Beating Instances through Words Left by the Dead

Chapter 534: Chapter 263: Shaking Video Footage

Colonel Johnson was still wearing the military uniform from the mission he once executed. But the once crisp and brand-new uniform was now torn and tattered, covered in a crust of dried mud, so filthy that its original color could no longer be discerned.

His hair was dry, his skin pallid, his demeanor weary, and his beard unkempt, looking no different from a vagrant.

Aside from Colonel Johnson, Wu Chang had not seen the other three in Wells’s resentful memory. Colonel Johnson stood at the periphery of the group of four. Starting from him, Wu Chang looked at the other three, one by one.

The first person wore a dark brown suit and round-frame metal glasses, exuding an aura similar to the deceased Wells, indicating he was likely a Scholar.

The second wore a black work uniform with a name tag on the chest, identifying him as Pei Taiheng, a station manager.

The third was easily recognizable, dressed in distinct ethnic attire, with large patches of animal hide sewn onto his clothing and an unknown creature’s skull hanging at his waist, likely a Wizard from the Nalu tribe.

Despite having different identities, all three shared a similar physical and mental status with Colonel Johnson.

The four sat in a row on a bench, staring blankly at the television mounted on the wall.

The TV was playing a video, recorded with a handheld camera without any stabilization device. It was unclear whether the recorder was moving quickly or if their hand was trembling, causing the screen to shake incessantly, never stopping for a moment.

The person filming seemed to be in some ruins, with the camera sporadically capturing a few frames of murals, only for them to quickly disappear again.

It seemed less like they were capturing something specific and more like they had forgotten to turn off the camera, or were intentionally figuring out how to make the viewer dizzy.

In this video, which felt like mental pollution, Wu Chang endured a long five minutes. Just as he was reaching his limit and wanted to find the remote to fast forward, the screen froze on a square stone platform.

A white spiral statue, resembling a conch shell with a diameter of thirty centimeters, stood on top of the stone platform.

The image paused for seven or eight seconds, then a looping video prompt appeared at the bottom of the screen, and the footage returned to the violently shaking video.

From the reactions of the four, it was clear that when the screen lingered on the final white conch shell statue, their gaze at the screen was incredibly intense, filled with longing.

When the content disappeared from the screen, the four returned to their lifeless state, staring blankly at the screen, awaiting the next appearance of the white conch shell.

Wu Chang raised an eyebrow. That white conch shell must be something significant.

It wasn’t just the reaction of Johnson and the others; when Wu Chang saw the white conch shell, the All-Knowing Crystal in his portable space began to glow, conveying a sense of desire.

The white conch shell was important to the All-Knowing Crystal.

This discovery forced him to change his strategy.

According to Lei Huo’s description, the method to leave the Night Island dungeon was straightforward — simply leave the Night Island and the surrounding waters.

There’s malevolence present in the darkness of Night Island, and similar malevolence exists in the surrounding waters. Only by boarding a special vessel, straddling the boundary between life and death, can one traverse the waters unscathed.

If Sword Star and the others were alone on the island, the safest approach would be to wait for seven days.

But with Wu Chang present, there’s no such need for complication. According to his original plan, they could construct a small wooden boat, with Sword Star and his group seated on it. Wu Chang would transform into the Abyssal Python and lead them away from the waters of Night Island.

As a simple dungeon, nothing on the island or in the sea could harm him.

Transformed as the Abyssal Python, while he couldn’t match the monstrous size of a Sea Giant or pull a cruise liner like a Sea God, dragging a small wooden boat with four people was not difficult.

However, the appearance of the white conch shell made him abandon his plan to leave Night Island at the earliest opportunity. If he could obtain the white conch shell, he might be able to negotiate with the All-Knowing Crystal, borrowing its power without conducting a Soul Binding.

He and the All-Knowing Crystal were in a stalemate of negotiation. The All-Knowing Crystal had shown a flaw, and if he didn’t seize it in time, who knew when the next chance would come?

As for whether a prolonged stay in the Erosion Dungeon would endanger Wanghai City due to the Painter, Wu Chang believed it wouldn’t.

If the Painter intended to launch a terror attack, he would have a myriad of methods. There was no need to be so roundabout.

From the Painter’s actions, it was clear he was targeting the Management Bureau. The Erosion Dungeon spanned underground, aiming either at the Red Wave Space on the third basement level or the exhibition gallery on the sixth.

Entering the Erosion Dungeon was simply to save people while inconveniencing others; whether the Management Bureau’s property was affected was not his concern.

As Wu Chang’s gaze shifted from the TV screen, he had already calculated in his mind.

He looked at Sword Star and Lei Huo, asking, ”What’s their status?”

Lei Huo explained, ”According to intelligence obtained from various organizations, the research station on Night Island was attacked by an unknown creature four years ago. Of the forty-two members of the station, only these four survived, with the rest all missing.”

”They survived, but they’re all insane. They eat when they’re hungry and sleep when they’re tired, but aside from that, they only do two things.”

”First, they help players entering the island collect a bottle of special grease, which should be the fuel for the Night Traveling Lamp.”

”Second, they stare at this TV, endlessly watching the same video. If you stop them from viewing it, they go berserk and attack you.”