Chapter 14: Insect Egg

Meanwhile, the battle between Ye Fan and the red-robed man was also nearing its end.

The red-robed man's strength was formidable, but Ye Fan was no pushover either. After a fierce struggle, Ye Fan finally found an opening and used the dagger in his hand to slash at the red-robed man's neck.

However, this was not the end. Because at the final moment, Ye Fan chose to sacrifice his own left arm to secure victory. With a crisp sound, the red-robed man's head was severed. Ye Fan then seized the opportunity to release his flames, burning the red-robed man's body and head into Ashes.

With this, the battle finally came to a close. Ye Fan had successfully defeated the red-robed man, but he had lost an arm. However, for Ye Fan, this was already the best possible outcome. If he hadn't made the decision in time, the entire team would likely have fallen into danger.

After the battle between Ye Fan and the red-robed man ended, the other team members quickly cleared out the surrounding bugs. Although these bugs were numerous, they possessed no intelligence and acted only on instinct. So, when they saw their leader killed, they fled the scene one after another.

With the departure of the bugs, the entire battlefield became quiet. Ye Fan stood where he was, panting heavily, his face showing signs of exhaustion. He knew that although this battle had been won, it had come at a great cost. Not only was he severely injured, but three teammates had also been lost. Thinking of this, Ye Fan couldn't help but feel a wave of sorrow.

"Hoo... let's find a place to rest," Ye Fan said to the team members beside him, gasping for air. He knew that the enemy's lair still awaited them, and if they didn't recover their strength as soon as possible, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Hearing Ye Fan's words, the team members nodded in agreement. Thus, everyone began searching for a suitable place to rest. Soon, they found an abandoned building nearby and went inside to check the situation.

"Captain, these are our people!" Just as Ye Fan and the others were preparing to rest, a team member suddenly rushed into a room and shouted. Hearing this news, Ye Fan's heart sank, and he hurriedly followed the team member into the room.

Inside, one corpse after another was laid out; they were the other Blood Thorn members who had previously entered the Xitai District to carry out their Task. Looking at these comrades who had once fought side-by-side now turned into cold corpses, Ye Fan was overcome with grief.

"Hiss..." Everyone was stunned by the scene before them and couldn't help but gasp. They had originally thought only their own squad had encountered difficulties, never expecting that the other squads had been completely wiped out. This meant the situation they faced would be even more severe.

Ye Fan walked slowly to the corpses, carefully examining every face. He wanted to remember these fallen comrades and let their names be forever engraved in his heart. At the same time, Ye Fan secretly swore that he must avenge these fallen comrades.

"Damn it... how could this happen?" A team member clenched his fists in anger, his eyes flashing with fury. He could not accept everything that had happened before him, nor could he imagine how to get through the days ahead. After all, whether their remaining squad could safely leave the Xitai District was still an unknown.

At this moment, Ye Fan suddenly recalled the changes in those red-robed Believers earlier. At first, those Believers themselves had attacked them, but in the recent battle, it was clear those red-robed Believers had been parasitized by the bugs; the part that was human had disappeared, leaving only a body used by the bugs as a nursery bed.

Doesn't this indicate that there is even greater danger in this cult's lair? They cannot continue to waste time here; they must head to the cult's lair immediately—the place those Believers and that red-robed man had desperately tried to prevent them from reaching. There must be extremely important intelligence there.

"It seems we cannot continue to rest here; the cult's lair must hold unspeakable secrets," Ye Fan said to the group with a bitter smile on his face.

"Captain, are you really okay?" A team member looked at Ye Fan with concern.

"Exactly, our condition has become very poor; why don't we rest up and then retreat," Helao Da also spoke up to persuade him.

"Heh, I'm afraid we can't retreat," Ye Fan gave a bitter laugh. "Haven't you noticed? Ever since we entered this area, all retreat routes have been sealed off. Our communications have been cut, and enemies keep emerging; all of this indicates that we have been drawn into a meticulously planned conspiracy. If we retreat now, I fear the enemy's conspiracy will have succeeded."

Yingzhou nodded after hearing Ye Fan's words; he knew Ye Fan was right. Their current situation was extremely dangerous, but if they could find the cult's lair, perhaps they could find the key to solving the problem.

After hearing Ye Fan's analysis, the group fell into Silence for a moment before nodding one after another. Except for Helao Da, who was clearly terrified now, even though he hadn't been of much help in the previous battle.

"No... no... we'll all die like this! I don't want to die yet! How can I die just like this!" He widened his eyes, clutching his head with both hands.

"Helao Da, our current consensus is to continue searching for the cult's lair. If you don't want to proceed, you can wait here for our return or head back the way you came," Yingzhou, unwilling to delay any longer, walked to Helao Da's side and offered him two choices.

"I... I... I choose to follow you all." The expression on Helao Da's face shifted repeatedly, but in the end, he made his choice to go with the group to the cult's lair.

This time, Yingzhou's Krieg soldiers led the way, though it was possible those Believers from earlier were the cult's final trump card, as the group soon reached the designated location for the Task.

Yingzhou had a dozen Krieg soldiers search the surrounding area for the cult's lair mentioned in the intelligence.

Soon, with the help of the Krieg soldiers, the group found a basement.

Several Krieg soldiers gathered the explosives they carried and fixed them to the Iron Gate of the basement.

"Boom!"

After a violent explosion, a hole was blown into the basement door. Several Krieg soldiers walked into the basement with their weapons raised. No gunfire came from within. After waiting for a moment, Yingzhou and his party entered, only to see a woman in a red robe leaning against a giant insect egg, a crazed smile on her lips.

"Hahaha, you will witness the arrival of the great 'God's Envoy'!" She let out a frantic sound, making her originally soft voice sound somewhat hair-raising.

Just at this moment, a sudden change occurred.