The tension within the group was almost as thick as the dense mist clinging to the trees. Every step forward in the Endless Forest felt heavier, the silence stretching taut as the team's cautious glances grew bolder, lingering just a bit too long on Li Wei.
Zhou Wei and Li Jun trailed a few paces behind, keeping close to Mei Chen as though forming an unspoken alliance. Their discomfort was palpable, yet none of them dared to voice it. Li Wei knew they were still unsettled, wrestling with the images burned into their minds—of him, standing over the bodies of the coalition members, a cold fire in his eyes, his hands unarmed yet smeared with evidence of his skill and ruthlessness.
The forest around them was alive with strange sounds: leaves rustling, unseen creatures scuttling about, and occasionally, the distant call of a beast. The eerie quiet made every crackling twig sound louder, each unfamiliar noise amplifying the tension.
