These were the creatures that had attacked the old woman's ship.

In the dead of night, these hideous creatures attacked passing ships in packs. Just looking at them, it would be a disservice to their appearance if they didn't eat people.

Ordinary ships rarely escaped them.

Although they appeared clumsy on land, judging by their evolutionary path, they leaned more towards amphibians, or even aquatic creatures.

In the sea, these creatures relied on their strong bodies and physiques, making them formidable opponents.

He even doubted whether ordinary caliber rifle bullets could pose a fatal threat to them.

Imagine these things stealthily climbing along the ship's sides in the pitch-black sea, suddenly appearing before the crew. Their reaction would probably be the same as the captain's.

Suspecting that these ugly, gigantic things came from hell, they cried out, "The gates of hell have opened!"

Jiang Cheng didn't know if it was hell, but he knew he was in trouble.

In the subsequent paintings, they saw the sun and moon reversed, the tides becoming irregular, and seawater pouring in, engulfing the entire Black Rock Town in a vast ocean.

That altar was not a treasure land for resurrection at all; it was a cursed, ominous place!

Those poor invaders ultimately paid the price for their foolishness!

A trap!

It was all a trap!

Gradually, things that he couldn't understand before began to connect. He remembered the scene when he first met the people of Black Rock Town in front of the building's entrance.

The strangely dressed man, who seemed to be a priest, had said something like this:

"Deprived of light, plunged into eternal darkness, you will crawl through winding and rugged ruins, swarms of vipers will surround you, gnawing at your remains. You will feel the pain but not die. Your soul will be eternally trapped in your body, watching it rot, yet powerless. You can only prostrate yourself at its throne, begging for forgiveness from it. The former betrayers used blood..."

Listening to it now, it was completely a self-narration from a victim.

They were sealed within the bodies of monsters, living a dirty, sunless life, only able to appear at night. They hoped to beg for forgiveness from it.

In order to be free.

Also, in Black Rock Town, the blond man had muttered under the influence of alcohol, "Like a bunch of ugly sea reptiles!"

Wasn't he talking about themselves?

The current residents of Black Rock Town were the invaders who had killed the natives.

But because of the curse, they had become neither human nor ghost, and could only appear at night. Their only wish was to lift the curse.

Squinting, Jiang Cheng further speculated that they probably couldn't even commit suicide.

At the same time, the strangeness of the stone carvings on the first floor of the building had a source. By judging the phenomenon, Jiang Cheng could already confirm that those stone carvings were not dead objects.

They were alive.

Liang Long was likely attacked by those stone carvings.

Since they arrived here, those stone carvings began to gradually revive, initially not obvious, but now the situation was clearly much more critical.

As the mission neared its end, the stone carvings began to revive on a large scale, and those stone carvings... were clearly those guys from Black Rock Town.

As for why they turned into stone carvings and why they appeared here, he didn't know for the time being.

Before, every time Jiang Cheng passed through the first floor lobby, he would feel some inexplicable stares. He had also seriously considered this question, but was limited by the lack of clues at the time, so he was confused.

It wasn't until Liang Long disappeared that the answer to this question surfaced.

The stone fragment he had picked up before had a small amount of smelly mucus remaining on it, the fishy smell of marine life.

"Brother Hao," Chen Ran's voice interrupted Jiang Cheng's thoughts. He shifted his gaze to the latter. Chen Ran smiled and said, "So... what do you think?"

He spread his hands, looking completely absent-minded, but the sharpness in his eyes was unmistakable.

He was looking for flaws.

The call just now was just a test. If he guessed correctly, Chen Ran had just broken free from the influence of that unknown force.

Otherwise, he would have attacked him long ago.

He wouldn't have waited until now.

"What do I think?" Jiang Cheng steadied his mind and asked.

Chen Ran grinned, no longer hiding it, and said bluntly, "Su Xiaoxiao is dead, and Su An has also been... Now there are only three of us left."

"But have you thought about what the path to survival in this mission is?"

Jiang Cheng looked at him coldly, without answering, obviously waiting for him to continue.

Chen Ran shrugged indifferently, "According to my idea, there are two steps to survival in this mission. The first step is relatively simple, we..."

He smiled, pointed at the old woman huddled in the corner, and said bluntly, "We kill her. She is one of the threats in the mission. At least we can be sure that Su An, and even the first missing biker girl, died at her hands."

"Based on past experience, eliminating the threat itself is often the key to breaking the situation."

After speaking, Chen Ran suddenly stopped. He put both hands in his pockets, tilted his head slightly, squinted his eyes, and stared at Jiang Cheng with an exaggerated expression.

Jiang Cheng raised his chin, "Continue," he said, "I want to hear what Brother Chen's second step is."

Grinning, the corners of Chen Ran's mouth exaggeratedly raised to an uncomfortable degree, "This second step," he stuck out his tongue and greedily licked his lips, "might be a little troublesome."

"You say," Jiang Cheng nodded, "I'm listening."

"Because the clues are inconsistent, no one is sure what kind of impact killing the old woman will have on us. The mission may end, or it may not," he smiled, "especially... for the person who does it."

"So one of the three of us must be chosen as a guinea pig for experimentation, just like Su Xiaoxiao," Jiang Cheng stroked his chin, smacked his lips, and then looked up and asked, "Is that right, Brother Chen?"

"Brother Hao is wise," Chen Ran smiled.

"Then which of the three of us does Brother Chen think is worthy of this important task?" Jiang Cheng asked very formally, and deliberately lowered his voice, seemingly... not wanting the third person besides the two of them to hear.

Chen Ran squinted, then raised a hand and pointed to the position of the stone door.

Obviously, Fatty was the best guinea pig. He was docile and obedient, although he was a little timid, but as long as the doctor strongly demanded it and brainwashed him a little, it was estimated that this would not be difficult.

Jiang Cheng nodded to himself while stroking his chin, seemingly also feeling that this proposal was very good, "This will also save our two brothers from fighting each other."