258: Chapter 258 The Abyss of Choice

Agonizing pain, like thousands of red-hot steel needles, was wildly churning and piercing through Ling Ye's brain, nerves, and even the depths of his Soul.

The cold, viscous, and malicious polluting energy within the Neighbor was currently violently backlashing and eroding his spirit through the mental connection he had forcibly established.

He could feel his consciousness shaking, strange, constantly writhing dark green spots appearing at the edge of his vision, and his ears buzzing with whispers that seemed to come from the depths of the abyss, full of temptation and destruction.

"Let go… let it devour… merge… eternity…"

No! Absolutely not!

Ling Ye bit down hard, blood seeping from his gums and the corners of his mouth, mixing with sweat as it dripped onto the cold ground.

He mobilized every bit of warmth generated by his "Star Visualization," like a soldier guarding the last line of defense, desperately blocking the path of the polluting energy within the Neighbor as it tried to spread upward.

At the same time, the warm current flowing into the Neighbor's heart pulse was like a candle in the wind, building an extremely fragile barrier around the other's life force, which was on the verge of collapse, struggling to maintain that sliver of survival.

The price was heavy.

His own body temperature was dropping rapidly, his lips turning purple, and his body trembling uncontrollably.

Maintaining this state of "keeping someone alive" was a huge drain on him and could even cause irreversible damage.

Moreover, he felt with absolute clarity that the polluting energy was slowly, but surely, seeping over to his side along the mental connection!

Although extremely subtle, that cold, slippery sensation, as if countless tiny tentacles were trying to probe into the gaps of his Soul, made him shudder.

The Neighbor's terrified warning from before exploded in his mind like a thunderclap: "I am… a source of pollution… it will… follow the trace… and come after me…"

This "trace" probably didn't just refer to physical footprints, but also to the energy connection and the channel of his intent!

His current actions were tantamount to actively building a bridge between himself and the Neighbor, who was a "source of pollution"!

Once the pollution within the other party completely erupted, or if the thing that was "coming after" them (the "it" in the cave?) really followed the trail, he would be the first to bear the brunt!

The instinct for survival let out the sharpest, most primal roar: Let go! Cut the connection! Get away from this dangerous, polluted source immediately! Let him/her perish! You did your best; this isn't your fault! Live! You must live!

This voice was so strong, so tempting, filled with absolute, cold rationality.

Yes, why?

Why should he risk his own life, and even his Soul, for an "ally" who was almost a total stranger, full of mysteries, who had actively courted danger, and who might even bring about greater disaster?

The first rule of survival in the wilderness was that one's own survival came first!

Sacrificing oneself to save someone who might already be beyond saving, or who was a threat in their own right, was foolish and went against instinct!

Sweat mixed with blood blurred his vision.

He lowered his head and looked at the Neighbor.

That face, twisted by pain and decay, covered in wrinkles and grime, looked so strange at this moment, so… ominous.

That gray-green right hand, with its black markings, seemed to be slightly pulsing and extending like a living thing under the faint firelight.

Let go, cut the connection, pack his things, leave this cave immediately, leave this area, and head toward the more desolate direction, far away from the Neighbor and that cave, to survive on his own.

This was the most rational, the most "correct" choice.

He had a bow, arrows, hunting skills, a Water Source (for now), and "Star Visualization"; he could live, just as before, lonely, but safely.

His hand, the one pressed against the Neighbor's chest, trembled uncontrollably, as if it were about to lift and retract at any moment.

The fingers covering the polluted wrist also felt a numbing, needle-like pain, urging him to get away.

However…

His gaze fell on the ground beside the Neighbor's gray-green right hand, where a few of those black-brown seeds were scattered—the ones he had brushed aside.

Those were the ones the Neighbor had given him earlier; they were food, they were kindness.

He recalled the "Stone Language" on the Water Source tablet, the bow that had changed his survival situation, and the way the Neighbor had traded supplies in the ruined shack with extremely restrained movements, leaving behind a warning.

He remembered the complex look in the Neighbor's eyes when they opened—a mix of fear, pain, guilt, and… a faint, almost extinguished plea for understanding rather than pity.

He remembered the almost self-destructive sorrow when he/she hoarsely asked, "Why… come back… to find me?"

This person, knowing the danger, had still chosen to investigate those strange Ore, perhaps even intending to use themselves as a sacrifice to seal or resolve some terrible threat.

This was by no means a purely selfish survivor.

They carried secrets and responsibilities that Ling Ye could not imagine, and perhaps… also helplessness and struggles similar to his own.

Moreover, and more importantly… the Neighbor had warned him to run, telling him not to worry about them.

On the verge of death, while believing themselves to be a "source of pollution," a burden, and a threat, their last thought was to let him, this fragile "ally" who had just been established, live and leave the danger behind.

This seemed to contradict the caution and protection of their own resources that the Neighbor had shown in their previous "Stone Language" trade.

But it was precisely this contradiction that made Ling Ye feel that, beneath that thick, hard shell polished by the pressure of survival, this The Stranger might still retain a shred of the most basic bottom line and conscience belonging to a "human," not wanting to drag others down.

The instinct for survival is cold and selfish.

But humanity, even if only a shred remains, can erupt with the exact opposite radiance in a desperate situation.

Ling Ye closed his eyes, letting the intense pain, fear, and the roar of instinct collide and fight in his mind.

Sweat soaked his clothes, and his body was swaying due to extreme exhaustion and pain.

Time seemed to freeze.

Each second felt as long as an eternity.

Then, he snapped his eyes open!

In them, the bloodshot veins caused by pain and exhaustion intertwined with the cluster of cold, resolute flames in the depths of his pupils that had never been extinguished, forming a light that was almost insane.

Instead of letting go, he pressed his palm against the Neighbor's chest even harder!

He poured even more of the last sliver of warmth, squeezed almost from his very Soul, resolutely into the other's heart pulse!

At the same time, the fingers hovering above the polluted wrist no longer just blocked, but began, extremely slowly and with extreme difficulty, to try to guide the cold, backlashing polluting energy, attempting to guide, disperse, or even… try to "wrap" and "neutralize" it with his own warmth!

This was a suicidal gamble!

Using his own body and spirit to hard-resist and dilute that strange pollution related to the "abyssal eye" that he knew nothing about!

Once he failed, he would be eroded by the pollution, following in the Neighbor's footsteps, or worse!

Once that polluting energy completely erupted and backlashed along this strengthened connection, he might lose consciousness instantly, or his Soul might be twisted!

But he had no choice.

Or rather, he had made a choice.

It was not out of foolish kindness, nor out of blind trust, but based on a cold, rational weighing of pros and cons, mixed with complex emotions beyond instinct:

Responsibility: He had saved the person, and Karma had already been planted.

If he let them die, that polluting energy, the "thing" in the cave, and the secrets the Neighbor might be hiding would still exist, and might even erupt because no one was controlling them, eventually affecting him anyway.

Rather than passively waiting for unknown danger, it was better to intervene actively and try to control it, even at a huge cost.

Information: The "Neighbor" was currently the only source who might understand more about the strange Ore, that cave, and even the "abyssal eye."

Keeping him/her alive, even if just barely, meant there was still a possibility of obtaining key intelligence.

This could be crucial for his future survival.

Humanity: Perhaps, deep down, he still could not completely erase the most basic recognition and pity for another struggling Soul.

In this completely alienated and collapsing world, that faint, impure, yet real "alliance" and mutual help between two lonely survivors was the last anchor of his remaining humanity.

If he abandoned this anchor, perhaps he would completely degenerate into a pure beast that lived only for survival.

And that, perhaps, was more terrifying to him than death.

"Ugh—!!!"

Even more intense pain, as if his Soul were being torn apart, erupted from the connection point!

Ling Ye spat out a mouthful of blood, his vision went black, and he almost fainted on the spot!

He felt as if his consciousness had been plunged into a cold, viscous lake of asphalt, and countless fragmented, twisted, and malicious images and whispers flooded his mind!

He saw dark green light flowing on the rocks, saw huge, indescribable shadows writhing in the soil, and saw countless twisted limbs entangled together, emitting silent wails…

That was the erosion of pollution!

The terrible scenes the Neighbor had touched or perceived were rushing along the connection, assaulting his sanity!

But he still did not let go!

He guarded the last bit of clarity in his mind, frantically running his "Star Visualization," using that vast and firm rhythm derived from the "Ancient Ring" mark to resist and purify those invading, polluting distracting thoughts!

Like a small boat in a raging storm, no matter how the wind and waves battered him, he gripped the oars tightly, refusing to sink.

The warm current of "Star Visualization" and the cold energy of the pollution launched a silent, tragic tug-of-war on the bridge he had forcibly built.

The warm current was being consumed and polluted, but the rhythm of the "Ancient Ring" mark, which seemed to be higher than everything else, suppressing and guarding, was also stimulated in this direct confrontation, acting like a pillar of stability, barely stabilizing Ling Ye's consciousness, which was on the verge of collapse.

He didn't know how long it had been—perhaps only a few minutes, yet it felt like centuries.

Just as Ling Ye felt his last sliver of warmth was about to be exhausted and his consciousness about to be completely swallowed by the boundless darkness and pollution—

"Ugh…"

A faint moan, as if from the distant horizon, came from the Neighbor's mouth.

At the same time, Ling Ye felt that his intent to "wrap" and "neutralize" the polluting energy seemed to touch an extremely tough, yet equally cold, chaotic, and painful mental barrier belonging to the "Neighbor" themself.

That barrier had originally been riddled with holes under the erosion of pollution and was on the verge of collapse; at this moment, under Ling Ye's suicidal external support and the indirect influence of the "Ancient Ring" rhythm, it seemed to re-coalesce and stabilize, extremely weakly and briefly, for just a tiny bit!

Immediately after, Ling Ye clearly felt that the polluting energy, which had originally been wildly spreading upward and trying to backlash against him, had significantly slowed its speed of spread!

Although it was still slowly eroding, its unstoppable momentum had been curbed!

Moreover, the polluting distracting thoughts that had been backlashing along the connection and assaulting his sanity also retreated like an ebb tide, rapidly weakening and dissipating!

It worked!

His crazy gamble seemed to have… temporarily, paid off!

With a "thud," Ling Ye could no longer hold on; his body went limp, and he slumped backward to the ground, his back against the cold cave wall, his chest heaving violently like an old bellows.

Blood seeped from his seven orifices, his vision went black in waves, and his ears rang incessantly.

His brain felt as if it had been repeatedly hammered by a blunt object, and every heartbeat brought a tearing headache.

His body was exhausted to the extreme, and he didn't even have the strength to move a finger.

But he had succeeded.

At least, for the moment, he had dragged the "Neighbor" back from the edge of the gates of hell, forcibly, for a little while longer.

And although he himself had paid a heavy price, it seemed… he had not been immediately eroded by the pollution, and his sanity had barely managed to remain clear.

The cost was that he had exhausted almost all his strength, both physical and mental.

He was now as weak as a newborn baby; any slightly larger beast could take his life.

And the "Neighbor," although the spread of pollution had been temporarily curbed and their vital signs seemed to have stabilized a little (at least they hadn't died immediately), remained unconscious, their face gray and defeated, and the gray-green and black markings on their right hand were still shocking.

The crisis was only temporarily alleviated.

Greater dangers—the "thing" in the cave, the uncleared pollution within the "Neighbor," the threat tracking them, and their current extremely weak situation—still hung over their heads like the Sword of Damocles.

Ling Ye slumped on the ground, panting heavily, looking at the ominous shadows swaying in the firelight on the cave ceiling.

Yet, the corner of his mouth slowly curled into an extremely ugly, exhausted, yet cold, mocking arc that carried a trace of post-madness, near-collapse relief.

He had chosen what seemed to be the most stupid and dangerous path.

But perhaps, this was the last and most fundamental instinct that he, Ling Ye, had used to struggle through one desperate situation after another, without having completely degenerated into a beast.

He slowly closed his eyes, no longer looking at the unconscious "ally" beside him, full of secrets and dangers, nor at the dangerous, lead-gray wilderness outside the cave.

He needed to rest.

Even if just for a moment.

Before the next, greater storm, or the "thing" that was chasing him, completely swallowed him up.