Chương 123: War God — Chapter 123

Blood smoke first appeared on the Alien Star Battlefield. Here in this D-rank unmanaged zone, it wasn't too bad. Back then on the Alien Star Battlefield, whenever blood smoke rolled in, entire squads of martial warriors collapsed where they stood for no apparent reason. Fourth and fifth realm fighters among them, the backbone of any force. Combined with the battlefield's Malevolent Qi, even sixth and seventh realm warriors felt the effects. Back then it was the same.

The rift near Dragon Nation's border expanded, and a massive wave of alien beasts poured through into Tiandu City's territory... Wang Xian's thoughts drifted. The entire city had nearly been leveled. As for why blood smoke appears: simple. Man-made. When it first showed up on the Alien Star Battlefield, everyone assumed it was just some peculiar battlefield phenomenon. Later investigations proved otherwise. Synthesized from two types of Malevolent Qi-infected vegetation: blood marrow root and poison smoke vine.

As for who created it, that meant discussing a very famous figure from Tiandu University in the years to come. The Treacherous Hero of New Martial Arts. Chi Jiuyou. So the blood smoke originated here... that explains everything. Wang Xian watched the pale crimson mist thicken around them. His expression turned strange. The moment he'd entered this place, he'd spotted those two plants immediately. Hard to forget them when you'd been burned by this stuff in your previous life. Though here they were unremarkable.

This unmanaged zone was overgrown with too many chaotic species. A casual count would give over a dozen types. Many he couldn't even name.

"Hold your breath! Put on your respirators!" Instructor Lu Tiesheng's shout cut through the water. Even facing an unknown situation, he maintained a soldier's composure. No panic. The students scrambled for their masks. The military had issued basic underwater equipment, at least. Except...

"Useless," Wang Xian said quietly.

"Blood smoke seeps directly through your skin pores." Lu Tiesheng's brow furrowed. Wang Xian had mentioned this earlier. This stuff really was formidable. As instructor, he moved to the front. Seemed he wanted to verify it himself. The blood mist drew close. It clung to his skin like mucus, then sank through the surface layer instantly. His internal Elemental Force circulation slowed noticeably. A sluggish feeling. If he kept absorbing it... Lu Tiesheng's expression shifted.

He projected his Elemental Force outward immediately, forming a faint energy shield.

"The concentration isn't that high yet," Wang Xian continued.

"Once it gets thicker, it might even penetrate a third realm warrior's Elemental Force armor."

"That potent?" Lu Tiesheng drew a breath. First time he'd heard of anything like this.

"Instructor, try this." Wang Xian produced the sap he'd squeezed from those ghostwater trees earlier.

"Drinking it temporarily alleviates the blood smoke's effects."

"Also, binding ghostwater tree branches to your body repels the smoke to some degree." Lu Tiesheng didn't hesitate. He took it and drank. The moment the sap hit his system, the sluggish Elemental Force regained some speed.

"It works!" Lu Tiesheng looked at the other students.

"Gather ghostwater tree sap first." If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. After giving the order, he wondered silently. Strange. This year's training program didn't include anything like this. An unexpected incident in the unmanaged zone, then? Definitely not set up by the military or university. He would've been notified. So purely unexpected? But this kind of incident in Jade Fall Water City was absolutely unprecedented. He glanced at Wang Xian.

From the moment they'd entered, this kid had been preparing. He'd clearly anticipated this? Experience this seasoned? Lu Tiesheng had been running relics and unmanaged zones for over a decade and had never encountered this. HISS! The blood mist thickened further. Visibility plummeted.

"Instructor Lu, alien beasts might attack any moment." Wang Xian's gaze sharpened.

"The blood smoke is coming on fierce. We're not the only squad that's encountered it. The others have too."

"To complete the mission under these conditions, we need to gather ghostwater trees in large quantities."

"But that only buys time. To last three full days... won't work."

"Or we end training now and head back. But training just started. I think you don't want to return, Instructor. And the students don't want to give up either."

"Mm, mm." Lu Tiesheng nodded repeatedly.

"..." The students.

"I have a suggestion."

"Speak."

"The best way to clear the blood mist is finding large amounts of poison smoke vine," Wang Xian said.

"For blood smoke on this scale, there must be massive quantities of poison smoke vine in the area. Find it, then you personally lead the students to clear it out. The blood smoke will gradually dissipate."

"Excellent!" Lu Tiesheng's eyes cleared.

"So our primary objective should be clearing the blood smoke. Avoid combat with alien beasts as much as possible. What do you think, Instructor?"

"That's what we'll do!" Lu Tiesheng thought Wang Xian's plan was excellent. Reminded him of his own Captain Qian. The 20 students looked at Instructor Lu, then at Wang Xian. Seriously, who's the instructor here?

"Then Instructor, you take point. Your strength is formidable, your eyesight superior to ours." The corner of Wang Xian's mouth lifted.

"You can see farther, observe more carefully, spot the poison smoke vine more easily. I'll bring up the rear. The rest of you look for ghostwater trees. Once you find branches, bind them into a rope. Everyone holds a section so we don't get separated if the mist thickens." Reasonable! Too reasonable! Instructor Lu waved his hand and took the lead. If they could resolve this unexpected incident, that would be a real achievement. Wang Xian's reasoning was sound. No reason to refuse.

As expected of the top scorer who broke historical records. Real substance. The group moved forward in silence, eyes constantly scanning their surroundings. Whenever they spotted an alien beast, they halted immediately. Waited for it to leave before continuing. Maintaining the avoidance principle. They walked for about 2 to 3 hours. Underwater, water pressure, Malevolent Qi, and now blood smoke layered on top. Under these complex conditions, their advance speed wasn't fast. Suddenly, Lu Tiesheng's eyes lit up.

Several hundred paces ahead, through layers of Malevolent Qi and blood smoke, he saw a five-story building completely overgrown with barbed poison smoke vine. Tattered blood-red fruits hung from those vines. The barbs hooked into the fruits, continuously emitting crimson mist. At that moment, a panicked voice came from the rear:"Instructor! Wang classmate disappeared!" Lu Tiesheng whirled around. Sure enough, at the very end of the formation, he saw a severed branch section. On the branch: a severed purple claw.

"That's from an E-rank alien beast, a Purple Nightmare Poison Rat!" a student shouted.

"Instructor, Wang classmate must've been ambushed! This beast is extremely fast. It silently cut the branch connecting him to us."

"Under the blood smoke, Wang classmate got separated!" The students' expressions shifted slightly. Getting separated in this place, under these conditions, that wasn't just ordinarily dangerous. After all, this wasn't the martial exam. This was a real unmanaged zone.

"What are you panicking for!" Lu Tiesheng's voice was steady.

"Wang Xian single-handedly intercepted over 1, 000 E-rank alien beasts. Even in an aquatic environment where his strength is diminished, he's still far stronger than any of you."

"One E-rank beast, if he wants to deal with it, it's a matter of one or two moves." The students paused. Right. His battle record...

"Don't panic." Lu Tiesheng remained composed.

"First, clear this poison smoke vine and reduce the blood smoke concentration. Once visibility improves, finding people gets easier. He'll have an easier time finding us too."

"Understood!" —"That little rat came at just the right time." Wang Xian smoothly pulled the Singing Rainbow Blade from a purple rat larger than himself. He patted the corpse.

"Just when I didn't know how to break away from the squad, you delivered yourself for an ambush."

"Not bad."

"In recognition of your competence, I finished you in one strike instead of hacking you to pieces."

"Count yourself lucky." The corner of Wang Xian's mouth lifted as he scanned his surroundings.

"Time to handle my own business." Since blood smoke had appeared, Wang Xian didn't think this was some unexpected incident. Most likely... It was you who made the move, wasn't it? Wang Xian's eyes narrowed. Chi Jiuyou. But what are you trying to accomplish? Even in an unmanaged zone, if you act recklessly and leave the slightest trace, once training ends, the military will investigate and follow the trail straight to you. He hadn't attended Tiandu University in his previous life.

Wasn't clear on what had happened during this year's training.

"Forget it. Head to the Suppression Marsh first." All three major areas had elite bosses. The Suppression Marsh's elite was the Poison Sting Jellyfish, with around 3, 000 life force. Wang Xian's target wasn't the jellyfish, though. But the rapid-current reef zone beside the marsh. That place was Jade Fall Water City's core area. Barring accidents, the Rotting Marsh Alligator Snapper was in the rapid-current reefs.

As for the blood smoke, honestly, it had no effect on him now that he'd cultivated 20 divine meridians. Gathering those materials, relaying that information, that was only to help the other students complete training smoothly. At the same time, perhaps to hook a big fish. Wang Xian calculated silently. ➤ Next: Yan Zhaoxue: Hmm? A New Student Wandered Into the Core Zone?