Chapter 1109: The Arrival of the Gray Mist

Chapter 1109: Chapter 897: The Arrival of the Gray Mist

The immense power of the Demigod Level mutated life form combined with the dual layering of the Flame Rules shattered the thin sand wall, and the remaining impact force passed through the sand wall directly onto him.

Duke’s entire body was hit as if by an invisible giant hammer, sending him flying sideways, his back slamming heavily against the stone wall, sliding down the cracked gray-white slate to the ground.

He knelt on one knee in the rubble, a sweet metallic taste rising in his throat, a trace of dark red blood oozing from the corner of his mouth.

At least two ribs were broken, his left arm from shoulder to wrist went numb, and the surface of his skin was scorched by the aftershock of the Flame Rules.

Fortunately, he had the Elemental Holy Body as a foundation; otherwise, this hit would’ve either caused serious injuries or left him bedridden for a long time.

Duke knelt on one knee in the rubble, raising his right hand to wipe away the blood from the corner of his mouth.

The sharp and clear pain from the broken ribs on his left side, and the residual smoke emanating from the scorched marks on his skin surface from the Flame Rules’ aftershock were still present.

Duke immediately activated the Life Rules, allowing soft Life Energy to flow precisely towards the injured area.

The broken ribs began to reconnect at a speed visible to the naked eye under the embrace of Life Energy, with the fissures at the bone ends healing layer by layer, new bone cells deep within the marrow rapidly dividing, filling, and hardening like activated seeds.

The bruised muscle fibers recovered their elasticity and strength as the Life Energy rinsed away the blood clots.

The numbness in the left arm dissipated slowly like a retreating tide, fingers regaining the ability to perceive the fine textures on the slate.

The burn marks on the skin quickly faded under the gentle caress of Life Energy, with new skin spreading from the edges of the charred scabs towards the center, completely erasing all traces of burns in just a moment.

He knelt only for a moment before standing up again.

Moving his left shoulder slightly, the joints issued a slight cracking sound. After confirming all injuries had fully healed, he walked towards the crevice where the Heart of the Fire God Fragment was located.

After reaching Life Rules Level 3, injuries of this extent no longer posed a significant threat to him; as long as he wasn’t killed instantly, any wound could be restored to its original state in a very short time with Life Energy.

He reached the crevice and carefully took down the dark red ore floating in mid-air, placed it into a specially made Constant Temperature Sealing Box for proper storage, and then turned to walk deeper into the branch corridor.

To be able to ambush and kill a Demigod Level mutated life form with only Tier Three High Stage, or more accurately, primarily Level 3 Middle Stage offensive and defensive means, was extremely rare.

From a normal perspective, this would almost seem impossible.

Duke not only accomplished it but was only lightly injured in the process, which was quite extraordinary.

Relying on Tier Three High Stage Life Rule Power, he restored himself completely within moments.

Duke stored the Constant Temperature Sealing Box in his Space Ring and continued walking along the stone wall of the branch corridor towards the depths.

He withdrew a parchment map, marking a flame shape at the location where he found the Heart of the Fire God Fragment, then exited the branch corridor to continue exploring along the main passage.

The Safe House Key in his hand had only three hours remaining; time was running short.

The time for the Safe House starts counting from activation by the Key, even if you are not inside, time still elapses.

According to the rules he previously learned, he stopped to carefully observe the distribution density and curvature direction of the ancient symbols on the stone walls at each fork, supplementing the passage directions on the parchment step by step.

After traversing several new branch corridors, he discovered a fine level Rule Crystal about the size of a fist in a hidden stone wall recess, its pale golden light gently swirling inside, which he casually stored in his Space Ring.

Just as he put away the crystal and was about to proceed, the surrounding air changed suddenly.

A deep erosion sensation acted upon the Spiritual Power layer, and the ancient symbols on the stone walls, previously glowing with a pale golden light, all dimmed simultaneously, as if some internal force extinguished their light source.

Immediately, a torrent of Dark Attribute and Negative Attribute Energy Particles surged from deep within the passage at an astonishing speed, flooding along the corridor like a broken dam.

Gray-white mist seeped out simultaneously from every fork, every crack in the stone walls. The mist wasn’t the ordinary water vapor white but a dead, decayed bone ash-like gray-white.

Visibility shrank rapidly, from hundreds of meters to twenty or thirty meters, then to barely being able to see one’s fingers at arm’s length.

Upon sensing the energy change, Duke halted his steps, lowering his body with his back pressed tightly against the inner side of the stone wall, extending his Spiritual Power to penetrate the gray mist and explore the situation ahead.

The moment his Spiritual Power touched the gray mist, it was forcibly suppressed by a cold force, compressing his perception range to just a few meters around him.

Without hesitation, he retreated a few steps, his hand diving into his bosom to grip the Safe House Key, his finger pads pressed tightly against the cold ancient symbols on the key’s surface, ready to activate it to phase through the wall at any moment.

As he retreated to the edge of the stone wall, a shadow suddenly appeared deep within the gray mist.

The shadow was extremely tall and thin, its entire body shrouded in a tattered black cloak with only remnants left, the cloak’s edges swaying slowly in the gray mist like rotting cloth strips submerged in water.