With a "perception" that Yu Sheng himself could not fully understand yet, he felt a connection established with the valley. His consciousness surged among the rocks and soil, traversing the shifting depths of the forest, immersing itself in the water and wind here. Then, through countless pairs of misshapen, twisted eyes, he observed the sky above the valley.

That giant eye, large enough to cover the entire sky, watched over the earth with calm indifference, unchanging from beginning to end, as if a non-human observer contemplated the goings-on within a petri dish.

But Yu Sheng could feel that the eye had noticed him— the moment he established a connection with the valley, that eye's gaze fell accurately upon his "body."

The eye was perplexed, curious. Even though it showed no emotion or "shift in gaze," Yu Sheng could almost directly "read" these thoughts—a massive "thought" vibrated through the space. Every stirring of its mind caused tempests here; however, ordinary people were unable to perceive these roars echoing in the Exotic Realm, and even Yu Sheng, with the perception of the entire Exotic Realm, only had a vague sense of cognitive activity behind that eyeball.

But strangely enough, Yu Sheng didn't feel any hostility from the eye—nor benevolence.

Then, after a while, he realized the eyeball's focus had shifted away from him, or rather, it was no longer surveying the entire valley but focused on a specific place within it.

The eyeball slowly swept over the land, as if tracking or searching for something.

And Yu Sheng's consciousness gradually diffused. In the next few minutes, he began to comprehend something...

The whole valley came to life, a weird and terrifying "vitality" turned this entire Exotic Realm into a hungry living creature.

Li Lin watched with his eyes wide as a row of sharp teeth sprouted on a distant ridge, terrifying gashes like trenches between them. Those rows of fangs undulated like waves, emitting a thunderous roar from their depths.

He also saw the forests on another part of the valley come to life. Black tendrils replaced the original trees there, spreading along the stone banks at the bottom of the valley, engulfing everything in its path like a swarm of predatory insects.

All of this unfolded under the ice-cold gaze of that colossal eye in the sky, bizarre and terrifying, like a nightmare.

Little Red Riding Hood's Wolf Pack howled around them, continuously snapping at and repelling those tentacles, eyestalks, and tongues emerging from the soil. However, no matter how hard the pack fought, the team's foothold kept shrinking.

The young Special Service Bureau Officer couldn't help but feel somewhat desperate. He looked ahead and saw the girl with a bundle of tails running at the forefront with the living doll in her arms. Bent over, she moved with incredible agility and speed even while carrying a burden, like a nimble wild beast in the mountains—and as a human, he was nearly unable to keep up with that "beast."

But at that moment, Hu Li finally slowed down.

Clutching Erin (and Erin's kitchen knife), she arrived at a recess at the foothill. Then, standing on a large rock, she stretched her neck to look around, her fuzzy large ears trembling slightly in the wind above the demon fox girl's head as if capturing every rustle around her. She then sniffed vigorously before finally focusing on a particular direction.

"Over here! The entrance is here!"

Before her words had even faded, she had already jumped down with Erin in her arms. Seeing this, the others hurriedly followed, running towards the mountain wall and finding an entryway that only two people could pass through.

"It's very spacious inside!"

Hu Li shouted back at the others and was already the first to squeeze into the cave.

The ethereal blue Fox Fire ignited out of thin air, floating from the tip of Hu Li's tail and rising into the air, illuminating the cave's interior.

It seemed to be nothing more than an ordinary primordial cave, likely an integral part of the mountain itself. Part of the wall bore marks of having been carved and expanded by hand. In a corner of the cave, there were also some rough and rudimentary utensils, clearly having been used by people living there for some time.

Xu Jiali took a palm-sized black device from her waist and scanned the cave cautiously, then spoke softly, "There's no poison, the material structure is stable, and there are no signs of erosion."

Little Red Riding Hood waved her hand, positioning a few wolves near the entrance. The other Shadow Wolves returned to her side, gradually blending into the shadows beneath her feet.

Hu Li carefully set Erin on a stone platform near the entrance, concern apparent on her face.

"You… are you okay?"

She pointed at Erin's broken arm and the not in a good state right leg.

By mere appearance, Erin's condition was downright miserable—only second to their recently departed Savior.

The demon fox girl clearly didn't understand much about "living dolls."

"It's okay, this body was only meant to be temporary. Some parts aren't sturdy," Erin seemed quite at ease, consoling Hu Li, "Don't worry, Yu Sheng will fix me up when we get back—this body is his handiwork. Hmm, although his craftsmanship is... so-so."

The demon fox girl's eyes widened slightly, "Savior sounds quite amazing?"

"...Maybe?" Erin hesitated while speaking, "Sometimes I even feel like he's not human. He has all these weird abilities and ideas..."

Mid-sentence, the doll girl seemed to sense something and suddenly looked up towards the entrance.

From this spot, she could barely see what was happening outside the entrance.

"What's the matter?" Hu Li asked curiously.

"Could you... hold me and take a look outside? Just at the entrance is fine," Erin spoke with hesitation, "I can't see the outside from here, and it doesn't sit well with me."

Hu Li was somewhat puzzled but didn't dwell on it, reaching out to pick up Erin and cautiously approached the entrance.

Erin stretched her neck from Hu Li's arms, daring to look up at the sky.

The giant eye still floated above the valley, its grand size resembling the structure of a pupil emerging from the sky itself, captivating and haunting.

"Can't help but feel... that this eye has been watching us since the beginning," Erin quickly pulled back her neck, muttering nervously, "Why hasn't Yu Sheng come back yet..."

Hu Li paused, lowering her gaze to the living doll cradled in her arms, "Savior, it's going to be okay, right?"

"He'll be fine," Erin lowered her voice, glancing back at the three "temporary allies" in the cave and whispered covertly to Hu Li, "Don't mention Yu Sheng's 'death' to them later, they should have already forgotten the relevant events by now."

Hu Li tilted her head curiously, her fluffy ears twitching twice, it was unclear if she understood.

Li Lin looked up curiously at the demon fox and doll hiding near the entrance of the cave. He frowned slightly, wondering if it was an illusion—he seemed to have missed something important during the mad dash here with those two, something very important that had unconsciously vanished from his mind.

He looked at Xu Jiali and Little Red Riding Hood nearby, but he saw no sign of unease on their faces.

At this moment, Xu Jiali was cautiously searching deep within the cave, while Little Red Riding Hood sat on a stone bench with arms crossed, her gaze fixed on the Shadow Wolves standing guard near the cave entrance.

Her red jacket was torn in the previous battle in the woods; one sleeve was shredded, leaving her entire right arm exposed. The arm was now covered in fine blood-red lines, as if the flesh had once been torn apart and was barely held together in its original form.

The blue Fox Fire burned silently at the top of the cave, casting Little Red Riding Hood's shadow on the ground. The shadow swayed and would occasionally distort abruptly into shapes akin to the wolves that emerged from the shadows.

The wailing and strange noises from the valley kept coming ceaselessly, making the quietude inside the cave seem more oppressive, more burdensome.

Li Lin stood up and approached Hu Li and Erin, who were guarding the cave entrance—he felt it was at least time to introduce himself.

But just as he was about halfway there, a bizarre noise abruptly made him stop in his tracks.

It was an irregular scraping sound, like the noise made by scraping and clashing teeth.

Then, his Spiritual Intuition suddenly gave a violent twitch.

Xu Jiali, who was inspecting the depths of the cave, and Little Red Riding Hood, sitting on the stone bench trying to stabilize herself, also instinctively looked up.

The "aura" in the valley had changed.

After another two or three seconds, an eerie silence fell outside the cave, so quiet it seemed the whole world had plunged into a hush.

But this silence lasted only a moment before strange scraping sounds and a different kind of whining from the previous chaotic howls again arose from outside. These sounds reached everyone's ears and became clearer and louder…

The fox sitting near the cave entrance stood up instantly, looking nervously outside, and Erin forcefully propped herself up on Hu Li's arm with her shattered limb, trying to check the situation outside the cave—when at that moment, the doll girl heard Yu Sheng's voice—"Erin."

"Yu Sheng?!" Erin was startled and quickly responded, "You're alive? Where are you now? Can you sense where I am? Quickly come through the door! We've found a safe hiding place, it's not safe outside, there's a big problem in the valley…"

However, before she could finish speaking, the voice in her mind interrupted her, "Don't panic, Erin—it'll be over soon."

Erin paused for a moment: "...What?"

The scraping sounds from the valley became denser than before.

Yu Sheng's voice continued to resound from the bottom of Erin's heart: "Erin, do you remember what happened when we connected to Hu Li through the Dream Realm, trying to find the 'frequency' of this valley with her perception?"

Of course, Erin remembered.

"You came into direct contact with the essence of 'Hunger', it took root in your mind!" the demon fox girl said urgently, "What, what's wrong?! Are you not going to make it?"

The scraping sounds in the valley grew denser, seemingly filling the entire Exotic Realm, and the disturbing noises echoed through the cave, making everyone's nerves tighten gradually.

Yet in Erin's heart, Yu Sheng's voice was calmer than ever.

"Don't worry, Erin, I'm fine, I just discovered something just now—"

Erin's eyes slowly widened, as she seemed to gradually discern what the echoed scraping noises were from the valley.

"Hunger has not taken root in my mind."

She heard Yu Sheng's voice in her heart.

She heard Yu Sheng's voice coming from throughout the valley.

"Instead, I have taken root in its depths."

And finally, she understood clearly—the sounds were of chewing, echoing throughout the valley.

The exalted feast began.

The entity, Hunger, that dwelt in this Exotic Realm, began to devour itself.

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