Infinite: Dawn Game

Chapter 917 Blood-Red Swamp

A loud crash came from the direction of the main room, accompanied by the sound of wood cracking.

Immediately following was the sharp, yet eerily penetrating cry of a swallow!

"Chirp——!!"

The cry seemed like a command, and the wildly waving claws suddenly paused, their aggression seemingly lessening, but the chaos remained.

"The swallow...it's about to make its move."

He Lingling, who was barely able to stand by holding onto the door frame, felt a pang of anxiety.

"Xiao Han!" Anjie pulled Thumbelina back quickly, shouting, "You carry Lingling and run with us! Hurry!"

Xu Han was stunned by the call, "What? What about Brother Chen—"

"leave me alone!"

Sweat dripped down Chen Yi's face as he shouted, "I can hold them off. Just listen to Sister An."

Xu Han didn't hesitate. He immediately put away the prop and ran towards He Lingling.

He Lingling felt dizzy and her blood churned. Xu Han simply picked her up.

"..."

Chen Yi, who was fighting against "Claw Forest" alone, suddenly felt the pressure increase. He gritted his teeth, quickly threw out a "fruit" item that could temporarily paralyze monsters/players for one minute, and retreated and ran away with an agility that was completely out of character for his bulky body.

The next moment, a huge black shadow shot out from the direction of the main hall like an arrow, swept through the chaotic passage, and headed straight for their location.

It was the swallow that should have been "injured" and asleep.

The enraged old field mouse instantly stopped its tirade. It stared in disbelief at the swallow "causing trouble" in its burrow and gripped its walking stick tightly.

"How is that possible! Shouldn't you be dead already?!"

No one paid any attention to the old field mouse at this moment. After its claws in the walls were briefly paralyzed, the old field mouse was no longer a concern.

Swallow's previously "severely injured" wings now stretched out powerfully, moving at an astonishing speed, its dark eyes fixed on Thumbelina, who was being supported by Ange!

"It's going to take her away!"

Xu Han screamed in fright, carrying He Lingling and running forward desperately, his head covered in sweat.

"Don't even think about it!"

Ange shielded Thumbelina behind her, and a long knife appeared out of thin air in her hand, pointing at the swiftly flying swallow.

A cold, anthropomorphic mockery flashed in the swallow's eyes as the long sword was pointed at it. With a sudden flap of its wings, several black feathers shot towards An Jie like flying knives.

Anjie swung her knife to block, and with a clang, the feather was deflected, but the remaining force still made her arm feel slightly numb.

Taking advantage of the moment, the swallow swooped down, its sharp claws aimed straight for Thumbelina's shoulder.

Thumbelina seemed frozen in fear, staring blankly at the swallow that was rushing towards her.

At the critical moment——

"laugh!"

A figure suddenly darted in, precisely deflecting the swallow's sharp claws.

Fang Youhua appeared nearby at some point, holding a blood-red whip in her hand.

The blood on the whip was a dull, dark color, heavy as if it had been condensed with a lot of blood, and it easily blocked the swallow's attack.

Yang Hua followed behind her, his face pale, staring blankly at the whip in Fang Youhua's hand.

"Fang Youhua?"

Anjie was taken aback, then frowned.

Why did Fang Youhua suddenly step in to help them?

The swallow was startled by the sudden obstruction and stopped abruptly in mid-air, hovering low and clinging to the ceiling of the cave, watching Fang Youhua warily.

Its tiny, black bean-like eyes scanned everyone, as if assessing whether it could "steal" Thumbelina from so many people.

Fang Youhua, who had helped, did not look at Yanzi or Anjie. Her gaze fell on Thumbelina, who was being protected behind Anjie and was trembling. More accurately, it fell on Thumbelina's empty wrist.

"Where's the bracelet?"

Fang Youhua spoke, her voice still gentle, yet carrying an undeniable question, "Did you throw away the bracelet I gave you?"

Thumbelina looked at her blankly, seemingly not understanding.

Anjie and the others felt a chill run down their spines, realizing what had happened.

Seeing that Thumbelina did not respond, a deep pain flashed in Fang Youhua's eyes, but it was quickly covered by coldness.

Under the silent gaze of everyone, she slowly took out the old and tattered straw bracelet that she had picked up from the main room from her pocket.

The moment she took out the bracelet, the strange changes in the cave, which had quieted down, began again.

"Ho... Ah...!!!"

From the depths of the cave came Yu Shijiu's suppressed roar, which sounded like that of a wild beast.

"Shi Jiu!"

Anjie and the others' expressions changed drastically. If the situation hadn't left them no chance to leave, the four of them would have already followed the sound.

Inside the cave, an even more violent, chaotic, and destructive commotion, like a volcanic eruption, emanated from the earth.

Unlike the partial collapse of the cave not long ago, the entire cave now began to shake violently. Large chunks of soil and rubble fell from the ceiling, and the claws on the walls, which had been paralyzed by props, began to twitch and contract wildly, as if they were experiencing great pain and fear.

From the direction of the cave from which Yu Shijiu's roar came, a dark red, blood-red swamp that everyone had seen before, mixed with a tooth-grinding sound of bones grinding, gradually spread and flowed slowly deep into the cave.

This time, the old field mouse's expression changed slightly.

It stared in disbelief at the collapsing burrow in front of it, muttering:

"No! No! This can't be! How could this be! My cave! This is my home, I must be dreaming... Yes, I must be dreaming... This is impossible... This can't possibly happen..."

The swallow clinging to the ceiling opened its beak and let out a sharp, urgent cry. No longer caring about Thumbelina, it flapped its wings violently, seemingly trying to escape the suddenly extremely dangerous burrow.

The old field mouse, realizing that its burrow was really going to be destroyed, began to scream in terror.

"No! No! My burrow! My home! How could this happen?!"

Fang Youhua gripped the old bracelet and whip tightly, looked up at the direction from which the dark red resentment surged from the depths of the cave, glanced at the terrified swallow trying to escape, and finally her gaze fell on the bewildered Thumbelina's face.

She sighed softly, a sigh that seemed to travel through countless years, carrying endless weariness and a sense of relief.

"As expected... I still have to 'go home'..."

She took a step, not toward Yanzi, nor toward Anjie and the others, but toward the deepest part of the cave, facing the gushing dark red mud.

"Sister Fang! Where are you going?!"

Yang Hua screamed in terror from behind. She wanted to chase after them, but stopped in her tracks when she saw the surging, blood-red mud that looked like a volcanic eruption.

Fang Youhua didn't turn around, she just waved her hand, and her figure was quickly obscured by the swirling dust and chaotic claw marks.

As her figure gradually disappeared into the churning, dark red swamp, the collapse around the cave reached its peak.

Large chunks of soil from the cave ceiling peeled off and fell down, while the twitching claws on the distant walls, like boneless snakes, hung limply and were then swallowed by the ever-expanding blood-red swamp.

"Sister Fang—!"

Yang Hua's heart-wrenching screams were drowned out by the deafening roar of the collapsing earth and rocks.

She stood frozen in place, watching helplessly as Fang Youhua's figure disappeared completely into the blood-red swamp that represented the resentment of countless "Thumbelinas." Her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the ground.

Anjie held Thumbelina tightly, her eyes fixed on the direction where Fang Youhua had disappeared.

He Lingling had already struggled off Xu Han's shoulder. Her "Ghost Eyes," which had spread to their extreme, were oozing more blood and tears due to overuse, but she still forced herself to keep her eyes wide open—constantly looking at the past and future through the churning resentment and dust in front of her.

She saw it.

Like Yu Shijiu, Fang Youhua was not swallowed up by those blood-red swamps filled with resentment.

She willingly blended into that blood-red scene.

The moment it touched the edge of the blood-red swamp, the tattered straw bracelet in Fang Youhua's hand emitted a faint, warm golden light, which contrasted sharply with the dark red resentment in front of her.

"gold……"

He Lingling's bloody tears flowed even more profusely, so frightening that Xu Han almost couldn't resist treating her directly.

"He Lingling? Hey! Wake up! If you can't see it, don't force yourself to look. You should be thinking about what we should do next. Thumbelina is on our side..."

Xu Han looked at the blood and tears streaming down He Lingling's face, and his hands and feet went weak with anxiety.

Damn it! What are we going to do? How much blood does a person have in their entire body? At the rate He Lingling is losing blood now, she'll probably be a dried-up corpse in an hour at most!

At this moment, He Lingling could not hear Xu Han's voice at all. She watched as Fang Youhua's body gradually became transparent in the two different lights, as if shedding a layer of shell to reveal something more essential underneath—countless tiny fragments of light and shadow, similar to Thumbelina's face, flowed continuously within her body.

"She...she's also part of 'Thumbelina'..."

He Lingling murmured, her voice trembling.

No, to be more precise, Fang Youhua in the real world... was also the protagonist who experienced the exact same "story" as Thumbelina.

From the depths of the cave came Yu Shijiu's even more frenzied roar. The sound was almost indistinguishable from a human's; it was more like the roar of a wild beast and the terrifying grinding sound of bones dislocating.

"Shi Jiu can't hold on much longer!"

Chen Yi's face was ashen as he swung his sword to cut off the last few claws that were still trying to scratch them as they attacked from the side, all the while speaking urgently.

“We must do something, otherwise he will either be completely assimilated, and very likely—”

Yu Shijiu will likely be buried along with the cave when it collapses.

"We need to follow them."

He Lingling suddenly spoke sharply, weakly raising her hand to point in the direction where Fang Youhua had disappeared.

"As a 'protagonist' similar to Thumbelina, Fang Youhua already knew how to break the loop and complete the game..."

He Lingling's voice trembled. She closed her eyes weakly and murmured under the shocked gazes of the others:

"Fang Youhua just doesn't want to clear the game so quickly. I suspect she already guessed that this guild competition dungeon was a virtual adaptation and re-creation based on her memories... The bracelet she's holding is the key. Whether my guess is right or wrong, we have to go and see."

Chen Yi, An Jie, and Xu Han quickly realized what was happening and instinctively started to walk into the blood-red swamp that was constantly spreading and flowing deep into the cave.

But almost at the same time, a desperate shriek escaped from the throat of the swallow that had been clinging to the ceiling, trying to find a way out.

"Chirp—"

The swallow discovered that all passageways to the outside world—including the hidden ventilation shafts it had secretly left in the warehouse when it arrived—had been blocked by wildly growing claws and collapsed earth and rocks.

This burrow, which the swallows once regarded as a "transfer station" and "warehouse of goods," has now become a real prison, trapping all creatures.

For the first time, genuine fear appeared in Yanzi's eyes.

Instead of trying to take Thumbelina away from Ange, it frantically rammed its beak and claws against the walls around it, desperately trying to carve out a way out.

The group was stunned into stopping in their tracks by Yanzi's sudden outburst, including Yang Hua, who was trembling the whole time.

Yang Hua looked at the swallows that kept crashing against the wall, a look of bewilderment flashing in his eyes.

She heard what He Lingling said earlier.

Perhaps because it was nearing the end, the "living" players didn't deliberately lower their voices to discuss things behind her back.

...But what can I do after hearing all this?

Looking at the chaotic and absurd scene around him, Yang Hua's mind was filled with the words He Lingling had just said.

"As a 'protagonist' similar to Thumbelina, Fang Youhua already knew how to break the loop and clear the game..."

"Fang Youhua just doesn't want to finish the game so quickly..."

...Don't want to finish the game so quickly?

why?

Why doesn't Sister Fang want to finish the game so quickly?

She already knew that this guild tournament dungeon was adapted from her memories... and she knew that if they had just tried a little harder and been a little braver, they could have won.

why?

Yang Hua took a step back weakly, his calves buckled, and he knelt down on the ground, his whole body shivering with cold.

She had never been as clear-headed as she was since entering the "Thumbelina" instance.

...Fang Youhua didn't seem to be really focused on winning the match.

When did it start?

Yang Hua trembled all over, forcing himself to recall the events.

It seems... it seems that after escaping from the pond, from the swarm of toads... Fang Youhua's spirits have never been very high.

From the moment they entered the cave, players of "Eye of All Things" died one after another. Fang Youhua, however, did not feel sad or anxious about it. She just drifted out of the room alone in the middle of the night, like a ghost. Yang Hua had no idea what she did when she went out alone at night.

Perhaps he was looking for clues... or perhaps he was forcing himself to recall those unpleasant memories of her.

Anjie and the others hesitated for a few seconds as they passed by Yang Hua, who was kneeling on the ground, with Thumbelina in tow.

In the end, with An Jie's tacit approval, Chen Yi reached out and helped the other person up.

"Get up."

Chen Yi used his wrist to pull Yang Hua up from the ground.

Yang Hua shivered and looked up warily at the "alive" people in front of him.

"She didn't intend to drag you down with her."

He Lingling looked at Yang Hua and suddenly said.