The mist churned like a solid entity in the pitch-black valley.
Every breath carried a biting chill, as if even one's blood might freeze. Tian Xiaotian shrank her neck closer to her shoulders as she walked beside Ye Chuan, tightening her coat around her. Despite being bundled up, the eerie cold still seeped through the gaps in her collar and sleeves, making her shudder uncontrollably.
She glanced back. The woman trailing their group was still following, though she dared not get too close.
"Big bro, let her come with us. Sister Susu has protected me before," Tian Xiaotian tugged at Ye Chuan's sleeve. But the golden-haired loli knew his temper was unpredictable—this simple request might be denied if he disliked it, and she wouldn’t dare push further.
"Oh?" Ye Chuan turned to look.
Hearing their conversation, the woman behind them flushed with embarrassment, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of her clothes as she stood there awkwardly.
In this Ghost Valley dungeon teeming with wandering spirits, losing one’s weapons meant losing any chance of survival. She knew this better than anyone. Sticking with Tian Xiaotian might be her only hope.
There was no other choice. After barely surviving the horde of wandering corpses, she had lost all her equipment and items.
"You're the employer. I have no objections," Ye Chuan said flatly, his tone devoid of any emotion as he glanced at Susu.
In his eyes, since he’d accepted Tian Xiaotian’s chest of gold bars, this small request was nothing. One or two extra people made no difference.
"Great!" Tian Xiaotian’s eyes lit up, and she eagerly waved the woman over. "Susu, come here!"
A flicker of joy flashed in the woman’s eyes as she hurried forward, though she deliberately kept a respectful distance, standing properly beside Tian Xiaotian.
Truthfully, her so-called "protection" had just been occasional help—she’d noticed Tian Xiaotian was a newbie with deep pockets and had lent a hand a few times.
Now, she silently thanked her past self for not antagonizing this wealthy loli.
The three continued forward in silence, Tian Xiaotian scanning the surroundings for mushroom-like plants. Unfortunately, no matter how hard she looked, the ground remained barren, reeking of blood and rot, with nothing else in sight.
...
At some point, the surrounding mist thickened, coiling around them like a living thing as the temperature steadily dropped.
Ye Chuan suddenly halted. A faint, eerie whispering reached his ears—sometimes like an old woman’s muttering, other times like a baby’s wail—echoing through the silent valley, sending chills down the spine.
His spiritual sense expanded like a tide. After a moment, he spoke calmly, "We’re surrounded by wandering spirits."
"Huh?" Tian Xiaotian’s eyes widened in alarm as she frantically looked around, but aside from the gray mist, she saw nothing.
Just as confusion filled her, a faint blue glow flickered in Ye Chuan’s palm, accompanied by the crackle of electricity. In the blink of an eye, a basketball-sized purple sphere of lightning formed in his hand.
"Go!" Ye Chuan commanded softly. The electric sphere shot forward like an arrow, exploding in the dense mist!
A shrill scream followed as the fog tore open, revealing a horde of densely packed wandering spirits behind it.
Their eyes were hollow, their skin an unnatural bluish-gray, their mouths gaping as they emitted hoarse growls—enough to make anyone’s blood run cold.
Seeing the clustered spirits, Tian Xiaotian and Susu felt their scalps tingle!
Their voices trembled, their legs weak. If not for Ye Chuan’s presence, Tian Xiaotian would’ve collapsed on the spot.
This was a nightmare for anyone with trypophobia!
"What’s there to fear?" Ye Chuan chuckled. His peachwood sword shot out, splitting into dozens of sword shadows midair, slithering like silver snakes into the mist!
Amid the crisscrossing sword energy, the spirits shrieked one after another. Soon, the air was littered with glistening spirit essences.
Good. More, please.
Yet Ye Chuan noticed that despite the spirits being slaughtered, the mist showed no signs of dissipating—instead, it grew heavier.
"Seems something foul is conjuring this mist." His spiritual sense expanded again like a net, searching for that distinct presence hidden within.
Soon, he locked onto an unusual aura among the spirits—cold and sinister, starkly different from the rest.
Just as he prepared to strike, the aura suddenly fluctuated violently, as if sensing danger, then turned and fled at incredible speed!
Oh?
"Hmph, trying to run? Do you really think you can escape?" Ye Chuan smirked as his palm blazed with light. A two-meter-wide laser cannon erupted from his hand!
Where the demonic beam passed, the mist instantly vanished, leaving behind a bottomless chasm in the ground.
As the light faded, a distant roar of defiance echoed before fading away.
With the disappearance of that presence, the surrounding mist began to slowly clear.
"Hmm, Foundation Establishment level? Must’ve been the boss." Ye Chuan pocketed the unusually potent spirit essence without a second thought.
One-shot. Nothing worth discussing.
Spirit essences were beneficial not just for Lilith, but also for Lan Xiaoke—both existed in soul forms. Though Lan Xiaoke could cultivate, she didn’t rely on them as much.
"Big bro, the system just notified me—I triggered a hidden quest," Tian Xiaotian suddenly said.
Ye Chuan couldn’t see her interface, so he simply asked, "What is it?"
"The thing we just killed was called the [Mist Phantom]. Now we’ve unlocked a quest called Ghost Valley’s Treasure. If we find it, we can leave."
"Mist Phantom?" Susu’s face paled in shock. "Isn’t that a boss from high-difficulty dungeons? Many teams have perished in its mist… I never thought it’d appear here!"
"High difficulty?" Ye Chuan mused.
I suppose?
At least it managed a dying scream.
Good. Very spirited.
"Where’s the treasure?" Ye Chuan asked Tian Xiaotian.
"I only have the quest prompt, no location," she said, instinctively looking at Susu.
"I… I don’t know either."
Silent Ghost Valley was a well-known dungeon among players, usually a low-difficulty gathering quest. As long as someone experienced led the way, collecting the required items would complete the mission.
No one dared speak inside—no ordinary team could survive the endless waves of wandering spirits.
Let alone someone like Ye Chuan, who hunted them down like prey.
Susu couldn’t tell if it was her imagination, but the more spirits appeared, the more excited this terrifying man seemed.
"Still, I have a good idea," Ye Chuan grinned.
"What?"
"Exterminate every last ghost in this valley."
"…Huh?"
"Let’s go."