Ikezawa had listened to the entire recording. The shadow of death had receded; all he needed was an invitation from a Group Member to leave this world and be fully healed.
So... should I go?
Ikezawa sank into deep thought. Just then, a dull thud reverberated through the air, and all three felt a faint tremor beneath their feet.
"What was that? An earthquake?!" Ikezawa exclaimed, startled. Li tilted her head, listening intently, then shook her head. "Something fell directly above us."
Simultaneously, the device in front of Lingsha began emitting a series of warning beeps. After a few quick adjustments, a live video feed appeared on the screen.
The camera, mounted in an unknown location, perfectly captured the massive Dimensional Rift outside. When the First Laboratory had been built directly beneath it to study the phenomenon, the rift had been much smaller and more stable.
Now, the feed showed the once-stable rift surging with renewed activity. If the massive fissure could be likened to the trunk of a tree, several thin branches were now sprouting from its main stem.
Colossal monsters materialized out of thin air at the ends of these "branches," plummeting from dozens of meters above to crash heavily onto the sandy ground with the same earth-shattering thuds as before.
Thump~
Thump~
"The Heavenly Flaw has expanded again?" Li remarked, observing the device's display. "This happens periodically—a fresh wave of monsters materializes and falls from the sky out of nowhere."
Regardless of the monsters' strength, the vibrations from their landings proved problematic. When the trio returned to the passage Li had painstakingly carved earlier, they found it completely sealed by sand, effectively trapping them inside the First Laboratory.
Lingsha immediately turned her gaze to Ikezawa, her curiosity piqued. Whether it was facing death or being trapped here, leaving this world would solve all his problems. He could abandon this barbaric realm at any moment and return to the embrace of human civilization.
So, what choice would this boy make?
Sensing Lingsha's gaze, Ikezawa hesitated before saying, "No, we can't leave. That would mean abandoning Li here alone! She left her clan because of us. How could we abandon her now?"
No, you've misunderstood me. I have no intention of leaving, Lingsha muttered silently to herself.
Previously, all of Ikezawa's actions had been driven by his desire to cure "Death." But now that he knew the cure—simply leaving this world—he found himself reluctant to go. Or, more accurately, he didn't want to leave empty-handed.
Suddenly, an idea struck Ikezawa. If I could invite Li into the group chat, wouldn't that allow her to escape with me?
But just as he was about to ask the Shu Cat for help, Li spoke up. "Since the Heavenly Flaw has expanded again, and right above us, there's no need to worry! We just need to wait here for the Hunting Team to come and rescue us."
Lingsha looked puzzled. "The Hunting Team comes to this place?"
"Of course," Li replied slowly, beginning to explain.
It turned out that the Hunting Team wasn't venturing out to find food, but to hunt monsters! This explained why Lingsha often saw the entire team return empty-handed after a full day's expedition, with many members injured.
The Hunting Team was constantly clearing monsters from the area around the camp, which was why Granny Xi hadn't worried at all when Lingsha and her group went out to gather herbs.
If all the monsters around the camp were eliminated, the Hunting Team would venture further afield to continue their hunt. And if no more monsters could be found even in those distant areas, the entire clan would begin to migrate.
In ancient times, wild tribes migrated in search of food, while nomadic peoples of the grasslands moved their herds to fresh pastures. As the livestock grazed, fattened, and reproduced, the nomads ensured their own food supply.
Ultimately, migration had always been about survival. But Li's clan was different. They migrated not for sustenance, but to hunt down the monsters emerging from the Heavenly Flaw!
At that moment, the First Laboratory where Lingsha and her group were located wasn't particularly far from Li's clan. The situation hadn't yet reached the point where the entire clan needed to relocate. At the Hunting Team's pace, they could arrive in a few hours at the fastest, or a day at the slowest.
It's worth noting that "the slowest possible day" meant the Hunting Team was already engaged in a hunt elsewhere and couldn't return immediately. They would have to wait until tomorrow to depart, arriving the day after.
After explaining, Li wagged her tail and said, "I told you! I had a feeling we'd run into the Clan. I just didn't expect it to happen so soon."
Lingsha fell silent, grappling with the strangeness of this Clan that worshipped humans as gods while hunting actual gods as prey, migrating solely to hunt monsters.
She pulled out her map and glanced at the green dot marking the Seventh Laboratory. She had a premonition that all the answers to their questions lay within its walls.
Since Li had confirmed the Hunting Team was on its way, and the First Laboratory, though disorganized, seemed free of immediate danger, Lingsha and Ikezawa headed to the residential area. After some effort, they cleared out two rooms to rest for the day.
Lingsha wasted no time resuming her work with the region's unique medicinal herbs and the healing fluid produced by Xiao Bai.
Meanwhile, Ikezawa went completely wild in the Chat Group:
Daoist Wuwei: "Family, does anyone have any Robin posters, pictures, or photos? Send them my way!"
Daoist Wuwei: "Oh, by the way, can we send audio files here? Could someone send me a song? Please!"
Red Cape Hero: "I don't think audio files work, but voice recordings should. Want me to sing a live Robin song and send it? Seriously, my singing is divine—it's practically identical to the real thing!"
Daoist Wuwei: "Really?"
Invincible Bro: "???"
Invincible Bro: "How do I leave this group? Is it too late to run?"
Red Cape Hero: "Audio File (1 minute, 19 seconds)"
Out of curiosity, Lingsha actually listened to the recording. The result? Calling Red Cape Hero tone-deaf would be an understatement. Describing it as an ear-splitting cacophony would be far more accurate. As for why it only lasted a minute and nineteen seconds, near the end, you could hear a door being kicked open followed by the furious voice of a certain Dragon Lady:
"Aaaaaaah! Stop singing! You're driving me crazy!"