Frightening Joke: Above the Mist

Bai Yanliang was not joking.

He turned to glance at Ye City, this place, this world... to him, it was like a fleeting dream.

Even though he had no emotions before, he would occasionally wonder at the bottom of his heart, why am I like this? Am I sick?

He had long known he was different from normal people, but he never imagined that his origin was so peculiar.

But... the instigator of all this was him.

It was Zhou Tian, who had already fused with the giant residue.

However, there was still one thing Bai Yanliang couldn't figure out until now.

Why could Zhou Tian remain conscious while merging with these residues?

How exactly did he manage it?

He was not a lifeform of the Fog Realm, nor did he have the ability to alter matter with willpower. After all, he was a human through and through.

How exactly did he manage it?

Controlling his body with consciousness, Bai Yanliang came to the Fog Realm Mother Tree.

Compared to this massive tree, he seemed utterly insignificant, like a wave in the ocean.

At this moment, the roots of the Mother Tree were wrapping around the giant residue, frantically absorbing its enormous energy.

But its own trembling grew more violent, as if it could collapse at any moment.

"You are mad." Zhou Tian no longer said much. He knew he was powerless to stop Bai Yanliang, and it was impossible to change Bai Yanliang's mind.

For him, the only solution now was to devour the world even more feverishly; as long as the energy he absorbed exceeded what the Fog Realm Mother Tree absorbed, he still had a chance.

By then, even if the sky were to fall, even if the world were to collapse, he could still complete his plan, though a significant portion of the energy would be lost, but this plan had a lot of margin built in.

It would be enough for him alone... enough.

As Zhou Tian finished speaking, just as the giant insect increased its devouring speed, he heard a teeth-gritting noise coming from all around.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out that Bai Yanliang was controlling the Fog Realm Mother Tree to grow blood-red vines that were reaching toward him.

Once wrapped by these vines, Zhou Tian would no longer stir up any waves.

Zhou Tian realized the danger too; Bai Yanliang was clearly desperate. He harbored no illusions. The residual shed giant insect suddenly "shattered," shrinking by at least a tenth, though it looked much weaker, but it escaped the confines of the Fog Realm Mother Tree's roots instantly.

Meanwhile, the shed outer layer became the best tool to fend off Bai Yanliang.

A dazzling layer of residual shed armor shattered in the whistling wind, reverting to a humanoid state, and lunged fiercely at Bai Yanliang!

Bai Yanliang floated in mid-air, his expression unchanged, but a trace of understanding flickered in his eyes.

As expected... there was a reason Zhou Tian could control these residues absolutely.

Bai Yanliang animated part of the vines to dance in the air like blood-red scythes that harvested lives; wherever they went, residues crumbled and vanished.

However, they lacked self-awareness and didn't know retreat, swarming densely and blocking Bai Yanliang's attacks.

Zhou Tian no longer focused on Bai Yanliang; he only watched the massive accumulating energy and murmured, "Almost, just almost."

Bai Yanliang also ceased caring about the obstruction of residues.

Controlling himself, he flew to attack the giant insect where Zhou Tian was located.

The chaos of the Mother Tree vines being damaged and the residues dissipating filled the air with noise in the whistling wind.

Bai Yanliang gradually gained mastery over everything; as the only Fog Realm lifeform with self-awareness, his authority was astonishingly vast.

Like a cave filled with treasures, humans were all kept outside, but Bai Yanliang... was born inside.

He could use these treasures at his leisure.

"Zhou Tian!"

Close to the giant insect, Bai Yanliang shouted.

Zhou Tian, however, ignored him, still insanely commanding all residues to accelerate the devouring of the Power of the World.

Seeing Zhou Tian remain indifferent, Bai Yanliang stopped wasting words.

He closed his eyes, letting his consciousness swiftly sweep through every corner of Ye City.

The sensation was akin to that of a creator.

He was searching.

Following this bout of clash with Zhou Tian, he was far from his previous position, but fortunately, he searched rapidly.

Everyone in the city flashed before his "eyes," until... he paused before one person.

Xu Zhifei.

Found her.

Xu Zhifei claimed she was also a Fog Realm lifeform, created by Meng Zhen using her memory as the second truly living Fog Realm lifeform.

However, Bai Yanliang had not sensed that Xu Zhifei possessed the ability to command the Fog Realm's powers.

It seemed that Xu Zhifei had "humanized" herself more thoroughly.

But Bai Yanliang wasn't seeking an understanding of this issue; his true intent in searching for Xu Zhifei was...

"Give me the part of the memory hidden in your body."

In Xu Zhifei's mind, Bai Yanliang's voice emerged.

She was standing by the river bank railing, the fierce wind blowing her clothes into disarray.

She neither asked further questions nor refused.

Xu Zhifei quietly nodded and closed her eyes.

A grayish-white Light Ball flew from her chest, ascending into the air, heading toward Bai Yanliang.

At last, Zhou Tian seemed to sense the danger.

He turned around in astonishment, looking at Bai Yanliang, "What is that?"

Bai Yanliang clasped the Light Ball in his hand, staring at the face on the giant insect's back:

"All the information tells me that Bai Yanren was the first conscious being of the Fog Realm."

"I am a backup split from Bai Yanren, barely considered the second conscious being of the Fog Realm."

"Xu Zhifei is the third, but it seems you didn't realize what was still stored in her body."

Bai Yanliang's clear voice resonated in Zhou Tian's mind.

"Until just now, I finally understood why you, not being a Fog Realm lifeform, could command the residues, and your authority even surpasses mine, to the extent that I couldn't stop the residues from moving..."

"Because the true first self-aware lifeform of the Fog Realm was Meng Zhen."

"Am I wrong, Meng Zhen?" Bai Yanliang shouted at the giant insect devouring the Power of the World.

Zhou Tian's pupils contracted, and he fell silent.

"Bai Yanren left the Fog Realm, Fog Gathering was born, but what about Meng Zhen? What was her fate? I've always been curious."

Bai Yanliang's voice seemed like giant waves crashing against Zhou Tian's mental defenses: "I have a hypothesis that perhaps... your first test subject wasn't Bai Yanren, but Meng Zhen, or more accurately, Meng Zhen and her child."

"You didn't know what would happen when a human fell into the Fog Realm, so you used two samples. One was the adult, conscious Meng Zhen. The other was the unborn fetus in Meng Zhen's womb, which had no consciousness at all."

Bai Yanliang's voice turned chilling for the first time:

"Let me guess, were you relying on Meng Zhen to command these residues, or... the infant."