Chapter 121: Within the Black Mist (1)
When the hero squad from Saint Rose Harbor urgently returned from Bal Island, they faced a horrifying demonic city that had already become a living hell.
Countless monsters clashed along the coastal areas, and a group of creatures from an S-rank dungeon had violently forced a bloody path ashore.
There was no friendship among these monsters; their fierce competition far exceeded even that between the Holy Council and the heroes. Alliances were nearly impossible.
“Haha, it feels like we’ve gone back to the legendary ancient Endless Sea…” a male mage clad in golden robes said with a bitter smile. “Can someone tell me what to do? Should we just charge in like this?”
“Don’t joke around. Only the top ten can do that,” replied a burly man wearing a bear pelt, his chest bare and face obscured. “Now’s the time to request reinforcements, right?”
“The dungeon clearance on Bal Island can’t be delayed either, so reinforcements won’t arrive anytime soon,” said a man clad in heavy armor, his expression full of helplessness. “For now, let’s head to the emergency shelter outside the city and regroup with the guild.”
Although magical disasters had been rare over the past few centuries, with only one or two incidents annually in millions of towns under the Holy Council Federation, no one dared to guarantee that it wouldn’t happen to their own city. Therefore, every town had regulations requiring the construction of shelters in safe zones outside the city.
Saint Rose Harbor had such shelters, but the city had developed rapidly and was once a garrison for the Holy Council’s regular army, so this aspect was long neglected. The shelters built years ago had fallen into disrepair and were no longer large enough to accommodate the booming population.
Fortunately, magic existed in this world. Most people could rest in hastily built treehouses or earthen huts nearby, but food shortages remained a problem.
“The first batch of supplies will arrive around noon from Pine City, but the number of refugees is so vast that it will only meet the needs of half of them…” the mayor of Saint Rose Harbor said bitterly in the temporary command center. “Also, the council troops have already dispatched forces from the depths of the Endless Sea.”
After this calamity, the mayor knew he would be out of office, and all his properties in the city would be reduced to ashes.
All traces and remnants of monsters must be completely eradicated; otherwise, the current environment would be compromised.
Simply put, once the council troops intervene, depending on the type of monsters, they might even resort to burning the city down!
The once prosperous Saint Rose Harbor might be leveled to the ground…
“Greetings,” a plain-looking man entered the command room and asked, “I would like to understand the situation in Saint Rose Harbor.”
“Who are you?” the mayor asked, puzzled.
“Ah, you’ve finally arrived,” Li Qi said with a wry smile. “Though everything is already too late…”
“Sorry,” the man shrugged helplessly. “Since it has happened, the next step is to do our best to make amends. I need to know the general situation and what I must do.”
The man was none other than Des, the Benevolent King, the hero who possessed the strongest physical strength.
After hearing the brief summary, Des took a map and set off.
Though Des was powerful in combat, he was not skilled in large-scale monster extermination, so clearing the city’s monsters would be left to the council troops arriving later. His mission was singular: to delve into the strange underground dungeon beneath the funeral parlor and uncover the truth.
Meanwhile, a fierce battle raged in the city.
The hero squad originally intended to cross Saint Rose Harbor but encountered a group of residents trapped among monsters and decided to escort them to the shelter. Along the way, they faced a wave of exceptionally powerful monsters!
“What’s going on?” a female mage frowned as she looked at the monstrous horde and downed a potion of mana.
No wonder she was surprised—before them was an army of monsters composed of dozens of species from different dungeons!
---
Tens of thousands of monsters that should have been fighting each other were now cooperating in battle, an utterly illogical phenomenon!
“That’s the problem!” On the front lines, the bear-pelted giant dropped the severed monster head and shouted toward a dark silhouette in the distance. “Charge with me! These monsters are gathered because there’s a ‘commander’! Kill it, and these trash will collapse on their own!”
With that, the one-eyed man hidden beneath the bear pelt unleashed a fierce crimson glow from his eye. His body swelled as he led the charge into the monster army!
This giant was an S-rank otherworldly spirit hero whose innate berserk ability turned him into a living steamroller, smashing all who dared to block his path.
No monster could withstand a single punch from him. Thus, he pushed deep into the horde, finally reaching the black silhouette.
“Insect?” The giant punched the monster before him again.
However, the insectoid creature, armored in a shell, merely snapped its fingers, summoning dozens of monsters to recklessly rush forward and block him.
The giant roared as he tore the monsters to shreds, but the endless wave kept coming.
The insectoid tried to flee, but an arrow suddenly pinned its head, exploding upon impact!
Above the giant was an invisible scouting eye.
Nearby, a lithe and fit elven woman slowly nocked her next arrow.
Her left eye reflected not the scene before her but the exploded head of the insectoid.
Yet, something unexpected happened.
The blasted insectoid kept running wildly!
The arrow that had struck its head seemed only to have destabilized it momentarily, nearly causing it to fall, but otherwise no harm was done.
“Troublesome trash…” The elf plucked the bowstring. A ripple radiated sharply from her position, and an arrow instantly flew across hundreds of meters, striking the insectoid’s body.
This time, the creature’s body froze solid into a block of ice, then shattered on the ground.
At that moment, the mixed monster army around them momentarily froze in confusion before resuming fierce battles amongst different species nearby!
Taking advantage of the chaos, the heroes carved a bloody path through the monsters, escorting civilians to safety.
At this time, Saint Rose Harbor was shrouded in a dense mist speckled with faint black particles, reducing normal visibility to less than ten meters.
More troubling than the poor visibility was the mist’s apparent toxicity.
Those bearing the hero system had strong resistance to abnormal conditions, but ordinary civilians began coughing incessantly. Some severely affected even coughed up black mucus mixed with blood.
Though they administered air purification spells promptly, these only slowed the deterioration without curing the affliction.
Healing and purification spells were utterly ineffective against this strange illness…
“Pick up the pace,” said the heavy-armored man, glancing at a struggling little girl gasping for breath. He frowned, turning away unwillingly.
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Just like the corrosive green light in Zhao Tian’s cursed sea tomb and the primal life-eroding instinct of the Wind Demon, this common phenomenon in dungeons was devastating when appearing above ground.
For ordinary people without the hero system’s all-encompassing protective resistance, even slight exposure was fatal.
The heroes’ expressions were grave, knowing these civilians might not survive.
Even if they brought them back, the only fate awaiting them was quarantine.
If they could hold out until a suitable magical cure was found, survival might be possible—but judging by the current situation, that seemed unlikely.
Their only prospects were isolation and incineration, with a few specimens preserved for research…
Though cruel, reality was merciless. The Holy Council had no alternative.
Yet the heroes refused to give up on these people. Even if only one could be saved, they would fight to the end.
Even if none survived, they would not allow the monsters to devour these people brutally.
However, as they neared the district around the funeral parlor, a terrifying scene unfolded before them.
Countless shadows darted swiftly with rustling sounds; numerous insectoid monsters prowled nearby.
Surrounding buildings were covered with shattered pupal shells and monsters undergoing violent physical transformations, growing black carapaces as they slowly morphed into insect cocoons…
“These monsters are being corrupted and transformed?!” The bear-pelted giant stared in shock.
Monsters from different dungeons already possessed strong invasive instincts and occasionally restrained each other. But here, at least dozens of species on the surrounding buildings were being corrupted!
Among them were high-level monsters from the S-rank dungeons under their charge!
“This can’t be… the fel energy ghosts are turning into insects,” the elven archer said fearfully, swallowing hard as she looked at a contorted humanoid monster curled into a ball. “Let’s avoid this place. Be careful…”
But it was already too late. A swarm of two-meter-long giant insects, along with some insectoids and bizarre giant larvae, had surrounded them.
“This is bad. Why didn’t you spot this…” The bear-pelted giant took a deep breath and reentered his berserk state.
“The scouting eye didn’t see this earlier—it’s an illusion,” the elven archer frowned. “These monsters are more terrifying and troublesome than we imagined. Those insectoids are suspicious!”
In the distant mist, vast elemental energies were gathering.
Clearly, those insectoids were casting spells in unison!
“Are you kidding me?! This looks exactly like the coordinated spellcasting of those dumb mages!” a male mage shouted in disbelief. “Though those guys never make it to the battlefield, they’ve studied these secret arts for thousands of years. How could a few insects possibly use them?!”