It’s a strange invasion, is it okay for me to fight back?

Chapter 648 Weakness
"Wh-what?" Pei Xianjue was completely confused.

Huangfu Miaomiao didn't explain immediately; she quickly opened her virtual screen to check her personal panel.

A new Weakness icon has appeared in the status bar, currently indicating Weakness +1.

"It's okay, it's okay, I still have the White Priest..." Huangfu Miaomiao muttered to herself, a faint light surging in her palm, gradually gathering into a white totem. Then she slapped the totem onto her left arm.

"Come on, I'll cast a protective totem for you. It can remove negative effects." Huangfu Miaomiao created another white totem and slammed it into Pei Xianjue's chest.

守护效果进入倒计时，1:59，1:58，1:57……

Pei Xianjue tried to sense it carefully, but didn't feel anything.

“I don’t feel anything…” Pei Xianjue said hesitantly, “including what you just said about feeling weak, I don’t feel anything either.”

She turned to the team members behind her in the car and asked, "Can you feel anything?"

Everyone said no.

Pei Xianjue thought for a moment and said, "Keep driving in, everyone stay alert."

The fog thickened, and the temperature gradually dropped. Although it wasn't freezing cold, it was still quite chilly.

The team members are all physically strong and have not been affected for the time being.

The driver stopped the car, turned to Pei Xianjue, and said, "Sir, the fog is too thick; it's not suitable to continue driving."

Huangfu Miaomiao recognized this person; she had met her before when she went to Lorias. Her name was Wang something-mei.

Now that I've changed bodies, it's difficult for me to recognize the other person.

Pei Xianjue nodded and said, "All of you, listen to my command. Disembark and proceed on foot. Stay alert at all times. Remember, our purpose is to investigate the characteristics of the monsters in the contaminated area in order to formulate a battle plan. So, for now, do not easily engage in conflict with the monsters here."

The car doors opened, and everyone got off one after another.

The chill felt when you were in direct contact with the fog was more pronounced than when you were inside the car.

Huangfu Miaomiao glanced around and noticed that several people had "Weakness +3" or "Weakness +4" indicators above their heads.

She didn't rush to remove the negative effects from these people, wanting to save as much energy as possible for herself and Pei Xianjue.

"Miaomiao, have you found anything?" Pei Xianjue asked in a low voice.

“Not yet…” Huangfu Miaomiao strained to open her eyes, “but I did see a pollutant, though it looked quite ordinary.”

“Let’s go take a look,” Pei Xianjue said.

Huangfu Miaomiao pointed in a direction, and the team members immediately went forward to investigate. Pei Xianjue and Huangfu Miaomiao walked in the middle of the group, with people protecting them from the front and back.

After walking for more than a hundred meters, the group stopped and discovered a deformed wild deer in the misty fog. Judging from its appearance, it should be a native wild animal of the Mogu Kingdom, which had been mutated due to genetic pollution.

At this moment, the wild deer lay motionless in the grass. Even after discovering the reconnaissance team, it showed no intention of fleeing. It simply opened its bloodshot eyes and breathed heavily through its nostrils.

Huangfu Miaomiao leaned forward and said, "This pollutant has also been affected by the weakness debuff, which is +45. It probably doesn't have any strength left, so it didn't run away when it saw us."

“No wonder we’ve encountered so few pollutants along the way.” Pei Xianjue looked around. “It seems this fog really does originate from the new maze. I wonder if any of the pollutants in this maze have escaped.”

A faint sound came from behind.

Pei Xianjue looked over upon hearing the sound and saw a team member's palm emitting golden light.

"What are you doing? Put the light away quickly, it'll attract monsters," someone in the group reminded them.

The other person looked slightly embarrassed, awkwardly lowered their hand, and explained, "Sorry, I was feeling a little unwell just now, I was shivering." "Because your weakness value has increased by 13," Huangfu Miaomiao said, leaning closer. "However, your move just now seems to be able to counteract the negative effects here, now it shows weakness +7, which is less than before."

One team member hurriedly asked, "How much weakness do I have? I also feel a bit cold, but I can still bear it."

“Your weakness is increased by 8,” Huangfu Miaomiao replied.

The other team members also asked questions, which Huangfu Miaomiao answered one by one.

The degree of weakness varies from person to person and is probably related to individual tolerance. When the weakness value is below 5, there are no obvious abnormalities in the body. When it exceeds 5, one will feel cold and gradually lose strength in the hands and feet.

As they discussed this, the white totem on Pei Xianjue's body disappeared, and the "Weakness +1" status appeared above his head once again.

“I’ll add another totem for you,” Huangfu Miaomiao said. “It seems that as long as you’re in this fog, your weakness value will keep increasing.”

Pei Xianjue pondered for a moment, then turned to the teammate who had just released the light and said, "Use your skill again. Everyone, try to get closer to him."

The teammate nodded upon hearing this, raised his hand slightly, and released his skill—his card was the Exorcist Knight, which possessed holy light magic to resist darkness and could eliminate most negative effects.

The golden light grew brighter and brighter, gradually enveloping all the team members.

Everyone felt the warmth of the sun.

At the same time, the surrounding fog was also dispersed, and visibility was greatly improved.

Seeing this, Pei Xianjue understood.

She asked the team member, "How long can you last?"

The team member replied carefully, "If it were just me, I should be able to last for two hours. But now that the light is shining on everyone, the energy consumption is faster. I estimate... about twenty minutes."

Pei Xianjue thought to herself: In that case, the number of people entering the maze must be reconsidered; too many people would be a burden.

Just as I was pondering this, a dark shadow suddenly swept past overhead!

"alert!!!"

Everyone was startled and quickly surrounded Pei Xianjue and Huangfu Miaomiao, while the team members using Holy Light spell released the light to its maximum!
"Hiss!" The monster, illuminated by the bright light, roared angrily at the group!

It was a monster that looked like a tattered rag, with no visible eyes, ears, or other organs. It wrapped the wild deer on the ground tightly like a rag and frantically absorbed its energy!

The wild deer was extremely weak and unable to struggle.

Huangfu Miaomiao could see the name above the monster's head and immediately said, "This is a Soul Eater. Just from the name, it sounds like it's a necromancer. It has a fear of light!"

Pei Xianjue frowned. "Move aside, let me try."

The team members stepped back a few paces.

“If it’s afraid of light, it should also be afraid of fire.” Pei Xianjue drew the curved sword from his waist, and a burst of blazing flame shot out from his palm and extended to the blade.

She swung her sword sharply towards the monster!
Flames flew onto the monster like a shower of flowers!

The Soul Eater let out a piercing shriek, suddenly released the wild deer, and flew into the air!

Its tattered body writhed and trembled, revealing blood-stained hooks beneath. It seemed to be reluctant to part with its prey, yet fearful of the holy light and flames. Finally, it let out a mournful howl in despair and flew into the depths of the fog.

Pei Xianjue breathed a slight sigh of relief upon seeing the monster leave, sheathed his weapon, and turned to everyone, saying, "Back in the quarantine area, after revising the team configuration, we will officially begin our raid on the maze!"

"Yes!" the team members responded in unison.

As we enter the final stages, I welcome your suggestions. Please leave a comment if any plot points are unclear or any foreshadowing is missed, and I will do my best to improve them and avoid a disappointing ending.