As the sun gradually descended from the sky, both Xu Feng and Zhao Kai's vision became limited.
The soft hues of twilight faded, and the shadows lengthened, casting an eerie darkness over the landscape. The once-clear path was now a maze of obscured obstacles and shifting silhouettes.
Xu Feng's keen senses allowed him to adapt quickly to the dim light, his eyes scanning the terrain with ease.
The faint rustle of leaves and the distant calls of nocturnal creatures served as his guide. He moved with quiet confidence, his footsteps barely making a sound as he navigated the rocky path.
In contrast, Zhao Kai struggled with the encroaching darkness. His breaths came in quick, shallow puffs as he tried to keep pace with Xu Feng.
Each step felt precarious, his feet occasionally slipping on loose gravel or catching on hidden roots.
The night sounds, once a comforting background, now felt like a disorienting cacophony. It was the same spooky and eerie feeling Zhao Kai felt when they were inside the eerie fog previously.
"Feng, it's getting difficult to even see the path," Zhao Kai commented, nearly stumbling over some rocks. His voice held a note of frustration and anxiety.
Xu Feng glanced back, his eyes briefly meeting Zhao Kai's in the dim light.
"Control your breathing and stop imagining things in your head. The more fictional or dangerous thing you're thinking, the more anxiety you will feel." He warned softly.
Despite the gloomy atmosphere he believed they were in, the fact was, the atmosphere and environment remained unchanged.
The only thing that changed was Zhao Kai's mood and emotion.
Given his unfamiliarity with nighttime and the terrain, he imagined the worst in every second, thus resulting in his rigid movement.
As long as he could compose himself and remain calm, then he would easily return to his normal state.
"Close your eyes and just imagine that it was daytime. You are now surrounded by bright lights and the sound you're hearing is oddly familiar to the time when you were training. Do you still think there is any danger left?" Xu Feng suggested.
With his eyes still closed, Zhao Kai began implementing the suggestion that Xu Feng had made, and sure enough, he realized that he had just been scaring himself all along.
"But why do I feel like I'm being eyed by many?" Zhao Kai questioned, knitting his brows and keeping his eyes closed.
Xu Feng paused for a second before chuckling, "Well, that's because we're indeed being preyed on at the moment. Your perception and senses are telling you we're in danger."
"WHAT??!" Astounded, Zhao Kai hurriedly opened his eyes and retrieved his Ironbolt Rifle from his back, ready to fire.
He then glared at Xu Feng, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? We could have died if we were to be ambushed by them without being prepared."
"Relax yourself," Xu Feng smiled calmly. "The monsters preying on us aren't dangerous, and they're in fact wary of us. Why else do you think I would take my time and help regulate your emotions?"
"But still, you could have warned me earlier." Zhao Kai pouted and approached Xu Feng, clearly alarmed and anxious.
"What are you sulking like a little girl for?" Xu Feng rolled his eyes and pushed him away.
"Keep this in mind. Monsters in the Divine World are different from the monsters in a typical game. Some are naturally aggressive and would attack on site whereas there would be monsters leering at you. Unless provoked, they would usually leave you alone."
After that, Xu Feng cast Sacred Fire to illuminate their surroundings and reveal the monsters lurking in the bushes. Their eyes glowed in redness, but their position remained still.
He then pointed at those monsters and explained, "Right now, those monsters are wary of us and if we did anything aggressive, they would take it as if we're an enemy."
"Are you serious?" Zhao Kai twitched his lips and glanced at Xu Feng with a disbelief expression.
"You just cast Sacred Fire, so aren't they going to attack us now?" He pointed it out.
"You're right." Xu Feng chuckled softly and discreetly moved behind.
With one of his legs raised up, he grinned menacingly. "Therefore, I shall cheer you up from behind to kill them."
"Wha—"
Before Zhao Kai could even comprehend his meaning, Xu Feng kicked him in the butt, sending him flying straight to the monsters' hiding spot.
His mouth was wide open as horror flashed across Zhao Kai's eyes. "I'll fucking kill you, Feng!!!"
Despite his exclamation, Zhao Kai wasn't going to sit still and let the monsters swarm at him. After a few rolls, he quickly made his stance, retrieved his Ironbolt Rifle, and activated Gluttony's skill.
Meanwhile, the monsters were infuriated at the audacious behavior of Zhao Kai as they swarmed at him.
Determined, Zhao Kai's previous fear seemed to have dissipated.
'Hmph, the more the merrier.' He sneered inwardly, squeezing the trigger and firing multiple shots.
To his astonishment, his fire rate seemed to have improved.
Even better, he realized his bullet flashed a holy light upon impact on the monster.
Confused, he turned around and stared at Xu Feng in a daze.
"What are you looking at me for?" Xu Feng chuckled softly, continuing his buffing on Zhao Kai. "The monsters are still coming at you, so is it really the time to be distracted?"
"Tsk, you owe me a meal after this." Zhao Kai snickered and resumed his shooting.
Although his fire rate improved drastically, it still wasn't enough to deflect multiple monsters swarming at him. Some of them managed to get close to him and deal quite a bit of damage to him.
Not even Xu Feng's healing was enough to recover him fully, but Zhao Kai ignored it.
He was like a madman, ignoring all the pain and simply wishing to eradicate these monsters.
"Come at me!" he shouted, his fervor rising with every second.
'This crazy madman.' Speechless, Xu Feng never expected there was this sadistic side of Zhao Kai when pushed into a corner.