"I need to get off this bus as soon as possible."
Wang Zhifan, having heard from the player forum about the horrors of the Gray Realm, quickly armed himself and hurriedly left his seat. He passed through passengers who had fallen into a wooden stupor with their eyes closed, making his way from the rear to the middle door of the bus.
The bus was still moving forward at a set speed, but Wang Zhifan could see that the driver had also fallen into a similar wooden state, unable to control the vehicle at all.
So, for safety's sake, he moved to the driver's seat and took command, stopping the bus and preparing to press the door open button on the right side of the steering wheel.
But just as his finger was about to press down, a cold and calm voice suddenly came from behind.
"I'd advise you not to open the door now."
Turning his head, Wang Zhifan discovered that the speaker was a young girl sitting in the second row of seats on the bus.
The girl wore a white baseball cap, under the brim of which was a sharp, light brown short bob. Her eyes were bright and calm, and although she wore only light makeup, her face exuded youthful charm.
Wang Zhifan recalled that when he had come to the front of the bus, he had glimpsed this girl, but he had naturally assumed she was just like the other wooden passengers. It turned out she was hiding her skills and was undoubtedly a player as well.
"Why can't I open the door?"
When someone advises against something, Wang Zhifan usually chooses to listen to their opinion, but what he decides afterward is uncertain.
Seeing the young man at the front asking her why, the short-haired girl seated steadily in her seat raised her head slightly and replied to Wang Zhifan at the front:
"There might be danger outside. It's best for us to hold our ground and wait for assistance. This time, the Gray Realm's triggered location is in the city center, and the Special Administration Bureau people will definitely arrive soon."
The girl's reasoning sounded valid, but Wang Zhifan wasn't entirely convinced. After a brief consideration, he replied:
"I think it's better to escape quickly from here. Rather than relying on others for the hope of getting out, it's better to depend on ourselves."
Having said that, he was about to press the door open button at hand.
But coincidentally, it was at this moment that an unusual sound stopped Wang Zhifan's action.
This time it wasn't the same short-haired girl who dissuaded him, but rather a hurried and chaotic sound of footsteps coming from the gloom outside in all directions.
"They are coming."
Such a clear sign, both people on the bus who could still move freely knew what it meant, but neither fell into panic.
The short-haired girl wearing the white baseball cap unhurriedly rose from her seat and stepped into the middle aisle, wherewith a casual wave of her hand, a phantom of a cold, long-haired woman appeared, floating in the air beside her.
"What's your profession?"
Having given up pressing the door open button again, the young man stood ready with his Wolf-Slaying Long Saber, glancing through the bus window at the unclear scene outside, and asked his temporary ally.
No choice, at this point, the two of them as the only players on this bus must cooperate for survival.
"Summoner, Spirit Mage."
The girl quickly replied.
"Warrior class, Swordsman."
Wang Zhifan briefly explained his situation, though holding the long saber, it was clear to others without much introduction.
After this brief exchange, the strange noises outside the bus had drawn near, and now they could see what was coming.
Humanoid monsters with pitch-black and purplish skin, limbs bent like insect joints, and faces twisted like demons, were clumsily charging on all fours from all around toward their bus! At a glance, there must be more than a hundred!
And behind these monsters, there was a unique creature about three times their size, crawling slowly and deliberately, like a commander overseeing the battle!
"So many monsters?! And when did the outside turn into muddy land? Wasn't this the urban block?"
Wang Zhifan now understood the strangeness of the Gray Realm. Moments ago, he was on the bus traveling through a bustling city, but in the blink of an eye, everything changed. Under the bus wheels was now barren land, and hundreds of grotesque monsters appeared around.
The situation quickly became critical. There was no doubt they needed to fight to the death with these monsters, or else it wouldn't do for these terrifying creatures to swarm them.
"We must hold out until the Special Administration Bureau arrives."
In the tense and suffocating atmosphere, Wang Zhifan heard the short-haired girl reiterate her stance, and she quickly moved toward the back of the bus, leaving her ghostly summoned figure where it was.
"Yes, let's cooperate fully and eliminate the intruding monsters."
Wang Zhifan knew that rashly charging out now would be foolish, so he immediately agreed with the girl's strategy to hold their ground and wait for reinforcements.
The oppressive atmosphere lasted less than two seconds before the silence broke.
A window in the middle of the bus was the first to be broken violently from the outside, and a hideous dark monster climbed in, poking its frightful head inside!
In an instant, the ghostly figure with long hair flickered from its quiet hovering position in the cabin and appeared at the window. It swung its pale, slender claw, slicing through the grotesque head that had just poked through, splitting it open. Bits spattered dark viscous fluid on the motionless passengers inside, and some parts fell outside the bus.
Yet taking down a single monster was of little consequence. Soon after, more monsters outside the window fearlessly leaped from the ground, attempting to jump through the window. At the same time, other windows of the bus shattered, with more monsters choosing to penetrate from different openings!
"There are too many of them! I'll guard in front of you! You focus on using your summoned creature to distract them!"
In this crisis, Wang Zhifan didn't recklessly charge toward a window to attack; instead, he immediately chose the best cooperation strategy with the girl. He would serve as a bodyguard, defending in front of her, while the girl used her potent long-haired ghostly summon to distract and eliminate as many enemies as possible, trying to reduce the pressure they were facing.