Night of Despair

Thud.

Yu Hong and the other two collapsed on the ground, feeling sore and exhausted, gasping for air.

The intense breathing caused whirls of air to swirl throughout the cave for a moment.

"I told you... to trust me, didn't I?" Yu Hong's face was pale as he spoke in fits and starts.

"This door?" Stutter still couldn't understand; this wooden door wasn't like this before. How could it have changed so drastically in just one day?

"What on earth did you encounter, what was that creature just now..." Yu Hong didn't answer, but looked toward Doctor Xu, trying to get information from her, as communication was too slow with Stutter.

Doctor Xu's face was pale, with traces of blood slowly seeping out from her calf. Hearing his words, she carefully examined the enhanced wooden door and then observed the other areas of the cave.

"This is the safe haven you've built..." Boom!!!

At that moment.

A loud noise abruptly cut her off.

In the midst of the boom, the door shook violently once again, fine stone dust sprinkling from the surroundings.

Hiss!

A muffled, strange hissing sound came from outside.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!!!

Followed by a series of rapid, frantic collisions.

This time, the force was much greater than before.

The enhanced wooden door trembled under the immense pressure, emitting a fine shaking sound.

The three were startled for a moment, then quickly realized what was happening.

"It's that monster!! It hasn't left!!"

Doctor Xu screamed, her voice much shriller than usual, almost changing pitch entirely.

Yu Hong and Stutter didn't speak; they rushed forward to brace the door with their shoulders.

Seeing this, Doctor Xu gritted her teeth and stood up to help brace the door.

Bang! Bang! Bang!!

The relentless, powerful impacts caused the enhanced wooden door to shake continuously, the securing screws around the frame getting looser.

"Hold it!!" Yu Hong roared.

One blow after another.

The three desperately braced against the door, counteracting the shaking from the collisions.

They all knew that if the door were to be shattered, everything would be over.

So they put forth every last bit of effort they had.

One minute.

Two minutes.

Five minutes.

Ten minutes.

Until thirteen minutes passed.

Outside, the heavy rain slowly subsided, and the overcast sky cleared a bit of its clouds.

Between the clouds, finally, sunlight filtered down, like beams of straight golden pillars.

Boom!!

The final loud noise.

Their bodies were violently shaken, and the door's surroundings now showed clear cracks, about to fall off from the cave's entrance wall.

Hiss!!

That giant tick monster emitted one last strange roar and at last stopped hitting the door, beginning to retreat.

The roar quickly faded into the distance, eventually vanishing completely.

The three still braced against the door without moving, in case the creature decided to return for a sudden attack.

They waited for more than ten minutes.

As the golden sunlight gradually seeped through the gaps of the lookout window, Yu Hong finally understood that it must be safe.

Thud.

He collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

So exhausted, they had almost allowed their defense to be penetrated, almost shattering the door.

Given their state at that moment, if they had been breached, the outcome was clear. Certain death.

In their condition, having resisted until nearly powerless, they wouldn't have been able to escape far.

Fortunately, it was all over.

Huff, huff, huff.

The breathing of the three sounded like bellows, sweat dripping from their foreheads and cheeks and falling to the ground, dotting it with black marks.

"It's safe now... it should be, the sun is out..." Yu Hong stood up, swiftly sliding open the lookout window to look outside.

Through the wire mesh, the sunlight streamed in, carrying with it a damp, cool breeze that hit his face, causing him to shiver slightly.

After scanning through the window left and right, he was fully convinced that the monster was gone and finally relaxed completely.

Turning back, he looked at the other two who were still sitting on the ground.

"What was that thing just now? How did you come across it?"

"That's a large blood tick from the Blood Tide, we normally call it Big Skin," said Doctor Xu, wiping off her sweat and carelessly smearing it on her grimy coat.

"But it shouldn't be showing up at this time, it usually only appears occasionally during the high tide, and it's not normally this aggressive and dangerous!"

Thinking of this, she forced herself to stand.

"It's no good, there must be some problem. We can't stay here, we must pack up immediately and head to the town's stronghold! We alone can't stop Big Skin!"

Anxiety tinged her expression.

"Yu Hong, hold on, we did!" Stutter stood up, also wiping his sweat with his sleeve, pointing at the enhanced wooden door.

She pointed it out unintentionally, which made Yu Hong and Doctor Xu notice the damaged crack by the door.

"How will it hold up next time? What will happen when the Blood Tide comes?" Doctor Xu said somberly.

She turned her head to look at Yu Hong.

"I don't know how you managed to create such a sturdy door, but the Blood Tide is almost upon us, and just one Big Skin almost broke through it. Do you think you can handle it? Do you think you can survive staying here?" She pointed at the crack in the wooden door and raised her voice.

"..." Yu Hong fell silent. He placed a hand on the door and looked at the characters that appeared on it—Repair Time: 17 minutes.

The fact it could still be repaired was something he hadn't anticipated.

Moreover, right now, to the average person, it indeed seemed that seeking refuge in town was the best option, but...

His eyes flickered.

If he went, many things about him were likely to slip up. And besides...didn't it hold up this time?

Though the door had almost broken, it was due to being unprepared this time. After reinforcing it with a few more bars or chains, it ought to be much easier.

"I don't want to go," Yu Hong finally spoke.

"I, too..." Stuttering Yiyi glanced at the cracked door and also spoke up.

But before she could finish, Doctor Xu interrupted her.

"Are you mad? The door's nearly broken, and you're still not leaving? What if during the Blood Tide two Big Skins come at us?!" Doctor Xu couldn't understand.

Her breathing quickened again as she stared at Yu Hong.

"I appreciate you opening the door to save us just now, but this isn't the time to be stubborn. Do you really think your nearly broken door can withstand the Blood Tide? You're courting death, you know that?"

"Is there no danger in going to the town? When people gather together, won't the shadows become even more troublesome?" Yu Hong retorted, his emotions steadying at this point.

After a great deal of fear and tension, his mood had actually calmed.

"Yes, but the committee is there; they have ways to deal with it, certainly much safer than facing a Big Skin here!" Doctor Xu said loudly.

Yu Hong shook his head. "Thanks, but I don't want to go." He now felt that everywhere was dangerous, the outside was dangerous, nowhere was as safe as the cave house he had built for himself.

At least now, the Black Mark was visible and could enhance his safety.

After the door was repaired, if he intensified the reinforcement measures, facing a Big Skin next time would be much safer.

But he couldn't voice these thoughts.

Because he couldn't explain how he was able to do it.

A security door that was perfectly constructed out of nowhere, in an environment lacking materials and components...it was already an abnormal situation.

"You've lost your mind!" Doctor Xu stared at Yu Hong in disbelief. "You really are insane! You're going to get yourself killed!"

She pointed at the door.

"Although I have no idea how you got hold of this processed security door, it won't hold back the Blood Tide. The Blood Tide is different from normal times. If a Big Skin like we just faced appears, there might be several that come together during the Blood Tide. You won't be able to stop them!"

She began to persistently persuade them.

But no matter what she said, Yu Hong just shook his head.

He didn't trust that the town's security measures were better than his own, even if it might be truly safer to go to the town's bunker.

But he didn't want to entrust his safety to an uncontrollable outside force or completely unfamiliar others.

So no matter what Doctor Xu said, he shook his head.

Finally, seeing that she couldn't convince Yu Hong, Doctor Xu turned to Yiyi.

"Yiyi, there's no talking to him. Let's go!"

Yiyi quieted down, turned her head to look at Yu Hong.

"Stay, together," she stammered.

Clearly, Doctor Xu's words hadn't persuaded Yu Hong, but they had convinced her.

After all, the damaged reinforced wood door was already under too much strain. If another Big Skin hit it a few more times, it was sure to be the end.

Yu Hong couldn't provide any explanation, any reason to back up his decision.

He just remained silent.

"Yu, Hong!" Yiyi looked at him, "Let's go, together."

She patted his arm, her expression clear.

But Yu Hong just shook his head.

"You guys go. I don't want to go."

He knew the bunker in town would surely deal with monsters like Big Skin; otherwise, the town would've fallen to the Blood Tide long ago. There wouldn't have been any chance to gather information on Big Skin.

It really would be more appropriate for the two of them, Yiyi and Doctor Xu, to go there.

But he didn't want to go.

He felt no sense of safety for anything outside, only his own cave was secure enough!

And even if he went there, given his current frail physique, once he revealed the capabilities of the Black Mark, the danger could be much greater than staying in the cave.

After all, the human heart is oftentimes harder to guard against.

Monsters, though terrifying, are straightforward and brutally simple.

"Don't worry about me, Yiyi. I can repair the door myself, no problem. Just need to avoid attracting several Big Skins. My cave entrance is high and not suitable for monster assaults; it's just about surviving a few days. Be at ease," Yu Hong assured Stuttering Yiyi now.

Yiyi blinked her eyes looking at him, wanting to speak and persuade him further, but Yu Hong raised his hand to stop her.

"Go on, it's alright," Yu Hong said softly, "You've also helped me for a long time, now it's time to part ways. Of course, if you encounter any difficulties later, you can come here to find me. Whatever I can help you with, I certainly will."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of enhanced pyroxene, stuffing it into Stuttering Yiyi's hand.

"He doesn't want to go, let it be! He's asking for it! Don't bother with him!" Doctor Xu, truly exhausted from her attempts at persuasion and seeing Yu Hong's determined attitude, also gave up.

"Stubborn to the core! Let's leave, Yiyi, we must set out now, and we can still make it in time!" She grabbed Yiyi's hand and walked to the door, looked out the peephole to ensure the outside was clear.

Yiyi, being pulled by her, turned back to pull at Yu Hong.

"Let's go, together," she said with an urgent look on her face.

But Yu Hong pushed her hand away.

"Yu, Hong?" she asked, puzzled.

"I'll be fine. Go on, you and Doctor Xu should stick together, you can keep an eye on each other." Yu Hong looked at her, speaking earnestly.

"Doctor Xu, take good care of Yiyi please. If you face difficulties, you can come here. Though it may not be as good as the town, it's enough to survive."