At the same moment, Xi Yi lunged forward, but unfortunately, he was just a fraction too late. A tremendous upward force erupted from her waist, and before she could react, she was yanked into the air. The combined forces of gravity and the pull nearly choked the breath out of her as the thing coiled around her waist tightened mercilessly.
Before she could even process it, she was hoisted even higher, and within seconds, her entire body was suspended midair.
In that instant, the distance between her and Xi Yi widened drastically. It was only then that she fully saw the horrifying thing dragging her—a gnarled, withered vine—and the massive tree behind her had completely transformed.
The once lush, fruit-laden canopy of the tree twisted and contorted before her eyes. The dense green leaves curled inward at a visible pace, soon shrinking into slender, needle-like spikes. The red fruits seemed to burst, their surfaces shriveling as they oozed a foul-smelling blackish-red liquid. By the time the tree had shed all its green, its rough, nearly bare branches were densely coated in a sickening layer of dark red, an utterly revolting sight.
As those grotesque appendages slowly extended toward her, Sha Yi struggled desperately, but her efforts only backfired. Not only did the tendrils speed up their approach, but the vine around her waist also tightened further. She could barely breathe, and now she felt sharp ridges sprouting from the vine, piercing deep into her waist with excruciating pain.
Forced to stop struggling, Sha Yi lowered her head and saw Xi Yi below, his expression frantic as he alternated between watching her and searching for something. She wanted to call out to him, but the constriction around her waist made it hard to even gasp for air, and her head throbbed dizzily.
Xi Yi sensed her gaze and shouted something up at her, accompanying his words with a series of quick gestures.
What should have been incomprehensible speech now became indistinct. Whether it was due to the blood rushing to her head from being suspended or the deepening puncture wounds from the vine’s spikes, a strange buzzing filled her ears, and even her vision began to blur.
In those brief moments, the spikes dug deeper, the dull, sharp agony making Sha Yi writhe in torment. She wanted to scream, but the sight of Xi Yi crouched below, frantically rummaging through something, stopped her. Instead, she exhaled weakly and clenched her teeth.
He was always the one cleaning up after her messes. Now, trapped in this perilous place, he was likely to face even greater dangers trying to save her. If she let her own pain add to his worry and tension, she’d be utterly thoughtless.
She knew all too well that anything concerning her would distract him. She couldn’t—wouldn’t—let him bear more burdens. Her endurance now was, in a way, helping herself, giving Xi Yi the time he needed to find a way to rescue her without further distractions.
But misfortune never comes alone. The moment she steeled herself, the small bundle in her arms slipped out without warning.
Sha Yi gasped, ignoring the pain in her waist as she twisted and reached out desperately to catch the tiny infant.
She thought she could grab it—she had noticed the moment it slipped—but her fingertips barely brushed the baby’s foot before it fell beyond her grasp.
In that split second, she couldn’t hold back any longer, screaming Xi Yi’s name with all her might.
Xi Yi responded urgently, darting beneath her to catch the suddenly falling bundle. But before he could, a second thick vine shot out between them, swiftly coiling around the infant’s body and retracting halfway.
Xi Yi caught nothing but air.
The tightly wrapped infant wailed again.
At that cry, Sha Yi’s vision and hearing abruptly cleared, and she frantically turned her head to see what had happened.
Now, the vine’s needle-like spikes, formed from curled leaves, were slowly piercing the baby’s skin. Sha Yi panicked, struggling helplessly, unable to do anything to save it.
On the ground, Xi Yi froze momentarily before his expression mirrored her desperation. Like her, he seemed stunned, as if he had never seen an infant in such a predicament before, leaving him at a loss.
Sha Yi wanted to urge him to think of another way, but a glance at the scattered branches near where he had been standing told her enough.
The moment she had seen the tree’s sudden transformation, she had already guessed—this was likely akin to the modern concept of a man-eating tree. But this one clearly lacked full predatory capabilities. Instead, it seemed to rely on those leaf-formed spikes to drain blood from its victims. The sheer density of those needle-like thorns made confronting it without preparation nearly impossible.
From Xi Yi’s earlier actions and the damp, shadowy environment, she deduced that this blood-sucking tree feared fire. But she had no lighter, and attempting to start a fire by friction now would take far too long—she’d likely be drained dry before any flame could ignite.
During that brief period when her vision and hearing had blurred, she suspected it was due to blood loss. The foul blackish-red liquid oozing from the vines was probably toxic too. Yet, despite racking her brain, she still couldn’t think of any way to escape this nightmare.
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