The fog grew heavier.
The density of the white mist intensified around them. When Mu Anqi looked up again, she could no longer even see the direction of the black clock tower. That was bad enough—she had memorized the direction—but even more irritating were the strange creatures constantly darting out from every corner of the white fog. Perhaps they weren't even living beings at all.
There were black "long worms" that resembled both snakes and lizards, unidentified creatures with three heads and six arms that turned into piles of mud when killed, and even mosquitoes the size of basketballs with three pairs of compound eyes! Yes, mosquitoes, not flies. It was utterly absurd. When Mu Anqi sliced one of the mosquitoes in half with her Ghost Slash, its rear end suddenly swelled and bulged rapidly. If she hadn't reacted quickly, shielding herself with her outer garment, she would have been splattered with blood.
Low lethality, but extremely offensive. Harassed by waves of these "little bugs" and hampered by poor visibility, Mu Anqi grew increasingly irritable. Staring into the white fog, a sudden impulse seized her: to use molotov cocktails, grenades, and her rifle to just blast and shoot her way through the entire Black Mirror Vortex. Just as another black slug, large as a small hill, dragging a trail of mucus, slithered towards them, Mu Anqi felt a surge of heat in her head. But before she could act, she heard a crisp crack.
In an instant, all her anger and frustration receded like a tide. It felt as if she had been cleansed by a clear spring. Dazed, she stood still for a moment before realizing she had likely fallen victim to another emotional debuff—one that seemed to build up until it reached a critical threshold before exploding. Thank goodness for the Mental Protection Pendant, otherwise… she might have lost control?
"Senior, wait! Let's not kill this one… this snot monster?" Mu Anqi first uttered a blessing towards the slowly approaching "Black Mountain" that was coming to its death, then stopped He Guxia, who was about to strike. She glanced at Bai Yulai, whose face was full of boredom and showed no sign of noticing anything amiss. As she detoured around the slug and continued forward, she explained, "This Black Mirror Vortex seems to stir up all sorts of negative emotions. When they accumulate to a certain point, it triggers a mental attack or corruption? Senior He, have you felt anything unusual?"
"I am a sword cultivator. My sword heart is pure." Although she didn't practice the Path of Severing Emotions, these influences affected her only minimally, and she hadn't noticed anything. At this thought, He Guxia frowned seriously. It had been an oversight not to account for the players' mental vulnerabilities. If something happened to Mu Anqi while she was with her… not to mention having to face Ji Huaichu, she would feel too ashamed to even face Xia Yun. "I will be more vigilant. If more monsters appear, you should not engage."
"Although it's unclear if these emotions are linked to the monsters' deaths, let's try to avoid the creatures and regroup with the others first." Remembering Wu Sansheng's group mental immunity skill, Mu Anqi turned to look at Bai Yulai, who stood there innocently hugging her large tail, watching the spectacle as if she were on a leisurely tour. "White Fox Demon King… you, can you summon some little foxes to scout the surroundings? It would be good if they could lure the monsters away too."
"Huh? Me?" Bai Yulai, suddenly called upon, had the distinct aura of a student caught daydreaming in class and being picked on by the teacher to answer a question. She blinked in confusion for a moment before agreeing, "Okay, it's nothing major."
She had been stroking her tail fur the whole way, and quite a lot had shed off anyway.
The next second, the little foxes, transformed with soft yips, scattered and charged into the white fog.
"It should be… this direction…" Mu Anqi thought to herself, silently relaying her recent discovery to Ji Huaichu as well.
After once again using blessings to immobilize a three-headed, six-armed monster, Mu Anqi and the others finally arrived at the base of the black clock tower. They saw the faint glow of a fire ahead, and as they drew closer, they saw Ji Huaichu, the Fang siblings, and Jiang Yuexia waiting beside a lit bonfire.
"Just the few of you?" Mu Anqi was taken aback. She had thought gathering would mean everyone was together, but another team had been separated? Qing Tian, Zhao Guogu, Si Suying, Wu Sansheng, Xia Yun, and the Qing Teng, Yao siblings? … Don't tell me they were split into two more teams.
Qing Tian was a four-leaf clover, Zhao Guogu was the Luck Empress; those two should be fine. Plus, considering the mental influence here, Mu Anqi guessed the two lucky ones were probably with Wu Sansheng. As for Si Suying, Xia Yun, and the Demon Vine sisters being in one team, or Si Maomao being pulled along by Zhao Guogu's luck… that seemed like a plausible grouping too.
…
"Why is it like this, boo hoo… You clearly said it was a tour… I believed it was just a tour, and that lots of people would protect me… But now we're in here, and there's nothing… boo hoo… Who would come to a place like this for a tour, waaah…" The four-leaf clover demon cried, her face flushed red, her pitiful sobs sounding like little growls. Without a tissue to wipe her tears and snot, she had to use her four-leaf clover leaves instead, which only made her seem even more pitiful.
"…I really didn't expect this either. Aren't we supposed to be blessed with good luck? There shouldn't be any danger." Zhao Guogu tried to comfort her "Demon King," but it was no use. Although Qing Tian was a four-leaf clover demon and had recruited Zhao Guogu, Zhao Guogu was the first and only player she had ever recruited. As a timid, socially anxious homebody plant, the only reason she managed to recruit Zhao Guogu was because both their abilities related to luck, creating a mutual attraction. As for abilities…
She had no real abilities. She had never been to a Black Mirror Vortex before, and even going to an amusement park meant she, as a single plant, just rode the carousel, avoiding all the thrilling rides and haunted houses. She wasn't a true Demon King at all.
"Calm down, calm down! Look, this place is creepy, right? It seems like there's some kind of mental attack? But we have Wu Sansheng with us; she's mentally immune and can share that immunity with us! See how thick the white fog is? It seems dangerous, but Si Cat has incredible hearing and alertness, plus she recently learned a passive danger sense. We have nothing to fear from physical ambushes." Zhao Guogu analyzed seriously. She felt that with her and Qing Tian's combined luck, nothing bad should happen. But Qing Tian was crying too miserably, and before entering, Zhao Guogu had heard the Demon Vine sisters expressing concern for Qing Tian, learning that Qing Tian hadn't been a demon for long… It felt like coaxing a little kid.
The rational analysis was thorough and correct, but unfortunately, Qing Tian couldn't take it in. "But… it's so dark…"
Zhao Guogu: "…"
"Let me." Wu Sansheng sighed, checked her skill list, and finally walked over, taking Qing Tian's hand. Instantly, emotions like "fear," "terror," "the unknown," and "sadness" flooded into her heart. Suddenly receiving so many emotions felt quite novel to Wu Sansheng; after all, since arriving in this game, she hadn't experienced such a rich variety of negative emotions…
The moment Wu Sansheng received these emotions, Qing Tian's sobs and sniffles stopped. She looked dazedly at Wu Sansheng, then down at their joined hands. All the fear and other emotions in her heart had vanished. Now she felt utterly calm, as if she had returned to the days before becoming a demon, when she was just an ignorant four-leaf clover, basking in the sun and sleeping every day, knowing nothing, understanding nothing, fearless and untroubled.
Qing Tian raised her hand and rubbed her eyes, wiping away the tears on her lashes. Now, looking again at the thickening white fog and the gloomy night sky, she was no longer afraid. "Thank you," she said softly, the four-leaf clover hairpin on her head swaying slightly. She reached out and placed a small, intact four-leaf clover into Wu Sansheng's palm.
"You're welcome. Let's find the main group and regroup first." Wu Sansheng's expression remained calm; the influx of emotions didn't affect her much. "You and Zhao Guogu focus on wishing to reunite with everyone, then use your intuition to pick a direction."
"Ah! Okay!"
"No problem." Zhao Guogu responded, leading Si Suying over, still looking surprised. "Your ability is getting more and more powerful; this group support is invincible!"
"Not bad." Wu Sansheng said mildly. "Make the wish now."
"Okay, okay, making the wish now."
Just as Zhao Guogu and Qing Tian focused on wishing and determining the direction, a harsh sound of dragging iron chains rang out, accompanied by heavy, approaching footsteps. Si Suying's ear twitched, and she said quickly, "Dodge to the left first!"
It was better to avoid a direct confrontation if possible.
…
"This might be our first time experiencing this kind of tour." Ye Jingmeng remarked as she walked, scattering Qing Teng seeds along the way. The seeds fell to the ground and sprouted rapidly, completely ignoring the paving stones. "It's strangely novel."
"…After all, who would come to the Black Mirror Vortex for a tour?" Ye Muyun said, speechless. She glanced at her leisurely older sister, then at Xia Yun, who was gripping her lifebound sword and looking highly alert. She spoke to reassure her, "Don't worry, we'll keep you safe."
"Right, we're very powerful." Ye Jingmeng chimed in. Suddenly sensing something, she snapped her fingers. The newly sprouted Qing Teng behind them instantly grew at an extreme rate, massive vines spreading out and lashing out, violently swatting away a black "lizard" that had pounced down from above.
"The biodiversity in this Black Mirror Vortex is really something else." Ye Muyun remarked. "The malevolent thought that generated this vortex has quite the imagination."
"Your master is very powerful, though she doesn't seem easy to approach. I didn't expect her to take on a disciple." Ye Jingmeng controlled the giant vine as it meandered along beside them. When another monster approached, she simply used the vine to bind it tightly, then shook loose a few more seeds to sprout.
"Well, even that Ji Huaichu can fall in love with a player, so He Guxia taking a disciple isn't that strange, right?" Ye Muyun shrugged and said.
"True enough. I wonder when I can get into a relationship… sigh."
"Get into a relationship? What relationship? Shedding your single status is more likely than you shedding hair."
"Huh? What are you talking about? Are you still holding a grudge because that crush you had back then mistook me for you, and then I rejected the confession?"
"What are you talking about? I never had a crush!"
…Xia Yun, stuck expressionlessly between the Demon Vine sisters without saying a word, felt utterly exhausted. She didn't know how many sighs she had held in her heart. Not only could she not blend into the sisters' casual chatter, she couldn't even keep up with their rhythm. Even when she tried hard to listen, she eventually realized that despite all their talking, they never discussed anything of substance, yet they never stopped!
Xia Yun: Headache.jpg