Chapter 88

On what seemed like an unknown number of days into his life in the Otherworld, Zhou Zhi tragically discovered that he appeared to be dying.

His nutrient solution has run out, his protective suit has been torn in a battle, and the skin underneath has been scratched. He will either be contaminated and turn into a monster, or starve to death.

He is now in a cave, and a long, drizzling rain is falling outside.

Through the pile of wood and weeds at the entrance of the cave, he saw the gray mist in the sky seem to be gradually dissipating, and what was faintly revealed behind it was particularly unsettling.

The little creature in the cave cried out for food. Over the course of these days, Zhou Zhi was amazed to discover that this creature possessed intelligence no less than that of humans, and he began to teach it Chinese characters and language.

He was almost stunned when he uttered the first few words.

He hadn't spoken for too long. There were no humans here, no other creatures he could communicate with, only monsters that could appear at any moment. He was almost driven mad by this loneliness.

So Zhou Zhi began to teach the little monster a language, including the language of mountains and rivers, the sun and the earth...

Sometimes he would tell stories, but Zhou Zhi's Chinese language skills had never been very good, and his stories were always dry and uninteresting. But through these stories, the little monster's intelligence grew rapidly.

The experience of nurturing an individual is wonderful. One day, the little monster asked a question: "What is love?"

Zhou Zhi was speechless. He had rarely experienced love in his past. His father loved him, but was rarely home. His mother also loved him, but perhaps loved her experimental data more.

Moreover, this term is too broad.

“I don’t know, you have to find out for yourself,” he said to the little monster, but with a hint of melancholy in his voice. Could a creature that knew love survive in this world?

Zhou Zhi took off his protective suit. The heavy suit was no longer of any use. His body was in close contact with the world for the first time, and the biting cold instantly clung to his skin.

The spikes from that contaminant scratched his arm, and because the wound wasn't treated and bandaged in time, it had already started to turn black. He might soon lose his mind and become a full-fledged resident of this world.

He leaned against the cave wall, and the little monster beside him snuggled up like a cat, obediently climbing into the human's arms.

The little monster's body was warm, like it was hugging a large hot water bottle.

“You’ve gained a lot of weight.” Zhou Zhi weighed you in his hand.

"Awoo—"

"No...weight."

The little monster can now understand human speech, and it gently patted Zhou Zhi's face with its tentacles.

"But it's better when they're older, at least they won't be bullied like when they were just born."

He noticed his arm was itchy and instinctively scratched it, causing a shower of white flakes to fall, which left Zhou Zhi stunned.

The pollution has begun...

The rain stopped quickly. It might not have been raining, but something else, because when Zhou Zhi walked out of the cave, all he saw were piles of polluted corpses.

They were covered with a thin black membrane, which writhed on the corpses like something alive.

"Hungry……"

The little monster saw the food and tried to pounce on it, but Zhou Zhi grabbed its tail. His intuition told him that the black membrane was not a good thing.

His skin had begun to crack, like bread that had been left out for days, with blood seeping out, making him look rather gruesome.

There isn't much time left.

The little monsters can eat the pollution, but humans exposed to this environment will die sooner or later.

However, Zhou Zhi was not one to sit idly by and wait for death. He removed the recording device from his protective suit and began recording the situation as he walked, trying his best to leave detailed information for those who came after him.

He kept walking in a certain direction, not knowing what lay ahead or what the exit would be, but even if he died, he would die on the edge of this world.

He continued walking, and the more corpses covered in black membranes he saw, the more he realized.

This reminded him of the mass extinction of dinosaurs on Earth. What exactly happened during this long rainy season?

Just as Zhou Zhi was deep in thought, the little monster in his arms suddenly became restless, its tentacles flailing violently like a giant octopus.

“Above…” He uttered.

above?

Zhou Zhi raised his head, and the scene before him was reflected in his pupils. The entire sky had turned black and red, with black edges that gradually turned red towards the center. Cloud-like things were attached to it, and in the very center was a black, round creature.

The sphere moved slightly, and a red hue appeared from the very center, making it look like an eyeball had grown in the sky.

Now the eyeball is open.

As darkness enveloped his vision, Zhou Zhi belatedly realized that his eyes had become dry and painful. The little monster had covered his eyes with its tentacles, which felt icy cold.

What is that?

The moment this question arose in his mind, his eyes hurt even more.

Even with his eyes closed, he could feel the gaze of that eyeball falling on him. For some reason, as time went on in this world, his five senses became more and more acute.

He is raised high above the dome, watching over the ants that have been sent down. At this moment, all the pollutants in the inner world fall silent and bow down to the ground.

Zhou Zhi could feel every muscle in his body trembling; it was an instinct born from facing a higher being.

His stomach contracted violently from fear, and he felt an urge to gag.

Die.

A strong wind was blowing around me.

It's raining.

Black rain fell on the earth, the viscous raindrops covering all living things and enveloping them.

Zhou Zhi felt as if he were trapped in a swamp, with the rain gradually submerging him. He wanted to speak or run away, but his body did not respond.

It's like a game of "Red Light, Green Light," where no living being can move within the field of vision of that eyeball.

Except for that little monster.

He wrapped his tentacles around the human's arms and ankles, trying to pull him out of the swamp, but Zhou Zhi's body remained motionless.

His body was covered in black slime, making him look like a terracotta figurine sealed in the ground, only able to move his eyes.

That gaze remained fixed on this oddball.

Zhou Zhi's lips moved slightly: "Let go."

The little monster understood and let out a dissatisfied cry.

"Let go!" he repeated.

The tentacles wrapped around his eyes were removed, and he opened his eyes, which faintly revealed a golden-red hue. He then looked up and gazed at the enormous eyeball embedded in the sky.

The movement was very slow, and the moment his neck was raised, the black slime clinging to the side of his neck fell off like dried coal dust.

He met his gaze.

At that moment, the invisible shackles in the air were broken.

The red eye in the sky flickered, and if it had a brain, it should be wondering why this human was bowing down under its pressure, just like any other creature.

He wanted to instill fear in the hearts of living beings, but once the physical body is removed, the human will is far stronger than any pollutant.

Zhou Zhi took the first step, and as he moved his body, the black slime gradually disappeared.

This action angered the eyes in the sky, and the surrounding polluted corpses stood up and moved closer to the center.

Before the corpses could surround them, Zhou Zhi grabbed the little monster. There were too many of them; if they fought head-on, he would probably be swallowed up without a trace.

There's no escaping it.

Zhou Zhi assessed the speed difference between the two sides. It would be difficult for a human to outrun a group of monsters. Suddenly, the little monster in his arms struggled violently and jumped out of his hands.

Under the astonished gazes of humans, the little monster rapidly expanded in size, its enormous blue wings unfurling, and a powerful gust of air blew up a cloud of pollutants behind it.

The eyes seemed to sense something and cast their gaze in this direction.

Without hesitation, Zhou Zhi flipped over and climbed onto the feathered serpent's back. With a flap of its wings, it immediately distanced itself from the pollutants behind it.

The sky was not safe, so the feathered serpent flew very low, swiftly crossing rivers and mountains as it flew forward.

"Is this what you originally looked like?"

After shaking off their pursuers, they stopped in a forest. Zhou Zhi looked at the beautiful creature in amazement. He was far less composed than he was later, so when such a beautiful beast appeared before him, his first reaction was—this is so cool!

"Hmm." The feathered serpent was a little smug, but it didn't last long before it ran out of power and turned back into its small form.

"Hahaha." Then he was ridiculed by humans.

"This form is quite cute, of course it's very imposing when it's big." Zhou Zhi picked up the little monster, the eyeball on its head making him feel a little uneasy.

He looked around and saw tall trees everywhere. The area was dark and gloomy, and there must be a lot of pollutants hidden in the forest.

Suddenly, a slight sound came from behind.

Is there something there?

Zhou Zhi turned his head warily, and saw a figure in the depths.