The group was completely stunned when they saw the goddess statue that had been overturned and shattered into pieces.
The sword is gone, the Holy Water is gone, and all the tools to fight the Headless Knight are gone.
Who exactly destroyed this goddess statue?
It definitely wasn't them, and it couldn't possibly be these villagers.
Is it the Headless Knight? But wasn't he unable to get close to the goddess statue?
But after thinking it over, the Headless Knight is the most likely suspect.
If he could steal the sword, it's not impossible that he might also come and smash the goddess statue while he's at it.
Since it can appear during the day, getting close to the goddess statue doesn't seem to be a problem.
After realizing this, the five people were deeply shocked and even felt a sense of fear.
They'd only been in Instance for a short time, and all the important items were gone.
It seemed as if every step they took was within the Headless Knight's calculations.
What's next?
Forget about clearing the Instance; just surviving these three days is a problem.
But they can't think too far ahead right now; they have to deal with the villagers in front of them first.
By this time, the villagers had surrounded them.
"We didn't do it!" Han Rui shouted. "We didn't destroy the goddess statue!"
We are messengers of the goddess; your actions are a betrayal of Him!
However, her voice had no effect; the villagers were getting closer and closer.
Yan Dahai said, "There's no point in trying to reason with them; they won't listen to anything we say now."
Looking at the villagers, who were acting like crazed beasts, they knew that the only way to solve the current problem was through violence.
"We have no choice but to kill them all!" Lin Feng clenched his fists and said solemnly.
But these villagers are not easy to deal with.
If the villagers were just ordinary people, any one of them could easily solve the problem.
But they were the subjects of that goddess.
Their fanatical faith made them fearless, and their physical strength was greatly enhanced by their extreme anger.
At this moment, the physical strength of these villagers was no less than that of a level 10 Monster System Ability User.
Besides, there are more than 100 of them.
Even if all five of them team up, they can't win.
Qi Lin said, "Killing them all won't be easy. Let's try to break through."
We can't afford to waste too much energy on them; don't forget our real enemy, the Headless Knight, is still around."
"Which way should we run?" Lin Feng asked.
"Run east," Qi Lin quickly recalled the map in the strategy guide and made the decision.
There is a dense forest to the east; perhaps we can find a place to hide there.
The guide mentions that a team once angered these villagers and was chased by them for several days.
They hid in the woods to the east, which allowed them to survive for three days before leaving the Instance.
In a crisis, they couldn't afford to worry about anything else.
Since some people have successfully escaped using this method before, they can too.
Lin Feng suddenly shouted and rushed to the front.
His body underwent tremendous changes as he ran, his arms expanding so much that his sleeves burst open.
He took out a long spear from his inventory and swept it across the crowd, instantly sending more than a dozen people flying.
A gap appeared in the encirclement, and several people rushed out, running forward as fast as they could.
The villagers, like wild beasts, chased after them desperately.
Qi Lin glanced back, and with a thought, a barrier rose between them and the villagers, an invisible barrier separating them from the villagers.
However, there were too many villagers. When more than a hundred people rushed to the barrier, they desperately rammed their bodies against the invisible barrier, and in a short while the barrier was shattered.
The crazed villagers continued their pursuit.
Fortunately, Qi Lin's abilities managed to hold off the villagers for a short while, creating some distance between them.
Even after creating some distance, it was impossible to shake them off in a short time.
These villagers, empowered by their fervent faith, seem to have an inexhaustible power.
If they can't shake off these villagers, it's not impossible that they'll be chased for three days and three nights.
At this moment, Su Su said, "There are many trees ahead. Let's go there; I have a way to stop them."
"Okay, everyone, run faster!"
Lin Feng and Han Rui ran at the front of the group. Their physical attributes were relatively high, so they seemed to be able to move with ease and easily leave the villagers behind.
But it wasn't time to split up and escape yet, so naturally they wouldn't flee alone.
Soon, the group arrived at a forest. Su Su, who was at the back of the group, suddenly stopped.
She stretched out her hand, and the surrounding trees seemed to respond to her call, swaying continuously.
The trees began to grow continuously, and vines sprouted from their branches.
Countless vines danced in the air, spreading rapidly, intertwining and entwining to form a dense net.
The net covered almost the entire forest area, spanning several dozen meters.
The vines that make up the net are exceptionally flexible and covered with sharp, dagger-like thorns, forming a formidable defensive line.
The others also stopped and turned to look at the net woven by Su Su from vines, all showing expressions of horror.
Su Su said proudly, "How about that? Pretty impressive, right? Those people definitely couldn't break through my defenses."
The vines were so dense and covered such a large area that even birds had difficulty breaking through the net they wove together.
And those villagers who had completely lost their minds and were acting like wounded wild beasts were even less likely to be involved.
Soon, the villagers caught up. They completely ignored the vines and rushed forward. Their bodies were quickly entangled by the vines and pierced by the thorns.
One by one, the villagers were bound by vines. They roared and screamed angrily, but for a moment they were unable to break through the large net with brute force.
"These plants can hold out for half an hour, which should be enough time for us to shake them off," Su Su said.
Everyone nodded and kept praising her.
If it weren't for Su Su's abilities, it would have been impossible to shake off those villagers so easily.
The five people quickly walked deeper into the forest, and after walking for several kilometers, they stopped.
They're almost at the edge of the Instance now; they can't go any further.
Once you leave the Instance area, you are very likely to be infected by the evil forces of this world and turn into a mindless, crazed monster.
Even the gods of this world can be corrupted by those evil forces, let alone them.
The group found a place to sit down, and now they could finally rest for a while.
They looked at each other, both feeling a sense of defeat.
When they first entered the Instance, they were full of confidence, thinking they could clear Instance in just one afternoon.
But now, nobody thinks that way anymore.
All the items that could counter the Headless Knight were gone, and they had become enemies with the villagers.
Now their priority should be saving their lives.
As for clearing the Instance, let's leave that opportunity to the people who come after them.
Seeing the low spirits of the crowd, Qi Lin said,
"Those villagers aren't very bright; they probably won't be able to find us for a while."
If we can hold out for three days, we can leave the Instance.
Lin Feng agreed, "Right now, staying alive is the only priority."
Yan Dahai said somewhat angrily, "I thought I was lucky to be matched with this Instance, but I didn't expect it to turn out like this as soon as I Instance."
Qi Lin also said, "This Instance feels a bit off. The Headless Knight is too eerie; it's like it suddenly gained intelligence."
Lin Feng said, "It's not just that they have wisdom, it's like they've read our walkthrough."
It felt like he had calculated every step we took perfectly; he knew exactly what we were thinking.
Lin Feng's words sent a chill down everyone's spine, and Su Su couldn't help but say...
"Do you think the Headless Knight might have already anticipated that we would come here, and was waiting for us?"
These words sent an even greater chill through everyone present.
Han Rui said, "Are you scared out of your wits? How could this be?"
However, not long after she finished speaking, the sound of horses' hooves came from afar.
The sound of hooves was the same as when they first encountered the Headless Knight.