Zhang Shi was startled and quickly took a few steps back, holding the old Duan sword horizontally in front of him, watching the centaur who had once again entered a berserk state warily.

"What's going on? How come they've been controlled again?" Zhao Feng shouted, gripping his giant axe tightly once more.

Huo Xiuxiu frowned as she carefully observed the centaurs' condition. She said, "It seems the power controlling them is very strong. It was only briefly released just now, but it's back in effect now."

Ge Dalong formed hand seals, preparing to launch another attack: "No matter what, let's subdue them first. This is too dangerous!"

Zhang Shi took a deep breath, his eyes hardening: "Everyone be careful, try not to hurt them. We need to find a way to completely break free from this controlling force."

Having said that, Zhang Shi flashed forward, charging towards one of the centaurs. He was incredibly fast, his blade wielding a sharp aura as he attempted to strike the centaur's head again with the back of the blade, rendering it immobile. However, this time the centaurs seemed to be on guard. They nimbly dodged Zhang Shi's attacks, while simultaneously brandishing their spears and launching a fierce counterattack.

Seeing this, Zhao Feng roared and charged at the other centaur from the side. He raised his giant axe high and brought it down with a whooshing sound. The centaur blocked with its spear, and the huge impact forced it back a few steps, but it quickly regained its balance and charged at Zhao Feng again.

Huo Xiuxiu kept shaking her bell, using sound waves to try and disrupt the centaur's movements and thoughts. But this time, the sound waves seemed less effective; the centaur only paused briefly before continuing its attack.

Ge Dalong conjured even more ice spikes and shot them at the centaur. The ice spikes rained down, forcing the centaur to dodge and slowing down its attack rhythm.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Zhang Shi charged at the centaur again, his eyes focused, searching for an opening. Suddenly, he noticed the centaur's steps falter slightly as it dodged the ice spikes. An idea struck him; he immediately seized the opportunity, lunging forward and striking the centaur's leg hard with the back of his blade. The centaur's legs buckled, nearly collapsing to its knees, but it stubbornly held on, thrusting its spear towards Zhang Shi.

Zhang Shi dodged the spear attack by sidestepping, then swiftly circled behind the centaur and struck it hard on the back of the head with the hilt of his sword. This time, the centaur finally couldn't hold on any longer, its vision went black, and it collapsed to the ground.

Meanwhile, Zhao Feng gradually gained the upper hand in his fierce battle with another centaur. Utilizing the weight of his giant axe and his own strength, he relentlessly attacked the centaur's weak points. Finally, in a powerful attack, the centaur's spear was knocked away, and Zhao Feng seized the opportunity to strike the centaur on the head with the back of his axe, knocking it unconscious.

The crowd gathered around again, panting as they looked at the two unconscious centaurs on the ground.

"What can we do? They're being controlled so tightly, how can we completely break free from this control?" Zhao Feng asked, wiping the sweat from his brow.

Huo Xiuxiu squatted down and carefully examined the centaur's body and the broken pendant: "This pendant seems to be the key to control, but it is broken. Perhaps we need to find the source of all this control in order to truly break their control."

After a moment's thought, Zhang Shi said, "No matter what, we can't keep them with us. Let's leave them here for now; their fate is up to them."

Everyone nodded silently, knowing that Zhang Shi's decision was the most rational choice at present.

“Let’s go then. Let’s find the three-headed monster as soon as possible. Maybe we can get some useful information from it.” Zhang Shi said, leading the way towards the other side of the dragon’s body.

The atmosphere was heavy as everyone remained silent throughout the journey. They carefully climbed the dragon's skeleton, wary of any potential dangers around them.

Finally, before nightfall, the group reached the top of the dragon's spine. Zhang Shi looked to the other side and, through the mist, saw faint lights and the outlines of some buildings.

Zhang Shi's eyes narrowed slightly, a glimmer of hope rising in his heart: "It seems there are traces of civilization on the other side. Perhaps we can find clues to leave the foggy area there, or figure out the truth behind all of this."

Zhao Feng gripped his giant axe tightly and said excitedly, "Who cares? As long as there's light, it's better than wandering around aimlessly in this godforsaken place. Maybe we can even find out where the crystal ball is."

Ge Dalong looked around warily and warned, "Everyone, be careful. This place is eerie. Who knows what's on the other side? Maybe those fires and buildings are another trap."

Huo Xiuxiu nodded gently, the bell in her hand swaying slightly: "Ge Dalong is right, we can't let our guard down. I'll go ahead and scout out the way to see if there's any danger."

Zhang Shi was about to stop her, but Huo Xiuxiu had already vanished in a flash, drifting away towards the opposite side. Zhang Shi sighed helplessly and could only follow closely behind with Zhao Feng and Ge Dalong, maintaining a high level of vigilance.

As they drew closer to the other side, the outlines of the buildings became clearer. It was an ancient and dilapidated complex, with moss and vines climbing the walls. Some buildings were even half-collapsed, looking like they had been abandoned for a long time.

Huo Xiuxiu stopped in front of a relatively intact building. She carefully observed the surrounding environment and found some strange footprints and signs of a fight on the ground.

"Something seems to have happened here," Huo Xiuxiu said softly, a hint of doubt in her eyes.

Zhang Shi stepped forward, squatted down, and examined the footprints: "These footprints are of different sizes and have very peculiar shapes. They don't seem to be left by humans. Could they be from those monsters?"

Zhao Feng looked around and suddenly pointed to a corner not far away, saying, "Look, there seems to be something glowing over there!"

Following the direction Zhao Feng pointed, everyone saw an object emitting a faint light half-hidden under the rocks amidst a pile of ruins.

Zhang Shi carefully walked over, moved the stone aside, and revealed something that resembled a crystal shard. The shard was crystal clear, emitting a faint blue light, and seemed to contain some mysterious runes.

"What is this?" Zhang Shi picked up the fragment and examined it carefully.

Huo Xiuxiu took the fragment, closed her eyes, and sensed its spiritual energy fluctuations: "This should be a fragment of some powerful magical item, perhaps related to the secrets of this misty region. Let's take it with us; it might come in handy later."

Just then, a low roar came from deep within the complex, sounding particularly eerie and terrifying in the silent night.

"Oh no, danger!" Zhang Shi shouted. The crowd immediately gripped their weapons, formed a defensive circle back to back, and watched their surroundings warily.

A gigantic black monster slowly emerged from the darkness. Its body seemed to be made of smoke, obscuring its exact shape. Only a pair of blood-red eyes gleamed eerily in the darkness.

"What the hell is this thing?" Zhao Feng's voice trembled slightly, clearly frightened by the monster's appearance.

Ge Dalong took a deep breath and gathered his magic power: "Whatever it is, prepare for battle!"

Huo Xiuxiu shook her bell, trying to use sound waves to disrupt the monster's movements. However, the monster seemed immune to sound waves; it opened its blood-red maw and spewed a cloud of black mist at the group.

Zhang Shi quickly waved Lao Duan to split the fog: "Everyone be careful, don't get hit by this fog!"

During the fierce battle, Zhang Shi discovered that the monster's movements seemed to be restricted in some way; its movement speed was not fast, and its attack methods were relatively simple.

"Could its weakness be in its head?" Zhang Shi wondered, and slashed at the monster's head.

Old Duan struck the monster's head with a dull thud. The monster's body trembled slightly, but it wasn't seriously injured.

"No, this kind of attack won't be very effective." Zhang Shi frowned, thinking about a solution.

Seeing this, Zhao Feng shouted and slammed his giant axe down hard on the monster's leg. This time, the monster's leg was hit, its body swayed, and it almost fell to the ground.

"Now! Everyone, attack its legs together!" Zhang Shi shouted.

Upon hearing this, everyone launched an attack on the monster's legs. With their combined efforts, the monster's legs finally gave way, and it collapsed with a thud.

Taking advantage of the monster's momentary collapse, Zhang Shi lunged forward and plunged Lao Duan deep into the monster's head. The monster let out a piercing scream, its body gradually dissipating into a cloud of black smoke and disappearing without a trace.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed to the ground, exhausted.

"How many more dangers await us in this godforsaken place?" Zhao Feng complained.

Zhang Shi stood up, dusted himself off, and said, "No matter how dangerous it is, we must persevere. Let's rest for a while and recover our strength before continuing to explore this place. We must find a way out."