Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The sky was getting darker, and all sorts of weird beastly roars and eerie noises sounded from the ruined city, turning an extraordinarily desolate atmosphere into terrifying as well.
On a dark and cluttered street, Meng Yang was supporting Gustav as they moved forward slowly.
“I’m delighted to see you again, Phoenix!”
Gustav was slightly pale. He coughed softly, and whispered to the female archer in front of him, “Your shooting skills have improved greatly!”
“It’s all for survival, is it not, teacher?” The female archer surveyed their surroundings before them, her tone cold, but had a hint of exasperation.
“Yes, for survival.” Gustav sighed softly, then with some difficulty, asked the female archer, “How’s the situation in the camp? Are you…are you alone?”
“Even if I were alone, I would never compromise with these monsters!”
The female archer’s lips twitched slightly, and she suddenly turned her gaze towards a house that had collapsed on one side. She raised the longbow in her hands suddenly, and she quickly drew a feathered arrow and shot it into the distance. A horrifying cry rang out.
The skilled female archer walked briskly toward the direction which she had shot, and from the dark, she retrieved some odd bird with an arrow sticking out of its chest and walked back to them.
Putting down the bow again, the female archer turned towards Gustav, and her tone became more solemn, “It’s safe inside the camp, teacher. But when Buff and the others went out to scavenge for food, they never returned.”
“That is our misfortune.” Gustav looked crestfallen and suddenly started coughing.
“Hey, old man, take it easy.”
Meng Yang looked at Gustav’s weakened appearance and quirked his brow slightly. Gustav’s wounds had been treated briefly, but the blood loss and pain and had it difficult for him to speak.
They continued along the streets of the abandoned ruins. Meng Yang could not stop his gaze from drifting to the female archer nearby. Both her figure and appearance were top-notch, and her cold aura was especially conspicuous.
If it was at a different time and place, Meng Yang might have been a little distracted. However, at a place like this where danger was ever-present, he just wanted to know where Gustav’s student was taking them.
The female archer seemed to feel Meng Yang’s gaze on her and turned her head slightly to cast a nonchalant glance at Meng Yang.
“Teacher, did you meet this guy along the way?”
Gustav made a strenuous effort to laugh, then shook his head and said, “He’s Meng Yang from East Land. When I was captured by the pig-headed monster on the outskirts, he was the one who saved my life!”
“Thank you, Meng Yang!” Phoenix stopped walking briefly, and her light blue eyes fell upon Meng Yang’s with a look of gratitude. “Teacher Gustav was once the most knowledgeable person in the City of Despair, he used to give me reading and handicraft lessons.”
As she said that, the girl gestured at the bow in her hand. “That’s how I was able to create this.”
“Hm?”
Meng Yang had witnessed her superb archery skills, but when he found out that she had made the longbow herself, he could not help but be a little surprised.
He glanced at Gustav who he was supporting, and Meng Yang once again felt like this old man was slightly mysterious.
However, this was not the place to converse, and Gustav was injured, so he kept his questions to himself.
The three people continued their journey through the ruined city, and very soon, they had reached a simple fortress made of stacked bricks and wood.
“We’re here!”
The female archer, Phoenix stopped walking, and she first glanced over at Meng Yang and Gustav. Suddenly, she blew a loud whistle through her fingers.
Very quickly, noises came from within the fortress, and there was an unpleasantly loud creaking sound.
In front of the fortress, a suspension-bridge-like door slowly opened, and a few figures emerged.
“Phoenix, you’re back!”
A lively voice called out. Two seven or eight-year-old kids ran across the suspension bridge. They both looked weak and skinny, but they beamed brightly when they saw the female archer.
Behind them, a few more figures appeared. Most of these people were elderly, women, and children. They had ashy complexions and their bodies were all skin and bones, it was apparent that they had a difficult life here.
“I found Teacher Gustav.” Phoenix reached out to rub the children’s head, then passed the unknown bird that she had shot to a woman that had walked up beside her.
Very quickly, someone in the group had recognized Gustav, and many elderly and women exclaimed in shock. Some of them even covered their faces as they cried, it was obvious that they did not think that they would see Gustav again.
Meng Yang could identify blonde hair, blue eyes, and other typically Western features from the crowd. He could see some black-haired and black-eyed Asians as well. All of them were emaciated and looked like they had dreadful lives.
“Pass him to me!” A woman in her forties walked up to Meng Yang. She was dressed in coarse linen but held an elegant aura. She smiled as she spoke, pointing at Gustav.
“Hera, you’re still alive. It’s great to see you again!”
Gustav, who had almost slipped into unconsciousness, suddenly appeared slightly more awake. He looked at the approaching middle-aged woman and forced a smile as he greeted her.
“I’m glad to see you too, Gustav.” The middle-aged woman nodded slightly, and her gaze wandered across Gustav’s body. “Seems like your injuries are rather serious.”
“Life isn’t easy.” Gustav forced a laugh.
At that moment, a faint, green glow entwined around the hands of the middle-aged woman named Hera. It followed the movements of her fingers, and the green light slowly seeped into Gustav’s body.
Meng Yang was a little surprised. He could see that some of the lighter wounds on Gustav’s body were healing.
“This is the Power of Nature,” Gustav explained to Meng Yang with some difficulty. As he spoke, he swept his gaze over the crowd. “These are the City of Despair’s survivors. You can rest here.”
When he finished speaking, Gustav’s breath weakened again. The woman with extraordinary healing abilities was called Hera and she along with a few elderly people nearby rushed forward to help him.
“It seems like Gustav’s injuries were more serious than I thought.”
Concern flashed across Meng Yang’s eyes. Even though the wounds on Gustav’s body were healing, but the energy he had held onto throughout the entire journey had almost disappeared.
Meng Yang realized that there was nothing he could do. After he passed Gustav over to the woman with extraordinary healing abilities, he followed the crowd across the suspension bridge, entering the fortress curiously.
It was called a fortress, but Meng Yang could vaguely see that it used to be a residential area. It was the size of around three or four soccer fields. Other than a few low-rise buildings that had retained their original structure, the area was covered with buildings that had been reinforced and enlarged, with four or five-meter-tall walls. Some elderly and children patrolled around these walls vigilantly.
Meng Yang swept his gaze across the inside of the fortress and estimated that there must have been around 50 or 60 people. They were mostly elderly, women, and children, he barely saw any young, or strong people.
Most of them had numb, gloomy expressions. Meng Yang could tell from this survivor’s settlement that in a world like this, the people in this settlement were remnants of those that had been eliminated.
They had no skills and barely had any combat abilities. The only reason that managed to survive this long was because of the few capable people that were in this fortress.
“This is the only place we can live now.”
As Meng Yang was surveying his surroundings, a sweet female voice spoke up.
He did not know when the female archer, Phoenix had walked up from behind him. “I heard the teacher said that you just arrived in the City of Despair, and you don’t know what had happened here.”
Meng Yang nodded slightly. Gustav had told him some things previously, but he did not know much about what had happened here.
“The City of Despair was the only way that we could live on this continent. For hundreds of years, we had used the city’s wall for protection from the monsters. But as you can see, it had fallen. This place had become the monsters’ playground. The tens of thousands of people that used to live here have become food for the various monsters and beasts. Humans can only struggle to survive here.
“This camp was established by my teacher, Gustav. But he left the fortress to find a way out for the people here. So… thank you, outlander.”
Once again, there was a hint of gratefulness on the otherwise cold expression of Phoenix the female archer. Gustav’s existence was of great importance to this camp.
“Old…er, Mr. Gustav had helped me a lot too. Yeah, that, thank you for letting me stay.”
Meng Yang expressed his gratitude as well. Even though he had gained somewhat of an understanding from what Gustav had previously told him, after he had entered the Forest of Bones and the City of Despair, and after seeing the ruined city and arriving at this settlement, he still felt like this suffering was beyond his imagination.
At that moment, Meng Yang could feel the cruelty that existed within this world. This was a monsters’ paradise. Perhaps if the City of Despair did not fall, the descendants of the exiles and fugitives from the East and West continents gathered here could have barely lived by. However, after the City of Despair, which had been built by countless generations, had been invaded by the monsters, most of the people here had become the monsters’ food. The people who had escaped were now struggling to survive here.