Fang You immediately returned.
After the upgrade, Sister An could enter and leave the bizarre world at will. Although it required a brief 'chanting time' to leave, it was much more convenient and safer than before.
However,
That colossal shadow lingered in his mind, impossible to shake off.
What level of terrifying entity was that? Even with Fang You's current full power, possessing the 'power to shatter buildings', facing such a mountain-like, terrifying existence, he still couldn't muster the will to fight.
Back then, they were still kilometers away, perhaps tens of kilometers or even further.
It was still shocking.
And this was only thirteen minutes after they entered the bizarre world, having walked a few hundred meters and encountered this scene.
The colossal shadow merely passed by, and didn't target them... Perhaps in the eyes of that terrifying existence, they were mere ants, insignificant.
But,
"How many such terrifying entities exist in the bizarre world? Are they extremely rare, or... can they be encountered occasionally?"
He felt the latter was more probable.
What worried him even more was, what would happen if such a monster descended upon the real world?
"It's not unfounded worry."
"From a few bizarre entities at the beginning, to now, even four-star disaster-level bizarre entities can pass through the sieve. In the future, the appearance of such a colossal shadow is not impossible."
"The difference is, will I, will my Spark have the ability to resist then."
As long as my improvement speed is fast enough, danger cannot catch up with me.
However, the third awakening requires accumulating 400Mystic energy. The fourth awakening, if following the previous growth rate, would require at least 8000, which is difficult to accumulate in a short period.
Even if it were possible, besides Mystic energy, the fourth awakening would surely have very stringent conditions.
Compared to him, Miss An Jianyou was even more terrified. He could hear her heart pounding wildly at the time.
"Whether it's for the resources, bizarre artifacts, or to investigate further and gather information in the bizarre world, it's a place we must go."
"Now we can choose not to go, but if we wait until the great disaster fully descends and regret it, it's better to start preparing from now on, and prevent future trouble."
"However, I am not suitable for going myself."
Don't misunderstand, it's not that he, Fang—Savior—Spark Mentor—You, is afraid of death, but after careful consideration and calculation, he is not suitable for venturing to the front lines.
Because, he can descend at any time.
If danger arises, he can possess Xiao Huan and descend to save the situation.
He can hold back the enemy, giving An Jianyou and the others a chance to escape, while he himself can quickly return by dispelling the possession.
As for Xiao Huan? Her problem is even less significant.
As long as the core of a phantom spirit exists, it will not perish and can be reborn continuously.
This is the optimal choice.
He summoned Black Saber, An Jianyou, and Xing Jing Lei, who had just returned and was preparing to rest.
"I have an important mission to assign to you."
Looking at the mentor's solemn expression.
Black Saber, as usual, had no expression, and could not show any.
An Jianyou looked like she was about to cry.
"Mentor..."
She really wanted to meekly ask, "Can I not go?", but the words that came to her lips turned into, "Don't worry, Mentor, I will definitely complete the mission!"
This seemed to be a very important mission.
It wasn't even on the mission list, but was personally entrusted by the mysterious mentor... Had she finally entered the inner circle and gained access to the organization's secrets?
Excellent!
Xing Jing Lei's blood boiled with excitement.
All three of them seemed full of drive.
Fang You said, "This mission has no fixed objective. The purpose is to investigate the situation in the bizarre world, to find things and resources that are different from the real world, but safety is paramount, and survival comes first."
"I will provide you with remote support. The specific action plan will be arranged by yourselves."
The information had already been sent to them in the form of 'mission briefing'.
After some discussion, An Jianyou offered the only suggestion, "Let's not enter from Baijiang City."
...
Training Base No. 1,
The murmuring sounds in his ears faded away, replaced by the roars of bizarre entities and the obscuring gray mist.
"Is this the bizarre world?"
"Hiss!"
Xing Jing Lei swung his fist, blasting several bizarre entities, but thinking that bizarre entities were everywhere, his scalp tingled.
Looking at the torch in An Jianyou's hand, "Is this thing reliable? Will it suddenly go out?"
"It will."
"It will go out when the fuel runs out, so you must have spares."
This cliffhanger... Xing Jing Lei didn't know An Jianyou was more nervous than him, but he almost had a heart attack, after all, the bizarre world was described as extremely terrifying. Without such torches, they might be swallowed by bizarre entities in an instant.
Who isn't afraid of death?
He also held a bright torch, just in case, to light it if it suddenly went out.
According to the tactical arrangement, An Jianyou controlled bizarre entities to guard the surroundings and serve as the main force.
If a three-star bizarre entity appeared, it would be restrained by Miss An's pet, and then quickly killed by the formidable Black Saber.
He...
"Your combat style consumes life energy relatively quickly. Wait until the situation becomes difficult before you act. Under normal circumstances, pay more attention to your surroundings and the burning of the torch,"
said the formidable Black Saber.
So, he was just a hanger-on the entire time?
...
Spark Secret Realm, Apostle Dormitory.
The mobile phone loaded with the Salvation Game was suspended in front of him, having switched to An Jianyou's perspective. Through her, he could see the training base in the bizarre world, the original Blue Water Resort.
The buildings looked weathered, but were quite intact, with not much damage from bizarre entities.
The same was true for the urban area he saw in Baijiang last time, it was also very intact.
He pondered.
Looking at the screen again, the three were walking cautiously in the bizarre world, with only the roars of bizarre entities and the faint sounds of the bright torches burning around them.
An Jianyou and the others were incredibly nervous, walking with extreme caution. Fang You was no less so.
This team was the core strength of the Spark, and it was indispensable. Moreover, after spending so much time together, they were friends. Even if Xing Jing Lei died, he would be sad for a while.
He stared intently, his eyes unblinking.
Suddenly, a line of prompts popped up.
"Ding!"
"Prompt: Spark has walked a cumulative distance of 1000 meters in the bizarre world. The new module 'Bizarre World Exploration' has been unlocked. Please view the details yourself."
Fang You: "!!!"
The modules of the Salvation Game already included 'Fate Draw', 'Apostle List', 'Item Inventory', 'Mission Dispatch', and 'Organization Base'. The two remaining, yet to be opened modules, he had guessed after a brief look to be 'XX Exploration' and 'Instance Dungeon XX'.
But he hadn't found any clues to unlock them, and he had almost forgotten about such a module.
It was unlocked now?
What was the use of the Bizarre World Exploration module?
"Xiao Huan, continue to keep an eye on An Jianyou and the others. Notify me immediately if anything happens."
"Okay~!"
Her figure appeared and projected a screen on the wall, displaying An Jianyou's perspective.
Fang You then controlled his phone, switching to the 'Bizarre World Exploration' module.
As soon as he entered, a gray mist obscured the entire interface, and then slowly dispersed, revealing an interface that looked like a mini-map.
Unlike the mission map in the real world, this map was extremely simple, with a pixelated style, appearing in grids. The team of An Jianyou and the two others was represented by a circular icon with a torch inserted in its upper right corner, displaying 'Remaining Time: 26:39'.
The surrounding map was black, with only a small circle illuminated by the torch appearing white. The areas the team had passed through were a light gray.
It was indeed an exploration map, but what was its use?
This Salvation Game was such that no matter which module, he had to explore it himself; it wasn't straightforward.
Fang You thought, searching for operable areas within the interface, but there were none.
There was only a slowly moving circular icon and the darkness that filled the entire map area.
But suddenly,
A tree-like icon appeared in the darkness, located at the eleven o'clock direction from An Jianyou and the others, a good distance away.
He thought for a moment and sent a command.
...
"At the eleven o'clock direction, a command from the Mentor."
Black Saber spoke, walking at the forefront of the team, his sharp gaze sweeping the surroundings.
So far, the highest they had encountered was a three-star bizarre entity, but they didn't dare to be careless. All battles were ended within five seconds, and they tried to keep the noise down to avoid attracting more bizarre entities.
Under the illumination of the bright torches, they were like semi-invisible to the bizarre entities, but far from being able to act with impunity.
In this short period, they had caught glimpses of colossal figures from afar several times.
They avoided them whenever possible.
If they encountered a disaster-level bizarre entity, with their current configuration, they might only be able to make a desperate stand.
Black Saber had an excellent sense of direction. When he said eleven o'clock, it was precisely that direction, and the team moved forward.
However, surrounding them, beyond the resort, was a forest. The trees were withered, the ground was cracked and grayish-brown, and there was nothing else.
Xing Jing Lei muttered, then his eyes widened.
A tree appeared in his vision, but this was a tree completely unlike the others!
The trunk spiraled upwards, about tens of meters high, and the leaves were blood-red, with what appeared to be fruits hanging from them.
They were too far away, and the gray mist obscured their vision, so they couldn't see clearly.
However,
"We've found something different from the real world!"
"The Mentor's command definitely has a great purpose! What do we do now, pick those fruits? I, the great... I think they must be treasures."
Xing Jing Lei was eager to try.
But Black Saber was not impulsive. After a moment of thought, he looked at An Jianyou, "Let's find a bizarre entity to test it."
"Understood."
An Jianyou dispatched the Bone Knight.
Under her control, the knight rode a bone horse and trotted forward, kicking aside some bizarre entities along the way, and arrived under the blood-red tree.
Suddenly,
Boom—
A blood-red giant python seemed to emerge from the twisted trunk. It was much larger than the Bone Knight, and in an instant, it coiled around it, constricting, and its gaping maw bit down.
An Jianyou covered her head, "It's... it's dead."
A three-star bizarre entity was killed in two or three moves.
Her eyes widened with terror.
Black Saber also made a decisive call, "Withdraw."
They quickly walked for several hundred meters, and only when no danger pursued them did they breathe a sigh of relief.
"What was that?"
An Jianyou was still shaken, but Instructor Black Saber shook his head, indicating he didn't know either.
And Xing Jing Lei, the crude fellow? It was even less to be asked.
She patted her tablet, her heart still pounding, trying to calm down.
At this moment, the Mentor sent them another command: just remember this location, and come back later. Now, head directly west.
So they continued westward.
This time, they were even more cautious. Before the torch was about to extinguish, they lit another one for seamless continuity.
An Jianyou felt some fear.
But amidst her fear, there was a hint of anticipation, like exploring a fantasy world where one never knew what opportunity awaited them in the next moment.
Could they find a treasure trove? Well, one without monsters guarding it, she thought.
The gray mist was like a thin veil, lifting layer by layer as they advanced.
After walking for about half an hour, a towering object faintly appeared in the gray mist.
Compared to the surrounding trees, it stood out conspicuously.
Could it be another strange tree?
But as they moved further, she realized it wasn't. The gray mist around it had thinned considerably, and even from hundreds of meters away, they could see clearly in the distance.
A black stone tower appeared in her vision.
It was clearly not naturally formed!
A voice emanated from within the black stone tower.
It sounded like a human female voice, with strange syllables, seemingly in a language she didn't recognize, but suddenly, she understood.
"Human from a world not yet devoured, I have awaited you for a long time."