The corpse lying on the ground, from its physique and appearance, even down to an inconspicuous black mole on the side of its earlobe, was identical to Chen Bugu.
Watching himself die before his eyes, this scene was truly too bizarre.
But Chen Bugu quickly reacted; at this moment, he was merely inside the Free Secret Realm, and everything before him might just be an illusion constructed by the Secret Realm.
Although he didn't understand why this Secret Realm would create a scene of his own death, Chen Bugu suppressed his discomfort and prepared to investigate.
As for the faint cries for help from the adjacent carriage, they were no longer a priority compared to the scene before him.
Chen Bugu dismantled the toilet door to allow for a more thorough observation.
“His” death was not particularly gruesome; apart from a crimson dagger piercing his heart, there were no other signs of struggle on his body.
From this, it seemed “he” was killed with a single blow.
An ambush? Perhaps.
But judging by the terrified expression left on “his” face before death, it could be inferred that the enemy who killed “him” possessed overwhelming strength.
The crimson Flame Dagger in the chest still burned with fierce flames, and the dagger's hilt was an extreme pure black, revealing no information.
Chen Bugu enveloped his right palm with Rin Water, then firmly gripped the hilt.
Instantly, the flames on the blade seemed to be stimulated, burning fiercely as if encountering boiling oil.
For the first time, Rin Water lost its suppressive effect.
Chen Bugu watched as the out-of-control fire element rapidly spread, surging from the blade into “his” corpse.
Not only that, but Rin Water seemed provoked, spontaneously gushing from Chen Bugu's body to contend with the intense flames, clashing against each other.
A large amount of steam permeated the narrow space.
Seeing that the area could no longer withstand such violent energy collision, Chen Bugu quickly retreated a step and condensed the Rin Water, covering his body.
The out-of-control flames, having lost their opponent, instantly incinerated the entire toilet, engulfing Chen Bugu's “own” corpse along with it.
A minute later, the flames gradually dissipated, and the entire toilet was completely gone.
Through the burnt-through floor, Chen Bugu could even see the black scorched earth beneath the train, with remnants of sparks still clinging to it.
As for Chen Bugu's corpse, it instantly completed its “cremation” service, leaving no trace.
The only thing left was the dagger that had originally been plunged into “his” chest.
The crimson blade, now cooled, revealed a pure black color consistent with the hilt, while scattered sparks adhered to it, giving the blade a strange beauty.
“Extreme Fire?”
Chen Bugu frowned, realizing that the flames previously burning on the black dagger were likely some form of Extreme Fire, otherwise, it couldn't have contended with Rin Water.
The owner of those flames must be the culprit who killed “him.”
Chen Bugu jumped down and stood on the scorched earth, a scorching aura assailing him.
Although the black dagger was no longer crimson, it still emitted astonishing heat.
He wrapped his palm in Rin Water, then picked it up.
Tearing a corner from his clothes, he wanted to wipe the blade, but as soon as the cloth touched the blade, it spontaneously combusted, eventually turning into ashes.
At the same time, information about this weapon appeared in Chen Bugu's mind.
【Tempered Flame Dagger】: Green-grade weapon, Strength +10, Fire Element Affinity +5, Fire Element Immunity +5, comes with the skill “Quenching Fire.”
“Quenching Fire”: The blade is imbued with fire elements, launching a flaming strike. Upon hitting a target, it releases a small-range fire element explosion. The explosion damage ignores friend or foe. Required Spirit: 10, Skill Cooldown: 30 seconds, Skill Activation Prerequisite: Fire Element Affinity > 20.
Chen Bugu merely glanced at the “Quenching Fire” skill and understood why this weapon provided the Fire Element Immunity +5 attribute.
Explosion damage ignores friend or foe?
The “Quenching Fire” skill was clearly suited for a desperate, “kill a thousand enemies, lose eight hundred of your own” fighting style.
For some reason, a scene suddenly flashed in Chen Bugu's mind: Wang Bin opening his arms, embracing a Mulin Tribe member, and then transforming into a man of fire.
Although that guy might not like “dagger” type weapons, he would ask him about it later.
Thinking this, Chen Bugu used Rin Water to freeze the 【Tempered Flame Dagger】 and then threw it into his storage ring.
Due to the intense burning of the flames, the outer surface of the other side of the toilet had also turned into charcoal. Chen Bugu gently touched it. The black charcoal instantly crumbled, and he was able to see the outside scenery through it.
Outside the train, scorched earth was everywhere, and countless battles raged.
In the distance, several humans and enemies shrouded in black mist were locked in a fierce struggle.
Turbid smoke drifted with the wind, blood stained the ground, and severed limbs flew.
Hot weapons clashed with cold weapons, the sound of metal striking metal mixed with explosions, and fighter jets soared in the sky, dropping bombs.
Then, a black lightning bolt streaked across the sky, accurately striking a fighter jet.
The fighter jet, trailing black smoke, fell to the distant earth, accompanied by a flash of fire and a roar, leaving a final tremor on the land.
War!
A war between Human Awakened and unknown enemies!
Chen Bugu retreated back into the carriage and quickly followed the faint cry for help.
He suddenly realized that it was the closest source of information to him.
The adjacent carriage was even more severely damaged, with many compartments collapsed, making it almost unrecognizable as a passenger carriage.
Chen Bugu followed the sound to the middle of the carriage and found the source of the voice beneath a pile of debris.
It was a very thin-looking man with a long face, narrow glabella, and sparse eyebrows.
He was pinned under a pile of scrap metal, seemingly severely injured, his eyes unfocused, calling out weakly, his voice growing fainter.
Chen Bugu quickly lifted the heavy objects pressing on him and dragged the man out.
Previously, because he was pinned, Chen Bugu couldn't observe the man's overall condition well.
After dragging him out, he discovered that the man had a large penetrating wound in his abdomen; the blood seeping from the wound had completely stained his clothes crimson.
Seeing his face grow paler, Chen Bugu had no choice but to take out external medicinal powder from his storage ring, apply it evenly to the wound, and feed him an ordinary recovery pill.
The man's injury was not fatal; the main problem was excessive blood loss.
Now, after taking the recovery pill, his complexion had noticeably improved.
“Are you alright?”
As Chen Bugu spoke, he instinctively began to search the other person, hoping to obtain some useful information or items.
Unfortunately, the thin man had nothing on him except for a set of ragged clothes and a small radar-like instrument.
And on that radar, countless red dots were currently displayed.
One of the red dots seemed to be approaching them in a straight line.
“Beep, beep, beep…”
The radar-like instrument suddenly sounded an alarm.
Something was approaching!
“Run, quick, run…”
The thin man struggled to get up, but before he could stand steady, he was sent flying by a gust of air.
Behind them, the carriage's only intact windshield was kicked in.
An uninvited guest had entered the carriage.