Chapter 54 Mark "Tentacle?" Lumian was stunned for a second before he remembered how to define the thing that bound the mass of flesh. He was familiar with all the novels written by Aurore and had seen all the illustrations. He not only remembered every melodramatic plot, but also understood many things that he would not normally come into contact with, such as the tentacles of monsters. Seven or eight dark black tentacles covered with flesh wrapped around the mass of flesh and dragged it towards the ruins of a house on the side. A figure walked out from the area blocked by messy rocks. "He" looks like a human, with bare upper body and feet, and wearing a pair of black trousers. What is different from humans is that he has no head and only a section of his neck is left. The cross section is covered with sharp teeth in a spiral shape, and the bright red skin is clearly visible between the teeth. It was as if a human had replaced his head and half of his neck with a strange mouthpart, causing "beheading expert" Lumian to shake his head repeatedly, unable to find where to start. The seven or eight dark tentacles covered with flesh extended from the edge of the monster's "mouthparts". They quickly dragged the mass of flesh in front of their body and lifted it up. The "mouthparts" on the monster's neck suddenly opened like a blooming morning glory. Those sharp white teeth bit the ball of flesh and swallowed it directly like a snake eating its prey.
Seeing this, Lumian sneered silently: "I thought you all could survive without eating, but it turns out you still need to eat..." He then fell into deep thought: "The majority of the people in this ruins should be monsters, and there must be very few edible things... "That is to say, some monsters feed on other monsters, just like what happened just now, or, we are all hunters and prey... “If I encounter a monster that I can’t defeat, is it possible to lure it to other monsters, let them hunt each other, hurt each other, and then I can get the advantage in the end? "It's theoretically feasible, but it looks very dangerous. Who knows if the monsters will team up to kill me first..." As his thoughts turned, Lumian saw that the chest of the monster with a "mouthpart" as its head and neck began to swell and contract, as if it was undergoing intense digestion. This attracted Lumian's attention and made him realize that there was something unusual on the monster's naked upper body. There is a black thing similar to a seal mark on its left chest, right chest and under its neck. “This…” Lumian’s pupils dilated unconsciously, wanting to see more clearly. He had seen something similar in the parish priest! That was the black mark left by the parish priest's body swelling and bursting his clothes at the end of the Lenten celebration! After careful examination, Lumian confirmed that the three black objects that looked like seal marks on the monster were the same as those on the parish priest: They are all composed of unique characters and strange symbols, as if connecting to another indescribable world. The difference was that the curé had at least eleven or twelve of them, while the monster had only three. "What is the function of this black mark? Is it a mark left by a hidden entity? The more there are, the greater the blessing received?" Lumian observed with confusion and bewilderment. He tried hard to memorize the words and symbols that made up one of the marks, but since he was unfamiliar with them, he couldn't remember them all at once. He didn't bring paper and pen, so he couldn't copy them. The monster finally digested the mass of flesh and blood. It moved its arms and shook the seven or eight dark tentacles covered with flesh membrane next to its "mouthparts". The mark below its neck glowed slightly, and its chest cavity emitted a buzzing resonant sound. The sound grew louder and louder, like a current of air raging through the hive, flowing in and out of one hole after another. The morning glory-like "mouthparts" opened, and the buzzing sound became more and more obvious. Lumian was very annoyed by what he heard, and he wanted to beat up that monster: Did you know that this sound is unpleasant? As his blood boiled, Lumian felt a surge of anger rising from his heart to his forehead. He suddenly became impulsive, holding his shotgun, he bypassed the rocks that blocked his figure and jumped down from the half-collapsed roof. boom! Lumian fell to the ground, staring at the monster's swirling bloody "mouthparts" full of sharp teeth.
Lumian, who was about to call the other party an old pig, instantly regained his composure, feeling as confused and helpless as an audience member who was forced to jump onto the stage. The monster pointed its bloody mouthparts at him and made no more sound. “Can I say, sorry, it’s a misunderstanding?” Lumian muttered softly. He suspected that there was something wrong with the noise just now, which made him lose his mind. He jumped out of his hiding place and tried to launch an attack! But things have already happened, and an apology will definitely be of no use. He currently has only two choices: fight or escape. Based on Lumian's experience, it would be impossible to escape directly at this time. The opponent was not only unharmed, but also well prepared and had raised those seven or eight tentacles. Therefore, if you really want to escape, you have to fight first and find an opportunity! Without hesitation, Lumian raised the shotgun in his hand, which was already loaded with lead bullets, as soon as he regained his senses. boom! The monster obviously did not expect the enemy to be so decisive and swift, and lacked understanding of the existence of the shotgun. It had no time to dodge and was hit directly by multiple bursting lead bullets. "what!" His swirling mouth full of sharp teeth opened instinctively and he let out a cry of pain. Many parts of his chest instantly became bloody, including the place on the right side where the black mark was. But the black mark seemed to be engraved in the blood and flesh and was still clearly visible, without being affected much by the condition of the wound. Lumian didn't bother to appreciate the screams of his prey. He immediately moved to another place after firing the shot and reached into the cloth bag at his waist to take out new lead bullets. Just as he aimed again, the black mark on the monster's left chest glowed slightly. The humanoid creature, whose head and half of its neck had turned into a huge "mouthpart", then disappeared. It just disappeared in front of Lumian! Ran away? Invisible? Lumian sought answers from the various novels written by Aurore and the mystical knowledge she taught. He looked around quickly, but the monster seemed to have really disappeared out of thin air. This unprecedented scene and difficulty made Lumian a little panicked. He wanted to take the opportunity to escape from here and subconsciously took a few steps back. Suddenly, his ankles tightened and he lost his balance and was turned upside down. Dark black tentacles covered in flesh appeared in the air, wrapping around Lumian's legs and lifting him into the air. The monster also showed up, not far from Lumian's side. At this moment, the black mark on its right chest glowed, and its spiral-shaped "mouthparts" filled with white sharp teeth opened to the limit, revealing its bloody interior, as if it wanted to use its tentacles to swallow Lumian in one gulp. An indescribable stench gushed out from the "mouthparts", making Lumian, who was hanging upside down in the air, feel a little dizzy. What caught his eyes was the bloody oral skin and countless white sharp teeth. He had an idea, and before a tentacle could wrap around his arm, he aimed his shotgun at the monster's "mouthparts" while hanging upside down. boom! The monster screamed again, and blood and flesh flew everywhere in its "mouthparts", and lead black was everywhere. It suddenly threw Lumian out, and its body quickly became transparent and disappeared again. Lumian fell to the ground with a thud, and rolled several times before standing up again, concentrating on finding the target. The next second, his nose twitched and he felt a bloody smell approaching him quickly.
Without bothering to think about what this meant, he rushed out in the opposite direction. From where he was originally standing, dark black tentacles covered with flesh membranes emerged from the air, but did not entangle anything. Three or four meters away from them, the monster appeared, with its swirling "mouthparts" wide open, as if waiting for food. Lumian quickly loaded his shotgun with lead bullets, but the black mark on the monster's left chest lit up and it disappeared from his sight again. Invisible, indeed invisible! Lumian made a judgment instantly. And combined with what happened just now, he believed that this kind of invisibility could not cover up the smell, and would become ineffective once entering the attack state. After figuring it out, Lumian was certain in his heart and laughed to himself: "What kind of invisibility is it if you can't hide your smell?" Capturing various traces is the hunter's strong point. No longer panicking because of the encounter, Lumian, who had gained a lot of confidence, calmed down and observed his surroundings while wandering around. Soon, he saw the footprints left by the monster and smelled its blood and original stench. Relying on these traces, he avoided the monster's attacks in advance time and time again, and hit the opponent again and again with his shotgun. But the monster seemed to have no vital parts, and after being shot multiple times it only became much weaker. Seeing that the lead bullets were almost exhausted, Lumian's mind raced as he thought about what to do. In just a few seconds, he had the answer: On the way here, he did not forget to observe the environment and found several natural traps that could be used, and one of them was suitable for dealing with the current monster. Seeing two shallow footprints suddenly appearing not far away, Lumian turned around and ran wildly. The dark black tentacles covered with flesh membranes missed again. Lumian ran and stopped from time to time, looking back from time to time, making sure that the monster would not give up chasing him, and dodged the attacks in advance accordingly. Buzz! The "noise" coming from the monster's chest once again reached Lumian's ears, making him angry. He became extremely angry and wanted to stop running immediately and turn around to give the guy a few axes. Fortunately, he remembered that the purpose of his running was to kill that guy, and it was not a real escape at the moment. Anger and annoyance failed to change his plan, but only made him more motivated. Ding Ding Deng! Lumian finally saw the half-collapsed building. He rushed straight in, came to the edge on the other side, and stopped there, pretending to ambush. Soon, shallow footprints appeared in the half-collapsed house, and the stench and smell of blood were getting closer and closer to Lumian. Lumian estimated the distance of the tentacles, took two steps back, raised the axe he had pulled out earlier, and chopped it on a stone pillar that was about to collapse. Then he kicked the stone pillar hard and rolled backwards. The half-collapsed house, which was already in a fragile balance, could no longer hold up and collapsed. With a loud crash, a large number of heavy rocks fell down, completely filling the interior space that was originally open for people to pass through. The monster that was hiding there, ready to strike, suddenly let out a fierce scream. Its scream lasted less than a second before it stopped abruptly.
PS: Thanks to Xing Zhulan and book friend 20230108160739852 for rewarding Silver Alliance (End of this chapter)