Lieutenant Marcus quickly surveyed the surrounding situation.

Currently, everyone was at the foot of the hill, with a pitch-black, unlit forest behind them.

Just a glance was enough to send chills down his spine, as if something terrifying was lurking within the forest.

At this point, they seemed to have no choice but to head up the mountain.

Seeing Zhang Songkang’s body about to reform, Lieutenant Marcus pondered for a moment before saying loudly, "Let’s go up the mountain!"

With that, he waved his hand and led his Eagle Country soldiers up the hill.

Diego and Kalu hesitated slightly.

But given the current dangerous situation, no one but these Eagle Country soldiers could assure their safety.

So, they quickly made a decision to follow Lieutenant Marcus and the others up the mountain.

The group began ascending along the winding, rugged mountain path.

But they hadn’t gone far when they noticed people quickly emerging from the previously smoke-free huts.

These people were identical to Zhang Songkang below, with red glowing eyes, filled with hunger for food.

If Yan Tong were here, he’d recognize these red-eyed people as those whose bodies had been bitten in half by stone lions before the second door.

"Fuck! These are all monsters!"

At a glance, Lieutenant Marcus knew these red-eyed people were man-eating monsters.

He hurriedly reloaded his beloved gun and urged everyone to speed up.

At the same time, the red-eyed people frenziedly rushed toward them.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Lieutenant Marcus pulled the trigger.

The other Eagle Country soldiers immediately started firing at the red-eyed people.

In just a few dozen seconds, these red-eyed people were torn apart by the bullets, turning into chunks of flesh.

But soon, just like Zhang Songkang earlier, their severed limbs turned to blood and then reformed into human shapes.

This sight almost drove Lieutenant Marcus and the others mad.

These monsters couldn’t be destroyed by physical means; no matter what bullets or grenades did to them, they’d quickly come back to life.

"Hurry up!"

Lieutenant Marcus knew well not to entangle with these monsters.

Otherwise, once they ran out of ammunition, they’d all die here.

"Ah... Ah... Ah..."

During the rapid ascent, many encountered attacks from the red-eyed people.

After revival, the red-eyed people’s speed kept increasing.

Those who were slightly slow were either grabbed or bitten.

Some had their arms bitten off.

Some had their thighs bitten off.

Others had their heads bitten off.

Those with bitten-off arms gritted their teeth through the pain and kept climbing.

But those with bitten-off thighs could only wait to die on the spot.

As for those who lost their heads, they avoided a lot of trouble...

The screams were unending.

But as Lieutenant Marcus and the others reached halfway up the hill, the red-eyed people didn’t follow.

This rare moment offered everyone a chance to catch their breath.

"Huff... Huff... Huff..."

Lieutenant Marcus panted heavily.

Everyone’s faces were pale and bloodless, filled with deep fear.

It was as if their sweat was raining down to the ground.

After catching their breath for a while, Lieutenant Marcus started counting heads.

Originally, he led a special operations squad of twenty-eight.

Now, only sixteen remained.

This meant twelve died from red-eyed monster attacks as they climbed.

Diego, who accompanied him as a guide, had already lost half an arm.

Thankfully, Diego reacted promptly, cutting off the bitten half-arm with a knife.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have made it here.

As for Kalu’s five-member live-streaming group, only two were left.

The stylish youth, fat youth, and long-haired girl stayed at the foot of the mountain forever.

Only Kalu and Cao Rui narrowly escaped.

Their bodies, however, bore various bite marks and scrapes.

"Fuck! What kind of place is this!"

After the head count, Lieutenant Marcus cursed angrily, eyes red with rage.

Their mission was to investigate the Blood-colored Divine Temple’s interior.

But entering the temple’s door led them inexplicably to a mountain village.

Even before understanding the basics, they’d already lost half their team.

"Perhaps we shouldn’t have come in!"

Diego lamented with a pale face after bandaging his wounds.

He was curious where Lieutenant Hussein and others who ventured into the temple had gone?

Were they eaten by those red-eyed humanoid monsters?

Or did they go elsewhere?

Once almost recovered, Lieutenant Marcus surveyed the surroundings.

Similar to the situation below, this halfway point featured a cluster of huts.

But unlike before, smoke now billowed from these huts.

As dusk set in, faint glows could be seen inside some huts.

"The red-eyed humanoid monsters we encountered all emerged from smoke-free huts."

"Perhaps smoking huts indicate safety?"

After observing, Lieutenant Marcus sought Diego’s opinion.

"Maybe!"

Diego noticed the same but was unsure.

Initially, they planned to knock on smoking huts.

But they were interrupted by Zhang Songkang before they could.

Then they were tricked by Zhang Songkang.

Subsequent red-eyed humanoid monsters mirrored Zhang Songkang’s case.

They all emerged from smoke-free huts, cruel and bloodthirsty, intending to devour them whole.

As for smoking huts, they always remained quiet.

But this didn’t mean smoking huts were completely safe...

"I’ll go knock and see what’s going on with those huts!"

Sighing lightly, Diego got up and slowly moved toward one smoking hut.

Lieutenant Marcus glanced at him, saying nothing more.

At the hut door, Diego knocked softly.

No answer.

He knocked again.

Still no answer.

"No one?"

He frowned at the lack of response.

Then, boldly, he pushed open the door and peered inside.

The hut’s interior was small, about thirty to forty square meters.

A campfire burned centrally, its smoke drifting out through top ducts.

Diego scanned thoroughly, finding no sign of people inside.

"Curious, who lit this fire if no one’s here?"

Puzzled, he quickly went to the next hut.

He repeated the process, pushing open the door, yet it was still empty...