The night shrouded the Misty Mountains.

The thick fog concealed everything, making the place extraordinarily quiet.

But within this silence, a disheveled figure stumbled, running and darting swiftly among the trees.

It was a tall, middle-aged man with a brown goatee, carrying a Strong Bow on his back and a short sword at his waist.

"Ha... ha... cough, ha..."

He panted painfully, his chest heaving like bellows, his left hand gone from the wrist, leaving a ghastly wound crudely bandaged with clothing.

In his right hand, he clutched a bundle half his height, showing no intention of putting it down even at this critical moment.

It seemed a chunk of flesh was cut from his left leg, revealing the purplish-black bone underneath.

With such severe injuries, he should have stopped to rest.

But he dared not halt his steps, as if something dreadful was pursuing him.

This is the Misty Mountains, a deadly forbidden zone.

Rashly sprinting in such a perilous area is inadvisable and undoubtedly courting death.

But the middle-aged man had no choice.

His name was Steven Burns, a descendant of the Legendary Adventurer Wadley Burns.

Wadley had been the only one to explore deep into the Misty Mountains and escape alive.

His outcome sounded better than the others who perished frightfully, yet it wasn't much better in reality.

In his last years, Wadley suffered a bizarre illness, which all his life's savings couldn't cure.

As a result, he burdened the entire family with heavy debt.

After three generations of effort, the Burns Family finally cleared the debts but fell into decline.

Flourishing due to the Legendary Adventurer, and perishing because of him—this was a kind of cycle.

Steven, as the sole descendant of his generation, always sought to restore the family's glory!

As the descendent of a Legendary Adventurer, Steven always dreamed of returning to complete his ancestor's wishes!

He dedicated his entire life to this goal.

Finally, at forty-eight, he successfully formed his adventure team, recruiting like-minded companions.

They all desired to explore the Misty Mountains, aiming to make a name for themselves.

However, those people intended only to roam the outskirts, exploiting the name for fame.

Only Steven wanted truly to delve inside, seeking the treasure his great-grandfather had seen.

He knew how astonishing his thoughts were and that speaking them might frighten others.

So Steven kept quiet, pretending to have the same intentions as them, planning to proceed alone once in the Misty Mountains.

But the real situation... was entirely different from what they imagined.

The grim reality revealed that such a life-threatening adventure wasn't as romantic as they thought.

It's not something one can enter or exit at will.

The group was confident at first, proceeding based on a crude map, intending to gather unique plants as proof of their journey.

But upon reaching, as they stepped into the mountain's edge, an unexpected fog spread out!

The fog engulfed everything like a white curtain, enveloping everyone!

Afterwards, the map and markers became useless, and their calls echoed back unanswered.

In panic, they blindly wandered, trying to find something familiar.

But the more they walked, the more lost they became, eventually losing all sense of direction.

Finally, Steven, at a critical moment, silenced them, urging everyone to calm down and stay put.

Though fallen in status, Steven, with his High Tier Ranger skills, was the strongest among them.

With commanding strength, he soothed the panic and gained their trust.

Yet, upon recounting, it was found that three of the original ten had vanished in the fog!

The three disappeared soundlessly, leaving no trace.

No cries for help, no signs of a struggle!

It was as if they vanished into thin air!

Steven remembered the three, one of whom was a slightly lesser-skilled High Tier Thief.

Even such a thief disappearing silently alarmed everyone.

Yes.

This was no tourist attraction but a life-devouring death trap.

Afterwards, the group's sole hope rested with Steven.

Under such pressure, Steven refrained from rash actions, instead advising everyone to rest on the spot.

Stay awake, gather around, and wait for dawn.

The fog wouldn't last forever, and once it cleared, they could retrace their path.

This proposal eventually gained unanimous approval.

With combined efforts, they lit a bonfire, enduring a grueling night under its light.

But the next day... the fog hadn't lifted.

In fact, they weren't even sure if the sun had risen or if it was truly the next day.

The fog shrouded everything.

Including sunlight and time.

Worse still, amidst their disputes over this, they noticed one of them was shockingly silent.

He silently stared at the finished bonfire, not responding to anything around.

He was dead.

Not from fright.

But his heart was removed from behind.

Realizing this left everyone chilled to the bone.

That person had sat among them, yet no one saw the killer even though none of them slept.

They didn't even know when the heart had been taken!

Meanwhile, as fear threatened to engulf their hearts, the fog thickened.

Shrouding all.

As fear reached its peak, arguments naturally erupted.

They accused one another.

Why come here willingly?

Why make such insane decisions?

Amidst the heated quarrel, they even drew swords against each other!

But no battle ensued.

Because before a fight erupted, Steven personally decapitated the two.

"No more arguing, everyone listens to me!"

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