The King of Black Fog

The night was dense, and the street lamps retreated one by one, gradually, as though tossing and turning, it was just that one lamp.

...

(Buses, subways, ships, and planes, just like us, are destined to wander.)

(One day, though we don't know when, we will become our true selves.)

('Arena 23' has arrived.)

'Little Martial Saint' opened his eyes and saw a straight highway, with barren sand dunes on both sides.

"Devil City, Yardang landform," the voice of 'Door Plate' came from beside him.

Yardang landform, where the constant wind sculpts the rock layers into different shapes, creating bizarre forms, as though it were a city inhabited by devils.

All these were covered during training.

They got off the bus, and the absence of any message on the bus stop sign proved they were the first batch of players to enter this scenario.

There were no messages, but there were other things.

[Notice: Due to the high combat power of bus-riding players, temporary rules are added]

[Rule 1: Once the bus is unable to operate, players (same as bus passengers) cannot return to reality]

[Rule 2: Players may seize other players' buses]

[Rule 3: Players may not hide the bus]

Can't damage it, can't hide it, the only option left was to drive away.

Looking around, the only path the bus could take was the straight highway beneath their feet.

How is this different from an arena battle?

"Now it gets interesting!" Little Martial Saint grinned and said.

In previous games, his least favorite things were finding people and being hindered by the environment, unable to exert his full strength.

"It seems those people in the research group were right, humans have taken the lead," he said again.

Even with human wisdom, animals couldn't possibly have an institution like a nation for a while, and such institutions maximize the use of wisdom and resources.

The woman standing next to him, arms crossed, nodded and said, "This game shouldn't be much of a problem either, just don't know whether Chang Lei and the others have made it in."

The woman, codenamed 'Aman,' had a sharp and very stylish short haircut, dressed in a black athletic top and matching short skirt, a dark red scarf wrapped around her neck fluttering in the wind, like a cape.

On her agile and slender legs, she had two guns holstered.

From the contours visible on the gun holsters, the guns were not from this era; the one on her left leg had a red energy car, and the one on the right had a yellow one, both exuding a tech vibe.

"The bus hasn't changed, it's the modified one," the third player, a towering man, codenamed 'Door Plate' said.

Covered in heavy armor, he had a shield the size of a door on his back.

His tone of speaking was completely equal to Little Martial Saint and Aman, without any hint of subordination, a player of the same level as Little Martial Saint.

Aman whistled, "Lucky us~"

[Game Notification: Player 'Main' has joined this game, please other players unite]

The platform fell silent, the three exchanged glances.

"I'll handle him." Little Martial Saint spread his arms, a spear appeared in his hand, his expression wild and excited.

"Don't be impulsive," Door Plate said, "let's join up with Chang Lei and the others first. When the time comes, fight however you want; we'll cover you."

"Okay!"

"I'll shoot to save you when you're about to be killed," Aman joked.

"Just don't shoot when he's about to be killed by me, just steal my kill," Little Martial Saint replied coldly.

"Let's go," Door Plate said, turning to board the bus. "Aman, you drive."

"OK~" Aman, gripping the edge of the passenger side window, somehow quickly positioned herself in the driver's seat with a little effort.

At the same moment, three buses started moving along the straight highway.

In the sky and desert, innumerable animal players began to act.

"There's something up ahead!" Not long into the drive, Aman, with her extraordinary sight, spotted a small black dot on the road ahead.

"Careful," Door Plate took off the shield from his back.

Little Martial Saint also gripped his spear tightly.

Players who made it to the same scene were certainly not weak.

"Shall we go?" asked Aman.

"Of course!" Door Plate and Little Martial Saint answered simultaneously, their personalities differing but both full of confidence in their team.

The strongest players, with the support of a nation, as long as these three worked together, even 'Main' was not a concern.

Aman pressed the accelerator, the modified bus, comparable to an armored vehicle, slowly moving towards the black dot.

As they got closer, Aman could see what the black dot was.

A regular bus, parked in the middle of the road, blocking the path thoroughly.

A blurry figure sat cross-legged atop the bus, left elbow on knee, palm supporting their chin, silently watching them.

"Just one person?" Door Plate asked Aman.

As a marksman, Aman's Perception was maxed out.

"I only feel one," Aman carefully answered, then cursed, "This guy really knows how to show off!"

"This one's mine!" Little Martial Saint got up, "You guys protect the bus!"

"Are you sure?" Door Plate asked.

"One minute," said Little Martial Saint. Without waiting for the door to open, he leaped out.

Aman and Door Plate stayed on the bus, eyes vigilant, watching for any potential accomplices.

Little Martial Saint, holding his spear, walked toward the opponent. He was pugnacious but not foolish, wary of potential ambushes and traps.

Seeing him approach alone, the other also jumped off the bus and walked toward him.

A mask concealed the face, the figure hazy. What kind of prop was this?

'Tiger Style·Intimidation', if the opponent hesitated or felt fear, Strength -2.

"Can a man ever refuse a challenge?" The blurred figure didn't stop, walking straight toward him.

Little Martial Saint also walked forward slowly, his left hand sliding along the spear, a purple mist emanating from the spearhead.

'Poisoning', just a small wound, even an elephant would instantly be paralyzed and suffocate to death within three minutes.

Pupils constricted.

'Dog Style·Slow', a human's one-second action lasted four seconds in the eyes of a dog.

Bang!

Little Martial Saint kicked off the ground slightly, transforming into a cannonball; the next second, the enemy was within the reach of his spear.

Right arm filled with power, using the momentum, he stabbed forward swiftly, fast as a phantom, capable of piercing even thick Iron Armor!

The blurred figure moved to dodge.

The next moment, many "eyes" opened on the spear, and the blurred figure's movements suddenly slowed down.

"Peacock Tail Feather·Confusion"

But the sure-hit spear thrust was still dodged.

Impossible!

Little Martial Saint roared in his heart, with his strength at 10 points, speed at 10 points, and the additional confusion effect, how could the opponent dodge? What did they dodge with?!

This combo move, unless blocked by a shield like a door plate, was certain death!

Even players who had broken through their limits were no exception!

A blurry figure moved sideways to avoid the spear, his right leg tense, and he lunged forward with a knee strike at Little Martial Saint.

Bang!

Little Martial Saint flew back like a cannonball, faster than when he had come.

"Wow!" In midair, Little Martial Saint couldn't control his injuries any longer and spewed a large mouthful of blood.

"Qiu Yu Style·Protective"—the shell of a qiu yu was harder than bullets, and as a skill, it was terrifyingly strong, but it still couldn't block this strike.

It was 'the master'!

A streak of blood invaded the whites of his eyes from his eye sockets.

"Mad Bull"—when the opponent charges head-on, strength +1, speed +1, opponent's strength -2.

No matter what the skill, no attribute could break through 10 points; "Mad Bull" only served to reduce the opponent's attributes.

Little Martial Saint forcibly twisted his body, controlled it, and landed in a running stance to mitigate the impact.

Then, he suddenly looked up.

But, he was gone, 'the master' was gone.

A trace of astonishment flashed across Little Martial Saint's face, and the next moment, his body trembled as if his fur had exploded like a cat's.

A shadow loomed over him.

He hastily turned his head to look back, catching a glimpse of 'the master's' blurry figure with his peripheral vision, standing right behind him, blocking the sun.

His scalp exploded instantaneously, and Little Martial Saint forgot to breathe.

'The master' raised his right arm, as if a deity intent on shattering the earth.

"Bang!"

A gunshot, a bullet exploded behind 'the master', turning into a ball of flames that enveloped him.

Little Martial Saint stamped his feet on the ground, immediately widening the distance between himself and 'the master'.

He had retreated, he actually retreated instead of seizing the opportunity to stab the opponent with his spear...

"My flame bullets can melt steel into molten iron." Aman held her guns while a shield was held in front before her by the door plate.

'The master' slowly turned around, his right hand gently dusting off his left shoulder as if brushing off dust.

The flames that could melt steel extinguished.

"Tsk." Aman clicked her tongue, her hands gripping the guns tighter, her pupils slit like a snake's eyes.

Under the shield, the door plate's abdomen bulged, contracted, his throat moved, and his mouth suddenly opened wide.

A frog's croak.

"Frog Style·Frog Call" — spring arrives and I don't speak first, what bug dares to make a sound? Opponent's agility -2.

At the same time, Aman raised her guns.

"Where is he?" She was stunned.

She only saw Little Martial Saint opposite her, his face slowing turning ferocious under her snake-like eyes, his mouth seemingly about to open wide.

Not good!

Aman felt a chill run through her body, her finger pulling the trigger.

A dull yellow energy bar instantly condensed into a bullet and shot out, exploding in mid-air into a ball of earth that enveloped her and the door plate.

Bang!

An instant later, the earth ball burst open, the door plate protecting Aman as they both heavily fell to the ground, rolling to halt near Little Martial Saint's feet.

"Be careful!!" Only then did Little Martial Saint's warning burst out.

As soon as they landed, Aman immediately raised her gun, which had originally had a yellow energy bar but was now metallic in color.

Bang! She fired at 'the master', not even looking, and then changed the energy bar in her gun to blue, aiming at the door plate.

Bang! Another shot.

Blue liquid in bullet form shot into the door plate's body, rapidly treating his injuries.

"Oh?" A bewildered voice spoke for the first time, evidently interested in the gun.

The previous metal bullet was easily dodged by him.

He stepped forward confidently, approaching the trio.

Little Martial Saint wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his palm, lifting his spear, his eyes ablaze with combat intent like raging flames.

Aman fired another bullet at 'the master', this time from fire to earth, which spread like a curtain of mud in mid-air, enveloping 'the master'.

"Go!"

She stowed away her guns, her left hand gripping Little Martial Saint's shoulder, right hand grabbing the door plate, and a pair of bat wings explosively unfurled behind her, rushing into "Devil City".

Carrying two people, the bat wings moved extremely fast, and with the complex terrain of Devil City, by the time 'the master' broke the earth ball, the trio was already out of sight.

"Can you escape?" Li Changzhou crouched slightly, his body shooting up into the sky like a rocket.

Aman flew close to the ground at high speed, swearing profusely: "How can there be such a freak! And you, you idiot, within a minute, within one minute we three were running for our lives!"

"Be careful!" Suddenly, Little Martial Saint warned.

"What?" Aman turned back to see a black dot in the sky, just like the one they had seen when driving.

She met his gaze just as it happened.

A chill crept up her spine, spreading over her body like a net being cast.

A Blood-colored Steel Spear appeared in the blurry figure's hand, his arm slightly drawn back, like a Divine Bow about to release.

Lightning struck Li Changzhou's spine, his body's strength surged, infusing into his right arm, and violently exploded.

Bang!

Sonic boom!

The Blood-colored Steel Spear tore through the air, creating a visible shockwave, penetrating countless layers of rock, heading straight for Aman.

Boom!

The earth shattered like a meteor hitting the ground.

Li Changzhou landed, and with another leap, he was already at the edge of the crater made by the spear.

No corpse, just a woman's arm in the crater, "Gecko's Tail Cut".

"The unrivaled Mr. Li, still want to test your strength?" Yang Qinglan approached from a distance, with Li Qianxia walking beside him, who was already laughing so hard he was holding his stomach.

"Brother, these are just passersby and you let them get away, what if you encounter Little Martial Saint? You can't possibly not be able to defeat him, right? Can you?"

Li Changzhou awkwardly scratched his neck, this was not the effortless overwhelming power he had envisioned.

"Let's join forces," he conceded.