20 meters underground, James Lone watched everything unfold with clarity, a faint smile appearing on his face.

"Hmm? This is actually good. Let them help me probe this monster."

He carefully followed from beneath the surface.

The sports field was split into two parts. On one side was an open field, now overgrown with waist-high grass. On the other side was the main stage, which was connected to an indoor basketball court.

Winnie Morgan and the survivors had hoped Delwen Dowlin wouldn't dare enter the field. They were wrong.

Delwen and his men pushed forward, slaughtering anyone in their path. Forced to flee, most of the survivors bolted toward the indoor basketball court, while a few disappeared into the grassy field and purple mist.

After killing several people, Delwen took a brief rest before pursuing the group into the court.

The moment Winnie Morgan stepped inside, she froze in horror.

For some reason, the purple mist here was much thinner, granting them a clearer view of their surroundings.

The entire basketball court was filled with thousands of semi-transparent cocoons.

The cocoons varied in size, glowing faintly with a pale blue light, illuminating the entire court.

The most terrifying part?

Each cocoon held a human or animal.

Most of the inhabitants were dead, but a few were still alive, staring numbly at the newcomers.

"Help me! Save me!" a man trapped in a nearby cocoon cried out, reaching toward Winnie Morgan.

It was none other than Professor Peterson, the vocal coach.

His upper body was still intact, but his lower half had melted into a reddish-brown liquid, pooling at the bottom of the cocoon.

Inside the liquid, countless tiny tentacle-like larvae wriggled and swam, hungrily devouring the fluid.

"Ugh!" Winnie Morgan gagged and threw up on the spot.

The other survivors trembled, frozen in fear and unsure of what to do.

Ahead of them was a forest of cocoons. Behind them was Delwen Dowlin, the bringer of death. They were truly trapped.

At that moment, Delwen and his men stormed into the court.

Seeing Winnie and her group standing in the open, he burst into laughter.

"Hahaha! What's the matter? Why aren't you running—what the hell is this?!"

Delwen and his men were stunned.

"What the hell is this thing?! Something's wrong here!"

Reed was the first to react. He turned and bolted toward the exit.

Just as he reached the door, a massive tentacle descended from above, wrapping tightly around his body.

"Let me go!" Reed screamed in terror, swinging his blade at the tentacle.

Squish!

His blade sunk into the tentacle, but it was like cutting through sticky glue—it was completely stuck.

The tentacle pulled Reed upward toward the ceiling.

Everyone looked up.

That's when they saw it.

Clinging to the ceiling was a massive, semi-transparent octopus-like creature, its body flickering in and out of view.

But it wasn't quite an octopus.

Its head resembled that of a spider, with three pairs of long fangs protruding from its mouth.

Hundreds of tentacles swayed slowly in the air, creating a chilling, otherworldly sight.

The survivors felt a cold sweat drip down their backs.

"What is that thing?!" "A mutated octopus?" "Octopuses live in the ocean—how the hell is there one in the school?!"

Reed was dragged before the tentacle monster, screaming in terror.

Dozens of thin tentacles extended from the creature, their tips dripping with a clear, sticky liquid. They darted across Reed's body, weaving together like threads on a loom.

In mere moments, they had wrapped him in a giant cocoon.

The monster hung the cocoon on a basketball hoop, adding it to the countless others.

Reed's muffled screams echoed from inside, but he was completely immobilized, trapped in the sticky cocoon.

The survivors were paralyzed with fear.

From Reed's fate, it was clear to everyone: this monster wasn't just killing them—it was keeping them trapped and alive.

Suddenly, a disheveled figure emerged from the shadows of the court, laughing maniacally.

"Hahaha! Good! Let them all die!"

Everyone turned toward the sound and saw two people in the corner of the court, both alive.

One appeared to be mentally deranged, cackling nonsensically.

The other was tall and seemed relatively normal.

"Burkitt, you're alive!" a survivor exclaimed in surprise. "You've been missing for three days, and you're still alive?!"

Burkitt grinned. "That's right! I'm still alive! And now that you're here, I can live a few more days! Hahahaha!"

Delwen Dowlin stepped forward and slapped Burkitt across the face, sending him sprawling to the floor.

"What the hell are you laughing about?!" Delwen bellowed. "Speak! How did you survive here?!"

Burkitt continued to laugh, though it was clear he was no longer mentally sound. "Hehehe! The tentacle monster takes one person every one to two hours. As long as someone else dies, I get to live a little longer! Hehehe!"

Delwen's expression darkened.

He glanced nervously at the monster above.

"One or two hours per person?"

He scanned the room.

There were over forty survivors here.

Does that mean I'll only live another forty or fifty hours?!

Delwen gritted his teeth. "No! I won't die here! I'll find a way out!"

Burkitt sneered. "No, you're all dead!"

Before he could finish his sentence, Delwen sliced half his neck open with a single stroke, silencing him instantly.

Delwen repeated, his voice cold and firm, "I said, I will make it out of here alive."

The room fell into an eerie silence.

Only the insane survivor continued to laugh, running wildly around the court.

The tentacle monster didn't attack him.

Meanwhile, James Lone focused his Perception on the monster.

Inside its semi-transparent body, he saw a twisted, fist-sized lump of flesh that glowed brightly in his perception.

The lump continuously absorbed purple mist from the air and emitted Qi particles into its surroundings.

"Interesting. It can absorb purple mist?"

James frowned.

This was the first creature he had encountered that could actively absorb purple mist.

Not only that, but the monster was releasing Qi as well!

James thought back to Teresa Taylor's breathing technique.

According to her, she had practiced for decades without progress until the purple mist arrived. Only then did the area around the "ginger" in her body begin to fill with Qi.

Could it be... Qi isn't a byproduct of environmental changes but is instead generated by certain creatures, like this tentacle monster?

Can I absorb this Qi?

James decided to try.

Judging by its brightness, the monster's combat abilities weren't particularly high.

Its strength lay in its long attack range and unique attack and defense mechanisms.

But against James Lone, those abilities were useless.

At any moment, he could retreat underground to safety.

After ensuring there was no danger, James emerged from the shadows and walked toward the monster.

The survivors heard his footsteps and turned to look.

Another living person?!

At first glance, something seemed off about him.

His clothes were spotless—not the ragged attire of a survivor. Instead, he looked like a college student on a weekend outing to the sports field.

Even more unnerving was his appearance.

He looked completely healthy, his skin glowing, his muscles well-toned, and there were no signs of hunger on his face.

Delwen Dowlin narrowed his eyes, his guard going up.

James ignored everyone and walked to the spot directly beneath the tentacle monster, where the concentration of Qi was highest.

He sat down cross-legged and began practicing his breathing technique.

Reo Turner blinked in disbelief. "What the hell? What's he doing here?!"

Delwen glanced at him. "Oh? You know him? Who is he?"

Reo Turner lowered his voice. "He's the guy who killed Mrs. García and took Professor Smith. Wait... is Smith dead? Did the monster eat her?"

He killed Doris García? Delwen's gaze hardened as he stared at James Lone, sensing a faint but undeniable threat.