In this new world, Qian Ye’s regional map had become increasingly complete, and he had also roughly found some patterns. Generally speaking, the larger the forest, the more likely it would be surrounded by lower-grade forests, and so on. For instance, the Four Sacred Trees Forest that Qian Ye had taken over was surrounded by three Three Sacred Trees Forests in three different directions.
The terrain of the new world was bizarre and varied, but all were centered around forests with sacred trees. From the current area under Qian Ye’s control, the highest grade was the forest with the four sacred trees.
Until now, Qian Ye had not completely cleared this forest. Occasionally, some strange beasts would emerge, although their numbers were not large, but they prevented people from moving freely within the forest.
Fortunately, without a leader, these strange beasts liked to move in groups and did not coordinate with other troops. They would rush at Qian Ye’s soldiers, making them not too difficult to deal with. Qian Ye built several small bases at the edge of the forest, strictly guarding them. Before long, a group of strange beasts would come to their death.
Inside the Four Sacred Trees Forest, the beast nests had grown to a terrifying size. Qian Ye personally went down to explore, but even after penetrating hundreds of meters, he could not find the core hub. Instead, he was seriously injured by the relentless attacks of the strange beasts and had to retreat to the surface.
Without finding the core of the beast nest, one could not truly control the forest. Only by facing the core and subduing it with one’s will, putting it into hibernation, would the entire nest cease to function. Otherwise, it would continuously produce strange beasts.
Exploring the beast nest also yielded some discoveries. Qian Ye found that most of the strange beasts indeed originated from eggs. All the eggs looked the same, and the scholars recruited from the clans had not found any differences. Yet, the same type of egg produced different kinds of strange beast troops, hinting at some hidden secret.
During his exploration, Qian Ye often saw the entire passageways filled with strange beast eggs. He initially spent effort clearing them, but as the attacking beasts grew in number, he could no longer manage, and ultimately had to withdraw.
Qian Ye had yet to fully determine the total number of strange beast eggs in the nest. The only solution was to patiently wait for all the eggs to hatch and for the corresponding strange beast armies to be completely eliminated. This passive method was time-consuming, but it was the only way.
With the Four Sacred Trees Forest as the core and the Three Sacred Trees Forests as guides, there were three directions. Qian Ye had already swept through all the areas surrounding the Three Sacred Trees Forests and quickly cleared the territory of one of them. According to the pattern, the next should be a Single Sacred Tree Forest without a beast nest.
Qian Ye did not rush to attack but instead let the Valhalla hover outside a Two Sacred Trees Forest, releasing the warriors and craftsmen inside to build a new forward base. On one hand, he was used to advancing steadily, and on the other, he wanted to give the battle-weary warriors a chance to rest and recover. Whether it was werewolves or humans, ordinary warriors were made of flesh and blood and could not fight tirelessly like Qian Ye.
While the troops rested, Qian Ye did not need to. After his advancement, he felt that there was still much room for integration and improvement in both the new power level and the application of prime force and combat techniques. Actual combat was the best and fastest way to achieve this. With nothing else to do, he ventured alone to continue exploring.
According to the pattern, a Single Sacred Tree Forest should be ahead. Such a forest was clearly not fully developed, and if there were six-armed beings inside, they would be the weakest, barely reaching the level between a Glorious Marquis and a Vice Duke. Such six-armed beings would only meet their end when encountering Qian Ye, as he had a thorough understanding of the six-armed race after killing their general.
This time, Qian Ye ran for half a day before finally seeing a forest in the distance. At a glance, the forest was not large and clearly a Single Sacred Tree Forest. With prey in sight, Qian Ye naturally did not hesitate. He adjusted his equipment slightly and continued to run along the ground.
In a flash, the forest was in front of him, but the aura inside made him stop abruptly. The forest was dead silent, devoid of life, unlike a normal forest. Based on past experience, even if the six-armed beings were in a state of slumber, there should still be some activity from strange beasts. The powerful aura of the strange beasts, in Qian Ye’s experienced eyes, would be as obvious as a torch.
Qian Ye concealed his aura and silently entered the forest. After walking a short distance, he suddenly stopped, looking at a nearby tree. The trunk of this tree had several deep gashes, which, although partially healed, still left clear marks.
Qian Ye reached out and touched the cut, which was very smooth, not like the claw marks of a strange beast, but rather like the marks left by heavy weapons such as a greatsword or a war axe.
He then turned his gaze to a nearby thicket. Walking over, he pushed aside the branches and saw a mound of soil on the ground, outlining the shape of a strange beast. Pressing down, he found a petrified strange beast corpse, with the roots of the thicket growing through it, using it as nutrients.
Looking around, he saw signs of battles everywhere. The Sacred Tree Forest had a strong self-repair ability, and any traces not belonging to the forest would be erased within a short time. The corpses of the strange beasts and wolf warriors who died in the forest would also turn into nutrients for the forest.
From the traces, the battle had likely just ended two to three days ago. It had occurred in various corners of the forest, with a considerable scale.
This was the first time in the new world that Qian Ye had discovered traces of a battle between the forest and a third party. It was unclear whether the third party was a native of this world or an outsider like Qian Ye.
Qian Ye became more cautious, moving stealthily toward the center of the forest. Moments later, he arrived in the central area, and was stunned.
The tree sap pool in the center was completely dry, and the Sacred Tree’s body bore several deep axe marks. The entire tree was emitting a faint fluctuation, a prime force vibration that ordinary beings could not perceive, but to Qian Ye, it sounded like groans and painful cries.
The Empire’s Research Institute had long concluded that the tree sap was equivalent to the Sacred Tree’s blood. Only when the tree was sufficiently nourished would it produce an excess of sap, stored in the sap pool. The sap was also crucial for nurturing elite strange beast troops, supporting the six-armed commanders, and cultivating the gold and stone on the lake island. However, the exact principles were still being studied.
Now, someone had drained the Sacred Tree’s sap, which was akin to draining the pond to catch fish. Without the sap, the Sacred Tree would soon wither, and the forest would lose its foundation and disappear.
It was certain that the Sacred Tree was a wondrous species, and Qian Ye wasn’t even sure if it could be considered a tree in the conventional sense. Both the strange beasts, the beast nests, and the six-armed beings relied on the Sacred Tree.
Qian Ye did not move. Regardless of who attacked this forest, given their overwhelming methods, since they hadn’t cut down and taken the Sacred Tree, they would surely return.
Sure enough, footsteps echoed in the forest, and a group of fully armed werewolf warriors appeared in Qian Ye’s sight. These werewolves were different from those on Yonglu. Their battle armor was top-notch, and each was equipped with prime force guns, tactical backpacks, heavy weapons, and combat gear. Even the elite legions of the Empire were not much different.
The badges on these werewolves were different, indicating they belonged to different tribes. With countless werewolf tribes, Qian Ye could not determine which faction they belonged to, only that they were not from the Peak of the Peaks. The werewolves did not seem overly cautious and quickly arrived at the center of the forest. An old shaman in a green cloak emerged from the back of the group, circling the Sacred Tree and muttering incantations. After a moment, he screamed, clutching his head and rolling in agony.
“This is a wicked tree! Cut it down and burn it!” the werewolf shaman screamed.
The warriors immediately obeyed the shaman’s command. Two strong werewolves took off their battle axes and approached the Sacred Tree, gathering their strength and swinging their axes at the tree with all their might!
Without a second thought, Qian Ye flashed behind the two werewolves, stabbing his vampire blade into their hearts, and then moved like a ghost among the werewolf group, striking with lightning speed. In moments, over a hundred werewolf warriors lay dead, none of them managing to fire a shot.
Qian Ye stepped on the still-screaming shaman, saying, “Where are you from, and what are you doing here? Tell me honestly, or I won’t mind impaling you on a stake and leaving you to dry in this forest!”
“Pain, I’m in pain…” the shaman cried out in agony.
Qian Ye didn’t fall for his act and stabbed a short knife into the shaman’s thigh, twisting it harshly. The shaman tried to scream, but Qian Ye clamped his mouth shut, blocking all sound. The shaman bit Qian Ye’s hand, but it did not break the skin.
Seeing the shaman’s face turn purple, Qian Ye released him. The shaman gasped for air and hurriedly said, “I’ll tell, I’ll tell!”
Qian Ye did not pull out the knife but coldly watched him. This shaman, dressed in luxurious, immaculate clothes, was definitely of high status and unwilling to endure hardship. Indeed, Qian Ye’s small trick had made him submit.
“We come from the Morsal Continent, and we are under the command of the Great Lord Sosa. We are here to explore the new world. What else could it be?”
Qian Ye recalled the relevant information. The Morsal Continent was one of the three continents controlled by the werewolves, and Sosa was a renowned werewolf lord, a key figure in the Ancestor Sect.
It was said that Sosa descended from the original Wolf King’s lineage, making his ancestor’s soul incredibly powerful, and thus granting him formidable strength. Sosa was cruel and ruthless, treating opponents and enemies with extreme brutality. His forces often held human blood feasts, though the only difference was that in the werewolf rituals, humans and other powerful prime force creatures were treated as sacrificial offerings.
In the eyes of the Empire’s military, Sosa’s line of werewolves was a target for extermination, and they rarely considered taking prisoners in battle. Over time, Sosa had become even more brutal and insane towards humans. Those who fell into his hands faced the best fate as slaves, while most were tortured to death or eaten directly.
However, in recent years, with the werewolves’ living space in the dark faction being squeezed, and the holy war with the Blood Race continuing, many tribes had not participated in factional battles, so Qian Ye had never encountered them.
“Who are you, and what just happened?” Qian Ye pressed the short knife deeper to emphasize his point.
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