Only a deafening boom was heard as the surging beast tide was parted to both sides by Zhi Ji! And the few fierce beasts in front of her were sent flying into the air. The little one grabbed and threw wildly, tossing each ferocious beast dozens of meters high. When they fell, even if they didn’t die, they were all disoriented and dazed.
Fueled by the thrill of battle, she grabbed the hind leg of a thick-skinned rhinoceros and swung it around, smashing it everywhere. The rhino’s hide was as hard as iron, nearly two meters tall, and weighed several tons, but in Zhi Ji’s hands, it had no room to struggle. In a blink, it was thrown so hard that it saw stars, clearing the area around Zhi Ji.
Zhi Ji let out a sweet, high-pitched cry. To an ordinary person, it would only sound cute, but many of the beasts, upon hearing it, had their legs give out and collapsed on the ground.
However, many of the beasts, stimulated by the white smoke, flew into a rage and were not intimidated by Zhi Ji. At this moment, a distant, melancholic flute sound echoed from the forest, with a strange and ancient tune, evoking a sense of time-worn sorrow in the listener.
Upon hearing the flute, many of the beasts that had been cowed by Zhi Ji rose up again. Some of them lunged at Zhi Ji, while others bypassed the little one and charged towards the camp. These beasts at the forefront were all rough-skinned, immensely powerful, and could easily demolish flimsy wooden houses or even steel and stone castles.
With the movement of the beast tide, Qian Ye understood that the native races wanted to destroy his newly built home. In the eyes of the beasts and the natives, this area was likely their territory, and an outsider suddenly trying to build a nest here was naturally intolerable.
Zhi Ji, after all, was still young, and her combat experience was not very rich. She was careless and got her calf bitten by a beast the size of a leopard, and was dragged to the ground. Many beasts pounced, and several mouths full of sharp teeth bit down on Zhi Ji, tearing fiercely. Temporarily suppressed, Zhi Ji couldn’t break free, and the other beasts rushed past her, heading for the camp.
At this moment, Night Pupil emerged from the gap created by Zhi Ji and faced the tide of beasts, wielding only a blood-sucking blade.
Qian Ye was extremely anxious. Even though he knew Night Pupil had recovered somewhat, in his heart, she was still the weak girl who had just come out of the military, barely able to walk.
Qian Ye’s figure flashed, and he appeared beside Night Pupil, a flicker of dark golden blood energy sending the surrounding beasts sprawling.
Many large beasts, still in their charge, plowed deep furrows in the ground. Those in front stopped, but those behind crashed into them, and in a moment, the beast tide was tumbling and rolling, littering the ground.
From the pack, a silver-colored, meter-long leopard-like beast leaped up, darting toward Night Pupil like a streak of silver lightning, aiming for her throat! Only rare variants could withstand the intimidation of Qian Ye’s dark golden blood energy. This silver leopard was so fast that even Qian Ye was caught off guard.
Terrified, Qian Ye, without time to draw East Peak, opened his mouth to release a burst of primordial force, intending to use the top-tier primordial force of Dawn’s Awakening to shock this variant to death. This was a way that greatly consumed primordial force, and even Qian Ye, with his current cultivation, could only manage a few bursts.
But just as he opened his mouth, a soft, smooth hand covered it, preventing the primordial force from being released. Night Pupil winked at Qian Ye and smiled, “Silly!”
With her other hand, she raised it, and the silver cub was held by the nape of its neck, claws hanging limply, unable to move.
Night Pupil, after all, was a daughter of the Monro king, and after her bloodline awakened, fighting became instinctual. In terms of combat skills, she was not much inferior to Qian Ye. Dealing with such instinct-driven beasts was almost effortless.
A heavily armored beast lowered its head and charged at the two of them with a vicious snarl. Night Pupil, light as a feather, rose into the air, and with a gentle thrust of her blood-sucking blade, it pierced the beast’s vital spot, deep to the hilt. She ran with the armored beast for a moment, then leaped onto another beast. The armored beast, running on its own, dashed hundreds of meters before its legs gave out, and it crashed to the ground.
Night Pupil moved as if she had no weight, touching the beasts briefly and moving on. Any beast that came into contact with her would soon fall to the ground. Watching her fight was like watching a dance, beautiful and mesmerizing.
On the other side, Qian Ye fought with wide, powerful swings. East Peak swept across, felling a swath; it swept again, felling another; and then again…
But Qian Ye and Night Pupil seemed to have forgotten about Zhi Ji.
At the other end of the battlefield, a pile of beasts gathered, forming a small mountain. At the bottom of this mountain, Zhi Ji was being torn apart. Zhi Ji initially struggled fiercely, but after repeated failed attempts, her face grew more and more miserable, and she finally burst into tears. But after one cry, she stopped, her eyes gradually turning a deep amber, and her pupils became vertical slits.
With a sudden scream, she forcefully pulled her tiny hands from the mouths of two huge beasts. Her strength was so great that it pulled out dozens of teeth from the beasts. The two beasts howled in pain, but Zhi Ji was clearly furious. She grabbed the upper jaw with her hands, stomped on the lower jaw, and with a push and a stomp, snapped the head of the beast in half!
She repeated this method, quickly dispatching several large beasts. The beasts were finally intimidated and fled, trying to avoid this terrifying enemy.
After the intense battles, little Zhi Ji swayed, nearly falling. She was, after all, still young, and despite her formidable body, her stamina was limited.
Seeing that Zhi Ji could no longer hold on, Qian Ye finally lost patience, pointing East Peak at the Black Forest and coldly said, “Either you come out, or get out now! Otherwise, I will not only kill these beasts but also cut down this entire forest!”
In the Black Forest, shadows flickered, and it was unclear if they understood Qian Ye’s words. In a corner of the Black Forest, Little Knife and Iron Bear, wearing cloaks adorned with leaves and branches, watched the battlefield with astonishment.
Little Knife nudged Iron Bear and whispered, “Boss, that guy seems really strong. Maybe we should just call it quits?”
Iron Bear, with a stern face, said, “No rush, let’s watch a little longer.”
“What if he discovers us?”
Iron Bear snorted, “The Black Forest can interfere with perception, and we’re so far away. How could he see us? Even if he did, what of it? At worst, we fight!”
Iron Bear was always domineering, but Little Knife, who was meek, seemed a bit lacking in confidence.
Qian Ye repeated his words, and seeing no reaction from the Black Forest, he let out a cold laugh. Countless blood threads flashed around him, and in an instant, all the beasts within ten meters staggered, stumbled, and fell. Qian Ye took a step forward, instantly crossing dozens of meters, and arrived in the midst of another group of beasts. Then, more blood threads flashed, annihilating this group of beasts.
This killing method instantly shocked the native races in the Black Forest. They froze, and then a series of urgent flute sounds followed. The remaining beasts, feeling relieved, turned tail and ran back into the Black Forest as fast as they could.
The flute sounds grew more and more urgent, filled with anxiety and anger. Qian Ye listened intently to the flute, and in his mind, the Book of Darkness turned, consuming a large amount of stored essence blood. Soon, a secret technique appeared on the pages.
Qian Ye raised East Peak, plucked the sword edge with his finger, and emitted a clear, piercing sound. The pitch of this sound was similar to the flute, and the sound in the forest resonated, rising abruptly, followed by a crack, and the flute shattered. A faint cry of pain echoed from the forest, followed by angry roars, and several figures ran back and forth at the edge of the forest, waving their weapons at Qian Ye.
Qian Ye sneered, extending a middle finger in their direction. Although this gesture might not be universal, the disdain was clear to any intelligent life form.
The figures in the Black Forest grew angrier, ready to charge out. At this moment, a slender figure appeared, desperately holding them back, pulling them back into the forest one by one. Qian Ye recognized this figure as the girl he had encountered in the forest during the day. It seemed she had been deeply frightened and knew the peril, thus not wanting her people to come out and die.
Since the native races did not want to fight, Qian Ye did not intend to annihilate them. Moreover, Qian Ye wanted to leave them with a false impression, making them think the Black Forest posed a significant obstacle to him. In reality, with a 500-meter range of vision in the Misty Forest, the Black Forest was no different from a regular forest to Qian Ye. If the native races thought they had the advantage of the forest, Qian Ye planned to directly raid and kill their leader, leaving them a lesson they would never forget.
The native races retreated, and the surviving beasts fled completely. Around the courtyard, there were at least two or three hundred dead beasts. This solved the food problem for Zhi Ji and the others, but storing the meat became a new challenge.
Taking advantage of the increasingly cold night, Qian Ye broke the ice on the small river, brought in large chunks of solid ice, and placed the edible beasts on the ice piles. He then dug a large pit, preparing to create a food storage cellar. Besides the dozen intact beasts, Qian Ye planned to transport the rest to the town to sell. Most of these beasts had had their essence blood drawn by Qian Ye and Night Pupil, greatly reducing their actual value. However, the merchants buying the beasts did not know this, and it did not affect the quality of the meat. But Zhi Ji, however, had no interest in the meat of beasts whose essence blood had been drawn.
This night’s battle was a complete victory, and little Zhi Ji showed signs of advancing, but Qian Ye did not feel at ease. If it was just tonight’s level, then two or three fully equipped warriors would be enough to defend against the beast tide.
This danger did not match the threat Qian Ye felt. For him, it wasn’t even dangerous. The true enemy was still hidden deep in the sea.
It was twilight once again, and the town quieted down early, except for the only tavern which was still lively. Most places were empty, and the streets were deserted. As the night wind blew, the chill rapidly intensified, driving away the warmth of the day, and the water on the ground quickly froze into ice.
By midnight, the cold in the night wind penetrated to the bone marrow. Anyone with only fifth or sixth-level primordial force wouldn’t dare to go out. Little Knife, coming out of the tavern, wrapped himself tightly in a thick fur coat, covering his entire body except for his eyes. But when the cold wind blew, he shivered and almost fell over.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage