The journey through the forest continued for an hour, while riding atop the two identical white tigers, Yin one and Yin two. The path was surrounded by towering trees that seemed to stretch toward the sky, their canopies forming a natural canopy that filtered the sunlight.
Suddenly, The Yins came to a halt, Its massive frame tense and alert. Ling Ye's hand instinctively went to the hilt of her sword as she peered ahead. The atmosphere had changed, a subtle shift that made the air heavy with an eerie stillness.
"What is it?" Xing Ziao's voice was low and cautious, his eyes scanning the surroundings for any sign of danger.
Ling Ye was about to dismount from Yin one when her attention was drawn to an unusual phenomenon. A dense fog was beginning to roll in, shrouding the forest in a hazy mist. Ling Ye's brows furrowed in confusion as she glanced around.
"If we were in the Southern Nation, I would think that we had just arrived at the Forest of Mist," Ling Ye said, her tone perplexed. "But this is impossible. We are in the Central Region, and kilometers away, heading toward the Beizhong Desert. There's no ocean nor sea near this area. Even after the Beizhong Desert is Huoshan Lava. I don't think Huoshan's smoke would even reach here."
The fog seemed to thicken with each passing moment, wrapping around the trees and obscuring their surroundings. It was as if a veil had been drawn, separating them from the known world.
Wen Di's grip on Xing Ziao's waist tightened slightly as he glanced between his companions. "This fog...it's not a normal fog,"
Ling Ye's eyes were sharp as she nodded, her senses on high alert. "Yes, it's not. There's a kind of energy underlying this mist,"
As the fog closed in, their surroundings became increasingly obscured. The trees faded into ghostly shapes. The air was cool and damp, carrying with it an unsettling sense of the unknown.
"We need to stay close and keep our guards up," Xing Ziao stated firmly, his voice resolute.
With an unspoken agreement, the trio urged their tigers forward, their movements cautious as they ventured deeper into the shrouded forest. The fog seemed to swallow their surroundings, blurring their perception of time and distance.
Sensing the need for clearer vision, Wen Di and Ling Ye exchanged a knowing glance. From within their cloaks, they retrieved small, intricately inscribed talismans. Speaking a whispered incantation, they activated the talismans, causing them to glow with a soft, radiant light. The light illuminated the immediate area around them, cutting through the fog's density and providing a limited but much-needed clarity.
The minutes stretched into an eerie silence, broken only by the faint rustling of leaves and the muffled footsteps of their tigers. The atmosphere remained thick with uncertainty, yet the talismans' glow offered a small sanctuary of visibility, allowing them to navigate through the mysterious haze with slightly more ease.
After almost an hour of traveling within the fog, there was still no sign of it clearing. The mist persisted, wrapping around the trees like a silent specter. The trio pressed on, the soft light of their talismans carving a path of visibility in the otherwise dense fog.
Suddenly, Ling Ye's white tiger, Yin one, came to an abrupt stop, its massive paws sinking into the moist ground. Ling Ye herself halted as well, her hand flying to her forehead in a gesture of sudden pain. Her brows furrowed, and her lips tightened as her vision seemed to take hold.
After a few moments of this silent struggle, Ling Ye slowly lowered her hand, her gaze refocusing on Wen Di and Xing Ziao. Her expression was one of profound confusion mixed with concern. She opened her mouth to speak, her voice soft yet tinged with urgency.
"Dou Dou… He's at the other end of this foggy forest. He's standing on a desert, facing this forest..." Ling Ye's words hung in the air, her brow still furrowed with the weight of her vision. "But there's no one with him."
Her words hung in the air, a puzzling revelation that only added to the enigma surrounding their current situation. The implications were clear – Dou Dou was not alone, and yet there was an eerie absence of any other presence. Ling Ye's own bloodlink with her brother allowed her to perceive his surroundings, but the lack of companionship raised more questions than answers.
Xing Ziao's eyes narrowed in thought, his brow furrowing.
Wen di's grip on Xing Ziao's waist tightened, his gaze sharp as he surveyed their surroundings. "Regardless, if Dou Dou is here, then we're on the right path. We need to keep moving forward."
Ling Ye nodded, "Agreed. Let's proceed cautiously, and be ready for anything."
Xing Ziao's voice broke through the tense silence, his words laced with concern. "Ling Ye, you felt that your brother is alone, but Kuai was with him, in your last vision. they must have gotten separated."
Before Ling Ye could respond, the ground beneath them began to tremble and shake. The unexpected movement caught them off guard, and they clung to their tigers' backs to maintain their balance. The vibrations intensified, causing their tigers to grow restless and uneasy.
Wen di's expression turned grim as he scanned their surroundings.
As the tremors continued, the trio fought to maintain their composure amidst the disorienting motion. Just as quickly as the shaking started, it subsided, leaving them in a tense silence. But before they could fully recover, a sense of relief washed over them as Wen Di pulled out a talisman, a much easier tool for locating Ling Dou, since the latter is already out from whoever captured him.
Utilizing the talisman, Wen Di's focus was unwavering as he honed in on Ling Dou's presence. With practiced precision, he located his younger brother. And then, with a swift and confident movement, Wen Di threw the talisman forward. The talisman emitted a faint glow, weaving a thread of light that hung in the air, leading them on the direction onward.
Without hesitation, the trio's Yins surged forward, following the trail of faint light that Wen Di's talisman had created. The forest around them seemed to shift and twist as they rode, the fog now illuminated by the ethereal glow.