Free Web NovelChapter 561: Chapter 200: Outbreak of Infection, Ghost Water Cave Crab!
The night fell earlier than expected.
By just past seven twenty, the last trace of light on the horizon was completely swallowed, and thick darkness instantly enveloped everything.
Everything around fell silent, except for the wind whimpering through broken walls, like an invisible monster lying in the Wilderness, quietly staring at the direction of the camp. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
Though Flame did not warn of any eyes watching, Cheng Ye clearly felt cold malice constantly falling upon him.
And the last time he ventured out to investigate Dapo Town, he had never felt this kind of eerie intuition.
"Is this what the threat in the Wilderness feels like?"
As Cheng Ye walked, he constantly shrugged his shoulders and swung his arms, mobilizing his upper body muscles to maintain a slight warm-up state.
A wise man does not stand under a wall that might collapse. After practicing martial arts, a warrior’s Perception of danger improves.
He absolutely did not believe this malice was an illusion; in a world where even Extraordinary beings exist, there must be incomprehensible entities wandering in the Wilderness.
Perhaps this malice was not personally targeted at him, but rather evenly enveloped everyone in the Wilderness, yet this feeling of being "watched" was like wearing a wet, uncomfortable garment.
Holding up a flashlight, Cheng Ye first patrolled around the camp’s nearby streets, confirmed no anomalies on the outskirts, then paused and turned towards the street leading to the river banks.
Almost as soon as he stepped onto this road, the barely perceptible malice sharpened suddenly, like countless pairs of eyes hidden behind the dark broken walls, deadlocked on his back, even his hair stood on end.
"Whoosh..."
"Splash..."
The sound of White Water River’s flow was exceptionally clear at night, with its speed noticeably faster than during the day.
The sound of the river slapping against the dam was intermittent, occasionally mixed with the wind sweeping through, sounding like a woman softly sobbing, or an old woman eerily singing opera in the dark, long and strange, making one’s skin crawl.
Cheng Ye suppressed his unease and quickly walked up to the bank, gazing into the distance under the moonlight.
Without modern society’s light pollution, the Wasteland’s moonlight was particularly bright, and even a few strands of clouds could not prevent the river from reflecting a silver brilliance.
Visibly, White Water River and Yellow River’s flow had surged by thirty percent compared to the day, and the river’s rush was more urgent.
"Happiness City’s weather forecast said there would be light rain tomorrow evening; could it be that heavy rain fell upstream first?"
As tributaries of Lin River, once these two rivers rose suddenly, the main flow would undoubtedly be fiercer.
This indicated a high probability of intense rainfall upstream of Lin River, leading to a sudden increase in downstream tributaries’ water volume.
As Cheng Ye pondered, he raised his right hand, letting the flashlight beam slowly sweep along the bank’s edge.
Where the light reached, there were only moist soil and overgrown weeds, with no unusual Shadows visible.
If overlooking Luokuke’s reminder during the day, the scene at the moment was somewhat similar to the first night of venturing out of the city.
Calm, tranquil, even carrying a hint of primitive natural beauty.
An abandoned town, a neglected bank, away from human activity traces, everything was slowly returning to a chaotic primitive state.
Sigh.
After staring at the water surface for a moment without detecting any anomalies, Cheng Ye finally turned back toward the camp.
Luokuke and Garcia weren’t as daring as him, coming alone to the river banks after dark, but after personally confirming the situation, his unease had indeed diminished somewhat.
Thump.
Thump.
Crunch.
The Battle Armor boots crushed the road surface occasionally pressing against weathered concrete blocks, making a "crunch" of cracking sounds.
In the distance, the patrol team from the Red Zone walked past in formation, eight people per group, with two groups, everyone holding flashlights.
Even from dozens of meters away, both sides tacitly avoided shining their flashlights directly at each other, only flickering them briefly at the feet, exchanging a greeting according to the Wasteland’s standard long-short signal.
Watching the team leave, Cheng Ye continued to walk back, with his footsteps especially clear in the silent night.
Thump.
Thump.
Crack...
Suddenly, he halted his lifted foot in mid-air, instinctively twisting to the side, his Battle Armor clashing into the pile of abandoned bricks and stones adjacent to the street.
The Battle Armor instantly collided with the nearby pile of deserted bricks and stones.
The Red Blade at his waist seamlessly slipped into his left hand, while his right hand swiftly turned the flashlight beam towards behind him.
No one?
Cheng Ye’s gaze instantly focused; the spot he just stepped on was only two blocks of thoroughly weathered concrete, exposing moist soil beneath.
Yet he distinctly heard a clear "crack" sound earlier, as though... mimicking the previous footsteps?
"What the hell is this?"
Cheng Ye cursed softly and cautiously surveyed his surroundings, discreetly swapping the Red Blade to his right hand.
Teach a person with words, and none will stick.
Experience teaches, one lesson stays in the mind.
Cold weapons indeed have their limitations, less effective against Infected Bodies than a handgun.
But once outside the Buffer Zone, out of the quarantine area, truly entering the Wilderness.
In this moment, a handgun, even the security provided by Thunder 1, was far less reassuring than holding the Red Blade in his hand.
A second, two seconds, five seconds passed, that "crack" sound did not recur.
It seemed like an illusion, possibly the wind moved that piece of broken brick causing the sound.
Yet.
Suddenly adjusting his breathing, Cheng Ye pounced like a poised cheetah, instead of escaping towards the camp, he briskly ran back towards the river banks.
Throughout Dapo Town, the river banks were the most open; once buried in the town, buildings reduced to ruins were everywhere, hiding an Infected Body or a source was almost effortless.
