"…"
The whispers of the Swarm of Insects transformed into waves of twisted, bizarre mutterings. In the blink of an eye, the sound engulfed the entire venue like a spreading curse.
Several people immediately suffered mental breakdowns and lost their minds on the spot. Those with weaker constitutions died violently, blood pouring from all seven orifices.
Yet despite standing at the very center of the mental pollution, Cipher and Meng Xingyao remained miraculously unharmed.
At this moment, Meng Xingyao no longer had the luxury of feeling embarrassed.
The sharp mutterings stabbed into her ears like countless blades. Even though Cipher's divine Power shielded her, Meng Xingyao, as someone specialized in mental abilities, could still clearly feel the pollution spreading at several times its previous speed, as though it wanted to tear her consciousness apart completely.
"Cat Sister, are you trying to suppress the pollution… or protect the ordinary people at the Anime Convention?"
In Meng Xingyao's eyes right now, Cipher was practically no different from an omnipotent deity.
Unfortunately, upon hearing the question, Cipher only shook her head helplessly. A trace of pity flickered through her eyes.
If possible, she truly wouldn't mind helping those people.
But the problem was that most of the remaining survivors were already deeply trapped in despair, while others had long since lost their sanity entirely. Even if their lingering instincts still trusted Cipher, they no longer possessed the awareness needed to actively receive her Power.
Like candles caught in a storm, they were destined to go out.
Hearing this explanation, Meng Xingyao froze briefly before nodding silently.
That's true…
Cat Sister already has to endure this terrifying pollution herself while protecting me at the same time. How could she possibly still have spare energy to protect everyone else too?
"Don't tell me you want This Cat to go around buffing everyone?"
"No! We should focus on killing these disgusting bugs first!"
The moment she heard Cipher's words, Meng Xingyao immediately rejected the idea with unusual firmness.
Buff them?
How exactly was she supposed to do that?
Almost instantly, Meng Xingyao recalled what Cipher had done earlier…
Just imagining that possibility made her chest tighten strangely.
Meng Xingyao would rather rush out and fight these disgusting bugs herself than let Cipher do that kind of thing to someone else.
Meng Xingyao (✿◕‿◕): "Anyway, the remaining survivors are probably already half-dead. They can survive without the buff. So everyone, please endure for just a little longer!"
Survivors ( ❛ᴗ❛ ): "…(incomprehensible muttering)"
Even Meng Xingyao herself was startled by how cold that thought sounded.
But after thinking it through carefully…
There were still at least one or two hundred survivors scattered throughout the massive Anime Convention venue. Having Cipher personally search through such a huge area one by one was completely unrealistic.
"Cat Sister, we—"
Before Meng Xingyao could finish speaking, her voice abruptly caught in her throat.
The Swarm of Insects had already opened their bloody maws eagerly, staring at the two as if they were some irresistible feast.
A crimson tide surged in from every direction like a dark cloud descending overhead. Countless insect bodies crowded together densely, each one emitting bloodthirsty buzzing sounds.
For the Meng Xingyao from before, such a horrifying scene would have instantly shattered her mind with despair.
But to Cipher…
This was nothing more than a tiny little "game."
The Divine Speed Power activated.
In Cipher's eyes, the movements of the insect swarm slowed to a crawl, as though time itself had been forcibly stretched apart.
However, the disgusting stench was even worse than the visual horror.
Dark-red blood and rotting flesh clung to the insect bodies in sticky clumps. The overwhelming smell of decay mixed with the sweetness of coagulated blood assaulted her senses nonstop.
Cipher almost felt her defenses breaking from the sheer disgust alone.
Without daring to look too closely, she instinctively tightened her hold around Meng Xingyao before weaving through the swarm like flowing water, avoiding the sticky pools of blood beneath her feet with every graceful step.
The next second—
Boom!!!
The charging insect swarm slammed into each other violently like colliding tides.
Under the terrifying impact, bodies exploded apart instantly. Limbs and chunks of flesh scattered everywhere while dark-red blood rained through the air like a storm.
The sweet, nauseating stench thickened instantly.
Meanwhile, Cipher, who should have been trapped at the center of the encirclement, had already retreated far away.
She stood quietly at a distance as though casually appreciating some absurd stage performance, a faint smile even curling at the corner of her lips.
"This regenerative ability is even more outrageous than a certain undead Little Prince's. Physical attacks probably won't work either."
Watching the shattered flesh regenerate yet again, Cipher clicked her tongue in annoyance.
But in the very next moment, the entire swarm abruptly turned toward her again as if drawn by some invisible magnet.
Countless blood-red eyes locked onto Cipher with terrifying precision.
Ignoring the wreckage from the earlier collision, the Swarm of Insects surged forward once more like an endless black tide, bringing the aura of death rushing toward the two.
"Though you're ugly as hell, your eyesight's surprisingly good. So eager to go for a walk? Then don't lose sight of me!"
After mocking them casually, Cipher immediately grabbed Meng Xingyao tighter and sprinted toward the exit of the venue.
Sure enough, the horrifying swarm instantly gave chase.
The dark tide surged behind them rapidly, death pressing closer with every second.
"Cat Sister, where are we going?"
Because Cipher intentionally slowed down slightly, the princess-carried Meng Xingyao finally managed to ask the question she'd been holding in.
"I remember this Anime Convention has multiple venues. This place is already chaotic enough. This Cat plans to lure them somewhere more suitable as a burial ground."
The truth was, Cipher had already noticed someone else nearby seemingly holding another one of these monsters back.
To avoid interfering with each other, she decided to leave that battlefield to the other struggling fighter.
Meng Xingyao quickly understood her intention and obediently stayed silent afterward.
"…"
The sharp mutterings mixed together with the howling wind in her ears, causing Meng Xingyao's face to gradually turn pale again.
Even though Cipher's protection blocked the pollution itself, the lingering discomfort still clung to her like icy snakes wrapping around her heart.
"…eat…"
"…don't run…"
Meng Xingyao: (｀Δ´)?
"Cat Sister, did you hear something?"
Cipher, currently busy maneuvering through the swarm, looked confused.
"What?"
Meng Xingyao frowned slightly.
Maybe she had misheard?
Closing her eyes, she focused carefully on the strange whispers echoing around her.
"…"
"…"
After several long seconds, her eyes suddenly widened.
At the same time, Cipher burst into another venue while dragging the insect swarm behind her.
The scene before them looked just as apocalyptic as the last.
People screamed and cried while others wandered blankly with broken minds. Corpses and debris littered the ground, intertwining into a horrifying symphony of despair.
"Looks like This Cat still underestimated how terrifying the pollution from these disgusting things really is…"
"Cipher Sister, I heard it! I can understand what those monsters are saying!"
Before Cipher could finish speaking, Meng Xingyao suddenly shouted out something shocking.
Cipher: (*ﾟﾛﾟ)!!
Even while speaking, Cipher continued moving like a phantom.
She twisted sideways repeatedly in mid-motion, narrowly avoiding flying barbs and sneak attacks from the swarm. Sharp spikes grazed past her clothes while the hissing tide pursued relentlessly behind her, yet the aura of death never once managed to touch her.
"What exactly are you talking about?"
At a time like this, Cipher didn't think Meng Xingyao would say something meaningless.
Still, the revelation was shocking.
Though somewhat dizzy from being princess-carried around nonstop, Meng Xingyao still hurriedly explained what she had discovered.
The faint whispers she heard earlier had been distorted and horrifying beyond description, so she initially thought it was just another side effect of the pollution.
But after concentrating carefully, she realized something terrifying—
Those eerie mutterings were actually coming from the Swarm of Insects itself.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
"Why are you ugly things only chasing me specifically?!"
While complaining loudly, Cipher continued darting around like lightning while carrying Meng Xingyao effortlessly.
Despite the insect swarm multiplying several times over, they still looked like complete clowns in front of her.
Every dodge was elegant like dancing.
Every turn allowed death to narrowly brush past her body.
An ordinary person would have been shredded to pieces already, yet Cipher's clothes remained perfectly untouched.
The only real problem was that the insect tide resembled an endless wildfire.
No matter how many were destroyed, there never seemed to be any way to wipe them out completely.
During this process, Meng Xingyao gradually managed to make out more fragments from the whispers echoing in her ears.
"…deity…"
"…delicious…"
"…food…"
Meng Xingyao (๑•̌.•̑๑)ˀ̣ˀ̣: "Deity?"
"Where's the deity…?"
Their target was clearly herself and Cipher.
She was obviously just a magical gi— no, a normal human being.
So why were these monsters targeting them so obsessively?
Then suddenly—
Meng Xingyao's thoughts jolted violently like being struck by lightning.
Her eyes widened instantly.
No.
That wasn't right.
Their target…
Had never been her at all.
Almost instinctively, she lifted her head and looked directly at Cipher's delicate side profile.
At that moment, the terrifying insect swarm and overwhelming aura of death seemed to fade completely into the background.