The monster continued squirming toward Mantou, the twisted human figure stitched onto its body reaching an arm out toward him.
"Why... aren't you speaking anymore...?"
"I still want to... hear stories..."
"Valena is so lonely staying here all by herself..."
Fear was not the only emotion on Mantou's face; there was also the grief and indignation of having his romance shattered yet again. It was bad enough in reality to meet an online date in person only to find out their photos were heavily catfished, but who could have thought that in a game world he would actually be duped by an illusion!
Sure enough, humans were visual creatures, and Mantou was no exception.
"Monster, give me back my true feelings!"
"Give me back Miss Valena!"
Overcome with grief and rage, Mantou drew the silver sword at his waist without hesitation and slashed down hard at the monster.
Not far away, Singo also nocked an arrow and loosed an armor-piercing shot.
*Clang! Clang!*
Two crisp rings sounded as sparks flew. The blade and arrow both rebounded off the monster's tough, thick hide and rock-hard scales, dealing not the slightest bit of damage. The flesh continued to writhe, sending out slime-covered tentacles that wrapped around the silver sword and actually swallowed it whole.
"Why... do you want to... hurt me?"
"Big Brother... Mantou..."
"Why does everyone... do this?"
The humanoid mass of flesh squirmed, its voice shifting from a soft, sweet feminine tone to a low growl, and finally into a cacophonous screech blended from multiple voices that chilled Mantou to the bone.
The chunks of flesh writhed and shuddered, shifting into various grotesque shapes.
"Then I have no choice... but to keep you here forever!"
Seeing that their attacks couldn't even pierce its defense, Singo immediately roared at Mantou, "Run! Quick, run!"
"There's no way we can fight this thing!"
"How was I supposed to know?!"
Mantou wanted to cry but had no tears. He scrambled after Singo, fleeing in blind panic.
Singo said with a grim expression, "The cabin and the girl were illusions. Luckily I bought a potion of true seeing ahead of time to see right through illusions, or else your life would have ended right here!"
"There was definitely something wrong with that tea. Once you drank it all, you probably would've ended up a slave here forever."
With lingering dread, Mantou glanced back at the spilled potion on the ground, then looked around. Cold metal walls surrounded them, covered in mottled bloodstains, massive claw marks from unknown creatures, and even chaotic, eerie symbols.
And the long-dormant monster began to move once more.
"Why—"
Layer upon layer of bizarre voices resonated.
The roar seemed to vibrate from numerous organs simultaneously. Within it, one could hear a young girl's call, a frost wolf's howl, a giant's bellow, and even the furious roar of a white dragon. It sent shivers down both players' spines, instantly plunging them into a state of fear.
"That's Frightful Presence!"
"This monster must really have a dragon bloodline!"
"Damn it, the dragons in this world have some weird tastes. How starved do you have to be to go after something like that?!"
This familiar oppressive sensation set alarm bells ringing in Singo's mind.
Yet Singo quickly snapped out of it, breaking free from the abnormal status. Looking up at the approaching monster with its thrashing tentacles, he glanced out of the corner of his eye at Mantou, who was still paralyzed by fear, and instantly came up with a solution.
*Roar—!*
Another dragon roar erupted.
Only this time, it was Singo unleashing Dragon Roar Charge.
Faced with a draconic roar whose power derived from Cassius and bore a higher-tier Frightful Presence, even the terrifying stitched monstrosity was momentarily stunned, its multiple fleshy tentacles freezing in midair as they reached for the pair.
*Smack!*
Singo slapped the terror-stricken Mantou across the face to wake him up.
"I can't crowd-control it for long! The monster's going to snap out of it soon—move!"
Clutching his bright red cheek, Mantou ground his teeth and scrambled after him.
"Sing-dog, you fucking took advantage of that to settle a personal score!"
"Didn't it wake you up? You were hugging some Lovecraftian monstrosity and practically about to make out with it. How shameful."
"You—"
Mantou's face instantly darkened until it looked black enough to drip ink. He wondered whether he should silence Sing-dog once and for all to prevent word from leaking out and suffering social death.
If that scene had been recorded and posted to the forums, he would lose all face. It would probably become another legendary clip right up there with 'Langlibaitiao and the Old Vampire's Unspeakable Thirty Seconds,' drawing countless spectators to gawk and leave comments.
"Brother—"
"Come back and stay with me!"
Hearing this "dainty" voice gave Mantou goosebumps and made his scalp tingle.
The monster slithered closer from behind, its scales rattling. Fortunately, its three-meter-tall body was far too massive and warped to move with much coordination, its flesh pressing hard against the walls, making rapid movement through the narrow corridor impossible.
This allowed them to open up some distance and slip through a secret door, barely escaping "Valena's" pursuit in frantic haste.
"Come back!"
At the very last moment before the two escaped, "Valena" unhinged an astonishingly wide maw, bloody filaments stringing between its upper and lower jaws. Deep from its gullet burst a terrifying blast of frost breath. The oncoming wave of extreme cold froze moisture in the air into ice, instantly coating the door in a thick sheet of frost.
"Huff, huff..."
"Sing-dog, you might as well not have told me. You should've just let me die happy wrapped in that gentle embrace..." Mantou muttered under his breath, seemingly reminiscing about the tenderness from before. But as the image of the creature's true form flashed through his mind, his face soured again. "What on earth is that thing?"
"Why, it's your dear Miss Valena," Singo mocked, deliberately laying on a sickeningly sweet tone.
"Fuck off!"
Mantou's face flushed crimson, looking like he wanted to cry. He had still been reveling in the romantic ambiance of being accompanied by a beauty, only for Singo to shatter the illusion and reveal that the supposed "beauty" was a grotesque monstrosity stitched together from corpse parts. The shock had hit him hard, and he still hadn't recovered.
Singo rolled his eyes in disdain. "Pathetic loser. Serves you right for staying single forever."
"That last breath attack was terrifying. If it hit, we'd probably have been frozen solid. From what I know, that should be the bloodline of a white dragon—one of the chromatic dragons. White dragons can be found in the Great Anzetta Waste."
Then, looking around and rubbing his chin, he said, "As for this place, it's likely the legendary Tower of Polar Night. It has a history of at least a hundred years. They say truly terrifying entities are imprisoned within. Very few survivors have ever entered and made it out in one piece."
As if suddenly remembering something, Mantou asked, "By the way, where's Brother Zhankuang?"
Singo shook his head. "No idea. We got separated when we ran into the gnolls earlier. But Brother Zhankuang's mind is rock-solid. In some other game, he literally bludgeoned a succubus to death with his bare hands. He wouldn't make an amateur mistake like yours."
Mantou's face flushed red with agitation, but he was at a loss for words.
"I—"
Singo patted his shoulder and said with earnest gravity, "Mantou, my friend, you'd best reflect on yourself."
Chapter 192