Dark Mist Erosion Core

Watching the mutation value on the panel creep higher, Ji Xinghe felt her heart sink.

The gray mist before her was so thick it had turned pitch-black, narrowing her field of vision.

Visibility ahead was only about five meters.

The only good news was that the Deformed Monsters had stopped outside the center of the Gray Mist Zone. They seemed afraid to enter.

They could only stare at Ji Xinghe with their blood-red eyes.

The moment she stepped outside, they would swarm her and devour her...

There was no turning back. She could only keep moving forward!

The Red Route was almost over. Holding the Green Heart Grass, she ate two stalks at once.

She gently patted Xiao Xi, then took up her weapon and hurried toward the end of the route.

A minute later, Ji Xinghe reached the end. She also spotted a black fruit tree up ahead.

She recognized the short, black fruit tree as a Dark Spirit Tree at a glance.

The gray mist all around was thick enough to look black, but there wasn't a trace of it within three meters of the tree. A blue-black fruit the size of a cherry hung above it.

[ Ding! Player has found the Dark Wood Spirit Tree. Exploration progress +15%. Current exploration progress: 95% ]

So it really was one.

She closed the panel and looked beneath the tree...

There was another monster there, its entire body ink-black. Unlike the Deformed Monsters, whose eyes were blood-red, this one was pure black.

As Ji Xinghe looked at it, it looked right back at her.

One casual glance from it was enough to send a chill down her spine.

This was absolutely not a creature she could handle right now!

Her legs stiffened in place.

The next moment, Xiao Xi's cool vine tugged at the back of her neck. "Master, Master!"

Ji Xinghe yelped in pain and came back to her senses, shaking her foggy head.

Don't meet its gaze!

Its mental power was even stronger than hers.

Mo Yi, beneath the Dark Spirit Tree, was just as shocked. Its Mental Suggestion had only lasted a few seconds on her. This human was stronger than it had expected.

It seemed it would have to get serious!

Ji Xinghe had no time to go back and forth with her opponent. She unleashed a skill, aiming straight at the black monster beneath the tree.

The monster drifted lightly aside, dodging Ji Xinghe's attack.

Ji Xinghe: "..."

What in the world was this thing?

Survival Game, you gave me this quest because you wanted me dead, didn't you?

Even as she complained, Ji Xinghe kept firing the Star Feather Repeating Crossbow.

She had deliberately chosen Wood Arrows coated in Mist Heart Fruit juice.

She had tested them against Deformed Monsters before. Throwing a fruit at a time was too wasteful; coating Wood Arrows with the juice saved a lot and didn't interfere with the slowing effect of the Mist Heart Fruit.

As long as she hit once, the monster would be slowed down!

Meanwhile, Xiao Xi, perched on her shoulder, fed her White Ground Orchids.

It gave her one every fifty seconds. Including the ones she'd gathered later, she had eight in total.

That gave her 400 seconds to fight. If she still couldn't take down the pitch-black monster by then, she'd have no choice but to fly out of the central area on her Flying Broom.

At last, after firing dozens of arrows, she finally hit it.

Ji Xinghe was watching the monster and didn't notice the Dark Spirit Tree's branches stir slightly at the center of the Gray Mist Zone.

[Monster hit. Opponent HP -0, -0. Bleeding triggered. HP -1, -1...]

She had finally landed a hit. A small victory in an otherwise grim situation. She hadn't broken through its defenses, but at least she'd triggered the bleeding effect.

She quickly checked its stats. The next second, her eyes widened.

[Second Order Dark Creature Mo Yi (Level 3)]

[Remaining HP: 298]

[Spell Attack: 166]

[Spell Defense: 10]

[Speed: 150 (Mist Heart Fruit juice taking effect. Current speed: 30. Time remaining: 00:09:59)]

[Traits: Immune to ordinary physical attacks. Excludes bleeding, piercing, and other damage.]

[Skill: Mental Suggestion. Makes the opponent believe the skill's owner is a creature more powerful than them. As long as the opponent believes they cannot win, they will never win!]

She had already seen this skill in action. Thankfully, it didn't have any other tricks.

But... immunity to physical attacks?

Then what had she been doing all this time? Showing off her strength? Showing off how many Wood Arrows she had?

At least its spell defense and HP weren't high.

Two hits and she could kill it!

Ji Xinghe put the Star Feather Repeating Crossbow back in her inventory, and a skill began to take shape in her hand.

Just then, the Dark Spirit Tree behind Mo Yi stirred quietly, its branches curling around its body.

Mo Yi froze for a second as black mist roiled around it.

At that moment, Ji Xinghe's skill shot out and hit!

Mo Yi let out a shrill cry, and something that might have been blood or tears streamed from its eyes.

[Hit Second Order Level 3 Dark Creature Mo Yi. Opponent HP -120.4]

One more hit!

While waiting for her skill to recharge, Ji Xinghe ate the White Ground Orchids Xiao Xi fed her and carefully watched the monster's flight path.

It had slowed down, but Ji Xinghe refused to let her guard down at a critical moment.

Even when fighting a lion, you give it your all, let alone an opponent with such bizarre abilities.

She noticed that Mo Yi froze for a second every time it flew beside a branch. Ji Xinghe's lips curled into a smile.

As soon as her skill was ready, she unleashed it.

Boom!

[Defeated Second Order Level 3 Dark Creature Mo Yi while below its level. Reward: Experience Points +1, Wow Coins +1, Dark Mist Erosion Core +1]

[Dark Mist Erosion Core: Wear it to move freely through the Gray Mist Zone. Duration: 30 minutes. Can be used once per day.]

As soon as she obtained the Dark Mist Erosion Core, Ji Xinghe put it on.