Night of Despair

Their eyes locked.

A wave of unease exploded in Yu Hong's heart.

An extremely nauseating discomfort surged from his stomach.

His abdomen cramped and ached as numbness spread throughout his body, uncontrollably stiffening.

An indescribable fear gushed from his heart, flooding his entire being.

Black veins, branching like tree roots, began to protrude around his eyes.

The veins grew thicker and thicker as if they were about to burst.

But at that moment, an icy breath flowed from the enhanced white stone in his pocket, rushing into the outer thigh.

This breath, like a steel nail, fiercely penetrated the stiffening body of Yu Hong.

It pulled him out of his rigidity.

Bang!

His legs weakened, and he fell helplessly to the ground, his eyes finally breaking away from the other's gaze.

Huff!

Huff!

Huff!

Lowering his head, Yu Hong breathed heavily, feeling the stiffness in his body quickly alleviated by the enhanced white stone in his pocket.

A strong sense of relief after surviving a disaster welled up inside him.

Daring not to look outside again, he quickly pulled out the enhanced white stone and noticed that the red symbol on the stone's surface was emitting an extremely faint red glow.

If not looked at closely, it would be invisible.

"Good treasure!" He rejoiced internally, immensely grateful that the white stone was his first choice for enhancement.

Since the first time when he used it to rescue himself from a stutter, he realized how vital this object was.

Fortunately, he was not wrong.

Sitting on the ground, he slowly retreated away from the window, not daring to look around carelessly again. Who could have imagined that even a mere glance could be dangerous in this haunted place?

"But why... Why didn't a stutter and Doctor Xu encounter any danger when they went out?"

"Did they have some other protective means?"

A hint of doubt arose in Yu Hong's mind.

But soon, the immense depletion made him feel tired and sleepy once again.

So weak...

This body...

Clutching the enhanced white stone tightly in his hand, he crawled back onto the bed, and using the stinky grey-white blanket, he waited a while to ensure nothing could enter from the doors and windows before he finally relaxed and fell back into a deep sleep.

He didn't know how much time had passed.

Perhaps a few hours, or maybe a whole day.

When Yu Hong woke up again, a stutter was busy doing this and that in the room.

"You, awake?" She noticed the movement, quickly turned her head, and happily looked at Yu Hong on the bed.

"Come... eat." She quickly brought over a bowl of dark mush and began feeding Yu Hong.

Without realizing, Yu Hong swallowed the last spoonful of mush, and his body felt much more comfortable.

"Is there more?" he asked.

A stutter got up and searched around for a while, but this time, it seemed there was none left.

She searched for quite a while but couldn't bring any more dark mush.

"Eat... finished…" She soon returned to the bedside, somewhat disappointed.

Yu Hong sat up, slowly got out of bed, walked to the corner of the room, and saw the barrel she had been searching through.

It seemed to be the barrel where the dark mush's raw materials were stored.

It was a mixed-color powder, with some residue still at the bottom of the barrel.

He leaned over the edge of the barrel and saw that indeed, there was none left.

Gurgle~

Suddenly, a stomach growling noise came from behind.

It was a stutter.

She blinked her eyes, touched her stomach, and giggled foolishly.

Yu Hong turned to look at her.

"Didn't you eat?"

"Hehehe... forgot…" A stutter giggled in response.

It turned out she had given him all the remaining food.

Yu Hong felt a bit helpless; he couldn't fathom how this girl managed to survive in such a dangerous environment.

All he knew was that he felt somewhat guilty.

"What will we do then? Where did you get this food? I'm feeling better now; I can help look for more," he said earnestly.

"No.. problem. Yiyi, strong!" A stutter patted her chest, showing a carefree expression.

"I, helped, you. You, help me, find, my dad, and grandpa." She continued, popping out words one by one.

"That's why you saved me?" Yu Hong understood. Having a request was good; it provided him an opportunity to repay her.

He didn't like owing people favors, let alone such a life-saving grace.

"Yes!" A stutter vigorously nodded.

"Alright! If I'm able, I'll definitely help," Yu Hong nodded, although the environment was perilous and harsh, the Black Mark on the back of his hand also gave him a glimmer of hope for the future.

Based on the Black Mark's ability, if everything could be enhanced, then perhaps he could use this to build a safer cabin or even a stronghold!

After personally testing it, the windows and doors of this house couldn't block those strange and dangerous things outside.

Whether it was the previous person in white, the black bugs, or the unknown horror that had just disguised itself as Doctor Xu.

None could be blocked.

"By the way, I wanted to ask, while you were away..." Yu Hong quickly recounted the events that had occurred.

After listening to the description, Stutter's expression grew solemn.

"It's... a shadow!" she answered.

"That was also a shadow??" Yu Hong frowned.

"Let me answer that question," Doctor Xu's voice came from outside again.

Stutter quickly went over, opened the door, and happily welcomed her in.

Doctor Xu had changed her outfit, now dressed in mountain climbing gear, a camouflaged tight suit, and a large backpack on her back, indicating she was likely planning to go into the mountains.

Entering the door, she glanced over Yu Hong.

"In this place, within the Black Disaster, the shadows that often appear are of two types: one is the white shadow you previously encountered, and the second is the Disguiser you just mentioned."

"The danger level of the white shadow is manageable—just carefully watch the other party without blinking and you can safely get away. Also, luminous stone can restrain it and temporarily disperse it.

But the Disguiser is troublesome; you must stay vigilant at all times and not trust anything outside the agreed-upon circumstances," Doctor Xu said seriously, staring at Yu Hong.

"Agreements are extremely important here!"

"Agreements?" Yu Hong seemed to recall something.

"Yes, anyone splitting from their companions must set clear agreements beforehand. What's the passphrase when you regroup, under what circumstances you can open doors or windows, etc.—all these must be agreed upon in advance. Otherwise... the Disguiser will take advantage and kill one by one." Doctor Xu sighed.

"That's also why all residents of Baiqiu Village live alone. Even during the day, the Disguiser might appear and attack."

The Disguiser.

This new concept caused an insight to uncontrollably rise in Yu Hong's mind.

He might have a hard time going back... back to his former life.

"Could you... take me outside to look around, I want to see outside, see if it's possible to get to the city..." Yu Hong paused, then spoke up.

"Bring the luminous stone, the white stone, as long as you go out in broad daylight, it won't be a problem, but make sure to control the time of your return," Doctor Xu replied. "Also, although the Disguiser can appear during the day, generally only those who are physically weak will see them. If you are healthy and normal, you won't be able to see them."

Yu Hong immediately understood.

"Isn't there some way or means to kill these monsters!?" he asked in a deep voice.

"No, as far as we know, neither have we discovered any, nor have governmental departments figured it out," Doctor Xu shook her head. "Alright, Yiyi and I plan to head out for a bit, if you're coming, hurry up. Baiqiu Village doesn't accommodate the useless; you've been burdening Yiyi for a long time."

She seemed quite dissatisfied with Yu Hong, her gaze towards him rather hostile.

"I remember the debt of saving my life," Yu Hong said earnestly.

"First, try to survive on your own," Doctor Xu snorted, laughing dismissively, not bothering to look at Yu Hong again, and started talking to Stutter.

Soon, Stutter started to prepare the supplies needed for the trip.

Yu Hong had recovered quite a bit physically and also began to pack.

He didn't mention the enhanced white stone; not sharing it meant he couldn't explain where the enhanced white stone came from, but given the abilities of the Black Mark, this would definitely become his greatest reliance going forward.

He wasn't sure if others also had this ability; too little information was available, so first, gathering as much intelligence as possible was the most important.

This place was too dangerous; every step had to be taken with extreme caution.

"I'll repay you." Thinking this, Yu Hong spoke up again, repeating himself.

Doctor Xu didn't even look at him, pretending not to hear. Clearly, she felt that if Yu Hong didn't burden Stutter, that was enough.

Soon, a large sack was packed and placed on the ground.

Doctor Xu picked it up carefully and placed it on Stutter's back. The sack was filled with white stones marked with symbols.

"First, head to Old Yu's place to exchange for food, then to the open-air mine to dig for luminous stone, and finally collect pigments. Including the time to return, we must reach Old Yu's place within an hour. We can rest overnight at the mine and then collect the pigments tomorrow before returning," Doctor Xu planned.

"Is it far?" Yu Hong frowned; he felt his physical strength might be an issue, not yet fully recovered.

"You better not go, you can't keep up. Just walk around nearby and come back," Doctor Xu said coldly. "Light candles at night, keep a tight grip on luminous stone during the day, don't open the door for anyone, don't look outside at random, then there shouldn't be much of a problem. This is also a test for you; if you can't pass it, it means you can't adapt to this environment, and you won't live much longer—a quick death is a quick release."

"..." Isn't that a bit too direct?

Yu Hong was speechless.

"Yiyi has saved many people; I was also saved by her before, but you know, those people she saved..." Doctor Xu wanted to say more, but Stutter tugged at her dress.

Realizing it, she immediately stopped talking. This time, she completely ignored Yu Hong, took the stuff, and opened the door, leaving with Stutter.

Yu Hong paused for a moment, took the house keys, and followed them out.

He had decided to go outside and take a look.

Regardless, securing sources for food and drink was a priority; he couldn't keep relying on a disabled little girl.

Moreover, most importantly, only by understanding more could he figure out more effective ways to survive, to cope.

With a click, he stepped out the door and closed the house door behind him.

The three of them lined up in single file, walking to the left along the gravel path outside the door.

The outdoor temperature was gentle, neither cold nor hot, and the sunshine felt faintly warm on their skin.

Of the three, Doctor Xu led the way, followed by Stutter, then Yu Hong.

Following the winding gravel path for a few minutes, they reached the village exit.

The end of the gravel path connected to a black dirt road.

The dry black dirt road, wide enough for two vehicles to drive side-by-side.

The road was dark and winding, passing through deserted green fields on both sides, stretching far into the dense, mysterious forests down the mountain.

Yu Hong noticed that the edges of the black dirt road had little weed growth and were lined with two rows of black wooden fences.

Many parts of the fence had already decayed and were covered in moss.

"This is the only old highway leading outside," Doctor Xu began. "Follow it straight for about thirty li, and you'll reach the nearest town. But it might be more dangerous there than here; the more people there are, the more danger, the more it attracts those dangerous beings."

"Let's go." She stepped off the gravel path first, onto the black dirt road.