Chapter 303: Since We

If there were one more, he has no doubt he'd be the first to be "invited" out to get drenched by acid rain.

Cheng Shuili broke the silence; her voice remained calm, as if the provocative hint never existed: "The peak is almost over. Next, according to the original plan, we head to the research institute."

Her gaze swept over Qianxun and his teammates: "You can go with us or act on your own; there are only two or maybe one shelter left. Either way, this Instance will definitely be cleared safely."

That sounded a bit interesting.

A shelter can hold only ten people, and if the squad that fought them in the warehouse is still alive…

Who will be the one pushed out?

Cheng Shuili seemed to have absolute confidence.

Moyu Miji hugged himself again, swearing in his heart several times that he would never again be a human ticket, for real!

This time he truly realized the importance of teammates; who can grant him a teammate, sob sob!

Qianxun silently nodded, turned back and whispered a few words to his teammates, then simply decided not to go: "If you want to go, we won't take that risk."

After saying that, he didn't forget to do Cheng Shuili a favor: "With your map, the remaining shelter locations are easy to find. The system map shows our position; after you finish exploring, just come to the shelter where we are."

Cheng Shuili nodded, refused the favor, and said briskly: "We'll give you a discount of 2000 Game Coins; after you go out, each pays 18,000."

Qianxun paused, recalling that not‑so‑pleasant memory.

The three teammates behind him also exchanged puzzled looks but said nothing; after all, the deal was theirs to agree to.

Fine, a 2,000 discount is still a discount.

The sound of acid rain hammering the shelter's hull gradually faded, heralding the end of the third peak.

Moyu Miji was now useless, and Cheng Shuili didn't want him to keep following. He was also quite self‑aware, so he simply followed Qianxun's group.

Qianxun and the others didn't know the truth and thought Moyu Miji was also Cheng Shuili's person, that she kept him along out of concern; though a bit displeased, they reluctantly agreed.

And, thinking carefully, they really weren't that upset.

What started as a favor, with Wu Ya's cheap discount, turned directly into a transaction.

A transaction, after all.

The other side was uneasy, sending a subordinate to follow seemed no crime.

But this deal always carries a hint of taking advantage without giving anything.

With no lingering concerns, Cheng Shuili and the others headed straight for the research institute ruins.

The closer they got to the central area, the stranger the surroundings became.

The acid‑rain‑corroded building wreckage took on a bizarre shape, molten then solidified; the ground sporadically showed deep‑purple, seemingly alive slime pits, and the air was filled with a pungent chemical odor and an indescribable fishy‑sweet smell.

It smelled like extremely rotted flesh.

The pattering of acid rain behind them gradually faded, and Cheng Shuili's five entered the ruined shadows of the research institute.

The silence here was more suffocating than the rain outside; the air mixed with a sharp chemical reagent smell, and the broken walls in the shadows twisted into grotesque shapes, like the skeleton of a dying giant beast.

Jiang Tang instinctively moved closer to Xinxue, her voice pressed down to a whisper: "A bit scared, this place gives me the creeps."

Xinxue said nothing, only gripping her weapon tightly, fingertips turning slightly pale.

Qi Wan Yi crouched, sweeping the glove‑covered fingertips over a dark‑purple, almost living, subtly writhing viscous stain on the ground.

The moment she touched it, a wisp of white smoke rose silently.

Qi Wan Yi immediately straightened up and simply removed the gloves.

Cheng Shuili remained silent; that guy was a bit too reckless.

"The entrance is ahead," Ailin's voice broke the uneasy silence, "Shall we go in, Lao Da?"

The entrance resembled a torn wound, twisted metal and shattered concrete barely forming a low passage, within which bottomless black voids exuded an ominous aura.

It looked terrifying, but we're already here.

Qi Wan Yi shook her head, "Isn't coming here just to go in?"

"Right." Cheng Shuili replied casually, the first to slip sideways in; moments later, her deep voice echoed from inside, with a faint, barely perceptible reverberation: "Come in, there's currently no movement."

Inside was another world.

The flashlight's beam could only illuminate a limited area; beyond the light lay an impenetrably thick darkness.

The corridor walls were covered with splattered, blackened, dried stains and deep claw marks as if torn by some great force. Broken glass and instrument fragments littered the floor, each footstep sounding especially harsh.

"Split up and search, see if there's anything good. Pair up: Qi Wan Yi and Xinxue, Ailin and Jiang Tang. I'll go this way. If you find anything, shout immediately; no unauthorized actions."

Her gaze sternly swept over each teammate; at a time like this, they were all obedient.

The teammates nodded silently, quickly dividing into two groups and disappearing into different branches.

Cheng Shuili proceeded alone down the central main corridor; countless doors lined the sides, but unfortunately the gaps and walls were filled with purple slime, sealing the doors shut solidly, immovable.

After a moment of silence, Cheng Shuili lifted her foot and kicked a door forcefully!

A huge bang rang out, the entire ruin trembled, and the purple slime scattered on the ground seemed to come alive.

The dark‑purple slime that had previously crawled slowly and nauseatingly now seemed instantly infused with savage vitality. No longer content to cling to the floor, it surged wildly toward the deep corridor as if pulled by an invisible giant hand!

The slime rushed at a startling speed, emitting a "goo‑gee goo‑gee" sticky sound that made the scalp tingle.

They converged and merged, their mass expanding wildly at a visible rate.

"Retreat! Get back quickly!"

Cheng Shuili shouted sharply, yet she stepped forward, her flashlight beam fixed firmly on the forming horror at the corridor's end.

Jiang Tang let out a short scream, and Ailin grabbed her behind, her face ashen as she raised her weapon.

Qi Wan Yi and Xinxue quickly retreated from the room, their pupils suddenly contracting at the sight before them.

Under the trembling flashlight beam, the converged slime had already formed an indescribable massive silhouette.

It had no fixed shape, resembling a constantly rolling, expanding dark‑purple flesh mass, its surface covered with viscous, string‑like slime that reflected a wet, unsettling sheen.