Chapter 223 - 143: Worldviews Shattered! To Slay Is to Grant Rest! A Battle Only for Transcendents

Chapter 223: Chapter 143: Worldviews Shattered! To Slay Is to Grant Rest! A Battle Only for Transcendents

Destroy the Vine Core.

Every splinter of the Bloodthirsty Vine had a core. Like a human brain, it was both the source of its power and the central hub that controlled all its tendrils.

Perhaps to make it easier to read the host’s mind, this core was located right inside the host’s skull.

It would completely devour the human brain, replacing it with a fist-sized, root-like mass.

Once this core was pierced, the Bloodthirsty Vine would instantly lose all signs of life and be completely annihilated.

And the withered, gray vines on the ground were the best proof of this...

With the complete destruction of the Vine Core inside the corpse on the ground, all life drained from it.

It was as if some hidden switch had been flipped.

The Bloodthirsty Vines that had been lying dormant inside the Parasites’ bodies, at this very moment...

...erupted into a frenzy!

"AHHHHH!!!"

A bloodcurdling scream tore through the air above the square.

In the crowd, a skinny, bespectacled man suddenly began to convulse. His head snapped back, his mouth stretching open to an impossible width.

It was as if something was about to break free of its fleshy prison and burst forth.

And that’s exactly what happened...

A dark green vine emerged from his throat.

Immediately after, more vines sprouted like wild weeds, bursting from his nostrils, eye sockets, ear canals, and even through the skin all over his body.

The sheer number of vines now floating in the air was staggering.

So many, it was hard to believe a single human body could host them all.

The vines twisted and squirmed in the air, reducing the host to little more than a living vase.

The horrifying scene was identical to that of the Bloodthirsty Vine Parasite that had tried to ambush Chen Chong the previous night.

The sudden transformation terrified everyone nearby.

The students never imagined that the classmate standing beside them one moment would transform into a terrifying parasitic monster the next.

Gazing at the horrifying spectacle, students of all genders turned deathly pale and scrambled backward.

However, some were so terrified their legs refused to obey.

Their instincts screamed to run, but instead, they collapsed to the ground, completely immobile. They could only tremble uncontrollably, their faces contorted in despair as they watched the vines creep ever closer...

At almost the same moment, on the other side of the square, a girl with a ponytail suffered the same fate.

She was hunched over, her body wracked with violent convulsions, as the sickening CRACK-CRACK of dislocating bones echoed from within her.

Then, several thick vines burst from her back, shimmering with an eerie glint in the sunlight.

SPLURT—

As if they had eyes of their own, the vines shot out and pierced through the three nearest students.

Before they could even scream, the three were impaled, watching helplessly as they were hoisted into the air, lifted farther and farther from the ground.

Blood dripped from their wounds and down the vines, quickly staining the ground red.

The surrounding students were thunderstruck. The more timid among them simply rolled their eyes back and fainted on the spot.

Scenes like this played out all across the square.

More and more Parasites revealed themselves, vines bursting from their bodies as they began to slaughter every living thing around them...

Chen Chong’s eyes turned icy as he witnessed the scene.

’So you finally couldn’t hold back after seeing me kill one of your splinters?’

’Fine. Saves me the trouble of hunting you down one by one. I’ll deal with all of you at once today...’

The thought had barely crossed his mind when he acted. Wielding the Blood Eye Blade, Chen Chong shot forward like an arrow, leaping another ten-plus meters to charge the nearest Parasite.

BAM!!!

Chen Chong came crashing down, the sheer force of his impact slamming the Parasite into the ground, stopping it just as it was about to attack two girls who had collapsed in terror before it.

The Parasite’s head smashed hard against the concrete, and blood mixed with bone fragments oozed from the wound...

Even with half its head caved in, the vine-infested student got back to its feet.

The writhing vines covering its body shifted their focus from the surrounding students to Chen Chong.

Facing the dozens of incoming vines, Chen Chong fearlessly swung his blade.

The vines were severed in unison, the cuts perfectly smooth...

From the exchange so far, Chen Chong had gotten a rough measure of the Parasites’ strength.

’Even as mere splinters, they’re far too weak compared to the Bloodthirsty Vines from the underground cavern.’

’It seems there’s a huge difference in strength even between splinters. Is it because of the host?’

’Or does the Bloodthirsty Vine King allocate different amounts of power to each one?’

"RAAAGH!!!"

The Parasite-infested student let out a beastly roar, its half-shattered face twisting into an ugly grimace. Severing its tendrils had clearly enraged it.

Then, even more vines erupted forth in a frenzy.

Chen Chong frowned, feeling a mix of revulsion and sympathy.

’Although I don’t know most of the people here, they’re still my schoolmates.’

’Watching perfectly normal people get infested by Bloodthirsty Vines and turned into these monsters... it’s a bit depressing.’

’But such is fate.’

’It’s the law of this new world: the weak are prey for the strong.’

’Without enough strength to protect yourself, any accident or danger can be fatal.’

"Rest in peace..."

After his quiet murmur, Chen Chong charged toward the countless vines.

They crossed paths in a flash.

The half-shattered head was cleaved in two.

A red light pulsed along the Blood Eye Blade, and a pair of snake eyes materialized on its surface, glinting with satisfaction.

This Parasite went completely still.

The vines covering its body rapidly withered and decayed...

Gazing at the corpse on the ground, Chen Chong felt no discomfort at having killed one of his own kind.

It wasn’t that he was emotionless. He just knew that this student had already died the moment the parasite took complete control.

The thing that had been ’living’ at the school since then was just the Bloodthirsty Vine, controlling the body and mimicking human behavior.

’I didn’t kill a person. I killed a Bloodthirsty Vine and its puppet...’

...

The rampage caused by the innumerable Parasites continued, with countless vines sprouting up everywhere.

From a distance, the square looked as if dozens of bizarre, many-legged octopuses had appeared...

The thousand or so students were scared out of their wits by the scene unfolding before them.

Many collapsed on the spot, their faces ashen, their bodies trembling like chaff in the wind.

But even more people scrambled to their feet and fled wildly in all directions. They had never witnessed such a horrifying scene and could only curse their parents for not giving them two more legs to run faster.

But no matter how they fled, with the three exits blocked, they remained trapped within the Central Square, with nowhere to run.

They could only stay as far away as possible from the sprouting vines, huddling in corners and praying the menacing tendrils wouldn’t reach for them...

Among them was Sima.

Gone was his usual air of a master strategist; he was completely petrified.

His mind went blank, and he was simply jostled along by the fleeing crowd.

Only now did he realize that he had been far too naive about this whole transmigration incident.

The idea that he could live well just by grabbing enough resources and recruiting enough people... it was all bullshit!

The greatest obstacle to survival in this Primitive Jungle was never food, nor was it the scheming among their own kind. It was these bizarre and terrifying Extraordinary Creatures!

Before them, ordinary people were as fragile as porcelain, shattering with the slightest touch...

The revealed Parasites had gone completely berserk, indiscriminately attacking every living thing in sight.

Whether it was to absorb energy from the living or to infect more hosts in the shortest time possible, they pounced on the panicked students like demons possessed.

Chen Chong was already on the move again, using his Jump Enhancement to leap continuously toward the Parasites.

As he unleashed his full power, the vines posed no real threat. They were simply hacked to pieces until he could plunge his blade into a head and pierce the Vine Core.

If he didn’t also have to protect the others in the square, the slaughter would be even faster, and eliminating the Parasites would be even simpler.

But the people in the square couldn’t be allowed to leave.

If the exits were opened, the still-hidden Parasites would escape along with everyone else, and the entire plan would be a failure.

The Parasites had to be rooted out while everyone was still here.

Even if that meant some people would get hurt in the crossfire, it was a necessary price for everyone’s future safety...

"He’s on the move! Let’s go!"

As Wang Biao roared, he was the first to charge out.

Right behind him, Xu Jun charged out, hoisting the man-high Snakebone Giant Axe.

Qi Zhen, who was guarding the school gate, and Ning Yu, at another exit, did the same.

One by one, the Transcendents in the team brandished their weapons and joined the fray...

Meanwhile, the square’s three exits were held fast by Zhang Meng, Jia Wen, and Zhong Fang, who led a hundred members to form a blockade.

Although they weren’t Transcendents and lacked the intimidating presence of Wang Biao and the others, the various weapons and Extraordinary Artifacts Chen Chong had given them were more than enough to hold back the panicking students...

...