Ashes for You to Scatter

Niu Niu's thought startled Fang Yue.

If Ancient Moon Village were breached by an Anomaly and completely fell...

Their situation would be dire.

Without the protection of Ancient Moon Village, they couldn't possibly escape into the wilderness.

But then again, Fang Yue mused, something felt off.

An Anomaly attacking the village?

It had only been a day since the game launched!

Was the developer in such a rush to host an event? Did they want players to die off completely!

No, no, that couldn't be it.

Fang Yue shook his head repeatedly and said, "It's impossible. Aside from professional players like me, Normal players aren't skilled enough to fight Anomalies yet. Arranging for Anomalies to attack the village now would just be a massacre! How would Normal players survive?"

Niu Niu nodded. "That's true. When I play other games, monster siege events only happen after players have leveled up. But this game is very strange, with extremely high difficulty, so who knows if they'd pull a stunt like that?"

"Don't overthink it. If Anomalies really launch a full-scale attack on the village, there's nothing we can do to stop it. Let's focus on saving our own lives first."

He paused, then Fang Yue said, "Let's go find Captain Lin. Besides Chen Mu, he's the strongest captain in Ancient Moon Village. With him, we'll be much safer. Also, tonight's Anomaly is beyond our ability to handle."

Fang Yue had one more thing he didn't say: he suspected that the Anomaly in the Chen manor... even Captain Lin might not be able to deal with it.

Fang Yue even suspected that the one hidden in the Chen manor wasn't a Black Tier Anomaly, but something above Black Tier.

But that wasn't Fang Yue's concern to verify; Captain Lin and the others would handle the probing.

As the saying goes, his own life was paramount!

If Captain Lin and the others couldn't handle it... then Fang Yue would have to risk his life and try his luck in the wilderness. He couldn't just wait to die in the village.

As he led Niu Niu towards the nearest patrol team, Fang Yue noticed Niu Niu's complexion growing worse and worse.

"Brother Ye, save me! I, I think I'm dying. My Health is only 5 points!"

Fang Yue stopped and held up his torch to look. His expression immediately changed slightly.

The gaping hole in Niu Niu's chest, which had been the size of a palm, had now corroded into a large, round cavity.

With every breath, the areas on either side of the hole in his chest would bulge, a truly horrifying sight.

Looking like this, he could be mistaken for an Anomaly and killed in minutes if thrown out.

"Hold on a little longer. We're almost at another patrol team's area. We'll wait there, we should run into someone."

Fang Yue helped Niu Niu up. Niu Niu forced himself to cough twice, not daring to cough loudly, afraid that any significant movement would trigger a health loss notification.

In fact, as they had walked, Niu Niu had felt some rotting flesh inside his chest, falling to the ground every so often.

A lot had fallen by now, and Niu Niu felt like he had lost weight.

But he didn't dare to speak up, fearing Fang Yue would abandon him.

He only cried out now because he truly couldn't bear it any longer.

With Fang Yue supporting him, Niu Niu did feel a bit better, and the bleeding stopped.

Just then, a light appeared ahead.

Light meant a patrol team!

Fang Yue and Niu Niu exchanged a look, their faces lighting up with joy. They waved their torches and shouted, "Brothers! Brothers! Help!"

The light ahead paused, then rushed towards them, and... surrounded Fang Yue and Niu Niu.

Leading them was a middle-aged man with a hooked nose. He gripped his spear tightly, staring coldly at Fang Yue and Niu Niu.

Fang Yue was familiar with this formation!

Without hesitation, he took out an [Anomaly Detection Talisman], activated it with his Lifespan, and burned it.

The [Anomaly Detection Talisman] immediately ignited, turning into ashes.

Fang Yue and Niu Niu showed no reaction.

The middle-aged man with the hooked nose finally relaxed slightly. He gave his teammates a look, sheathed his weapon, and said, "Team 7, under Captain Lin of Group 3. Xin Jue."

"A temporary team under Captain Lin of Group 3..."

"I know you."

Xin Jue interrupted Fang Yue, frowning as he asked about the situation. Fang Yue naturally recounted everything truthfully.

Listening to Fang Yue's explanation, Xin Jue's expression changed several times, his emotions fluctuating, before he finally gasped.

Hiss--

"How could this happen... That was Captain Chen! Are you sure that head was his?"

He still couldn't quite believe that Captain Chen was dead.

Aside from Lord Han, who existed beyond everyone else, Captain Chen was practically the peak combat strength of Ancient Moon Village. With Captain Chen dying at the hands of an Anomaly, no one dared to think about the consequences.

The other team members also began to murmur amongst themselves, their faces filled with fear, their hearts unsettled.

"Absolutely true!" Fang Yue said decisively.

"This..."

Xin Jue was at a loss. After thinking for a moment, he said, "This matter is too serious. I need to report it to Captain Lin immediately. You two, come with me."

"Alright, but he..."

Fang Yue pointed to Niu Niu, who was beside him, looking half-dead and already halfway into the coffin.

At this moment, Niu Niu only had 3 HP left. His breathing had become difficult, and he looked like he was about to breathe his last.

"There's no saving him."

Xin Jue shook his head. "As you said, if this is truly a [Curse], even if Doctor Hong came, or even if Captain Chen were alive, they would be powerless. Only Lord Han might have a way to treat it. But Lord Han is not in the village right now, and he won't last until then."

He paused, then continued, "Brother, rest in peace. I will take care of your wife and daughter for you."

Fang Yue: ?

Niu Niu: ?

You're acting weird!

Niu Niu's body stiffened, and he glared angrily at the man. If he hadn't wanted to live a little longer and avoid speaking, he would have definitely cursed this guy out.

"What's wrong with him? Why is he reacting so strongly?"

Xin Jue asked doubtfully. Wasn't it normal to take care of the families of fallen Patrol Team brothers? If it were someone heartless, they wouldn't care about their brother's family after their death. He was kindly offering to help, so why was Niu Niu making that face?

Seeing this, Fang Yue quickly said awkwardly, "He's like me, a refugee. He doesn't have any family."

"Oh, an orphan! How pitiful."

You're still cursing me!!

Niu Niu's eyeballs were about to pop out, and his small fists were clenched tightly.

Fang Yue quickly pressed down on Niu Niu's coffin lid... no, Niu Niu's body.

"Endure!"

[Endure]!

Niu Niu took a deep breath and held back!

He deeply remembered Xin Jue's appearance.

Three days!

In three days, he would even scatter this guy's ashes!

Of course, that was assuming Niu Niu could survive.

However, Fang Yue wasn't optimistic about Niu Niu. He had just been angered, and lost another point of HP. According to what he said earlier, he should only have 2 HP left now.

"Brother Xin Jue, is there really no way to save him? Even if he could live a little longer, maybe he could hold on until Lord Han returns."

Fang Yue decided to make a final effort, after all, he was a client who had paid.

Fang Yue had only asked as a formality, not truly expecting anything. Who would have thought that Xin Jue's eyes would suddenly dart around, and he said, "It's not entirely hopeless. Years ago, I obtained a Heart-Locking Pill by chance. It can rapidly restore vital energy and blood in a short period, saving his life. After that, he'll be on his own. But this medicine is very toxic, and he might die on the spot after taking it. Is your friend willing to take the gamble?"