This is the true Fog Gathering summoning.
Checking the time, it’s about right.
Bai Yanliang and Xu Zhifei exchanged a glance and together pushed open the door.
The pure, spotless glow made Fog Gathering seem devoid of any abnormality, like paradise.
But all those cursed know... this is the real Hell.
Completed the task? Survived to the end?
However... Fog Gathering never rewards people; everything they’ve done is just to keep themselves alive...
As Bai Yanliang and Xu Zhifei stepped into Fog Gathering together, everyone’s eyes were on them.
Qi Nian’s eyes darkened, but she quickly perked up, waving at Bai Yanliang: "Bai Yanliang!"
Bai Yanliang walked toward her, smiling as he asked, "Qi Nian, how have you been lately?"
Qi Nian nodded: "Mm! How about you? What have you been busy with these days?"
As she spoke, her gaze drifted intentionally or unintentionally over Xu Zhifei.
Bai Yanliang didn’t hide from her, but he controlled his volume, leaning close to Qi Nian’s ear, and whispered: "Xu Zhifei and I were attacked; we’re investigating them."
Qi Nian’s expression tightened: "Are you guys okay?"
Xu Zhifei had unknowingly come over as well, looking at her and saying: "We’re fine."
Upon hearing this, Qi Nian sneaked a glance at Xu Zhifei; she still remembered when Xu Zhifei suddenly appeared in that department store, pulling her into an office to hide, and also... Xu Zhifei eating a piece of hook jade containing a ghost right in front of her.
So, even now, Qi Nian didn’t quite dare to look Xu Zhifei in the eye.
She merely whispered: "As long as you’re okay..."
At this moment, a young voice sounded beside the three of them.
Bai Yanliang turned and looked, it was Song Que and Yu Wenxuan, and the speaker was Song Que.
The coin Song Que always carried was gone, and his normally slightly raised head now hung lower—he looked somewhat different.
Although Bai Yanliang didn’t know what had happened to him, Song Que’s change was welcomed; after all, Bai Yanliang always sensed an inexplicable wariness and hostility from Song Que, which was now gone.
So, Bai Yanliang nodded, scanning Song Que and Yu Wenxuan: "Were you guys also attacked?"
Yu Wenxuan smirked: "It’s a good thing I’m not the one attacking others."
Song Que mused: "Not quite attacked, but I’ve been feeling watched recently."
"If it’s just surveillance, I’ve felt it too," Yu Wenxuan added.
"Oh?" Bai Yanliang became interested, "Can you elaborate?"
Song Que glanced around; there were very few people left in Fog Gathering now, besides those in front of him—Bai Yanliang, Qi Nian, Xu Zhifei—only Feng Xiuxue, Gu Pingsheng, the one-armed Du Shangjing, and the siblings Yu Sheng and Ren Wudao remained.
And now, the Yu Sheng and Ren Wudao siblings hadn’t appeared in Fog Gathering, and Feng Xiuxue, Gu Pingsheng, and Du Shangjing were also discussing something on the other side away from this group, so he spoke up: "It’s a bird."
Bai Yanliang furrowed his brows.
"A gray pigeon?" Yu Wenxuan suddenly asked.
Song Que immediately looked at him, nodding, "You too?"
"Mm," Yu Wenxuan rubbed his chin, memories flashed in his eyes, "Perhaps whoever’s surveilling me doesn’t know, compared to humans, I prefer animals, so when the pigeon first showed up, I noticed it."
A strange smile played on Yu Wenxuan’s lips, "Interestingly, the pigeon not only appeared at my workplace school, but also on my home balcony; every time I looked at it, it was staring back at me."
"You spotted it early on? Didn’t take action?" Song Que asked.
Yu Wenxuan grinned at Song Que: "And you?" ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ NoveI[F]ire.net
Song Que raised an eyebrow: "Of course!"
"Pigeons are known for their strong homing abilities; following it isn’t hard, but... I couldn’t get into where it went. It flew into Ghost Head Mountain," Song Que stated regretfully.
"And you?" Song Que threw Yu Wenxuan’s words right back at him.
Yu Wenxuan patted his stomach: "It’s here."
"You... you roasted it?" Song Que’s eyes widened.
"What else?" Yu Wenxuan questioned, eyeing him skeptically, "Was I supposed to buy it a pigeon cage?"
"Aren’t you afraid of alerting them?" Song Que looked at him, speechless.
"I meant to startle them," Yu Wenxuan’s eyes narrowed slightly, "I want them to understand, even if they come in person next time, they’ll meet the same fate."
The chilling undertone in Yu Wenxuan’s voice made one shiver.
At least, Song Que wasn’t inclined to continue the topic.
Bai Yanliang had quietly listened all along, only glancing at Xu Zhifei when they mentioned Ghost Head Mountain.
Xu Zhifei seemed a bit surprised too, so it seemed... the Dark Abyss was preparing for an indiscriminate attack on Fog Gathering.
But... why Ghost Head Mountain?
Why had the Dark Abyss chosen Ghost Head Mountain as a hiding place...
At this moment, Feng Xiuxue, Gu Pingsheng, and Du Shangjing finished their conversation as well.
"If we all survive this, then let’s take a trip to Ghost Head Mountain; surely Dr. Zhou didn’t choose that spot for nothing, there must still be secrets hidden there," Du Shangjing, his face pale and his injuries yet healed, voiced. His injuries clearly hadn’t been sustained during Fog Gathering’s mission and wouldn’t be something Fog Gathering would fix.
The three minutes of discussion soon ended, and Ren Wudao and Yu Sheng hadn’t appeared yet.
Could they be planning to defy the summons of Fog Gathering?
That would not be a wise choice.
When Li Mu was still alive, he had shared some taboos early on, repeatedly emphasizing that one should never violate the rules of Fog Gathering.
Especially its summons.
Resisting its summons by force could keep one out of the Fog Gathering space temporarily, but over the next month, the person would face relentless terrifying assaults until... it dragged them into Hell.
No one had survived a month of such supernatural assaults; could Ren Wudao and Yu Sheng truly have chosen to confront Fog Gathering head-on?
Bai Yanliang pondered the matter, Yu Sheng’s image flitting through his mind. Deep down, Bai Yanliang didn’t want anything to happen to her.
But if she indeed had ties to the previous trap task, with Li Mu’s demise, Bai Yanliang wouldn’t let her go.
Just as time was running out, a door in the void suddenly opened, and a graceful figure walked in.
Her eyes sparkled brightly as her gaze swept over everyone, finally resting on Bai Yanliang.
"My legs are healed, Bai Yanliang."
Yu Sheng’s sweet, confident voice was suddenly unfamiliar to Bai Yanliang.
He recalled someone’s words, his heart sinking.
It seemed Yu Sheng had truly allied with them.
The long, slender legs before him were her payment.
"Congratulations," Bai Yanliang said the two words calmly before looking away.
Humans, indeed, can change.