Source of Pollution

"Die?" Hearing Xiao Tian's words, Ye Chuan just tilted his head slightly and checked Xiao Tian's arm.

"Hiss." Xiao Tian showed a pained expression. Obviously, the pain radiating from her arm made it almost impossible for her to support her body and stand up.

It seemed that just as the middle-aged man had said, after being drenched in the black rain, the body would inevitably start to turn black and rot, eventually turning the whole person into a mud-like monster.

Is this a toxin?

Ye Chuan looked at Xiao Tian, whose small face was deathly pale. He reached out his hand and placed it right on her forehead.

"My head... why are you touching my head?" Xiao Tian's breathing grew weaker, a bit confused.

"Oh, it's nothing. Touching a patient's forehead first is a method passed down from our ancestors, it cannot be changed." Ye Chuan said casually, then fumbled around in his spatial backpack.

Finally, Ye Chuan took out a pill for treating toxins. This kind of pill could cure the vast majority of poisons. Regardless, he decided to try it first.

Xiao Tian saw the pill in Ye Chuan's hand. It was translucent white, with a faint luster on its surface. As soon as it was taken out, a clear and mellow medicinal fragrance spread out.

Xiao Tian's already weak breathing became slightly brisker the moment she smelled the fragrance, and even the pain in her arm seemed to lessen a bit.

"Open your mouth." Ye Chuan raised his hand and brought the pill to Xiao Tian's lips.

Xiao Tian subconsciously opened her mouth. As soon as the pill entered, it turned into a sweet, warm current that slid down her throat without the slightest grainy feel, leaving a sweet aftertaste.

"This..."

"It's fine, just eat it."

Xiao Tian's originally cold and stiff body instantly warmed up, and the burning pain in her arm was relieved significantly. Her pale little face gained a trace of rosiness.

But this comfort did not last long. Xiao Tian felt a piercing itch from her arm. She looked down—

Only to see that on the part of her arm drenched by the black rain, the black patterns were still slowly spreading. It was just at a slower speed than before, and the rotting trend of her skin was temporarily stabilized.

"Huh, the antidote pill didn't work?" Ye Chuan frowned. It seemed this wasn't an ordinary toxin.

He didn't hesitate and turned to rummage through his backpack again, taking out several pills of different colors one after another, and then shoved them all toward Xiao Tian's mouth.

"Here, eat them all."

"So many..."

"If you want to die, you don't have to eat them." Ye Chuan curled his lips.

If you weren't Gua's daughter, I wouldn't even bother saving you.

Although Xiao Tian was a bit bewildered, she obediently opened her mouth and swallowed the pills one by one.

Each pill had a different taste upon entering her mouth, but they all melted instantly, turning into warm currents of different colors surging through her body.

Soon, Xiao Tian looked like a traffic light, emitting red light one moment and green light the next.

Her complexion didn't look too good either, but ultimately, no major problems occurred.

Ye Chuan observed Xiao Tian's condition.

But whether it was the antidote pill, healing pill, or blood-clearing pill, they could only temporarily stabilize Xiao Tian's condition and could not stop the black patterns from spreading.

"Huh? Could it not be a toxin..." He stroked his chin and suddenly thought of a possibility.

Could the falling black rain not be a toxin?

"Maybe it's a curse?"

Ye Chuan took out a Curse-Breaking Pill. This pill did not have a strong medicinal fragrance, only carrying a faint earthy smell.

He stuffed the pill into Xiao Tian's mouth. "Try this one."

After entering her mouth, the Curse-Breaking Pill turned into a cool stream of air. Unlike the previous warm currents, this stream of air headed straight for the black patterns on her arm!

Xiao Tian only felt the itchiness and burning pain on her arm instantly disappear. The blackness faded, and the rotten parts of her skin gradually scabbed and fell off, revealing tender new flesh underneath.

"This..." Xiao Tian raised her arm in pleasant surprise, watching the black patterns completely vanish and her skin return to its original fairness. She moved her arm in disbelief, feeling no pain at all.

"I... I'm fine? I didn't turn into a monster?"

She looked up, her eyes instantly turning red. The fear and grievance she had accumulated earlier erupted all at once, but she was too agitated to speak for a moment.

Ye Chuan hummed in acknowledgment. "It seems the black rain isn't a toxin, but a curse. This Curse-Breaking Pill can suppress it."

He shoved a few Curse-Breaking Pills into Xiao Tian's hand. "Here, keep them safe."

"A curse?" Xiao Tian froze for a moment, took the Curse-Breaking Pills, carefully put them away, and then nodded vigorously.

"Thank you, Brother Cai Kun!"

"Alright, now that we know roughly what the black rain is, there's no need to worry anymore."

Ye Chuan hoisted the iron door panel onto his shoulder and stuffed his greatsword into his spatial backpack.

"Focus on the journey. Even if you get corrupted, just take a pill. It's a bit of a hassle, but it'll make do."

Xiao Tian followed behind him, touching the Curse-Breaking Pills in her pocket, feeling much more at ease. It was just that the thought of relying on popping pills to travel felt a bit weird.

But thinking about it carefully, in this black rain apocalypse, having a way to save one's life was already pretty good.

The two set off on the road again. Ye Chuan still carried the door panel to block the rain. They occasionally encountered some small monsters, which Ye Chuan easily dispatched.

The journey was fairly smooth.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, a massive silhouette gradually emerged in the rain ahead.

As they got closer, the silhouette became clearer. It was a giant city. Its walls towered into the clouds but had long been eroded and mottled by the black rain.

The stone walls were covered in black-green mildew and dark-purple slime. The walls had collapsed in many places, revealing pitch-black voids inside that looked like hideous wounds.

"This is the Royal City?" Ye Chuan took a look. It was quite different from the Royal City of the Hill Empire in his memory.

It seemed it was indeed just a coincidence.

The surroundings of the city were terrifyingly silent. There were no human voices, nor the roars of monsters.

The sound of the black rain smashing against the walls and the ground was monotonous and oppressive, like a giant tomb shrouded in endless darkness.

The entire Royal City was soaked in the black rain, emitting a heavy, foul stench of decay and an aura of despair. There was not a trace of vitality, feeling like the dead silence and desolation of the apocalypse.

"I feel like the black rain has gotten heavier since we got here..." Ye Chuan muttered.

As if discovering something, he looked toward a certain spot.

"Could the black rain be caused by this place?"

In the center of the Royal City, a continuous stream of black substance surged out from beneath the ground, shooting straight into the sky.

The black substance seemed alive, rolling and condensing in the air, merging with the black rain above, making the rain curtain over the Royal City thicker and darker than anywhere else.

As the black substance spewed out, it was accompanied by a low humming sound. The sound seemed to come from deep underground, carrying a heart-palpitating oppressive force that made one's scalp tingle.

Sure enough...

The formation of the black rain was probably related to the black substance spewing out of the Royal City.

He turned his head to look at Xiao Tian beside him.

"Gua, Tian Xiaotian, disappeared here?"

Xiao Tian followed Ye Chuan's gaze. When she saw the black substance in the center of the Royal City, her body couldn't help but shiver, her eyes filled with fear and unease.

She nodded forcefully, a slight tremble in her voice: "The last time Mother contacted me, she said she was heading to the altar at the center of the royal city to deal with the source of the corruption... I haven't been able to reach her since then..."

Ye Chuan's gaze fell on the black substance once more—the source of the corruption was likely connected to this very matter.

The black rain continued to pour. The deathly silence of the royal city stood in stark contrast to the eerie nature of the black substance at its center.

Hoisting the door panel onto his shoulder, Ye Chuan strode toward the desolate royal city: "Let's go in and take a look."

Xiao Tian hurried to keep up, gripping the hem of Ye Chuan's clothes tightly.

The moment they stepped into the royal city, an even thicker stench of rot and a suffocating sense of oppression washed over them, as if countless unseen eyes had suddenly turned their way.