Chapter 564: Stabilizing First

Chapter 564: Stabilizing First

The damage caused by these Blood Humanoids was something that their Immunity Potions could not effectively counteract. During the evacuation, they were stopped by emergency personnel from The Church who had arrived. Most eyes were focused on Oss. Fred frowned slightly and blocked some approaching Church members.

“Our captain is fine.”

“But he’s injured!” said a Church member who came forward, his tone firmer. “So we must check.”

“Fred, let them check,” Oss said, stepping forward on his own. He extended his arm and showed the injured area. The few Church members who came over took a look. Seeing that the wound showed no signs of mutation, they nodded slightly. Then they cast a Detection Magic on Fred and the others, confirming they had no wounds. “Wait over there. Remember, if any teammate shows problems, don’t hesitate. Send your teammate ahead immediately. It’s better for everyone.”

This check might seem hasty, but under the circumstances, it was very stable. For those unlucky ones attacked by the Blood Humanoids, the hidden dangers in their bodies erupted extremely quickly. Without exception, all their essence concentrated in one spot, turning into something like a blood bead from a melting stone pillar, forming a new Blood Humanoid. The difference was these Blood Humanoids lacked the attachment of a Soul Spirit, so they were only a bit stronger than an ordinary Human Form.

But the infection took effect faster. The Church had found a way to deal with the infection. The appearance of the Blood Humanoids was undoubtedly another wave of targeting, even… the problem had become more serious.

The entire Stone Forest was in a state of chaos. Almost everyone who entered was injured. The decisive ones simply cut off the wound to avoid infection, but those injured in less convenient places were much more unlucky. They could only wait for the infection to erupt, basically beyond saving.

As for those exploring the High-Risk Zone, the Church members controlling the Satellite saw clearly. The situation inside the High-Risk Zone was even worse. Everyone inside was swallowed by a large amount of blood from the melted stone pillars, leaving no trace. In short, over eighty percent of the people in the High-Risk Zone were wiped out!

This exit was chaotic, and the other exits were no better. Even though The Church had made emergency preparations, the effect was not obvious. Fortunately, to prevent sudden situations, each entrance and exit was guarded by high-end combatants dispatched by The Church. No large-scale infection crisis broke out. The emerging Blood Humanoids were eliminated immediately.

The injured who showed no abnormalities for now were isolated to prevent problems. Later, if it was confirmed that these people truly had not undergone any changes, they would be temporarily sent to the Quarantine Camp. As for the Stone Forest, the entire area was undergoing massive changes. Exploration was impossible.

“This is really…” Oro, who had returned to the Quarantine Camp, shook his head helplessly and looked at Moser sitting opposite him. “So I guess we’re just unlucky, right?”

“I guess so,” Moser nodded. As for whether they triggered something that caused all this, the possibility wasn’t very high… right? After all, it was a mutation in the entire Stone Forest, not just their area.

“Guess so? Then what about that woman?”

Oro didn’t say much, staring intently at Moser. Moser’s mouth twitched involuntarily. Returning to his own little nest, he didn’t maintain that aloof, weathered demeanor anymore. “Why are you looking at me!?”

“Hmm… Speaking of that strange Derivative Witch, you were the first Human to see her, right? Just because of that, our encounter with her couldn’t be a coincidence.” Oro gently rubbed his chin. In his free hand, he held a mirror to his face and frowned. It seemed like a few more wrinkles had appeared? This trouble was a bit big. Under normal circumstances, these wrinkles should take at least a few more years to appear. Having them now made him very uncomfortable.

“The problem is she wants to find That Dragon!” Moser emphasized. “And this really doesn’t have much to do with us, right? I’ve been to the High-Risk Zone several times before and never saw any issues!”

“Hard to say.”

“…I’ll go find That Dragon!” Moser immediately stood up. But as soon as he went out the door, he saw Ti Xiya standing at the doorway with an angry expression. He didn’t know how long she had been standing there, but as soon as he opened the door, he was met with a strong sense of dissatisfaction. Fortunately, this feeling wasn’t directed at him.

“What time is it, and you’re still here chatting!!!” Ti Xiya glared at Oro. Oro felt a bit awkward at this moment. Such a big thing had happened in the Stone Forest. Whether it was normal or not, he should have gone to Ti Xiya first. But then… Oro also knew very well that with such a big event, Ti Xiya must be extremely busy right now. Going a bit later would be fine.

Going early wouldn’t affect anything, going late wouldn’t affect anything either. It would be better to wait until she was less busy before finding her. But it seemed Ti Xiya was surprisingly free and had actually come to find him directly.

“Actually, we were also discussing countermeasures,” Oro said very seriously.

“Really?” Ti Xiya squinted her eyes and stared at Oro for a moment, then pointed outside. “Come along.”

Of course, she wasn’t so free that she came specifically to find Oro. She was here mainly to find Lena to help share some of the pressure. Even though it was a bit unfair to Lena who had already finished her work, there were too many problems, and she couldn’t handle them alone. Naturally, she needed some help. Not only would Lena have to work, but Oro couldn’t escape either!!

Even…

“Even I have to help? Hey, what’s my relationship with The Church? How dare you ask me!?” Zheng Yichen crossed his arms and looked at Ti Xiya. If she had come a bit later, Zheng Yichen would have gone to discuss the sudden situation inside the Containment Zone with Dan Marina. Just as Oro said earlier, changes weren’t something to fear; no change was what was feared, because without change, no breakthrough could be found.

With changes, it was naturally easier to find the root of the problem. Now that such a big change had occurred in the Stone Forest, it must be that Derivative Witch taking action.

But this time, no one expected the problem to be so big, directly wiping out nearly half of the Mercenaries and Adventurers!

Most of the rest were injured. It hasn’t been fully identified yet whether there are any lingering issues. It can be said that this sudden mutation directly eliminated nearly half of the forces inside the Containment Zone. Even The Church’s combat power here suffered great losses!

“There’s payment!”

“Oh, oh, do you want me to provide a Conference Room?”

Ti Xiya waved her hand to the side, urging Zheng Yichen to hurry. Zheng Yichen took out a cube from an Expansion Pouch and threw it on the ground. The cube sprang open and directly turned into a Conference Room… Looking at this Conference Room, Ti Xiya let out a slight breath and walked in first. “I won’t say anything extra. Oro, what have you found on your side?”

“This?” Oro gently stroked his Little Moustache and glanced at Zheng Yichen. “That Derivative Witch seems very interested in Sir Connor.”

“Oh? I thought she was interested in both me and Moser,” Zheng Yichen said, his expression unchanged. Moser’s mouth twitched. Why was he being dragged into this again!?

“Probably,” Oro nodded. He didn’t say much more on this topic and instead talked about some of his discoveries. He didn’t need to hide too much about the changes in the Stone Forest. Even with outsiders present, it didn’t matter. At least at this time, everyone who could be in this place could be useful.

So he explained his speculations and analysis: “The Stone Forest should be related to the Death Witch… But as for the specifics, I’ll need to check some new information later to confirm.”

Oro held his chin. He couldn’t be completely sure before, but before escaping from the High-Risk Zone, he deliberately felt the pressure brought by the melting stone pillars—a pressure of direct death. It wasn’t related to the power of the Undying Witch as recorded in The Church’s data. The Undying Witch’s killing method was more of a ‘soul-extraction’!

Directly pulling out the target’s Soul. Without the Soul, the body wasn’t of much use—just a vegetable, unless the Undying Witch turned it into a Corpse Puppet.

The anomaly in the Stone Forest acted on the body, directly pulling it toward death. This was very similar to The Church’s information records on the Death Witch.

“Alright, the information you investigated… is quite important, but a bit late. Tell me, isn’t the change in the Stone Forest related to you?”

“Huh? Why do you all think that, instead of it being a coincidence, or related to someone else?” Oro countered.

“Maybe it’s just too coincidental. Anyway, you investigate this matter later. I see you’ve already found suitable personnel, so I won’t give you new support. Figure it out yourself. But before investigating, all of you come help me clean up this mess!!” Ti Xiya clapped her hands on the table. The living forces in the Containment Zone had suddenly been reduced by nearly half. Even though this place seemed stable, other areas were still in chaos. Even now, she had only squeezed out some time.

As for whether it was a waste… as long as she dragged Oro and Lena over, this time wouldn’t be wasted!

“You really don’t hold back with your words.”

“People with high ability should have corresponding responsibility… I’m counting on you. Alone, I can’t quickly stabilize the situation in the Containment Zone.” Ti Xiya let out a slight breath. Given some time, she could indeed stabilize the situation. However, time was short now. The changes in the Stone Forest were still ongoing. The sooner the situation stabilized, the more beneficial it would be for them.

“And you… if you have any good things, don’t hide them.” Ti Xiya, who had always been very firm in her tone toward Zheng Yichen, now softened her tone quite a bit…