Chapter 291: Falling Space
"I really didn't detect any obvious issues with you. Your disguise is quite perfect, but unfortunately you have a very unreliable teammate."
Although Lin Ye had noticed some suspicious aspects about Richard, he genuinely hadn't seen through his disguise.
"What teammate? You wouldn't mistake those other people for being my teammates just because you found something off about them, would you?"
Richard asked with great indignation.
"Of course not. Someone previously informed me that they would send people to deal with me, and they said they would dispatch at least a seventh-tier spiritual energy user."
Lin Ye didn't believe that man would bluff, nor did he harbor any naive hopes that the opponent would need time before sending someone. Therefore, the moment he arrived here, he had been searching for that hidden enemy.
"...Don't speak nonsense. This is my own issue. That lord is certainly not my teammate."
Richard said somewhat nervously.
"Suit yourself. Anyway, from my perspective, you're all in this together. Because of its arrogance, your fate will be utterly miserable. Of course, it probably doesn't care about your outcome."
Lin Ye felt no pity for enemies, but he genuinely found Richard's reason for failure rather laughable. If that man had been more cautious, Richard would have at least had the opportunity to ambush Lin Ye. "I'm a seventh-tier Red Sea creature! You don't actually think you've already won, do you?"
Richard's body began violently mutating, transforming into a deformed, blood-red mutated monster in the blink of an eye. Numerous eyeballs appeared all over its body.
"How can this be?! What did you do to me?!"
Richard collapsed to the ground as his body underwent severe mutation, barely able to maintain stability.
"During our earlier close contact, I mixed something into your system. Your disguise was excellent, but its weakness is the inability to detect subtle changes within your body.
What surprised me was that you didn't take the opportunity to attack me. Were you afraid I'd discover you, leaving no one to help you escape this place?"
After such prolonged close contact, Lin Ye wouldn't show mercy by letting his opponent retain any ability to resist.
"Damn it! Even if my body collapses, I can still kill you!"
Richard struggled to lunge at Lin Ye, but the black platform was covered with rune traps. Before he could even touch Lin Ye, he had already lost all capacity to resist.
Cutting, Weakening, Collapse, Berserk, Synthesis...
Various composite rune traps were triggered. Richard's condition was already highly unstable, and under the influence of these runes, even as a Red Sea creature, he could barely manage to stay alive.
"Just kill me. I don't want to fall into the Abyss."
Richard lay weakly on the ground as he spoke.
"Sorry, but I already decided how you'd be used long ago."
Lin Ye swung his fishing rod, hooked Richard, and flung him toward the portal.
Richard didn't understand Lin Ye's intention, but since he could escape this place, he certainly wouldn't refuse.
Thus, Richard smoothly passed through the portal and arrived on that weed-covered land.
He lay on the ground, every cell in his body trembling, a desperate smile appearing on his face, and then...
Bang!
He exploded.
Bloody foam evenly coated that patch of land. It was hard to believe that this red spray had just been a complete living being.
"How is this possible! Those people clearly told me they escaped from this place!"
Ethan cried out in despair. If that information was false, then they might truly be trapped here.
"Because those people were all pseudo-humans created and released by this Abyssal Relic. And those Falling Materials were all bait released by the Abyssal Relic. The more precious the Falling Material, the more easily it attracts valuable sacrifices to enter here... How did you discover this is the deepest layers of the Abyss? With your strength, you absolutely shouldn't have detected the anomalies here."
On the other side of the portal, the blood foam gathered again, coalescing into a man's phantom.
"I truly didn't sense any anomalies, but that land occasionally trembled slightly. The tremors were extremely subtle—even with my sharp eyesight, I wasn't sure if I was seeing things. But that doesn't matter. Since I suspected something, I shouldn't have crossed over."
As soon as Lin Ye finished speaking, the land opposite disappeared. The man stood in the void as that 'land' departed from the area.
"My side failed. This trash was completely useless. Aren't you going to make your move yet?"
The man looked behind Lin Ye as he spoke.
"Huh? You're here to deal with him too?"
Xia La looked at Ethan, surprised to discover that she was the only outsider among the four.
"Um, it seems to be speaking to you. And something seems to have emerged behind you."
Ethan, being a Heterodox God Cult priest, naturally wouldn't get involved in matters unrelated to his cult. He was the true outsider here.
"I dislike revealing myself. Fate is already predetermined. There is no need for unnecessary actions."
A phantom appeared behind Xia La.
"You're not here to mess with me too, are you?"
Lin Ye looked at Ethan, genuinely not expecting Xia La to also have issues.
"Hey, priest. If you help me kill him, I can give you a fragment of Alienation Rule."
The man said to Ethan.
"I'm very tempted, but unfortunately, I won't betray someone who just helped me... I truly am not here to target you."
Ethan sighed. He just wanted to leave this place as soon as possible.
"Are you really a priest who worships the Abyssal Evil God?"
The man was seeing such a cultist for the first time.
"...I'm an undercover agent planted within the Heterodox God Cult. So you don't need to worry about me ambushing you."
Ethan straightforwardly revealed his identity. His only option now was to cooperate with Lin Ye, as both other sides appeared dangerous.
"Wait, I still haven't figured out the current situation. What is this phantom?"
Xia La couldn't understand how she had become her own bodyguard's enemy.
"Sorry, it's my enemy. You were likely dragged into this by it. Don't mind it—it will disappear on its own soon."
Lin Ye certainly didn't suspect Xia La. She was the employer selected by the system and couldn't possibly be his enemy. She was merely influenced by the phantom, becoming part of Fate's design.
"So what do we do now? Should we eliminate them?"
Xia La tried to distance herself from the phantom, but it persistently followed behind her.
"Not necessary. What we need to do hasn't changed—we must escape from this place."
Lin Ye walked to the edge of the platform, looking down at the expanse of red seawater below.
"No one can escape from here. You're not just opposing one Abyssal Relic, but the entire deepest layers of the Abyss. From the moment you entered this place, your fates were already sealed."
The man in the portal attempted to influence Lin Ye's thinking.
"Then why did you send someone to stop me? There must be a way to leave this place."
Lin Ye gazed into the Abyss below, already having some ideas forming in his mind.
"I didn't know you would enter such a place. Otherwise, I definitely wouldn't have sent anyone."
The man evasively replied.