65: Chapter 65 Entering the Old Town! Countless monsters surged from the void rift.

Night had completely enveloped this desolate area.

Lin Feng stood before that tall barbed wire fence, looking up at those conspicuous warning signs.

【High-Risk Restricted Area · No Entry】

【Unauthorized Entry at Your Own Risk】

【Explorer Association · East Sea Branch Announcement】

The red font was particularly jarring in the night, like a warning written in fresh blood.

The evening breeze blew, and the barbed wire made a low "buzzing" sound, as if something was gently vibrating.

Lin Feng took a deep breath and stepped toward the entrance of the fence.

There was a sentry box there, lit with a dim yellow light.

Beside the sentry box stood four soldiers in camouflage combat uniforms, holding standard-issue energy rifles and tactical grenades hanging from their waists, fully armed.

Seeing Lin Feng approach, the four raised their muzzles simultaneously and aimed at him.

“Halt!”

The leading soldier shouted; he was a man in his early thirties with a square face, thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a faint scar on his left cheek.

“This is a restricted area, unauthorized personnel are not allowed to approach!”

Lin Feng stopped and pulled out that S-Rank Explorer badge from his pocket.

“I am an Explorer, I want to go in.”

The square-faced soldier took the badge and looked down at it.

Then, his expression froze.

“S... S-Rank?!”

He widened his eyes, looking at the badge in his hand in disbelief, then looked up at Lin Feng.

That overly young face looked to be only sixteen or seventeen years old.

“You... you're an S-Rank Explorer?”

The other three soldiers were also stunned, their muzzles involuntarily lowering a bit.

“Yes,” Lin Feng nodded, “Just promoted.”

The square-faced soldier took a deep breath and pulled out a palm-sized scanner from his waist.

He placed the badge on the scanner and pressed the button.

Buzz—

The scanner emitted a faint blue light, enveloping the badge.

Three seconds later.

A line of text popped up on the screen.

【Identity Verification Passed】

【Name: Lin Feng】

【Rank: S-Rank Explorer】

【ID: DH-S-0092】

【Status: Valid】

The square-faced soldier stared at the screen, his eyeballs nearly popping out.

“Truly... truly S-Rank...”

He looked up, and the way he looked at Lin Feng had completely changed.

It was a complex expression mixed with shock, awe, and a hint of disbelief.

“Young... Sir, how old are you this year?”

“Sixteen.”

“A sixteen-year-old S-Rank Explorer...”

The square-faced soldier swallowed hard and respectfully handed the badge back to Lin Feng.

“Sir, please.”

Lin Feng took the badge and put it away.

He glanced at the pitch-black ruins behind the sentry box.

“How's the situation inside?”

The square-faced soldier gave a bitter smile.

“Sir, to be honest, not good.”

“Recently, void fissure activity has been frequent, with Void Beasts popping out every few days. Two days ago, a team of Explorers went in and hasn't come out yet.”

He paused and lowered his voice.

“Last night we monitored strong energy fluctuations; another new void fissure must have opened. The exact location is uncertain, but it's definitely deep inside.”

Lin Feng frowned: “Is the mortality rate high?”

“High,” the square-faced soldier nodded. “Out of ten people who go in, it's lucky if three or four come out alive.”

“Last month, a Rank 28 A-Rank Explorer went in and never came out. Not even the body was found.”

He pointed at the ruins.

“Sir, this place isn't like a Dungeon. In a Dungeon, there are at least rules, monster Ranks are fixed, terrain is fixed, and you know what you'll encounter.”

“But here... it's completely random.”

“You don't know when a void fissure will open or where. You don't know what Rank or species the Void Beasts that run out will be.”

“Sometimes you run into low-Rank Void Beasts and handle them easily. Sometimes you run into a pack of Advanced ones and can't even escape.”

He looked Lin Feng in the eye and said seriously.

“Sir, although you are young, an S-Rank badge isn't given for nothing; your strength must be great. But I still have to say—be extremely careful.”

Lin Feng nodded: “I understand.”

The square-faced soldier hesitated for a moment, then took a palm-sized metal device from his waist and handed it to Lin Feng.

“Sir, this is a Portable Energy Detector. It can monitor void energy fluctuations within a five-hundred-meter radius.”

“If it detects a strong energy reaction, it means there's a void fissure or an Advanced Void Beast nearby, and you should take a detour.”

Lin Feng took the device and looked at it.

【Portable Energy Detector (Blue)】

【Effect: Detects void energy fluctuations within a 500-meter radius, medium precision】

【Description: Standard Explorer Association equipment; can save lives at critical moments】

“Thank you.”

“You're welcome,” the square-faced soldier waved his hand. “You coming back alive is the greatest thanks to us.”

Lin Feng hung the detector on his waist, stepped past the sentry box, and walked into the ruins.

Behind him, the square-faced soldier's voice called out.

“Sir, take care!”

Lin Feng didn't look back, just raised his hand and waved.

...

The moment he stepped into the ruins, Lin Feng felt the whole world change.

It wasn't a visual change.

It was... the atmosphere.

The world outside had wind, insect chirps, and the occasional sound of cars from the distant highway.

But here, there was dead silence.

It was terrifyingly quiet.

Even his own breathing sounded exceptionally clear.

Lin Feng stood in place, looking around.

This was once a bustling street.

On both sides were dozen-story office buildings and shops, but now they were long since dilapidated.

Most of the glass curtain walls were shattered, and the remaining few pieces were covered in cracks, reflecting an eerie glint under the moonlight.

Vines crawled all over the walls, some as thick as arms, like green pythons coiling around the buildings.

The ground was broken asphalt, with weeds growing in the cracks, some taller than a person.

The shop signs had long since faded, hanging crookedly.

【XX Bank】 only had half of the character for "Bank" left.

Half of the "Super" in 【XX Supermarket】 had fallen off.

The glass doors of 【XX Restaurant】 were long gone; in the dark doorway, overturned tables, chairs, and dust-covered counters could be seen inside.

A gust of wind blew.

The weeds rustled.

The broken glass windows creaked and swayed.

A dull "thud" came from the distance, like something falling from a building.

Lin Feng immediately turned to look.

There was nothing.

Only an empty street and a few... stray cats looming in the darkness?

No, not stray cats.

Those things were much larger than cats, half a person tall, covered in grey fur, crouching on top of an abandoned car, with two eyes glowing green in the dark.

【Mutated Wild Dog (Common)】

【Rank: 12】

【HP: 800】

【attack power: 120-150】

【Defense: 60】

【Skills: Bite, Pounce】

【Description: Common mutated creatures in the Old City District, mutated from ordinary wild dogs after being eroded by void energy; highly aggressive】

The Mutated Wild Dog stared at Lin Feng for a few seconds, seemingly sensing some danger, then turned and jumped off the car roof, disappearing into the darkness.

Lin Feng ignored it.

This kind of low-Rank monster posed no threat to him.

He activated the Wind Wings skill.

Buzz—

A pair of cyan, translucent wings condensed on his back, with a wingspan of about three meters.

With a gentle flap.

His body rose off the ground, hovering in mid-air.

【Wind Wings (Purple)】

【Effect: Condenses wind elements to form wings, granting flight ability, flight speed +200%, duration 30 minutes, cooldown 10 minutes】

【mana cost: 200 points】

Lin Feng flew at a low altitude, exploring forward along the street.

Looking down from the air, these ruins were even more shocking.

The once-prosperous city center was now a graveyard of dead silence.

Skyscrapers stood like tombstones.

Some buildings had collapsed, with rubble piled up like mountains.

Some buildings were still standing but were tilted and could fall at any moment.

Abandoned vehicles were everywhere on the streets, rusty, tires long gone, and windows shattered.

Occasionally, he could see some... humanoid things?

No, not people.

Statues?

Lin Feng lowered his altitude and took a closer look.

It was a bronze statue standing in the center of a street garden.

The statue was of a man wearing an old-fashioned suit from decades ago, holding a book and looking up at the sky.

But the surface of the statue was covered in cracks and moss.

Half of the head had fallen off at some point, leaving only half a face.

On that half-face, a trace of a smile remained.

Under the moonlight, it looked exceptionally eerie.

Lin Feng shivered and sped away.

He continued flying.

As he flew, he observed the surrounding environment.

The deeper he went, the worse the dilapidation became.

On the outskirts, some buildings were barely standing, but in the depths, it was almost entirely ruins.

Collapsed buildings, broken bridges, twisted steel frames, mountains of rubble...

The moonlight shone on the ruins, casting all sorts of grotesque shadows.

Like countless monsters baring their fangs and claws.

He had been flying for about half an hour.

Lin Feng hadn't encountered anything.

Forget Void Beasts; he hadn't even seen another Mutated Wild Dog.

“So quiet?”

He was somewhat puzzled.

Didn't they say the Old City District was very dangerous?

Why isn't there even a ghost of a soul?

Just as he was thinking this, the energy detector at his waist suddenly started “beeping.”

Lin Feng looked down.

A red dot appeared on the detector screen.

It was right ahead, about three hundred meters away.

【Strong Void Energy Fluctuation Detected】

【Energy Rank: A-Rank】

【Distance: Approx. 300 meters】

【Recommendation: Approach with Caution】

“There's something!”

Lin Feng immediately deactivated Wind Wings and landed on the roof of a half-collapsed building.

He lightened his steps and carefully approached that direction.

After walking about two hundred meters, he stopped.

Hiding at the edge of the roof, he peeked down.

Ahead was an open space, likely a plaza from decades ago.

In the center of the plaza, there was a... thing?

Lin Feng squinted his eyes and looked closely.

It was a space distortion point about ten meters in diameter.

It looked like a piece of transparent glass had been shattered, leaving behind countless fine cracks.

Those cracks flowed slowly in the air, wriggling as if they were alive.

Most eerily, that patch of space... was throbbing.

Like a heartbeat.

Thump... thump... thump...

With every throb, those cracks expanded a bit and then contracted a bit.

The air vibrated along with it, forming ripples visible to the naked eye.

“Is this... a void fissure?”

Lin Feng swallowed hard.

He had never seen such a thing before.

Textbooks only said that void fissures were spatial passages connecting the real world and the Void Realm.

But seeing it with his own eyes, the shock was completely different.

It was like facing a living, breathing... monster.

Lin Feng took a deep breath and used his Mental Energy to investigate.

Just as his Mental Energy touched that throbbing space—

Vrrrrm!!!

A massive, chaotic, and violent energy instantly surged back!

Lin Feng's head “buzzed,” his vision went black, and he nearly fainted.

He quickly withdrew his Mental Energy, gasping for air.

“Holy crap...”

Cold sweat poured down.

Just one probe, and he was almost hit by a backlash.

What on earth was hidden inside that fissure?

At that moment.

A sudden change occurred.

That throbbing void fissure suddenly began to vibrate violently.

“Thump—thump—thump—”

The throbbing frequency grew faster and faster.

From once per second to twice, three times, five times...

Those cracks began to expand frantically, making “crackling” sounds.

Then—

“BOOM!!!”

A blinding purple light erupted from the fissure!

The light was so bright Lin Feng couldn't open his eyes.

Immediately after, he heard... the sound of countless wings flapping.

Buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz—

The sound grew closer and louder, like tens of thousands of insects buzzing in his ears.

Lin Feng endured the stinging pain and opened his eyes.

Then, he saw a scene he would never forget.

That throbbing void fissure was now completely open.

It had turned into a purple, rotating vortex about three meters in diameter.

From the vortex, countless... insects were frantically surging out?

No, not insects.

They were creatures like mosquitoes, but each one was the size of a fist.

Pitch black all over, with six pairs of transparent wings and a long, slender proboscis as sharp as a needle.

They poured out of the fissure, gathering more and more, forming a black cloud that blotted out the sky in the blink of an eye.

【Void Hair-Devouring Beast (Common)】

【Rank: 25】

【HP: 1500】

【attack power: 280-350 (Piercing Damage)】

【Defense: 100】

【Skills: Blood Sucking, Poison Sting, Swarm Flight】

【Description: Low-Rank creatures from the Void Realm, usually appearing in swarms. They live by sucking blood, and their proboscis can pierce most low-Rank armor. Individually they aren't scary, but when tens of thousands appear together, they are a nightmare for any creature】

Lin Feng looked at that growing black cloud, his scalp tingling.

Densely packed, covering the sky and earth.

The number... at least ten thousand!

No, more than that!

They were still surging out of the fissure like an inexhaustible spring!

That buzzing sound made his eardrums ache.

The air was filled with a pungent, fishy stench, like the smell of countless dead rats rotting in a pile.

“This... there are way too many of them, damn it?!”

Lin Feng took a sharp breath.

He had seen many monsters.

He had seen tens of thousands of scorpions in the Desert Golden Sea.

He had also seen hundreds of Void Beasts on Mount Dashu.

But compared to the scene before him, those were child's play!

Over ten thousand Rank 25 Void Hair-Devouring Beasts formed a black death storm, circling over the plaza.

They didn't seem to have discovered Lin Feng yet, only gathering around the fissure.

But Lin Feng knew it was only a matter of time.

“Run?”

The moment the thought arose, he abandoned it.

He couldn't outrun them.

These Swarm Gnats were too fast.

Their flight speed was at least twice his.

And there were too many of them; once caught, he would be submerged instantly.

“Then... fight?”

Lin Feng looked at his attribute panel.

250,000 HP, 250,000 mana, 38 skills.

Fighting over ten thousand Rank 25 monsters was theoretically possible.

But the problem was that these Swarm Gnats had an attack power of 280-350; with skill bonuses, a single one could deal several hundred damage to him.

Ten thousand of them attacking at once would be millions of damage!

With 250,000 HP, he couldn't tank it at all!

“I can't face them head-on...”

Lin Feng's mind raced.

At that moment.

One Swarm Gnat lagging behind seemed to have noticed something.

It turned its head, its compound eyes glinting with an eerie light in the darkness.

Then, it let out a “Screee—” shriek.

The sound was sharp and piercing, like metal scraping against glass.

Instantly, all the Swarm Gnats turned their heads.

Tens of thousands of pairs of compound eyes looked in unison toward where Lin Feng was hiding.

Lin Feng's heart skipped a beat.

“It's over.”

The thought flashed through his mind.

The next second.

The black cloud that blotted out the sky pounced toward him.