Xu Youyou nodded readily upon hearing this.
“Alright!”
“Let's go!”
The two figures quickly vanished from the small courtyard, but the additional specter aura shrouding the area did not dissipate.
Nor did the smell of blood drift out.
They planned to remove the double-layered specter aura only after they had dealt with the other three players.
Outside the old residence.
After Zhou Hetian was carried off, Cheng Luoying and the other two had run toward the old residence as fast as they could.
However, they had run too fast earlier and completely lost their bearings in their panic.
On top of being unfamiliar with the mountain paths, they had wasted some time trying to find their way back.
Fortunately, they still managed to locate the old residence.
Yet, just as they caught sight of a corner of the old residence, they were shocked to find the specter that had just carried Zhou Hetian away standing quietly ahead.
As luck would have it, it was blocking their path.
The moment they saw the specter, they skidded to a halt.
“Oh my god, the specter is actually waiting here! What do we do?”
“Should we keep going forward? Or bypass it?”
Cheng Luoying scanned the surroundings but saw no one else.
“What's going on?”
“Not a single soul is here?”
“We made such a huge racket when we were fleeing just now. Why aren't the veteran players inside the old residence coming out to check?”
The player standing next to her sighed.
“Maybe they went to look for the people who fled in other directions.”
Cheng Luoying turned her head to look beside her and realized the one who spoke was the man who had previously volunteered to deal with the specter.
She softened her tone. “Do you think we can bypass it?”
He frowned, looking hesitant, before finally shaking his head helplessly.
“Since the specter is waiting for us here, it definitely won't let us regroup with the other players.”
Cheng Luoying lowered her voice.
“Can you still use your talent right now?”
His expression shifted slightly, but after some thought, he nodded.
“I can, but I have to make direct physical contact with the specter to trigger my talent.”
Realization dawned on Cheng Luoying.
So that's why. No wonder he had rushed toward the specter earlier, looking like he wanted to grab it.
There were only two ways to make contact with the specter.
One was to charge forward proactively, just like before.
But this specter possessed a teleportation-like ability. If they did that, they would only be picked off one by one.
Therefore, they could only use the second method.
Let the specter approach them on its own.
She took a deep breath.
“The three of us will huddle close together. If the specter wants to attack any of us, it has to get close. When it does, you make your move. It'll be a guaranteed hit.”
“Alright.”
The three of them huddled together, facing outward as planned.
All three pairs of eyes stared intently at the specter ahead. They carefully sidestepped, intending to bypass the specter and head toward the old residence.
Of course, they knew it was impossible to simply walk past; the specter would definitely make a move.
However, that was exactly what they wanted.
After all, they couldn't just stand there forever waiting for the specter to act.
Only by actively trying to escape would they force the specter to accelerate its attack.
Right at that moment, the specter's figure suddenly vanished!
Cheng Luoying instantly shouted a warning.
“Watch out! It's coming!”
Sure enough, in the very next instant, the specter appeared right in front of them. Its crimson slit-pupils locked eyes with Cheng Luoying.
In that instant, Cheng Luoying's mind felt completely frozen. Aside from staring blankly at the specter, she couldn't even twitch a single finger.
She could only watch helplessly as the specter raised its hand and reached for her.
Fortunately, her previous words had not been in vain. The fully prepared player beside her quickly reached out and grabbed the specter's wrist.
【Player triggered talent】
【Initial Talent: Spinning Silk to Make a Cocoon (Special)】
【Trap any target in a cocoon through direct physical contact. Duration: 10 seconds.】
【Each 1/10th of your own blood consumed extends the duration by 1 hour.】
【No cooldown. The talent's effect does not disappear upon your death.】
【The talent can only be triggered on one target at a time.】
【You have been trapped by the talent. Duration: 10 seconds.】
Zuo Lin'an looked down. He saw countless white threads frantically wrapping around him from the spot where the player grabbed his wrist, eventually binding him completely.
In less than three seconds, he was transformed into a white cocoon.
Zuo Lin'an's mouth twitched.
So after all that, this isn't even a repel-type talent?
Inside a room in the old residence.
Zuo Lin'an's living body sighed.
“The special talent, Spinning Silk to Make a Cocoon... although each trigger only lasts for ten seconds without consuming his own blood, fortunately, it can only be cast on one target at a time.”
“However...”
Xu Youyou narrowed his eyes.
“But the talent has no cooldown!”
“Which means, as long as he can guarantee his own safety within those ten seconds after the talent is triggered, anyone else who makes physical contact with him afterward will be controlled for ten seconds.”
“To kill him, the two of us must strike together. While one of us is trapped, the other must kill him within those ten seconds.”
At this point, he cast a deep look at Zuo Lin'an.
“Brother An, you can only strike on the hour. It's not time yet, and your method of execution takes too long, so I'll handle killing him.”
Zuo Lin'an didn't agree immediately, seemingly realizing something.
“That Cheng Luoying just stared blankly and waited to die when I attacked earlier. Her talent probably isn't very useful, or at least it's not a talent targeted at specters.”
“But besides the two of them, there's a third player... We don't know his situation yet. He might possess a talent that can repel specters.”
At this thought, Zuo Lin'an frowned slightly.
“If that's really the case, what if you get repelled by that person's talent while I'm trapped by 【Spinning Silk to Make a Cocoon】 and you go to hunt them down?”
“In my opinion, how about we kill the other two first?”
Xu Youyou blinked and quickly gave him a hand gesture.
“No problem.”
Elsewhere.
Cheng Luoying stared blankly at the human-sized white cocoon in front of her. Only then did she realize she had just escaped death by a hair's breadth. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed onto the ground.
“Th-thank you...”
The player who had just triggered his talent was also feeling rather uncomfortable.
This was his first time facing a specter at such close range.
The bone-chilling coldness mixed with the stench of blood and rot left a deep impression on him.
“Alright, let's move, quick! My talent only lasts for ten seconds!”
Hearing this, Cheng Luoying scrambled to her feet.
“Then let's get out of here!”
However, at that moment, the third player suddenly pointed ahead.
“Oh no! It's a second specter!”
Cheng Luoying whipped her head around. Sure enough, she saw another specter, and her expression changed drastically.
“H-how can this be?”
Rate on N.U.
