256: Chapter 256 Desperate Dragging

"Rustle... rustle..."

The sound was like countless tiny, slick claws scratching and writhing simultaneously deep within the hard, dry soil and rock.

It wasn't loud, but it carried a sticky malice that pierced straight to the bone, instantly drowning out Ling Ye's own heavy gasps and the weak, unconscious moans of the "Neighbor."

The "thing" below had indeed been disturbed! And it was faster than he had anticipated!

Ling Ye's heart hammered like a drum, pounding painfully against his ribcage.

But he didn't look back; he didn't even have time to feel fear.

The instinct to survive and the obsession with dragging the "Neighbor" out overwhelmed everything else.

He gritted his teeth and used all his strength to hoist the "Neighbor's" limp, nearly unconscious body onto his shoulder as if lifting a weightless sack of dried grass, then burst toward the cave entrance with the greatest speed he had ever mustered in his life, stumbling forward!

"Rustle, rustle, rustle—!!"

The sound behind him suddenly became rapid and dense! It was as if the "thing" were breaking through the soil and chasing him at an astonishing speed!

A cold, corrosive wave of malicious energy, like tangible ice water, instantly washed over his back, making his hair stand on end!

Run! Run fast! Must not stop! Absolutely must not stop!

The faint light at the cave entrance, symbolizing the outside world, looked like a distant star on the horizon within his violently shaking field of vision.

The cave passage was narrow, slick, and sloped upward, and carrying a person on his shoulder made every step exceptionally difficult.

He nearly slipped several times, his knees slamming hard against sharp stones, sending piercing pain through him, but he only let out a muffled grunt, clamped his arms tightly around the "Neighbor," and used all his strength to scramble upward.

"Bang!"

A loose piece of gravel he stepped on tumbled into the bottomless darkness behind him; there was no sound of it hitting the ground, only the "rustling" sound, which seemed closer now, almost right at his heels!

He could even feel a damp, rotten breath, thick with the smell of earth and some indescribable sweet, fishy stench, blowing against the back of his neck!

"Ah—!!"

A suppressed, beast-like growl escaped Ling Ye's throat; adrenaline flooded his system, squeezing out the very last ounce of his potential!

Using his hands and feet, he practically crawled through the last few meters of the steep, slick passage, and suddenly, his vision brightened—the cave entrance was here!

Without a second thought, he lunged out of the narrow cave entrance while carrying the "Neighbor"!

The massive momentum sent him tumbling forward, but he shielded the "Neighbor" on his shoulder tightly, rolling clumsily on the ground several times until he hit a protruding rock and stopped.

The sharp pain from the impact on his back made his vision go black, but he immediately struggled to stand, reaching back to grab the bow on his back and the knife at his waist, while simultaneously staring fixedly at the pitch-black cave entrance.

Inside the cave, the hair-raising "rustling" sound came to an abrupt halt at the entrance.

It was as if an invisible boundary was holding that "thing" inside the cave.

Only that cold, malicious energy fluctuation, like a viper's tongue, still probed faintly from the entrance, coiling and peering at the outside world.

On the ground near the entrance, a few sparse weeds withered and turned black at a speed visible to the naked eye.

That "thing"... it didn't follow. Was it restricted? Or was it afraid of the outside environment?

Ling Ye dared not relax in the slightest; he maintained his battle stance, his bow half-drawn, the arrowhead aimed dead at the cave entrance.

Only after confirming that there were indeed no signs of the "thing" coming out did he slowly, inch by inch, move backward to increase the distance from the entrance.

It wasn't until he had retreated over twenty meters and his back hit a solid rock that he dared to relax his taut nerves slightly and gasp heavily.

Cold sweat, like a floodgate opening, instantly soaked his tattered clothes, bringing a bone-chilling cold in the freezing night wind.

He looked down at the "Neighbor," who lay curled up on the ground where he had placed it.

The "Neighbor" was still unconscious, its face gray and sickly, but its chest still showed a faint rise and fall.

That desperate dragging had clearly placed an even greater burden on it, and its breathing had become even weaker.

But at least, it was out. It was safe for the moment.

Only then did Ling Ye feel the pain of his entire body feeling as if it were falling apart. His knees were scraped, bleeding profusely. The spot on his back where he hit the rock throbbed with a burning pain. His arms trembled uncontrollably from overexertion.

But he couldn't spare the time to tend to his own wounds and immediately checked the "Neighbor's" condition.

There were no new external injuries, but the pulse was still terrifyingly weak, and the body temperature was abnormally low.

Most crucially, the palm of its right hand, where it had previously clutched that contaminated Ore, showed skin with an unnatural, dull gray-green color, and extremely fine, spiderweb-like black lines were slowly spreading toward its wrist!

It was contamination! The contamination from that Ore was eroding the "Neighbor's" body through contact!

Ling Ye's heart sank abruptly. No wonder the "Neighbor" had warned him earlier: "Don't touch the stones!"

It had known about the danger of those Ores all along, and perhaps it was precisely because it had contacted or studied these Ores that it had ended up in this state!

And the "Stone Language" it had left behind—the warning about the mossy cave, the indication of the "circled human head"—likely pointed not just to the danger of the cave itself, but to these Ores and the secrets hidden behind them related to the "abyssal eye"!

Was the "Neighbor" investigating these? What kind of entity was it?

Why was it so obsessed with these dangerous Ores, even willing to risk its life?

Questions tangled like a mess of hemp, but now was not the time to think. He had to treat the "Neighbor's" injuries and contamination immediately and leave this place as soon as possible!

Although the "thing" in the cave hadn't come out, there was no guarantee it wouldn't change. Besides, this place was too close to the entrance and still dangerous.

Ling Ye endured the pain and exhaustion in his body and hoisted the "Neighbor" onto his back again. This time, he didn't dare carry it on his shoulder, opting for a less strenuous piggyback position. He identified the direction and began to trek, stumbling step by step, toward the northwest where his own cave was located.

The night was his best cover, but it also made every step difficult. He had to bypass slick gullies, avoid soft mud, and simultaneously remain vigilant about the direction of the cave entrance behind him, as well as other dangers that might be lurking in the surrounding darkness.

The "Neighbor" was light, but at this moment on Ling Ye's back, it felt heavy as a thousand pounds. It wasn't just the physical burden, but also the heavy sense of responsibility and the unknown regarding the "Neighbor's" identity, purpose, and the dangers involved.

Carrying the "Neighbor" in the cold night wind, he moved like a guilty ghost, silently traversing the desolate hills. Every step tugged at his wounds. Every breath tasted of blood. But he didn't stop. He knew that stopping might mean both of them would remain in this cold wilderness forever.

He didn't know how long he had walked, but when the horizon finally gleamed with a faint, dismal, fish-belly gray, Ling Ye finally saw the silhouette of the hillside where his hidden cave was located. Relying almost entirely on his last ounce of willpower, he dragged his nearly numb legs to the entrance.

He carefully set the "Neighbor" down, leaning it against the inside of the cave entrance. Then, he himself collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath, his vision blacking out in waves, and his ears buzzing.

Must not pass out... at least, not yet...

He struggled to crawl into the cave and found his water flask; there was still a little water left. He took a small sip first to moisten his throat, which felt like it was on fire, and then carefully fed the remaining water to the still-unconscious "Neighbor."

Then, he lit the last of his precious dry kindling and started a small, weak fire. The warmth from the flames allowed his nearly frozen body to regain a little sensation.

He checked the contamination on the "Neighbor's" right hand. The gray-green area and black lines didn't seem to be spreading rapidly anymore, but there were no signs of them receding either. The "Neighbor's" vital signs remained extremely weak.

He had no experience in treating contamination. The bottle of specialized medicine was for inflammation; he had no idea if it would be useful against this kind of energy erosion. But he had no other choice. He poured out a pill, carefully crushed it into powder with a stone, mixed it with the last bit of water, pried open the "Neighbor's" teeth, and poured it in little by little.

Then, he tore off a relatively clean strip of cloth from his own clothes, soaked it in warm water that had been boiled, and carefully wiped the gray-green area on the "Neighbor's" right palm. As soon as the cloth touched the skin, a faint, burning, stinging sensation was transmitted; the part of the fabric that made contact quickly darkened and became brittle.

This contamination was highly corrosive!

Ling Ye's heart sank to the bottom. He didn't dare touch it again easily and had to give up.

He moved the "Neighbor" to a relatively warm and dry spot by the fire and covered it with all the rags and dried grass he could find. Then, he began to treat his own wounds. The wound on his knee was deep, with torn flesh; he cleaned it with boiled water, sprinkled on the last of the medicinal powder, and bandaged it with a relatively clean strip of cloth. The impact injury on his back was just a bruise and not a major issue.

After finishing all this, the sky was already fully bright. It was a gloomy, grayish-white brightness, without any sunlight.

Ling Ye slumped by the fire, his back against the cold cave wall, watching the flickering flames and the "Neighbor" beside the fire, whose life hung in the balance and who was shrouded in mystery.

The night of desperate escape had once again exhausted the strength and supplies he had just recovered. And the "ally" he had saved brought with it even greater mysteries and potential dangers.

He had saved it. But what now? How could he treat this bizarre contamination? How would he face the complex situation that might arise after the "Neighbor" woke up? What was the "thing" deep in that cave? What were those Ores? What connection did they have to the "abyssal eye"? How much did the "Neighbor" actually know?

Exhaustion surged like a tide, mixed with pain, lingering fear, and a deep sense of confusion about the future.

He glanced at the grayish-white sky outside the cave, then back at the unconscious "Neighbor" beside him.

At least, they were still alive now. Both of them were still alive.

That was enough. As for everything else... he would wait until the "Neighbor" woke up.

If it could still wake up, that is.

Ling Ye slowly closed his eyes, forcing himself to enter the "Star Visualization," guiding that weak warm current to flow through his own tired, aching body, and also attempting to split off a sliver, slowly and tentatively, to flow toward the cold, weak body beside him, which was entangled by an ominous aura...

The cold wind of the wilderness continued to wail outside the cave. Inside, there was only the crackle of the weak flames and two equally scarred Souls with unknown fates, breathing with difficulty in the silence.