Chapter 48: Mysterious White Mist

Ma Tian felt a bit uneasy inside; in the flash of lightning and stone, he looked at those snake eyes, always feeling something strange, but couldn't pinpoint what was off.

Yang Cheng didn't think it was a big deal, saying, "What's so strange about that? It's normal to have a few snakes in the deep mountains and old forests; it's not like they're Pythons or anything, why make such a fuss?"

Nobody among them gave the snake encounter a second thought; only Hu Xiaocao beside them, whose dull little eyes had previously lost their luster, now sparkled again.

It's the Mountain God Grandfather!

The Mountain God Grandfather really heard her call and came to save her!

Seeing that the break was about over, everyone also prepared to set off again; they had no intention of staying here much longer.

Yang Cheng threatened viciously, "If you dare make a sound, I'll break your legs, cut off your tongue, and throw you onto the street to beg."

They brought little of the confusion medicine this trip, saving whatever they could.

Not sure if his threat had worked, but Hu Xiaocao really quieted down, not shouting at the top of her lungs there.

It could also be that she was tired from shouting and resigned herself.

Seeing Hu Xiaocao so sensible, Yang Cheng nodded satisfied, "That's not bad; cooperate with us and you'll suffer less yourself, otherwise in the end you'll still be the unlucky one."

The four of them walked the mountain path together, plus Hu Xiaocao, they took a rope and tied her up, as if leading livestock.

Now that the confusion medicine's effect has worn off, Hu Xiaocao can walk on her own, which actually saves them effort.

As the sun set westward, the crescent moon overhead seemed to grow a bit brighter; the sunset's afterglow sprinkled over the land, and the lush mountains and forests were coated with a layer of pale golden light.

Half of the mountain summit was shrouded in darkness while the other half still struggled in the light; light and darkness intertwined, but nightfall drawing its curtain was only a matter of time.

Sometime ago, a thin layer of mist began to rise, spreading through the mountains, not very noticeable, so Yang Cheng and the others noticed nothing.

Until the mist lightly covered their feet, it had already become visible to the naked eye.

Yang Cheng frowned, looking at the surrounding faint white mist, feeling something odd, "Why did the fog appear out of nowhere? We need to speed up."

The mountain path is already hard to travel; if the fog thickens, we might not be able to see anything, which would become troublesome, and since we brought no equipment, we certainly don't want to spend the night in the mountains.

Ma Tian immediately shoved Hu Xiaocao, "You haven't eaten, walking so slow! Pick up the pace, or I'll whip you."

Hu Xiaocao, unprepared, stumbled and fell to the ground, scraping her hands and feet, oozing bright red blood beads.

She bit her lip, endured the pain, didn't let herself cry, and Hu Xiaocao clumsily got up.

"Xiaocao is the strongest, Xiaocao doesn't cry, and besides, the Mountain God Grandfather is right here; he'll come to save Xiaocao any moment."

Hearing that, Ma Tian felt a surge of nameless anger rise in his heart; for some reason, a pair of cold snake eyes flashed in his mind, and he spat to the side.

"Damn the stupid Mountain God, do you think this white fog is something the Mountain God conjured up?"

"Listen up! The uncles don't believe this; don't think this can scare us!"

Ma Tian even deliberately yanked hard on the rope in his hand; if Hu Xiaocao hadn't been on guard this time, she would likely have taken another nasty fall.

By now, the sunset had sunk more than halfway, and the light falling into the mountain forest had become even weaker.

Ink‑like colors began to spread in layers across the sky, eroding the remaining light, and that crescent moon seemed to grow more conspicuous.

The white mist spread, making the surrounding scenery look as if veiled in a white gauze, appearing somewhat blurry; Yang Cheng and Ma Tian grew anxious, walking quickly through the mountain forest.

Yet the more they feared something, the more it came to pass.

In just a moment, the white mist grew denser, swallowing all surrounding scenery, making distant views indistinguishable.

Tree silhouettes were shrouded in the white mist, leaving only a rough outline; from afar they looked like a black giant, glaring at them with tiger‑like eyes.

Whatever met the eye was a blank white expanse; unless one drew near, nothing could be seen clearly, only increasing panic and disarray.

Moreover, they had still not managed to leave the area despite having walked this far.

Yang Cheng's heart sank deeper and deeper, "Judging by this situation, we're probably lost."

Although they had scouted the spot beforehand, they were newcomers, and the white mist impairing vision made it easy to get lost in there.

The others stared, some anxiously asking, "What should we do now? Are we really going to have to spend the night here?"

"We can't stay the night; it's too dangerous."

Yang Cheng took out a flashlight; this powerful flashlight could normally illuminate far away, but because of the vast fog it could only emit a weak glow.

The flashlight's light slightly dispelled everyone's inner panic.

By now the sky had completely fallen into darkness; as the last trace of residual light was swallowed by darkness, night unfurled its black wings and made a heavy appearance.

Looking at the darkened sky around them, Yang Cheng lifted his head to the heavens; a full moon gave him at least some reassurance.

If the weather were overcast with thick clouds, it would likely make their mood even worse.

I don't know if it's his illusion, but he always feels tonight's moon is brighter than usual.

Hu Xiaocao also gazed at the moon overhead; her eyes grew ever brighter, as if even the pain from her earlier fall could be ignored.

"When I first saw the Mountain God Grandfather, it seemed to be under such a moon as well."

Hearing her mystic mumbling, Ma Tian felt even more uneasy; upon closer look, he noticed a faint, imperceptible panic, rolled up his sleeves, and strode over menacingly.

"Damn, you're treating my earlier words as wind in the ears, spouting nonsense one after another—really disheartening."

Just as a fist the size of a sandpot was about to come down, the skinny guy Liu Siming from the team stepped in and blocked it.

"It's just an ignorant yellow‑haired girl; why bother arguing with her? With this spare time, better to carefully look for an exit—if we knock her out, we'll still have to carry her anyway."

That made some sense, so Ma Tian lowered his fist, annoyed, "You dead‑beat girl, watch yourself, or else once I'm out of this mountain forest I'll show you what I can do!"

Yang Cheng beside them waved his hand, "Come over here for a moment."

He looked at the compass in his hand, checked it carefully, "If we head southeast, we should be able to reach the mountain base."

He put the compass back into his pocket.

Nobody noticed that the previously still needle began to tremble wildly, as if disturbed by some unknown magnetic field.

Finally, unable to withstand that force, it came to a rest in one spot and stayed completely still.

Yang Cheng and Ma Tian, unaware of this, slowly stepped into the depths of the mist.

The vast white mist, like a beast emerging from the void, opened its bloody maw, waiting for them to step inside, then slowly swallowed Ma Tian and his group.

(End of chapter)