You're Back?!

"Lost in the Fog"

As the commander, Chen Dapeng had led a thousand mages and a thousand tech warriors on a mission to Xinchang. With his speed, they should have been far ahead, long past the point where the security team had gotten trapped in the ghostly mist.

Yet, outside the city, the world was no less ominous. The dense fog stretched endlessly, swallowing both land and sky into an abyss of darkness. It was as if Earth had lost its daylight forever, leaving only a handful of functional clocks to remind people of the passing hours.

6 PM.

Chen Dapeng led the way, forging through the eerie mist. Visibility was nearly nonexistent, and under normal circumstances, no sane person would dare to move too fast. But he wasn't the cautious type. Taking point at the front, he remained on high alert for any lurking dangers.

The mages easily countered the fog's oppressive shroud, waving their wands to conjure luminous magic orbs that floated around them like miniature stars. These orbs cut through the gloom, illuminating the path forward. The army advanced in an alternating formation—regular soldiers interspersed with mages—ensuring that any sudden disturbances could be dealt with immediately.

With the formation set and the mission on track, Chen Dapeng had no worries. He pressed forward, focused solely on finishing the job so he could return home to his younger sister.

But as he walked, something felt… wrong.

The light from the magical orbs dimmed ever so slightly. Assuming the spell was simply wearing off, he turned to call for a recharge from the mages behind him—only to freeze in shock.

The entire army was gone.

The thousand mages, the thousand tech warriors, the supply transports—everything had vanished without a trace.

"What the hell? Did I outrun them? No way… Did they all get lost?!"

Stunned, he immediately turned back, searching for his troops. For over ten minutes, he combed the area, but there was no sign of his comrades. Even the paved highway they had been following had disappeared, replaced by a muddy dirt path flanked by wild grass and thick trees.

"Wait a damn minute…" His eyes narrowed as a realization struck him. "Shit. I'm the only one who got lost, aren't I?"

A chill ran down his spine. This wasn't just some navigation error—this was one of those incidents.

As if confirming his suspicions, the fog ahead swirled and churned. Within moments, a formation of soldiers emerged, clad in battered armor, some mounted on decayed warhorses. Their lifeless faces were ghastly pale, with hollow black eyes. Rotten wounds marked their bodies—some had gaping slashes across their torsos, others bore deep gouges in their throats. Even the horses were in a grotesque state, their exposed bones barely holding together the scraps of flesh clinging to them.

"Ghosts?!"

Even someone as battle-hardened as Chen Dapeng felt a prickle of unease. Instinctively, he took a step back—only to sense movement behind him. More figures emerged from the mist, hundreds of them, surrounding him from all sides.

Within seconds, he was trapped.

A mounted soldier at the front drew a rusted blade and spoke in a hoarse, hollow voice.

"Master Xu, we have long awaited this moment. The general has ordered us to escort you on your journey."

"Xu?" Chen Dapeng scowled, shifting into a battle stance. "You've got the wrong guy."

The soldier continued as if he hadn't heard. "Please do not hold it against us, Master Xu. When you pass beyond, know that we are but soldiers following orders."

"I said I'm not Xu!" His voice sharpened with irritation. "And what the hell are you talking about?"

The soldier ignored him. Instead, he tilted his head slightly, a sinister grin stretching across his face.

"Before you depart, the general has a question for you."

"If you had truly gone to Jingxiang, would you have sought to save the nation? Or would you have chosen to live in seclusion, ignoring the chaos of the court?"

Had Mike been here, he would have instantly recognized this as a key piece of the Obsession Puzzle—a way to resolve the supernatural encounter without conflict. By deciphering the obsession behind the ghosts, one could unravel the illusion and escape unscathed.

But Chen Dapeng wasn't the type to think that far ahead.

"I told you already," he growled. "I'm not Xu! And what's with the cryptic nonsense?! You think you can send me to hell?!"

Seeing that he refused to answer, the soldier sighed in mock disappointment. "Then I have no choice but to follow orders."

He raised his blade.

At once, a hundred archers appeared behind him, their broken bows creaking as they pulled back their arrows.

"Kill."

With a single command, the arrows flew, whistling through the fog. The projectiles shimmered darkly, leaving ghostly trails in their wake.

Chen Dapeng had no idea what this 'obsession' nonsense was about, but he knew one thing—he wasn't about to sit around and let some undead archers turn him into a pincushion.

He shot to the side, dodging the arrows with ease. As they struck the ground, the black-tipped shafts dissolved into puddles of inky liquid, leaving behind small, gaping holes in the dirt.

"Huh?" His sharp eyes caught the disturbance. "Wait a second… these arrows physically hit the ground."

So they weren't just illusions or spirit attacks—they had mass.

Which meant…

A slow, wicked grin spread across his face.

"You assholes aren't just ghosts, huh?"

The mounted soldier started to respond, but Chen Dapeng was already moving.

In an instant, he launched forward, closing the gap with terrifying speed.

With a single punch, he obliterated the soldier, shattering both rider and horse into a cloud of mist.

The moment his fist connected, he paid close attention—waiting to see if the shattered corpse would reform.

It didn't.

The mist simply dispersed, and the soldier was gone.

"…That's it?"

For a moment, he was almost disappointed.

The surrounding undead reeled back, stunned by his overwhelming strength. Then, in an instant, they snapped back into action.

"Kill him!"

More arrows rained down, but he weaved between them effortlessly.

"You damn ghost freaks, trying to scare me with this cheap horror show?" He sneered, cracking his knuckles. "You think I'm gonna let a bunch of dead guys push me around?"

His grin turned feral.

"If you're all already dead, then I'll just make you die again!"

With a roar, he charged into their ranks, fists blazing. In mere moments, bodies were exploding into mist, one after another.

Three minutes later, the battlefield was empty.

Chen Dapeng exhaled sharply, dusting off his knuckles.

"Pathetic." He spat onto the ground in disgust.

But before he could take another step, the mist churned once more.

And then—

The exact same formation of undead soldiers materialized before him.

The same mounted commander raised his rusted sword.

"Master Xu, we have long awaited this moment. The general has ordered us to escort you on your journey."

Chen Dapeng's expression darkened.

From somewhere else, watching through a different perspective, Mike's eyes widened.

His theory had been correct.

The cycle had restarted.

Chen Dapeng clenched his fists, rage boiling over.

"You again?!"