75: Chapter 75 Fog Heart 75: Chapter 75 Fog Heart Facing this sudden scene, Zhang Xiaoman couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat.
In his eyes, the speed of the approaching creature was too fast, like a pouncing tiger, unstoppable.
However, since he had come here, it was naturally impossible that he was without reliance.
The next moment, a cold gleam flashed by Zhang Xiaoman’s side, and a long spear suddenly thrust out from the side, instantly impaling the monster still in midair.
The Sand Soldier had made its move!
Immediately afterward, another Sand Soldier heading toward the bridge tunnel also abruptly turned back and rushed to the monster’s side in just a few steps, launching a follow-up attack.
The monster, suddenly pierced, let out a mournful scream, then was pinned to the ground by the force of the Sand Soldier’s long spear, its body twisting frantically trying to break free of the hold.
Then, another sound of a blade entering flesh rang out, the second Sand Soldier arrived and drove its long spear deep into the monster’s skull, stirring and pulling it for a moment, after which the monster gradually went still.
Zhang Xiaoman saw that it had stopped struggling and then directed the Sand Soldiers to finish it off with a few more stabs, and only after confirming that the creature was completely dead did he cease the attack.
Without the time to examine the slain monster, Zhang Xiaoman immediately ordered the Sand Soldiers to enter the bridge tunnel and kill the face-changing monster inside, then finally let out a slight sigh of relief.
“I didn’t expect its ghostly scream to attract other monsters nearby…
But fortunately, it seems there was only this one fellow around, so my luck isn’t too bad.”
After remaining on high alert for a while longer, Zhang Xiaoman relaxed slightly.
Looking at the bodies of the two monsters, Zhang Xiaoman felt a surge of excitement in his heart, not expecting to have killed two monsters in such a short time.
Indeed, earning points was faster when killing monsters.
He commanded the two Sand Soldiers to stand guard, and Zhang Xiaoman slowly approached the corpses of the monsters.
The monster in front of him was the one that had attacked him earlier.
It had an elongated body with particularly well-developed hind legs and was colored a deep yellow, making it difficult to spot when camouflaged in mud.
“This thing looks a bit like a crocodile with a pus-filled back…”
Zhang Xiaoman looked at its mouth full of sharp teeth and felt a shiver down his spine.
If he wasn’t careful and the creature got a bite on him, the consequences could be disastrous.
He slowly crouched down, extending his right hand toward the corpse of the monster.
“Ding, absorbed toad crocodile essence, points increased by 4.”
The System’s notification sounded, and Zhang Xiaoman looked at his palm somewhat disappointedly, not expecting the menacing-looking monster to increase his points by only four.
With that thought, he moved on to the bridge tunnel, arriving before the face-changing monster.
This monster was already pierced and killed by his Yellow Sand Soldiers and had reverted back to its original heart-like appearance.
However, due to the blood vessel patterns around it, it was still firmly attached to the wall and hadn’t fallen.
Looking at its appearance, and piecing together the events that had just happened, Zhang Xiaoman speculated about its abilities in his mind.
“It was able to let out a scream, which should be a kind of psychic attack, but the intensity doesn’t seem high, probably similar to the Parasitic Spirit…
As for the ability to change faces, last time I heard Master Liu say that the one he encountered had turned into the villa owner’s appearance.
Such a technique may be its way to camouflage or confuse opponents.
Looking at it this way, the combat power of this thing indeed isn’t strong, and the points given should also be few…”
Zhang Xiaoman extended his palm, slowly moving closer to the heart on the wall.
“Ding, absorbed the essence of the Fog Heart, points increased by 2.”
“Just as I thought, only 2 points.
It seems this thing isn’t really some kind of combat species.”
Zhang Xiaoman had anticipated this, but he was still somewhat disappointed.
He checked his current points balance, only 8 points remaining.
He had planned to accumulate a total of 10 points and then upgrade again after killing these two monsters, but now it looked like that wasn’t going to happen.
“In the system prompt just now, this thing was called a Fog Heart.
So it seems that the mist is indeed released by it.”
Zhang Xiaoman looked at the walls around him, which had returned to normal, while analyzing in his mind.
“Capable of creating mist, which can interfere with electronic equipment, and perhaps other functions I’m unaware of.
Anyway, this so-called Fog Heart can change the environment to favor the monsters and create an advantage.
This seems very strong, and I’ll have to prioritize killing them from now on.”
Thinking of this, Zhang Xiaoman strangely recalled two games he had played before, which featured similar abilities—the Insect Race’s Creep and the Undead Clan’s Blight.
“These things differ from those demons and spirits I encountered before.
They seem more like a kind of exotic creature.
Could it be they are not part of the same system?”
Zhang Xiaoman was filled with doubts.
Unable to find an answer for now, he put it aside for the time being.
Then, leading his two Sand Soldiers, he continued exploring within the mist using the method he had used earlier, to see if he could find any other monsters.
This time, Zhang Xiaoman not only searched along the roadside but also rummaged through the ditches once again.
He commanded his Sand Soldiers to stir the water with their Long Spears in the hope of skewering another toad crocodile, but to his disappointment, they didn’t find any.
Instead, they caught quite a few crayfish.
After searching for more than an hour, Zhang Xiaoman regretfully called it quits.
He had no choice; his Sand Soldiers could only last for two hours, and with the time spent earlier, they were almost at their limit.
Looking at the mist that seemed to be fading around him, Zhang Xiaoman rubbed his hearthstone and returned home.
Back home, Zhang Xiaoman saw Jin Bao and Xiao Hua fighting, one yelling on the floor “Come down here!”, while the other stood on the table shouting “Come up if you dare!”
Zhang Xiaoman looked helplessly at the two, contemplating whether to check out the other two places mentioned in the intelligence reports.
He opened his attribute panel and saw the Energy Value displayed as: 2/30, and finally decided to put that thought aside for now.
He could no longer summon Sand Soldiers, nor could he even unleash a small Skill.
Going out to face unknown monsters directly would undoubtedly increase the danger significantly.
Looking at the time, it wasn’t even 5 p.m.
Zhang Xiaoman decided to head back to the small forest north of the city later.
There, he could feel the last bit of energy remaining.
He reasoned that after this next visit, he should be able to absorb it all.
Sure enough, half an hour later, Zhang Xiaoman took a ride back to the forest, and after absorbing 11 points of Energy from the previous Space Node’s location, he could no longer sense any energy fluctuations nearby.
With that, the resources in this small forest had been thoroughly depleted.