Accumulation I (Xie Mo-ci Burned the Midnight Oil to Become Alliance Leader)

This world was dangerous.

Extremely dangerous.

In the more than half month since Yu Hong arrived here, he had come to fully understand that.

As an ordinary person, he was far inferior to Little Stutterer and the others in survival knowledge, and his physical abilities lagged far behind as well.

Even Little Stutterer and Doctor Xu had such a hard time surviving. If he relied only on himself, he definitely would not make it.

So... he had to make use of the advantage that set him apart from everyone else—his greatest advantage: the Black Mark.

The sun shone brightly on the morning of a new day.

Outside an unfamiliar Tiled House in White Mound Village.

Yu Hong and Little Stutterer stood before its door, their clothes filthy, their greasy hair clumped into strands like dirty dreadlocks, peering inside.

The house was dim and dark, constantly radiating a chilling aura. From time to time, faint cold drafts drifted out, carrying waves of mold and an unknown stench.

Sunlight stopped at the doorstep, dividing the inside and outside into two separate worlds.

"The Chimney Pipe I need is in there," Yu Hong said in a low voice.

"How do we get it?" Little Stutterer asked gravely from beside him.

She seemed to be imitating Yu Hong.

"A Ghost Shadow could appear at any time, so I have to be quick," Yu Hong said.

The Mountain Cave Safe House needed a warming Stove, but lighting a fire inside a sealed cave was extremely dangerous, so a Chimney Pipe was indispensable! As he looked at the shadowy house, determination rose in his eyes for the first time.

"Sorry... I'm just too scared."

To gain safety, he first had to face danger.

He had no other choice.

"Let's go."

Clutching the Enhanced White Stone in his pocket, Yu Hong strode into the house.

Behind him, Little Stutterer carried a bag of White Stones, nervously scanning left and right.

Slap.

The moment their feet crossed into the house's darkened area, they abruptly felt a bone-chilling cold crawling up from their ankles.

At that moment, the Enhanced White Stone and White Stones took effect together, releasing thread after thread of icy energy that canceled out the chill.

"Something's wrong. Hurry!" Yu Hong instantly realized there was a Ghost Shadow here. He immediately sped up and rushed deeper into the house.

He had inspected many houses, and this one had the most suitable chimney—longer than all the rest. This time, he was determined to get it!

The two swiftly crossed the open space and reached the innermost spot against the wall.

A square metal Stove stood there, with a vertical Tin Chimney Pipe inserted into one corner.

The Chimney Pipe extended upward for two meters before bending sideways and running for more than three meters through a round hole in the wall.

"That's it! Grab it!" Yu Hong's eyes lit up. He rushed over and seized the Chimney Pipe.

Pfft.

He yanked hard.

It did not move.

He looked down.

The Chimney Pipe had been welded to one corner of the square Stove and would not budge.

Just as he was about to pull harder, he caught sight of a small door leading to the bedroom in the corner of the house slowly opening.

Inside the doorway, amid the darkness, stood a Gray-clad Figure whose face could not be seen.

The figure did not move. It merely stood in the darkness, looking this way.

At the same time, an even stronger wave of chilling energy surged wildly from the bedroom door.

"Yi Yi!!" In his panic, Yu Hong shouted, tightening his grip on the Enhanced White Stone as his muscles tensed and he began to take aim.

At the same time, he glanced back at Little Stutterer, Yi Yi, out of the corner of his eye.

But... "!!!?"

There was no one behind him.

Not only was Yi Yi gone, but the Stove and Chimney Pipe were gone too.

When Yu Hong turned his gaze again, he saw Little Stutterer hugging the Stove and dragging the Chimney Pipe toward the door. She was about to get out.

In Little Stutterer's hands, the heavy Stove was as light as a foam carton.

"Run, Yu!" Little Stutterer charged into the sunlight. Only then did she realize Yu Hong had not followed, and she hurriedly turned back in confusion. Seeing him still standing where he was, she immediately shouted.

"..." Yu Hong was speechless.

But by then, the Ghost Shadow had already locked onto him.

That icy, rigid feeling surged through his body once more, trying to freeze him solid.

The power of the Enhanced White Stone kept pouring out, resisting that stiffness.

"I..."

"I!!"

Yu Hong trembled all over, unable to break free as he stood there gripping the Enhanced White Stone, like a machine on the verge of falling apart.

Sweat streamed from his forehead and temples. His pupils had long since dilated, while overwhelming fear surged like a tide, nearly drowning his heart.

I'm so scared.

"This is too terrifying..."

"Why... why is there something this terrifying here?!"

Why?

Why?

Why?

Why?

In an instant, countless whys crawled over every inch of Yu Hong's body and mind like insects, frantically filling all his thoughts and consciousness.

Yet he was caught in a strange confrontation. The Ghost Shadow's power and the Enhanced Glowstone's power were canceling each other out, with his body serving as the battlefield.

Amid that rigidity.

Yu Hong suddenly sensed movement behind him as well.

Crack.

He heard a faint sound.

Like the soft sound of shoes stepping on the muddy floor indoors.

Rustle, rustle. Footsteps sounded one after another, seeming to slowly approach from behind him.

One step.

Another step.

The footsteps had a steady rhythm, neither hurried nor slow, coming straight toward Yu Hong.

Then, the Wooden Door began silently closing, slowly shutting the bright sunlight outside—and Little Stutterer—out of the house.

Yu Hong was terrified. He trembled all over, standing rooted to the spot as tears and sweat ran continuously down his cheeks.

Yet at that very moment, he could do nothing but watch helplessly as the door gradually closed.

Helplessness.

A fierce sense of helplessness welled up endlessly from the depths of his heart.

"I..." He opened his mouth, wanting to speak.

Slap.

Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind and tightly grasped his hand! Ah!!!!

In an instant, Yu Hong felt as if he had been struck by lightning and let out a piercing scream.

He sprang up violently, yanked out an arm-thick wooden club from beside his trouser leg, and smashed it furiously backward.

The club was studded with numerous steel nails and embedded with three Enhanced White Stones.

As Yu Hong swung it in the grip of utter terror, it let out a dull howl through the air.

Amid the chaotic whistle of splitting air came a tremendous crash.

Bang!!! The wooden club smashed viciously into a white figure behind Yu Hong, splitting it in two. It deflated into fragments, dissipating and evaporating.

"Ahhhhhh!!!"

Yu Hong raised the Steel Nail Wooden Stick, spun around without stopping, and lunged at the other Gray Shadow by the bedroom door.

Very quickly.

Bang!!! Another tremendous crash rang out.

The club slammed madly into the Wooden Door frame, leaving a deep dent.

The Gray Shadow, too, shattered beneath the violent counterattack, turning into scraps of gray cloth that scattered across the ground before steaming away.

Bang! Bang! Bang!!

Yu Hong's eyes were bloodshot as he continued wildly pounding the Gray Shadow's former position with the Steel Nail Wooden Stick.

Only when wood chips flew from the frame and it began to loosen and shake did he come back to his senses.

Seeing that the Ghost Shadows had vanished, he grabbed his club and rushed out the door, returning beneath the sunlight.

Huff! Huff! Huff! Amid ragged gasps, he slowly bent over and squatted down.

Little Stutterer stood beside him, staring blankly, unsure how to comfort him.

She had originally been about to rush in to save him, but Yu Hong's sudden outburst had frightened her too. She could only stand there at a loss and wait for the outcome.

The outcome was that Yu Hong had rushed out on his own, violently smashed two Ghost Shadows to pieces, then dashed outside wearing the expression of someone scared out of his wits and squatted on the ground, gasping for breath. "Yu..." After waiting a while, Little Stutterer hesitantly asked in a soft voice.

"Sorry..." Yu Hong's voice trembled. He was drenched in sweat, as though he had just been pulled from the water.

"I was just... just too scared."

After calming down for a while, his emotions had settled somewhat.

He slowly stood up, turned around, and looked at Little Stutterer.

His expression was pained, helpless, and pitiful.

"They... they scared me."

He kept waving the Steel Nail Wooden Stick in his hand, as though using body language to express his fierce emotions.

"I was too scared."

Yu Hong's face twitched.

"So I could only smash them to death. I... I knew what I was doing. But if I didn't smash them to bits, I was scared... scared they'd chase me out!"

"It's... it's okay." Little Stutterer blinked, taking a step back as the waving Steel Nail Wooden Stick forced her away and made her scalp prickle.

"It's okay now. Re... lax. Re... lax!!" Little Stutterer held both hands out, doing her best to soothe him.

Yu Hong knew his state was off as well, and he began taking deep breaths.

Inhale.

Exhale.

After thirty breaths in a row.

He finally felt much steadier.

"Good thing... good thing I made every preparation in advance." He lowered the Thick Wooden Club, feeling a wave of exhaustion wash over him.

He was someone who tried to prepare everything as thoroughly as possible before doing anything.

Just like this time, when he entered the house to seize the Chimney Pipe, he had planned out how to use his few Enhanced White Stones beforehand.

Three had been fixed to the club. Though calling it embedding was generous—it was really just a matter of digging out depressions and tying them securely in place with rope.

Now, it seemed that method had been immensely useful.

"You're... okay now?" Little Stutterer asked cautiously as she looked at him.

"Sorry." Yu Hong helplessly shook himself. "I got too worked up."

"..." Little Stutterer shook her head, indicating she had not been frightened. "Actually... I've seen it before."

She picked up the Stove and Chimney Pipe, then headed back together with Yu Hong.

As they walked, she spoke of people she had seen in the past.

From her, Yu Hong learned that there had been others like him before, people who fell into extreme terror.

Some of them, like him, had erupted wildly and fought back.

But Yu Hong was different from them.

After fighting back, those people only exhausted their strength and collapsed, leaving themselves in even greater danger.

But after smashing the Ghost Shadows, Yu Hong immediately turned and ran, only relaxing and collapsing once he reached a safe area.

In truth, when people erupted under extreme emotions, it was unlikely that they would know to conserve their strength.

Yet Yu Hong had done it.

Not only had he smashed the Ghost Shadows apart, he had also saved enough strength to turn and run.

That made him seem especially unusual.