Gu Mo instinctively raised his hand to shield himself, and after the smoke and dust scattered, he looked again and was momentarily stunned. The corridor ahead was completely empty, save for the various shattered bricks and concrete debris scattered all over the ground.
Megumi Fushiguro's figure had already vanished from the hallway, disappearing along with the monster that had just launched a surprise attack from above.
The corridor showed no sign of either of them.
Instead, where the broken window used to be, the entire wall had a massive hole, as if it had been blown open by explosives. Even the ground beside it had collapsed, shattering into a large portion, creating a shocking sight.
Moonlight streamed in from the hole outside.
There was no need for explanation; it was clear at a glance where the high school boy and the monster that had descended from the heavens had gone. The terrible force had smashed through the wall and burst outside...
As for the other boy, he was thrown by the sudden impact, landing at the opposite end of the corridor.
The boy named Yuji struggled to prop himself up from the ground, feeling pain throughout his body. He instinctively glanced at his two still unconscious, unaware friends beside him, then looked across the corridor.
The corridor seemed almost severed in two, as the cool moonlight spilled in from the nearby hole, as if separating two worlds like a curtain...
On one side was his own sorry figure, and on the other was the mysterious young man, still standing there calmly, dangerous and deadly, with a hint of cruel mockery, as if what had just happened was merely pulling a weed from the roadside...
— In fact, Gu Mo was also a bit overwhelmed, standing there dumbfounded. However, under the initial misunderstanding, his imagination became increasingly subtle.
The boy named Yuji couldn't help but clench his fists, his angry eyes seemingly about to spew flames, staring fiercely at Gu Mo: "Damn it! So despicable!"
"..."
"..."
Wait? Despicable?
Is this about me? Gu Mo blinked and came back to his senses, feeling that this development was becoming more and more bizarre. He clearly hadn't done anything, so what exactly was the other party imagining?
Could it be that they thought the monster just now was under his control?
Hey, can't you have a bit of logic? Wasn't it obvious that so many monsters were fighting over that finger thing? It was definitely because the finger was on Brother Fushiguro, that's why it went after him. Does that really need someone to control?!
Hmm, Gu Mo also felt a bit confused. In fact, from the start, or rather from the moment he heard the term "Two-Faced Su Nu's Finger" and wanted to approach it for a closer look, only to unintentionally trigger Megumi Fushiguro's sensitive nerves and be treated like an enemy—that's when it started—
He couldn't understand the subsequent developments at all.
"Roar!!"
At this moment, an excited howl came from outside, like the sound a predator makes when it captures prey.
Oh no!
The boy named Yuji's face changed instantly, but his body reacted faster than his mind, sprinting towards that huge hole without hesitation. He looked outside, seeing the concrete road below littered with sharp debris, a complete mess.
Megumi Fushiguro was bruised and battered, lying on the ground, his face almost completely covered in blood, his brow twitching incessantly, whether from pain or fear.
A terrifying shadow loomed over him, a grotesque, mountainous Resentful Spirit that looked like a misshapen terrestrial whale with ape-like arms. At that moment, it was stretching out a long arm towards him, opening its bloody jaws as if ready to devour him along with the curse he carried.
"Yaho!!"
Amid the roar, a nimble figure appeared without warning just like before, leaping down through the high vantage point from the hole above, utilizing gravity, speed, and inertia to slam a fist hard onto the massive Resentful Spirit's forehead!
Yuji didn't think too much, nor did he have time to ponder, as the situation was too dire. He feared that if he hesitated even a second longer, he would have to watch helplessly as Megumi Fushiguro was swallowed.
This descending punch wasn't particularly effective, likely only causing a slight white mark of damage, but it was enough to make his arm ache, the skin split, and blood gush, yet it successfully distracted the massive Resentful Spirit, which roared angrily, turning to slap at this pesky fly.
"Damn it..."
Megumi Fushiguro seized the opportunity, but he still felt his body unresponsive. The impact was so intense that even the wall was smashed through, throwing him out and then slamming him hard onto the ground. Even with a robust physique, it was difficult to withstand such an impact.
If it were an ordinary person without any special powers, they'd likely have already perished, and even his situation wasn't much better.
His ears had temporarily gone deaf from the intense vibrations, his eyes were bloodshot and blurry from the rush of blood, and his head was on the verge of losing consciousness due to the violent shaking. He didn't even know how many bones were broken or if his internal organs had shifted...
But even with injuries desperately needing hospital resuscitation, he didn't consider them at all, struggling to stand again, while angrily rebuking:
"Yuji! Shouldn't you be taking your friends and leaving here at this point!"
"But what about you!!"
Yuji clung tightly to that long arm, refusing to let go no matter how the Resentful Spirit flailed, being swung back and forth mid-air like a grasshopper on a string.
The next moment, the massive Resentful Spirit, in its fury, swung its long ashen arm to swat at the nearby platform, along with the boy clinging stubbornly to it.
Bam!!
With a solid thud, the surface of the platform seemed to crack, debris flew everywhere, and Yuji was pounded by this full-force strike almost to the point of spitting blood, wrenching free and flying out!
"Curses can only be exorcised by other curses; you can't defeat it!" Megumi Fushiguro gritted his teeth tightly. The situation was dire, and his teacher hadn't appeared, maybe stopping for a late-night snack or something. Was he really going to die here today?
This Resentful Spirit was already beyond his current ability to handle...
Not to mention the mastermind controlling this Resentful Spirit, who probably hasn't even gotten serious yet...
Instinctively turning to look towards the adjacent building, Megumi Fushiguro saw that figure standing naturally in the gaping hole of the demolished floor, bathed in moonlight, looking down indifferently, finally revealing a hint of surprise in his gaze.
Yet this only fueled Megumi Fushiguro's immense anger. If it had been calm and composed, it would've been fine, but this surprise now seemed like an insult.
Because it made him feel like the other party was akin to those sitting in the upper tier of the Roman Colosseum, merely being thrilled by watching those below struggle and make a fool of themselves.
— Having reached this point, he no longer harbored any doubts or confusion. The other party couldn't possibly be ordinary, and he naturally assumed all this was likely caused by them!
"Tsk tsk, this is just a bit too absurd... Is it really that exaggerated."
Gu Mo, of course, didn't know that the blame he was carrying was getting heavier and darker. He could only watch the scenes below, feeling dazzled and almost unable to look away. The special effects were one thing, but the immersive sense of reality was especially genuine.
However, there was one thing that wasn't good: it was indeed too exaggerated. After all, human physical endurance isn't that good. Brother Fushiguro, having smashed through a wall from such a height and landed below, could still have the strength to talk, and speak with such vigor.
And then there's that guy named Yuji, despite being slammed hard against that high platform by a giant tentacle; just watching it hurt, yet even so, he was still so full of spirit...
Gu Mo felt this was a bit too outrageous.