Free Web NovelChapter 90: Unpredictable Warzone (5)
Night had settled over Guanguan City. Heavy grey clouds covered the sky.
The air felt thick, oppressive as rain threatened to fall at any moment.
The city itself was almost empty now.
The evacuation had been successful. Airships moved constantly between sectors. Civilians were escorted away. Emergency teams remained active.
The few Espers and guides still present were either guarding the area or treating the injured.
Everything revolved around the rift.
The massive eye-shaped rift that still hovered over the city.
Meanwhile, Inside the rift. The world remained trapped in daylight.
A broken world. A dying world. A world drowning beneath red corruption.
Xinyuan stood in the middle of it, breathing hard.
The battlefield around him looked like a massacre. Monster corpses stretched endlessly across the desert.
Hundreds. Maybe thousands.
Bodies piled over bodies. Blood soaked into the crimson sand.
For the first time in more than ten hours, nothing moved. There were no growls, screeches. No charging monsters. Only silence.
Xinyuan lowered his scythe slightly while his chest rose and fell heavily.
The dark mist surrounding him had long changed. It had become a deep crimson almost indistinguishable from the Red Zone itself.
Both his eyes still burned red and blood stained his face, clothes.... his hands.
The glowing chain tattoo had spread far beyond his back now. Red lines crawled across his neck. His jaw. The side of his face. Disappearing into his hairline.
His body looked less human with every passing minute.
Blood trickled from his nose and from both ears.
Xinyuan wiped it away with the back of his hand looking more annoyed than concerned.
He was tired. So unbelievably tired.
But at least the monsters were finally gone.
He took a step toward the exit. Toward the enormous eye-shaped rift hanging above the desert.
The world trembled.
Xinyuan stopped, closed his eyes and a long sigh escaped him. "Seriously?"
At that moment, the red haze moved. Not the monsters. Nom it was the corruption itself.
The miasma began pouring outward, rolling toward the rift entrance like a living tide. And immediately Xinyuan understood.
The monsters had only been the beginning.
This rift was finally doing what it was meant to do. Creating a Red Zone.
~
Outside the rift, the same realization was spreading. Red haze had begun leaking into reality.
Guides immediately secured their masks. Protective equipment was distributed.
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
The commander stared at the expanding haze with a dark expression.
Nearby, Chenxi stood with his eyes still focused on the rift. "Come on..."
His voice was low. "Where are you, Xinyuan?"
The commander folded his arms. "He has been inside for too long."
His gaze never left the rift. "Even if he comes out now, that may not be good news for us."
Several nearby Espers went silent.
Everyone understood what he meant.
A Disaster-Class Esper trapped inside a Red Zone for over ten hours, absorbing corruption, fighting nonstop with no stabilisation.
The outcome was obvious.
"He may cause more damage than the rift itself."
Chenxi didn’t answer. Because part of him feared the commander was right.
A familiar sound echoed across the area.
An airship was approaching.
Heads immediately turned as the vessel descended through the dark clouds before landing nearby.
Chenxi released a long breath, relief finally appearing on his face.
The hatch opened.
First came Zhiyao. Then Gu Luhan. Then Kaiwen and Duan Ze.
And finally, Wenzhi.
The moment Chenxi saw him, his shoulders relaxed slightly.
He hurried toward them as they approached. The group meeting halfway.
The first person to reach him was Gu Luhan.
Luhan stopped directly in front of him. His eyes moved across Chenxi carefully. Making sure he was really standing and alive.
"Are you alright?" he asked quietly.
Chenxi looked at him, expressionless. "I look fine, don’t I?"
Luhan stared and nodded slowly. "Your wavelength is—"
"I’m fine." The interruption wasn’t harsh. But it was final.
Luhan immediately frowned. frёewebηovel.cѳm
Neither of them looked convinced by Chenxi’s answer.
After a moment, Luhan scoffed and walked past him.
Chenxi watched him go and looked away.
Kaiwen and Duan Ze exchanged a glance.
Meanwhile, Wenzhi wasn’t paying attention to any of it. His eyes were fixed on the rift. The red haze pouring from it. The corruption spreading further and further across the ruined city.
"He isn’t out yet?" Kaiwen asked.
"No." Chenxi’s expression darkened. "It’s been more than ten hours."
Even Kaiwen stopped smiling.
"Where’s Yuzhen?" Zhiyao asked, looking around. A faint tension had appeared in his posture.
"He joined the evacuation teams." Chenxi pointed toward the distant city. "He’s helping move civilians."
Zhiyao visibly relaxed. "Oh."
"We should leave this area." Duan Ze suddenly said as he moved closer to Kaiwen. "The corruption is spreading."
Wenzhi frowned and reached into his bag. "I’m going in."
The statement was so casual it took a second to register.
Several people immediately looked at him.
Wenzhi ignored them. He removed an oxygen mask and secured it over his face.
"I’ll come with you." Kaiwen answered instantly without hesitation.
Wenzhi looked at him. Kaiwen looked right back.
Neither spoke or moved.
Eventually Wenzhi stopped arguing before it even started. Having an Esper beside him was better than going alone. Especially for what he was about to do. Because he knew exactly what awaited him inside.
Xinyuan had been in a Red Zone for over ten hours. He was definitely breaking apart by now.
Bringing him back would require guiding energy. A lot of guiding energy.
Energy Wenzhi didn’t have right now.
He wasn’t stupid. He already knew what Gu Luhan had confirmed earlier.
His body was deteriorating. His energy was running out.
This was the price of a Disaster-Class Esper imprinting on a B-Rank guide.
Wenzhi extended his hand. "Duan Ze."
Duan Ze blinked.
"Your supports."
Without argument, Duan Ze reached into his pocket and pulled out a packet of energy restoration pills.
Wenzhi took them and looked at Zhiyao. "You too."
Zhiyao sighed already knowing where this was going. A second packet landed in Wenzhi’s hand. "I don’t think this is a good idea."
Even so, he handed them over.
Wenzhi immediately opened both packets. The pills disappeared into his mouth one after another. They had Fruit flavours just like his own citrus taste.
"It is all I have." He chewed them casually as though they weren’t emergency supplies. As though everyone wasn’t staring at him.
"It’s either this.." He swallowed. "....or Xinyuan kills us all."
Zhiyao studied him carefully. "What about your own supports?"
His voice lowered. "Yours should be stronger than ours. Much stronger."
Wenzhi didn’t answer. Not because he didn’t have one. Because he didn’t want the conversation.
Instead he walked forward, toward the rift.
The gathered Rift Bureau Espers watched him approach.
The commander turned his head. Recognition appearing in his eyes as he took in Lin Wenzhi. The faction leader from the watch call.
The guide who had bought an entire sector’s evacuation without blinking.
Kaiwen stepped beside him. The red haze rolling around their boots.
The eye-shaped rift loomed overhead.
Neither man hesitated.
Together, they stepped through and vanished into the rift.
