The bodies of the Fog demons were fairly weak, but their ability to manipulate the fog around them was somewhat threatening.
The form that they a.s.sumed would work as a defensive layer that could launch various attacks at the same time.
Also, they could replenish the expended fog rather quickly if the environment around them had enough of it.
Of course, they would be at their weakest when their gaseous armor was destroyed.
Knowledge was power only if a cultivator had the strength to make use of it, and Noah met those standards.
The charged Dark blast spell dispersed the armor of the creature, and his sudden dive exploited the instants in which the beast was defenseless.
The Shadow sprint martial art, fueled with the energy inside his Liquid dantian, made him reach an incredible speed.
The Fog demon could only feel a mountain falling over its small body before it was reduced to a pulp.
Noah gathered the remains of the corpse of the ant and flew back in the air.
The ruckus that he had created would surely attract other powerful beings nearby, and he didn"t want to give those creatures any advantage over him.
He had been able to kill a rank 5 beast so quickly because of his preparations and knowledge, but the battle would have been different if the creature had noticed his presence.
The Fog demon would have relentlessly attacked Noah while refilling the depleted fog, leaving him no openings to exploit.
The gaseous armor had to be dispersed in one powerful attack, or the outcome of the battle would depend on their endurance.
Noah ate the corpse in a few bites, and he couldn"t help but sigh in dissatisfaction when he felt the amount of nourishment that it provided.
"As expected from such weak species of magical beasts, half of the Hairy ox body would have satisfied me more."
Noah evaluated when he felt the energy contained in the rank 5 creature being absorbed by his body.
The size of a magical beast"s body wasn"t a reliable indicator of the "Breath" contained inside it, but the Fog demons were weak other than small.
That meal was surely above the standards of the fourth rank, but it was still barely able to satisfy him.
"I guess I should strive for quant.i.ty in this environment. I can"t waste this chance."
It didn"t happen that often to find rank 5 magical beasts that could be easily hunted, and Noah wasn"t going to be picky because they weren"t as nouris.h.i.+ng as the Hairy ox.
Noah resumed his flight inside the deepest areas of the mystical fog.
Unfortunately for him, he was only able to find another solitary rank 5 ant in the lower tier before packs led by Fog demons in the same rank but in the middle tier began to appear.
Noah hunted the creature in the lower tier before being forced to raise his height to avoid the natural awareness of those stronger beings.
The central areas of the mystical fog were the lairs of the real rulers of that danger zone, Noah wouldn"t be surprised if creatures in the upper tier began to appear.
His guess was on point, but nothing above the fifth rank appeared, and the thickness of the fog slowly diminished as he advanced.
The faint shape of the sun could be seen again from under the layer of gray gas.
Noah took that sign as a warning.
The dispersion of the mystical fog only meant that he had almost reached the other side of the danger zone.
There would be the Papral nation on that side, and Noah didn"t want to enter its domain.
Ravaging Demon was part of the Council for what Noah knew, and he wouldn"t be safe in that country with a natural enemy in such a high position.
"I flew in a straight line through the mystical fog, but I didn"t find any trace of the Flying demon sect and Dreaming demon sect. I should explore this danger zone from the west to the east now."
Noah decided when he saw that the previous approach didn"t uncover anything.
He would simply give up and return to the new continent if even that exploration didn"t bring any result.
After all, he had tracked down all the demon sects that had survived after the exile and brought those that he could recognize back to the Hive.
The others had been either recruited by the three big nations or enslaved in a war.
Noah had done everything in his power, but the one thousand years that had pa.s.sed since the exile created hurdles that even his power couldn"t overcome.
A second exploration began, the only difference was that Noah wanted to sweep the danger zone from coast to coast at that time.
He started from the west coast and began to move toward the east, making sure to explore both the outer and central areas inside the fog.
That approach took far longer, but it was thorough and would give Noah some level of certainties.
Noah didn"t mind using his time in that way.
He was still training, and the random appearance of rank 5 beasts in the lower tier allowed him to improve the level of his body.
It was as if he was a new creature ready to destabilize the food chain of that environment.
The fauna there had stagnated for centuries, Noah wouldn"t be surprised if the Fog demons had forgotten the feeling of being the prey.
Noah went through the entirety of the mystical fog between the western coast and the Efrana nation, hunting three more rank 5 ants in the process.
However, he didn"t find anything that uncovered some clues about the two demon sects" disappearance.
The fog became scarce when he flew in the sky over Efrana nation, but it soon filled his vision again when he crossed its borders.
The environment on that side of the danger zone was similar to that near the western coast.
There was still a variegated fauna, and Fog demons were ruling its central areas, but Noah was able to notice that the fog there was somewhat thicker.
"The real danger is here then."
Noah thought as he flew toward the eastern coast.
A few rank 5 Fog demons appeared, but those in the lower tier seemed to always move in groups of two.
It was as if there was some sort of innate organization between their ranks.
The cause behind that organization soon became clear since Noah sensed the faint presence of a threatening being in the distance.
"There was a creature in the sixth rank after all."
Noah stopped his tracks at that point.
The mystical fog was confirmed to be a rank 6 danger zone now, Noah had to take additional measures to ensure his safety.
"I"ll return here after I apply modifications on the Dark cover spell."
Noah flew toward a danger zone outside of the mystical fog when he thought that.
He needed a safe environment where to test his wills.