Chapter 37: The Insect Village 36

The entire insect-worshiping village was shrouded in thick black fog, leaving not a single glimmer of light. As the death toll rose, the sacrificial altar suddenly erupted with a blood-red radiance. It expanded rapidly, coalescing into a bone-chilling crimson mist.

Silence descended. The villagers’ attacks against the players froze abruptly, as if time itself had stopped. Within the pitch-black altar, only the blood mist remained in motion. Zhou Shan gripped the young girl tightly, as if she might vanish in the next second. His hold was so fierce that it caused Zhou Zhou pain in her waist, but she paid no mind to such trivialities. Pursed-lipped, she raised her eyes from his chest, staring intently at the altar.

The blood mist, satiated by the carnage, grew in strength, and a human silhouette began to flicker within it. A glimmer of joy surfaced in Zhou Shan’s pupils; the Insect God had responded to the summons.

Soon... Once the bloodthirsty insect within her was destroyed, she would belong to him forever.

Zhou Zhou felt the ambient temperature plummet. It was as if she were trapped in a frozen cellar, the biting, Yin-cold chill making even her soul tremble. As the blood mist expanded to an impossible volume, its movement gradually slowed. A dark look flashed in Zhou Shan’s eyes, and he plunged his blade directly into the hearts of Ning Cheng and Ning Yan.

With a wet, tearing sound, blood flooded the ground, and the rate at which the mist consumed the offerings accelerated sharply. Even in his final moments, Ning Cheng’s eyes remained fixed on the girl in Zhou Shan’s arms, filled with intense resentment and covetousness. The girl trembled, her small face pale as a sheet.

Zhou Shan stared coldly at the two, who died with their eyes wide open in disbelief. He drove his blade into their eye sockets, turning their beautiful, striking pupils into a mangled mess of flesh and gore.

"022... Brother... it’s so terrifying..." Even knowing these individuals in the instance were merely NPCs, the scene was so vivid that it felt like witnessing the extinguishing of two real, living souls.

No one noticed that in the distance, a man with black hair and golden eyes was watching the blood mist with apathy. He sliced open his own wrist, and blood began to pour out like a torrential rain. The crimson liquid followed the runes on the altar, quickly flowing into the blood mist, and the figure imbued with terrifying pressure began to grow clear.

But the viewers in the live stream saw it. Thanks to the powerful forum and streaming system of "Escape Game," there was no one who did not recognize the appearance of the top-ranked newcomers.

"Holy cow!! Isn't that Ke Zhi?!"

Ke Zhi, a top-tier player from the previous season—hadn't he died in this very instance long ago? Had he not died, but instead been assimilated by the NPCs, losing his memories and his status as a player?

"His eyes are different. Ke’s eyes weren't golden before..." some viewers murmured.

The people in the chat room stared at the man’s golden pupils. Even through the screen, their minds began to drift into a trance.

"I want to die—"
"Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it—!!! We all deserve to die!!!!"

[System Alert: Respected players, you have been subjected to severe mental pollution. Assimilation level rising—]
[To ensure your mental stability, the Escape Game system has enabled stream shielding for all players—]
[Please continue viewing.]

The screen flickered like static for a few seconds before returning to normal. When the audience looked at Ke Zhi’s eyes again, the sense of mental instability was gone. They appeared to be ordinary eyes, and the previous thoughts felt like nothing more than a hallucination. Yet, they knew the terrifying sensation had been real.

"How horrifying..." A chill surged through the hearts of the viewers.

The altar was like a blood-red abyss. The mist continued to expand, as if it intended to consume everything. Chu Mingxiu and Liang Ye watched the scene with indifference, cutting down villagers like they were slicing through watermelons. The area around them was momentarily empty.

Having cleared the monsters nearby, Liang Ye fixed his gaze on the girl in Zhou Shan’s arms. His expression was dark and sullen, like a man whose wife had been stolen. "Let her go."

Zhou Shan lifted his pitch-black eyes, his handsome face even more grim than the other man's. "By what right do you command me to release Zhou Zhou?"

"A mere sacrifice dares to bark? Are you tired of living?"

Liang Ye didn't waste another word, launching himself into an attack. Every movement he made was imbued with lethal intent and cold-blooded malice. Zhou Shan would not let him attack unopposed, but because the girl was in his arms, he dared not move with full range, and after a while, he began to appear disheveled.

Contemplating this, Zhou Shan set the girl aside with a dark expression. He flashed a bloodthirsty smile at Liang Ye, abandoning his conservative stance and attacking with ruthless ferocity.

As the two men clashed, they failed to notice Chu Mingxiu creeping toward the girl.

"Mm-mm—"

The girl’s mouth was covered, and she was hoisted onto the man’s shoulder, his grip firm on her waist. Tears fell like clear jade beads, leaving faint pink tracks on her snow-like skin. It was a sight at once erotic and alluring.

"Ahhh, stop fighting!! If you keep going, your wife will be snatched away!!"
"Even when she's scared white, Zhou Zhou-wifie is so cute!"
"Every time I see her, I feel like this isn't a horror instance, but some kind of adult doujinshi, hehe."

The girl whimpered and struggled, her movements brushing against Chu Mingxiu’s shoulder, creating an itchy, electric sensation.

"Don't move," he said expressionlessly. "Or I'll fuck you right here."

Zhou Zhou listened to his words in disbelief, and she dared not move again. Chu Mingxiu set her down, his tall frame standing firmly before her in a protective stance.

The blood mist on the altar grew denser, covering more ground, and that terrifying silhouette became increasingly distinct. The bloodthirsty insect within the girl seemed to sense a powerful presence; "He" was about to awaken.

A scent, incredibly seductive, began to permeate the air. It was sweet to the extreme, like a flower in full bloom, ready to fall from the branch at any moment.