Chapter 431: Shadows in the Sewage

Tick-tock, tick-tock.

Brownish droplets continually fell from the overhead pipe.

As he stepped silently into the deserted sewage treatment plant, Yenir clenched the Elemental Blade in his hand, and his invisible spirit energy spread out rapidly like an expanding water balloon.

Approaching the main gate, he noticed several pools of dark brown blood on the floor.

Long, dragged marks revealed that human corpses had once been hauled away.

Although it was apparent the scene had been meticulously cleaned, the familiar metallic scent of blood and a hint of decay betrayed the lurking danger.

“Not too stupid, huh…”

“Even after devouring humans, they still set the scene up to pretend it’s safe.”

“But once people go down here, they can’t hide the mess…”

Scanning the maze-like interior of the sewage treatment plant’s pipes, Yenir remained on high alert for any sudden attacks from the ghosts.

Darkness enveloped the surroundings. With the entire floor abandoned, the power had long been cut. Deep underground, the entire eighth level was nearly lightless.

Only sporadically embedded ore overhead, every hundred meters, emitted a faint glow that barely lit up the gloomy plant.

Silence reigned while the central circular treatment unit resembled a giant mass grave in the dark.

With each step deeper, an inescapable stench of decay invaded his nostrils.

Especially when Yenir’s spirit energy swept over a sewage well, the feedback revealed disturbing details of its contents.

Though invisible to the naked eye, his spirit energy saw everything in crystal-clear detail.

At the bottom of some enormous wells, dozens of bloated corpses floated ominously.

Corpse fluid seeped out, forming a thin, soy sauce-like layer over the dried-up wells.

“Like pickled fish?”

“These ghosts sure have a heavy palate…”

“But some corpses still look fresh, and they appear to be ordinary people.”

“Seems like regular people have been here in the last few days?”

He was puzzled.

According to the data, ordinary people rarely venture to the eighth level—only Ghost Hunters dare to enter in teams at that depth.

Just as Yenir was lost in thought, a barely audible sound of rapid movement suddenly echoed from the top of the plant.

“They’re coming…”

He kept his cool.

Using his Third-Stage strength, Yenir instantly focused his invisible spirit energy into a point, locking onto his target in an instant.

About a hundred meters away along the factory building, a dark silhouette, roughly the size of an ordinary man, silently observed him.

“Tick-tock-”

Unaware of being targeted by Yenir, a man hanging upside down like a bat abruptly flipped around; as he slightly opened his mouth, a droplet of rancid saliva fell.

“A… human…”

“Ghost Hunter…”

A silent chuckle escaped him; after sensing Yenir’s lone intrusion, the man’s face twisted into a greedy smirk.

A Second-Stage Ghost Hunter—a rare delicacy.

“Swish-”

With barely perceptible high-speed movement, the ghost bypassed Yenir’s front, swiftly scrambling from the top toward another spot.

It was clearly eager to devour this foolish human.

“Is that all there is?”

Feigning panic while glancing around, Yenir held a flashlight in his left hand and brandished a longsword in his right, looking like a typical rookie on edge.

His spirit energy remained fixed on the ghost; movements the creature thought hidden were as obvious as fireflies in the dark.

“Not bad speed—barely up to that of a Third-Stage Awakened.”

“I wonder how fast it can burst into action…”

“Its defense seems poor and its vitality weak. The data suggests that a ghost’s combat ability is far inferior to that of an average Third-Stage Awakened.”

“Apart from a few with special abilities, most are just enhanced, intelligent zombies.”

While continuously assessing the threat, Yenir didn’t think the creature could trouble him. Yet, facing a Third-Stage monster in this dungeon for the first time, he was curious about its strength.

“Did it just jump down? Seems like it couldn’t wait…”

Pretending to move forward, he continued on, the dim surroundings echoing nothing but his heartbeat.

Sensing the ghost had circled behind him, Yenir prepared to slash.

No special sword technique was needed.

In his calculation, a single activation of the Elemental Blade’s inherent effect would suffice!

As they closed in, the distance rapidly shrank to within thirty meters.

“That’s close enough…”

Tensing his muscles, Yenir let out a soft laugh. At this range, he was certain he could dispatch his foe in seconds!

Before he could counterattack, the ghost with the appearance of a Middle-Aged Man suddenly spoke:

“Hey, friend! Don’t you know this place is dangerous?!”

“Where are your companions? Get out of here with me!”

Hm?

In an instant, he spun around, a strange expression crossing his face as he watched the ghost steadily approaching from afar.

That thing…instead of ambushing him, chose to deceive him?

Was it because it doubted its own strength, unsure it could burst into attack from thirty meters away? Or do ghosts simply enjoy deceiving humans?

Yenir couldn’t help but find the ghost’s friendly warnings amusing—it all seemed rather entertaining.

Accustomed to relentless mutant battles where encounters meant fight to the death, he had never met anything this intriguing.

“Who are you?! Is it really dangerous here?!”

Feigning panic while remaining composed, Yenir subtly activated his Spirit Energy and froze as if genuinely frightened.

He could sense, down to the last detail, that this ghost intended to lure him closer while testing if any other humans were nearby.

Raising his hands, the Middle-Aged Man put on an act of urgency:

“Hey little buddy, who else would I be?!”

“Come on, get out of here! This place is crawling with ghosts! Do you have any companions? If so, join me—I’m just passing through!”

Spouting off a quick lie, the Middle-Aged Man practically drooled as he eyed Yenir.

This youth looked like a typical clueless human—definitely the tastiest treat around!

As both moved with their own hidden motives, the distance between them shrank to less than ten meters.

Just as the Middle-Aged Man was about to lunge after his continuous lies, an urgent shout suddenly rang out.

“Run!!”

“He’s a ghost!!”

“Bang!!”

In Yenir’s startled gaze, a small figure that had been blocking his spirit perception darted out at high speed.

A young girl carrying a Giant Crossbow charged at him like a speeding projectile, determined to rescue him from the ghost’s clutches.