They had walked for two days since the incident at the ancient temple ruins. The barren, toxic soil of the Blasted Lands began to slope upwards, transforming back into jagged rock formations marking the boundary between the ashen plains and the true foothills of the Dragon's Spine Mountains. Here, in the narrow wind-carved crevices, a different kind of danger lurked.
Nihil walked at the front, his steps steady even though his Capacity had not fully recovered from the battle with the Void-Touched Abomination.
[Capacity: 2/50 -> 15/50 (Slow passive recovery + supplement consumption)]
Elara, now wearing a more sophisticated filtration mask she had assembled from their remaining equipment, continued to scan the environment with her flickering data tablet. "Biological life signs are increasing," she reported, her voice muffled. "But the pattern is strange. Too organized for beasts, too crude for Imperial troops."
