However, having come this far, it was impossible to simply give up, they could only be more cautious and alert. The group continued their way to the top floor, passing through increasingly dim hallways, stepping out from the safety door when suddenly a patch of yellowed light shone on their faces, fully reflecting their astonished expressions.
The blood-drenched corridor was covered with dried, darkened bloodstains everywhere, some blotchy, some staining large areas.
Many bodies were piled together, whether they were human corpses, corpses of Four-armed Corpses, or bodies of Tentacle-faced Monsters, stacked layered upon layered in the center of the hallway. At a glance, only seven or eight blood-soaked heads could be discerned.
All the bodies were a blurred mess of blood and flesh, the decaying flesh and plasma sticking together, forming a ghastly mash that emitted bursts of foul stench.
The corpses were intertwined due to decay, their flesh gradually fusing together, making it impossible to clearly distinguish one from another, vaguely shaping a monstrous flesh mountain, utterly nauseating.
Yet atop this horrific pyramid of cadavers, there stood a bizarre plant, completely black, its branches twisted upward, a leafless whole rooted among the corpses.
This strange plant was not very tall; Su Han estimated it was only about fifty centimeters tall at most.
Its roots were black as ink, and the angles at which its branches were twisted resembled broken bones rather than those of a normal plant. They were eerily similar to the twisted appearance of the corpses below it, and dark red veins faintly flowed over its pitch-black surface.
What caught the attention most was the crystal-like fruit growing at the top of this pitch-black plant.
The light that shone on Su Han and the others' faces emanated from this fruit, giving off an incredibly eerie glow.
"What in the world is going on here?"
Someone in the group asked, but no one answered.
The scene before them was beyond their understanding, no one knew the answer, nor how to respond.
The only guess they could make was that this plant had slowly grown by drawing nutrients from the flesh and blood of these corpses.
"Everyone, be careful. That thing looks dangerous."
Captain Cheng had just voiced a warning when suddenly a cricking sound resonated, as if a hard object was hitting the ground.
The group swiftly turned their heads toward the end of the hallway from where the sound originated, and two red pupils suddenly appeared before everyone's eyes.
"Watch out!"
A towering dark figure slowly emerged from the dim hallway, its presence colossal, heavy, and sinister amidst the intermittent shadows.
The monster's body filled the corridor, roughly two and a half meters tall; its upper body was human, muscles and sinews twisted and exposed in raw, ruddy flesh, while its lower body resembled that of a spider, made up of bloody flesh and spider legs.
Its gaping maw emitted a sharp scream as tendrils, slimy like octopus tentacles, extended from its mouth, wriggling like worms.
The faces of Captain Cheng and others turned pale, terrified by the monstrous figure.
Before they could react, the monster, having clearly seen their form, suddenly burst forth with vigorous roars.
With its spider legs slightly curved, its body launched toward the group like a projectile.
"Stop that monster!"
Captain Cheng and He Fang, quickly regaining their composure, loudly commanded their Four-armed Corpses to charge at the monster.
Stopping it was their only chance of escaping; otherwise, in the even narrower space of the stairwell, escaping from the monster's pursuit would be impossible.
Su Han's Four-armed Corpse tightened its limbs, with sharp metallic claws springing from its hands. Its robust muscles tensed, and a coat of black stealthily covered it—Iron Skin Skill was quietly activated.
Wait, it's slow!
Suddenly, his eyes flickered, sharply noticing that the Spider Monster's charge stuttered as it approached the range of the yellow light, slowing down just a bit.
But this action was incredibly subtle, and after a slight pause, it charged toward them again, its eyes turning even redder and more ferocious.
In the blink of an eye, the monster collided with Captain Cheng and his team's Four-armed Corpses.
The strength of the Spider Monster was surprisingly formidable; the moment the Four-armed Corpse charged at it, it was knocked away the next instant.
First, it was Zhang Fu's Four-armed Corpse that got slammed against the wall of the corridor, a deep thud echoing as the corpse fell and didn't get up.
Then it was Chen Jun's Corpse that was impaled by a spider-spear, a gaping Blood Hole suddenly appearing on its body, with blood ceaselessly flowing out.
Captain Cheng and He Fang's Four-armed Corpses proved slightly stronger, leaping onto the body of the monster.
Their elongated hands tightly clasped the Spider Monster's body, their big mouths revealing sharp teeth and beginning to tear at the monster's flesh.
The remaining corpses took advantage of the Spider Monster being entangled, immediately beginning their attacks, punching intensely, the sounds muffled like dull drums.
Although the attacks were damaging, leaving gashes on the Spider Monster, such attacks only made it more enraged.
"Roar!"
The Spider Monster roared, its tentacles in its mouth wildly thrashing about, then its huge hand directly reached for a Corpse in front of it.
"Dodge quickly!"
Captain Cheng commanded to dodge, but it was already too late.
A Four-armed Corpse was firmly seized by the monster's large hand, thrown aside like a sandbag, emitting a heavy thud.
The Spider Monster similarly disposed of He Fang's Corpse, quickly freeing its upper body from its attackers, raging uncontrollably, and continuously launching the remaining corpses away.
The confined space of the corridor limited the corpses' ability to use numbers to their advantage, ultimately failing to stop the Spider Monster's advance.
Now!
Yan Meiyu seized the moment, controlling the Rot Skin Rat to swiftly maneuver. In the monster's blind rage, the Rot Skin Rat leaped up, its claws secreting Rot Poison, clawing at the monster's eyes in the dark night.
Striking successfully, the Rot Skin Rat didn't dare linger and swiftly hid into the darkness upon landing.
The Spider Monster's eyes were damaged, and it became even more crazed, continuously overturning three to four corpses.
Thud, thud, thud~
Heavy footsteps resounded as the Four-armed Corpse rushed over, fiercely slamming into the Spider Monster.
The immense force lifted the upper body of the monster while the lower spider body staggered on its six legs. The Four-armed Corpse's huge fists went straight for the monster's head, and with a loud bang, the Spider Monster was struck, causing it to shrink in stature and retreat continuously.
The monster immediately lunged at the Four-armed Corpse, its sharp spider spears stabbing towards the body of the Four-armed Corpse.
With a clang, a heavy white mark appeared on the Iron Skin, barely breaking the surface, but this damage was negligible, akin to a mosquito bite.
The Four-armed Corpse immediately counterattacked, its back-borne hands grabbing the spider legs to immobilize the Spider Monster, then the hands under its ribs embraced the vulnerable upper body of the Spider Monster.
"Crack"
The spine twisted under tremendous force, emitting a sound, while the cries from the Spider Monster nearly pierced everyone's eardrums.
The Four-armed Corpse roared, exerting force with all four arms, lifting the Spider Monster high, and smashed it down like a meteor to the ground, crashing it against the security door with a loud bang.
The security door caved in, entrapping the monster which struggled to rise for a moment.
The Four-armed Corpse moved in closer, the clanging sound of metallic claws slicing decisively, and with a 'snap,' it slit the Spider Monster's neck, a great amount of fresh blood spurting out, staining the entire corridor red.
"This monster is too terrifying,"
Cheng Zhenyong, still shaken, thought that if the Four-armed Corpse hadn't acted just then, the Spider Monster would have reached them.
"Impressive, but it's a pity it couldn't be contracted..."
He Fang, still fraught with shock, displayed a hint of greed. How formidable would it be if his Angel Envoy were the Spider Monster?
"Not just impressive. If it were contracted, it would be a strong combat asset for everyone. But if you ask me, Su Han's Angel Envoy is more impressive; I didn't expect it to resolve the monster that quickly,"
After encountering such a monster and with no casualties other than the Angel Envoy, it was natural for everyone to feel relieved, and some couldn't help but sing praises about Su Han.
But Su Han remained calm, glanced at the quiet floor, and said, "Let's search this floor first; it's getting late."
Cheng Zhenyong nodded, calling out to everyone, "Let's search for supplies first; be careful of any monsters."
Su Han remained silent, his gaze falling on the odd plants and piles of corpses, thinking, "This floor should only have this one monster."
The corpses couldn't have appeared without reason; it must be the Spider Monster's doing.
As for why such strange plants are here, perhaps the Spider Monster consciously cultivated them, or they might be unrelated and have just grown on their own.
Su Han didn't mention this but watched as Cheng Zhenyong organized people to start searching the six rooms, his attention on the plants.
"Pull up that plant."
With a thought, he had the Four-armed Corpse seize the plant, its slender roots pulled from the rotting flesh, dripping blood drop by drop, emitting a foul odor.
The plant was held in the hands of the Four-armed Corpse, but its luminescence hardly dimmed.
'Hmm, something is not right; this plant is absorbing the power of the Four-armed Corpse.'
Su Han soon realized something was off, as the power of the Four-armed Corpse was being slowly drained.
He frowned, but didn't immediately discard the plant. The power drain was gradual. Such a loss, recoverable with half a day of rest, was minor.
More than that, he was concerned about why the Spider Monster acted strangely due to the yellow light earlier.
'Could this light have the effect of repelling the monster? No, that's not quite right, it seemed more like it made the monster uncomfortable.'
Recalling the Spider Monster's reaction, Su Han vaguely began to form an idea.
If this was the function of the strange plant, then it could explain why the monsters on floors 18, 19, and 20 were relatively fewer, not just due to the Spider Monster.
"Can this thing be fused?"
Looking at the yellow Crystals on the plant, an idea suddenly came to Su Han's mind.
He had the Four-armed Corpse bring the plant in front of him, then reached out to touch it.
[Found fusion material: Lamp Tree Crystals. Do you wish to fuse?]
"So this is called a Lamp Tree?" His eyes lit up, then he declined, "Do not fuse."
He found a sheet, then wrapped up the Lamp Tree, temporarily letting Four-armed Corpse hold it. Anything that appeared after the apocalypse wouldn't just be ordinary.
While Su Han collected the Lamp Tree, Cheng Zhenyong and the others moved quickly, searching all six rooms in less than half an hour. The gathered supplies were moved out and simply piled together.
"Su Han, did you touch that strange plant?"
Cheng Zhenyong looked surprised, his eyes filled with some confusion. No one knew what the strange plant was or its function; touching it recklessly could be dangerous.
Su Han nodded, saying, "I'll be more careful. We can't just leave this strange thing here, can we? What if it poses a risk?"
Cheng Zhenyong thought about it and agreed. Keeping such a thing under watch was better than leaving it unattended on the 20th floor; otherwise, any changes would be unknown, and that would be the real danger.
Still, destroying it was also a possibility, but clearly, Su Han didn't plan to do that.
So he said, "Then I'll leave this thing to you."
Su Han nodded. He looked at the tired group; it was now evening, and the corridor was gradually getting darker due to the lack of light.
He said to Captain Cheng, "Let's call it a day; we'll divide the supplies tomorrow."