Shen Cong wanted to teach the Four-Legged Dragon to use the third eye — the new Activity perception mode he'd discovered. Her intelligence made it impossible. She couldn't manage even the basic task of suppressing her pressure aura at will. The fog's subtle frequency was orders of magnitude beyond her.

He settled for tying a rope around her so she couldn't wander off.

With her secured, he closed his eyes and walked toward the 007 Battalion's position.

He was calling this new perceptual state the Third Eye.

The world seen through it had no color — only outline and shape, rendered in the cold gray-white of an overcast sky, like the indifferent gaze of heaven watching the living world below. Every detail resolved with perfect clarity. A pebble on the road surface was as readable as a boulder.

Twenty meters. Two paces. He found Dong Xuri in the middle of the disoriented column without difficulty.

"Commander Dong."

"Camp Hu?" Dong Xuri startled. He was a jin person, but his Talent was low — around 0.6H — and his perceptual range was correspondingly limited. In this fog he was effectively blind.

"Get your people out of Bayiji Town. This environment isn't compatible with your unit."

"Agreed — we can't push further. Getting out is the problem. Our direction sense keeps failing."

"I'll lead you."

With Shen Cong holding the rope anchor, the 007 Battalion was back outside the fog's affected zone within minutes. Then he turned and walked back into the white.

For anyone else, the fog was a landscape of hazards without end. With the Third Eye open, it posed no significant threat. He moved through it with the ease of someone walking in clear daylight.

He intended to study this fog properly.

A substance that could accelerate the Lv1 — Pure Gold Era's evolution process was not something to walk past. He breathed the fog in deliberately. The deep aching numbness in his muscles intensified noticeably with each breath — a clear, measurable response.

For someone with Shen Cong's willpower, this level of discomfort, once adapted to, didn't materially…