Those Classmates who Suddenly Disappeared
Chapter 354: There are Always Stronger Individuals Among the Strong

Chapter 354: Chapter 354: There are Always Stronger Individuals Among the Strong

Gu Fan searched thoroughly, finding a wooden plank resting atop the pillar. Feeling quite sturdy as he stepped onto it, he didn’t hesitate to let Lu Yi go up first to navigate.

"Alright, I will lead the way. Everyone, follow me." Lu Yi had no idea where the plank led, nor could he see the ground beneath him. He walked slowly, step by step, careful not to trip and fall off the plank, which would ultimately result in the same fate as their previous companion.

Afterwards, Qin Jia and Leng Le walked onto the wooden plank. It swayed dangerously, not quite secure and threatened to tumble down at any moment. However, they didn’t have a choice other than to trudge forward.

Gu Fan and Du Jun held the rear. They shed their clothes and swung them to swat away the encroaching shadows, sending the majority tumbling downwards. While this significantly reduced the speed at which the shadows approached, some machine bugs kept crawling over.

"Step, stomp, crush." Gu Fan crushed the machine bugs underfoot while still using his clothes to sweep away those trying to climb up. However, he knew this tactic wouldn’t hold out for long.

Out of the corner of his eye, Gu Fan noticed a few machine bugs rushing towards him. He prepared to step on them, but then something unexpected happened. These few bugs gathered together to form a larger one, nearly the size of Gu Fan’s foot.

"You’ve got to be kidding me, they can combine?" Gu Fan, who broke out in a cold sweat, kicked the now larger machine bug down.

However, when another machine bug of similar size to Gu Fan and Du Jun climbed up, their faces went pale. "Damn it, these bugs sure know how to combine. How big can they get?"

Unable to fight them off, Gu Fan and Du Jun quickly retreated onto the plank, carefully moving step by step to leave the area as quickly as possible.

Gu Fan took a glance back and found, to his shock, the machine bug was still growing, already nearly the size of two people and showing no signs of stopping its growth.

"Such machine bugs cannot be made using the current level of technology. Why do they appear on this floating island?" Gu Fan was full of questions. He vaguely guessed at a possibility, but the pressing situation forced him to quicken his pace.

Because of its large size, the machine bug couldn’t cross using the plank. However, it had locked onto Gu Fan, and during the combination process had even grown wings. With just a few flaps, the machine bug managed to fly.

"Oh no, this is too much." Feeling an icy chill, Gu Fan saw the machine bug rushing down from the sky and shouted, "Everyone, down now!"

Lu Yi, Du Jun, Qin Jia, and Leng Le all immediately followed Gu Fan’s instructions to lie down. There was a swooshing sound over their heads, followed by a shriek. One of the villagers hadn’t reacted in time and was carried off by the gargantuan machine bug.

"Don’t stand there dumbfounded, everyone keep moving!" Gu Fan shouted anxiously. Everyone started to quicken their pace, silently praying fervently in their hearts.

Moving along, Lu Yi was the first to reach what looked like city walls, followed by Leng Le, and then Qin Jia. Last were Du Jun and Gu Fan, the rest of the villagers who had tagged along had all been carried off by the machine bugs.

They didn’t know what kind of place this was, but they had no other option but to try their luck. Gu Fan randomly chose a direction and hoped they wouldn’t encounter any more machine bugs.

Lu Yi couldn’t help but complain, "Oh my god, where did that thing come from? Who created it? It’s so wicked."

Gu Fan responded, "If this bug is a product of high technology, then it would explain why this floating island is always shrouded in mist and why it’s able to float above Yuxueyun Mountain."

Upon hearing this, Du Jun was shocked,"What do you mean, are you saying this floating island is a masterpiece of high technology?"

Gu Fan nodded, "Yes, it confirms my previous guess. This floating island doesn’t belong to the Eternal Life Clan, but was discovered by them. There’s a secret to immortality here, and that secret likely has something to do with a kind of high technology."

"No way. Who in ancient times could have come up with such high tech?" Lu Yi’s words also left Gu Fan puzzled, who thought to himself, ’That’s true, how could such astonishing technology emerge from the rudimentary technology of antiquity? But then, what’s the story with these machine bugs?’

"Could these have been left by aliens?" Qin Jia couldn’t help but wonder.

Everyone was speechless. To bring up aliens seemed like an exercise in excessive imagination.

Suddenly, there was violent commotion from within the fog. The giant machine bug was stirring in mid-air as if it were pursuing something.

"Oh lord, what is happening?" Because of the fog, everyone had a hazy view of the action. They noticed the giant machine bug seemed to have suffered an impact that propelled it backwards.

The sounds of metal colliding reverberated and kept everyone on edge. They saw the huge figure in the fog suffering from constant impacts, lurching wildly, and apparently utterly powerless to fight back.

Everyone was bewildered about what could possibly jolt such a large machine bug. Yet Gu Fan frowned, began walking off with Leng Le, and called out, "What are you all waiting for? Run now or it will be too late!"

Just as Du Jun, Lu Yi, and Qin Jia were about to make a run for it, a gigantic head dropped from the sky and landed heavily before them. They stared wide-eyed in disbelief: it was the head of the machine bug.

Lu Yi was the first to blurt out in amazement, "Oh god, who did this? They’re really powerful."

Gu Fan slapped his own forehead, "Who else could it be? It has to be those guys."

A figure leapt down from the sky and landed firmly on the machine bug’s head. Looking down from his elevated position, a faint smile twitched at his lips as if he were quite amused.

Seeing this person, everyone was even more terrified than when they’re faced with the machine bug. Gu Fan tensed up and wondered to himself, ’How did he find us here? Could it be...’

"I knew you were alright, but didn’t expect you to be able to follow us. Impressive, I must admit. Also, I should thank you for saving us. It seems you’re not entirely a bad guy. Maybe this experience could give us a chance to get to know you better and change the bad impression we had of you." Gu Fan raised his thumb, looking quite impressed.

"Don’t think flattering me with some sweet talk will spare you. It won’t." Finishing his sentence, the big boss jumped down from the machine bug’s head, stood right in front of Gu Fan, his eyes filled with murderous intent.