Chapter22-Offline Meeting

With the [Firewalker Dagger] in hand, John's confidence undoubtedly surged.

After all, it was an [epic] tier weapon, capable of slicing through iron as if it were mud. Even against these unevolved monsters, it could inflict tremendous damage.

In John's memories from his past life, these monsters underwent a total of four evolutions, corresponding to the emergence of four [Apostles]. Each evolution significantly increased the monsters' strength. Even after two years of growth in the game, facing a horde of [Evolution Type IV] monsters was still a formidable challenge.

Of course, with John's current power, he could effortlessly crush these monsters.

Hiding the [Firewalker Dagger] behind him, John treaded lightly, trying not to attract any monsters' attention. He moved painstakingly through the ruins, constantly orienting himself.

In this drastically altered city, any sense of direction was long lost.

"If I remember correctly, the [Abyss] rift appeared near the city center."

John vividly recalled that night when the [Abyss] emerged. Thousands upon thousands of [Evolution Type IV] monsters surged into the city like a tidal wave, quickly spreading throughout.

Accompanying the monstrous tide was a deity-like presence.

Even though John had gathered all the nearby players, they still couldn't hold back the invasion. The hard-won base established amidst the ruins was destroyed once again, along with his comrades who were slaughtered.

John had survived by stepping over the bodies of his friends.

Lost in his thoughts, John suddenly heard a heart-wrenching scream. He jerked his head in the direction of the sound and immediately noticed someone running frantically through the ruins, with more than a dozen monsters in hot pursuit.

In such situations, it was likely that the person had accidentally stumbled into his refuge after escaping from the game world, only to find monsters wandering around. Their instinctive scream had attracted even more monsters.

John cast a brief glance before averting his gaze.

It wasn't that he didn't want to help; he truly couldn't.

Facing more than a dozen monsters was beyond John's capability. Trying to save that person might cost him his own life. John had more important tasks to attend to and couldn't afford to stop here.

So, John looked away and took advantage of the monsters being distracted to continue deeper into the ruins.

In less than three minutes, the screams vanished. It was clear that the person had met a gruesome end, likely torn apart by the monsters, leaving not even bones behind.

John couldn't help but think about the person who had been running desperately, imagining their tragic fate.

"Could I have saved them? Maybe they didn't have to die?"

These thoughts surged uncontrollably through his mind, so much so that John didn't notice a monster approaching him head-on.

When his peripheral vision caught sight of the blood and flesh clinging to the monster's feet and the metallic gleam of its claws, John's body froze in place. He jerked his head up, and the monster's stinking, blood-red maw was less than ten centimeters away!

John could see the rotting flesh between the monster's teeth, with maggots happily wriggling and squirming within.

A surge of tension hit him, causing his heart to pound wildly, and his breath quickened.

One monster posed no real threat to John in his current state, but the sudden closeness had startled him.

Moreover, other monsters were still lurking nearby. John couldn't flee, nor could he kill the monster. Any noise would attract attention, and his fate would be no better than that of the person before.

In such moments, with no hope to place in others, John could only rely on himself.

Watching the monster as it listened intently, John covered his mouth and nose tightly, trying to slow his breathing and heartbeat as much as possible to avoid being noticed.

At the same time, John slowly lay down, pressing his body against the ground, watching helplessly as the monster stepped over him.

Its sharp claws accidentally slashed his thigh, but he dared not make a sound.

Only when the monster had moved away did John cautiously stand up, not daring to delay, and swiftly made his escape.

Meanwhile, on top of a still relatively intact building, a young man had been watching the whole time.

Seeing John narrowly escape death, the young man's eyes lit up, and he slowly stood up, stepping into the air.

But the expected scene of a rapid fall didn't occur. Instead, the young man hovered steadily in midair, a blue vortex of energy lifting him high, making his clothes flutter!

"Could it really be you?"

...

That night!

John hid among the ruins, using a flashlight to study a map.

After confirming his direction, he didn't rush to move on. Instead, he took out some food to replenish his stamina.

If John's memory served him correctly, he was about two kilometers away from the spot where the [Abyss] appeared in his previous life.

However, the closer he got, the fewer monsters were roaming around, which was clearly unusual.

There were only two possibilities: either the [Abyss] hadn't appeared yet, making this a low-probability random event, and he was being overly sensitive, or the location of the [Abyss] had changed due to the altered timeline.

If John had to choose, he would naturally prefer the former. But since he was already here, he had to see for himself to be sure.

After a simple stamina replenishment, John resealed the leftover canned food and, under the bright moonlight, continued on his way.

Along the journey, John encountered many survivors, who had also emerged from the game world, either resting to restore stamina or scavenging for food.

After seeing John's unfamiliar face, some people grew restless while others kept their distance, but John could still feel eyes constantly on him.

Not wanting to cause trouble or incite more chaos, John quickened his pace, finally reaching the city center before dawn.

However...

"This... how is this possible?"

Staring at the high pile of rubble, John staggered and nearly fell.

This was the place, it couldn't be wrong. John even recognized the building less than three hundred meters to his left.

In his past life, he had cleared a shelter there that could hold thirty people. How could he possibly forget something so significant?

"But the [Abyss] hasn't appeared, and there's not a single monster here. Was I really just being overly sensitive?"

John pinched the bridge of his nose, leaning against the ruins. He picked up a piece of severely weathered cement, which crumbled into dust in his hand and sifted through his fingers.

"The [Abyss] hasn't appeared. My worry was unnecessary. This is good news. I should be relieved, so why do I have this troubled look on my face?"

John laughed at himself, took a moment to regain his stamina, and then stood up, exhaling deeply.

"Maybe I really was just too sensitive. I need to get back to the game world quickly, or Lily and the others will worry."

Just as John was about to head back, a shadow suddenly crashed heavily in front of him, the impact kicking up a cloud of dust that obscured his vision.

This sudden change made John's pupils contract.

Without thinking, he instinctively drew the [Firewalker Dagger] and struck forward.

A sharp clang echoed as the clash of metal sent a jolt through John's wrist, making it numb.

"Hey, hey, hey! I gave you that [Firewalker Dagger], and now you're using it against me?"

"Exiled Immortal?"

"Bingo! Looks like you're not so dumb, John."

As the voice faded, a figure emerged from the swirling dust—a slightly immature-looking youth with a smirk full of adolescent bravado.

"I just came out to grab something to eat and replenish my stamina. Who knew I'd run into you? I guess this counts as an offline meeting, huh? It feels like you're taller than you are in the game world."

Exiled Immortal cupped his chin, looking John up and down before his gaze settled on John's backpack.

"Why do I smell meat on you?"

"Pork stew, canned."