Before he could finish his words the man and the dragon clearly sensed movement within the fog—a two-legged beast was running!
Zesia subconsciously crouched and growled threateningly. Lu Cai's eyes flickered slightly and he pinned him down. He poured the food out of the wooden box before him and crushed it.
Zesia: "...???"
Although he hadn't tried to resist Lu Cai and hadn't used any strength, his dragon rider was so fierce!?
Humans these days really can't be underestimated!
"I'll go check. You finish your meal quickly," Lu Cai commanded coldly over his shoulder.
Zesia hesitated for a moment then lowered his head and swallowed a piece of meat.
A deep smile flashed in Lu Cai's eyes: "Good boy."
Then he turned, sword in hand and strode into the thick fog. The darkness like a gigantic monster swallowed the weak two-legged beast whole.
A long while later, Lu Cai emerged from the fog again. His face was a little pale, and his eyes were cold, glancing back into the mist from time to time.
Zeshia stood up happily, shaking himself: "Are you leaving?"
Lu Cai didn't look back, continuing to stare into the fog: "Yes, be careful. Why is there such a strong fishy smell?"
He couldn't help but glance in the direction of the ancestral hall. The sight of three collapsed walls made his eyes twitch but there was nothing special about it.
Zeshia, on the other hand, sighed with resignation yet tolerance and walked over to him: "Dear Lu, I've been wanting to tell you this for a long time. I won't restrict your freedom of speech but when you're with me please try to keep pace with me. You did that just now which was good."
Lu Cai paused, suddenly remembering that he had just spoken Chinese in a fit of nervousness. Vaguely sensing Zeshia's grievance he nodded stiffly: "Understood."
As for the smell... Never mind. Zeshia said he couldn't smell it.
Zeshia loved Lu Cai's honesty; it was a noble quality!
It suited him perfectly!
He shook his neck to regain his composure, tapping the rubble beneath his feet. "Then let's go!"
Right!
As soon as he finished speaking a strange tentacle of unidentifiable species leaped out of the thick fog with a roar lashing out towards the two of them. Lu Cai's forehead jumped and he quickly dodged shouting at Zeshia, "Follow me!"
Zesia growled sternly in response, flapping his powerful wings vigorously and leaping. The surrounding fog seemed to be swirled into a vortex by the current and inaudible wails and screams whistled on the wind like ghosts howling around the ancestral hall.
Lu Cai's elite team member status wasn't earned for nothing. He formed a spell with his left hand and punched with his right, speeding down the path. Zeshia, following behind him, was shocked to find that he had no chance to attack.
He couldn't exploit his knight like that even though his knight looked like a melee mage!
Zeshia thrust his front paws hard then leaped forward with his hind legs. Lu Cai nearly cursed but the next second, Zeshia turned, scooped him up onto his dragon's back and with a long roar soared into the air!
Lu Cai slapped his head. Bewildered! This dragon could fly.
Because he hadn't really intended to rely on Zeshia to accomplish anything, Lu Cai thought a little guiltily.
But the thought quickly faded as Lu Cai realized that no matter how Zeshia flew he couldn't escape the thick fog.
"Evil power."
It made him lose his dragon!
Zesia stiffened his neck and calmly shifted the blame.
Lu Cai also noticed the maze. He frowned and hesitated for a moment then leaned on the dragon's back and shouted to Zeesia, "Zesia! Find a place with less fog and stop!"
He was worried that Zeesia would be trapped in the sky for too long and exhaust himself and if she found a way out later she wouldn't be able to escape.
Zesia was very obedient. Upon hearing his words he immediately lowered his head and turned. After a while, he slowly circled and descended.
The moment he touched down his footing suddenly slipped slightly and Lu Cai casually chanted the incantation—"Xunfeng!"
This was the landing spot Zeesia had chosen. The fog was light to begin with and the clear breeze blew through it making the surroundings clear quickly. In the darkness a group of villagers stood staring blankly in the center of the village. Their faces slowly became visible through the dim, light mist, a strange and terrifying look.
Lu Cai's muscles tensed and he stared at them intently. The cool mist carried a strong fishy smell to his nose and the faces of the villagers before him grew increasingly ferocious, resembling Benboerba—the nickname his senior brother had given to aquatic monsters.
The infection was now becoming increasingly diverse with new monster types nearly overwhelming his storage drive. His senior brother exhausted from trying to sort them out had come up with a definition for these monsters: all fucking Benboerba!
The whites of their eyes filled most of their sockets, their pupils pushed to nowhere. Their faces were pale and stiff, their mouths cracked all the way to just below their ears, revealing a glimpse of sharp teeth.
They were indeed becoming more and more like fish. Lu Cai crouched on Zeshia's back, his expression grave.
Day 33 almost completely infected but not completely hopeless.
He patted the back of Zeshia's neck. "East, leave them to me."
Zesia growled in response and leaped into the air in the direction Lu Cai pointed. A second later he shook his head and didn't fly.
Lu Cai's attention was focused on the villagers nearby. As if they had sensed the man and dragon were leaving, some strange switch had been triggered and they stiffened and staggered toward the dragon.
"Dragon King, are you leaving."
"Dragon King don't go."
A strangely syllabled laugh echoed from the crowd reminiscent of the bubbling sound in the village chief's throat at first a stubborn effort to speak even if it were buried a hundred thousand meters deep in the ocean.
Lu Cai scowled and conjured another gust of wind blowing the group this way and that to prevent them from catching up. Zesia took a run.
Questions popped up in Lu Cai's mind. Why wasn't he flying?
Is the wind he created too boisterous?
Before he could even ask, terrifying monsters suddenly leaped out of the dense fog on either side their fangs bared and claws bared. They chirped and snarled, lunging at Lu Cai like skinned monkeys.
These weren't mutated infected humans; they were creatures straight out of the Dark Matter Realm!
They possessed an innate predatory drive for all living things outside the Dark Matter Realm attacking without thinking. Fortunately, their ingenuity made dealing with them easy.
C-rank monster a ghoul.
"Leaving Fire!"
Lu Cai cast a spell hastily striking with a resounding blow. A brilliant burst of flames erupted from the dragon's back!
He scowled, not wanting to experience the sensation of being touched by these creatures as they looked filthy.
Luckily, Zeshia's scales were tough. Some ghouls were not targeting Lu Cai but the dragon rushed at him without warning only to shatter upon impact, their bodies erupting like a shower of brilliant fireworks.
Zeshia's steps were slowing down, seemingly tripped by something. Lu Cai was busy cleaning the area so he could only manage to scatter a few more purifying winds.
"Lu Cai!"
Xiao Yu's urgent voice suddenly reached his ears and Lu Cai looked in the direction of the voice.
Xiao Yu, hiding behind a tree, waved at him, "This way! This way!"
She stood at the village entrance clearly intending to lead them to safety.
Lu Cai gritted his teeth, threw a fireball, patted Zeshia's back and anxiously asked, "Can we still go?"
Zesia's roar in response was a little muffled but Lu Cai could sense the immense power still lurking within the dragon beneath him.
He calmed himself down a bit, told Zeshia to follow Xiao Yu and then diligently isolated the infected villagers and the ghouls' attacks.
By the time he had stopped, Lu Cai felt a touch of fatigue.
His spiritual energy was depleting rapidly and if he couldn't finish the battle quickly it would be very dangerous.
"How did you attract so many monsters? Didn't I tell you to leave quietly?" Xiao Yu asked Lu Cai impatiently, her eyes filled with panic!
Lu Cai jumped off the dragon's back, wiped the sweat off his forehead and looked back in the direction they had come from. "Maybe I went out to investigate before leaving and that attracted some nasty creatures."
The two of them and the dragon stood on the path outside the village. This was the first area Lu Cai had set foot in since returning from the Dragon Valley.
He was looking towards the village entrance. A narrow path led out from it revealing only a dark entrance like a secret door to hell. Inside, countless monsters drooled their mouths open in a stern look waiting for them.
Thankfully, although it was still dim here, the fog had thinned considerably. Apparently, the dark matter tended to gather in populated areas at night and had all gone to the village. Therefore, miraculously, there was now a chance for them to catch their breath.
Xiao Yu, still terrified, glanced at Lu Cai then at the prostrate Zeshiya. Finally, she gritted her teeth and said,
"There's only a little way left. We'll be out of the village if we take it. I don't know if you can get through. If not, you'd better return to the ancestral hall. It's the only place they're afraid to disturb."
Before she could finish her words, Zeshiya suddenly lowered his head and the massive dragon head fell to the ground with a dull rumble.
Lu Cai's pupils suddenly constricted. "Zesshiya!"
Xiao Yu was also startled, stammering as she approached, "What's wrong with him? Is he hurt?!"
Lu Cai tried his best to remain calm. His palm, radiating an unnatural glow, rested against Zeshiya's body. His scales shimmered slightly, facilitating the absorption of this power into his body.
His short black hair damp with sweat, plastered to his forehead but the sweat continued to stream. Lu Cai realized Zeshiya was truly a behemoth. No matter how much spiritual energy he poured into it, it was like a drop in the ocean with not a single response.
He suddenly remembered that when he left Dragon Island Zeshiya had simply let him lick the blood on its scales and he had fainted from the explosion of spiritual energy. And now...
The dragon collapsed silently before him. Whether it was a figment of his imagination or a real scene the silver glow on its scales seemed to fade.
Veins bulged on Lu Cai's forehead and his voice trembled unconsciously: "Go back..go back first."
Just as he finished speaking a sharp weapon pierced his chest from behind revealing a jagged fracture.
It was a broken sword.