Suddenly, a tremendous force pulled at his left leg, almost dragging him out of the pit. Fortunately, some steel bars were jutting out inside the depression, and one of his arms got caught among them, preventing him from being pulled out.

Outside the pit, a monster had already pounced at the entrance, using its front claws... well, actually, it had a humanoid upper body, so it was using its hands to grab William Clark's severed leg, about to yank him out. But at the same time, two other monsters also lunged forward, interrupting the pulling motion, so William Clark was not dragged out of the pit just yet.

This was already the last second or two between life and death. William Clark's mind went blank with panic, and he frantically smashed the rubble in his hand against his left leg. Immediately after, the monster outside yanked his left leg hard with its hand. With a tearing sound, the leg, which had already been mostly broken and was only hanging by a bit of flesh, was ripped off at the knee. The excruciating pain was unbearable for William Clark, and he let out a miserable scream.

But this did nothing to deter the three monsters outside the pit. They began fighting over William Clark's severed lower leg. As soon as a monster grabbed the leg, it immediately pressed its human-like face to it and started gnawing. Though the faces were human, they were twisted and ferocious like demons.

There were more than a dozen monsters in total. While these three fought over the lower leg, the others, though they smelled the blood in the room, found the scent not strong in the small space. So, as the three monsters fought and bit, the rest continued down the corridor in pursuit.

At this point, William Clark was in so much pain that his mind was starting to blur, but he couldn't pass out. In a situation where every step meant life or death, he didn't dare lose consciousness. After smashing off his lower left leg, he immediately curled up the remaining thigh, which only intensified the pain. Blood spurted everywhere, and bone and flesh rubbed against the protruding steel bars, making William Clark scream even louder.

In just two or three seconds, William Clark's lower leg was devoured by the three monsters. Then, one of the monsters reached its hand into the pit, its claw blindly grabbing for the curled-up William Clark.

The claw was withered and pitch-black, but much larger than a normal human hand, with long, black nails. As it scratched around, sparks flew where its nails struck the steel bars. The monster's arm was also longer than a human's, about eighty centimeters. As it flailed, its nails actually managed to scratch William Clark's curled-up legs.

Although it couldn't get a firm grip to pull William Clark out of the pit, it still tore off quite a bit of flesh from his thighs.

This made William Clark scream even more miserably, and his cries and the scent of blood drove the three monsters outside into a frenzy. They howled and bit at each other, tumbling back and forth as they fought for the pit's entrance. All three wanted to tear William Clark apart and devour him alone.

William Clark was at the end of his rope, completely out of options. All he could do was force himself deeper into the pit and curl his legs up as tightly as possible, ignoring the pain. At this point, all he could do was desperately fight for his life—or gamble on it—hoping to survive in the pit until he could cross over again.

Gradually, the three monsters kept fighting, and some even tried to pry open the collapsed wall. But this wall was a load-bearing wall and pillar that had collapsed, forming the pit. Even the monsters couldn't move such weight easily, so the three continued to fight around the entrance. Occasionally, a monster would reach in and claw around, unable to pull William Clark out but leaving his legs a bloody mess.

Who knows if it was because of all the blood loss... Heaven knows why a soul after death could still bleed, but William Clark's consciousness began to blur. Though his mind was highly focused, he started to feel a fragmented sense of confusion, which terrified him even more. All he could do was stare fixedly at the pit's entrance, watching as the monsters occasionally reached their claws inside.

Gradually, just reaching in was no longer enough for the monsters. They grew more and more agitated, even starting to truly injure each other with claws and teeth. The three monsters actually began to fight in earnest. This made William Clark feel a sense of relief, but it didn't last long. The monsters must have their own rules for dealing with each other, because after a brief fight, two of them withdrew and left the room.

The one that remained was surely the strongest of the three.

William Clark thought this, and then saw the monster stick its face into the pit's entrance. To his disbelief, the monster's head stretched inward like a snake, its human face twisting and deforming, the mouth opening wider and wider, truly becoming like a human-faced serpent.

William Clark tried to squeeze himself further inside, but he had already reached the end. The monster's head extended at least eighty centimeters, leaving less than ten centimeters between it and his curled-up legs. William Clark could no longer hold back and shouted in terror, but the monster ignored him, simply opening its mouth wide and biting down on his severed thigh.