Heh Heh

Only when the flames had dwindled to a tiny green flicker, struggled for a few moments, and then went out with a "pfft" did everyone notice.

A milky-white gas, resembling mist, was spreading from the ruins. Mixed in with the smoke and dust, it had gone unnoticed at first.

Now it seemed this strange mist was what had extinguished the flames.

"Something's wrong." Luo He immediately sounded the alarm. "Everyone, stay alert!"

"We've lost contact with Sirius and the others," Officer Wu said, her voice tinged with panic.

"Our people are still back there, too." A man in a brown leather jacket spoke up. "Let's go back first, find Sirius and the others, and regroup with them."

Only after they turned and entered the forest did they realize that the mist had somehow spread through the trees as well. It was as if it had a mind of its own, closing in on them from every direction.

"Sirius, Sirius!" Another man in camouflage was still trying to make contact. "Respond if you can hear me!"

Luo He's expression turned grave. He took the lead and cleared a path. "Follow me. Pick up the pace!"

By the time the group reached the spot where their team had been stationed in the forest, mist had already surged in from all sides. Visibility was poor, and the mist felt deeply unsettling. When they grabbed at it, it felt strangely slick.

It was like clutching a corpse that had been soaked in formalin.

"Where are they?!"

A man accompanying Officer Wu panicked. Just a short while ago, they had left at least several dozen people here, but now the area was silent and deserted.

Where had they gone?

Why couldn't they reach them on the walkie-talkies?

There had been dozens of fully armed soldiers,