Hand in Hand

"What happened?"

Chen Jing's urgent inquiry came through the channel.

The sound quality in the headset had been excellent, but at this moment, it seemed somewhat unclear.

Under the Crimson Moon, all the fish seemed to be shouting loudly, like an indescribable scene of madness. They struggled, their mouths opening and closing, their tails slapping the ground forcefully. The sounds pouring from their mouths seemed to converge into a terrifying power, wave after wave, piercing the ears of Lu Xin and the others like sharp needles.

In this situation, the three members of the investigation team also nervously clutched their guns, looking around, even forgetting to reply.

"It's the source of pollution..."

In his haste, Lu Xin only managed to shout out these few words.

"Quick..."

Chen Jing's voice followed immediately, as if she were urgently issuing an order.

"Splash..."

But at this very moment, a red tide suddenly surged towards Lu Xin and the three investigation team members.

The red tide was like the Crimson Moon's light descending from the sky, possessing its own consciousness. It churned with many fish struggling and screaming at the bottom of the lake. It came with incredible speed, reaching Lu Xin and the others in the blink of an eye. Simultaneously, with a "pop, pop" sound, all the fish exploded under this force, their blood and minced meat impacting the surroundings.

Lu Xin and the three investigation team members were hit by this force almost before they could react, sent flying four or five meters backward, landing in the mud. Covered in fish scales and mud, they looked extremely disheveled.

But it wasn't over. Under the Crimson Moon, several faint shadows flashed.

Almost instantly, the three investigation team members were violently thrown into the air, struggling desperately.

The instruments and other items in their hands fell to the ground.

From the headset on the muddy ground, Chen Jing's shout could be heard: "Retreat quickly, hurry..."

Three fully armed soldiers were suddenly flung into the air, a scene both bizarre and terrifying.

The soldiers responsible for the cordon in the distance widened their eyes at the sight.

Lu Xin, however, was not lifted into the air. Just as he got up from the ground, he saw a figure rush towards him.

The figure was dark red, with its arms spread wide as if trying to embrace him.

At this speed, Lu Xin could barely dodge, but in his desperation, a cold little hand suddenly grabbed his palm. In that instant, Lu Xin's speed became bizarre. He braced himself with one hand, twisted his waist, and rolled to the left, retreating two or three meters. He narrowly dodged the figure's "embrace."

It was Sister, who had arrived just in time to pull him away.

Looking forward again at this point, Lu Xin's pupils couldn't help but contract slightly.

At this moment, the three investigation team members were all suspended in the air. Their postures were stiff and twisted, still in the act of struggling, but they appeared completely unable to control themselves. Looking closely, one could see a blurry, eerie red shadow behind each of them, clinging tightly to their backs, gripping their arms, and twisting their legs.

And behind these shadows, faint vines could be seen extending towards the puddle in the center of the lake.

"It's a mental impact..."

Information analyst Han Bing's voice soon echoed through the channel. Her usually soft voice had become somewhat distorted with urgency: "From the data transmitted by the instruments just now, there was a mental power outburst of at least nearly two hundred energy levels. It's confirmed that a Super Level 1 Mental Monster has appeared, and the mental plague is confirmed to be breaking out!"

"Source of pollution infection level adjusted to intermediate, danger level temporarily adjusted to high..."

"..."

Chen Jing took a deep breath subconsciously upon hearing this, shouting, "Lu Xin, retreat!"

At the same time, Han Bing's voice followed: "Be careful of your investigation team companions..."

As their voices sounded, all those on alert saw the three armed personnel from the investigation team in the air, their faces turning blue from painful struggle. Their limbs, as if driven by an invisible force, slowly turned, and with twisted, grotesque movements, they raised their guns.

They seemed to be resisting with all their might, but they couldn't overcome the force controlling them. Suddenly, their guns fired.

As bullets rained down, the leader with the large beard could be heard faintly shouting with difficulty: "Dodge!"

"Swish" "Swish" "Swish"

The bullets fell, splashing up mud.

As the bullets fell, Lu Xin had already dashed behind a muddy high slope, crouching down.

Han Bing's voice was shouting: "Target is suspected to be a Super Level 1 Mental Monster. The three armed personnel of the investigation team have been infected. It is recommended to immediately withdraw the surviving investigation personnel and dispatch the City Patrol Army to eliminate the mental monster with overwhelming firepower!"

"Agreed!"

Chen Jing's voice sounded coldly: "Also, prepare a helicopter immediately. I'm going to the scene!"

At the same time, she added to Lu Xin: "Lu Xin, withdraw immediately. Order everyone to fall back five hundred meters..."

"I can't leave!"

Just then, Lu Xin suddenly spoke in a low voice, interrupting her.

Chen Jing was startled: "What?"

Lu Xin said: "Those three soldiers from the investigation team are not infected yet, just controlled. Also..."

He suddenly turned his head and glanced. The City Patrol Army members, who had been on guard a kilometer away, were just staring blankly at the three people in the sky. Three living, breathing people had flown into the air and suddenly started firing at their own companions. This scene had shocked them.

Lu Xin said in a low voice, "There's no escaping!"

Chen Jing suddenly thought of something and called out, "You..."

"I'll go take care of it!"

At this moment, Lu Xin had already stated his decision.

"Dangerous..."

As Chen Jing loudly uttered these two words, Lu Xin had already looked to his left.

Sister was crouching beside her and showed him a smile that was clearly ugly and strange, yet somehow appeared a little radiant.

Then he nodded at Sister and charged out fiercely.

At this time, the three members of the investigation team in the air, unable to shoot at Lu Xin who was hiding behind the mud slope from their original positions, were slowly drifting closer, pushed by an invisible force. They were trying to find a suitable shooting angle, but they didn't expect Lu Xin to suddenly jump out himself, and in an incredibly reckless manner, charge straight towards their direction.

Under the control of some power, they immediately raised their guns and aimed at Lu Xin simultaneously.

The three of them even closed their eyes, unable to bear watching, but still pulled the trigger uncontrollably.

Bullets poured down on Lu Xin like crazy.

But Lu Xin, after charging out of the mud slope, extended his hand to the side as he ran.

Sister ran alongside him, also extending her hand.

One large and one small hand clasped together, and Lu Xin's figure instantly became a blur.

It was as if he had transformed from a human into a ghost.