The mist that rolled over the expedition camp wasn't natural.
It came without wind, without moisture, and without warning — a dense silver-white veil that muffled sound and blurred vision. By the time the morning horn blew, half the outer tents had vanished into the swirling haze.
Lin Ho stepped out of his tent, Chaos Qi flowing subtly beneath his skin. He could feel it — the unnatural stillness, the faint tremor in the air. The fog wasn't thick enough to obscure reality, but it shifted it.
Bai Qing appeared beside him, eyes narrowed.
> "This fog has a will."
> "Yes," Lin Ho replied, scanning the space. "Something is testing us."
All across the camp, disciples emerged warily, weapons drawn, formations tightening. But then… nothing happened.
Until someone screamed.
A boy from the Thunder Leaf Sect stumbled out from the mist, bloodied and wild-eyed.
> "It's copying us! It's copying—"
Snap!
Something dragged him back in. Silence followed.
Elder Qiu and the other inner sect leaders formed a perimeter, attempting to force the mist to recede with layered defensive formations. However, their spiritual light only revealed more mist, swirling with faint… shadows.
> "These aren't beasts," Elder Qiu murmured. "They're echoes."
---
Inside the Fog
Lin Ho, against orders, walked alone into the mist. His Chaos Qi resisted the illusions, unraveling their weaves like threads.
Then he saw it — a copy of himself.
It stood a few steps away, identical in body, expressionless in face. But its aura was wrong. Too smooth. Too clean.
> "You are not me," Lin Ho said, drawing his blade.
The echo tilted its head.
> "You could be. Without your choices."
Then it attacked.
Their blades clashed in silence. No sound echoed through the mist — only motion. Lin Ho's strikes were intercepted perfectly. The echo fought with his style, his timing… but lacked unpredictability.
> "Chaos is not a pattern," Lin Ho growled.
He struck with intent, not form — shifting his momentum mid-swing, bending the flow of Qi, unleashing a spiral surge that disrupted the echo's entire frame.
The copy shattered into vapor.
From within the mist, a low growl answered.
Something deeper was coming.
---
Camp Edge – Moments Later
Bai Qing was defending a group of junior disciples when a massive figure loomed from the fog — armored in bone, eyes burning crimson.
A Fog Warden, ancient guardian of illusions long forgotten.
Just as it raised its hand, Lin Ho burst from the fog behind it, blade glowing with swirling golden-black Qi.
> "You're not the only Warden here."
His strike cleaved through the beast's neck — not with brute force, but with collapsing intent.
The fog screamed. It recoiled, unraveling itself, revealing the camp once more.
Disciples fell to their knees in exhaustion.
But Lin Ho remained standing, face unreadable.
Elder Qiu approached him carefully.
> "That technique…"
> "I didn't learn it. I remembered it."
---
Far Away — A Distant Peak
In a temple carved from obsidian, a figure shrouded in robes watched a pool of rippling water.
> "He is awakening too quickly."
Another voice answered, cold and old.
> "Then we must accelerate the hunt."
---
End of Chapter 55