A Difficult Choice

Inside the white SUV, Wang Bing held a crystal ball in her hands. It glowed faintly.

A jumble of images flashed constantly within it. Outsiders could make nothing of them, but Wang Bing alone could glean some information from them.

A moment later, Wang Bing's voice came over the walkie-talkie.

"The divination results are in. If we enter the Dead Fog, we'll have some scares, but we'll come through unharmed. I can't divine anything beyond that. This fog seems to cause a lot of interference, so it's hard to get any more information..."

Wang Bing paused, then continued, "That's what the divination showed. As for which route we take, everyone will have to make that decision together."

Chen Fan fell into thought.

Wang Bing had run into trouble because of her divination not long ago.

Could they still trust her this time?

Ahead of them was the oncoming Living Fog.

To their right was an entire town shrouded by a rule-based anomaly.

To their left was the Dead Fog, still as stagnant water.

Behind them was a pursuing anomalous monster of unknown strength.

After thinking it over, Chen Fan decided to trust Wang Bing's divination.

They didn't have many good options to begin with.

Strictly speaking, Wang Bing's previous divination hadn't been wrong.

She simply hadn't divined the situation clearly enough, and she had relied too heavily on the divination, which had led to the bad outcome.

This time, Wang Bing had only shared what her divination had revealed.

The final decision would be made by everyone together.

So he picked up his walkie-talkie and said, "Since the divination says we'll have some scares but come through unharmed, I agree that we should enter the Dead Fog."

Since Chen Fan had said so, the Mortal Convoy naturally had no objections.

As for the Fairness Convoy, that went without saying. They had all fought alongside Wang Bing for a long time and were clearly willing to trust her.

With both convoys supporting Wang Bing, the Red-Green-Yellow Convoy couldn't very well disagree.

The vote was two to one, so whatever he said wouldn't matter much anyway.

Han Tai, Qin Renliang, and You Xiaoya were all a little uneasy.

Was the Dawn Alliance always this bold?

They had just joined, and now they had to venture into the Dead Fog?

Was that divination accurate or not...?

What if things went wrong...?

Han Tai's expression shifted repeatedly. At last, he gritted his teeth. To hell with it!

Since they had joined, they naturally had to stand together with the others. Besides, the alliance had a transcendent who specialized in divination.

Wasn't her ability to sense danger far better than his [Traffic Light]?

The convoy began to change direction, heading left, straight for the Dead Fog.

When Qian Lei, who was scouting ahead, received word, he was a little stunned.

"Captain, are you sure? I have a faint feeling that going left carries a risk of an overtime fine."

Chen Fan said helplessly, "Then try sensing the other directions again."

Qian Lei said, "I only get a slightly bad feeling from the other directions. It's nowhere near as strong as the one on the left."

"That's because the Dead Fog on the left is closer to us! If you go in one of the other directions, by the time you strongly sense danger, it'll be too late!"

Qian Lei fell silent sheepishly.

He couldn't help it. His sensing range wasn't as long as theirs, so what could he say?

Nie Shufeng could see forty-seven kilometers away at a glance. At that distance, Qian Lei could only pick up the faintest, vaguest sensation.

It was like going three days without washing your hair, then rushing into an old house full of cobwebs. You wouldn't know whether your scalp was itching because of dandruff or because cobwebs had caught in your hair.

If they really waited until he strongly sensed danger, they might be only a dozen kilometers or so from the Living Fog by then. It would probably be too late to change direction.

Chen Fan didn't have Qian Lei continue scouting ahead.

They would be entering the Dead Fog soon, so there was no point in letting Qian Lei act alone.

It was a good chance to have him rejoin the convoy and get acquainted with the alliance's new companions.

As the convoy changed direction and headed toward the Dead Fog, Nie Shufeng began addressing the people behind them through a loudspeaker.

This was what everyone had decided after a discussion.

They would inform the survivors following behind of the situation.

After all, since the apocalypse, everyone knew that entering the fog was dangerous.

To avoid disagreements among the survivors behind them, it was better to explain the risks as they changed direction.

Those willing to take the risk with them could follow.

Those unwilling wouldn't be forced.

"Everyone, please listen. The convoy is surrounded by danger on all sides. After weighing the risks and benefits, we've decided to risk entering the Dead Fog in search of a chance to survive.

"Please think carefully. If you're willing to follow us, remember: you must follow our arrangements and commands in everything you do.

"If you're unwilling to take this risk with us, you can stop now, because we're heading straight for the Dead Fog.

"Lastly, a friendly reminder: the other directions aren't safe either.

"Please think carefully about where you'll go."

As soon as the voice from the loudspeaker fell silent, a great clamor of discussion erupted among the survivors.

For them, the news was hard to accept.

They wanted neither to enter the fog nor to leave the group.

Either choice was extremely likely to put their lives in danger.

For a time, the survivors' faces darkened, and angry voices rang out.

"How did it come to this? Is there really no way around entering the fog?"

"Both routes are dead ends! Aren't they forcing us to our deaths?"

"Damn it, they really don't give a damn about us! I don't care, I'm not choosing either one!"

"What good are you transcendents? What's the point of awakening as a transcendent if you can't even pick a safe route?"

In a van, Zhao Xing and his younger sister Zhao Xin also heard Nie Shufeng's words.

Looking worried, Zhao Xin asked, "Brother, what should we do? Should we follow them into the fog?"

Zhao Xing didn't hesitate for long. He gritted his teeth and said, "We're going! There are transcendents with sensing abilities up ahead. Since they chose to enter the fog after sensing the situation, that means it's the best option we have right now!

"We have a better chance of surviving if we follow them. If we stay behind without transcendents leading us, we'll be dead sooner or later!"

Zhao Xin said, "But the fog is extremely dangerous too. The transcendents might survive, but we..."

Zhao Xing stroked his sister's head, determination in his eyes. "Don't worry. I'll protect you. As long as I'm here, I'll never let you come to harm."

Zhao Xin nodded, but the worry on her face didn't ease in the slightest.

The debate among the survivors continued.

People stopped one after another, choosing not to follow any farther.

These survivors stood on the road, watching the convoy gradually disappear into the distance.

Though they looked conflicted, their fear of the fog ultimately won out.

In the end, around a hundred people in the convoy chose to stop.

Most still chose to follow.

After traveling a few more kilometers, they could already see a stretch of fog in the distance, spanning the space between heaven and earth.

The fog was as still as a pool of stagnant water. From afar, it looked like a massive gray-white wall standing against the horizon.

Only after they continued forward and got close enough could they make out the fog's gauzy texture.

But the fog was so dense that, looking in from outside, everything beyond two or three meters was an expanse of white. They couldn't even see the road clearly.

When they reached the fog, Han Tai, at the very front of the convoy, slowed down and stopped before it.

Looking at the fog only half a meter or so from his windshield, Han Tai swallowed.

I... I just joined the alliance, and I'm going to be the lead car into the fog?

Is that right?

From a perspective only Han Tai could see, a traffic light he had placed stood at the edge of the fog.

On the traffic light, the signals for going straight, turning left, and turning right were all a glaring red.

Han Tai knew, however, that this was due to the limitations of his transcendent ability.

Even if they had chosen another direction earlier, the lights would all have been green at first. Once they actually encountered the Living Fog or the rule-based anomalous town, every light would have turned red, forbidding passage.

If they really relied on his transcendent ability for a warning, it would surely be too late for regrets by then.

Nie Shufeng's voice came over the walkie-talkie.

"Let me take the lead. My Clairvoyance and Clairaudience are much less effective in the fog, but I can still see a little farther."

Han Tai didn't hesitate much. He nodded and said, "Okay!"

Transcendents relied on their abilities to hold their ground. When they lacked confidence in those abilities, they often gave in to their instincts all the faster.

Facing the fog now, Han Tai's Traffic Light showed red warnings in every direction.

He was genuinely scared.

The two vehicles swapped places at the front of the convoy.

Chen Fan leaned out from behind and took a look, then sighed and shook his head.

Han Tai was still green. Back then, Chen Fan alone had driven a bus and led a few tagalongs out of the fog.

Qian Lei/Yan Kuan/Sun Hong: ?

Li Yuanyuan: ?

Pulling back into the car, Chen Fan took out the Yin-Yang Twin Mirrors.

He gently brushed his palm over the yang side.

A white expanse immediately appeared on the Yang Mirror.

He wanted to use the Yang Mirror to reflect the fog and see whether it could see through the obstruction.

Unfortunately, his mirror was still only a low-grade magic artifact.

Clearly, it couldn't overcome the fog's obstruction.

Unwilling to give up, Chen Fan continued controlling the Yang Mirror to reflect the scene inside the fog.