When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 650: Sending Free Pass

Chapter 650: Sending Free Pass

Shen Nianzu had not even had the chance to rejoice over the fact that Gu Luoxin had been found, when he received the news of the young man’s grievous and life-threatening injuries. The healing prop was useless, and Gu Luoxin did not have much time left.

The second Shen Nianzu digested the news, his mind buzzed and the ringing in his ears were so loud he could no longer hear anything else.

How could this be? He thought numbly. How could it be Xinxin, of all people...

No, it was not supposed to end like this. He refused.... he vehemently refused to accept this kind of outcome!

Gritting his teeth, Shen Nianzu forced himself to regain his bearings, and the first thing he did was to kill the thin man so he could harvest the latter’s free pass. He had originally planned to keep the man alive and used him as leverage to get back at Shang, letting him have the taste of his own medicine, but none of it mattered anymore.

His petty plan of revenge was nothing compared to the life of his teammate.

Together with Jin Jiuchi in tow, they navigated across the steep and dangerous terrain filled with the wreckage of the city, uneven land, jagged cliffs, and more dangers that kept falling down from above. They had no choice but to ditch the aircraft because the large size would only hinder their movements, and with Shen Nianzu being a siren with a natural disadvantage on land, Jin Jiuchi ended up having to carry his jade doll on his back as he leaped his way toward the destination Noir had sent them.

The main priority was to let Gu Luoxin exit this Cycle at once!

Please, Shen Nianzu found himself praying to all the deities he could name on top of his head, fraught with tension and anxiety as he was. Please let them make it in time...

Alas, some nuisance was just intent on standing in their way.

"Finally, I found you..." an indistinct mass of darkness arose from the shadow formed by the crumbling ruins. Countless eyes spun around before locking onto Jin Jiuchi, gleaming with a sinister and greedy glint. "...heir."

This eerie creature taller than the building that loomed over them right now was none other than the doctor.

Simply staring at it was enough to evoke a strong sense of discomfort and nausea, forcing Shen Nianzu to withdraw his eyes while fighting back the urge to hurl.

Jin Jiuchi’s temples throbbed, annoyed, "The fuck? Can’t you see that I’m in a hurry right now? Do me a favor and get your ugly ass out of my way, alright? I will even say thank you!"

Rather than getting angry, the indistinct dark mass trembled in laughter instead. Slowly, it compressed and shrunk in size until it once again donned the appearance of the doctor, his lips curling in a perpetual smile. "I see that mingling with creatures of the lower realm has turned you more... uncultured." He chose his words carefully.

With a deadpan face, Jin Jiuchi turned to the jade doll on his back while pointing at the doctor, stating, "Nian’er, I don’t like him."

Shen Nianzu frowned, anxiety gripping his heart. They could not afford to linger here for long. Each second they wasted here meant that Gu Luoxin would be one step closer to death. He was still waiting, still waiting for Shen Nianzu to rescue him, waiting for Shen Nianzu to bring him out of here. And as the leader, Shen Nianzu could not disappoint him.

But the person in front of them was not to be trifled either. If anything, he was a much worse adversary, for he possessed an uncanny ability and unfathomable strength they had yet to comprehend. He was completely unlike the nightmare creatures they had encountered so far which Jin Jiuchi could knock out with a single punch.

So what to do?

Biting his lower lip, it did not take long for Shen Nianzu to come to a decision.

"I will go first," he remarked as he slid down Jin Jiuchi’s back, much to the latter’s shock. "Xinxin needs the free pass as soon as possible, while you... you are responsible for dealing with him." He patted Jin Jiuchi’s back in encouragement one last time before turning away without hesitation, leaving Jin Jiuchi crying out after him,

"No, Nian’er! I want to go too! Don’t leave me behind—!"

But just as he was about to give chase, the doctor vanished from his spot only to appear before him like he had teleported, blocking his path to his jade doll. "Why do you choose to mix with those lower creatures? All you need is—"

"Arrghh!!" Jin Jiuchi angrily cut him off midway, swinging a punch that carried the force of a mighty gale and smashing it right on the doctor’s face. "Shut up! Your breath stinks as hell!!"

***

Shen Nianzu hurriedly took another detour around a pile of wreckage while following the coordination on his terminal, making sure that he was still on the right path.

Without Jin Jiuchi around, the journey became a lot more difficult and complicated because he did not have the ability to cover a long distance with a single leap like the man did. If anything, being a siren gave him a natural disadvantage on land. He could feel his feet throbbing and aching despite running only for ten minutes.

The scene before him was absolute hell.

It was like the earth had turned upside down. Blood soaked into the soil, giving rise to a peculiar stench, while broken limbs and dead bodies were strewn everywhere. Some people who were trapped beneath the ruins were still alive, crying out and begging, "Save me... please save me..." when Shen Nianzu ran past them.

But Shen Nianzu didn’t even glance at them— he could not. Not at this moment.

Just a little more, he told himself. A little more and I can make it...

There was no other news from Noir, which Shen Nianzu took as good news since it meant Gu Luoxin was still hanging in there. Just the mere thought of what had become of his cheerful and lively teammate was enough to make Shen Nianzu’s nose turn sour.

Ahead of him, a bloody figure struggled to climb out of the concrete carcasses, tremblingly rising to his feet. Shen Nianzu instinctively stepped aside to move around them when the figure stood in front of him.

The man, soaked in blood from head to toe while cradling his broken arm, rasped in a hoarse voice, "Nian...?"

That made Shen Nianzu pause.

He scrutinized the man closer, only then realizing that what he had mistaken as a hunched back was actually a pair of broken wings, the feathers wet and matted with blood, twisted at unnatural angles. They must have been accidentally torn when the man fell from above.

A Garuda...?

But he had only dealt with one garuda so far, who was the accomplice roped in by the thin man. And it wasn’t the person before him.

"Do I know you?" Shen Nianzu asked with a hint of doubt, as the only person who could call his name so accurately in this place must be an acquaintance, at the very least.

But the other person did not seem to have any intention of clarifying his identity. He simply stood in front of Shen Nianzu with that wrecked body of his that struggled to even remain straight, stubbornly saying with bated breath, "Sorry... I can’t let you pass."

Shen Nianzu’s left eyelid twitched. What kind of nonsense was this?

At this moment, he perfectly understood Jin Jiuchi’s sentiment when they were blocked by the nightmare creature from the upper realm, as he found himself blurting out the exact same words in a moment of irritation, "Fuck, can’t you see that I’m in a hurry right now?"