"Aggghhhhhhhhh!"
Yuan Tianzhu immediately turned toward the sound of agony that reverberated through the Black Forest. His hair stood on end from terror, and his eardrums shrank in pain. With twisted eyes and trembling legs, he glanced out of the corner of his eye at Tie Xin—and noticed the guy was already lying on the ground, eyes wide open, face pale as paper, body shivering to the rhythm of the cold wind.
Between his legs, a pungent puddle had formed as a yellowish liquid spilled from him.
"We're going to die… We're going to die… We are going to die!"
His whispers echoed high within the Black Forest.
The wind blew generously, as if announcing a prelude to their fate.
Yuan Tianzhu's face turned into a dark scowl. He looked upon such a humiliating display with disdain. "Damn it, can't you pull yourself together? Pathetic." His eyes, blue as the ocean, became cold as winter and heavy as an elephant. Yet, he couldn't stop his heart from pounding hard and fast. He might have been putting on a brave face to keep up appearances, but he was shaking with fear.
Just by the scream, he could tell it was the ragged old man who had cried out.
"Serves him right…"
However, if he was the Abyss Wraith, why would he be screaming like a pig being slaughtered now? Did he feel pain while transforming?
Yuan Tianzhu didn't know. He didn't know why he was so obsessed with the hypothesis that the ragged old man was the Abyss Wraith King. Such an accusation was nearly unfounded.
But… every time he remembered those cold eyes, a chill crept down his spine. Still, the theory was weak—there were too many parts that didn't add up—
No.
Why should it make sense?
Yuan Tianzhu furrowed his brow, his face dark as if he had swallowed a fly.
From the beginning, none of this had made sense. Being sent into a dangerous trial by a mad doctor whom he thought had wanted to help him. These monsters that fed on the seven emotions…
None of it made any sense!
Suddenly, his eyes widened as a somber light passed through them.
He immediately turned to Tie Xin and delivered two slaps across his cheeks, turning them red as tomatoes.
Tie Xin looked stunned by Yuan Tianzhu's blows. The world seemed to spin for a few seconds before he snapped out of his anguished daze. His eyes were dark and grim.
"What are we going to do…? There's no way we can defeat that horror of a monster!"
"Who said we need to defeat it?"
"???"
Tie Xin nearly stumbled trying to stand up.
"That's right, you heard me," Yuan Tianzhu looked at him with disdain and pity. "You'd better have spare pants, otherwise… tsk tsk."
With that, he turned his back on the man—whose face, streaked with tears and snot, burned red with shame. Yuan Tianzhu didn't pay attention to that detail and slowly walked toward the scream of the ragged old man.
He had already wasted too much time trying to wake Tie Xin from his daze, making him wonder if the ragged old man had already been eaten alive. Not that he would have minded.
'No, Yuan Tianzhu, calm down. Even if he was eaten… you're next. It's just a matter of time before it happens. So don't be like that wretched old fool… I mean, old beauty… no, that sounds wrong… old as death's doorstep… no, that's not it either… aghh! Anyway, I shouldn't count my eggs before they hatch—'
Crunch!
The sound of something being chewed neared his ears, making his skeleton almost jump out of his body from fear.
The black leaves of the Black Forest danced as a dim shadowy light illuminated them awkwardly. Its branches—black and dry as if mummified—swayed with the wind. The smell of blood permeated every corner of the forest, tainting it with the scent of death.
Yuan Tianzhu felt chills on his scalp. He controlled his breathing, which at some point had grown ragged.
With nerves screaming at full voltage, he finally reached the place where they had previously been.
But… he couldn't see the ragged old man.
Nor the young woman.
They had vanished.
The only thing he saw was a pool of blood on the ground—the smell of fresh iron assaulting his nostrils.
Yuan Tianzhu hardened his expression.
"Where did they go? Could it be… they were eaten by the Abyss Wraith King? If so… I hope the young woman died painlessly. And of course… endless pain for that filthy old man."
Yuan Tianzhu hadn't forgotten that the stinking old man had tried to kill him earlier. And he was the type of man who held grudges over small things.
It wasn't obvious at first, but that was the kind of man he was.
A single word that could describe Yuan Tianzhu in all his splendor was: Hypocrite.
Yuan Tianzhu knelt and looked at the pool of blood on the dark floor of the Black Forest.
Sure, he could've arrived faster if he had run. But he chose to walk slowly—he didn't want to face horrors too quickly. His frail mind wouldn't handle so much stimulation. And that had allowed the poor young woman and that filthy old man to die… without even having their bodies intact.
And, of course, Tie Xin and himself would be the dessert, for the Abyss Wraith King had already eaten the main course—if he even considered them as such.
Yuan Tianzhu wore an extremely bleak expression as he thought about this.
The wind blew oddly in Yuan Tianzhu's ears. His hair stood up on end.
Suddenly, he felt a cold and icy touch on his shoulders. His body trembled slightly.
"Who's there?!"
He shouted in fear.
His face was already drenched with cold sweat.
However, when he turned around, he did not find the terrifying, dreary face of the Abyss Wraith King… but rather Tie Xin's pale and sweaty face.
Yuan Tianzhu's heart nearly leapt out of fear.
He looked at Tie Xin with a dark scowl and muttered under his breath
"Damn it! Why did you do that? You almost scared me to death!"
Tie Xin blushed in embarrassment.
"Ugh… I didn't mean to scare you. It's just that… I… I…"
"What is it? Speak clearly!"
"It's just that I was really scared… and… didn't want to be alone…"
When he said that, his voice was as low as an inaudible whisper. He stared at his own feet like a shy girl confessing her love.
Yuan Tianzhu nearly tripped upon hearing him and said:
"Sigh… It's fine. Just don't do that again."
Then, he added in his heart:
'Why didn't you come faster, idiot? I nearly shit myself in fear.'
Then, together—and hand in hand—something they did either unconsciously… or consciously, no one knew.
Still, if it helped calm their screaming nerves, it had to be said: it was a brilliant idea.
Because the two men stopped trembling, and though they still walked slowly, they walked upright—like brave warriors.