Chapter 2330: Six Hours Later
These were not all the bodies, because in the crevices between some building blocks, fragments and residue could still be seen, barely identifiable as incomplete corpses, but often only very small pieces. As for the remaining parts... their whereabouts were unknown.
The space here appeared somewhat more stable than outside, but thick spatial walls had already formed between different spaces, meaning that what the eye could see was not necessarily accessible.
Without rashly touching those corpses, Xu Huo walked along the edge and went deeper, only to find that the layout here was somewhat similar to the first layer of folded space. Earlier, when he was outside, he had only felt the overlapping of sounds, but walking through here gave him the feeling that people were also overlapping within the space.
For example, one second he was at the bottom of the building complex, and perhaps two or three steps later he had crossed to a higher place. During this process, the spatial transition was only realized after the fact; only when he walked through did he become aware that these two spaces were connected.
Numerous as they were, chaotic as they were, it was indeed much more stable than outside. If a spatial-type instance were truly to form here, this should be its prototype.
When the Seventeenth Hospital instance was born, he had coincidentally begun his mental evolution, which happened to align with the instance site. Therefore, he had some connection to the instance's final formation, and when the instance was ultimately completed, he also received the Instance Authorization.
But this place was filled with folded spaces, even affecting the stone statues within, turning them into items that could pull people into spatial crevices. This indicated that the instance's level would not be too low, and it already had its own operational rules. The influence of individuals seemed to have little effect. Perhaps a holder exclusive to this instance would eventually emerge, possibly something similar to the stone statues.
Of course, Xu Huo also considered directly deploying the Seventeenth Hospital here.
Previously, the Seventeenth Hospital had upgraded because its interior was contaminated by Yu Guo's bacteria. This showed that external factors were sufficient to upgrade an instance. If this space were added, the instance might upgrade again, or the two instances might merge... but this was an optimistic view. There was also a high possibility that this unstable space, stimulated by the instance, would undergo uncontrollable changes, especially since the spaces it connected to were unpredictable. At the moment the space changed, it might suddenly suck this ruin site into places that could not establish contact with the game.
No matter how he looked at it, this was too risky. Even standing outside the ruin site might not be safe, let alone staying inside.
Xu Huo moved slowly within the ruin site. Without being significantly restricted, he collected some player corpses and used the Water Cube to try entering some crevices suspected to be spatial passages—of course, he ultimately failed. But the spatial power within the ruin site did not attack him either. The ruin space changed according to its own rules, while he explored according to his own progress. They did not interfere with each other, achieving a certain degree of peaceful coexistence.
The longer the time passed, the more Xu Huo became convinced of his judgment. This underwater ruin site might eventually become a spatial-type instance, though it was unknown whether its final form would be linked to the former civilization. Generally speaking, fixed instances were combined with local culture and history.
There was nothing left to explore in the ruin site. It was just some incomplete ancient building complexes and traces of ancient people's lives. Apart from the stone statues, no other items had been found for now.
The folded spaces were tending toward stability, with no major danger for the time being, but the way out seemed to have disappeared as well.
Xu Huo had checked everywhere in the ruin site. There was no direct passage to the outside, and the place where he had entered earlier was now filled with folded spaces, making it impassable.
He did not know when the next spatial change would come, but the longer it took, the more dangerous it became. So he could only accelerate his search of every corner of the building complex, hoping to discover a suddenly appearing spatial passage.
Just as he was using all his strength to search for an exit, Nie Xuan, Jiang Qiao, Shangguan Jing, and the others had already been waiting on the lake surface for a long time.
When the first layer of folded space changed, Nie Xuan had found a way to get out. He knew his own strength was limited, and going deeper into the folded space would only be more dangerous. So when the space changed, he immediately found a way to retreat.
After coming out, he had been waiting on the lake surface. Two rounds of spatial power bursts had already passed, and Xu Huo had still not come out.
"Three hours have passed," Jiang Qiao said. "Xu Huo might have directly used a ticket to escape."
"That possibility is very small," Nie Xuan said. "Tickets cannot be used in some places within folded spaces."
Jiang Qiao fell silent. Many military personnel had died that way.
Too many people had disappeared inside, most of them military elites. Regarding Xu Huo's sudden disappearance, neither she nor the military found it strange. To be blunt, they had not even held much hope from the start. If Xu Huo came out alive, they would be very happy, but if he disappeared inside, it did not seem like an unpredictable outcome.
At this point, there was nothing to do but wait.
Unexpectedly, they waited all the way until evening. About six hours later, another energy fluctuation erupted from under the lake. The lake water surged into waves, crashing straight toward the Blockade Barrier. Xu Huo came out riding this wave. To reduce the resistance of the Blockade Barrier, he first broke through the barrier, and then rushed onto the nearby command center along with the huge wave.
Nie Xuan and the others had already spotted him. When they chased over, they saw him standing on the roof of the Location Item, wringing out his clothes.
The sound of rushing water stimulated everyone's eardrums. Jiang Qiao walked up with a full smile, "Finally got you!"
Xu Huo had no injuries on him, but he looked somewhat mentally exhausted. He looked at the people approaching, "Get some food first."
Ten hours of continuous consumption had reached his limit.
"The food has been prepared for a long time!" Jiang Qiao quickly called for someone to bring it.
The military personnel were very enthusiastic this time. A table full of fine food and drink was set up. Xu Huo did not mind being watched and wolfed down his meal like a whirlwind.
Maintaining the Water Cube Barrier required continuous manipulation of spatial power. Although it only required gently moving the Space Ray, this time it had lasted far too long. By the time he came out, he was both physically and mentally exhausted.
The plates on the table had been changed once before he finally regained some strength. While drinking tea, he took out several corpses from his Luggage Compartment. "Half of them have turned to stone."
Seeing the sudden appearance of their comrades' remains, the expressions of those present shifted from excitement to sorrow. After a moment, Shangguan Jing silently ordered someone to carry the bodies away, then gave Xu Huo a solemn salute. "Thank you!"
The military players in the room all returned the military salute. Xu Huo was silent for two seconds before saying, "The ruin site is probably a spatial-type instance, not yet fully formed. There are countless spatial crevices and spatial passages inside. Ordinary items and instruments are insufficient to enter. My suggestion is that it's best not to arrange for anyone else to go in for the time being. It's completely pointless."