Chen Chong knew that he didn't have the conditions to confront Johnson head-on. In just a few minutes, the other guards would arrive, and staying here would only lead to a dead end. The only chance for survival was the extremely dangerous mist area behind him.
He was well aware that a place deemed extremely dangerous by a base with armed forces couldn't be a good place. Moreover, the intense attraction he had felt earlier confirmed the strangeness of the mist area. But now, like a drowning man grasping at a straw, he couldn't afford to think about it too much.
"You can't escape!"
Seeing Chen Chong decisively rushing towards the mist area, Johnson's face changed and he angrily chased after him, pulling out his large-caliber ** gun.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The crisp sound of gunshots echoed in the valley, pounding in everyone's hearts. However, Johnson's aim while running was terrible, and coupled with Chen Chong's speed like an arrow leaving the bow, not a single shot hit its target.
Then, Lin Kun and the other prisoners who were anxiously waiting on the cliff saw Chen Chong and Johnson disappear into the mist within a blink of an eye, without a trace.
In that instant, the prisoners who had stopped climbing stared dumbfoundedly at the edge of the mist, feeling as if their hearts had been blocked.
"What are you all doing!"
An angry roar thundered above them. Lin Kun's eyes turned red, and he yelled, "The other guards will be here soon. Chen Chong sacrificed himself to buy us time with his life. Do you want his blood to be wasted in vain!?"
Chen Chong, severely injured, would undoubtedly meet a tragic end by rushing into the extremely dangerous mist area. In Lin Kun's eyes, Chen Chong's choice to jump off the cliff and lead Johnson away was a realization that as the primary target of all the hatred, he could no longer escape. He ultimately chose to sacrifice himself, giving the climbing prisoners a greater chance of survival. In this dark world where everything had already collapsed and people fought for a morsel of food with their lives, Chen Chong's selfless act deeply shook his hardened heart.
"I must survive!"
"We can't let 416's sacrifice be in vain!"
The eyes of the prisoners who were still climbing turned red, clenching their teeth and veins popping out, and they resumed their desperate climb.
This was indeed a beautiful misunderstanding. In reality, Chen Chong was not a selfless hero willing to sacrifice himself. Even if sacrificing all the prisoners to ensure his own escape was necessary, he might have done it. The reason why he wanted to break out with these prisoners was also to divert the guards' pursuit and increase their chances of successfully escaping the dangerous wilderness. However, the plan couldn't keep up with the changes, and various unexpected events created this seemingly tragic and heroic situation, which even Chen Chong himself hadn't anticipated.
…
At this moment, within the mist.
Behind a protruding rock, Chen Chong's chest was heaving rapidly. While struggling to control his breathing, he listened intently to any movement around him.
Now, he was surrounded by pure white mist, with extremely low visibility. Beyond a distance of two to three meters, nothing could be seen except for the gloomy white fog. Even the dim daylight couldn't penetrate through, making it impossible to distinguish the directions of north, south, east, and west.
Just moments after rushing into the mist, Chen Chong had already lost his sense of direction. This extremely eerie mist not only blocked out external light and sound, but it seemed to absorb and isolate them as well. The thunderous sound of rushing water outside the mist couldn't be heard at all!
"Chen Chong-"
"Poor little thing, where are you hiding? This place is dangerous. Do you want to be eaten alive by the radiation creatures hidden inside?"
"When the radiation creatures eat people, they like to start with their limbs. The person being eaten doesn't die immediately but watches as their hands and feet are slowly devoured. Do you want that to happen to you?"
"Do you think I'll spare you just because you've escaped here? Come out, come out!"
Faint roars from Johnson echoed through the mist, making it difficult to determine the exact direction of the sound.
"This is troublesome."
Knowing that Johnson was not far behind, Chen Chong moved his left arm, still in excruciating pain, and his expression grew heavy.
He was well aware that Johnson's relentless pursuit was because of the severe consequences of Katherine being injured by him. It was so serious that even at the risk of personal danger, Johnson had to catch him. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to explain himself to Derith. In a way, Johnson was just like him, forced to enter this strange mist area.
The situation within this mist was incredibly bizarre. Not only did it isolate external light and sound, but its visibility was extremely low. It was impossible to distinguish directions. What made Chen Chong even more cautious, apart from Johnson's roaming and roaring, were the unknown terrors and dangers hidden within the mist. There was an abundance of murderous intent lurking everywhere!
"That strange sense of attraction is even stronger."
With a serious expression, Chen Chong felt that since entering the mist, the strange sensation of something attracting and ** him had become even stronger. This feeling made him deeply vigilant.
"I can't wait any longer!"
The unknown was always more dangerous, even lethal. For a moment, Chen Chong's mind raced, and after discerning the approximate direction of Johnson's roar, he immediately took action.
Having determined the general direction of Johnson's voice a moment ago, Chen Chong's figure stayed low, like an agile cheetah, swiftly maneuvering in the vast maze of dense fog along a straight line opposite to his previous route. In his view, there was no good way to traverse this mist area, which covered an unknown area. All he could do was keep moving forward, blocking enemies as they arrive and using whatever cover was available.
Whoosh.
Like a sharp arrow piercing through the dense fog, Chen Chong, despite his heavily injured left arm, was hardly affected in his movements. With astonishing speed surpassing that of a former sprint champion from his past life, he maintained a straight sprint for just a minute, covering at least half a kilometer.
"Something seems off."
In the dense fog, Chen Chong stopped, panting slightly, and observed his surroundings while listening attentively. The gloomy and oppressive mist floated quietly, with silence pervading the area, almost devoid of any sound.
"I've at least advanced 500 meters in a straight line, but the range of this mist area is… wait a minute!"
The next moment, Chen Chong's gaze instantly locked onto a rock about two meters away from him, sensing something familiar about it.
Chen Chong quickly approached, scanning with his eyes, and his face suddenly changed, as if he had fallen into an icy cave!
There were traces of blood on the rock, remnants of when he had hidden there earlier.
In other words, after sprinting in a straight line at high speed for a minute, covering over 500 meters, he had actually returned to the starting point again!
"Is this a ghost wall?"
Chen Chong's heart raced, feeling the fog around him fluctuate ever so slightly, as if it was emitting a mysterious smile.