Chapter 61: I’m going to tear down this villa as soon as I get out!

Without their notice, the vines outside the villa seemed to have already crawled in through the open door.

Jing Qizhen’s figure wobbled slightly, as extreme drowsiness made his vision blur, and a large swath of shadow filled his sight.

Inside the villa, the vines began to crawl up the walls and chandeliers and their leaves swayed gently.

Jing Qizhen’s vision became hazy. He was unable to see the vines clearly but he could sharply sense that the entire space had turned a vibrant green, giving off a sense of vibrant beauty.

However, in the current unique environment, the rapidly growing vines, lush and dripping with greenery, only made him feel an eerie chill.

Jing Qizhen’s heart tightened and he immediately screamed in his mind, “Babyball! Help!”

The Earth froze for a moment. “Huh?”

Manman, struggling to hold onto her last bit of consciousness, slammed her body into a nearby coffee table and knocked over several glass wine glasses. With a series of sharp, crisp sounds, the others experienced a brief moment of clarity.

The shattered wine glasses fell to the ground and without the ability to support herself, Manman collapsed on top of them. Luckily, her clothes offered some protection but the back of her hand and wrist were scratched by the glass shards, revealing several fresh, red gashes.

Si Jiayang cried out in panic, “Manman!”

Despite also being extremely tired, for a moment, Si Jiayang couldn’t tell if he was awake or still dreaming. However, after yelling, he immediately collapsed onto the floor towards Manman.

He thought he had yelled loudly but in his exhausted state, his cry was barely audible, like a murmur in a dream.

Before Old Xiao fell, his eyes remained fixed on the room to try and take in all the surrounding details.

Gu Leshan, though new to the erosion area, had a sense of vigilance no less than anyone else present.

However, the sudden fatigue came without warning and it was unrelated to any dangers they had anticipated. Gu Leshan tried to keep his eyes open but couldn’t last two seconds before he also collapsed.

The just-arriving Earth saw several people already lying on the floor in disarray and its attention zoomed in on Manman who was injured due to the broken glasses. Immediately alarmed, the Earth shouted, “Jing Qizhen!”

Before Jing Qizhen’s last shred of consciousness disappeared, he finally heard the Earth’s familiar, deafening rumbles echo in his mind.

In a state of extreme drowsiness, the Earth’s call was far more intense than the last time.

Jing Qizhen’s mind had already gone blank but the Earth’s ear-shattering shout was like a thunderclap in the silent environment. It was much more frightening than someone blasting music in his ear while he was asleep.

It was like a celebration in a village, or a temple fair, with horns, suonas, gongs, drums, and erhu all playing loudly in a raucous, energetic melody beloved by the hardworking common people, creating a violent and overwhelming 3D background music in his mind.

Jing Qizhen’s body was still incredibly exhausted and it felt like even moving a finger was a difficult task.

However, after being bombarded by the Earth’s loud voice, his mind cleared up considerably.

He, too, collapsed from exhaustion, lying on the floor alone. But unlike the others, he didn’t fall into a deep sleep. Instead, he quickly spoke to the Earth in his mind, “Something’s wrong with this villa. As soon as we entered, everyone started feeling sleepy…”

The Earth immediately shouted in his mind, “Little Jing, whatever you do, don’t sleep! Don’t sleep, don’t sleep, don’t sleep!”

Jing Qizhen felt like there were thousands of ducks quacking in his head, loud and relentless.

Faced with the choice between falling unconscious in the next second, dead to the world, or being so annoyed that he wished to just drop dead on the spot, Jing Qizhen stubbornly chose the latter.

The Earth: “Don’t sleep, don’t sleep, don’t sleep! Little Jing, you have to hang in there! Aaaaah!”

The Earth kept rambling loudly, its voice growing more agitated, even letting out a drawn-out howl.

Exhausted to his core, Jing Qizhen still managed to respond with resilience, “…As long as you keep this up, I won’t be able to fall asleep.”

The Earth, feeling fully engaged, shouted excitedly, “I can do this! I’m capable! I CAN DO IT!”

Before meeting Jing Qizhen, the Earth had always been loud and self-entertaining. It was only after getting to know him that the Earth toned down its volume and spoke in a softer voice to avoid pushing Jing Qizhen to the brink of metaphorical death.

Of course, the Earth thought to itself, it was only natural to blast its voice freely when alone but speak more softly with friends. Nothing wrong with that logic!

The sudden changes inside the villa came swiftly and without warning. Meanwhile, Lu Lingxi and Jin Guijuan had just dragged the uncooperative Caroline across the yard for questioning and hadn’t noticed anything amiss in the villa.

However, Yan Hong and Wilcox, who were still in the yard, immediately sensed something was wrong when they heard the sharp sound of shattering glass, followed by the heavy thuds of people collapsing.

Yan Hong’s expression grew serious. Exchanging a quick look with Wilcox, he rushed to the villa entrance.

Wilcox, well aware of the gravity of the situation, acted with urgency. Having survived the perilous escape from Yunhai Wancheng Department Store with Jing Qizhen and his team, he trusted them far more than the fractured and distrustful group of other trapped individuals.

Of course, he also trusted his cousin, Joyce, given their blood relation.

Under the circumstances, Wilcox grabbed Joyce by his crumpled collar and urgently questioned him, “What’s going on inside the villa? Is there something else you haven’t told us?”

While gripping Joyce’s collar, Wilcox also shouted to Yan Hong, “Don’t go in yet!”

At the same time, Jing Qizhen, clinging to his last shred of consciousness, weakly moved his lips. “Stay away…”

Standing at the villa’s entrance, Yan Hong faintly heard Jing Qizhen’s weak voice. His expression turned grim.

He didn’t need the warning to know that barging in recklessly wouldn’t help and might only trap him too, further weakening their group’s strength.

Yan Hong quickly scanned the scene inside the villa. Judging by appearances, apart from Manman, the others didn’t seem to have any visible injuries.

Looking at their faces, aside from Jing Qizhen, who seemed to be enduring some inexplicable pain, the others didn’t look deathly pale. Instead, they seemed peacefully asleep, which brought him a small sense of relief.

Yan Hong took two steps back from the doorway and turned to Wilcox, speaking in a low voice, “They’ve all suddenly fallen unconscious for some unknown reason!”

Meanwhile, the Earth was still passionately shouting in Jing Qizhen’s mind.

The Earth: “Little Jing, Little Jing, Little Jing! Don’t sleep, don’t sleep, don’t sleep! Mushroom hotpot! Tomato hotpot! Seafood hotpot! Double-flavored hotpot! Chocolate fondue! Sweet potato, potato, wide noodles, brain flower, pork, beef, lamb, fish balls, shrimp balls, tofu, frozen tofu, tripe, lotus root, shiitake mushrooms, drumstick mushrooms, king oyster mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, chrysanthemum greens, veggie platters, aaaaaah!”

Jing Qizhen: “…”

With the Earth’s constant chants in his mind, Jing Qizhen managed to stay awake. However, he felt as if his eardrums were on the verge of collapse.

He was a hair’s breadth away from a full breakdown.

It felt as though he was trapped in a construction site, surrounded by deafening noise from all directions. In such a situation, Jing Qizhen couldn’t catch a single word of the conversation happening outside the villa between Yan Hong and Wilcox.

He even began to reflect. Maybe instead of listening to the Earth recite a hotpot menu, he should suggest it learn the art of announcing dishes, or perhaps he might as well just pass out completely.

Between collapsing into unconsciousness and being driven insane by the noise, Jing Qizhen stubbornly chose the latter. But now, he faintly felt he might have been struggling in the wrong direction all along…

Meanwhile, Joyce, who had been shaken by Wilcox like a wobbling doll and was now on the verge of puking, struggled to explain, “I don’t know anything! I didn’t do anything! Cousin Wilcox, we just came out of there. If there really was something inside, we wouldn’t have made it out alive!”

Wilcox let go of Joyce’s collar, cursed anxiously, and spun in place, muttering to himself, “Yes, you all came out fine, so why is the villa suddenly behaving like this now?”

Back in the Yunhai Wancheng Department Store erosion area, at least there was some warning—a distorted, crackling broadcast and the shift to night mode—before things took a turn for the worse. But here, the sudden crisis erupted without any sign, leaving them all at a loss.

Professor Jones’s eyes flashed with a hint of confusion, unable to understand what new danger might have arisen inside the villa.

McCain frowned but remained silent.

Jin Guijuan noticed the commotion and kept glancing back.

Caroline, on the other hand, scoffed mockingly. “Seasoned experts, huh?”

Lu Lingxi’s face turned ashen, clearly deeply worried about Jing Qizhen but hesitant to confront Caroline directly.

Though Jin Guijuan couldn’t understand Caroline’s words, she could read Lu Lingxi’s expression. Without hesitation, she stumbled intentionally and crashed into Caroline.

As Caroline screamed sharply from the sudden fall, Lu Lingxi swiftly grabbed her arm and yanked her back, so forcefully it was nearly enough to dislocate her shoulder. Bruises in the shape of Lu Lingxi’s grip quickly formed on Caroline’s wrist.

Jin Guijuan stared at Caroline and spoke deliberately, “If you’re not the culprit, then in this dangerous area, we’re all in the same boat. I suggest you figure out your priorities!”

After saying so, Jin Guijuan noticed Caroline’s furious and terrified expression and suddenly remembered that Caroline didn’t understand Chinese. Turning to Lu Lingxi, she smiled sheepishly. “Could you translate for me, Little Lu?”

Lu Lingxi gave her a discreet thumbs-up before coldly relaying the message to Caroline.

As it became clear that something was wrong with Jing Qizhen, the housemaid’s emotions spiraled out of control again. Covering her face with her hands, she shook her head violently, sobbing as she wailed, “We’re all going to die! Everyone’s going to die!”

Amidst the chaos, Yun Shuanghua had quietly approached. Glancing at Wilcox outside and Yan Hong at the door, he blinked once before stepping into the villa without a word and reached Jing Qizhen’s side. He bent down slightly and asked, “Do you need help?”

Jing Qizhen, enduring both the Earth’s relentless chatter in his mind and the overwhelming exhaustion of his body, faintly heard his voice through the mental echo. Forcing his eyes open, he saw Yun Shuanghua’s stoic face tinged with curiosity, along with a stale baguette in his hand.

Jing Qizhen: “…”

This scene was utterly absurd.

The Earth, noticing Yun Shuanghua’s arrival, abruptly stopped its mental noise.

The Earth: “Eh? Eh? Eh? Why did he suddenly come in?”

Jing Qizhen instinctively closed his eyes again, his thoughts barely coherent as he asked, “Why isn’t he asleep like the others?”

The Earth: “No idea! Weren’t Wilcox’s cousin and his group staying in the villa for days without passing out too?”

Yun Shuanghua squatted down halfway and lightly patted Jing Qizhen’s face. “Are you awake? Are you okay?”

Jing Qizhen could even smell the baguette’s scent from his proximity.

The Earth seized the moment to shout, “JING QIZHEN!!!”

Jing Qizhen, under the continuous mental explosion: “…”

With great difficulty, he moved his lips, his voice barely audible. “Drag me out of here.”

I swear, the moment I get out, I’m tearing this villa apart! To hell with this investigation!

Yun Shuanghua nodded, stuffed the baguette into Jing Qizhen’s hand, and effortlessly scooped him up in a princess carry.