Chapter 477: Really Is There a God?

This sent a shiver down Wang Xinye's spine.

These doctors were people he had painstakingly gathered; if they were to simply vanish into the mountains, he would have no way to explain it back home. Just as Wang Xinye was frantic with worry, a voice suddenly crackled over the walkie-talkie:

"This is Search and Rescue Team Three. We've found something!"

Wang Xinye immediately grabbed his walkie-talkie. "Report," he said.

Meanwhile, at the foot of a mountain dozens of kilometers from the base, a figure in camouflage slowly crouched down. While observing tracks on the ground with his team members, he spoke in a deep voice:

"Based on the number of footprints and the weight of the supplies carried, these are the tracks of the expedition team... but how is that possible?"

"What do you mean?"

"This expedition team had a large number of people: nine doctors, a guide, and a fully-staffed armed escort team. An expedition of this size would definitely leave tracks, but here, we haven't found any signs of their arrival... It's as if..."

"As if what?"

"It's as if, after leaving the base, they suddenly traversed tens of kilometers and appeared here out of thin air."

Wang Xinye paused. "Are you saying... they instantly crossed dozens of kilometers of mountain terrain to reach the deepest part of Shennongjia?"

"That's how it appears right now."

The search and rescue captain stood up, his gaze following the direction of the many footprints. "We'll continue our search along these tracks."

Through the thick fog, the search and rescue team continuously advanced, following the expedition team's footprints. After an unknown duration of walking, a strong smell of blood filled their nostrils, and their expressions immediately turned grim.

Soon, a series of gruesomely mangled bodies appeared in their sight.

These bodies appeared to have been attacked by some kind of wild beast, with bite marks everywhere. Even more bizarrely, several bodies showed signs of burning, but in such deep mountains and old forests, what could possibly burn a person to such a state?

"We've found the bodies of the expedition team members," the captain reported, taking a deep breath before continuing. "The armed escort team responsible for their protection has been completely wiped out. All firearms show signs of having been fired; they were clearly involved in a fierce battle..."

"A battle? With whom?"

"We don't know. No other bodies were found at the scene... However, whatever their enemy was, it wasn't human."

"Were there any bodies of research personnel found at the scene?"

"No, the guide's body wasn't found either."

Hearing this, Wang Xinye breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"The survivors seem to have been scattered... We will divide into groups and follow their tracks to search. If all goes as expected, we should have results soon." The captain did not specify what "results" he anticipated, as given the grim scene before them, with the armed team annihilated, it was highly unlikely that a few unarmed, untrained researchers could have survived.

Under the captain's command, the search and rescue team split into three groups, beginning their search in different directions while maintaining contact via walkie-talkie.

What they didn't expect, however, was that the three groups, having set off in different directions, would eventually converge at the same location. As the captain led a few team members out of the woods and saw the sight before them, everyone's pupils involuntarily contracted.

On a barren clearing, a colossal crater, hundreds of meters long, looked as if a meteorite had crashed there. Cracks from the impact spread outwards like a shattered tortoise shell, and even the surrounding trees were uprooted.

Yet, within that terrifying crater, no meteorite was to be seen. Instead, nine figures floated in mid-air in nine distinctly bizarre poses, and an indescribable aura permeated the entire crater.

A crater with no meteorite, only nine people floating in the air?

At that moment, all members of Search and Rescue Team Three were stunned. Even the captain, who had seen much in his career, widened his eyes in disbelief, wondering if he was dreaming.

After a few seconds, the captain snapped back to reality and immediately spoke:

"What are you staring at?! Quick, save them!"

After speaking, he seemed to recall something else and turned to a team member. "Quick, photograph this scene."

Search and Rescue Team Three immediately sprang into action. A few members were assigned to photography, while the rest rushed to rescue the individuals, using climbing ropes to secure the nine figures in mid-air and gently lower them to the ground to check their vital signs.

The good news was that all nine people were alive; they were merely unconscious.

Upon receiving the report, Wang Xinye felt an intense sense of strangeness, yet secretly heaved a sigh of relief. Regardless, as long as they were alive, that was what mattered.

As the rescue team saved all nine individuals and began transporting them one by one out of Shennongjia on stretchers, the captain did not immediately leave. His gaze fell upon another large crater not far away, and he walked over to observe it closely.

"Captain, what's wrong?"

"Something's not right... The large one earlier was indeed a meteorite crater, but these pits here look like they were shelled... No, that's not quite right. The impact points aren't large; it's as if some extremely high-kinetic-energy, slender objects were forcefully driven into the ground, like..." The captain paused, visualizing in his mind, then spoke uncertainly,

"...a spear?"

"A spear?" The team member instinctively touched the pistol at his waist.

"Not that kind of 'gun.' I mean a polearm, like a spear." The captain surveyed their surroundings and quickly focused on a nearby small peak. "Let's go, we'll check it out from up there."

Under the captain's lead, the two quickly began climbing the small peak. As members of the search and rescue team, their physical fitness was excellent, and they reached the summit in no time.

Standing at the high vantage point, they took in the surrounding situation, and their mouths unconsciously gaped open...

There wasn't just one crater.

The cold mountain wind howled in their ears. The distant mountains appeared to have been riddled with holes, scattered with craters of all sizes. Even one peak had been swept clean through its center, leaving only a lone half-segment standing far off. As far as the eye could see, the entire mountain range was shattered...

It was as if a massive battle had recently occurred, shaking the earth and utterly destroying the terrain. In the distance, an entire mountain peak was even covered by strange plants, lending a magical quality to the scene.

"This... here..." the team member stammered in shock. "What happened? Have deities descended?"

The captain remained silent. His gaze seemed to detect something, just as a red, butterfly-shaped paper slip fluttered down from the clouds. He instinctively reached out and caught it. The next moment, the slip spontaneously combusted in his palm, vanishing instantly.

The captain froze. He immediately looked up at the sky.

Between the misty clouds, a figure in red emerged from countless red, butterfly-like paper fragments, stepping on the sea of clouds and walking through the air into the distance. He seemed to notice the captain's gaze and calmly glanced down.

Those were almond-shaped eyes, and a single glance sent the captain's mind into a momentary daze.

By the time he recovered and looked again, the figure in red had already moved through the sea of clouds and vanished without a trace.

"Could it be... that gods truly exist in this world?"