I walk sideways in the game world

Chapter 140 Cursed, but Courage Undying

The joy of victory vanished like a bubble, replaced by an indescribable feeling of oppression. Ren Xiaoyao's premonition came true. The strange aura deep within the ruins grew stronger and stronger, as if an invisible beast had opened its bloody mouth, ready to devour them.

At first, it was just a slight dizziness, like a hangover. But soon, the discomfort spread throughout the body, and everyone felt as heavy as if filled with lead, their steps were weak, and breathing was difficult.

"What's going on? I feel... my strength is draining away..." A once mighty warrior now looked like an old man on his deathbed, leaning weakly against the wall, his voice trembling.

"My head hurts so much... Everything in front of my eyes is spinning..." Another companion covered his head in pain, his face pale and beads of sweat the size of beans rolled down his forehead.

"No! We're cursed!" Ren Xiaoyao gritted his teeth, suppressing his physical discomfort. He knew he couldn't panic at this moment and had to find a way to break the curse as soon as possible.

"Curse? What curse?" Charlene asked anxiously.

"I don't know..." Ren Xiaoyao shook his head and looked around, trying to find the source of the curse. His gaze finally fell on the strange vines on the walls of the ruins. These vines were completely black, emitting a faint green light. They coiled around the wall like venomous snakes, giving people a creepy feeling.

"Xiaoyao, look!" Xia Lin seemed to have discovered something. She pointed at the vines and said, "These vines... I seem to have seen them somewhere..."

"Where have you seen me?" Ren Xiaoyao asked.

"I once read about this plant in an ancient book," Xia Lin tried to recall. "It's called the 'Soul-Eating Vine.' It's an extremely dangerous plant that can suck the life force of living things, plunging them into endless pain and torment... and the curse it unleashes cannot be broken unless an antidote is found..."

Hearing the words "Soul-Eating Vine," Ren Xiaoyao's heart sank. He knew they were in real trouble this time.

"Master Mo, Pharmacist Li, you are knowledgeable and experienced. Can you tell me if there is any way to lift this curse?" Ren Xiaoyao placed his last hope on the two old men.

Master Mo and Pharmacist Li exchanged a solemn glance. They walked to the wall and carefully observed the soul-devouring vines, their brows furrowed in silence. After a long moment, Master Mo slowly spoke, "This curse is extremely ancient. We've only seen records of it in a few documents. Breaking it is far from easy..."

"Is... there no other way?" Charlene's voice was filled with despair.

Pharmacist Li pondered for a moment and said, "It's not completely impossible. According to ancient records, although the Soul-Devouring Vine is extremely poisonous, it also has a companion plant that can restrain its toxicity. If we can find this plant, perhaps..."

Before Pharmacist Li finished speaking, Master Mo suddenly exclaimed: "Found it! This is it!" He pointed to an inconspicuous white flower in the corner, his eyes flashing with excitement.

The small white flowers emitted a faint white light in the dim ruins, like a ray of hope, igniting the flames that were about to go out in everyone's hearts.

"Is this the companion plant of the Soul-Eating Vine—the Soul-Purifying Flower?" Xia Lin came forward and carefully observed this seemingly ordinary little flower, with a hint of surprise and doubt in her tone.

"That's right. According to ancient records, the Soul-Purifying Flower is snow-white all over, with seven tiny red spots on its petals, just like the one in front of us." Master Mo stroked his beard, carefully identifying the characteristics of the flower, and answered affirmatively.

"That's great! Now that we've found the Soul-Purifying Flower, can we prepare the antidote quickly?" Xia Lin asked impatiently, her tone full of anticipation.

"It's not that simple." Pharmacist Li shook his head, frowning, and said solemnly, "Although the Soul-Purifying Flower can restrain the toxicity of the Soul-Devouring Vine, it also contains a peculiar toxin. It must be specially processed before it can be effective. Otherwise, not only will it fail to detoxify, but it will actually aggravate the condition."

Pharmacist Li's words were like a bucket of cold water, extinguishing the spark of hope that had just ignited in Xia Lin's heart. She anxiously asked, "What should we do? What should we do with the Soul Purifying Flower?"

"Ancient texts record a special refining method that can extract the active ingredients in the Soul Purifying Flower and neutralize its toxicity." Master Mo said after a moment's silence, "But I need time to study the ancient texts before I can determine the specific steps."

"Okay, Master Mo, then I'll leave it to you! Just tell me what herbs you need and I'll find them right away!" Xia Lin said without hesitation.

"There is no time to lose, let's hurry up." Pharmacist Li also echoed, with a hint of urgency in his tone.

As time passed, Master Mo and Pharmacist Li devoted themselves to studying ancient books and refining antidotes. However, the situation of Ren Xiaoyao and his other cursed companions became increasingly worse.

Ren Xiaoyao felt his consciousness gradually blurring, and the scene before him became distorted. He tried hard to stay awake, but the invisible curse power was like an invisible net, binding him tightly and making it impossible for him to breathe.

He seemed to see countless hideous faces and heard countless shrill screams. The souls whose souls were devoured by the Soul-Eating Vine seemed to be waving at him, wanting to drag him into the endless abyss.

"No! I can't fall down! I still have to protect Xia Lin, and I still have to..." Ren Xiaoyao kept reminding himself in his heart, using all his strength to resist the erosion of the curse.

Suddenly, he felt someone gently shaking his shoulders, and a familiar voice rang in his ears: "Xiaoyao, Xiaoyao, how are you? Wake up!"

It's Charlene!

Ren Xiaoyao tried hard to open his heavy eyelids, and an anxious face appeared vaguely in front of him. It was Xia Lin.

"I... I'm fine..." Ren Xiaoyao wanted to speak, but found that his voice was extremely hoarse, as if it was squeezed out from the depths of his throat.

"Stop talking and save your energy! Master Mo has found a way to make the antidote, and you'll be fine soon!" Xia Lin comforted, her voice trembling slightly.

"That's good..." Ren Xiaoyao smiled weakly and slowly closed his eyes.

At this moment, a creepy roar suddenly came from the depths of the ruins, followed by a burst of hurried footsteps, getting closer and closer...

"Oh no! Something is coming!" Pharmacist Li's face changed drastically and he exclaimed.

"Prepare for battle!" Ren Xiaoyao suddenly opened his eyes and struggled to his feet, his eyes filled with determination, but his body was shaky, as if it would collapse at any moment... Deep in the ruins, a chilling wind mixed with a sickening stench of decay blew towards them, accompanied by a series of chilling growls. A group of monsters with blood-red eyes and festering skin frantically advanced on Ren Xiaoyao and his companions.

"It's the gargoyles guarding the ruins! They are controlled by a curse!" Master Mo exclaimed with a pale face.

"Everyone, be careful. These monsters are fast, powerful, and immune to ordinary physical attacks!" Pharmacist Li warned, and at the same time quickly took out a dagger engraved with runes from his backpack with a serious expression.

The gargoyles were extremely fast, rushing in front of everyone in the blink of an eye. They brandished their sharp claws, bringing gusts of evil wind, and attacked frantically.

"Xiaoyao, be careful!" Xia Lin exclaimed, and saw a gargoyle circling behind Ren Xiaoyao, and its sharp claws went straight to his back.

At the critical moment, Ren Xiaoyao's body reacted instinctively. He dodged the attack and threw a backhanded punch, hitting the gargoyle in the chest.

With a loud "bang", the gargoyle was knocked back several steps by the powerful force, but then pounced on him again frantically.

"The power of these monsters is even stronger than I imagined!" Ren Xiaoyao thought to himself. At the same time, he mobilized the little true energy in his body, poured it into his fists, and started a fierce battle with the gargoyles.

Suddenly, the ruins were filled with shouts and cries of killing, flashes of swords, and splashes of fire. Xia Lin and the others also joined the battle, engaging in a desperate struggle with the gargoyles.

The battle was extremely brutal. Although Ren Xiaoyao and others tried their best, due to the influence of the curse, their physical strength and true energy were rapidly consumed. However, the number of gargoyles did not decrease. Instead, they became more and more courageous, as if they were tireless.

"We can't go on like this, we will be exhausted to death!" Pharmacist Li shouted anxiously while resisting the gargoyle's attack.

"We must end this battle quickly!" Ren Xiaoyao said gritting his teeth, with a flash of determination in his eyes.

He took a deep breath, endured the severe pain in his body, mobilized all the remaining true energy, and concentrated it on his fists.

"Xiaoyao, what are you doing?" Xia Lin noticed Ren Xiaoyao's intention and shouted anxiously, "Your current physical condition..."

"I can't care about that anymore!" Ren Xiaoyao interrupted Xia Lin and said with a firm look in his eyes, "Trust me!"

Before he finished speaking, he suddenly pushed off the ground with both feet and rushed out like an arrow, heading straight for the place where the gargoyles were most densely populated.

"Roar!" The gargoyles let out a deafening roar and pounced towards Ren Xiaoyao.

Facing the enemies coming like a tide, Ren Xiaoyao did not retreat but advanced, punching out like raindrops, each punch containing the power to destroy the world.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Violent explosions continued to sound, and the gargoyles were blown away like kites with broken strings by Ren Xiaoyao's powerful force, falling heavily to the ground and turning into a pile of rubble.

In just a few breaths, Ren Xiaoyao had carved a bloody path through the originally dense group of gargoyles.

"So strong!" Pharmacist Li, Master Mo and others were all shocked when they saw this.

"Let's go too!" Seeing this, Xia Lin cheered up and led everyone to follow closely and launch a counterattack against the remaining gargoyles.

Under the leadership of Ren Xiaoyao, the morale of the people was greatly boosted, and they fought more and more bravely. In the end, after paying some price, they finally succeeded in eliminating all the gargoyles.

"Huh..." Ren Xiaoyao sat down on the ground weakly, gasping for breath. There was no part of his body that didn't hurt, but a victorious smile appeared on his face.

"we won……"

However, before he could finish his words, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his body, his vision went black, and his body fell backwards uncontrollably... The joy of victory did not stay on everyone's faces for too long, Ren Xiaoyao suddenly let out a muffled groan, fell to the ground in pain with his hands holding his head, and his body began to tremble violently.

"Xiaoyao! What's wrong with you?" Xia Lin quickly supported him and asked anxiously.

Ren Xiaoyao's face was frighteningly pale, his forehead covered in cold sweat, and his lips gradually lost their color. He spoke intermittently, "I... I feel like there's a fire burning in my body..."

"Curse! The curse has taken effect!" Master Mo's face changed drastically, and he exclaimed, "The gargoyle's attack before was filled with the power of a curse. We were all affected!"

Pharmacist Li hurried forward to check on Ren Xiaoyao's condition. His expression turned grim. He said in a deep voice, "His condition is much more serious than ours. We must find a way to lift the curse as soon as possible, otherwise..."

He didn't say the rest of the words, but everyone present understood that if the curse could not be lifted in time, Ren Xiaoyao might be in danger of his life.

"Pharmacist Li, you must have a way, right?" Xia Lin asked anxiously, her eyes full of hope.

Pharmacist Li pondered for a moment, then pulled out an old book from his bosom and quickly flipped through it. His brow furrowed as he muttered to himself, "According to ancient records, this curse is extremely vicious. Once it strikes, it will corrode a person's mind and body, leading to death..."

"Then...what should we do?" Xia Lin's voice trembled and tears welled up in her eyes.

"Wait!" Pharmacist Li's eyes suddenly lit up, and he pointed to a passage in the book and said, "It records a magical medicine called 'Soul Purifying Grass' that can lift this curse!"

"Soul Purifying Grass?" Xia Lin asked hurriedly, as if grasping a life-saving straw. "Where can I find it?"

"Soul-purifying grass is extremely rare and can only be found in the deepest part of this ancient ruins." Pharmacist Li pointed to the depths of the ruins and said in a serious tone.

"Let's set off without delay!" Xia Lin said, and was about to pull Ren Xiaoyao.

"Wait," Pharmacist Li stopped her, his expression solemn. "The depths of the ruins are filled with dangers, and... the Soul-Purifying Grass is only a possibility. We are going there..."

Before he could finish his words, Ren Xiaoyao struggled to his feet and said with a determined look in his eyes, "I must survive! Lead the way!"