"What on earth is this thing?"
The team captain, leading the way, was utterly shocked when he saw the Giant Silkworm Chrysalis before him. He wasn't the only one; even Sister Yu, standing beside him, had a look of fear on her face. For some reason, the sight of this Giant Silkworm Chrysalis inexplicably filled them with dread. They couldn't shake the feeling that at any moment, Demons and Monsters would burst forth from within, open their gaping maws, and devour each evolved creature one by one.
Seeing that nothing happened as Su Yan and the others approached, the rest of the onlookers quickly followed suit and stepped forward. When they laid eyes on the Giant Silkworm Chrysalis suspended in mid-air, varying degrees of surprise registered on each person's face. The chrysalis was incredibly eerie. Two meters long and half a meter wide, its surface was covered in layers of mysterious patterns, resembling a Death Shroud, making their skin crawl at the mere sight.
"Ah!"
Suddenly, someone shrieked. Su Yan immediately looked in the direction of the noise and saw a young man with a look of horror on his face. The young man's expression was one of extreme fright, his bloodshot eyes wide with terror. He was so scared that his lips were quivering uncontrollably; it seemed he had seen something horrifying. This sudden scream instantly made the hairs of those nearby stand on end, sending a tingling sensation across their scalps.
Sister Yu glared at him furiously, pointing at the young man's nose and cursing, "What the hell are you screaming about? Are you trying to scare people to death!?" She had just been standing right beside the young man. His sudden scream in her ear made her jump in fright, and even her legs went a bit soft.
The young man who had screamed completely ignored Sister Yu's reproach. Instead, he shakily pointed his finger toward the dense foliage at the top of the vines, his lips quivering as he stammered, "Face... there's a human face over there!"
"A human face?"
Su Yan frowned upon hearing this and immediately looked in the direction the young man was pointing. The next moment, he saw a face hidden among the Strange Tree's leaves, faintly discernible. Its eyes were hollow, its expression dull. It looked like the face of a Puppet, desolate and devoid of life.
For some reason, Su Yan felt an eerie familiarity with the face hidden in the Strange Tree. It seemed like one he had seen somewhere before. He tried to recall for a moment, and then his expression suddenly changed dramatically. He realized with terror: the face hidden in the Strange Tree... it looked just like his Second Sister, Su Erke!
At that moment, Su Yan's heart sank.
The others present also saw the human face. One of the Semi-Advanced Level creatures was so frightened that his legs went weak; he stumbled backward and nearly collapsed. The scene before them was truly terrifying for everyone there. A human face hidden in a tree! What in the world was happening? At this very moment, everyone in the classroom felt a chill run down their spines.
Suddenly, the Strange Tree shook violently. Then, with a RUSTLE, the upper half of the body belonging to that face unexpectedly slid out of the Strange Tree. It was horrifying enough that a face had been hidden among the dense leaves. Now, with the abrupt emergence of half a body, several of the more timid Semi-Advanced Level creatures were scared witless. Especially the young man who had screamed earlier; his face now turned pale with fright. His lips trembled, and he looked as if he was on the verge of fainting.
"AH!"
Suddenly, the young man screamed again. Without another word, he turned and fled, unwilling to stay in the classroom for another second.
Unfortunately, the young man had hardly taken a few steps before the previously motionless, thick vines in the classroom suddenly sprang to life. Then, under everyone's astonished gaze, all the vines in the classroom, which sprawled across the floor and hung from the ceiling, began to writhe like venomous snakes. Each vine moved with extreme speed, chasing after the fleeing youth. In the blink of an eye, the young man, who was fleeing in terror, was tightly bound by the swarming vines.
"Help me, someone save me!"
"I'm still young, I've never even tasted a woman's touch! I don't want to die!"
"Please, you guys, hurry and save me!"
The young man felt utter despair. He struggled constantly, trying to break free from the vines with brute force. He twisted his body with all his might, letting out shrill, heart-wrenching cries. However, all his efforts were in vain. The vines bound him with a strength far too great for a Semi-Advanced Level creature like him to overcome.
"Don't panic, it's not a big deal!" several people nearby immediately tried to comfort the youth and rushed forward to help free him. Someone drew a knife to cut the vines but couldn't even leave a scratch. One person, an Advanced Level Being, tried to use their superior strength to tear the vines apart, but still, it was all to no avail.
"Hurry up and think of something!"
"Quick, find a way to save me!"
"I don't want to die young!"
Seeing that their various attempts to free him from the vines failed, the young man completely lost his composure. He wailed desperately until, with a loud BANG, one of the vines slammed the classroom door shut. Only then did he completely give up struggling, losing all hope of survival. He went limp like a corpse, allowing the vines on the ground to drag him back.
"We're done for, we're all done for!"
"Based on the current situation, I'm afraid we're all going to die here tonight."
"Damn it, I'm such an idiot! I never should have followed you all in here trying to be a hero!"
Several Semi-Advanced Level creatures with weaker mental fortitude despaired at the sight of the young man's futile escape. Some even went limp, their legs giving out as they suddenly collapsed. They flopped onto the ground with a THUD, almost giving up the struggle, choosing to silently await death, devoid of any hope for survival.
At this moment, it wasn't just the Semi-Advanced Level creatures, who had perhaps never witnessed death before, but even a few Advanced Level Beings with multiple combat experiences felt a surge of despair. They knew clearly that the Strange Tree in the corner of the classroom was likely a Rare level entity, based on its Creature Level. And a Rare level being was simply not something they, as Advanced Level Beings, could contend with. They couldn't even manage basic resistance.
Compared to everyone else who was succumbing to despair, Su Yan, who had remained standing silently to one side, seemed much calmer. Although the strength displayed by those vines was incredibly terrifying, he didn't feel particularly afraid. During this time, Su Yan had been calmly observing the half-body that had slipped out of the Strange Tree. He realized that what was hidden inside the Strange Tree wasn't his Second Sister, Su Erke, but just a Puppet that bore a resemblance.
Suddenly, with another RUSTLE!
The Puppet hidden inside the Strange Tree slipped out once again...
...