Free Web NovelChapter 31: Chapter 31: The Choice of Bone Lantern Camp
Bone Lantern Camp did not feel safe.
That was Qin Yuheng’s first thought after stepping through the gate.
From the outside, the camp looked like a refuge in the fog. A circle of blue lanterns hung from bone-white poles, forming a barrier that pushed the gray mist away. Inside the walls were several wooden cabins, a central fire pit burning with pale blue flame, and a watchtower made from old black timber and reinforced bone stakes.
But the moment Qin Yuheng entered, he understood that this was not a place of rest.
It was a battlefield waiting for night.
The camp was too quiet. The cabins had no real inhabitants. The pale-light guard who had opened the gate stood motionless after delivering the optional mission, like a memory left behind by the Tower. Around the walls, old claw marks covered the wood. Some were shallow. Some had cut nearly halfway through the defensive beams.
Qin Mo stared at the mission panel with open dislike.
[Optional Continuation Mission]
The Bone Lantern Camp will be attacked when the fog bell rings at midnight.
Choice 1: End Floor 2 trial after entering camp.
Choice 2: Stay and defend Bone Lantern Camp.
Warning: Defense mission difficulty is higher.
Rewards and evaluation may increase.]
He turned slowly toward Qin Yuheng.
"Cousin."
"Yes?"
"We reached the camp. The main mission is complete. We rescued people, killed bone monsters, collected flowers, avoided fog corrosion, and arrived early. This is already an excellent result."
Qin Yuheng looked at the walls.
"That is true."
Qin Mo’s expression relaxed slightly.
Qin Yuheng continued, "But not the best result."
Qin Mo closed his eyes.
"I hate that sentence."
Qin Yuchen studied the camp layout. "The defense mission is likely the true path to S-rank or higher."
Qin Lian looked toward the lanterns. "The fog outside is reacting to the camp. More enemies may gather after sunset."
The two rescued students they had brought from the forest stood behind them, still pale. One of them supported the unconscious student whose fog corrosion had been suppressed by Qin Mo’s formation and Clear Mind Spirit Powder.
The conscious student swallowed nervously.
"You are considering staying?"
Qin Yuheng turned to him. "You should end your trial."
The student stiffened.
Qin Yuheng’s tone was calm, not insulting.
"Your teammate suffered deep fog corrosion. Even if he stabilizes now, the midnight attack will worsen his condition. You have already reached Bone Lantern Camp. Your evaluation will be decent. Do not risk your lives for a mission you cannot contribute to."
The student opened his mouth, then lowered his head.
"I understand."
The pale-light camp guard raised its hand.
A soft blue circle appeared near the central fire pit.
[Trial Completion Exit]
[Students who choose to end Floor 2 trial may leave through the camp flame.]
The two students carried their injured teammate toward the flame. Before leaving, one of them looked back at Qin Yuheng.
"Thank you. If you had not saved us, we would have died in the bone ring."
Qin Yuheng nodded.
"Recover well."
Blue flame rose, and the three students vanished.
Qin Mo watched them disappear with envy.
"They made the correct choice."
Qin Yuheng looked at him.
"You can also leave."
Qin Mo froze.
Qin Yuchen and Qin Lian looked at Qin Yuheng as well.
Qin Yuheng’s expression remained serious.
"I mean it. The optional defense mission will be dangerous. No one is forced to stay. The main mission is completed. Anyone who chooses to end the trial now will not be blamed."
The camp became quiet.
Qin Mo looked at the blue flame.
For once, he did not joke immediately.
He was lazy, cautious, and deeply allergic to unnecessary suffering, but he was not cowardly. During the Newcomer Trial and Floor 1, he had exhausted himself repeatedly to keep the team alive. His complaints were real, but so was his loyalty.
After a long moment, Qin Mo sighed.
"If I leave now, who will stop you from doing something even more dangerous?"
Qin Yuheng smiled faintly.
"No one."
"That sounds terrible." Qin Mo rubbed his forehead. "Fine. I stay. But after this, I want three days without caves, wolves, skeletons, fog, hidden missions, optional missions, or anything with the word guardian."
Qin Lian said quietly, "That seems unlikely."
"Do not destroy my hope."
Qin Yuchen looked at Qin Yuheng.
"I stay."
Qin Lian nodded.
"I stay as well."
Qin Yuheng looked at the three of them.
Warmth moved through his chest, but he did not show too much emotion.
"Then we defend Bone Lantern Camp."
The moment he said those words, the mission panel changed.
[Optional Continuation Mission accepted.]
[Mission: Defend Bone Lantern Camp until dawn.]
[Current Camp Integrity: 62%]
[Lantern Barrier Stability: 71%]
[Remaining Preparation Time: 5 hours 42 minutes]
[Warning: Fog creatures will attack in waves after midnight.]
Qin Mo stared at the new panel.
"Waves. It actually says waves."
Qin Yuheng looked around.
"We have preparation time. That is an advantage."
He immediately began assigning tasks.
"Qin Lian, scout the inside perimeter first. Look for weak walls, hidden entrances, old traps, and anything connected to the lanterns. Do not leave the lantern barrier alone."
"Yes."
"Qin Yuchen, inspect the cabins and gather usable materials. Wood, rope, oil, broken weapons, anything that can reinforce a wall or make a barricade."
"Understood."
"Qin Mo, central formation."
Qin Mo was already walking toward the nearest lantern. "The lanterns are the key. If they fail, the camp becomes a coffin."
Qin Yuheng nodded.
"I will inspect the camp guard and the fire pit."
The pale-light guard stood beside the central fire, unmoving. It had the shape of an old soldier wearing broken armor, but its body was translucent. Qin Yuheng approached slowly.
The guard’s hollow eyes lit up.
"Climber. You have chosen defense."
"What is Bone Lantern Camp?" Qin Yuheng asked.
"A shelter built by those who lost their way in the fog."
"Who attacks at midnight?"
"The forgotten bones."
"Can the lanterns be repaired?"
The guard raised one hand toward the pale blue flames.
"Bone Fog Flowers feed the lanterns. Fog Bone Shards sharpen the barrier. Camp defenders decide survival."
Qin Yuheng’s eyes moved.
Bone Fog Flowers and Fog Bone Shards.
They had collected some.
"How many are needed?"
The guard did not answer directly.
Instead, a new panel appeared.
[Camp Reinforcement Options] ƒгeewebnovёl.com
1. Offer Bone Fog Flower x3:
Increase Lantern Barrier Stability by 10%.
2. Offer Fog Bone Shard x5:
Increase Lantern Barrier damage against fog creatures.
3. Offer Beast Core or Bone Core:
Strengthen central fire for limited duration.
4. Repair physical walls:
Increase Camp Integrity based on material and effort.
Qin Yuheng understood.
Their earlier side mission resources were not only for completion.
They were preparation materials.
They had collected six Bone Fog Flowers so far and more than ten Fog Bone Shards from defeated creatures. Not enough for maximum reinforcement, but enough to improve survival.
He did not offer everything immediately.
First, he needed to know the camp’s weak points.
Half an hour later, the team gathered at the central fire.
Qin Lian reported first.
"East wall has two broken sections. Fog gathers heavily outside the northern lantern line. I found claw marks beneath the south wall, possibly burrowing enemies."
Qin Yuchen placed gathered materials on the ground.
"Three usable oil jars, old rope, broken spear shafts, spare planks, two rusted blades, and a damaged shield."
Qin Mo pointed at the lantern circle.
"The lanterns form a barrier, but three lanterns are unstable. If one falls, the fog may enter from that direction. The central fire connects to all of them. If we feed the fire with cores, it can pulse and weaken enemies briefly."
Qin Yuheng nodded.
"Then priority one: stabilize lanterns. Priority two: repair east wall and south ground. Priority three: prepare kill zones."
Qin Mo looked up.
"Kill zones?"
Qin Yuheng pointed toward the eastern broken section.
"We do not need to defend every point equally. We make some entrances look weaker, guide enemies there, and prepare traps."
Qin Yuchen’s eyes sharpened.
"Like the Wolf King’s den."
"Yes."
Qin Lian said, "The fog creatures may not be intelligent enough to avoid obvious openings."
"Some will be," Qin Yuheng said. "That is why we prepare multiple layers."
They began.
Qin Yuheng offered three Bone Fog Flowers to stabilize the lantern barrier.
[Bone Fog Flower x3 offered.]
[Lantern Barrier Stability increased.]
[Lantern Barrier Stability: 81%]
Then he offered five Fog Bone Shards.
[Fog Bone Shard x5 offered.]
[Lantern Barrier damage against fog creatures increased slightly.]
The blue lantern flames brightened.
Qin Mo used formation lines to connect the unstable lanterns more firmly. Qin Yuchen and Qin Lian repaired the east wall with planks and spear shafts, leaving a deliberate narrow gap as a controlled entry point. Qin Yuheng reinforced the south ground with sharpened broken stakes and simple alarm lines.
As the preparation continued, Qin Yuheng checked his inventory.
He still had evolved medicines, Defensive Talismans, Mana Recovery Pills, and the A Grade Spatial Retreat Talisman.
He also had the S Grade Talent Fruit, powerful materials, and other hidden rewards—but those were not for this moment.
For this defense, the key was resource control.
He selected several ordinary D Grade Defensive Talismans and gave each person more.
Then he took out one D Grade Beast Core and enhanced it quietly behind the central cabin.
[D Grade Beast Core]
↓
[B Grade Condensed Beast Core]
He returned to the fire pit and offered it.
The central fire flared.
[B Grade Condensed Beast Core offered.]
[Central Fire strengthened.]
[Available Camp Skill unlocked: Blue Flame Pulse x1]
[Effect: Releases a wave of lantern fire, weakening fog creatures within camp perimeter.]
Qin Yuheng’s eyes brightened slightly.
A camp-wide skill.
Useful at a critical moment.
He told the others.
Qin Mo finally looked less miserable.
"One big emergency button. Good."
Night deepened.
The fog outside the lantern barrier thickened into a gray wall.
The blue lanterns flickered.
A distant bell rang once.
Then a second time.
Then a third.
The pale-light guard raised its rusted spear.
"Midnight comes."
The mission panel appeared.
[Defense Mission Beginning.]
[First Wave approaching.]
[Protect Bone Lantern Camp until dawn.]
Beyond the walls, bones began to move in the fog.
