Infinite Nightmares

Chapter 306: Chapter 304: Done For

With Qianxi in relentless pursuit behind him, Zhang Wenda kept running frantically, watching the number on the radar continue to increase.

But soon, as the surrounding environment began to change, the bodies of both Qianxi and Zhang Wenda started to transform.

Zhang Wenda felt his scythe, which usually cut through iron like mud, go limp. The armor formed by the Black Cats now felt like heavy clumps of asphalt weighing him down, and the mental connection to Hu Maomao in his head was severed completely.

Meanwhile, Qianxi’s square head gradually became round, and his floating white arrows twisted, their parts becoming disproportionately large and small.

The entire world seemed to be covered in a highly saturated, twilight-colored filter. Everything looked hazy. The extreme speed of the two was also affected, and they began to slow down.

Zhang Wenda’s plan was working. This thing that could cause negative values was definitely no ordinary object.

However, the effect was clearly less pronounced on Qianxi than on Zhang Wenda. He was already right behind him.

He seemed unfazed by the environmental changes, his focus still locked on Zhang Wenda. “Kid, do you really think a few clever tricks can overcome an absolute gap in power? You’re just as naive as your uncle.”

An arrow double-clicked rapidly on Zhang Wenda’s body. However, just as Qianxi was about to bring up the control panel to delete Zhang Wenda, only a jumble of garbled code popped up.

This strange environmental shift, whatever its origin, was severely interfering with their abilities. But that didn’t include the laws of physics.

SHLICK! A sharp arrow plunged directly into Zhang Wenda’s abdomen, the pain causing his body to shudder violently.

But there was no turning back now. The more dire the situation, the less he could afford to stop. He kept his head down and charged forward relentlessly.

Arrows began to riddle his body. Under the influence of the strange environment, Song Jianguo, who no longer had cat ears, used his now somewhat translucent body to shield Zhang Wenda’s back, taking some of the incoming arrows along with the Black Cats.

“It’s over.” Qianxi’s voice echoed from behind as all the now misshapen, bizarre arrows aimed at Zhang Wenda’s head.

And at that moment, when Zhang Wenda glanced down at the number on the radar again, he saw it read -1800.

The next second, the ground beneath his feet vanished, and he plummeted downward.

‘Why is there a pit here?!’ Zhang Wenda didn’t have time to figure it out. After falling for only a short while, he found himself suspended in a space completely devoid of gravity.

The area was vast and empty, but all around him floated the debris of various buildings, metal fragments, and even some bodies. It was clearly a building complex before, destroyed by some unknown event.

Seeing this, Zhang Wenda immediately thought of the massive explosion from before. He wondered if this was related.

But Zhang Wenda quickly put those thoughts aside. He had just realized there were living people here, and the sight of one particular old man made him blurt out his thoughts.

“Old Tan?! What are you doing here?!”

In this chaotic, zero-gravity underground space, Tan Yougen stood with seven or eight Third Line members wearing armguards, facing off against another group of people with vertical pupils.

They all held various instruments and devices he had never seen before. Behind their enemies floated a giant sphere that looked like it was made of pure gold, its yellow hue jarringly bright.

Hearing the sounds of Qianxi in hot pursuit, Zhang Wenda didn’t have time to think. He scrambled over to his allies, stepping on completely distorted thought-forms.

Once he reached the Third Line squad and saw the special Level 3 medals on everyone’s chests, Zhang Wenda finally breathed a small sigh of relief.

‘Okay, the plan went a little sideways, but at least I found my people and escaped the immediate danger.’

The moment he felt safe, Zhang Wenda didn’t bother assessing the situation and immediately blurted out, “Hey, Old Tan, can you spare anyone? Ouyang Shuangdian is surrounded! She definitely won’t last much longer.”

Tan Yougen’s expression was graver than ever. He showed no reaction and paid Zhang Wenda no mind.

He didn’t speak, but Qianxi, who had now walked over to the side of the people with vertical pupils, did. “He won’t send anyone. He’s always been this cold-blooded. To him, what’s happening here is far more important than Sister Shuang’s life.”

“What’s happening here?” Hearing this, Zhang Wenda’s pupils contracted. His gaze swept quickly over the floating debris, glanced at the unusually grim Tan Yougen, and finally settled on the Level 3 allies.

Immediately after, the chessboard popped into his mind.

A terrible thought surfaced in Zhang Wenda’s mind. ‘It seems I’ve accidentally stumbled right into the middle of Tan Yougen’s plan this time.’

‘If Tan Yougen used me as bait, it was to trade a general for a general. If the red general on our side is Tan Yougen, then the black general he wants to trade me for is…’

Zhang Wenda’s eyes scanned the area rapidly, finally locking onto the strange, clearly unusual Golden Ball in the distance.

“What is that?” Zhang Wenda asked, pointing at the transparent sphere.

Tan Yougen still said nothing. Someone in the crowd answered Zhang Wenda’s question in a low voice. “1999.”