Danger

From the moment they entered the fog, nothing dangerous had happened. In other words, the number of soldiers they came with seemed to have remained the same. That in  itself seemed to indicate that problems existed. In the experience gained from previous such explorations, it is even lucky when a team can be able to come back with about 30% of the number of people that had entered. 

In the place they had come, it seemed that the sense of danger might not exist, but that is the thing that makes the captain even more solemn. He was indeed not willing to loose more of the people under his command, after all he knew some of their families. Having to make that trip to inform them would become even difficult for him. 

But he did not seem to know that Boss Wang was not asking for a small number to continue forth with him, for convenience. The issues that where going on in his mind seemed to have nothing to do with him. 

In the moment he made this arrangements, the Captain seemed to also retreat after putting his hazmat back on. The fog was not detected to have any impact on them, but the lack of time to continue in depth experiments made them use the best equipment to minimize any unexpected developments. 

It was obvious that this kind of place had some resources that would play a major role in scientific breakthroughs as such the interested parties did not bother to waste time. With the exploration and competition from different factions, who has time to actually care about the research into the content of the fog. Finding this resources where important and the fog was secondary. 

It was also not considered a smart move to waste resources on the wrong areas. In the process of resource search, even though the number of deaths seem to be higher, the outcomes are acceptable. This has always been the way, and the moment they entered the fog, it was no longer just a matter of retreat when they felt like, after all they had also signed some contracts. 

None of the men present had the ability or where willing to breach the contract conditions, this is because it seemed to have some impressive compensation. They might not need it if they failed to get out, but their families would need the resources from the higher ups. The compensation was also enough to support their family in the long run. 

For those that where being escorted such as Boss Wang, their safety was important and the truth was, a person like Wang did not care about his life unless he got the target of the operation. Since he had some experience with exploration, he had to keep a calm face. 

While left alone in the airtight tent, he took out some kind of record he kept scheming through and was done looking at it in less than a minute. 

"OK! I should leave too. Those fellows should have organized everything. It seems that the situation in this place is more bizarre, I have a feeling that continuing to go deeper was risky, but nothing can be done." It seems that in the moment he took the select group into the depths of cave, the outcomes will depend on their luck. 

But he was not going to stop here, he had done everything just to have a chance to also rise up in the social status. Unlike those that where escorting him, whose lives had been purchased with money, he was interested in seeing things from a higher scenery. 

More importantly, the information that is being shared in each level seemed to have even higher value. The only problem was that, none of those on his level has made it to the next level for a long time. But he was more based towards making some achievements that could allow him the privileges. The search for means to increase ones status, in the world was important to him because he did not doubt that this experiments from different parts of the world being analyzed and results might already be in trial.

He was not willing to be forgotten just like that if the people he worked for had means to increase his lifespan too. In  the end human greed is endless. He did not speak this thoughts, but had already made up his mind to stand above others and that was a strong driving force. The showing off with the helicopter everywhere he went seemed to be slowly getting to him. He preferred to have the control of his own life, this was something he had set as the highest priority. 

Over time though, he already seemed to know that this would be almost impossible to accomplish. He had not seen anyone escaping from the control of the higher ups. 

Even his idea was more or less an illusion, but he still moved on and chased it, at the moment he was already on the path to accomplishing this. He just had to keep doing his part and when the time came he would still be rewarded. The thought has always been his driving force and the same could perhaps be the pursuit of the other lab Supervisors. It was one thing to be under others, but feeling the breadth of death approach oneself every second due to a wrong decision and move that might be made. 

The moment he stepped out of the tent, he did push the thoughts away and looked at the three man team before him nodding with satisfaction. The movement in large groups would only bring inconvenience. The four of them moved out of the established base camp, heading further to the very depths. 

The cave was too silent, this was what made even Boss Wang seem  to move at a slow steady pace. 

"The silence does seem to be due to all the creatures either escaping or dead. But that is not important, it seems that the target of my entrance in this place is already in sight. " The environment was indeed a place with precious ores or even unique fetishes. 

The moment the team moved closer, they could feel some sounds starting to come back. It was as though some kind of creature was breathing, but that thought was cast aside. He had seen some information and from it, he seemed to have some guesses about what was going on in this place. 

"Boss Wang! Are there monsters in this place?" 

The moment the captain raised this question, even the other two men with him where slightly tense, but Boss Wang did not respond this, rather he was looking into the distance. His mind seemed to be lost in thought. 

Instead of retreating, he kept moving forward, with the other three following. The sound they where hearing seemed to become more and more intense. 

"Can you hear it as well captain Wei?" Listening to the words being spoken by Wang and how calm he was it seemed that the source of the sound was not dangerous. He did not relax at all, rather his eyes seemed to be looking around, prepared for anything. 

He was also waiting for an explanation by Wang on what was going on, as he did not seem to remember having experience in this kind of event before.

******

In the mountains, Cheng Shan was sitting on the gazebo busy studying information and after locating all the places that the governments have sealed, or deny access to civilians, he used them as a basis to make some estimates. 

In the moment though, he was more or less suspicious about the fog that was covering some other remote part of the country. In the reports, it was claimed that a government experiment went wrong, but Cheng Shan was very skeptical. 

Why would a government experiment be conducted in such a place, more importantly the claims of natural disaster, and foreigners entering the country to offer assistance already raised a red flag for him.

Pushing the information to the side, he seemed to be lost in thought. 

"My acquisition of resources is going to be a big problem, and this can't be rushed. In the period of time, I should enter the sea some nights and pick up some massive prey. The clone can help me in this aspect. It is very difficult to purchase on my own without raising other people's curiosity." Cheng Shan had made the decision to completely undergo the tenth transformation before thinking about other issues. 

Setting goals for himself like this was done to stop himself from doing something stupid. He then started to read again, and this time the knowledge was just on some scientific information he has never been concerned about before. 

"The first method to use is gathering knowledge, perhaps it can indeed allow me to improve my current state of mind." Before Cheng Shan had discovered that his state of the mind was not okay, and he is becoming stronger, thus it needed to be improved. 

The method of reading was the first he could try and since he was resting, he decided to put some time into educating himself.