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That massive tentacle did not immediately retreat after dragging the informant's corpse into the deep water.
Beneath the hole in the shattered floor, a massive shadow churned in the murky river water; the giant beast was enjoying its meal, letting out bone-crushing sounds that set one's teeth on edge.
Krauser's pupils constricted to their limit. He stared fixedly at the expanding bloody vortex, veins bulging on the back of his hand gripping the gun.
"What the hell kind of parasite's gut is this!?" he squeezed the curse through his teeth, his voice a mix of unbelievable horror and offended rage.
Leon's face was pale. He grabbed Krauser, who still wanted to step forward and investigate.
"Let's get out of here quickly. The thing in the water might not like us interrupting its meal."
Noah didn't look at the hole; his gaze had already shifted to the wooden cabin's only exit.
"According to the instructions, the boat prepared for us is docked by the church. Let's head there first."
The three of them didn't hesitate for a moment longer, immediately turning and rushing out of that horrific wooden cabin.
Beneath their feet was a simple path makeshiftly built from a few decayed wooden planks, suspended over the murky water and winding its way into the depths of the village.
"Gurgle... gurgle..."
A series of bubbles rose from the water's surface behind them. The water level was rising at a visible rate, and the cold, filthy river water soon washed over the planks beneath their feet, making an unsettling "creak."
"Damn it, the water's rising too fast!" Krauser growled, taking every step with caution, fearing the planks beneath him would suddenly snap.
The slippery planks significantly hampered their speed, and the threat beneath the water was closing in.
A V-shaped ripple cut through the water not far away, rushing toward them at high speed.
The thing was underwater, its full form unclear—only a massive, blurry dark shadow that carried a heart-pounding sense of pressure.
"Stay alert!" Leon warned loudly, while quickening his pace. "Something's coming!"
In an instant, the water level had risen from their ankles to their calves. The river water, with a slimy chill, made their movements even more sluggish.
Just then, with a "splash," several black shadows suddenly lunged out of the water, viciously pouncing toward the three of them!
They were giant Mutated Toads, about the size of a washbasin.
Their skin was a sickly blackish-green, covered in pulsating pustules oozing yellow pus, looking disgusting to the extreme.
The most terrifying part was their mouths; when they opened them, they didn't look like a toad's at all, but revealed rows of dense, sharp teeth like a shark's.
"He-gua!"
One monster leaped into the air, snapping at Leon's neck.
Leon's eyes sharpened. He ducked his body down, and his pistol fired upward almost against the monster's belly.
"Bang!"
The bullet instantly tore through its soft abdomen, and a large spray of yellow-green blood and organ fragments exploded. The monster let out a short, mournful cry in the air before slamming heavily back into the water.
On the other side, two monsters pounced on Krauser at the same time.
He roared, neither dodging nor flinching. In a brutal display, he pressed the muzzle directly against one monster's head and pulled the trigger!
The massive recoil shook his arm, and the monster's head exploded into a cloud of blood mist.
He turned with the momentum, delivering a heavy elbow strike that smashed into the other monster's cheek, sending it flying, while simultaneously turning his gun to deliver a finishing shot.
Noah's movements were the most concise.
Facing the pouncing monster, he simply raised the desert eagle in his hand.
"Boom!"
Amidst the heavy roar, the monster was blown into flying bits of shredded meat mid-air by the terrifying.50 AE bullet, leaving not even a complete carcass behind.
Gunshots rang out continuously as the three fought and retreated, but the monsters emerged from the water in an endless stream, fearless and relentless.
"This isn't working!" Leon shouted while changing magazines. "The water's getting deeper; we'll become sitting ducks!"
Noah swept his gaze and quickly locked onto the roof of a two-story wooden house nearby.
"To the roof!"
As soon as he spoke, he once again performed that move that Krauser found inconceivable.
His legs kicked off powerfully in the knee-deep water, splashing it everywhere. His body seemed to ignore the water's resistance and his own weight, turning into a bolt of black lightning that soared into the sky.
Krauser's eyes instantly widened.
In the water!
This guy can actually still jump that high!
Noah's silhouette traced a graceful arc in the air. He propped himself up with one hand on the second-floor eaves and landed silently on the roof.
He didn't even look at Krauser's shocked expression, immediately turning to reach out a hand to Leon, who was still struggling below.
"Leon!"
Leon understood immediately. He kicked away a pouncing monster, used the momentum to kick off the wall, and leaped upward. His hand was firmly caught by Noah, and a surge of immense strength pulled him easily onto the roof.
"Your turn, Soldier!" Leon landed on the roof and immediately joined Noah in reaching out to Krauser, who was still firing in the water.
Krauser cursed fiercely, fired the last few bullets in his magazine into the swarm of monsters, then took a sudden running start and stepped powerfully off the partially submerged wall.
Leon and Noah, one on each side, grabbed both of his arms and together hauled the impressively heavy man out of the water by brute force.
Standing on the roof, the three looked down from their high vantage point at the murky waters below, where dense swarms of monsters were circling frantically, letting out unwilling hisses.
"Huff... huff..." Krauser leaned on his knees, panting heavily. He felt like his worldview had been repeatedly crushed, reconstructed, and crushed again in just one hour.
They didn't dare linger, moving quickly across the rooftops toward the church.
The church was situated on the highest ground in the village, surrounded by a waist-high stone wall.
But now, due to the surging water level, the entire church area was like an isolated island, completely surrounded by the murky flood.
The three jumped down from the roof of the last house, landing on a stone-paved path already submerged in water. The water was now nearly waist-deep.
The church doors were less than fifty meters ahead.
As they waded toward the church, an extreme sense of danger made the hairs on all three men stand on end.
The water ahead suddenly split to both sides without warning.
A black shadow as large as a truck's cab surged out of the water like lightning, bringing with it a mountain of crashing waves. It opened a massive maw filled with layers of sharp teeth and bit down toward the three of them!
The fishy stench blowing in their faces was almost suffocating.
"Get back!"
Leon and Krauser's reactions were extremely fast. Almost the moment the shadow appeared, they threw themselves to either side with all their might, splashing into the water.
Noah, instead of retreating, moved forward.
Just as the beast's shadow was about to completely swallow him, his body stopped its forward momentum instantly, in a way that defied inertia.
He stomped his right foot heavily on the underwater stone slab, which shattered upon impact. He launched himself upward like a cannonball against the current, instantly reaching beneath the massive, soft belly of the dark shadow.
His body twisted, power surging from his core. The muscles in his right arm bulged, and all his strength concentrated at the tip of his fist.
"Hah!"
With a low shout, his seemingly not-so-thick fist struck heavily against the beast's abdomen!
"Thud—!"
A sound so dull it was like a giant war drum being struck exploded over the water.
Time seemed to freeze for a moment.
The next second, the beast let out a piercing, agonizing wail. Its massive body arched upward, and then, at a speed even faster than it had come, it flew backward in a pathetic state, crashing heavily back into the water and kicking up a colossal wave before fleeing in terror toward the deep water.
On the water's surface, only a massive vortex and waves that refused to settle remained.
Krauser climbed out of the water, wiping his face. He was sitting in the water, staring blankly in the direction the beast had fled, then at Noah, who stood there slowly withdrawing his fist.
His Adam's apple bobbed. After a long while, he muttered to himself in a dreamlike tone.
"What the hell... can Ancient Eastern Martial Arts really make a person this ridiculous?"
Noah turned his head and looked at him calmly, his face even carrying a hint of seriousness.
"You want to learn? I can teach you."
Krauser's expression stiffened, and a hint of genuine interest actually flickered in his eyes.
"Are... are you serious?"
A hand patted his shoulder. Leon, caught between laughter and tears, pulled him up from the water.
"He's teasing you, Soldier. Let's finish the mission first."
Krauser finally realized. He stood up somewhat sheepishly, muttered "madman," but the look in his eyes when he glanced at Noah held a trace of inexplicable awe.
The three didn't dare delay any longer and quickly approached the church.
Just then, a fitful yet incredibly clear singing voice drifted out from inside the church.
It was a young girl's voice—ethereal, clear, and carrying a hint of indescribable sadness. In this deathly silent and dangerous environment, it sounded exceptionally eerie.
The three exchanged looks, all seeing the gravity in each other's eyes.
They lightened their steps and walked to the massive, half-open oak door.
Noah made a gesture. Leon and Krauser flanked him, guns raised and on alert.
Noah took a deep breath and slowly, gently pushed open the church door with his hand.
"Creak—"
The heavy door hinges let out a piercing sound, and the scene inside the church slowly revealed itself to the three.
In that moment, even Leon and Krauser, who were used to all sorts of bizarre scenes, lost themselves for a second.
Right in the center of the church, a young girl in a white dress, her right arm bandaged, sat quietly on the cold floor with her eyes closed and feet bare.
Her lips moved slightly; that ethereal and sad song was coming from her mouth.
The afternoon sun passed through the large stained-glass window at the top of the church, turning into colorful, brilliant beams of light that gently enveloped the girl.
The dust motes floating in the air danced within the light beams, making the scene look so beautiful and sacred, like a meticulously painted classical oil painting.
However, the background of this painting was full of discord and horror.
The hem of the girl's dress was stained with large patches of dark red blood, a shocking sight.
And not far from her, there was a large broken hole in the church floor. The floodwaters from outside had poured in, forming a small pond connected to the murky waters outside.
In that murky pond, an ugly monster lay quietly in wait.
The monster only showed a pitch-black, charcoal-like skull above the water. It had no hair, no features—only two eyes glowing with a faint blue light.
It just crouched there quietly in the water, using those eerie blue eyes to stare intently and motionlessly at the singing girl.
A scene where the sacred and the bizarre, beauty and ugliness, tranquility and horror were interwoven, leaving the three battle-hardened warriors speechless for a time.
The sound of the door opening finally disturbed the girl immersed in her own world.
The singing stopped abruptly.
She slowly opened her eyes.
They were a pair of azure eyes, as clear as lake water, carrying the innocence and confusion of someone naive to the world.
Her gaze swept over the three at the door. When her eyes finally landed on Noah, the expression on her face instantly froze.
In the next second, an extreme, bone-deep fear, like a bursting dam, instantly swallowed her.
Her beautiful eyes widened suddenly, her pupils constricting violently, as if she were seeing the most terrifying, most indescribable thing in the world.
"Ah..."
A short, tuneless scream, strangled in her throat by fear.
The girl's body began to tremble violently, her face turning pale at a visible rate.
Then, her eyes rolled back, her body went limp, and she fell straight backward, completely fainting away.