The visit of outsiders caused the ruins, silent for who knows how many years, to erupt with harsh noise.
The vast room was packed with Copper Mechanical Lifeforms. Misaligned gears frequently collided, the resulting sounds exceptionally grating to the ears.
In the passages outside the room's six entrances/exits, there were also many Copper Mechanical Lifeforms.
They were all drawn by Gel, their movements terrifyingly synchronized.
At this moment, no trace of Gel's existence could be found in the room.
In that chilling situation, even if she didn't die from complete body rustification, she would be crushed or suffocated to death.
On the other side, in a passage not far from Gel's room, a slightly burly man with short hair leaned against the wall, his chest heaving violently, his face full of terror.
This man was actually Zuzhi, one of the Gourmet Hunters in the current Hunter Association's team, the other being Menchi.
Like Gel, when the Hunter Association's team abruptly encountered the tide of Copper Mechanical Lifeforms, he became accidentally separated from the main group.
Afterwards, he also tried various ways to reunite with the main group. His approach was similar to Gel's: head to the nearest safe point, hoping to encounter the main group there.
But just moments ago, an uncountable number of Copper Mechanical Lifeforms seemed to be injected with adrenaline, rushing out from the depths of the ruins, occupying the route he intended to take.
Frightened, he quickly hid, suppressed his Aura, and waited as the Copper Mechanical Lifeforms headed towards the nearest safe point.
Only after the commotion subsided for a while did Zuzhi dare to act, decisively retreating the way he came, avoiding any passage leading to the nearest safe point.
"Who is that unlucky...?"
After a brief rest, Zuzhi looked gloomy, but the turmoil in his heart was hard to calm.
Although the root plants here could provide him with sufficient food and water, the ever-present Copper Mechanical Lifeforms were like suddenly appearing grim reapers, their danger level frighteningly high.
And the phenomenon of large numbers of Copper Mechanical Lifeforms swarming over just now… using common sense, it was clear someone had been pinned down.
If it was the Association's main group, they might still have ways to respond and retreat.
If it was a lone individual like him, they'd basically be surrounded with no escape.
'May the sun protect you...'
Zuzhi didn't know who attracted those terrifying creatures. He could only offer a friendly prayer in his heart, then retreat in the opposite direction.
Whether it was the main group attracting so many Copper Mechanical Lifeforms or some unlucky person who accidentally got separated, Zuzhi couldn't possibly approach that area now.
It was imaginable… once the commotion completely subsided, the density of Copper Mechanical Lifeforms in that area would be horrifyingly high.
Zuzhi walked quickly through a passage, his eyes constantly shifting, observing the surroundings.
Light sources filtering through cracks in the ceiling were mottled, creating small patches of brightness at intervals.
These light sources were like indicators at escape routes. No matter which direction, which passage, or any room he went to, he could always see light sources or globes ahead.
While constantly passing these light sources, he occasionally saw a light source suddenly disappear, as if someone suddenly blocked the sunlight, only to reappear on the ground shortly after.
Zuzhi knew very well what those things briefly blocking the light sources were. This phenomenon continuously reminded him… there were even more Copper Mechanical Lifeforms above ground!
Either keep exploring the B1 level, finding a safe way out.
Or continue to the B2 level… with ample food sources, he could at least survive longer.
'Any clues... any clues...!'
Zuzhi pinched a small file used for carving ingredients, murmuring softly while lightly scratching an arrow symbol on a conspicuous wall.
While leaving marks, he also fantasized about finding possible clues left by the Hunter Association.
To reunite with the main group, his destination was still the next safe point.
After leaving a new mark, Zuzhi walked quickly forward, turning right at the passage's end.
After about two hundred meters, he raised the small file again, its tip pressed against a wall area not occupied by plants.
'Huh?'
Just as his arm prepared to exert force to make the first scratch with the file, for some reason, his arm didn't follow his intention.
A flicker of doubt passed through his eyes. His gaze shifted from the file to his arm. Suddenly, as if seeing something terrifying, his pupils sharply constricted.
A thin thread, unnoticed until now, had passed through his right elbow from a diagonal below.
A chill shot up Zuzhi's spine, rushing to the top of his head.
In his vision, a glimmer of light, like a small water droplet clinging to the thread, slid down from above, passed through his arm, and flowed to the unknown other end.
His terrified gaze followed the light flowing along the thread, landing on a layered Rubik's cube-like object half-embedded in the ground.
The other end of the thread was connected to that semi-diamond-shaped cube object.
Zuzhi suddenly acted. His free left hand quickly took the small file from his right hand. Gathering Aura at the file's tip, he slashed fiercely at the thread piercing his right elbow.
However, just as the small file was about to hit the thread, his left arm swinging the knife down froze in mid-air as if under an immobilization spell.
Zuzhi was stunned, only seeing his left arm also pierced by a thread.
That thread was also emitted from the diamond-shaped cube object embedded in the ground. The timing chosen was when Zuzhi focused his attention on the thread piercing his right elbow.
Additionally, since the thread passing through his arm didn't cause any pain, Zuzhi only realized he was hit again when his arm stopped obeying.
Silently, the layered blocks of the cube object shifted slightly. The gaps between them opened a bit. While faint light seeped out, four more threads shot out, silently piercing Zuzhi's chest, throat, and legs.
Suddenly, Zuzhi stiffened in place, copious sweat oozing from his forehead.
His face turned bloodless from terror. As the threads passed through his body, he keenly sensed the change and was instantly filled with despair.
Then, he saw the half-embedded, never-before-seen diamond-shaped cube object emerge from the ground. As the layered blocks opened wider, the light emitted from within grew brighter.
And at that moment, over a hundred threads suddenly shot out, piercing Zuzhi like a spiky hedgehog.
Zuzhi didn't make a single sound. His entire body, including clothes and metal tools, instantly rustified into a pile of powder, drifting to the ground.
After killing Zuzhi, the diamond-shaped cube retracted its threads. The layered block object, like a blooming flower, slowly returned to its original position, concealing the internal light source, becoming a more purely diamond-shaped copper object.
Afterwards, it returned to the hole it emerged from, adjusted slightly, and completely fitted with the ground.
But if looking up from underground, one would find this hole was vertically pierced, connecting the B1 and B2 levels.
Simultaneously, another location.
A person lay fallen on the ground, several gears embedded in their back and legs. No signs of life remained… it was already a rustified corpse.