Chapter 2053: A Dilemma

This mist had descended with an eerie abruptness. Jiang Chen immediately sent a mental transmission to the ten great ancestors: "Everyone, pay attention — hold your breath and activate any treasures you have for resisting or purifying poison. Do not come into contact with this mist. And above all, do not go charging out blindly, or you'll suffer the consequences. Anyone who incites a panic or deliberately tries to stir up chaos will be regarded as a suspect."

The outer perimeter of Wanyuan Island was nothing but boundless ocean. Amid these layers upon layers of mist, finding the way out would be next to impossible. If people went charging about blindly, disaster was all but certain.

If the enemies beyond the perimeter launched an attack at that moment, the casualties would be devastating.

Even with the spiritual perception of the ten great ancestors, they could barely make out vague shapes through this thick fog — nothing clear at all.

Under these circumstances, the ten great ancestors themselves might have some confidence in breaking through. But safely escorting tens of thousands of people off Pingsha Island? That was plainly unrealistic.

They could only watch helplessly as the Taibai Splitting Light Convergence Formation was breached, yet find themselves unable to move.

The Eternal Sovereign sent a transmission: "Jiang Chen, is this mist poisonous?"

Jiang Chen nodded. "The composition of this mist is extremely complex. I can't determine it immediately. But this mist certainly didn't appear without reason. Caution never hurts."

Whether it was truly poisonous or not, Jiang Chen couldn't possibly judge within such a short span of time. But judging by his instincts, it almost certainly was.

Jiang Chen activated his Heavenly Eye Divine Pupil and gazed as far as he could, but the distance his vision could reach was distressingly short.

This was one of the very few times since Jiang Chen had first entered the world that his Heavenly Eye Divine Pupil failed to grant him a clear view. It startled him considerably.

After all, as his cultivation had steadily risen, so too had the power of his Heavenly Eye Divine Pupil. If even this ability was so severely limited…

Then the danger posed by this mist could hardly be overstated.

If they charged out rashly, the odds of finding the correct exit within this fog were essentially zero.

Yet if they stayed put and let the mist continue to spread, the slow corrosive effect it would have on the cultivators' bodies was something even a fool could imagine.

This mist would not merely impair their vision and cloud their judgment. There had to be toxic elements woven into it. In the short term, it might not be lethal — with adequate precautions against poison, they could probably endure for a while.

But if they remained on Pingsha Island indefinitely, sooner or later, even the best poison-defensive measures would be gradually eroded.

Jiang Chen himself feared no deadly toxin, but that did not mean the others shared his constitution.

In that moment, Jiang Chen's mind was torn in two directions. On the one hand, he didn't want anyone charging out recklessly — that would be tantamount to walking into their graves. But on the other hand, if they didn't charge out, then staying here would mean sitting and waiting for death.

Jiang Chen sent a voice transmission to the ten great ancestors: "Honored ancestors, with your lines of sight, can you determine where the exit of Pingsha Island lies?"

Pingsha Island itself was a pocket dimension with only one entrance and one exit. If they couldn't locate either, leaving this secret realm would be impossible.

The enemy had exploited precisely this advantage, using the Taibai Splitting Light Convergence Formation to trap them with ease. And even now, with that formation breached, they had laid down this mist as a second measure. All they needed to do was station someone at the exit — one guard holding the pass against ten thousand — and every route of escape would be sealed shut.

Looking at it this way, this was nothing short of a chain of interconnected traps.