159: Black mist pervades the Cursed Islands

"By the way, your level is relatively low, and you don't have defensive capabilities for now. Take this weapon; if you encounter enemies, you'll at least have a fighting chance."

Wang Zhenguo extended his right hand, and with a flash of light, a scepter, entirely red, appeared out of thin air.

"This is?"

Su Bai was slightly taken aback, looking a bit surprised.

"It's a scepter storing magical energy, very suitable for a Lord to use."

"We're about to step onto the Cursed Archipelago, where danger lurks everywhere. So, I'm gifting it to you in my personal capacity, as an extra layer of protection."

"Take it quickly; you can check the specific information yourself."

As he spoke, Wang Zhenguo took a step forward and handed over the scepter.

Su Bai took it into his hand and focused his gaze.

Lines of information popped up.

"flame scepter"

"Quality: Excellent"

"Description: A magic scepter brimming with the power of fire, storing the low-level magic — Fireball Spell. Even users completely ignorant of magic can experience the thrill of becoming a mage."

"Effect: Activate the scepter and release a Fireball Spell through thought, dealing fire damage to a single enemy."

"Uses: 1000 times"

"A flame scepter that can cast a Fireball Spell 1000 times? Such a precious item, and he's giving it to me?"

Su Bai looked at Wang Zhenguo and asked subconsciously.

Most magic scepters don't store spells internally; their function is more like an amplifier, enhancing the user's magical strength.

For the vast majority of Lords, they are useless.

Scepters like the flame scepter, which store offensive spells, are extremely rare and valuable.

Even poor quality treasure chests wouldn't yield one.

"A mere flame scepter is nothing. Your safety is the most important thing," Wang Zhenguo said without hesitation or a second thought.

"Thank you!"

Su Bai held the flame scepter, his voice filled with sincerity.

This was an item Wang Zhenguo gifted in his personal capacity.

Unlike official rewards, a personal gift indicated his genuine care and thorough consideration for Su Bai.

"Recently, the Military Region has had some urgent matters, and my main forces have all been reassigned."

"I only brought 5000 Light Swordsmen, 3000 Silver Knights, and 2000 Arcane Mages."

"If we only operate on the outskirts of the Cursed Archipelago, these ten thousand troops should be sufficient to deal with those Dark Creatures."

"If the situation changes, I'll request reinforcements."

Wang Zhenguo turned around, gazing at the gradually approaching Cursed Archipelago.

Su Bai also looked up, muttering to himself, "A dozen islands, shrouded in black mist, complex terrain. I wonder where the Dark Lord's hiding place truly is?"

"No problem! If worst comes to worst, we'll search island by island. It'll just take more time, no big deal," Wang Zhenguo said loudly.

Although the giant sea turtles' speed wasn't fast, their large size ensured stability.

Time passed minute by minute.

The Cursed Archipelago grew larger and larger in Su Bai's field of vision.

Just then.

An unexpected change occurred.

A hoarse, chilling voice suddenly rang out.

"Jie jie jie!"

"Executioner who killed so many of my subordinates, you've finally arrived!"

"The taste of the Dark Curse isn't pleasant, is it?"

"Go to the island in front of you and keep walking forward."

"Only if you come through alive will you be worthy of becoming my servant."

Wang Zhenguo raised an eyebrow and spoke quickly, "The owner of this voice must be that Dark Lord, right?"

"Indeed! I remember this voice; it is the Dark Lord," Su Bai said with a slight frown.

This Indigenous Forces was a bit too arrogant.

He actually wanted me to become his servant.

If there's a chance, I must eliminate him completely.

"It seems I wasn't wrong; his real purpose is to make you join his Dark Forces," Wang Zhenguo teased, "Excellent people are popular everywhere they go. Even powerful Dark Creatures won't let you go."

"I am truly honored."

Su Bai sighed lightly, a wry smile appearing on his face.

The power of the StarCraft Zerg Swarm was like a tall tree catching the wind; sometimes it would attract some difficult troubles.

Everything has two sides.

Now, Su Bai finally understood this thoroughly.

However, as long as he blazed a trail and overcame each difficulty, the territory's overall strength would accelerate its development.

One day, the Zerg Swarm would be strong enough to crush any challenge and difficulty.

Ten minutes later.

One by one, the giant sea turtles landed on the island before them.

Everyone jumped off the turtle shells, stepping onto the damp ground.

The first sensation upon stepping onto the Cursed Archipelago was that the light grew dim.

Though it was daytime, it felt like dusk before sunset, as if darkness could swallow them at any moment.

"Su Bai, be careful, stay by my side!"

Wang Zhenguo looked around.

He gave the order to advance.

The Light Swordsmen, as the vanguard, walked at the very front.

The Silver Knights guarded the rear, walking at the very back.

The Arcane Mages, as the center army, were tightly clustered around Wang Zhenguo.

"Hmm!"

Su Bai nodded.

He followed Wang Zhenguo's footsteps, heading deeper into the island.

The further they went, the taller and denser the towering trees became.

Black mist permeated the air, making visibility extremely poor.

Though it was daytime, it was like night.

Chilling, damp air constantly slapped their faces, mixed with a foul, rotten stench that made them feel somewhat nauseous.

"The black mist here distorts even light. As we go deeper, the light becomes increasingly thin. A few hundred meters further, it will probably be pitch black."

Su Bai looked up at the sky.

Other than the rolling black mist and huge tree branches, he couldn't see anything else.

At this moment, he finally understood why the Cursed Archipelago had become one of the ten forbidden lands of the Land of Redemption.

Leaving aside other things, just the pervasive sticky black mist and endless darkness could have a huge negative psychological impact on people.

In this environment, most of the soldiers under a Lord's command would find it difficult to exert their original combat power.

"With Uther here, there's no need to worry about this situation."

Wang Zhenguo smiled slightly and said.

At the same time, Uther waved his large hand, and countless golden light points scattered out.

The light points danced rapidly in mid-air, attaching themselves to the weapons in the hands of the Light Swordsmen, Silver Knights, and Arcane Mages.

The next moment.

Tens of thousands of longswords, spears, and staffs glowed, their emitted golden light dispelling all the surrounding darkness.

"As expected of the lightbringer, this ability is quite practical."

Su Bai's eyes lifted slightly, and his vision extended into the distance.