Free Web NovelChapter 34: Chapter 34: Fog Bone Wraith
The final wave did not begin with footsteps.
It began with voices.
They came from outside the lantern barrier, soft and overlapping, drifting through the fog like memories lost in a grave.
"Help me..."
"Do not leave..."
"Come back..."
"Why did you survive..."
The voices did not sound like monsters.
That was what made them dangerous.
Qin Yuheng felt the fog brush against his mind. It tried to pull up old emotions—failure at the Awakening Stone, the whispers of the crowd, his father’s hidden pain, his grandfather’s burden, his siblings’ trust.
The Clear Mind Spirit Powder beneath his tongue dissolved slowly, releasing a cool sensation.
His hidden panel flickered.
[Mental fog intrusion detected.]
[Resistance: High.]
[Primordial Origin Evolution unaffected.]
[Primordial Thunder Emperor Body resisting.]
Qin Yuheng looked at the others.
Qin Yuchen’s eyes were narrowed, but steady.
Qin Lian’s face was pale; her perception made her more sensitive to the voices.
Qin Mo had both hands covering his ears.
"This is worse than bones."
Qin Yuheng handed each of them another portion of Clear Mind Spirit Powder.
"Use it now."
No one refused.
Beyond the walls, shapes appeared.
Not many.
Only one at first.
A tall, thin figure floated above the ground, wrapped in torn gray robes made of fog and bone dust. Its face was hidden beneath a cracked bone mask. Behind it hovered fragments of rib bones and broken weapons, circling slowly like dead satellites.
The panel appeared.
[Fog Bone Wraith]
[Level: 15]
[Type: Spirit-fog boss creature]
[Abilities: Mental intrusion, fog corrosion, bone summoning, lantern extinguish]
[Weakness: Core flame beneath mask, blue lantern fire, thunder, spirit-stabilizing force]
[Danger: Very High]
Level 15.
A spirit-fog boss.
Qin Yuheng’s expression became grave.
Physical attacks would be less effective. Thunder and lantern fire were key. That meant he had to be the main attacker, while Qin Mo used the camp formation and Qin Yuchen and Qin Lian handled summoned creatures.
The Wraith raised one long arm.
The northern lantern flickered.
Then went out.
The barrier trembled.
[Warning]
[Lantern extinguished.]
[Lantern Barrier Stability: 38%]
[Fog intrusion increasing.]
Cold fog spilled through the north side like water.
Qin Mo’s face changed.
"It can extinguish lanterns directly!"
"Can you relight it?"
"Maybe from the central fire, but I need time."
The Wraith raised its arm again.
Qin Yuheng moved before it could target another lantern.
Thunder Shadow Flash.
He crossed the camp and passed through the weakened barrier, entering the fog.
The cold pressure doubled instantly.
The Wraith turned toward him.
Voices surged.
"You are talentless."
"You are hiding."
"They will die because of you."
Qin Yuheng’s eyes remained calm.
"Noise."
Violet-gold thunder wrapped around his sword.
He slashed toward the Wraith’s mask.
The blade passed through fog but struck something solid beneath.
Crack.
A thin line appeared on the bone mask.
The Wraith let out a soundless scream.
Bone fragments shot toward Qin Yuheng from all sides.
He activated Thunder Shadow Flash and retreated diagonally, cutting two fragments apart. One scraped his shoulder, releasing cold pain.
Inside the camp, Qin Yuchen shouted, "Summons!"
The fog pouring through the extinguished lantern formed three Fog Bone Soldiers inside the wall.
Qin Lian intercepted one.
Qin Yuchen took another.
The third rushed toward Qin Mo, who was kneeling near the central fire, trying to reconnect the lantern line.
Qin Mo activated two Defensive Talismans without hesitation.
The soldier struck the barrier.
"Busy!" Qin Mo shouted.
Qin Yuheng could not return immediately.
The Wraith raised both arms, and the fog around it formed a ring of bone spikes.
It wanted to trap him outside.
Qin Yuheng understood the pattern quickly.
If he stayed outside too long, mental intrusion and fog corrosion would accumulate. If he retreated, the Wraith would extinguish more lanterns and summon more soldiers. The only way was to create enough damage in short bursts while the team preserved the camp.
He drew a deep breath.
Origin Thunder Emperor Body Scripture circulated through his marrow.
His bones warmed.
Thunder gathered.
He used Thunder Shadow Flash again, this time in a zigzag path through the bone spike ring. The movement strained his legs, but he reached the Wraith’s side.
His sword struck the mask again.
Crack!
The mask fracture widened.
Beneath it, Qin Yuheng saw a blue-white flame.
Core flame.
The Wraith recoiled.
Inside the camp, Qin Mo finally slammed a formation crystal into the central fire.
"Relight!"
Blue flame surged through the lantern line.
The extinguished northern lantern flickered, then burned again weakly.
[Lantern restored.]
[Lantern Barrier Stability: 44%]
The fog intrusion slowed.
Qin Yuchen and Qin Lian destroyed two summoned soldiers. The third was burned by the restored lantern and finished by Qin Lian’s dagger.
The Wraith seemed angered.
It floated higher, and the fog outside the camp condensed into a spiral.
The pale-light camp guard suddenly moved.
Its hollow voice echoed.
"Defenders, the lantern heart must not fall."
The mission panel flashed.
[Boss Skill detected: Fog Burial.]
[If uninterrupted, Camp Integrity and Lantern Barrier will suffer severe damage.]
Qin Mo looked up in horror.
"I cannot stop that from inside!"
Qin Yuheng stared at the Wraith.
The boss was gathering power.
This was the decisive moment.
He still had the A Grade Spatial Retreat Talisman. If they failed, he could escape with the team. But using it would likely abandon the defense mission.
He did not want to use it.
Not yet.
He looked at the central fire.
"Qin Mo! Can the lantern fire be focused on me?"
Qin Mo’s eyes widened.
"What?"
"Can you temporarily channel lantern fire into my sword?"
"That is insane."
"Can you?"
Qin Mo gritted his teeth and looked at the formation lines.
"Maybe for one strike. It may burn your meridians."
"I can withstand it."
"You always say things like that!"
"Qin Mo!"
Qin Mo slammed both hands onto the central fire formation.
"Fine! Stand between the north lantern and the central flame!"
Qin Yuheng moved into position.
Qin Yuchen immediately understood.
He and Qin Lian held the inner camp, preventing new summons from interfering.
Qin Mo activated the formation.
Blue lantern fire gathered from the restored north lantern, flowed through the central flame, and rushed toward Qin Yuheng’s sword.
The moment the fire entered the blade, Qin Yuheng felt freezing heat.
It was not normal flame.
It burned fog, spirits, and bone energy.
His thunder energy reacted violently with it.
Pain shot through his arm.
The Origin Thunder Emperor Body Scripture stabilized his marrow.
The Primordial Thunder Emperor Body roared silently.
Qin Yuheng raised the sword.
The Wraith’s Fog Burial descended.
A massive wave of gray fog and bone dust crashed toward the camp.
Qin Yuheng used Thunder Shadow Flash one final time. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
Violet-gold thunder and blue lantern fire merged along the blade.
He appeared before the Wraith like a shadow of lightning.
His sword pierced through the cracked mask and into the core flame.
For a breath, the world became silent.
Then thunder and blue fire exploded.
The Fog Burial wave collapsed.
The Wraith screamed.
Its body twisted, fog tearing apart, bone fragments falling like rain.
Qin Yuheng drove the blade deeper.
"Break."
The core flame shattered.
The Fog Bone Wraith dissolved into blue-white sparks.
A Tower message appeared.
[Fog Bone Wraith defeated.]
[Final Wave repelled.]
[Bone Lantern Camp defended successfully.]
[Hidden Defense Mission completed.]
[Evaluation greatly increased.]
Qin Yuheng landed inside the camp, one knee touching the ground.
His right arm trembled violently.
Qin Yuchen rushed toward him.
"Brother!"
"I am fine," Qin Yuheng said, though his voice was slightly hoarse.
Qin Mo staggered over, face pale.
"You are not fine. Your definition of fine is terrible."
Qin Lian looked at the fog outside.
"It is retreating."
The lanterns brightened one by one.
The central fire rose higher.
The pale-light guard stood before them and bowed.
"Bone Lantern Camp remembers its defenders."
Dawn slowly broke over Foggy Bone Forest.
The mission panel appeared.
[Main Mission Completed.]
[Optional Defense Mission Completed.]
[All team members survived.]
[Calculating final evaluation...]
Qin Yuheng looked at the fading fog.
His arm still hurt.
His body was exhausted.
But his eyes were bright.
Another high evaluation was coming.
Another reward.
Another evolution.
