The King of Black Fog

"Gone?"

The place where Li Changzhou stood was swept clean of branches, fallen leaves, and vines, as bare as a plot of black soil ready for planting rice.

The training at the bottom of the great lake had advanced his Bull Horn Spiral Force even further.

"What about the enemy? What happened?" Li Qianxia couldn't help but ask.

Because of the gas mask, Li Changzhou's expression was unclear, but the siblings had been together since before birth, and just by looking at each other's figure, they could almost always guess what the other was thinking correctly.

She could tell that Li Changzhou was deep in thought at that moment.

"It was a long-range attack, the enemy has left," Li Changzhou answered, "Their ability resembles a turn-based game, the enemy hits me with a punch, then I hit back with a punch, but there seem to be other rules involved."

"Academician Lü was bait!" Yang Qinglan thought of something else.

Li Changzhou nodded.

Just to be safe, after three more minutes of vigilance, the nine people and one dog finally let down their guard and reconvened. Li Changzhou shared his findings with them.

"Even if it's bait, we have no choice but to bite," Zheng Qing said, her voice devoid of any emotion.

"Damn it!" Poison cursed softly.

Scholar wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Tan Ke and Big Thigh remained silent, while Yang Liu gripped her dagger tightly.

"Everyone keep an eye out for each other," Zheng Qing instructed, and took another look at everyone, "Go!"

The nine people and one dog continued to race towards the location of Academician Lü, their bodies and minds as taut as bowstrings pulled with great effort, tremoring slightly from the strain.

Yet even so, their speed had not decreased, but increased instead.

◇

In the depths of the dense forest, a hunter's wooden cabin lay abandoned and overrun with vines.

The hunter's cabin had two floors, but under the cover of branches and vines, it would go unnoticed unless looked for carefully.

Four people were having a meeting in a small office adorned only with wooden stools, a wooden table, and cobwebs.

Night had fallen, and a type of tree resin was burning feebly on the table, a small, struggling flame resisting the heavy darkness all around.

"Academician Lü, what did you need to discuss with us?" A man dressed in dark green camouflage with oil paint on his face asked.

Academician Lü from the National Medicine Bureau, 52 years old, wearing glasses, his hair usually dyed black was now showing its white roots.

A look of hesitation and conflict crossed his face before he spoke, "Comrade Xiao Zhang, is it possible to trouble you... to find some anti-inflammatory medicine for Xiaohan?"

"Anti-inflammatory medicine?!" Another man in camouflage instinctively asked in a loud, accusatory tone.

"Xiao He!" Xiao Zhang raised his voice.

The man named Xiao He closed his mouth.

"Academician Lü," Xiao Zhang looked at him, "We've checked Zhou Xiaohan's injury, it's very dangerous, but under the current circumstances, we can't risk going out just for her."

Academician Lü gave a wry smile, adjusting his glasses slightly.

"Comrade Xiao Zhang," he began with difficulty, "I understand and rationally, I absolutely support your decision, but this child... Xiaohan has been my student since her undergraduate days, through her master's and Ph.D., over these years, I—"

His voice broke off, choked with emotion.

Xiao Zhang, Xiao He, and a silent Xiao Yun all understood Academician Lü's feelings—Xiaohan had been injured while saving him!

"Xiao Zhang, Xiao He and I will go. There should be medicine in the hospital on that commercial street on the island, and we might even be able to bring back some food," Xiao Yun suggested.

"If you want to go, then go!" Xiao He exclaimed angrily.

"Xiao He..."

"Shut up!" Xiao He rebuked Xiao Yun, "Look at your arm, then look at my face!"

Xiao Yun had lost his forearm, and Xiao He had a large scar on his face; both were the price they had paid along the way.

If they were not players, with such injuries, in this environment, they would have been dead from infection before Zhou Xiaohan.

He wasn't afraid of dying, but he was here to complete a mission, not to throw his life away.

"Xiao Zhang!" Xiao He turned to him, "I disagree with going out to search."

"I understand." Xiao Zhang nodded. "But what should we do then? Just watch Zhou Xiaohan die in front of us?"

His tone was gentle, yet filled with strength, his gaze fixing on Xiao He.

Xiao He opened his mouth, intending to say that death was inevitable, but after taking a few deep breaths, he fell silent.

Academician Lü also remained quiet, and after some time, he changed his mind, speaking with fatigue and age, "Never mind, let's wait a bit longer. Rescue might be on its way."

The room filled with silence.

The candle cast the shadows of four people on the wall, like a circle of demons gathered for dinner, watching them with penetrating gazes.

"Xiao He, Xiao Yun," Xiao Zhang spoke with difficulty.

"Understood!" Xiao Yun nodded.

"...Understood!" Xiao He gritted his teeth, his eyes like those of a wolf.

Xiao Zhang looked at his two comrades, wishing he could join them, but he couldn't. His instincts and skills were not suited for combat, and moreover, he had the responsibility of protecting Academician Lü.

Xiao Yun and Xiao He wrapped themselves in vines and branches over their camouflage, disguising themselves as tree people.

The two parted the vines outside the hunter's cabin and slipped into the green sea of the forest.

"Damn it!" In the insect-chirping forest, Xiao He angrily struck a nearby tree trunk.

With only one hand, Xiao Yun pushed aside obstructing branches and turned with a smile, "As long as we can make it back alive, my arm and your face can be healed."

"What infuriates me is that Zhou Xiaohan!" Xiao He exhaled sharply, "I'm here to complete a mission, not to go hunting for anti-inflammatory medicine! Do I look like your mother?"

These words might cause a stranger to mistake Xiao He for a coward, but Xiao Yun was his teammate and knew him well.

In countless missions, Xiao He would go all out every time, risking life and limb. To him, the life of any person, including his own, was not as important as the mission.

But that scar on his face was left behind when he saved Xiao Yun, who was attacked by a murderer vine.

"You're not their mother, but you are their father," Xiao Yun said with a laugh.

Xiao He was stunned for a moment, then both angry and amused.

After a moment of silence, the two cautiously moved forward. The forest was very dark; Xiao Yun walked in front, as she had the skill of Night Vision—she lost half her arm for that.

"Even if the two of us manage to find the medicine, without support," Xiao He said, his voice devoid of anger, only fatigue, "it's all in vain."

After a moment of silence, Xiao Yun said, "Let's do what we can."

The two crept out of the forest and slipped into the town, only breathing a sigh of relief after closing the door of the hospital behind them.

It was not one of those fancy hospitals back home, but more like a small clinic, yet the medicines were fairly complete, stacking on the shelves like parcels in a mess.

In the corner was a trash can, filled with used needles and IV tubes;

On the IV stand hung clothes, covered mottled with rust, who knows how many years they had been in use.

Xiao Yun walked behind Xiao He, her intact right hand resting on his shoulder.

Xiao He activated their abilities, and the two blended into the colors of their surroundings; Xiao Yun also activated hers, erasing their heartbeats, breathing, and footsteps from existence.

They moved through the governance office like two thieves, quietly searching shelf after shelf to gather the necessary medicines.

Leaving the hospital, they tensed up once more until they entered a supermarket,

Shrouded in darkness, Xiao Yun used Night Vision to see that the shelves had collapsed, the floor littered with food items.

Rice, flour, cheap canned goods, sausages, and instant noodles covered the supermarket floor.

Her hand gripping Xiao He's shoulder tightened slightly, signaling: time to start moving the goods.

They were incredibly careful, always maintaining their abilities while slowly collecting food.

Since Xiao Yun's right hand was grasping Xiao He's shoulder, she had to hook the plastic bags with her half-left hand while biting onto a large bag with her teeth.

"That's about enough, let's go," Xiao He estimated the weight of the bags.

If they were just cautious enough on the way back, this mission could be accomplished successfully.

They were very careful, as according to the last few reconnaissance trips, ordinary armed members of that unidentified power would occasionally sweep the area to pick up what was left behind.

Walking along, Xiao He suddenly felt Xiao Yun gripping his shoulder tightly.

Enemy presence!

They stood motionless, blending into a looted shop as though they ceased to exist, standing steadfastly in place.

With their cooperation, it was believed by the Special Warfare Bureau that they could achieve true invisibility.

But the experiences in the jungle, the disabilities, and disfigurements, had robbed them of that confidence.

Soon, people rushed by behind them, moving at incredible speed and in large numbers.

Players!

Xiao He's heart pounded like a drum; if it weren't for Xiao Yun's ability, perhaps even an ordinary person could hear it.

They were getting closer, several silhouettes whooshing past on either side of them in a flash.

They hadn't been discovered!

Xiao He exhaled in relief.

As the figures passed, neither dared to observe the other; their line of sight was arguably their only weakness.

Some with extremely high Perception could easily catch any "line of sight," including camera lenses, infrared scopes, and so on.

Without a moment's breath, the group was already past them.

Just as they worried not about themselves, but prayed that the pickup truck parked outside the town wouldn't be discovered,

"Eh?"

One of the last in the group of players suddenly turned their head.

An ear-piercing Wind Sound rushed towards them!

Xiao He turned to look, only to see a large hand with fingers spread coming at him so fast it seemed like even the airflow passing through the fingers was solidified.

They were discovered!

Fight!

This thought flashed by, and the next moment Xiao He heard a cry of pain—it was his own.

"Ah!!"

Too fast, why, why so fast!

With his Agility at 8 points, he had not the slightest reaction!

Xiao Yun, behind Xiao He, kicked out, but as soon as her foot left the ground, a colossal force struck her lower abdomen.

Bang!

She was kicked into the small shop, breaking two substantial wooden boards.

Xiao Yun writhed in severe pain as if all her flesh and blood had collapsed into her lower abdomen, curled up like a shrimp there, sweating profusely.

Xiao He heard Xiao Yun's moans and roared in his heart, summoning all his strength to counterattack.

But the fingers on his face only had to apply slight pressure, and he felt as if his head was about to explode, his entire body numb and powerless.

No, it wasn't that—the attacker was literally trying to squeeze his head until it burst!

"Stop!" a woman's voice then shouted, "Pigeon, it's one of us!"