Chapter 76

Leave or stay.

Looking up, in the slow-moving deep blue seawater, shadows of marine creatures flickered past.

I don't know how deep this place is, whether the backflow of seawater has stopped, where the exit from Yummengze is, or where the path to continue exploration lies.

Fu Guang thought for a moment, then asked the two Sentinels.

The girl sat on the shark person's forearm, her blue dress spreading with the current like a fish tail, her sharp expression hidden beneath her now calm brows and eyes.

Xi Guang didn't know what had happened, but it was normal for the guide to have a new Sentinel nearby, he told himself.

One cannot stay too long on the seabed; the guide's rank is too low to fully resist water pressure, she still needs to breathe, and oxygen below the surface is insufficient.

A heavy feeling filled his chest; Xi Guang thought his severely wounded body could no longer adapt to the immense water pressure.

"I have been to Yummengze only a few times; each time the situation was different, but none were as serious as this." Xi Guang reviewed his experience and answered seriously.

"I've come a few times; this is the highest level of Yummengze." Lan Qian pressed his temples, the throbbing pain spreading with his heartbeat, he took a slow breath and said.

He took a deep breath and then said, "Yummengze is composed of ninety-seven percent water element."

"By fully utilizing water's nature, it is usually gentle and inclusive, posing little danger; items below S-rank, each person may freely take two."

"When danger arises, as in the recent days, it becomes tumultuous and fierce; not to mention any items, it will surely keep everyone trapped on the seabed."

Without Fu Guang asking, Lan Qian continued, stating the conditions under which Yummengze becomes angry: "Yummengze changes state; to date, there are three known ways, i. e., three conditions."

"1. Someone dares to seize an S-rank item. S-rank items, Yummengze can produce about one every fifty years; normally, one only needs to pass Yummengze's trial to obtain the item."

"If multiple people contend for it, they will violate its rules."

Fu Guang twirled the silver ring on her little finger; it sounded as if Yummengze were a place with fixed rules, rather fair?

"2. Someone carries out mass slaughter in Yummengze, whether killing humans or sea beasts, it will provoke Yummengze's rejection."

"3. Premise unknown; a special person will cause Yummengze to respond at its highest level against her."

Fu Guang's hand twisting the ring paused; she felt Lan Qian was pointing at her, and she turned to look at the shark person's face.

The shark person neither nodded nor shook her head; it seemed she herself was unsure.

His facial features, upon close observation, were not like the distorted monstrosities of deep-sea fish; rather, they possessed the ocean's profundity and darkness.

His skin, perhaps from long-term residence on the seabed without sunlight, was deathly pale, with blue veins crisscrossing it, clearly visible.

The lines of his face were firm and bore a hint of cold sharpness; his outer corners were raised and narrow, inner corners downturned, his pupils a gradient from blue to black.

When staring at you, there is the oppressive gaze of a large predator eyeing its prey.

His thin lips were pale, the corners slightly turned up in a half-smile; overall he conveyed strength and confidence.

Oh, of course, all S-rank Sentinels one has encountered are never lacking in confidence.

Fu Guang's lowered hand rested on the inner side of the shark person's arm; beneath her palm lay thin muscles, not very obvious, moving like water, now slightly tensed, she could feel the bulging veins.

How much power this body could unleash in an instant was clearer to Fu Guang than any information she had gathered with her eyes.

The threads had already probed most of this body's vital meridians, so that at the moment she made up her mind, she could kill him.

Of course, on this basis, being able to control his actions and behavior is merely an added ability.

However, after this physical Sentinel probe, when an S-rank Sentinel lets go and fights to the death, the erupted power will be terrifying, affecting a great distance.

What has the front line become, and can it hold out until she grows up?

Fu Guang had heard from senior guides and the Sentinels around her discussing the front line; the situation was not optimistic, but the details were confidential, so she still did not know them.

She was very worried; lest one day she opens her eyes and comes face‑to‑face with an alien species, she would surely go mad.

Within Yummengze, as time passed, Fu Guang's mental power in her spiritual landscape gradually increased, yet the spilled mental power decreased greatly because the external environment was rich in spiritual power.

The downside is that Fu Guang has absorbed too much of Yummengze's spiritual power, gaining many fragmented images; if it weren't for Xiao Lan's own poor memory, she would quickly notice these strange scenes.

Fu Guang still does not know when these inconspicuous images, amidst her vast memory, will be noticed by her.

The Dark Forest is also mysterious; why, besides the various elemental forces, does it also possess abundant spiritual power?

The extra spiritual power enables her, in an extremely short time, to link related information and think it through.

Fu Guang rubbed her temples, letting her chaotic thoughts settle for a moment, setting aside other issues to first consider the matter at hand.

Is it to leave Yummengze, or to continue exploring?

It is known that Yummengze has activated its highest-level defense system; continuing to explore will bring dangers of unknown magnitude.

Moreover, according to what she knows, Yummengze has received two S-rank guides, plus Sentinels not counted as the guides' own, and the military has dispatched sixteen S-rank Sentinels.

The affiliation of fifteen S-rank Sentinels is unknown; it is highly possible another like Lan Qian will appear, and if he spares no effort to kill her, can she escape?

Fu Guang leaned lazily against the shark person's icy chest, her mind racing at extreme speed.

More importantly, there are the two rules Lan Qian mentioned earlier.

She is not sure whether the chaos in Yummengze was caused by her.

What if there are others?

The first rule: if multiple people contend for an S-rank item, it indicates many have come, and they are at least split into two S-rank factions.

The second rule: if there is excessive slaughter.

Fu Guang coldly twitched the corner of her mouth; that would be even more interesting.

If such an S-rank slaughter maniac truly exists, he will certainly not be soft‑hearted; his danger level is extremely high.

Here there are two scenarios: one is not knowing this rule, discovering Yummengze has become dangerous, and whether to flee.... or to press on with the spirit of adventure.

Fu Guang furrowed her brows; because of not knowing this rule, in the Sentinels' place, killing to the end—whether it is a Sentinel, normal or abnormal state—is unclear.

Moreover, it is possible the Sentinels do not feel they have killed too much, while Yummengze judges that they have.

There is simply no basis for judgment.

Around her are all madmen of varying degrees; one cannot tell what a normal Sentinel is like, and in this situation, would anyone of sound mind choose to retreat?

Previously, Xi Guang was an executive director, interrogating and executing criminals who violated federal law; his hands must be stained with much blood.

What's more, when enraged, Lan Qian dares to strike down even a former executive director to his face; it is estimated he has killed many people and alien beings before.

The two were completely excluded from the normal Sentinels, but are there really any normal people among the Sentinels?

"Second clause, are there numbers? Killing how many people and sea beasts counts as wanton slaughter."

"No, you know, once the Sentinels go berserk, they can't be restrained at all. When Yummengze makes a move, things get even more chaotic, completely without count." Lan'an retracted her claws and used her fingers as a comb to comb the girl's hair.

Just knew the Sentinels are unreliable!

Fu Guang contemplated the last scenario: if one knows this rule yet still commits wanton slaughter, they can only be called a killing maniac.

Such a B-rank Guide, a team of two heavily wounded S-rank Sentinels, will definitely appear inside Yummengze and will be his first target.

To go or to stay, that's a big problem.

To go, but how should we go?