As it turns out, Xiao Cheng was quite prescient in some ways.
For example, within five minutes of entering the stone forest, she successfully got separated from the others.
Xiao Cheng: "..." They've formed a team, but it's not a complete team yet.
She sighed resignedly, not in a hurry to continue walking, but stopped and carefully observed the stones around her.
This place looks familiar, as if I've been here before, but every corner of the Stone Forest seems to feel familiar.
The stone forest was much darker than outside, with shadows overlapping one after another, giving people an exceptionally oppressive feeling.
Xiao Cheng always felt that someone was watching her from behind, but several times when she suddenly turned around, she saw nothing, as if it was just a hallucination caused by her excessive tension.
Without making a sound, she took out a short knife, pointed the tip at the stone directly in front of her, and carved a deep mark to indicate her way.
The stone was softer than she had imagined. As she applied force with the knife tip, the contact surface slightly caved in, and a milky white liquid seeped out from the cut. It looked very viscous, had a slightly sweet milky aroma, and could even be drawn into threads when it dripped down.
The liquid quickly pooled on the ground, forming a small puddle with tiny bubbles on the surface, making it look more and more like milk.
Xiao Cheng didn't know what it was, but fearing it might be poisonous, she cautiously moved away from it, bypassed the rock, and turned right.
The stones next to him formed a corridor-like gap. Xiao Cheng walked along the gap between the stones, marking every three stones, and turning right when he encountered a turn.
We walked for more than twenty minutes without seeing any repeating marks or anything unusual.
However, just when she thought she was about to leave the stone forest and see a brighter view ahead, the first stone suddenly appeared right in front of her.
The area marked by the knife was still dripping liquid, while the base of the stone was completely dry, showing no signs of moisture.
Even drying shouldn't be this fast, right?
Xiao Cheng realized something was wrong, her brows furrowed slightly, and she moved closer to examine the stone.
The cut was definitely hers; the mark was very fresh, and based on her usual technique of using a knife, it was impossible for someone else to have forged it.
Just as she was recalling her route, a small clod of soil suddenly fell silently from the upper middle part of the rock.
Behind the peeling soil, a pair of eyes suddenly opened, the pupils rolling downwards with all their might, silently watching Xiao Cheng walk past them.
Feeling the cold gaze coming from above, Xiao Cheng suddenly stopped and slowly looked up.
Their eyes met.
Xiao Cheng: "..." I don't want to run into monsters around the corner like this.
The moment she reacted, the entire rock shattered into pieces with a bang, and a twisted zombie lunged out, roaring and raising its claws.
The zombie was completely pale, with its blood vessels and bones protruding exaggeratedly, making it almost impossible to recognize its original appearance.
On its smooth back of the head lay a clump of black tentacles, which at first glance looked a bit like messy hair, fluttering wildly in the air as it leaped up.
Too close, Xiao Cheng decided to attack instead of defend, dodging the zombie's claws and passing by it while grabbing the zombie's right arm with one hand and twisting it forcefully.
With a sharp crack, his arm was dislocated, dangling there precariously. The zombie's attack slowed, and Xiao Cheng seized the opportunity to roll behind it, aiming for the center of the black tentacle. He gripped the short knife tightly and forcefully plunged the blade inside.
A muffled thud.
The zombie's movements abruptly ceased, its head splitting open like a watermelon, revealing an empty interior. Its black tentacles trembled violently, then visibly began to shrink, eventually turning into dry, stubble-like hair.
Xiao Cheng then realized what the lump of stuff actually was.
Dense, rooted roots were deeply embedded in a grape-sized fleshy ball, its shape somewhat irregular. Crab-claw-like barbs protruded from its base, gripping the zombie's scalp. Several faint indentations on the top of the ball resembled abstract facial features yet to fully open.
The dagger missed its mark, not striking the fleshy ball precisely. The poison stopped spreading as the tentacles broke. Xiao Cheng, looking at the seemingly harmless fleshy ball, didn't hesitate for a moment, swiftly pulling out the blade and then aiming for it again with a fierce thrust.
But this time the blade tip failed to penetrate smoothly. It must have hit something, making a crisp click. Xiao Cheng could clearly feel the resistance coming from the blade.
Black, oily liquid gushed out from the cut, rapidly corroding the surface of the flesh ball and the zombie's shriveled skin, until only a skeleton remained.
A grayish-white crystal fell from the skeleton, rolled all the way to Xiao Cheng's feet, and then instantly dissipated, turning into a strange wisp of mist that automatically disappeared into her body.
The bracelet screen vibrated violently, and a fancy dialog box popped up.
[Player #99 has successfully leveled up! You are the 23rd player to reach level 2. Congratulations! Reward: None.]
Xiao Cheng: "..." I really appreciate your congratulations.
With the stone blocking her path gone, she continued walking to the right, knife in hand. This time, just in case, she stabbed deeply and forcefully with each mark, the milky white liquid spilling onto the ground, filling the air with an extremely strong milky scent wherever she went.
Almost every stone contains a zombie, but not every zombie comes to life. They remain encased in the stone, silent and undisturbed.
Out of curiosity, Xiao Cheng randomly knocked on a few zombies to take a look. Each zombie had a clump of black tentacles stuck to the back of its head, but they were still very sparse. The fleshy ball in the center could be clearly seen, undulating slightly in a rhythmic manner, as if it were breathing.
This fleshy ball seems not to be fully mature yet, with a thin film covering its surface. It looks soft but is extremely tough, and it couldn't even be cut open with a knife.
Xiao Cheng had planned to study it more carefully, but before she could even start, a sudden earthquake shook the ground in the distance. The violent tremors caused the standing stones to collapse completely, falling one after another like dominoes, kicking up clouds of dust.
Amidst the rumbling sounds, there were occasionally two short exclamations, but they were instantly drowned out by the deafening vibrations.
In an instant, all he could see was a hazy gray, and his breath was filled with choking dust. Xiao Cheng coughed twice, forcefully swatting away the dust in front of him with one hand, and covering his mouth and nose with the other.
Suddenly, her palm touched something unusually hard. Somewhat bewildered, she raised her hand, her gaze slowly moving upwards until it met a pair of strange eyes that were flashing red light.
The red light was extremely penetrating, like a searchlight, illuminating this small area with exceptional clarity. Xiao Cheng stared blankly at the two-meter-tall zombie, its body covered in stones and truly armed to the teeth, a question mark slowly forming in his mind.
Holy crap, Armor Hero?!
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