[Explorer Assessment Abandoned Factory]
Chen Kong crouched on the ground, looking at the broken wall that had suddenly appeared in front of him, his brows furrowed.
Five minutes ago, when he passed here, it was clearly an unobstructed path. How could a wall suddenly appear?
Thinking of this, Chen Kong subconsciously aimed the beam of his flashlight at the wall's surface.
In an instant, not only was the moss in the brick joints clearly visible, but even the fresh mud clinging to the edges of several bricks was seen clearly by Chen Kong.
It was as if this broken wall had been here for a long time, and the so-called 'unobstructed path' was just his illusion.
But was he really seeing things?
In fact, Chen Kong had long been quite puzzled by this assessment, named 'Hide-and-Seek'.
Because he didn't understand why an assessment focused on 'survival' would involve something like 'teaming up'.
One must know that if one chose to undertake the assessment alone, it would not only eliminate the external factor of freeloading but also more intuitively reveal the assessor's own potential.
No matter how you looked at it, it was far better than the so-called teaming up.
Unless this 'teaming up' had another meaning...
Thinking of this, Chen Kong suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Camera Brother, it seems we've been targeted for a long time."
Camera Brother nodded.
By now, he clearly understood that the 'position scan every five seconds' mentioned by the Raccoon Administrator was merely a half-truth.
The way it locked onto the assessors was definitely far easier and more unique than they imagined.
Thinking of this, Camera Brother said, "Since we can't escape, let's find a way to prolong the capture time as much as possible."
"And if my deduction is correct, I think I have found the way to pass."
Hearing Camera Brother's words, Chen Kong was stunned.
He had only guessed that the entire assessment venue might be the Raccoon Administrator's 'domain'.
But what the core rule of this domain was, and what effect this domain had...
He hadn't figured any of that out, let alone how to pass.
Camera Brother didn't elaborate, immediately fully displaying his Star Source—the All-View Observer.
[Name: All-View Observer (Second Awakening)]
[Type: Intelligent Machine System]
[Effect 1 · Omnidirection Lens: Default 360° dead-angle-free environment scanning is enabled. Range increases with Star Energy intensity (Base 50 meters, Limit 100 meters). Automatically marks Star Beast tracks, trap locations, and hidden passages. Marking results are displayed as light cyan dots in the adapter's field of vision.]
[Effect 2 · Audience Perspective: When activated, the footage captured by the 'Omnidirection Lens' can be synchronized to designated teammates (maximum 3 people) in a 'Shared Perspective'. During sharing, teammates can independently adjust the viewing angle, observing the battlefield as if 'audiences' watching a live stream.
Simultaneously, the shared view provides a 'Calm Aura', reducing the teammate's fear by 50% and counteracting the interference of illusions on consciousness.]
[Awakening Effect · Image Traceback: Consumes a large amount of Star Energy (30% energy consumed per single use) to perform 'Image Traceback' on a designated area, capable of tracing back footage within the last ten minutes.]
After learning about the effects of Camera Brother's Star Source, Chen Kong seemed to understand what he was about to do.
Camera Brother didn't hesitate, immediately performing an Image Traceback on the dead end that had appeared a short time ago. The traceback process was simultaneously shared into Chen Kong's field of vision.
This allowed the two of them, from the 'perspective' of an audience in front of a television, to witness what had happened here shortly before.
Ten minutes ago, the path was deserted.
Suddenly, countless black mist particles appeared in the air, surging like a tide towards the center of the path and slowly condensing into the shape of the broken wall.
The authenticity of this broken wall was such that it even 'replicated' the moss and cracks in the brick joints, so realistic that it was completely impossible to spot any flaws.
Seeing this, Chen Kong realized.
No wonder he always felt that the assessment scene was a bit 'strange' before, but couldn't pinpoint what was wrong.
It turned out that those seemingly natural broken walls and vines were actually illusory scenes fabricated with black mist.
And knowing the existence of the 'black mist', Camera Brother fully activated his 'Lens', tracing the distribution of 'black mist concentration' in the vicinity.
Not long after, Camera Brother locked onto an area, his tone affirmative: "Kong, that should be the location of the pursuer. Try to stay away from that area."
Following Camera Brother's direction, Chen Kong quickly noticed a huge black mist shrouding the factory gate.
Moreover, the concentration of black mist in this area was ten times greater than where they were. Within it, subtle golden light spots could faintly be seen flickering.
Undoubtedly, those so-called golden light spots were the bell on the Raccoon's neck!
In that instant, Chen Kong understood everything.
"No wonder you said you found the way to pass. If we know where the pursuer is, we certainly have more ways to deal with them."
With the All-View Observer's scan, the Raccoon's position was clearly marked on a map.
Thus, it became much easier for them to evade the opponent than before.
Hearing the conversation between the two, the little girl behind them curiously tilted her head, her milky-white pupils looking towards the factory.
"Big brothers, what are you looking at?"
Although she couldn't see the shared view, she could feel the 'discomfort' in the air.
That was the oppressive feeling brought by the black mist.
Hearing her, Chen Kong crouched down, touched her head, and spoke softly.
"Nothing, we are looking for a safe path. We will be able to leave here soon. Don't be afraid."
The little boy also came over, the scales on his arm gleaming in the flashlight beam.
"Um, I know there's a small cave ahead. I went there when I hid from the rain before. It's very hidden."
Hearing this, Chen Kong smiled and said, "Then lead us there."
The little boy nodded vigorously, took the little girl's hand, and ran into the depths of the woods.
The strange thing was that they changed direction multiple times during this process.
Sometimes, it even looked like they were running in circles.
But from a God's perspective... they were indeed constantly moving away from the Raccoon Administrator.
[Assessment Remaining Time: 02:30]
[Current Eliminators: 0]
Over two minutes passed, and none of the three—Chen Kong, the boy, and the girl—had been eliminated.
But two minutes of peace did not guarantee that the rest would be the same.
[Explorer Assessment Above Factory Gate]
The Raccoon crouched on top of the chimney, watching Chen Kong and the others run into the depths of the woods. The golden bell on its neck softly chimed 'ding-a-ling' in the wind.
It could feel that its black mist illusion was being broken.
"To be able to see through the essence of the black mist... that Camera Star Envoy's ability is quite interesting."
The Raccoon's paw gently waved. The surrounding black mist began to flow rapidly. The mist cloud that originally shrouded the factory split into countless tiny mist particles, spreading towards the woods.
"However, the Eternal Nightmare's control methods are not limited to just 'fabricating illusions'."
The black mist particles surged like locusts towards Chen Kong and the others. Some drilled into the mud, and some adhered to the leaves, slowly changing the surrounding Star Energy fluctuations.
The Raccoon's voice echoed in the mist cloud, carrying a hint of mockery.
"Although you have seen through the falseness in the 'scene', can you... see the falseness in the 'people's' hearts?"