At dawn, with the sky barely light, the four Spirit Boats had already weighed anchor and set sail, slowly heading toward the dense gray-white fog.
Chen Ming stood at the bow, his gaze fixed on the approaching wall of fog. The instant the Spirit Boat's bow touched it, a cold, damp breath washed over him, as though they had passed through an invisible barrier. Their field of vision abruptly narrowed. The open sea vanished, replaced by thick white fog, and visibility plunged to less than a hundred feet.
More unsettling still, even sounds became muffled. The waves striking the hull, the wind, and even the breathing of those beside him all grew indistinct, as though filtered through a thick layer of cotton.
"This really is eerie," Chen Ming said quietly.
He tried extending his spiritual sense, only to discover that what normally reached dozens of miles could now stretch only about a thousand feet. Beyond that, it seemed to strike an invisible wall, unable to advance another inch.
Wan Yao'er stood beside him, likewise trying to release her spiritual sense, with the same result. She frowned and said, "This fog doesn't just block our sight. It suppresses spiritual sense, too. If we're ambushed in an environment like this, we'll have far less time to react."
Chen Ming turned to Zhao Tie Zhu and ordered, "Pass the word. Everyone is to go on the highest alert. Work in pairs and take turns keeping watch. No one is to let their guard down at any time. Also, tell the helmsman to follow the Tianxing City ship ahead closely. Keep three hundred feet behind it, and don't lose sight of it."
"Yes!" Zhao Tie Zhu left to carry out the order.
The four Spirit Boats moved slowly through the dense fog, traveling at