Following the chorus of startled shouts, Huo Zaiyuan staggers back to his feet, only to sway again. Long Zhanye immediately reaches out to hold him upright against his chest.
"Urgh…I'm…I'm fine." Brow wrinkling, Huo Zaiyuan blinks a few times before his vision focuses on Long Zhanye. "The demonic tree's memories still linger in that inner core. That tree was the oldest one in this town, and the residents see it as a symbol, hence this place is called Banyan Town. Over time, this tree gained consciousness, and it likes silently watching over the townsfolk. Occasionally, it will even help a busy person look after their children or elderly. But when Judgement Day came, the Banyan tree mutated for some reason, turning into a demonic tree. Every time the moon rises, it will feel the urge to massacre. Night after night, it will drag a few random residents away to absorb their blood."
"A guardian spirit unexpectedly becoming a monster that slaughters the very people it protected." Long Zhanye frowns, staring at the green inner core in Huo Zaiyuan's palm. "Little Yuan, how do you propose to handle this core?"
"I don't know. I'll store it in the space first, perhaps it will be of use in the future." After saying that, he takes a glass pitcher out and places it in.
"According to the memories you saw from the core, shouldn’t the Banyan tree ought to be malicious from the start? Otherwise, why would it suddenly change to a monster when it's originally benevolent?" Qin Jun asks as he looks at the blackened remains of the tree.
"Oh, I know. I know. Plants grow from the earth, right, and absorbs minerals and nutrients and water from the soil." Li Qing raises his hand before offering his opinion, looking a lot like a kindergarten kid with his bright eyes and enthusiastic voice. "It must be something in the earth it absorbed that made it change."
"It's not only that." Long Zhanye shakes his head.
Although he doesn't understand all these demons and spirits and gods and immortals, he speculates there must be something else prompting a guardian spirit to spontaneously become a malicious monster, something like extremely harsh circumstances. Or being influenced by something filled with corruption.
"Un. According to what I saw, every night when the moonlight shines upon the tree, it causes a strange purple cloud to rise. Towards humans who breathe it in, it makes them muddle-headed, allowing the demonic tree to seize this opportunity and drag the victims away. This is the reason why there are no signs of struggle." Huo Zaiyuan explains.
"Then why were there scratch marks on the tiles of one house and that fingernail? Could it be a woman hiding there wasn't affected by the purple cloud?" Li Qing pauses for a bit, then adds. "We are also not affected by it."
"It's possible the arrays manage to ward off the cloud too, or else you would have become another drained corpse decorating that tree yesterday night." Huo Zaiyuan steps closer to his childhood friend, a mischievous smile on his lips.
Li Qing jerks back, pale face reddening in anger. "Y - you! Boohoo…Qin Jun…he bullied me…" Li Qing cries, pouncing on his lover to seek comfort.
Ignoring the whining Li Qing, Huo Zaiyuan turns to Long Zhanye. "Older brother Long, let's go take a look at the tree's original rooted spot. Although it managed to uproot itself to move about, I don't think the entire root network beneath the soil was brought along. We should make sure nothing else lingers there and causes us more trouble."
"Un, be careful." Unslinging the gun from his back, Long Zhanye flicks the safety off, then falls into step beside Huo Zaiyuan.
The two of them head straight for the middle of town, where dry sand and dust flies in the air due to increasingly strong gusts of wind. Along the way, they pass smaller pieces of charcoal and blackened branches broken off from the tree during its wild flailing.
As the pair draw closer, a strong stench like that of rotting corpses gradually fills their noses, causing nausea to stir.
"Where's the smell coming from?" Long Zhanye glances around as he treads carefully forward.
"Don't! Don't go too close." Huo Zaiyuan's face turns slightly green, fingers reaching out to pull Long Zhanye back. Both hands come up to clinch the material of his uniform tightly, forcing the taller man to retreat a few paces.
This particular stench is one he has also become reluctantly familiar with before his rebirth. During that time, the surface of the earth was already poisoned and polluted beyond hope of restoration…all the naked eyes take in when sweeping a glance over one's surroundings is miles upon miles of stinking, poisonous swamps dotting the landscape.
Never did he expect to encounter one here!
"What is that?" Long Zhanye takes in Huo Zaiyuan's extremely frightened expression, and circles an arm around his waist, the desire to step forward and take a closer look evaporating.
Knowing Huo Zaiyuan for this long, whether it be confronting zombies by the hundreds or thousands, he always wears a calm and tranquil expression. Now, upon seeing this smelly pond, that serene face abruptly turns frightened. Long Zhanye doesn't need anyone to tell him that this pond is nothing good, and its danger level is higher than zombies.
"Poisonous swamp." Huo Zaiyuan whispers these two words from within Long Zhanye's embrace.
"A swamp with poison? But don't swamps normally emit poisonous gas lethal enough to claim lives?" Li Qing approaches the pair, fingers pinching his nose. However, upon seeing Huo Zaiyuan's greenish face, he dares not come nearer.
"This is different. In an ordinary swamp, one will slowly sink when they enter, but that doesn't mean they have no chances of being rescued and the poison they breath in can be purged from their bodies. This one, however, instantly sucks a person in the moment they step into it. The poison in its waters and the gas above it will kill someone near instantly. When the corpse surfaces once more from these swamps, what crawls out is a zombie a hundred times more deadly than the average ones. That's because zombies that are created by these swamps are highly toxic. A single touch can kill." Huo Zaiyuan informs them in a cold and emotionless voice. "In addition, within the bodies of those swamp zombies lies numerous terrible blood-thirsty devil ants. Besides being carnivorous insects, they can turn anyone into a zombie."
"So the reason why a benevolent tree can turn into a savage mutant demonic spirit is because of this poisonous swamp!" Qin Jun glances towards that dark, bubbling pool, frowning lightly.
"It should be the case." Long Zhanye affirms, looking down at the person in his arms. "Little Yuan, what should be done now?"
"Seal it. I absolutely cannot let it continue to spread." Huo Zaiyuan's eyes harden as he lifts his left hand.
Silver rays of light emit from his palm and the Holy Dragon Bone Brush appears. A flick of his fingers and the brush begins to spin, silver light slowly wrapping around the white bristles.