After He Yishu and Yang Zicang returned to the hotel, everything seemed normal on the surface.

“Just as you said, that major general came up with a way for us. ” He Yishu closed the door behind him.

“He’s definitely far more experienced than we are. “

Yang Zicang sat on a chair by the bed. He gently, cautiously, extended the mental energy channeled through the Silent Night.

“I think the major general must have anticipated something, which is why he recruited us onto the plane. “

｛I’m trying my best to control the coverage field of the “Silent Night. “｝

The architectural details around him materialized more clearly in his consciousness. It was as if everything was reporting its status to him—the flowers and grass, the trees, the rooms and corridors, the wooden walls and partitions, even the clothes…

Fortunately, there was no one within this range that gave him a terrifying response.

But Yang Zicang did not dare to let his guard down.

After sensing the surroundings—particularly that the room he was in seemed normal enough—Yang Zicang, dressed in a navy blue velvet coat, dispersed the secret technique that had made He Yishu glance around in confusion.

“I just felt something strange, ” He Yishu said, standing up and moving to the side of the window, casting a cautious glance outside.

“It’s nothing, ” Yang Zicang replied. “I was just using the secret technique to check the place, seeing if there was any hidden danger here. “

He Yishu turned his head and said, “Strange guy. How do you have so many tricks up your sleeve? Where did you even come from? “

This was something he had long wanted to ask. Just like Xue Qi had seen Yang Zicang and Bai Yuan as mysterious and curious figures, He Yishu was equally baffled by their origins.

That mysterious Full Moon Angel, the companion who walked the earth with the Full Moon Angel—Yang Buchen’s friend—and the man himself before him. They seemed no different from him on the surface, yet when the moment came, the qualities they revealed were impossible to ignore.

Yang Zicang shared a few less-important details. As the two traded information about their respective cities, the moonlight gradually climbed higher.

A faint scraping sound came from outside the window, as if someone was gently nudging the frame. The two immediately fell silent.

“Mistlander, ” a whisper drifted from beyond the window.

Yang Zicang silently approached the window, his fingertips gently parting a corner of the curtain.

Under the dim light outside stood an ordinary-looking man with a wooden box hanging from a cloth strap around his neck, containing some small goods. He looked just like a small island vendor selling trinkets.

The vendor picked up a pack of cigarette boxes made of plain blue paper, handed it inside, and said loudly:

“Gentlemen, care for some of our tobacco? It’s a local specialty. These leaves, nurtured by the breath of the Mist Sea, might keep your hearts connected to home. “

The cigarette pack wasn’t neatly wrapped. Yang Zicang took it and glanced at the loose packaging.

“Be careful with it, heh. If the wrapping tears, it won’t keep well. “

The man outside said with a smile, then turned to greet someone passing by.

Yang Zicang tossed an Ability Sphere he carried with him to the peddler.

“Take this for fun. “

The man gleefully played with the Ability Sphere for a moment before tucking it into his pocket. “Be careful, ” he said.

With that, he nodded with a smile and walked toward a few Mistlanders passing by on the other side, calling out from a distance, offering cigarettes.

Yang Zicang and He Yishu exchanged a glance.

This time, He Yishu clearly felt a faint trace of strangeness sweep over him. He understood now that the young man before him had once again activated his ability to probe the surroundings.

“Open it. “

The two quickly tore open the rolled cigarette, revealing the inner layer of the packaging paper.

Some text was written on it.

—The legend of this island seemed important to the “foreigners, ” but it was no longer worth any investigation.

—At the latest by midnight, someone authorized by the island lord will come to sell information about the “Demon Realm. ” They will mention something about the “Bloodline “…

“Bloodline! ” He Yishu let out a low gasp.

But as he continued reading, the hope that had just risen within him was dashed.

—It is said that the “tainted bloodline ” defiled the earth region, creating anomalies. However, that region had already been cleaned up by the “foreigners, ” that is, the pioneers from your homeland, back when the previous island lord was still in power.

—Although some anomalies remain, they were deliberately left behind by Ka Yunni’s family.

Behind them, outside the thin wooden door of the inn, the wooden floorboards let out faint creaks as guests moved about.

The two exchanged a glance. Yang Zicang gently tore open the cigarette pack, which was pieced together from coarse paper and fragile tin foil, revealing a curved map of the island inside.

“Who is that person? “

“Who else could it be? Definitely someone connected to that major general of the Criminalizer Order. “

The two continued reading the paper in silence.

—We suspect there’s something wrong with it, so this family hid it there, using it to both maintain the power of the contaminated area and find a reason to deal with anyone who poses a threat to their rule over the island.

—Be extremely careful. It’s best not to go.

……

From outside the window, the distant sound of waves occasionally drifted in, mingled with the low calls of seabirds.

“Should we go?” He Yishu asked uncertainly.

-｛Radiance: May Valkyrie invested 100 Five-Colored Moon Essence in me.｝

Yang Zicang’s gaze fell upon his chest.

-｛Radiance: May Valkyrie wishes to pre-order this; the glorious prelude I am nurturing.｝

This lady from the fifth layer of the Moon Realm had always maintained a dignified restraint. Even before, whether on the ship or on the island, she had never been like Di’an, eagerly hinting that she could give birth to the Radiance. Yet now, she unexpectedly offered a clue.

-｛Radiance: May Valkyrie raised the price for my glory of this Radiance light by 10%.｝

“This…” The lady Valkyrie, who had never proactively given a hint before, now voluntarily expressed a pre-order. The implication was obvious.

In other words, this must be a special experience capable of sparking her interest!

Yang Zicang’s gaze shifted to the pencil drawing. “I think we should go take a look. Let’s prepare.“

With that said, he arranged through his model to have a “family brother” deliver a few potentially useful Ability Spheres: three for healing, two for freezing, and an explosive-type Ability Sphere acquired from a trade on the ship—one of the rarest Ability types.

Within less than an hour, a short flurry of footsteps sounded outside the cabin as someone hastily rushed into the inn.

“Boss, do you have those two skilled Fogfolk here staying with you?“

They’ve come, just as that person said, and even a bit earlier than the expected time.

• ｛February. Dian’an is astonished by the efficiency with which I conceived Radiance.｝

You’re astonishing a little too late.

Yang Zicang stepped out of the room and fixed his gaze on the visitor.

“Ah, you heard me, friends from a distant land! My name is Zhenan, and I have something you’d love to share with you two fine gentlemen.“

A strange man in a dark cloak hurried over from beside the bar, clutching a dog-eared, tattered book in his hand.

“Looking for us?“

“You see, our island sits right on the jagged edge of the Fog Sea. Within a hundred li around, this happens to be the very tip of the horn that juts deepest into the mist.“

“Yeah, I know. It’s quite a unique sight. It’s flanked on both sides by the Fog Sea region, so plenty of people come here to travel.“

“Want to know why? Because there used to be an area here with mysterious powers. We call it the Miasma Pollution Zone.“

“Miasma Pollution?“

“That’s right.” The man leaned in with a grin. “But you folks seem to call it the Bloodline Contamination Zone, or something like a Phantom Realm.“

The Abyssal Phantom Realm! Yang Zicang had already heard about such places from everyone’s chatter.

It’s not an area ordinary people from this world can just waltz into and handle. Entering such a place is practically a death sentence for a native—it’s only ‘Fogfolk’ with a small Halo who can go in, take on the fiends inside, and retrieve the Bloodlines and Statues buried there.

But there are also brave ones who enter for the sake of gaining great strength or protecting their homeland, and in the end, only a few natives manage to survive.

And those who struggled to survive would almost always acquire the Bloodline Strength, which is only easily obtained safely by the “Fogfolk. “

This was originally a project for which distributors would charge an explanation fee, but now it has basically spread among newcomers—though, of course, most of the word comes from the enthusiastic yet idle Crossing People.

The man in front of him patted the old book in his hands.

“This book contains a legend about that cave. “

He Yishu said, “This all looks like clippings from magazines and newspapers. “

Zhenan, the one holding the book, smiled and said, “Because that place is very dangerous, the islanders rarely go there; the information all comes from these things. I figure this book should be enough to trade for some of those magical fruits. “

He Yishu took the book and flipped through it.

-｛February·Di’an wishes to reserve this derived Radiance: A Brilliant Prelude.｝

A thought manifesto surfaced from an accessory.