Apocalypse: I Can See the HP Bar, Killing Monsters Drops Loot

If Wang Tao had not undergone his third awakening, he guessed he'd probably be about the same as Jiang Shixue, but now after acquiring the Heart of Darkness... it was no longer a question of visibility, but rather, he found that he seemed to be able to control the dark fog!

Could this be the Dark Manipulation Ability?

Wang Tao closed his eyes, silently felt the dark environment he was in, and then with a thought, the dark fog immediately dispersed in all directions as if an invisible hand was stirring in the air.

"Eh?"

Jiang Shixue suddenly let out a light exclamation because she realized her vision suddenly extended further. Those "black veils" seemed to be receding into the distance!

The others couldn't feel the dark fog, but they could suddenly see that the firefly-like streetlights along the road were becoming brighter and soon illuminated the path as though it were daytime.

"We can see the road now!"

"So this is what it looks like beneath the rift, it looks like it's all stone..."

The students were curious as they looked out the window, unclear on what was happening.

"What's going on!"

"Stop the car!"

But Cheng Yiyi was startled and immediately used the walkie-talkie to halt the vehicles.

Although their field of vision had expanded many times over, something abnormal is a sign of trouble; they hadn't encountered this situation before. Could something unexpected be happening in the cave?

"Don't worry, keep going," Wang Tao said to her.

"...You did this?"

Cheng Yiyi looked shocked.

"Just a little trick," Wang Tao shook his head.

In his eyes, it was indeed just a small trick; the dark fog was transient. Although he had dispersed the dark fog for now, it probably wouldn't take long for it to drift back...

...

Cheng Yiyi opened her mouth but then immediately instructed the convoy to move forward and then turned to look at Wang Tao.

"How did you do it?"

Wang Tao didn't keep it a secret and explained simply:

"These dark fogs are of the Dark Series, and if there are Dark Element Awakeners around, they should be able to control them."

"Dark Element Awakeners..."

Cheng Yiyi was shocked again. Not shocked that a Dark Element Awakener could control the dark fog, but shocked that Wang Tao was actually a Dark Element Awakener. Wasn't Wang Tao not from the Dark Series? Had he awakened again?

Although perplexed, Cheng Yiyi didn't inquire further. She knew the priorities and immediately informed everyone about the fact that a Dark Element Awakener was present via the radio.

Radio waves couldn't be transmitted out of the dark fog, but they could be transmitted within it. Although the distance was greatly weakened, they had also built a base underneath the rift. Cheng Yiyi was passing the message to that base.

However, because Wang Tao had cleared the nearby dark fog, she hadn't broadcast the message for long when she saw the base beneath the rift.

The underground base beneath the rift was much larger than the one above ground. It provided supplies and housed numerous tanks, cannons, armored vehicles, and other heavy armaments for defense. After all, the visibility here was too low - taking the offensive could result in friendly fire.

"Wang Xiaozhang!"

Wang Tao hadn't even got out of the car when several people in charge came over. They already knew that the increased visibility around the area was related to the Starfire Society, but they weren't clear it was Wang Tao. Cheng Yiyi hadn't disclosed that Wang Tao was a Dark Element Awakener; maybe it was his trump card. Wang Tao would certainly say so himself if he wanted to, and there was no need for her to speak out.

"Hello everyone! Good to see Commander Shang again."

Wang Tao got out of the car and greeted everyone with a smile.

The person in charge of the underground base today was Shang Heng, the vice-commander of the Fourth Legion. Cheng Yiyi said it was their turn to guard.

The underground base had also installed many high-powered lighting devices; in the presence of the dark fog, these devices could only illuminate a few meters, so a high-powered streetlight was installed every few meters. But now, the place was so brightly lit it almost seemed unreal, and it was the first time they had such a clear view of the surrounding rock walls and cliffs that they were unaccustomed to it...

"If we could get rid of all the dark fog here, wouldn't we be able to explore freely?"

Shang Heng said, looking at Wang Tao tentatively.

"It's impossible, unless there are many Dark Element Awakeners..."

Wang Tao shook his head, mentioning that the removal of the dark fog was only temporary.

"It's only temporary..."

The group felt a wave of disappointment upon hearing this.

However, Wang Tao continued,

"But among our students, some might have the potential to awaken the Dark Series. If they genuinely have and can awaken it, then we could lend their skills to you later."

Wang Tao had brought two hundred students, among whom two had Dark Series Hidden Attributes. If there was a chance for them to awaken later, Wang Tao planned to let them awaken first. After all, visibility was very important in this kind of environment.

"Ah? Thank you so much!"

Shang Heng felt instantly happy.

He had seen Wang Tao's scholarly knowledge; if Wang Tao said there might be Dark Element Awakeners appearing, then the probability was quite high.

"It's not certain yet, let's talk if other Dark Element Awakeners actually appear."

Wang Tao shook his head and then said,

"Which areas haven't been explored? Let's go straight there."

Shang Heng immediately pulled out a map.

Calling it a map was generous—it was just a drawing of a base location surrounded by a few arrows.

"These arrows indicate where people have gone, the rest is unexplored. You can choose any of them. However, you might still encounter our people in other locations. Make sure to confirm identities in advance, considering the low visibility... don't end up fighting against your own."

"Okay!"

After taking the map from Shang Heng, Wang Tao turned to Cheng Yiyi.

"Besides exploring the cave, another important task for our Six Major Legions is to draw a real map of the cave. Our previous task is yet to be completed, so we can't join you this time. We're heading this direction, and you..."

Cheng Yiyi wanted to ask Wang Tao if that would be alright, since he was taking over two hundred students. But thinking of Wang Tao's abilities and recalling that there were many Awakener teachers with Wang Tao, she felt that even with the burden of extra people, they probably wouldn't have any issues. Not to mention these students were carefully selected and were not exactly a burden.

"Mm, let's go here then."

Wang Tao picked a spot almost at random and then directly ordered the students to disembark.

"Holy shit! What is that!"

However, when they saw a giant black snake descending from one of the trucks, all the students were startled.

Shang Heng and his men became instantly tense.

"Don't worry, this is my little pet, also our school's 'Guardian Beast'..."

Wang Tao beckoned, and Blacky immediately crawled over to him.

Blacky thrived in such dark conditions, and staying at home was a waste; so Wang Tao had brought it along.

"Guardian Beast..."

Both Shang Heng's soldiers and the students were puzzled.

Wang Tao didn't bother explaining any further and just waved his hand. Blacky sped off into the dark ahead.

"Follow up!"

"Yes!"

...

Dispelling the black mist wasn't very draining, and Wang Tao casually cleared it as they progressed. As they ventured deeper, the mist became denser and moved faster; Wang Tao's efforts were only temporary before the mist returned.

Creating a path devoid of black mist clearly wasn't feasible. But that wasn't a big problem, as long as they could see their surroundings.

At that moment, Blacky sent a message to Wang Tao, reporting the discovery of three Mutated Plants ahead.

"We've finally encountered some!"

Wang Tao instructed everyone to be alert and quickly joined Blacky's side. He immediately spotted three enormous, black plants that resembled Venus flytraps, quietly affixed to the cave wall, motionless.

[HP: 200000/200000]

[Mana: 200000/200000]

[Level: Level 4, Lord]

[Awakening: Paralysis Trap]

"All Level 4 Lords, we're in luck..."

Wang Tao planned to let Ding Yuqin and the others have the opportunity, but decided he needed to test his strength... so his eyes emitted a red glow.

Sizz—

Two High-Temperature Rays instantly pierced through the three giant flytraps.

[-200000]

[-200000]

[-200000]

"..."