Chapter 120: Chaotic Life (Part II)

After the purple blood energy revived, Qian Ye’s body recovered at a much faster pace. After a brief rest, he approached the great tree, wielding Crimson Fang, and dug out a hollow in the base of the tree to see what was inside.

The tree wasn’t particularly hard; its cross-section was damp, and a thick, sticky liquid soon oozed out. When Qian Ye touched it, he realized that this liquid was the same murky substance found in the tree holes. However, the special thing about this liquid was that Qian Ye could sense a wild and chaotic void primal force within it.

It seemed that the tree was drawing void primal force from the earth and supplying it to the living beings in each tree hole. The wild and chaotic nature of the void primal force influenced these beings, causing them to take on such grotesque forms.

Processes that took years in the outside world were condensed to an extreme degree here.

Qian Ye inspected the tree thoroughly but found nothing new, so he continued forward. This time, he carved a mark on the tree every ten meters or so to avoid getting lost.

As he walked, Qian Ye suddenly heard a faint sound of air being disturbed, as if something was rapidly approaching from behind. In this silent forest, even the slightest noise was magnified, making the sound, though distant, feel heart-stoppingly close.

Qian Ye instantly confirmed that the sound was real and not an illusion, so he quickly darted behind a large tree for cover.

A moment later, a person appeared from the direction he had come. Seeing a normal human in such a crazed place gave Qian Ye a strange, unexplainable feeling.

The newcomer stopped before a large tree where Qian Ye had left his marks. As he touched the lines that were actually meaningless, Qian Ye felt a chill; this person was likely tracking him using the marks.

Qian Ye’s gaze fell on the person’s clothes and equipment. There were no visible identifiers. However, after examining the marks Qian Ye had left, the person began to look around, and Qian Ye noticed the family crest of the Nan Gong Clan on a gun holster peeking out from the person’s waist.

An expert from the Nan Gong Clan!

Taking a risk, Qian Ye used his true vision to scan the person and saw three primal force vortices—a twelfth-level war general. Even at his peak, Qian Ye might not have been able to defeat such an opponent, let alone in his current weakened state.

Qian Ye immediately suppressed his aura and silently backed away. With the senses severely disrupted in this forest, it would be difficult to track him if he could put enough distance between them.

But just as he took two steps back, the Nan Gong Clan expert turned and shouted, “Who’s there! Come out!”

Startled, Qian Ye realized that the other man had discovered his marks in the dark forest and tracked him accurately. This was no coincidence; clearly, this was another person who had gained the power of the Iron Curtain.

No longer hiding, Qian Ye leaped up and fled at full speed.

Seeing Qian Ye, the man’s eyes lit up. “It’s you! Haha, I didn’t expect to find you so easily! Trying to escape, are you?”

He dashed like a wild horse, closing the gap between them. Though not particularly known for speed, Qian Ye’s severe injuries hindered his movements.

“Boy, you can’t escape. Stop now and cooperate, and I promise I won’t harm you. Let’s get out of this cursed place first.”

“Still not stopping? Do you think the Nan Gong elder has no means to deal with you?”

“Hey, wasting primal force will get you killed!”

Despite the threats and bribes, Qian Ye remained resolute, maintaining his maximum sustainable speed. As he ran, he suddenly thought of another problem: what if predators appeared in the forest?

If the newly born chaotic creatures were already at levels five or six, how terrifying would fully grown ones be? And in this eerily silent forest, sound was the best way for predators to detect prey.

As he ran, Qian Ye suddenly saw a violent fluctuation of primal force in the distance, like a boiling pot. He immediately changed direction and headed towards it. Now, the distance between Qian Ye and the Nan Gong war general had become dangerously close. No matter what lay ahead, it couldn’t be worse than falling into the hands of the Nan Gong man.

Suddenly, Qian Ye heard an additional noise from behind. Without thinking, he instinctively leapt to the side. A thunderous roar sounded, and a primal force bullet whizzed past, striking a nearby tree and creating a large, bowl-sized hole. Murky sap oozed from the wound.

Nan Gong Jiacheng fired two shots, but Qian Ye dodged both, and the man cursed, “Damn!” There was no other choice but to chase to the end.

As Qian Ye ran, the ground suddenly gave way beneath his feet, nearly causing him to fall. Looking down, he saw one foot deeply embedded in the ground. The surface looked normal, but it was only a thin layer of loose soil, with mud underneath.

Behind him, Nan Gong Jiacheng splashed into a mud pit, and when he reached the muddy part, he leaped straight up, pulling himself out. He had also encountered a hidden pit, but it was deeper, and his reaction was not as swift as Qian Ye’s, resulting in a small setback.

Seizing the opportunity, Qian Ye widened the gap by ten meters.

Now, the forest floor was riddled with mud pits, and after another hundred meters, puddles of various sizes appeared. Qian Ye ran more carefully, jumping over intertwined roots. Behind him, Nan Gong Jiacheng, now familiar with the terrain, increased his speed, once again closing the gap with Qian Ye.

Qian Ye’s breath grew increasingly labored, and suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his chest, spewing a mouthful of vivid, glowing blood. He felt a wave of weakness, and his footsteps became heavier.

Moments ago, Qian Ye had aggravated his internal injuries, and a wisp of ordinary blood energy rose from his heart, dissipating and barely stabilizing his injuries.

Gritting his teeth, Qian Ye pushed forward, while Nan Gong Jiacheng’s laughter grew closer. Just then, Qian Ye felt a breeze, and his heart jolted.

Since entering the dark forest, the world had been still, and the air hadn’t moved. A breeze might indicate the exit of the forest.

However, Qian Ye then felt not just the wind but also the ground shaking, and a shadow loomed overhead. Ahead, a colossal beast stood, towering over Qian Ye and Nan Gong Jiacheng.

Its head resembled a crocodile, with a mouth full of sharp teeth. Its body was like a pile of flesh, supported by eight haphazard legs, making it look unsteady, as if it might collapse at any moment.

Standing at over ten meters tall, the beast made Qian Ye and Nan Gong Jiacheng look like tiny insects, not even enough for a single bite.

In this perilous situation, both Qian Ye and Nan Gong Jiacheng stopped, not daring to move. The beast was massive, and even without any special abilities, it was terrifying. Ordinary primal force guns would be like scratching an itch, and perhaps only weapons like the Azure Sky and Mountain Crusher could cause significant damage.

The beast was clearly interested in the two humans, lowering its massive head with dozens of eyes turning to inspect them. It sniffed the air, then ignored Qian Ye and lunged at Nan Gong Jiacheng.

“What’s going on?!” Nan Gong Jiacheng was almost mad. Clearly, Qian Ye was closer, but the beast chose to attack him. Was he tastier?

Qian Ye had a vague idea. Relatively speaking, Nan Gong Jiacheng was more appetizing. He had observed newborn chaotic beings consuming each other and found that they preferred to eat those with vibrant life force.

Qian Ye, injured and weak, was only standing due to his residual blood energy and vampire constitution. Nan Gong Jiacheng, however, was a twelfth-level expert with a powerful life force, making him a delicious meal for the chaotic creature.

Seizing the opportunity, Qian Ye turned and ran.

But after just a few steps, the ground shook again. Looking around, he saw black holes appearing in the forest floor, and countless chaotic beings of various sizes emerging. While the beast disregarded Qian Ye, he was a feast for them.

Surrounded, Qian Ye darted to a large tree, using it as a shield. He tentatively released a wisp of blood energy.

The approaching chaotic beings hesitated, clearly uncomfortable with the dark energy. However, their hunger drove them forward, albeit slightly slower.

A spider-like chaotic being suddenly pounced, aiming for Qian Ye’s face. Easily evading the reckless attack, Qian Ye swung Crimson Fang, impaling the creature. But the impact caused his arm to tremble, feeling numb. The chaotic spider’s force was like a cannonball, capable of creating a large crater in a tree trunk.

Qian Ye became more cautious, ready to shake off the chaotic spider, but a hot, concentrated essence flowed through the blade. Qian Ye’s body trembled as his blood energy surged, nearly entering a frenzied state. Fortunately, he quickly restrained it.

The essence of the chaotic spider was unexpectedly potent, invigorating Qian Ye’s body. Who would have thought that the essence of an adult chaotic being could be so strong, even affecting him.

Before Qian Ye could activate the Mystic Scroll, the purple blood energy rushed out, diving into his bloodstream and releasing purple light. Wherever the light reached, his muscles grew dense and solid, suppressing the overactive vitality.

Even the purple blood energy could only slow the process, and the overwhelming life force still sought an outlet within Qian Ye.

The purple blood energy bought Qian Ye enough time to activate the Mystic Scroll, a giant vortex slowly grinding and neutralizing the essence. However, some strands of the overactive essence tried to break free, requiring Qian Ye to focus and suppress them.

Fighting while managing the internal struggle, Qian Ye struggled to evade the chaotic beings. Eventually, he was hit by a calf-sized creature, flying dozens of meters and crashing through several trees before landing.

The impact was severe, and Qian Ye felt his chest surge with blood, nearly spitting it out. Just then, a thick tree trunk fell from the sky, landing in front of him and smashing a pursuing creature into the ground.