Chapter 16 Opening

Two hours later, Old Ma's dilapidated off-road vehicle stopped at a cliff called Eagle Beak Cliff.

"We're here. Any further is the Misty Zone. The car can't go in, and the magnetic field will render the compass useless." Old Ma pointed to the massive canyon shrouded in thick white mist ahead.

You got out of the car and stood on the edge of the cliff, gazing into the distance.

It was dusk, and the setting sun, red as blood, dyed the entire canyon a strange, dark red.

And deep within the rolling clouds of mist, you vaguely saw a horrifying sight.

In the center of the canyon, a colossal mountain peak was not rising from the ground, but rather, its tip pointed downwards, inverted and suspended in mid-air!

It was like a fang growing from the sky, hanging above the abyss.

Around the Inverted Mountain, streaks of purple lightning occasionally flashed.

"The Inverted Mountain...it really exists."

You took a deep breath, suppressing the shock in your heart.

That hunter didn't lie! This was definitely an S-rank Opportunity!

"Alright, a quick look is enough, let's go." Old Ma urged somewhat anxiously, "Look at that mist, it's poisonous miasma. It will spread once the sun sets."

"Old Ma, go back to the car and wait for me for ten minutes."

You ignored his urging and took out your binoculars and sketchbook from your backpack.

Although you didn't have the Passerby A talent this time, you inherited the ten years of survival experience from scrambling in the Chaos Zone in the last simulation.

You lowered your body, controlled the flow of Qi and blood within you, and reduced your breathing rate to the minimum.

You climbed along the edge of the cliff for a distance, found a sheltered and most open rock protrusion, and hid there.

You needed to use this last bit of daylight to verify the terrain before you against the map you had memorized in the library.

"Five hundred meters below Eagle Beak Cliff is 'Ghost Cry Forest,' where there are many snakes and insects, and dense vegetation suitable for stealth..."

"The dry riverbed on the left should be the old riverbed of the Bone-Corroding Dark River. Although it's dry, there might be quicksand..."

"Directly below the Inverted Mountain is an open Cobble Beach. The visibility there is wide, but it's also the most dangerous, a natural meat grinder..."

Your brain was working at high speed. You were not only verifying the information you had previously acquired, but also conducting a virtual military exercise in your mind.

With the focus brought by Hardworking and Enduring, and your astonishing memory, you deeply etched every high ground, every retreat route, and every blind spot suitable for sniping and ambushing into your mind.

You imagined yourself jumping down from here, which route to take, where to hide if you encountered a strong enemy, where the wind tunnels were, and where the dead ends were.

Ten minutes later, dusk was falling.

You closed your sketchbook, committing its contents firmly to memory.

"Let's go."

You returned to the car and said to Old Ma.

Old Ma breathed a sigh of relief, stepped on the accelerator, and drove you away from this troublesome place.

After returning to Wind and Sand Town, you didn't stay in a hotel like a regular tourist.

You purchased a large amount of compressed dry rations, drinking water, insect repellent powder, and several bottles of deodorizing spray at the town's largest general store.

"Little brother, buying so many things, are you going into the mountains?" The general store owner's eyes flickered.

You didn't answer, just gave him a cold glance.

The boss immediately shut up, not daring to ask more questions.

That night, carrying a heavy supply pack, you left Wind and Sand Town under the cover of darkness.

You guessed that it was most likely still just a precursor phenomenon.

But when the precursor would end was completely unpredictable.

To contend for the Opportunity, you had to position yourself on the front lines!

You returned to the vicinity of Eagle Beak Cliff and made your home in a hidden rock crevice.

This location was only two kilometers from the canyon entrance, allowing for both advance and retreat.

For the next ten days, you became a patient hunter.

Day one to day three.

Wolves Circling

You lay in the rock crevice, observing the canyon entrance through your binoculars.

You discovered that not only lone wolves but also regular armies were arriving.

A convoy of black armored vehicles bearing the Tannan Heavy Industry logo forcibly broke through the outer blockade, even using heavy machine guns to disperse the idle Martial Artists watching. Those were the private forces of the consortium, well-equipped, and even outfitted with exoskeleton armor.

There was also a mercenary group dressed in uniform camouflage, each of them exuding a fierce aura of Qi and blood, clearly ruthless individuals who had long lived on the edge of a knife.

You silently recorded their numbers, weapon configurations, and shift patterns.

Day four to day six.

The poisonous miasma in the canyon began to spread outwards, and the originally white mist gradually turned a faint pink.

You personally witnessed a first-order mutated beast, a 'Wind-Stepping Rabbit,' which, after inhaling the pink mist, began to go mad within seconds, frantically crashing into rocks, and finally dying from ruptured blood vessels.

"Biological mutation caused by Spiritual Qi overload..." You made a judgment in your heart.

Day seven to day nine.

The impatient Martial Artists began to attempt to enter the Misty Zone, clashing with the consortium's private forces guarding the entrance.

Gunshots, screams, and the roar of Qi and blood eruptions echoed intermittently outside the canyon. You even saw an Eighth Stage master get half their body blown apart by a consortium sniper.

You remained motionless. You knew that the main course hadn't been served yet; going in now would be suicide.

Day ten, May 14th, late night.

You were sitting cross-legged deep in the rock crevice, adjusting your breathing.

The days of lurking had covered you in dust, making you look like a lifeless stone.

Suddenly—

A heart-pounding fluctuation emanated from deep within the canyon.

You abruptly opened your eyes and rushed out of the rock crevice.

In the distant sky, the 'Inverted Mountain' that had been intermittently visible suddenly glowed with a dazzling purple light.

The light pierced through the dense poisonous miasma clouds, shooting straight into the sky, dyeing the entire dark night sky an eerie purple. Even two kilometers away, you could feel the surrounding magnetic field wildly fluctuating, and the electronic devices in your backpack made a 'sizzling' overloaded sound.

"Buzz—"

Immediately after, the phantom of the 'Inverted Mountain' that had been suspended for half a month, like a popped bubble, instantly vanished.

It disappeared abruptly and completely into the air.

The next second.

Boom!!!

A violent tide of Spiritual Qi, like a tsunami, surged wildly out from the depths of the canyon!

"Roar—"

"Howl—"

Countless mutated beasts within the canyon roared in unison at this moment, their voices filled with extreme fear and even greater greed.

In the camp below Eagle Beak Cliff, the searchlights of the consortium's camp swept frantically, and the alarm blared piercingly.

"Grab the treasure! That's a sign of a Heaven And Earth Treasure appearing!"

Countless figures darted out of the darkness, like sharks smelling blood.

They surged frantically towards the unknown Misty Canyon.

"It's here!"

You stood on high ground, your cloak flapping in the fierce wind.

You did not charge blindly like those red-eyed Martial Artists.

Your gaze calmly locked onto an inconspicuous, even treacherous, beast path on the map in your mind.

That was the 'shortcut' you found by analyzing the geological structure. Although difficult to traverse, it could bypass the main force and directly reach the Cobble Beach directly below the Inverted Mountain!

You drew your battle saber, Qi and blood surged within your body, and you instantly vanished from the cliff edge like an arrow shot from a bow.