Seven o'clock sharp in the morning.
On Sighing Heights, white light flashed again and again.
Fifty members of the Fourth Catastrophe, fully rested after a night's sleep, descended around the Ash Altar once more, armed to the teeth.
Having earned plenty of experience and Ash Coins, the players were far stronger today than they had been yesterday.
Once almost everyone had arrived.
Jiahao and God Never Laughs immediately led the Vanguard Group down along the cliff.
The main force followed close behind, maintaining their battle formation as they marched back into the ruins of Fog Town.
But the moment they entered the streets on the outskirts of Fog Town, everyone sensed something was wrong.
"Strange..."
Kuang Shao, walking at the very front, tightened his grip on his stone shield and looked around. "There were at least a few dozen cultists patrolling these outer streets yesterday, weren't there?"
"Why's it deserted today? We haven't seen so much as a hair off a monster."
As they pushed forward, they encountered only a handful of scattered Corrupted Villagers along the way.
Before the main force could even act, the Vanguard Group slit their throats in passing.
"Did our three human bombs yesterday scare them so badly they packed up and ran overnight?"
Ma Lou scratched his head in bewilderment, his face full of confusion.
"Very unlikely."
[Ji Luo] shook his head gravely. "Kyle told me the cultists are a bunch of lunatics brainwashed by the Abyss. Running away isn't even in their vocabulary."
"Something this strange means trouble. Stay alert, everyone!"
The main force continued deeper, soon passing through several ruined blocks and approaching the Central Plaza.
Just then, Jiahao and God Never Laughs, who had been scouting ahead, suddenly came racing back, their faces grim.
"Ji God! Something's wrong!"
[God Never Laughs]