"The mist is spreading this fast..."
Guan Tong was in the small room of his shelter, looking outside through the window.
When the ninth rule was announced, he was still outside. Imdiately after the announcent, he ran back to the stone house and closed the door.
Less than a minute later, the dense fog began to spread up the mountain.
Looking out now, Guan Tong's visibility was less than five ters.
Moreover, the fog was mixed with faint shades of purple and green, giving off a deeply unsettling feeling.
"This rule already stated that there would be monsters called 'Nightmare Beasts' in the mist, hunting humans... I wonder how strong these monsters are? And what are their thods of attack?"
"Also, the rewards for this rule include an invitation to the Second Ascendant Challenge Tournant... anyone who survives can get one."
Guan Tong had won the championship reward and the hidden reward in the first tournant, making him the one with the greatest gains. Although the format of the second tournant would likely change, he would definitely still participate.
However, based on the experience of the first one, after receiving the invitation, the tournant usually doesn't start until several rules later. It's still too early to think too much about it now; the most urgent matter is to get through the current rule first.
Guan Tong glanced at the thick fog outside again, opened his terminal panel, and checked this ti's hidden rule.
[Hidden Rule Nine: Source of the Mist]
[Hidden Rule Content: By following the traces of the Nightmare Beasts, you might find one of the sources of the great mist. A fragnt exists there. If you wish to piece together the puzzle behind the Doomsday Rules, go find this fragnt.]
[Note: Venturing deep into the mist requires ample preparation, exceptional strength, and fearless courage. But the most important question is: Is it worth taking the risk for the unknown?]
"This rule..."
This was the first ti Guan Tong had seen a hidden rule like this.
No definite reward, no special chanics, just a "puzzle fragnt behind the Doomsday Rules." What is that?
Guan Tong pondered deeply.
"What does 'puzzle' refer to? Could it an the secret behind the Doomsday Rules?"
The information was too scarce; he couldn't even make a proper guess.
But he knew that venturing deep into the mist would definitely be very dangerous.
So the question arose, just as the note said: Is it worth taking the risk for the unknown?
Guan Tong had an answer in his heart, but he didn't act rashly.
This rule's effective period is as long as a month. There's no need to take action imdiately; observing the situation first wouldn't hurt.
"Hiss!"
Guan Tong suddenly heard a sound. Turning his head, he saw Coal Ball crouched on the head of the bed, back arched, hissing towards the door.
He was sowhat surprised. Since adopting Coal Ball, this was the first ti he had seen him hiss.
"Scratch... creak... creak..."
A series of noises ca from the door. Guan Tong slowly stood up, staring at the door.
It sounded like sothing was scratching at the door from outside.
"Scratch... scratch..."
The sound ca again. Coal Ball shrank back a little, seemingly very afraid of whatever was outside the door.
Guan Tong just stared at the door without a word.
After a mont, the sound didn't recur. The thing outside seed to have left.
Guan Tong knew that while the shelter door was closed, it couldn't be opened from the outside. Unless soone used brute force to destroy the entire house. But his current shelter was a reinforced one summoned for 300 points of Mind Power, with significantly improved defensive capabilities. It was no longer the wooden hut that could be easily destroyed before.
But even so, Guan Tong's heart was beating much faster.
That sound...
"Bang!"
Suddenly, a loud noise ca from the window, startling both Guan Tong and Coal Ball.
Turning to look, he saw sothing in the thick fog covering the outside of the window seed to extend out and then retract.
The window that suffered the blow wasn't damaged; its strength was consistent with the rest of the shelter. If the thing hidden in the fog couldn't break the door, it couldn't break the window either.
...What was that just now?
In that instant he turned, Guan Tong vaguely saw sothing resembling a jointed limb.
He sat down on the bed, comforting Coal Ball, and thought to himself, "My shelter should still be safe for now, but..."
Because of the [Biological Signal Detector] previously listed in the Ascension Store, and judging from its effect of detecting large biological signals, this rule would definitely involve so kind of large-sized monster.
If one of those ca up the mountain, Guan Tong really wasn't sure if his shelter could withstand it.
He picked up his computer, wanting to go online and check the situation outside.
As soon as he opened Ascendant Ho, he saw his private ssages continuously increasing.
Opening them, they were all private ssages asking him about hidden intelligence regarding this rule.
Due to the successful verifications in the past few tis, everyone now believed that he, the Administrator, could obtain hidden intelligence after a rule was announced. So, less than half an hour after the rule's announcent, they were all eager to get information from him.
"Administrator, can we trade now? We hope to buy the latest intelligence as soon as possible!"
"Has the hidden intelligence for the ninth rule started being sold?"
"Administrator, didn't you see our reservation ssage? Is the new intelligence going to increase in price? We can afford it."
Looking at these ssages, Guan Tong thought for a mont and decided not to sell this hidden rule for now.
The first reason was that this hidden rule was quite special, and he himself currently had no leads. If he sold the information as-is, buyers would also find it baffling.
The second reason was that Guan Tong wanted to obtain that "puzzle fragnt" himself this ti, so he didn't want too many competitors.
That's right. After reading the hidden rule content, he had already preliminarily decided to venture deep into the mist, find the source of the fog, and obtain the fragnt.
Because from the very beginning of the rules' descent, he had wanted to figure out the secret behind them. The Fire Thief, the Ascension Plan, the Doomsday Operations... he wanted to know where humanity would ultimately end up.
He rembered talking about this with Fang Qian back then, saying he was very curious and interested in these things. This feeling hadn't changed even now, at the ninth rule.
If it weren't for this curiosity supporting him, he might have long felt life was aningless. Simply surviving for the sake of survival, that kind of life seed like living as a walking corpse to him, sothing he couldn't persist in for long.
Therefore, he was determined to explore the depths of the mist and trace the source of the fog. The reason he wasn't setting off imdiately was just that he wanted to learn more about the mist, Nightmare Beasts, and other situations based on external intelligence, and to prepare before acting.
He opened the Casual Chat section and found that soone had already reposted the latest official notice.
"The mist in this rule is corrosive and contains neurotoxins. Rember to take shelter in sturdy, sealed environnts. Do not expose yourself to the mist."
"If the building you are currently in is not sturdy enough or has too many entrances/exits/windows, please contact your local Ergency Managent Bureau as soon as possible to transfer to a safer location."
"If forced to be exposed to the mist, imdiately cover your skin and wear an oxygen mask. The mist will corrode and harm the human body, and inhalation may cause hallucinations. Please be extrely careful."
The mist is actually this dangerous...
Seeing the official ssage, Guan Tong's heart sank.
He originally thought the danger of the great mist lay only in the Nightmare Beasts lurking within. He didn't expect the mist itself to be so hazardous.
If that's the case, then if I want to go out... Without professional protective equipnt, I can only rely on covering my entire body with Shadow Armor? That might work, but it would consu Mind Power in real-ti at a significant rate.
Or perhaps...
Guan Tong thought of a safer exploration thod with much lower consumption. That was, like when he sent his Shadow to investigate the Yongzhou Mountain Range base before, first let the Shadow enter the mist to scout. Once the source's location is found, he could then use "Body Swap" to go there.
It would be even better if he could retrieve the "map fragnt" without needing his main body to go.
Thinking this, he continued reading. Besides advice for the public, the authorities also announced upcoming action plans.
"Currently, relevant factories are coordinating the production of professional-grade anti-corrosion suits for distribution. Furthermore, we will mobilize ard forces. Once preparations are complete, we will launch exploration operations into the mist."
"We will attempt to use human-made thermal weapons to eliminate the Nightmare Beast monsters in the mist. If successful, ard operations will be rapidly carried out in various cities to eliminate Nightmare Beasts within the urban mist."
"However, we strongly advise against personal or group exploration of the mist by civilians at this ti. This is extrely dangerous behavior!"
"Additionally, for people outside cities, we suggest you quickly seek enclosed outdoor locations to shelter from the mist—although we consider it very dangerous. But if you decide to return to the city for refuge, please note that the mist interferes with electronic navigation devices. You can only rely on maps or your mory of the roads to return. If you are sure you know the way, please keep car windows tightly closed while driving. But we repeat, driving in the mist is very dangerous. You may be attacked by Nightmare Beasts at any ti. Please be extrely careful."
"Finally, we will issue a latest situation bulletin every 6 hours. Please be sure to pay attention to obtain the latest information and increase your chances of survival."
After reading the officially updated information, Guan Tong had a preliminary understanding of the mist situation.
And this rule... is indeed not very friendly to those who previously chose to leave the city for the wilderness.
Inside cities, there are completely sealed official shelters; so gathering points can also be sealed shut. But in the wilderness, although there are villages, uninhabited county towns, etc., that can provide shelter, their sealing is generally inferior.
The most unfortunate are definitely those who set up camps in the wilderness. The mist ca so suddenly and densely, leaving very little reaction ti. Even if they drove away imdiately upon the rule's announcent, they might not avoid the mist's encroachnt.
This is probably also why the authorities specifically ntioned "returning to the city for refuge." It must be because after this rule was announced, many people in the wilderness felt it was too dangerous and had no choice but to contact the authorities hoping to return to the city... Clearly, when it cos to life and death, many people will give up that unbound freedom and choose to save their lives.
"I wonder about those two at the foot of the mountain..."
Guan Tong couldn't help but think of Yu Hong and Zhao Yu, who were camping at the mountain foot. After the rule was announced, those two would definitely need to quickly find a sealed location, otherwise, they'd be in grave danger.
I wonder if they'll try to co up the mountain to find ? Guan Tong thought about it and felt it was unlikely.
Less than a minute after the rule was announced, the mountain was already filled with dense fog. Mingdao Mountain was an undeveloped wild mountain to begin with, without even a proper mountain path. It would be very difficult to ascend under the pervading mist.
Guan Tong shook his head. "Now is not the ti to worry about others. I should prepare for my own exploration operation."
Although the authorities strongly advise against personal exploration of the mist by civilians, he is not an ordinary person; he is the Shadow. If even he cannot explore it, then other Ascendants would find it even more difficult.
Even as a forerunner, Guan Tong must first give it a try, to see what those Nightmare Beasts in the mist really are.
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