This world was dangerous.
Extremely dangerous.
Over the last couple of weeks since his arrival, Yu Hong had fully realized this.
As an ordinary person, his survival knowledge was far less than Stammering Yiyi and the others', and his physical abilities also lagged behind significantly.
Even Stammering Yiyi and Doctor Xu were having a hard time. If he relied solely on himself, there was no way he could manage.
So... he had to make use of the one unique advantage he had over others, the greatest advantage, the Black Mark.
The sun was shining, marking the start of a new morning.
In front of a stranger's tiled house in Baiqiu Village.
Yu Hong and Stammering Yiyi, clad in dirty clothes, with greasy hair clumped together like dreadlocks, stood at the doorway, gazing inside.
The inside of the house was shrouded in darkness, continuously emitting a chilling aura. A subtle, cold wind occasionally seeped out, accompanied by a moldy stench and an unknown foul odor.
The sunshine halted at the doorway, dividing the house into two distinct worlds.
"Inside, there's the pipe I need," Yu Hong said in a deep voice.
"How... do we get it?" Stammering Yiyi asked seriously, also in a low voice.
She seemed to be mimicking Yu Hong.
"A shadow could appear at any moment, so I need to be quick," Yu Hong said.
A heater was essential for warmth in their safehouse cave, but burning fire in a closed space was dangerous, so the smoking pipe was indispensable!
So... at this moment, as he looked at the dim interior of the house, a look of determination appeared in his eyes for the first time.
"Sorry... I'm just too scared..."
To achieve safety, he first had to confront danger.
There was no other choice.
"Let's go."
Gripping the enhanced white stone in his pocket, Yu Hong took large strides into the house.
Stammering Yiyi followed behind him, also carrying a bag of white stones, nervously glancing around.
Crunch.
As soon as their feet stepped into the house and entered the dim area, they suddenly felt a chilling cold creep up from their ankles.
At that moment, the enhanced white stone and the regular white stone simultaneously activated, sending streams of cold energy to counteract the chill.
"Something's wrong, quick!" Yu Hong instantly realized there was a shadow here, and immediately accelerated, rushing toward the depths of the house.
He had inspected many houses, and the chimney here was the most suitable, the longest, so this time, he was determined to get it!
The two swiftly crossed the open space and reached the innermost wall.
There lay a metallic, square stove with a vertical metal chimney pipe attached to one corner.
The chimney pipe extended upwards two meters before taking a side turn, reaching over three meters long, protruding through a round hole in the wall.
"This is it! Grab it!" Yu Hong's eyes lit up as he lunged forward and grabbed the chimney pipe.
Poof.
He pulled hard.
It didn't budge.
He looked down.
The chimney pipe was welded to the corner of the square stove, immovable.
Just as he was about to exert more force, he suddenly caught a glimpse from the corner of his eye of a small door leading to a bedroom, quietly cracking open in the house's corner.
Inside, amidst the darkness, stood a gray figure whose face was obscured.
The figure stood there motionless, gazing in this direction.
At the same time, an even more intense chill surged from the small bedroom door.
"Yiyi!!" In a panic, Yu Hong shouted, gripping the enhanced white stone as his muscles tensed, ready to strike.
Meanwhile, he glanced behind him at Stammering Yiyi.
But...
"!!!"
No one was there.
Not only was Yiyi gone, but even the stove with the chimney had vanished.
Yu Hong turned his gaze again and saw Stammering Yiyi, cradling the stove and dragging the chimney pipe, had reached the doorway and was about to leave.
The heavy stove seemed no more than a foam box in Stammering Yiyi's hands, with no hindrance at all.
"Run! Yu!" Stammering Yiyi had just dashed into the sunlight and realized Yu Hong wasn't with her. She turned back in confusion and saw Yu Hong still standing in place, and she shouted urgently.
"....." Yu Hong was speechless.
But by then, he was already being targeted by a shadow.
And the power of the enhanced white stone continuously streamed out, fighting against the rigid sensation.
"I...."
"I....!!"
Yu Hong was trembling, standing in place, unable to break free, tightly clenching the enhanced white stone in his hand like a machine on the verge of collapsing.
Beads of sweat dripped from his forehead and hairline, his pupils already dilated, *and the intense fear almost threatened to drown his heart in its tidal waves.*
*'I'm... so scared....'*
"It's terrifying..."
"Why is this place haunted by such horrifying entities?!"
*'Why....'*
*'Why....'*
*'Why....'*
*'Why....'*
Instantly, countless questions, like crawling insects, frantically filled Yu Hong's entire being, saturating his consciousness and thoughts.
But at that moment, he was plunged into a bizarre battle, with the shadow's power and the enhanced pyroxene's power canceling each other out, using his body as the battlefield.
In this state of confrontation,
Yu Hong suddenly sensed something behind him.
Click.
He heard a faint sound.
As if shoes were stepping on the earthen floor of the house, lightly.
The sound of moving shoes, one step after another, seemed to be approaching him, slowly, from behind.
Step by step.
The footsteps were rhythmic, unhurried and unflustered, steadily approaching Yu Hong.
Soon, the wooden door of the house began to silently close, shutting out the bright sunlight and Stammering Yiyi.
Yu Hong was terrified, his body trembling uncontrollably as tears and sweat trickled down his cheeks.
Yet, in that instant, he was powerless, only able to watch the door draw closer and shut slowly.
Helplessness.
A profound sense of helplessness continuously surged from within him.
"I...." He opened his mouth, attempting to speak.
Suddenly, a hand reached from behind and gripped his hand tightly!
Ah!!!!
In that moment, Yu Hong felt as if struck by lightning, letting out a piercing scream.
He jumped up, spinning around to pull a thick wooden club embedded with numerous nails and enhanced white stones from beside his pant leg, swinging it back in fury.
The wooden club, as it was driven by the utmost terror within Yu Hong, sliced through the air with a deep, resonant whoosh.
Amidst the chaotic sound of the air being ruptured, a resounding crash!
Bang!!!
The club slammed into a white silhouette behind Yu Hong, splitting it in two. It shattered into fragments and dissipated in a steaming vapor.
"Aaaahhhh!!!!" Yu Hong raised the spiked club and, without pausing, lunged toward the other gray shadow by the bedroom door.
Quickly.
Boom!!!
An enormous crash followed.
The club pounded into the door frame, creating a deep indentation.
Under such an intense counterattack, the gray shadow also shattered instantly, becoming a heap of gray cloth scraps scattered on the ground, evaporating.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!!
Yu Hong's eyes were filled with bloodshot veins as he continued to frantically strike against the position of the gray shadow with the spiked club.
Only when the doorframe started to splinter and wobble did he regain his senses.
Seeing the shadow vanish, he charged out the door, returning to the sunlight, still holding onto the club.
Huff!
Huff!
Huff!
Panting heavily, he slowly bent down, crouching on the ground.
Beside him, Stammering Yiyi watched him blankly, unsure how to offer comfort.
Just moments ago, she was prepared to rush inside to rescue him, but seeing Yu Hong's sudden outburst had startled her, leaving her at a loss, waiting for the outcome.
And the outcome was Yu Hong himself rushing out, wildly smashing two shadows into pieces, and then, overwhelmed by fear, crouching on the ground gasping heavily....
"Yu...." After waiting for a while, Stammering Yiyi hesitantly asked in a low voice.
"I'm... sorry..." Yu Hong's voice trembled, drenched in sweat as if just plucked from a pool.
"I was just... too scared..."
Having calmed down a bit, his emotions began to stabilize.
He slowly stood up and turned to face Stammering Yiyi.
His expression was full of pain, helplessness, pitiful.
"They... they... scared me..."
He kept swinging the spiked club as if expressing his intense emotions through body language.
"I was so scared...."
Yu Hong's face twitched.
"So I had to smash them... I know what I'm doing... but... if I didn't shatter them... I was afraid... afraid they'd chase after me...!"
"It's okay..." Stammering Yiyi blinked, retreating a step due to the wild swings of the spiked club, feeling somewhat creeped out.
"Now, it's okay, relax, relax!!" Stammering Yiyi raised her hands, trying hard to soothe him.
Yu Hong realized his state of mind was off too, so he began taking deep breaths.
Inhale.
Exhale.
After about thirty breaths,
He finally felt much calmer physically.
"Good thing I prepared everything in advance." He put down the thick wooden club, feeling a wave of fatigue wash over him.
He was someone who tried to prepare everything thoroughly before undertaking any task.
Just like this time, when he entered the house to steal the chimney pipe, he had allocated his few enhanced white stones in advance.
Three were embedded in the club; or rather, holes were dug, and they were tied in place with string.
Looking back, this method had been very useful.
"Is it okay... now?" Stammering Yiyi asked cautiously, watching him.
"I'm sorry...." Yu Hong reluctantly shook himself, "I was too agitated...."
"....." Stammering Yiyi shook her head, indicating she wasn't scared. "Actually... I have also, seen...."
She picked up the stove and chimney pipe, and together with Yu Hong, headed back.
Talking along the way, she shared stories of people she'd seen before.
From her narrative, Yu Hong learned that others had fallen into extreme fear, much like him.
Some also exploded with madness, resisting like him.
But Yu Hong was different from them.
After their resistance, those people merely exhausted themselves, trapping themselves in perilous situations.
But Yu Hong smashed the shadows and then bolted, only relaxing when he reached a safe area.
In extreme emotional outbursts, it's unusual for a person to know how to conserve strength.
Yet Yu Hong managed to do it.
Not only did he smash the shadows, but he saved enough energy to turn and flee.
This made him very special.