Chapter 105 The Butterfly Storm That Spreads Ever More Rampantly Through the Old Campus...
Butterflies flutter gracefully, yet when they huddle together and move rapidly, they resemble bats leaving their nests, inspiring fear.
The mission details were accurate; the flapping of butterfly wings can indeed cause a "tornado." Wherever the wind passes, the cement of the buildings is transformed into human bones, spreading outwards from the point of contact. After a few collisions, the butterflies create many "scars."
Plants were not spared either; the leaves of trees, like the hair of a sick person who had fallen out overnight, scattered in all directions. Some were swept up by swarms of butterflies, adding wisps of lush green to the patches of white bones, like the festering sores of a monster.
The remaining, slowly whitening tree trunks propped up sharp branches, and together with the already constructed bone fence, soared into the sky in a Gothic manner.
The eerie sunflower field, swept by butterflies, caused each stalk to writhe like a zombie, accompanied by the clattering sound of stretched human bones. The roots twisted and the flower heads swelled, forming the outline of a human face, appearing and disappearing intermittently.
The butterflies, unafraid of water, plunged into the water, darting across the surface and creating splashes, like water monsters flashing past, bleeding as they swam. By the time the swarm of butterflies emerged from the water, the lake had become a pool of thick blood, and the swans and several koi carp that were kept there lay dead on the surface.
The piano in the art gallery played on its own, the out-of-tune music sounding like bones being broken one by one.
Streetlights and cars were wrapped in layers of white, skeletal cocoons, and the earth was covered with a layer of fresh snow that seemed to be broken and connected. Thin clouds wove in from all directions on the horizon, and the entire campus was wrapped in a giant cocoon.
Pu Fengchun glanced at Xue Chao, who walked past as usual. She knew that he had already provided the help he needed, so she quickly went behind him, took the cat cage he was carrying, opened it, and grabbed Butterfly. Fortunately, with Xue Chao there, Butterfly did not move.
The subtle shimmer of wings washed over her. She remained vigilant, keeping a watchful eye on Jiang Ming. Jiang Ming smiled and deliberately patted Xue Chao's shoulder to make her nervous: "Her improved abilities will be an asset in the boss battle. There aren't many players to begin with, are we just going to let her go like this?"
He glanced intentionally or unintentionally at the morpho butterfly in the cage, then looked at Xue Chao's head. Xue Chao knew what he meant. Even if the boss battle started, his head was still one of the ways to pass the level. Killing a host and killing a boss sounded like the former was more feasible. Leaving Pu Fengchun's butterfly behind would provide another way to distract the players, and as one of the butterflies, he could also have an easier time.
But if everyone's attention is diverted, wouldn't summoning the boss be a waste?
As if on cue, they stood by the window when a figure suddenly leaped up outside. The figure had plant roots tied around its waist and its movements were clumsy, but with sheer ferocity, it broke through the window and swung its knife at Pu Fengchun.
Unfortunately, Deng Dayun was a conservative player who used to minimize his presence and barely survive, and rarely tried this kind of exciting battle. He wasn't skilled at it, and Xue Chao grabbed his head and pushed him back down, so he couldn't jump in completely.
Jiang Ming, who had been watching the show, suddenly attacked Pu Fengchun, who had been left alone. Pu Fengchun, who had expected this, swallowed the butterfly, covered his mouth, and leaned towards Xue Chao.
Deng Dayun tumbled out the window, but Xue Chao grabbed the plant roots, keeping them just out of reach. He crashed into the outer wall, seeing stars.
The weakened wall cracked as he smashed it. Xue Chao frowned and tightened his grip: "Save your strength for fighting the boss."
He glanced at Jiang Ming briefly: "Don't scare her."
Jiang Ming grinned and said, "Can't I be sincere?"
"She's already exhausted the energy to use another ability to catalyze the birth of a boss. One more won't make a difference. Are you really planning to rely on these few?"
Before Pu Fengchun disappeared, she exchanged another glance with Xue Chao. This time, Xue Chao nodded, which she thought was a way of telling her to leave peacefully. Then, she heard the settlement notification in her ear.
Main quest failed.
[...]
Due to the unique nature of the copy, other indicators were also tested...
[Ranking of customs clearance times...]
Congratulations! You've reached the top spot and are now number one in the room!
[Congratulations on being the first player to leave the instance!]
[Achieve the achievement "Leading the Way"]
[Reward points are being distributed...]
Pu Fengchun shattered into specks of light and disappeared. Jiang Ming then laughed: "I have this pretty face, I'm born to be a gigolo. If I'm too strong, I won't be popular. You don't have any special abilities. The one who can fight the most among us is Sheng Hong. It's a pity that fate is cruel. The character was supposed to die last, but she left before everyone else. I feel sorry for her."
Xue Chao gave a cold laugh, as if amused: "You should feel sorry for yourself. You're a tool whether you're alive or dead. We're stuffing you into a cocoon because we're afraid the goal you've been waiting for won't fly out."
"You suspect that I instigated her death? You're wrong! Even if I did nothing, they would all die eventually. I just needed a corpse. They can't all fake their deaths, otherwise she wouldn't be able to fly out. As for who died... someone has to die eventually, and it just so happens to be her."
Fang Tailai was immediately startled by the calluses on his head as he entered the room. After listening to their barbed remarks for a while, he thought men really talked too much. With a gloomy face, he said, "Can you guys stop flirting? It's like the end of the world outside. What's the battle plan?"
As she said this, she glanced at Xue Chao's head, imagining what he actually looked like with the head of the shimmering butterfly.
Deng Dayun, whose sneak attack had failed, followed with a limp. He knew that Xue Chao's head was not easy to snatch, and his jump out of the window was only aimed at the butterflies in Pu Fengchun's cage. At this moment, he lowered his head, as if he was waiting to be dealt with.
After all, their combat skills are average, and as for their superpowers, one can only protect himself, while the other is facing the dream-creating butterfly. It's not certain who will be mentally controlled. This method wasn't their idea; it must have been decided by the two unscrupulous main forces who summoned the boss.
Jiang Ming looked out. The building had been almost completely eroded, resembling a ruin piled with countless bones, a ghastly white expanse. Each covered window had a strange outline, sometimes resembling facial features, sometimes internal organs, sometimes limbs, and it was impossible to tell what it was.
It's like an "organ factory," with skeletons serving as frames to hold people who are falling apart.
The increasingly rampant butterfly storm circled around and flew back again.
Jiang Ming, unusually serious, said, "She's using the entire campus as a cocoon to nurture her. Who knows how big a monster will emerge? She's definitely not easy to deal with. Your abilities aren't offensive, so you're best used as bait. Wait for her to emerge from the cocoon. Fang Tailai's stand-in will attract attention, and Deng Dayun, try your best to control her, even for just a second—Xue Chao, I'll give you a buff. As long as your determination is strong enough, there's always a chance to fight for anything..."
He knew Xue Chao understood; Xue Chao had already witnessed "snow" in the previous instance, a riddle belonging to the two of them.
However, before he could finish speaking, Xue Chao grabbed his hand, shoved the knife handle into his hand, and plunged it into his abdomen.
Jiang Ming sensed Xue Chao's intention but did not break free. He harbored murderous intent and wanted to see what Xue Chao would do, so his fingertips trembled slightly with excitement.
So the white knife went in and the red knife came out, and the scene they had just witnessed was repeated.
Fang Tailai's eyelids, which were drooping to his cheeks, suddenly opened up, startling him so much that he took two steps back. Deng Dayun smelled the blood first, raised his head, and looked at Xue Chao, who had seriously injured him, with a gloomy expression.
The smell of blood not only attracted him, but also reawakened the restlessness of the cocoon on his head. The bones that covered the ground trembled and creaked, and the smell of blood drifted further, attracting the butterflies back.
As the butterfly storm approached, Xue Chao stepped onto the windowsill and plunged into the swarm of butterflies. The butterflies, scattered by his attack, flew back and gathered again, while the butterflies inside crowded around his wound, frantically pecking at it.
Jiang Ming glanced at his blood-covered hands and shook his head: "They really have no team spirit."
Xue Chao quickly added a few more wounds to himself so that the butterflies could receive their blessings evenly, but he was careful to avoid his head. These bone butterflies, in order to breed morpho butterflies, would definitely be drawn to the stench of blood and everything that smells of death or potential death, but they might also reject his head.
The plant roots in his hand were poised to burst forth, fearing the butterflies wouldn't be tempted. But the broken flesh and blood were indeed more attractive. He was surrounded by butterflies, completely enveloped in the center of the butterfly storm, rushing all the way into the initial cocoon.
Unlike Xue Chao's experience crawling through the blood vessels of a corpse, there was no sticky feeling or throbbing blood flow like in the internal organs. Instead, it was very quiet and closed off, like a small, dark room abandoned under the moon. Time, life and death, oneself and others had all disappeared. One could only watch as a sliver of moonlight seeped in and slowly moved from one side to the other.
He skillfully tore off his clothes to bandage his wound, and his wound healed faster.
Unfortunately, a doctor cannot heal himself. His "third eye" cannot see his own readings, but he knows they have definitely increased again. His body and mind have become resilient through repeated fatal blows, much like the saying, "What doesn't kill me makes me stronger."
His face was still deathly pale, and everything in front of him was pitch black. There was no dark, milky white color like bone, nor the sound of butterflies fluttering, pianos, or people talking.
Is it so quiet inside the cocoon?
He waited until his wounds stabilized a bit, then slowly got up. Something felt off... This space seemed bigger than the cocoon in the radio station.
He slowly rubbed against the floor in the darkness, but couldn't feel anything. The floor was of an unknown material, like marble, but softer. It didn't sink under any of his steps, but it gave him an uneasy feeling of not being able to stand firmly.
He was indeed uneasy, fearing that Sheng Hong's mutated butterfly body might burst out from somewhere, until he touched a door.
This was the only thing in the space. He reached up along the crack in the door, grabbed the doorknob, and pushed and pressed. It was dark outside, but the darkness had a clear outline; it was the corridor of the teaching building.
When he turned around again, the room behind him revealed itself to resemble a classroom, with the podium, desks, and sanitation corner hidden in the darkness.
That's right. With his night vision, it's impossible that he couldn't see any outline. He even touched it himself. Just now, it was an empty little dark room, surrounded by dense darkness, like a real cocoon. It was only after he opened the door that the classroom was "loaded" out.
Loading... Where did the broadcasting station send him next?
He went back to the classroom to look for clues and found "The Time Machine" in the last row by the window. There were no donated stickers, and the pages were not cut out. It was just a book. The person reading it had casually drawn a few strokes up to the middle of the book, so they probably hadn't finished reading it yet.
This is a book by Xue Chao.
Is this Xue Chao's dream?
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