical trauma (including severed limbs, ruptured organs, etc.), as long as brain death has not occurred, drinking this potion will result in a complete recovery in an extremely short period. (Note: Ineffective against disease, toxins, mental damage, and energy corrosion.)]

’A Super Recovery Potion?!’

Seraphina Sullivan’s eyes lit up instantly.

’Looking at the Effect... this is basically an extra life!’

This was definitely one of the most useful life-saving items she’d acquired yet!

She stored the potion back in her Space.

RUMBLE—!

Outside the window, another blinding flash of lightning tore through the gloomy sky, followed immediately by a deafening clap of thunder.

The rain suddenly grew more intense, lashing against the window pane as if the sky itself had burst open.

Seraphina Sullivan walked to the window. She watched the world outside, which had become a solid curtain of rain, and saw the floodwaters on the street rising visibly. She couldn’t help but mutter, "This rain... If it keeps coming down like this, it’s going to be a disaster."

Just then, her phone suddenly buzzed. The screen lit up, showing a flood of new messages in the "Apocalypse Survival Exchange Group" she had joined.

She picked up her phone and swiped it open.

[Holy shit! The rain’s getting heavier! I’m in a low-lying area, and my first floor is almost flooded! What do I do?!]

[Don’t panic, trust the government! They’ll definitely organize a rescue effort!]

[How do you know? You have inside info?]

[You don’t need to worry about how. Just be ready.]

[Sigh, looks like another wave of Players just got back. I’ve got some scary gossip for you all. You know what happens to people who die in the instance games? Their bodies get teleported back! My neighbor’s son just... ugh, it was a gruesome sight!]

[What?! For real?! That’s terrifying!]

[...]