607: Chapter 607 Barbecue of Wild Boar Meat, A Strange Appearance

Military boots stepped on the damp, decaying layer of fallen leaves, squeezing out a sticky brown juice.

The primeval forest deep in West Mountain had completely plunged into darkness by this moment.

The grayish-white mist was like a living creature, breeding from the uneven ground, climbing all the way up along the bushes, and wrapping around the surrounding tree canopies layer by layer.

Over a hundred meters ahead, the noisy sounds of a large group of examinees pushing each other and running drifted over faintly, occasionally accompanied by a few out-of-tune exclamations.

Behind them, however, three people deliberately slowed their pace, seemingly uninterested in competing for rankings and scores.

Fang Cheng put both hands in the pockets of his training uniform, stepping with steady paces as he walked unhurriedly.

He raised his eyes, swept them across the rolling mist ahead, turned his head, and said,

"Just maintain this distance. Before setting off, I said not to be eager for quick success and instant benefits."

"It just so happens that the hundreds of people in front can clear the path for us. If we really encounter any danger, there will still be some room for buffer and response."

"Got it, got it, steady and secure."

Ma Donghe nodded repeatedly, agreeing extremely readily.

However, at this moment, his appearance looked somewhat comical.

The bulky man weighing over two hundred jin shriveled his neck, slumped his broad shoulders, and tightly grasped a flashlight with his right hand.

The bright beam of light swept back and forth through the bushes on both sides, looking very much like a dormitory manager doing a midnight check yet afraid of bumping into a ghost.

Hou Peng, walking on the right, was in a completely different state.

When this lean young man took a step, he always lowered his center of gravity, letting his toes touch the ground first before slowly transitioning to his heels.

To describe it in one word, it was "silent upon landing".

Furthermore, every dozen steps or so he took, he would habitually pause for half a second.

Then he would tilt his wind-catching ears to capture the surroundings' movements, his gaze quickly scanning back and forth and sweeping over the interlocking tree canopies overhead.

This set of skilled jungle reconnaissance movements didn't look like regular subjects that could be learned in a police academy, but rather exuded the seasoned savvy of someone from an unorthodox background.

The three trailed far behind the main force, advancing along the messy footprints on the ground.

The surrounding mist grew thicker and thicker, almost condensing water droplets on their eyebrows.

Occasionally, the hooting sound of the Night Owl went into their ears.

Walking in this fog-drenched forest always made one feel that something in the darkness was staring at them.

Snap!

Hou Peng suddenly stopped his feet, his military boots grinding a crisp sound out of the fallen leaves.

He suddenly turned around, his wrist flipping.

The standard short blade was already held reverse-grip in his palm, the blade pointing directly at a thick dawn redwood behind and to the side that required three people to embrace.

"Who's there?"

Hou Peng demanded in a low voice.

However.

Aside from the rustling sound of the wind blowing the leaves, no response was received.

Faintly, only a blurry black shadow emerged beside the redwood trunk, twisting and swimming along with the mist.

"Damn it, playing God and acting like ghosts!"

Ma Donghe swallowed a mouthful of saliva, cursing in his mouth to bolster his own courage.

Then he bent down, scooped a fist-sized stone out of the muddy ground, swung his arm in a full circle, and violently smashed it toward that black shadow.

"Bang!"

The stone hit the tree trunk, chipping off a piece of old tree bark covered in moss.

At the same time, it also stirred up a gust of airflow, blowing the surrounding mist scattering in all directions.

Yet there was not a single human figure there, aside from a few intertwined dead vines.

Seeing this, Ma Donghe pulled out his dagger and strode forward, poking his head out to take a careful look behind the tree.

It was still completely empty.

"What the motherfucking hell..."

He muttered and put away his dagger.

Whoosh—

A gust of cold wind swept over close to the ground, whistling as it drilled straight inward along the hem of his training uniform.

"Holy crap!"

Ma Donghe shivered, simply clamping the flashlight under his armpit, crossing his arms to hug his chest, and vigorously rubbing the goosebumps on his arms:

"His grandpa's, why is this ghost place as cold as a morgue, freezing my bones to pain."

Hou Peng beside him was as thin as a hemp stalk, yet he merely tightened his collar and didn't even shiver once.

His cold-resistance ability clearly far exceeded that of Ma Donghe, who was as strong as an ox.

However, he also wore a look of doubt, turning his head to look at Fang Cheng:

"Brother Fang, this cooling speed is too freakish; even the water droplets on the leaves are about to freeze."

You must know that it was currently the early summer season.

Even though West Mountain had a high altitude and a large temperature difference between day and night, at night it should at most carry a bit of coolness.

It should never be as cold as a drafty giant ice cellar.

Fang Cheng extended his right hand, opened his palm, felt the resistance of the mist weaving through his fingers, and spoke calmly:

"It's not that the cooling speed is too fast, but that this mist is continuously draining the heat from our bodies."

Ma Donghe nodded as if he understood yet didn't, and immediately urged:

"Then let's walk faster. Once we start moving, we won't be cold."

Hou Peng plugged his dagger back into his waist and chimed in:

"Right, it's best to walk out of this fog area before our body temperature is lost too much."

The three stepped on the damp mud and continued deeper into the dense forest.

Yet as their paces advanced, the environment became increasingly harsh.

The deep night veil and the grayish-white mist intertwined, compressing visibility to the extreme.

The high-lumen beam of the tactical flashlight shot out, just like crashing into a solid white wall.

The light spot was severely scattered, leaving only a hazy Chaos just a few steps away.

Even though Fang Cheng's sensory perception of his five senses far exceeded ordinary people, under the dual suppression of this bizarre magnetic field fluctuation and thick fog, his vision was likewise subjected to extreme interference.

He stopped his footsteps, closed his eyes, and mobilized the True Sun Fire in his Inner Scene World.

When he opened them again, two clusters of golden flames suddenly ignited deep within his pupils.

The white fog in front of him instantly became thin and transparent, and the terrain within about a hundred meters ahead, even the textures on the dead tree bark, finally clearly reflected into his sight.

However, looking further into the distance, it was still a Chaos intertwined with gray and white.

Compared to the outside world, the field of vision was still severely restricted.

It shows how extraordinary this mist was.

Fang Cheng resumed his steps, his gaze sweeping across his two companions by his side.

Hou Peng also seemed to be hiding some kind of trump card.

He half-squinted his eyes, that pair of wind-catching ears constantly fluttering.

Relying solely on the subtle rebound of sound waves and the perception of airflow, he walked in the pit-filled forest as if walking on flat ground.

The only one suffering was Ma Donghe.

This man with a build as strong as a bear had truly become a thorough "blind bear" at this moment.

With one hand, he randomly waved the flashlight, its beam drawing messy circles in mid-air, while his other hand tightly grabbed the sleeve of Fang Cheng's training uniform, his steps taken in short and hurried strides.

"A-Cheng, slow down, slow down. Is there a pit ahead? The soles of my shoes are slipping..."

His massive body clung closely to Fang Cheng's side, swaying back and forth as he walked.

This cowering appearance was simply like a different person compared to the overbearing posture of boasting not long ago about catching a bear in the mountains to roast and eat.

"Wait, something is coming!"

As they were walking, Fang Cheng suddenly spat out two words and abruptly stopped his footsteps.

Upon hearing this, Ma Donghe immediately stood still obediently on the spot, just like stepping on the brakes.

Hou Peng turned his head in puzzlement, following Fang Cheng's line of sight to look ahead locked by heavy thick fog.

One second, two seconds... five seconds.

The two waited nervously for a long time.

Just as Ma Donghe swallowed a mouthful of saliva, preparing to ask if he had misread again.

The wind direction suddenly changed.

An extremely intense stench of decay, like something substantial, tore open the thick fog ahead and rushed straight towards them.

"Boom!"

The bushes ahead were crudely broken.

A black shadow larger than an off-road vehicle rushed out violently, stepping with paces that made the earth tremble.

That was a Mutated Wild Boar with a horrifying size.

Its whole body stood with thick and hard black hair like steel needles, two tusks resembling spears were hung with foul-smelling mucus, and its scarlet eyeballs revealed a bloodthirsty madness that had lost all reason.

Ma Donghe's eyes widened, and he stood blankly on the spot.

Hou Peng exclaimed "Careful", holding his dagger and retreating repeatedly, almost tripping over a tree root.

At the instant when the Mutated Wild Boar's massive body was about to crush over.

Fang Cheng moved.

He stepped forward half a step, his military boots directly crushing a stone into powder.

At the same time, he took a deep breath, the muscles at his waist and back instantly twisted tight like steel cables, and his spine dragon suddenly snapped and vibrated.

Without any redundant Move.

Carrying a shrill screech that tore the air, his right arm slammed down fiercely against the head of the wild boar crashing towards him.

Bang!

An extremely dull loud noise exploded in the forest, and the air wave overturned a circle of fallen leaves around.

The terrifying kinetic energy erupted instantly.

The wild boar's several-ton heavy charging momentum came to an abrupt halt.

Following that, it flew up into the air at a speed even faster than when it came.

Where it came from, it went back to where it came.

Its massive body successively snapped three bowl-thick pine trees before heavily smashing into the muddy ground.

Looking over again, that huge pig's head had been completely blown to pieces like a watermelon hit by a heavy artillery shell, and red and white fluids splashed all over the ground.

"Too bloody—"

Ma Donghe and Hou Peng widened their mouths, a sentence involuntarily popping up in their minds.

Fang Cheng slowly withdrew his right hand with a calm expression.

His entire fist surface along with his forearm was currently glowing a fiery red like a soldering iron.

The filthy blood and meat foam stained on his skin were instantly vaporized by this terrifying high temperature, emitting wisps of white smoke.

In the blink of an eye, that hand returned to its original cleanliness.

"A-A-Cheng... are there micro bombs installed inside your fist?"

Ma Donghe stammered, his eyeballs almost popping out.

Hou Peng even gave a thumbs up, his voice floating:

"Brother Fang, you are purely a humanoid Tyrannosaurus; I've really opened my eyes today!"

Fang Cheng smiled slightly and casually flicked his wrist:

"I practiced boxing quite diligently in the past, and this beast only knew how to crash blindly; I just happened to hit its vital spot."

Hou Peng obviously didn't take this modesty to heart.

The danger was lifted, and Ma Donghe immediately ran to the side of the headless wild boar's corpse, kicking its thick hind leg with his toe, his eyes shining straight:

"Goodness, this is top-tier ingredients! The Mutated Wild Boar runs in the mountains all year round, its meat is tight and chewy."

"A-Cheng, look, this thigh meat is most suitable for slicing and charcoal grilling; it'll definitely sizzle with oil. If that rack of ribs can be stewed in a pot, the soup base will definitely make your eyebrows drop from freshness!"

Fang Cheng listened and nodded secretly.

Great minds think alike.

Although Ma Donghe loved to boast, he did have a lot of common language with himself in terms of Culinary Arts.

"Brother Ma, are you crazy?"

Hou Peng cautiously leaned over and said with a face full of disgust:

"This is a polluted mutated creature; who the hell knows if it carries deadly viruses on its body? Eating a bite will send you straight away."

Ma Donghe curled his lips dismissively:

"What is there to fear! No matter how fierce the virus is, roast it on the fire until it's crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, can it flip the heavens?"

"You don't know."

Hou Peng shook his head and explained patiently:

"Some viruses from outer space are extremely high-temperature resistant, and the temperature of barbecue simply cannot solve them."

The two stood by the pool of blood, arguing back and forth.

Fang Cheng ignored them, his eyes staring at the wild boar, the golden light flickering slightly in his pupils.

He could clearly feel that this beast's meat seemed to contain a manic yet abundant life energy.

"Donghe, cut off the wild boar's thigh meat, we'll take it away."

Fang Cheng suddenly spoke up.

"Alrighty!"

Seeing his opinion adopted, Ma Donghe instantly beamed with joy.

Then he pulled out his military dagger, relying on his great strength, and quickly dismantled both thighs in no time.

He picked the largest one to carry on his shoulder, and then casually tossed the slightly smaller front leg to Hou Peng.

"Hold it well; if you're afraid of being poisoned, don't eat it later when it's roasted."

Hou Peng hugged that pig leg weighing at least fifty jin and still dripping with blood, his lean figure swaying directly, on the verge of crying without tears.

He was only a step away from blurting out his inner thoughts: What kind of sin have I committed? Carrying a twenty-kilogram marching pack isn't enough, and now I have to carry a pig leg for you guys...

Ma Donghe hummed contentedly.

Just as the two were fooling around, Fang Cheng's brows slightly furrowed.

He discovered a very unusual phenomenon.

The surroundings were too quiet.

Even though they deliberately walked at the very end, just a few minutes ago, the chaotic footsteps and shouts of a large group of examinees could still be faintly heard ahead.

Yet as time went on, those sounds became weaker and weaker.

Until this moment, it was as if they had disappeared into another world, and nothing could be heard at all.

This layer of bizarre thick fog not only could obscure vision, but it also seemed to isolate the propagation of sound altogether.

"Tie the meat to the marching packs, we need to catch up with the main force as soon as possible."

Fang Cheng spoke out to remind them.

Ma Donghe quickly tied up the pig leg with nylon rope in no time.

He raised his head and swept across the surroundings, his expression changing abruptly as he exclaimed involuntarily:

"A-Cheng, where are the road signs? How come none of the reflective markers on the trees are left?"

Fang Cheng was not impatient, closing his eyes and concentrating entirely on perceiving the changes in the surrounding airflow and all subtle sounds.

"In the nine o'clock direction!"

Hou Peng's pair of wind-catching ears twitched rapidly twice and spoke up first:

"I heard the bell ringing, let's follow the sound."

Obviously, he had just used some kind of special ability.

Upon hearing this, Fang Cheng nodded slightly and gathered his mind.

The three immediately changed direction, continuing to grope in the thick fog and advancing for about a few hundred meters.

Finally, on the branches of a towering tree, they saw the brass bell swaying with the wind.

But in the pile of fallen leaves beneath the bell, a bloody corpse wearing camouflage uniform was lying.

Ma Donghe was startled, subconsciously gripping his dagger tighter:

"Ran into mutated beasts again?"

Fang Cheng strode forward and half-squatted beside the corpse.

He didn't flip the person over, only scanning the sideways-exposed neck and chest twice.

Then his gaze flickered slightly, and he said in a deep voice:

"It's not a beast, it's a man-made sneak attack."