Chapter 285: Are You Really Ignoring Me?
"You two, come back!"
"Come back!"
Watching as Jiang Che and Ding Ning’s figures walked farther away, the Dark Mother Plant was instantly enraged.
The Dark Mother Plant’s shrill voice seemed to tear through the entire dungeon; that sound was like a sharp blade stabbing straight into all directions, brimming with endless fury and resentment.
Jiang Che immediately noticed that the residents in the living area were clutching their ears in pain, their faces full of agony and terror; some even collapsed to the ground, unable to endure the unbearable noise, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.
Realizing what was happening, he snapped his fingers lightly, and the sound was completely cut off on their end.
An invisible barrier instantly formed, blocking out the harsh noise entirely.
The residents who had been tormented by the pain suddenly felt the world quiet down; they slowly lowered their hands from their ears, the look of suffering on their faces gradually fading away.
Ding Ning glanced back at the Mother Plant, which, apart from seething in rage, did nothing else. A strange look flickered in her eyes.
She had only been testing by leaving, but she hadn’t expected that the Mother Plant really wouldn’t give chase.
After just a glance, she looked away.
"It seems this thing still has a lot of uses left," Ding Ning muttered as she walked, lost in thought.
They had just turned a corner when Jiang Che saw Xiong Jie charging toward them like a gust of wind.
His steps were hurried and anxious, his eyes full of worry and unease.
Seeing Jiang Che, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders.
"I heard some noise over there just now, so I wanted to come check what happened." Xiong Jie said breathlessly as he patted his chest, seeming to try and calm his racing heart.
Just now, he couldn’t find Jiang Che, and everyone nearby had collapsed in pain under that piercing scream.
With Jiang Che absent, Xiong Jie was the only one who could take charge in the territory; he wasn’t the strongest, but he was the de facto dungeon leader when Jiang Che wasn’t around.
Now seeing Jiang Che, he finally felt at ease.
In his mind, as long as Jiang Che was there, everything would be fine.
Just as he finished speaking, he caught sight of Ding Ning beside Jiang Che.
They had always been inside the dungeon and didn’t know the passage had already opened.
But with just one look, Xiong Jie immediately realized who the woman next to Jiang Che was.
He had never actually seen Ding Ning’s face—every time before, she always shrouded herself in a mist.
You could say that apart from Jiang Che, no one had truly seen what Ding Ning looked like.
Now, with just a glance, he knew who she was. Although Jiang Che seemed a bit dense sometimes, Xiong Jie knew very well that Jiang Che always operated alone, and there were rarely any women by his side.
If there was an unfamiliar woman next to Jiang Che, then she had to be the Lord herself.
"Since it’s settled, I won’t get in the way," Xiong Jie said, turning without hesitation, ready to hurry off.
"Wait." Ding Ning’s clear voice rang out, calling him back.
Xiong Jie turned obediently like a docile sheep, head hanging low, not daring to look up at Ding Ning.
Ding Ning simply reached a hand toward him, and instantly, Xiong Jie felt something being slowly stripped from inside his body. "I promised to remove it for you before."
What she extracted was the seed she’d left in Xiong Jie’s body. The seed she left behind was only for monitoring and wouldn’t consume the host as the Dark Star’s would.
The sensation of the energy being pulled away was clear—Xiong Jie could distinctly feel an alien energy inside him rapidly dissolving.
He was a bit stunned. Previously, seeing that no one else had been controlled, he’d felt anxious inside.
He felt as though he was the only one being isolated, bound by some mysterious force, while others were free.
But ever since Ding Ning had asked him to help collect salt, he’d figured things out.
It was just his own overthinking. People need to be bonded and entangled. That layer of control was simply a sign of being one of her own people.
Now, Ding Ning kept her promise and came over to remove it all.
"All done!" Ding Ning called out, withdrawing her hand.
Xiong Jie still kept his head down, silent.
He didn’t really feel any obvious changes in his body, just that when he breathed just now, it felt like he’d exhaled a breath of foul air.
But when that "foul air" was in his body, he never really felt like it affected him in any real way.
Seeing Xiong Jie’s mood seemed a bit unsettled, Jiang Che patted his shoulder. "Why don’t you come over to my place for dinner tonight, bring Feihu and Zhou Ang along."
"If there’s nothing going on in the dungeon, don’t go inside for now. There’s something in there now." Jiang Che could guarantee the Dark Mother Plant wouldn’t break out, but he couldn’t guarantee that malicious thing wouldn’t swallow anyone who got too close.
Xiong Jie nodded hard. Just a moment ago, his heart had felt empty.
It was as if he’d finally earned some trust, only to lose it again.
"There’s one other thing to announce to everyone." Jiang Che said with a smile to Xiong Jie, "From now on, anyone from our dungeon can go straight into the Dark Forest—no need for any special items."
Xiong Jie froze, his face filled with disbelief.
You know, anyone below Tier Thirteen who entered the Dark Forest would only find death—unless they took a bus made from the forest itself or followed behind someone Tier Thirteen or above, relying on their protection to barely survive inside.
But now Jiang Che was saying that everyone could move freely in the Dark Forest?!
"Even zero-tier ordinary people?" Xiong Jie’s voice carried barely-contained excitement. He couldn’t imagine the uproar this news would cause once it got out.
Many people’s families had already started arriving, but this new batch was different—they were mostly just ordinary folk.
They didn’t have great strength or special powers. In this era where death could come at any moment, they were terribly vulnerable.
"Yes, they can." Jiang Che nodded again. "Just don’t go back into the dungeon easily; there’s something in there now."
Xiong Jie nodded; just now, he’d come to investigate what that piercing noise in the dungeon was.
Now, hearing that everyone could move freely in the Dark Forest, he immediately realized whatever was inside must be connected to the forest.
But no matter what it was, all he knew was that everything came with high risks and high rewards.
With Jiang Che warning them to stay out—and that terrifying scream from before—it was clear that whatever was in there was no friend.
"Stay safe," Xiong Jie took a deep breath. He wasn’t worried for his own life, just offering a kind warning.