All the sounds mixed together, chaotic thoughts clashing and tearing against the demon fox's last bit of sanity. Yu Sheng heard Hu Li's painful whimpering by his ear, yet his mind was filled with even more crazed and disordered sounds—there was the demon fox's nearly out-of-control craving, the bone-chilling hunger, the bewitching darkness, and... shouts urging him to run away.
Yu Sheng took a deep breath, crouched down, and charged towards a gap between the demon fox and the monster; however, he did not escape as Hu Li had urged him to. Instead, he randomly grabbed a piece of the broken green stone slab from the ground and rushed towards the side of the monster.
He knew all too well that he likely couldn't defeat this monster, but he was even more certain that human legs couldn't possibly run out of this place. Considering the crumbling walls and debris everywhere, and the only wide exit to the outside of the ruined temple firmly blocked by the massive body of the monster, recklessly running would probably only lead to a quicker death.
Rather than that, it seemed better to bravely charge and, while he couldn't win, since he was not afraid of dying, there was a chance to turn the tide before his demise—and if by some lucky chance the monster was distracted, perhaps Hu Li could escape her horrendous binds. She was still struggling to maintain her sanity, and if there really was a chance for her to break free, perhaps there was also a chance to fight back...
All these thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant. Yu Sheng knew his considerations were not thorough, but there wasn't time to care about that. With no other options, he steeled himself. This body once again burst forth with a tremendous power that even he found puzzling, hurling the heavy stone slab like a cannonball towards the Blood Flesh Giant Beast.
The next second, he couldn't even confirm the "battle results" of his strike as a massive premonition surged from the bottom of his heart. Yu Sheng preemptively "saw" the monster's counterattack one second in advance, and his body violently leaped to the side.
A whip-like black shadow ferociously struck exactly where he had been standing. It was a snake tail that suddenly split from the surface of the monster. In an instant, soil and stones flew, and solid green stones along with broken bricks were all turned into dust. Yu Sheng felt a powerful impact while in mid-air, and fragments of stones hit him like bullets, even producing a sound akin to metal striking metal.
Yet Yu Sheng couldn't care about the pain in his body. After landing, he quickly tumbled and dodged the pursuing snake tail, while his peripheral vision caught a glimpse toward Hu Li.
The Silver White Demon Fox was struggling intensely among countless dark spikes and skeletal fragments. The ethereal blue Spiritual Fire near her fox tail flickered violently, as if it would explode in loss of control the next second.
But she was still firmly trapped—those binds around her seemed tailor-made just for her, and Yu Sheng's interference from the side had no effect.
In fact, Yu Sheng could tell at a glance that the fox girl was many times stronger than himself, but in front of that monster, she had no chance to fight back. Between that monster and her, there was clearly a very distinct... "restraint."
But initially, in the open space outside the ruined temple, she still rushed over without hesitation to "save" him—though she ultimately failed to rescue him, she genuinely came to help at that moment.
The memory flashed by, and Yu Sheng gritted his teeth, preparing to charge again, trying to see if the old method of risking his life could peel off more parts from that monster.
He didn't know where the additional strength and recovery ability in his body came from, but he remembered that before these changes first appeared, he had bitten off a piece of meat from that monster.
He wasn't sure if these two events were connected, but with no other options available and not fearing death, he might as well test all bold guesses in his mind.
"Don't worry about me!" Just then, Hu Li's voice came again, "It can't kill... me, you, run!"
"It's okay, it can't kill me either," Yu Sheng spat out a bloodied spit, which was from an injury to his chin caused by the airborne stones earlier. He turned his head for a glance at the Silver White Demon Fox, a cheerful smile on his face, "Later, I might die, but don't worry, I'll come back for you."
Hu Li's struggling paused for a moment, seemingly caught in confusion.
But Yu Sheng didn't explain anything; he merely stepped towards the monster, his stride light, his smile growing more evident.
The smile carried the joy of one heading to a feast.
"Do you like urging people to eat, huh?" He looked at the Blood Flesh Giant Beast ahead and muttered to himself, "Fine, I'll eat you up!"
He leaped through the air, pouncing toward that feast like a hungry wolf.
The dozens of eyes on the flesh monster trembled violently. For the first time, those chaotic and crazed eyes seemed to reveal a hint of hesitation and... fear.
Sounds of vague roars came from its multiple massive mouths, and then several tentacle-like, black-scaled "snake tails" split from that body of flesh and aimed at Yu Sheng in the air.
Yu Sheng felt his body being pierced, fatally wounded in numerous places, his life slipping away, his blood draining the vitality from his body.
But that indescribable... "Hunger" had already surged up from the bottom of his heart. He ignored the pain in his body, ignored all concerning death's repulsion and unease, holding on to one of the snake tails that had penetrated his abdomen, corners of his mouth grinning, he bowed his head and bit down—
The monster emitted a strange and sharp howl, violently shaking the snake tail as if trying to shake off a deadly parasite clinging to its body.
However, Yu Sheng stubbornly clung to that tail, no matter how fiercely it shook, he wouldn't let go. He was smashed onto the ground along with it, flipping a crumbling wall nearby. His robust body did not get hurt from this fatal impact, but instead he became more clear-headed amidst the pain.
And at that moment, the snake tail once again rose high, hurling itself towards a collapsing large hole in the wall of the ruined temple.
A streak of unusual golden light suddenly flashed across the edge of his vision.
Yu Sheng, amidst the howling wind beside his ear, struggled to lift his head and saw that golden streak rapidly approaching him. Before he could discern what it was, he subconsciously raised his hand to block it.
His hand caught something—a handle.
Yu Sheng: "…?"
A faint creaking sound mixed with the howling wind, and suddenly, an image of a door appeared in Yu Sheng's mind—a plain door leading somewhere, leading to...
The place that had just surfaced subconsciously in his mind was immediately pulled open by him.
The next second, Yu Sheng and the black-scaled snake tail were instantly pulled into the door, followed by a sharp creak, and the door slammed shut.
The snake tail of the flesh monster was severed directly by the suddenly appearing and disappearing door. A dissonant howl that could drive one insane echoed in the valley, making the trauma seem to drive it mad. It roared in the ruins of the ruined temple, charging recklessly and crazily biting everything within sight, including its own body. After an unknown period, it slowly calmed down, its body gradually transforming back into a shadow of darkness, slowly melting into the night.
The dark spikes and bone fragments silently vanished, and the battered Silver White Demon Fox fell to the ground, motionless, as if dead.
A few minutes later, Hu Li slowly opened her eyes, gazing blankly around her, her golden-red eyes seemingly having lost all trace of spirituality.
After a while, her gaze finally focused on a spot in the ruins.
It was the steps where she and Savior had sat together.
Dragging her massive demon fox body, she slowly moved over, and seeing the scattered plastic bags and leftover food under the steps, she lowered her head and with a whining sound, swallowed them all.
But she was still hungry.
That beguiling voice, like an unyielding demon, coaxed her from the depths of her hunger—
"Eat, you know where there is more food to fill your belly...
"You have buried them in the forest...
"Bones, flesh, and blood...
"Go, eat, then you will not be hungry anymore..."
The demon fox hung her head, emitting a cry akin to weeping, and then curled up under the steps, slowly extending her neck and gnawing on the nearby broken bricks and shards, digging up the dirt and rotting wood beneath the ruins to slowly stuff them into her mouth.
"I'm not hungry... I'm not hungry... Someone will give me food... He will come back soon with more food... I'm not hungry..."
She gnawed like this until, as in many years past, she gradually passed out.
The sensation of continuously falling awoke Yu Sheng from his daze; he still retained the "feeling" of holding the door handle, but the next second, he realized he had already crossed some kind of boundary.
He looked around with wide eyes and saw himself lying on the roadside; in his line of sight were the familiar street lamps, telephone poles, and the low old houses on Wutong Road.
The old facade and door of No. 66 Wutong Road stood not far ahead in the dim morning light.
He turned around with difficulty, just in time to see a door's shadow gradually dissipating. Deep within the shadow, it seemed he could still see the valley enveloped by night, the ruins of the temple, and...
The White Fox struggling to move its body in the ruins.
Yu Sheng tried to reach out to the White Fox.
But the last remaining shadow dissipated just before his fingertips touched it.