The young man stared in horror at the evolved creature gradually approaching him, unable to believe that he would die at the hands of his own newly researched experimental subject.
Before his death, he had only one question.
His plan was supposed to be so well-hidden. How on earth did that young man, who barely spoke a word from start to finish, figure it out?
The moment the evolved creature appeared behind them, the other party hadn't even turned around, yet he seemed to know exactly what was there, charging straight at him and catching him completely off guard.
He was truly unwilling. His experiment wasn't finished yet...
Xu Xi and the High-Ponytailed Woman, standing inside the iron bars, could only watch as the young man was torn to shreds by the pouncing evolved creature, his end even more gruesome than that of the Refined Man.
"Take off your jacket and throw it outside."
Xu Xi reminded his only remaining teammate while taking off his own jacket.
Although puzzled, the High-Ponytailed Woman complied.
She now felt an inexplicable sense of trust in this person.
Fortunately, after entering the instance, they had all been uniformly changed into hiking gear by the instance, so they just needed to unzip their jackets.
The two of them struggled to throw their discarded jackets through the gaps in the bars.
The evolved creature, which had been about to head towards them, was instantly distracted by the jackets.
"What... what exactly is going on?"
The series of events that had unfolded in such a short time had simply overwhelmed the High-Ponytailed Woman.
First, the Burly Man inexplicably mutated, reducing their team again. Then, the young man revealed his identity, interrupting their progress once more. Next, the Refined Man was killed by the suddenly appearing... taller white humanoid thing.
And the young man beside her not only decisively attacked the young man, but also seemed to know about this hidden compartment, appearing to have a complete grasp of the situation.
She had actually gleaned some things from his actions. For example, "Was the Burly Man's mutation caused by that guy?"
Xu Xi nodded.
"While subduing him, the Burly Man was deliberately cut, infecting him with the toxin."
"This thing is probably the evolved creature resulting from the mutated Burly Man fighting and devouring the white humanoid thing from Room 106."
"That guy sprinkled a special powder on the way to lead us to the cellar, which attracts the evolved creature. He also sprinkled a bit on us."
He didn't mention other, more specific details. What he said could be passed off as careful observation. Things like the toxin being extracted from the white humanoid thing, or the powder containing wax oil, were not things he could explain.
The High-Ponytailed Woman hadn't expected the young man to be willing to explain so much to her. She thought he might give a brief reply or two at most, considering they were the only two left in the instance.
No wonder he told her to take off her jacket and throw it out.
"So, this guy started setting up his scheme the moment we caught him? Because we didn't fall for the previous trap."
"You could say that."
Xu Xi also hadn't expected this young man to be so cunning. If not for his reload ability, that underground passage would have been enough to wipe them all out.
Oh, wait, that's not right. He and the High-Ponytailed Woman would probably have died right at the entrance of Room 103.
After all, the first-generation creature was released from Room 101 by the young man. Due to his reload ability, only the Short-haired Glasses Girl died.
The underground passage under the wardrobe in Room 101 was his second layer of the plan.
The cellar was the third.
These traps were interlinked. One had to admit, without his cheat, he really couldn't have outplayed the young man's schemes.
But then again, why didn't the High-Ponytailed Woman's necklace item activate during the first death?
Xu Xi compared the two scenarios when the necklace had activated.
Could it be because the supernatural beings' attack methods were different?
The first time was clearly infecting their perception and bodies. These last two times were directly going for their hearts.
It seems that necklace can only handle physical attacks, not mental ones.
The High-Ponytailed Woman thought for a while and gradually understood, feeling a chill run down her spine.
"This person's scheming is truly terrifying."
As if remembering something, her breath suddenly hitched.
Wait, the young man's cunning was frightening enough. But what about the young man beside her who saw through it all?
Were his perfectly timed hints really that innocent?
The Short-haired Glasses Girl instantly killed by the first-generation creature, the mutated Burly Man, the Refined Man whose heart was torn out by the evolved creature...
The High-Ponytailed Woman subconsciously twitched the corner of her mouth.
She should... not have offended him, right?
Probably not, otherwise she likely wouldn't have survived this long.
Hah.
Xu Xi turned his head and noticed the usually somewhat aloof High-Ponytailed Woman looking at him with a rather peculiar gaze.
What's up? Was there something wrong with him? Why was she looking at him like he was some supernatural being?
Did he accidentally get cut and mutate during the fight just now?
Holy crap! No way!
Xu Xi quickly looked down at his body.
Phew, phew, it was normal.
"What's wrong with you?"
Feeling there was nothing wrong with himself, Xu Xi had no choice but to ask the High-Ponytailed Woman, who seemed to be the one with the problem.
After all, this person was his only remaining teammate.
He never expected the mortality rate of this instance to be so high. Having experienced the previous instance where everyone survived, Xu Xi was still somewhat unaccustomed to this.
"N-nothing—uh, I was just thinking..." Seeing the young man frown, the High-Ponytailed Woman immediately changed her words, "So that's why the Burly Man mutated."
As soon as she finished speaking, the High-Ponytailed Woman wanted to slap her own mouth.
Of all things to mention, why that!
From her expression, Xu Xi sensed something off.
... Could she suspect he deliberately didn't warn the Burly Man?
That's a false accusation!
He had noticed the wound at the time, but he really hadn't paid it any mind.
Who knew the young man was so treacherous.
As for the Refined Man, it was even more impossible. His reload ability only passively took him back to that point in time. He couldn't possibly have saved him. The moment he finished warning him, the guy would probably have been dead the next second.
"I didn't think of it at the time either."
After some thought, Xu Xi still seriously explained himself.
He didn't want his only remaining teammate to think of him as a cold-blooded, heartless person who watched others die without helping.
The High-Ponytailed Woman nodded silently.
Xu Xi didn't know if she believed him or not.
He also couldn't explain his special circumstances to her.
Ah, forget it. Let's figure out how to clear the instance first.
The evolved creature outside the iron bars just mindlessly hugged and tore at their jackets. Even when the High-Ponytailed Woman's flashlight beam occasionally swept over it, it remained completely indifferent.
It seemed the evolved creature had lost its sensitivity to being stimulated by flashlights. In contrast, its fondness for items like candles seemed to have skyrocketed, making it completely ignore the two living people inside the bars.