Mist Ruins

This time, the three figures did not bother searching for tracks, for the two figures climbing halfway up the mountain were targets too obvious to miss. They merely exchanged a glance before charging rapidly in the direction of the pair.

However, Rhode was not slow either.

His figure flashed as he slid diagonally down the mountainside. Accompanied by a sharp whistle, the Soul Bird that had been circling in the sky seemed to receive a command, swooping down to charge at the three men in black.

"--!!"

Faced with the sudden assault of the Soul Bird, the three men in black did not panic. They quickly formed an interception formation; one swung the dual swords in his hands and lunged forward, while the other two maintained their course, continuing to dash toward Lize and Mace. Clearly, they had a distinct division of labor and were highly professional. They would not stop their advance for such a minor entanglement; if the target were truly just an ordinary bird, it would indeed have been unable to stop them.

But unfortunately, that was no physical entity.

Facing the cold blades, the cyan bird showed no intention of dodging, instead flying straight into them. A glimmer of joy flashed in the eyes of the man in black who saw this, but in the next moment, his expression turned to horror—for he clearly saw the cyan bird pass right through the sword edge and lunge straight at him!

Elemental creature!

The man in black was shocked. He hurriedly twisted his body, barely dodging the attack, but even so, the Soul Bird passed through his shoulder. The man felt as if half his body had instantly plummeted into an ice cellar, losing all sensation. His body, which had been trying to maintain balance, stalled in mid-air before crashing heavily to the ground, his short sword flying from his hand.

The other two fared no better. When the Soul Bird swept past them, they had paid it no mind. But soon, a bone-chilling cold wind followed, blowing across their bodies. Both felt their limbs instantly turn numb and stiff, forcing them to halt their steps.

Although this strange discomfort dissipated quickly, the delay of a few seconds allowed Lize and Mace to reach the white stone. Seeing this, the leader of the men in black frowned; he made a gesture and then drew a short crossbow from his waist.

"W-what is happening!"

The fat merchant, who had been exhausted to the point of collapse halfway up, stumbled to the side of the white stone under Lize's guidance. He leaned against the rock wall, gasping for air, but before he could complain further, several black shadows grazed past him and embedded themselves into the stone wall nearby.

"Whoa!"

Mace hurriedly covered his head and crouched down, while Lize instinctively shrank back, not forgetting to grab the fat merchant and push him into the shadows to avoid further attacks.

"We must hurry."

At this moment, Rhode appeared right behind them. He glanced at the three black shadows not far down the mountain and spoke.

"W-who exactly are they! What's going on! Why are they attacking us?"

"Likely scouts."

Although the distance was not small, the clear weather allowed Rhode to glimpse that they were wearing the standard attire of scouts. The uniforms of scouts from various countries under the protection of the Dragon Soul of Light were mostly similar; as for which country these people came from, he would only know after killing them. However, Rhode did not have that kind of strength right now. The fact that even the special ability of the Soul Bird could only freeze them for a few seconds showed that it wasn't that these people had high resistance to soul-element attacks, but that his own level was too low to achieve better results.

Lingering is useless.

"As for why they are attacking us, I think you can ask them yourself. Perhaps if they are in a good mood, they will tell you a thing or two before you die."

Although it was rare for Rhode to tell a joke, the fat merchant could not laugh. As a merchant who had traveled for many years, he naturally knew that those scouts were not to be trifled with. Thinking of the unpleasant rumors circulating among his peers about what would happen if one fell into their hands, the merchant turned pale and broke into a cold sweat. So, even though his legs were trembling with exhaustion, he forced himself to stand up and follow Rhode toward the small path hidden behind the white stone.

The Zenar Mountain Path was once a glorious trade route, wide enough for two carriages to travel side by side. But now, it was completely abandoned. All kinds of rocks that had rolled down from the cliffs on both sides piled up in the road, making the originally wide path rugged, uneven, and exceptionally narrow. The three stumbled forward, not daring to stop. Rhode looked back from time to time, but the situation did not improve—the sound of pursuit behind them was becoming clearer. If not for the terrain, they would likely have been surrounded long ago.

"Mr. Rhode! There's no road left!"

Lize's exclamation made Rhode turn back. Sure enough, the mountain path not far ahead was completely blocked by fallen rocks, impossible to climb over or break through.

Just as expected.

Rhode shook his head slightly. He had originally thought that doing this in the game was to force players onto a pre-set route, but it didn't seem to be the case now—whatever, it wasn't his original goal anyway.

"Go right."

"Right?"

Hearing Rhode's order, both were stunned. They turned their gazes toward the small path on the right, but their steps hesitated.

Although the main road was blocked, there was a small path nearby. The strangest thing was that despite the clear, cloudless sky, that path was filled with thick fog. The sunlight passing through the dense mist created an eerie atmosphere. Just looking at it made one feel that there was something strange inside, and now, Rhode wanted them to go in there?

"Hurry, there's no time."

However, under Rhode's urging, the two quickly walked into the mist. Soon, their figures were completely obscured by the thick fog and disappeared from sight.

Seeing them enter, Rhode breathed a sigh of relief. He looked back at the rear once more, then extended his right hand.

"Cage!"

The card floating in his palm shifted from cyan to white, and then a snow-white blade appeared. Rhode gripped the long sword and swung it violently toward the cliff.

A blade of brilliant light flew from the sword, striking the teetering boulders above the cliff. Soon, with a massive roar, shattered rocks mixed with dust tumbled down. By the time the three men in black arrived, Rhode's figure had long since vanished deep into the mist under the cover of smoke and debris.

"Damn it!"

Looking at the devastated mountain path, one of the men in black gritted his teeth and complained. The road ahead was completely sealed by rubble and impassable. Not to mention that Rhode's sword strike had triggered a chain reaction; now the cliffs on both sides of the path were trembling, and it would be even more dangerous to force their way through.

"What do we do?"

"There's no other way."

Another man in black stared fixedly at the completely sealed path.

"We can only go back and report to the captain. Send people to monitor all the villages and towns in the vicinity; they must be planning to leave from the back, but I really didn't expect these guys to be so capable."

"Elemental creature, could there be a mage among them?"

"If it were truly a mage, it wouldn't be strange, but from our observations, there doesn't seem to be one."

Just as the two men in black exchanged opinions, another man who had been silent, staring at the marks on the cliff wall, spoke up.

"There is a very high-level swordsman among them."

After saying this, the man in black turned his head.

"Let's go. These three targets are indeed not simple, but we haven't lost yet. Pass the order down: monitor the surrounding villages and towns immediately. I believe they cannot stay in the mountains forever."

For Rhode and the others, the danger had not yet passed.

"What... is this place?"

The fat merchant stared blankly at everything before him. He had always considered himself well-traveled, having seen almost everything there was to see, but the events of the past few days told him that there was still much in this world he knew nothing about.

After passing through that thick fog, what lay before them was a desolate, abandoned small town. The entire town was shrouded in dense mist, making everything appear hazy and indistinct. Even when looking up at the sky, one could only see a gray, murky expanse. Gone was the clear, bright weather from before; the entire world was dim and lusterless, as if it belonged to an entirely different plane of existence.

"This is the Mist Ruins."

Rhode, walking up from behind, answered casually.

"As long as we pass through here, we can reach Aragak Pass, and then we will be able to leave."

"But, is there... danger here?"

Unless one were blind, no one would mistake this place for a peaceful one.

"Of course there is danger."

Rhode did not explain himself fully. In the game, the Mist Ruins was the first five-man dungeon at level ten, and also the first dungeon players would encounter. It wasn't exactly difficult, but it wasn't easy either. However, for their group of three, it was quite troublesome. After all, Rhode was only level eight, and Lize was a mere level six. As for the merchant, whose combat power was only five, he wasn't even worth counting. When it all added up, this was essentially an eight-level Summon Swordmaster and a support class attempting to solo a ten-level five-man dungeon—in the game, anyone doing this would be branded an idiot.

Rhode was no idiot. In fact, it was only after seeing Lize that he thought of this risky method; otherwise, he would never have chosen this path—though, in reality, this path was currently the safest one.

When comparing the probability of danger.

"But as long as you follow my orders, there won't be any major risks. So..."

At this point, Rhode turned his head to look at the blonde girl beside him.

"Lize, it's up to you now."