Chaos Warlord: Reincarnated in Eldrich with the Devil System!

Chapter 243  240: The Fog (3)

Each time the Fog appeared in the Shadow Valley, it would hang around for at least a week, and sometimes for as long as a month.

During that period, the valley would turn into a living nightmare.

Mysterious deaths would occur, and by the time the Fog lifted, the valley would be littered with corpses, each one twisted and mangled in unspeakable ways. It was like looking at a Christmas tree, but instead of twinkling lights and shiny ornaments, the valley would be decorated with the lifeless bodies of its inhabitants, and it happened every single time.

Today, when the Fog rolled into Shadow Valley, its inhabitants, the beasts and the devils, knew what to expect as they'd been through this before, but that didn't make it any less horrifying.

They were scared, really scared, because they were aware that they could be the next victim of the Fog, dying a horrifying death without knowing what killed them.

Thus, when the Fog descended this time around, a wave of panic and anxiety washed over them. Right now, they were in a state of sheer panic. It was as if a dark cloud, thicker and more tangible than the Fog itself, had enveloped their minds, filling them with dreadful possibilities. Their hearts were racing, their paws were sweaty, and their eyes were wide with fear.

Tsk!

Val clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction. He had sensed their rising panic, and he knew that things were about to get way more troublesome in the Fog. He might just not be able to handle it.

"Stupid fools! Because of them, I will suffer."

The thought of hiding in the shrine did cross Val's mind, but for how long could he really stay there? The Fog wasn't something that would simply vanish overnight. If it decided to stick around for a whole month, wouldn't he also be stuck in the same spot for that same length of time? Being stranded for a month would practically declare him dead to the outside world. Besides, a month of inactivity would mean losing out on a lot of valuable opportunities.

Furthermore, the sooner he escaped, the better. The Fog was still in its early phase of development, which might make it easier to navigate. If he had a chance to escape now, there was no guarantee he'd have that chance later on.

Lastly, there was also the unpredictability of the shrine itself. It had a questionable character, and there was no telling whether it would grant him entry. He might use Levare, his unique skill, and still find himself barred from entering. So, relying on the shrine as a safe haven wasn't a foolproof plan.

He tried it out anyways, and was slapped with the harsh reality that it was exactly as he guessed.

As he was in a dangerous situation, the shine with a spoiled and villainous personality wasn't allowing him to enter it.

So what to do?

'I have no choice but to face this situation head-on.'

Something super weird was going down in the valley. Val didn't even have to move his eyes around to see what was happening. His Heavenly Eye skill was like a radar, painting a vivid picture of everything around him.

Threads of different colors started oozing out from the orifices of the creatures that were freaking out in the fog.

These threads were invisible to the naked eye. Humans, beasts, and devils could naturally not see them. And even if one had some sort of special eye skill, the thick fog would make sure that they wouldn't be able to see these threads.

But Val, well, his Heavenly Eye was on another level.

He saw every single one of those threads, how they creepily left the bodies of the beasts in his surroundings and where they went up to.

But hold on, it gets crazier.

Val saw something that nearly blew his mind!

Hidden within the fog, floating above everyone's head, there was this super disturbing thing that looked like a gigantic face. This face had no eyes, no ears, but it did have an insanely big mouth, and it was white as a sheet and as creepy as they come.

This big-mouthed face thing was slurping up those emotional threads like spaghetti. After gobbling them up, its face twisted into this really unsettling smile. It looked so pleased with itself, like it just had the best meal ever.

Watching this, it became clear to Val that the Fog had started feeding off the bad vibes and fear if its victims.

And what happens when the fog gets fed?

It grows stronger!

With the inhabitants of the valley unknowingly feeding it by acting all scared and tensed, this thing was getting stronger and even more dangerous. It was already a nightmare, and it was gearing up to become an even worse one!

The very next moment, as he was moving through the valley, his sixth sense lit up like a warning light, sending a throbbing sensation throughout his entire body.

"Uh-oh, odd occurrences are about to kick off in this fog," he quickly concluded and began running at full speed. He was moving at a speed that even intermediate-level warriors couldn't rival.

His destination was crystal clear in his mind: he needed to reach the cave housing the teleportation circle. If he could get there and activate it, he would be whisked away to the secret area behind the waterfall, far away from this unsettling fog.

But Val was yet to realize he had seriously underestimated the complexity of his situation. He was racing against a fog that was not only terrifying but was also evolving. Just getting to the cave was an obstacle course from hell, far more challenging than he could ever expect.

He had barely covered any ground, running for less than a half minute, when something completely unexpected happened.

A spatial disturbance appeared out of nowhere, right in front of him. His detection trait, the source of his unique sixth sense for sensing danger, didn't react to it, staying eerily silent. That meant whatever this was, it wasn't harmful, at least not in the traditional sense. But that still didn't mean it was okay to barge into it.

However, Val, who was moving at the top of his speed, couldn't react appropriately when a vortex bigger and widen than him opened in front of him suddenly. Before he knew it, he ran headlong into it and vanished.

In the blink of an eye, the world around him turned into a dizzying swirl. When the spinning finally stopped, he found himself emerging from another spatial disturbance.

There wasn't a single soul in his vicinity. He wasn't in any kind of danger, just as his sixth sense have predicted. If that was all, he would've been really happy, but his expression was grim and dark.

His entire surrounding was in his view due to the heavenly eye skill. He saw that he was eerily close to the pit where the dungeon entrance had been!

Damn it all!

His temples pulsed with a dull ache, a clear sign that he had been hurled back to his starting point by the fog, erasing whatever progress he had made to escape it. It was like the universe hit the reset button on his daring escape plan.

Taking a deep breath to steady his racing heart, Val quickly composed himself.

"I can't let my emotions get the best of me. I have to stay focused."

Because the Fog feeds on the emotions of the people trapped in it, losing his cool now would be the worst mistake he could make.

.....

Lots of spatial vortexes started popping up all over the foggy landscape, making the environment even more unpredictable.

These vortexes were unique; they randomly teleported things from one place to another.

Val was quick to notice that these vortexes seemed to be anchored to specific points in the fog. It meant, dodging them was relatively straightforward. He just needed to avoid running into them.

So, he made another attempt to reach the teleportation circle, even more determined than before.

This time around, Val was cautious, treating the vortexes like they were the worst kind of plague, keeping a safe distance from them.

He also moved at a speed that allowed him to react swiftly if a vortex should suddenly open up right in front of him.

Sure enough, this exact scenario happened more than once.

But each time a vortex appeared in front of him out of nowhere, Val managed to evade the trap. He was able to do so thanks to his agility score of 100 and reflexes boosted by over 20 points.

The cave housing the teleportation circle was now within sight, and Val was inching ever closer to it.

But of course, nothing is ever that easy, especially not when you're trying to outsmart something as malevolent as the fog.

As he neared the entrance to the cave housing the teleportation circle, Val sensed a change in the atmosphere.

The fog, which had been greedily feasting on the fear and despair of all the creatures trapped alongside him, have underwent a strengthening yet again, growing even stronger than before.

Realizing this, only a curse escaped Val's mouth, "Shit!"

Instantly, a throbbing sensation washed over him.

Now that the fog had strengthened for the second time, nowhere was safe and he was under constant danger!