The Rules Had Changed

The entire misty forest fell completely silent.

All three rare Silver Tier elite Goblin lay dead on the ground, utterly lifeless.

Lu Heng gripped the Star Blade, standing quietly in place, slowly calming his breathing.

The intense battle just now was extremely stressful. The assassin launched several close-range sneak attacks, the axe-wielder relentlessly pressed forward, and the mage disrupted his perception Global Region. This coordinated suppression from three fronts virtually locked down all movement. Even though he ultimately broke through and won by relying on the Blood Taisui Mycelium and his precise reflexes, his body and mind were still severely depleted. The dull, heavy feeling of repeated piercing impacts lingered in his chest, and the damaged Mycelium on his body was slowly wriggling and repairing itself, gradually restoring its protective state.

Based on all previous hunting experience, killing a Silver Elite unit of this rank will always refresh the Victorious Chest.

This is the world's constant rule of drop, and it has never gone wrong.

Especially these elite three-person teams with perfect teamwork and top combat power are extremely rare. They represent the highest level of combat power in the entire region and are of extremely high value. The treasure chest should definitely be found there.

Lu Heng stopped and waited quietly.

A few seconds passed.

All around was a thick white mist slowly swirling, with no light falling, no spatial fluctuations, and no trace of any treasure chest being created.

Empty and desolate, utterly silent.

Lu Heng's expression darkened.

He immediately recalled all his hunting experiences since entering the Mist Forest.

From the Green Demon on the outer edge of the shallow layer, to the ordinary Silver demons cleared along the way, and then to this elite squad that was just wiped out.

The Victorious Chest never appeared once throughout the entire game.

It's not a delayed refresh, and it's not a probability-based drop.

This forest completely lacks this loot mechanism.

My doubts grew stronger.

Treasure chests dropping is a fixed rule inherent in the world system and will not disappear due to changes in terrain.

The only explanation is that this Mist Forest has been completely isolated and altered by some unknown force, breaking away from the unified rules system of the outside world.

Lu Heng was neither impatient nor blindly delved into the matter.

Trapped in the Inner Region dangerous place, with an unknown future and lurking dangers in the thick fog, it's pointless to dwell on the unusual rules. All he can do now is to advance steadily, explore cautiously, and proceed step by step with utmost care.

But he kept this unusual event firmly in his heart.

If he ever has the opportunity to come into contact with the Forest Will in the future, he must ask him directly about the reasons and unravel the mystery of the disordered rules of this forest.

With his mind at ease, Lu Heng lowered his head, his gaze falling on the three Goblin corpses on the ground.

Scattered around the corpse were a bone battle axe, a dark, deadly dagger, simple spellcasting accessories, and a complete set of Black Iron armor worn on the body.

Its design is crude, its material is dull, and it is completely different from the equipment dropped by monsters in the outside world.

Lu Heng stared at the weapons and equipment, his fingertips twitching slightly, but ultimately he completely withdrew his thoughts and didn't touch a single one.

He was perfectly clear about the key point.

In the past, the monsters he hunted and the weapons and equipment he picked up were all legitimate drops that had been filtered, purified, and processed in advance by the Forest Will.

Only after the forest's will approves and transforms the area, removing impurities, eliminating strange phenomena, and reducing risks to zero, can the material be safely picked up and used normally.

But these original equipment pieces are completely different.

These are items that Goblin wear themselves and are naturally endowed with; they have not undergone any purification or modification by the Forest Will.

The fog, the malevolent aura of demons, and the strange impurities of the forest all remain within the weapons and armor, harboring unknown dangers.

Without permission or proper purification and filtration, recklessly picking it up could have unpredictable consequences.

If these items are tainted by forest taboos, eerie curses, or unknown contaminations, bringing them into one's possession will inevitably cause serious problems.

At best, it causes disordered breathing and impaired condition; at worst, it leads to being directly entangled by the strange creatures of the forest, with endless consequences.

Lu Heng has always been cautious and would never take risks for a little bit of supplies.

Even though the equipment looked intact and usable, and even though the materials from the elite monsters were of considerable value, he still chose to give it up completely.

Never take anything that hasn't been approved by the Forest Will.

Having confirmed this, he completely looked away, no longer coveting any supplies on the ground.

At the same time, he became even more certain that the three-man squad he had just wiped out was an elite force that was extremely rare in the entire forest.

With its closed-loop tactics, adaptability to terrain, and extremely strong suppressive power, this type of formation cannot be spawned in large numbers. It belongs to a very small number of high-level hunting units in the woodlands and is by no means a common mob.

The danger of the entire fog forest lies in its unpredictable nature, not in its abundant quantity.

Calming his mind, Lu Heng activated the Blood Taisui, causing the Mycelium to spread out over a wide area, scanning the Global Region for any movement.

The ground shook, the air currents rippled, and the branches trembled slightly; all the feedback was clearly transmitted back to my mind.

There were no high-level monsters lurking nearby, no sign of a second elite squad, and no indication of an encirclement. Only a few faint traces of low-level monsters lingered in the distant fog, posing no threat whatsoever.

This temporary safety was hard-won.

Lu Heng looked up at the thick, persistent white fog around him.

He now fully understood the source of the forest's terror.

Monsters are never the only ones who truly kill.

It's the strange rule that comes with this land.

Dense fog naturally blocks vision, interferes with mental activity, and suppresses elemental power, making it inherently ineffective against all conventional human combat methods.

External experience, external rules, and external drop systems are all ineffective here.

Everything needs to be explored anew, and everything needs to be handled with caution.

After a period of rest, my condition has completely stabilized.

It's time to continue.