Please be my partner.

Hongyou Town.

"Boom!~"

With a loud bang, a building suddenly exploded and a giant monster rushed out from it.

This monster has a human-like body and is more than three meters tall. Its body is extremely fat, and its big belly trembles when it moves. In contrast, its limbs look extremely thin, but that is only for this monster. In fact, its arms are thicker than the thighs of ordinary people.

The fat monster ran at an extremely fast speed, with a ferocious and distorted expression on its face, and saliva constantly flowing from the corners of its mouth. The saliva dripped onto the ground and eroded into holes of varying sizes.

In front of the fat monster, two figures were fleeing in a panic. There was a faint energy of qi and blood surging in their bodies, which made their speed extremely fast, but even so, they could not completely escape the pursuit of the fat monster.

The two men became more and more desperate. It was not only because of the fat monster chasing them, but more importantly, there were many other monsters in this town. If their movements attracted some more bizarre and terrifying monsters, then they would definitely die.

Therefore, the most urgent task is to get rid of the fat monster as soon as possible and then hide your breath again.

Suddenly, a luxurious mansion appeared in front of the two men. Their eyes lit up at the same time, because this mansion was one of the backup plans they had prepared in advance.

Their eyes met in the air, and the tacit understanding formed by their joint actions made them understand each other's intentions in an instant.

They simultaneously activated secret techniques to unleash their potential. Although this technique would consume a great deal of their vitality and reduce their lifespan, in today's world, this technique was a skill that every warrior must possess.

After all, there are very few people in this world who can live to the end of their lives.

After the explosion of the secret technique, the two of them increased their speed again, and they directly shook off the fat monster and entered the luxurious mansion.

After entering the luxurious mansion, the two did not continue to escape, but quickly jumped into a pool in the backyard and entered a cave under the rockery in the center of the pool.

The hole in the rockery in the pool was most likely used by the original owner of the mansion to hide treasures. However, when the two men discovered it, there was nothing inside. They didn't know whether the owner of the mansion took it away or someone else visited later.

In short, this place is just right as a temporary hiding place for the two of them.

After they entered the cave, regardless of their wet clothes, they quickly grabbed some gray powder from the small leather bag they carried with them, sprinkled half on their bodies and half around them.

At this time, the "rumbling" sound caused by the fat monster moving was heard from the outside world.

The two held their breath, suppressed all sounds, and even their heartbeats became barely perceptible.

At this moment, the outside world suddenly became quiet, and the two people's hearts suddenly rose to their throats, but soon, the "rumbling" sound sounded again and gradually faded away.

After a while, the two men's hearts suddenly relaxed. Cold sweat broke out on their foreheads, and they sat down on the ground exhausted. It was hard to tell whether the wetness on their bodies was pool water or sweat.

Hu Lianguang took a breath and said, "That monster, is it gone?"

Shu Bo leaned against the wall, saying with lingering fear, "Maybe. Let's go. Our previous arrangements have taken effect. That deformed monster isn't very intelligent, and it doesn't have much brains. If it can't catch us, it will probably just give up."

Hu Lianguang calmed down his breath, then sighed and said, "What bad luck! Not only did I not get anything from scavenging this time, I also lost a small amount of gray corpse powder. What a big loss."

Shu Bo shook his head and said, "For us, being able to save our lives is already great news."

Hu Lianguang was silent for a moment, then said softly, "Do you want to continue?"

As he said this, Hu Lianguang's face showed obvious fear.

Shubo remained silent.

The two are scavengers from the same cave. Their purpose of coming to Hongyou Town is to find everything they can use, including books and tools from before the disaster, and even rare materials that grow near special monsters. These are all indispensable things for a cave to survive and develop.

Being a scavenger is a job that requires one to take risks, and facing danger is commonplace.

However, the two of them had a bad start this time. In addition, after the fat monster caused such a commotion, it must have alarmed many other monsters, making the danger in Hongyou Town greatly increased. Even if they had some arrangements, they would be of little use.

It would be unwise to continue exploring at this time. If they provoke some strange monsters, they might not even have a chance to escape.

Thinking of this, Shu Bo sighed and said, "Forget it. It's too dangerous to continue now. Let's end this mission here."

After making the decision, both of them breathed a sigh of relief.

They waited for a while before carefully leaving the cave in the rockery.

Looking at the route that was forcibly created by the fat monster, both of them were a little amazed.

Speaking of which, this fat monster is relatively easy to deal with, and its strength is equivalent to that of the fully developed muscle before the catastrophe.

Of course, if a real fight breaks out, the fat monster still has the advantage. Not only is its defense and physical strength far superior to that of a martial artist who has trained himself to be a master of flesh, but the body fluids contained in its body are also highly corrosive, and fighting against it will be very restrictive.

Fortunately, by now, the survivors in the various caves have already figured out how to deal with monsters with physical form like this one. What is really difficult to fight are those strange monsters.

The two of them carefully left according to the route they had planned before entering Hongyou Town. The gap in the wall created by the fat monster saved them a lot of effort.

Just as the two entered the last courtyard and were about to leave the luxurious mansion, Hu Lianguang, who had entered the courtyard first, paused and froze in place.

When Shubo saw Hu Lianguang's expression, he instinctively felt that something was wrong, but he could not take back the step he had taken. He stepped into the courtyard, and then Shubo saw a scene that made him shudder.

There is a well in this small courtyard, and next to the well, there is a pair of brand new... red embroidered shoes.

The luxurious mansion was one of the two men's retreat routes. They had already carefully explored it when they were making the arrangements. At that time, there were definitely no red embroidered shoes near the well in the courtyard.

What made the two even more horrified was that the fat monster that had been chasing them to nowhere before was now falling silently on the other side of the well. It was wrapped in dense black silk threads that extended into the well and kept wriggling as if absorbing nutrients from the fat monster. The fat monster was shrinking at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The two of them took a step back stiffly and lightly, a step back, a step back...

It was not until he turned the corner and the courtyard completely disappeared from his sight that he felt relieved, a lot of saliva secreted from his mouth, and his heart beat like a drum.

They simply couldn't believe that they were so unlucky to win big prizes one after another, and each time was bigger than the last. What was even more unbelievable was that they escaped death again, and at the hands of a suspected strange monster.

At this moment, Shubo seemed to have thought of something and started slapping his body frantically, until he suddenly felt a pain when he slapped his chest. Shubo's face was as pale as paper, and he pulled open his shirt with trembling hands. When he saw a pair of small red embroidered shoes tattoo on his chest, he felt like he was struck by lightning.

Hu Lianguang's face turned pale when he saw this scene. He understood what this meant. The tattoo meant that Shubo had been targeted by that strange monster.

Since Shubo has been targeted, what about him who entered the courtyard first?

Thinking of this, Hu Lianguang's expression gradually became terrified, and in this fear, there was also a hint of... madness!

Chapter 370: Fratricide and the Messenger

"Boom!~"

Hu Lianguang suddenly exerted force, changed direction and ran madly towards the outside of the luxurious mansion.

Shu Bo, who was feeling anxious and worried, was stunned for a moment after seeing this. Then he understood Hu Lianguang's plan, and his expression immediately turned into rage. He shouted, "Hu Lianguang! Stop right there!"

Hu Lianguang ignored him and just kept running away frantically.

Shubo directly took out a silver bean from a small pocket, and with a slight shake of his wrist, it hit Hu Lianguang's ankle. The power contained in the silver bean made Hu Lianguang stagger. Although he did not fall down due to his own martial arts foundation, his speed slowed down and he was blocked by Shubo.

For a scavenger, martial arts strength is certainly important, but no matter how strong you are, you will eventually be powerless in the face of those strange monsters. Therefore, if you want to become a scavenger, the most important thing is a flexible and agile mind, as well as "little tricks" that can deal with various situations.

For example, throwing hidden weapons is almost a necessary ability for scavengers because it is really useful.

Except for a very small number of monsters, almost all monsters are irrational and act solely based on instinct.

If a scavenger has sophisticated skills in using hidden weapons, it will become extremely easy to attract monsters or trigger arrangements.

Shu Bo looked at Hu Lianguang with a cold expression and asked, "Hu Lianguang! What are you doing? Are you planning to return to the cave like this?! Have you forgotten the rules of the cave? Anyone marked by a strange monster is not allowed to return to the cave, so as not to attract the strange monster and harm our family!"

Shu Bo looked at Hu Lianguang's chest, exhaled, and calmed down a little. He said, "This strange monster marked you on your right chest. Let me see if you're marked. If not, you can leave."

Hu Lianguang clutched his clothes tightly, panicking and shouting frantically, "No! I'm not that unlucky! If you miss, stay and let me go! I want to go back to the catacombs!"

Shu Bo frowned and said in a low voice, "If you bring the mark back, you will bring disaster with you. Don't you think about the people in the cave?!"

Hu Lianguang finally couldn't bear the pressure anymore and collapsed, shouting, "Shut up! Shut up! I don't want to die! I just want to live! What have I done wrong?! The chief and the priests are so strong! They must have a way! We work so hard to scavenge and contribute to the cave, but in the end, they just abandon us when something goes wrong. Are you willing to accept this? Are you willing to accept this?!"

The more Hu Lianguang spoke, the more determined his eyes became. He looked at Shubo with hope and said, "Let's go! Let's go back together. This way you don't have to die! Let's go! Let's go!!"

Shu Bo's eyes flickered slightly, but he eventually regained his composure and said in a deep voice, "Let me see your right breast. If there's no mark, you can go! If there's a mark, stay!"

Hu Lianguang's eyes froze, hope disappeared, and he became murderous.

Shubo sighed silently, knowing that this battle was inevitable.

“Ding Ding!~”

The silver beans and silver needles collided in the air, and Shu Bo and Hu Lianguang quickly crossed each other.

Whips were flying, broken blades were piercing the air, lime powder was used, boomerangs...all kinds of fancy methods were used by the two men one after another, with only one goal, to kill their teammates by any means possible.

One is for belief, the other is for... living.

"Poof!~"

In the end, Shu Bo was more skilled and risked being seriously injured to use a sharp blade to cut Hu Lianguang's neck.

Hu Lianguang covered his neck which was gushing blood, his eyes showing confusion, pain, regret and relief. Because his trachea was cut, he could no longer make any sound, and he could only stammer, as if he was mumbling something vaguely.

Shu Bo's face was silent, and countless images flashed through his mind...

It was a story about two children who played together in a dark cave as children; who trained together as teenagers, made mistakes together, and were punished together; who faced trials and tribulations in their youth, supporting each other as scavengers; who went on adventures again and again, escaping death again and again, experiencing the sadness of failure and the joy of success...

In the end, all the scenes froze on the two men facing each other with swords, one dead and one injured.

Shubo seemed to be responding, muttering to himself, "Yeah! What a damn world!"

He dragged his seriously injured body and struggled to come to Hu Lianguang's body and closed the latter's eyes.

Shu Bo reached out to Hu Lianguang's collar, wanting to see if he was marked by the strange monster, but he stopped halfway. There was no point in saying anything more now.

All the usable items on Hu Lianguang's body were taken away, and the body was left where it was.

This is the fate of scavengers.

Shubo looked towards the courtyard where the strange monster existed. He knew that his hope of survival was extremely slim, but he was not willing to just wait to die there.

At this time, the strange monster is digesting the fat monster, and will start chasing him after the digestion is complete. This is the only time Shubo has left, and he needs to find a way to save himself during this time.

Shubo calmed himself down and began to think rapidly.

The most important point is that since you have been marked by the strange monster, it is useless no matter where you run.

After understanding this premise, there is naturally a basic solution...

The first is to find a way to remove the marks left by the strange monsters.

This is difficult. Shubo has heard that some treasures can do this, but let alone him, even the leader of their cave may not have a treasure of this level.

The second is to kill the strange monster that marked him.

To be honest, this method seems more difficult, but compared to the first method where there is no chance at all, it is his only remaining chance of survival.

Weird monsters are different from physical monsters. The latter are only as strong as they are, and it is obvious whether you can defeat them or not. Although the former are more difficult to deal with, they must abide by certain rules when acting. If you can understand these rules, even ordinary people may be able to escape from them, or even fight back.

Of course, this probability is infinitely close to zero.

Shubo had completely calmed down during the time he had just been thinking. For him, the worst case scenario at the moment was death. He carefully checked the remaining equipment on his body, and then resolutely walked towards the courtyard.

After this period of devouring, the fat monster has only about one-fifth of its original size left, which means that Shubo doesn't have much time left.

Shubo approached the well carefully, and then he could see clearly that the black threads were actually hair. The hair was black and shiny, and it looked very beautiful.

Shaking his head to get rid of the strange thoughts in his mind, Shubo looked at another strange thing in the courtyard, the pair of red embroidered shoes.

This pair of red embroidered shoes is brand new. There is not a speck of dust on the edge of the sole, as if they were placed here directly after they were made. There are some bird and fish patterns embroidered on them, and the workmanship is extremely fine. They are the type that only wealthy families could afford before the disaster.

Shubo slightly walked around the red embroidered shoes and carefully came to the mouth of the well. After making full mental preparation, he stuck his head out to look down.

There were no sudden frightening scenes. I could only see about one or two meters. Below that, it was pitch black and I couldn't see anything. It was like a bottomless abyss.

Shubo looked at the black hair and then at the red embroidered shoes, and was in a dilemma. He now needed to choose one of the two to take action, so that he would have a chance to break the deadlock.

Of course, Shubo actually has another choice, which is to jump into the well and face the strange monster directly.

However, even though Shubo knew that he was going to die, he still felt that this choice was too reckless.

After a moment's thought, Shubo looked at the red embroidered shoes. He knew without thinking that the black hair was connected to the strange monster. If he touched it rashly, it would definitely alarm the strange monster. On the other hand, the red embroidered shoes that existed alone were a bit strange. Although it was most likely some kind of trap, Shubo had few choices.

Shu Bo's eyes became determined, and he drew out the sharp blade and stabbed it fiercely at the red embroidered shoes.

"Poof!~"

Shu Bo's expression changed instantly, because after the sharp blade stabbed down, the red embroidered shoes became translucent like an illusory shadow. The sharp blade could not touch the red embroidered shoes at all and pierced directly into the mud.

Shubo realized that he had made the wrong choice and immediately drew out the sharp blade to cut at those black hairs.

But, it's too late.

The black hair that was originally stuck to the fat monster suddenly began to wriggle more violently, and a small part of it broke away directly, wrapping around Shubo like a flexible snake.

Shubo tried to dodge, but he could not keep up with the speed of the black hair and was tied up almost instantly.

Every black hair of Shubo was like a knife cutting into his skin, and the tips of those hairs were getting deeper and deeper, sucking his blood and flesh. He fell to the ground, feeling his vision go black.

The red embroidered shoes regained their physical form and were worn by a figure wearing a red wedding dress.

Shubo reluctantly raised his head and looked upwards, and saw the graceful figure in the red wedding dress. But when he saw the figure clearly, his pupils trembled, because the bride in the wedding dress had no head!