Apocalyptic Era: Starting from picking up a Bishoujo
Chapter 299 - 278 Mazao’s "Return" 1

Chapter 299: 278 Mazao’s "Return" 1

The white fog appeared around us just like the morning fog; however, it was neither morning nor was the altitude on the waist of Moon Concealing Mountain high enough to enter the clouds. The "fireflies" that had been searching the area for a long time also did not detect any signs of fog forming in advance.

Previously elusive and strange clues now unexpectedly appeared within our sight without warning.

Although I have confidence in Mazao’s power to attract disaster, this time there was no short time limit; we would still return for another visit tomorrow. I knew that as long as Mazao was present, we should be able to make some progress even tonight, but to see such immediate effects, one could not help but feel surprisingly moved. It was as if the scene was declaring, although Mazao could not simply wave away the strange entities, she could indeed summon them at will.

However, it seemed that the main entity did not plan to reveal itself to us immediately. This white fog was probably not the source of the anomaly on Moon Concealing Mountain; it was more likely an external manifestation of its power, merely a phenomenon that had spread.

Had the source already noticed us, and the white fog was its way of testing us? Or was it that we were coincidentally caught up by an unconscious action of the other party?

What exactly is the real entity? Could it be Yinyue, hiding in the dark? Or is it another demon with self-awareness and intelligence, or some sort of unclassifiable anomaly that resides on Moon Concealing Mountain?

While doubting, I observed the white fog closely and soon deduced that the feeling it gave me was the same as the hidden strange entity I had sensed before climbing the mountain. It wasn’t likely the core of it, but not a new phenomenon either. In other words, this white fog had existed before Mazao and I climbed the mountain. It had moved stealthily around us and then confined us within it.

If so, why hadn’t my "fireflies" detected it before?

It was likely that the "fireflies" had been deceived. This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened; in the past when Lu Youxun attempted to kidnap Mazao, the demon hunters around him interfered with the "fireflies" using illusion techniques. Essentially, the "fireflies" are just tiny spiritual fragments of mine. The way to overcome this weakness is simple; I just need to inject more flame into the "fireflies." The more flame they contain, the stronger their resistance to spiritual magic becomes.

In fact, I have been using this method for some time already. The "fireflies" I placed with the Zhu family and the ones I usually kept around Mazao have all been enhanced. Not to mention demon hunters of achieved level and rank, even if it were a demon hunter of Great Success, I am confident that they would not be easily deceived from the start.

The "fireflies" responsible for investigating the area around Moon Concealing Mountain were also of this enhanced type. The initial intention was not to counter potential illusions but to avoid destruction before they could relay information to me in case of danger en route.

Even though these enhanced "fireflies" have some irreparable weaknesses, they are, after all, just my tentacles. No matter how strong their spiritual resistance is, they can’t compare to me, the main consciousness. However, the fact that these "fireflies" here were deceived on a spiritual level indicates that the deceptive ability of this white fog exceeds the common Great Success rank.

Mr. Zhu once said that Yinyue’s understanding of Illusion Techniques rivals that of Impermanence in history...

My suspicion of Yinyue surged.

However, the Master of Divine Seal also emphasized that I would have to wait until tomorrow to find Changan’s soul on Moon Concealing Mountain, which means that Yinyue should not be on Moon Concealing Mountain now. So what’s the deal with this white fog? Is it that Yinyue is here, but she hasn’t kept Changan’s soul near her? Or is it that she is indeed on Moon Concealing Mountain, but no matter what, I can’t find her?

Mazao was also silently observing the white fog. After a moment, she said, "This fog seems to have no toxicity, no aggressiveness, and no direct danger... Zhuang Cheng, what should we do next?"

Since I’m not alone, I wanted to test the escape route first.

I first tried to sense the "fireflies" outside of Moon Concealing Mountain—in case of emergency, I left a few "fireflies" at the inn before climbing the mountain.

But now, I couldn’t pinpoint the exact location of those few "fireflies." It wasn’t that the "fireflies" were destroyed; I was certain that they all still existed, just that I couldn’t successfully connect with them. It seems that the white fog isn’t just invisible to the "fireflies’" vision, but it can also sever the invisible "link" between me and the "fireflies."

The severity of this severance was stronger than the barrier that once isolated the independent reality space from the real world, not that the white fog was stronger than the latter, but rather the latter was not as effective against others with Divine Seal Fragments, while in this white fog I couldn’t enjoy the same convenience. Although I didn’t intend to leave alone, Flame Transmission would definitely be ineffective.

"Mazao, can you use Space Transfer to leave this place? Give it a try," I said.

Upon hearing my words, the mana fluctuations of the Power of Return immediately appeared on Mazao, and the space around her body briefly blurred and twisted.

Then space returned to calm, and she was still standing in the same place.

"...I can’t," she said, astonished.

"Is this unusual?" I asked.

"Although my Power of Return isn’t specifically designed for Space Transfer, even when the Catastrophe Demon used Flame Magic Power to forcefully lock onto me, he couldn’t directly prevent my spatial transfer..."

Even though she cited such an example, the reason why the Catastrophe Demon failed to successfully stop her at that time might also be due to Little Bowl enhancing her Power of Return with the Prayer Power of the Divine Seal Fragment.

"Then, let’s try retracing our steps to see if we can break free of this fog." I wanted to study the nature of the white mist.

She nodded with some reluctance and then moved with me toward the direction from which we came.

My memory is exceptionally strong now, with a crystal-clear recollection of the route I’ve taken. For any path I’ve already traveled, there is no chance of getting lost again. But this is a judgment based on common sense. In the face of strange phenomena, the first thing to be discarded should be common sense. Indeed, I had to admit in the end that I was lost.

This outcome was quite expected. If Flame Transmission and Space Transfer were sealed, being able to escape the fog-covered area by normal physical movement would be truly astonishing.

This experience of getting lost in the mist brought back memories of the Void Realm. But in the Void Realm, the mist is gray and dense. Only in the rock seat area does the mist thin out a bit, allowing us to see the outlines of everyone seated. The fog here is lighter, and with the illumination of the firelight I provided, we could easily see the surroundings three or four dozen meters away.

While the association comes naturally, I don’t feel there is any real connection between the white mist here and the gray fog of the Void Realm. Even if they both have the nature of causing disorientation, it wouldn’t change my judgment.

In traditional cultures of any country, the concept of "fog" symbolizes "loss." In any folktale about the supernatural, once a scene shrouded in fog appears, it’s pretty much impossible to leave simply by walking out.

Sure enough, after walking for a while, we still hadn’t broken out of the white mist’s boundary. I could confirm that the reason wasn’t that the range covered by the white mist had expanded tremendously. I clearly followed the same route back, yet the scenery ahead became unfamiliar. Either I had unwittingly deviated from our original path, or the landscape had been stealthily altered.

Whichever possibility it was, it was enough to suggest that this white mist could even influence my consciousness to some degree. The last time I experienced my consciousness being invaded by an illusion—by an entity of strangeness—was during the battle with Yinyue.

If I were to traverse time and space to battle Yinyue again, I am confident that I wouldn’t fall into the illusion she spun, but to say I wouldn’t be affected by her Illusion Technique at all would be an arrogant overstatement.

"Walking won’t get us out either." I concluded, "We can only venture deeper. Is that okay with you, Mazao?"

"No problem..." Mazao seemed to be still troubled.

"Are you bothered by the fact you can’t transfer out?"

Perhaps she saw herself as the last resort, thinking that if we encountered a strangeness we couldn’t handle, she would use her Power of Return to take me with her to escape. This was definitely not an overestimation of herself. Last time, it was because she picked the right moment to flee the Doomsday Dream with me, that we were fortunately able to avoid a direct confrontation with Ming Zhuo too soon. Her escaping prowess is unparalleled.

"It’s a bit of a concern, but it’s not about that now," she said.

"What is it about, then?" I asked.

She said uncertainly, "I seem... It seems I know how to leave this place."

"You do?" I questioned.

"Can I lead the way in front?" she asked.

Trusting that she wasn’t just saying anything offhand, I slowed down. She moved ahead of me. I followed closely behind her, and from time to time she looked back at me to make sure I wasn’t lost.

Can we really leave just like that? It felt like the plot of a horror movie had just started, and we had just entered the phase of "discovering we couldn’t escape the setting of the story." If we could really come and go freely, wouldn’t that break the ambiance of a horror movie?

But as we walked, I noticed the mist around us thinning out more and more.

Finally, the white mist completely disappeared.