Whoosh... whoosh... whoosh...
Rock fragments shot one after another toward the Human Mimics, dense as a hail of bullets and just as fast, instantly piercing their bodies.
Roar!!
One Human Mimic after another let out a shrill scream and died a gruesome death.
Ages stood in front of the blast's center, looking calm as he whistled and leisurely bandaged the wound on his hand.
The scattered rock fragments that flew toward Ages were deflected as soon as they came within half a meter of him...
Roar!!
The final shrill roar rang out.
The entire forest returned to its former quiet.
No!
Rather than quiet, it was more like dead silence!
The dust and smoke from the explosion gradually cleared.
"Cough... cough... are you all right?" the freshman captain asked the freshmen beside him, waving away the lingering dust and smoke.
"Good, we were far from the center of the explosion. Otherwise, we'd be dead or crippled," the freshman captain said with a sigh of relief when he saw that no one was hurt.
"Hm? What's wrong with you all?"
The freshman captain had just breathed a sigh of relief when he noticed everyone's expressions and asked in confusion.
Hearing the freshman captain's question, one freshman slowly pointed toward the site of the explosion with a trembling hand.
The freshman captain turned in confusion to look where the freshman was pointing...
With that single glance!
The freshman captain's calm expression abruptly changed!
He wore the same expression as everyone else, a mixture of shock, horror, fear, and dread...
The place where the rock sphere had exploded was a complete mess.
An overpowering stench of blood filled the air. The yellowish soil was now coated in a thick layer of bright red blood, and the severed limbs and remains of Human Mimics littered the ground. There wasn't a single intact corpse!
The entire blast site was stained bright red, like a scene from Avici Hell!
"This... this... this..."
The freshman captain stared at the scene of purgatory on earth, unable to form a complete sentence for a long time.
Some of the female freshmen were so sickened by the bloody scene, with its fragments and severed limbs strewn everywhere, that they began to vomit.
While everyone was terrified by the bloody scene, one freshman caught a glimpse of a spot not far from the center of the explosion and suddenly cried out in surprise.
"Look! There's someone over there!"
Whoosh!
At those words, everyone turned in unison toward the spot not far from the center of the explosion.
When they saw the figure heading toward the "purgatory on earth," shock showed on all their faces.
"It's him! The freshman who turned down our invitation," a female freshman said in surprise, covering her mouth.
The figure was none other than Ages, the creator of that "purgatory on earth."
Ages had long since noticed the others, but he paid them little attention. Instead, he walked straight toward the "purgatory on earth," a small knife in his hand, ready to collect his spoils.
Everyone watched in shock as Ages walked through the "purgatory on earth," harvesting the markers for this mission from time to time.
After a while, everyone came to their senses and suppressed their fear of the "purgatory on earth." They walked toward it, hoping to collect the free mission markers.
"Hm?"
Ages's ears twitched slightly. He turned to look at the approaching group, frowned, and spoke coldly.
"What are you doing?"
Hearing Ages's indifferent voice, everyone stopped in their tracks.
One freshman stepped forward and said, "We're obviously here to collect these mission markers."
Ages frowned at the freshman's words, and his voice dropped another degree as he spoke icily.
"You're not qualified to collect these markers."
Hearing Ages's contemptuous words, everyone stiffened. The freshman looked a little angry and snapped.
"Hmph! Why aren't we qualified? Are you?"
Ages let out a cold laugh. His face was frosty, and a trace of mockery played at the corner of his mouth as he spoke in a chilling voice.
"Of course I'm qualified, because I killed all these Human Mimics. Do you still think I'm not qualified?"
"What?!"
Everyone cried out in surprise.
The freshman swallowed and glanced at the "purgatory on earth" around him, his heart nearly bursting with terror. He had never imagined that Ages, standing right in front of him, had created this "purgatory on earth."
Just as the freshman began to think of retreating, the female freshman who had mocked Ages earlier didn't want to pass up this chance to obtain markers so easily. Besides, the smoke and dust from the explosion had kept her from seeing what happened inside, and she had already dismissed Ages before.
So she was convinced that Ages hadn't created this "purgatory on earth," and she spoke up self-righteously.
"None of us saw what happened during the explosion. Just because you say you killed them, does that mean you did? We won't believe you. You just want to keep all these markers for yourself."
The female freshman's words struck the other freshmen like a blow to the head, and they all turned sharp gazes on Ages.
Ages looked calmly at the female freshman and sneered again. His face turned impassive, a cold glint flashed in his eyes, and he spoke in an indifferent tone.
"Heh, you can try and see whether what I said is true."
As Ages spoke, he stretched out his left hand and formed a small black sphere.
The instant the small black sphere formed.
Everyone heard a faint scraping sound...
All the fragments around them began to tremble and move toward Ages.
Seeing this, then looking at Ages's icy, impassive face and slightly narrowed eyes, everyone showed an expression of horror and unconsciously took a step back...
At that moment, everyone snuffed out their doubts about Ages like candles extinguished by the wind.
Only one thought remained, and that was!
Ages really was the one who had created this "purgatory on earth."