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墨書 Inktalez
Seeing this move work, the one-eyed Bear-like Creature's eye sparkled with excitement as it swung its arm again, causing large branches and leaves to fall down.
In the midst of this chaos, Mei Shuang lost her grip and fell down. Fortunately, Kato was quick enough to grab her arm. She intended to grab a vine to swing over to the tree across, but with her body hanging in mid-air, if the Bear-like Creature climbed up, just one swipe would send her crashing to the ground.
Cong Yue was anxious, but the long knife in his hand couldn't be wielded amidst the dense branches and leaves. He could only climb upwards alongside Shijieyu, trying to move to the side branches.
Mei Shuang glanced down, estimating that she was only a few meters away from the Bear-like Creature. The foul stench hit her head-on, and its sharp claws and menacing single eye terrified her.
Mei Shuang shouted, "Let go of me! I'd rather fall to my death than be eaten by it!"
Shijieyu had already picked up a long vine. After testing it, he decisively threw it to Kato because everyone knew that anyone could fall to the ground, but only Mei Shuang, who lacked martial skills, could not afford to do so.
Kato caught the vine and quickly wrapped it around Mei Shuang's arm several times, instructing her to hold onto it with her other hand. At that moment, Cong Yue seized the opportunity and leaped from the tree towards them.
Mei Shuang felt her body suddenly lose balance as she was tightly secured; in an instant, she found herself on another tree.
Seeing Mei Shuang safe and sound, Kato and Shijieyu breathed a sigh of relief and immediately turned to face the danger ahead.
The clumsy Bear-like Creature continued its ascent, agitated by the dense branches and leaves. It roared angrily as it swung its long arms, preparing to knock everyone down to the ground.
The ancient tree shook violently under the Bear-like Creature's antics, leaving everyone dizzy.
Above them was the treetop; Kato and Shijieyu had nowhere left to retreat. The long vine they had previously given to Mei Shuang left them with no choice but to gather as much as they could on the branches. Their only weapon was Shijieyu's soft sword.
Fortunately, Cong Fei, who had fallen to the ground, was not seriously injured. Several arrows quickly shot up and struck firmly at the Bear-like Creature's rear. It howled in pain and turned back fiercely to pull out the arrows. Taking advantage of this moment, Shijieyu thrust his soft sword deep into its chest.
As the soft arrow was pulled out, a surge of hot blood spurted out, shocking to behold.
The pain-ridden Bear-like Creature grew increasingly furious, leaping upward and fiercely swiping at Shijieyu.
Shijieyu was startled and instinctively leaned back to dodge, but unexpectedly slipped, his toes getting caught in the branches, causing him to fall backward.
With his body hanging upside down, he was only about a meter away from the Bear-like Creature.
Kato felt anxious but dared not approach, fearing that the creature's weight would break the already strained branches, sending Shijieyu plummeting from the ancient tree over ten meters high.
If the previous situation was perilous, they were now on the brink of life and death.
Mei Shuang watched from the side, breaking into a sweat. Suddenly inspired, she shouted, "Quick! Fire!"
The so-called telepathic connection instantly clicked for Anriyan below. The Firestarter in his hand whistled as it flew into the air, igniting upon contact with the thick grease on the Bear-like Creature's back.
The Bear-like Creature let out a howl and retracted its long arm that was nearly touching Shijieyu, hurriedly trying to pat out the fire on its back. In its panic, its hefty body could no longer support itself and fell from the tree.
The heavy body crashed into the ground, creating a large pit. The fire on its back was extinguished upon impact, but it still suffered severe injuries from the intense burning.
A foul smell of charred flesh spread through the air. Anriyan reignited the Firestarter in his hand. The Bear-like Creature was covered in blood but dared not approach again; suddenly, it turned and burrowed into the bushes.
With the Bear-like Creature fleeing in panic, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
The saying goes, "Outsmart the strong, capture the weak." After the Bear-like Creature disappeared for a while and confirmed it was safe, everyone gradually climbed down from the trees.
The shaken Shijieyu was also pulled down from the tree, and everyone gathered together, inevitably praising Mei Shuang for her sudden good idea.
Encountering such a formidable enemy without any casualties was indeed a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.
As they huddled together, they looked at each other; no one had clean clothes, all were torn and tattered.
Shijieyu had it the worst, as he had been hanging upside down in the tree and got his shirt caught on a branch, leaving a large gash under his ribs. The summer clothes were thin, and Shijieyu's face turned red as he hurried to change into another shirt.
The sky had already darkened, and through the gaps in the ancient trees, only faint sunlight could be seen filtering in.
Cong Fei and Cong Yue looked around again to ensure there was no danger before finally starting a fire in place.
Moreover, they didn't limit themselves to just one fire; after lighting fires in four directions, they also surrounded a large tree with a circle of flames.
A few people sat around the fire, starting to roast food and eat dry rations. After a long day of fatigue and hunger, everyone was ravenous, munching on their rations while discussing taking turns to keep watch overnight.
In the end, they decided to split into three groups: Cong Fei and Cong Yue in one group, Kato and Shijieyu in another group, and Anriyan and Mei Shuang in the last group.
After a day of running around, everyone was exhausted, but undoubtedly it was comfortable to take the first watch. As long as they held out for an hour and a half, they could sleep until Dawn.
The Coach Brothers insisted on taking the first watch. "The Bear-like Creature is inherently strange; although we have temporarily escaped, we don't know when it will return. Therefore, we must remain vigilant."
Upon hearing that this individual might return, everyone's spirits lifted once again.
Shijieyu muttered, somewhat dejected, "It's as if they've become a spirit, relentlessly tracking our movements all the way..."
As the saying goes, the speaker has no intention while the listener takes it to heart. For some reason, a fleeting shadow suddenly flashed before Mei Shuang's eyes.
Anriyan sat thoughtfully in front of the fire, his face solemn. He looked up and asked Coach Brothers, "Did you notice anything unusual on the way here?"
Coach Brothers also wore a grave expression, clearly having come to the same conclusion as Anriyan.
Mei Shuang's heart sank; it seemed she hadn't been imagining things. After she recounted the previous events, everyone fell silent.
Undoubtedly, they had been followed since they ascended the mountain.
The appearance of the Bear-like Creature could be deemed coincidental at first, but its subsequent appearances were abnormal. If it weren't for someone deliberately guiding it, how could the Bear-like Creature track them so accurately? This indicated that their actions had been exposed and that someone hidden in the shadows was determined to stop them by any means necessary.
This aligned with the information Shijieyu had inadvertently overheard at the inn; it seemed their movements had indeed been revealed.
Night had fallen, and everyone sat around the campfire lost in thought. Even Mei Shuang, who had been exhausted moments ago, found herself wide awake. "It seems we have gained an even more formidable adversary!" Mei Shuang said with a wry smile.
"One Bear-like Creature has already worn us out; if there are more individuals even stronger than it, we must be extra cautious," Shijieyu remarked.
"Since they want to stop us, they must have many methods at their disposal. Why did they specifically send the Bear-like Creature to deal with us?"
"To come up with a way to use a Bear-like Creature against us must mean they are unwilling to show their face, or they simply want us to know that it's just the work of the Bear-like Creature. Even if we pursue this matter in the future, it won't be attributed to a person. This shows their malicious intent," Cong Fei said angrily.
"If it weren't for Miss Lin suggesting using fire to attack the Bear-like Creature today, we might not have had any chance of winning," Cong Yue said as he took out a bag of white powder from his pack and sniffed it carefully. "This powder generally poses no problem. With this, the Bear-like Creature won't be able to detect our direction for a short time. Since the other party can lead the Bear-like Creature to track us accurately, it indicates that they are not alone... which means there must be a group following us."
Cong Yue's analysis left everyone feeling even more uneasy.
The key question was who could accurately guide the Bear-like Creature and have it chase after them without exposing themselves? What kind of situation would allow someone to do that? It was a chilling thought.
As this question hung in the air, everyone fell silent. In Mei Shuang's view, perhaps it was just an unspoken understanding.
She suddenly recalled Xiao Luo's words, "You will see him soon," and felt a moment of disorientation.
"I have already scattered some of the powder in the distance; it can temporarily block the beasts. We are safe for now. If the other party wanted to kill us, they might have acted long ago. Since they came up with this tactic, they must have something to fear. Although we don't know what it is yet, it's best to remain cautious. Let's take a break for now; if there's danger, we'll use a whistle as a signal."
No one understood the dangers of deep forests better than the Coach Brothers. Since things were clear, wasting energy would be pointless.
Before several of them climbed onto another ancient tree, Cong Fei went up first to check for any animals resting on the branches. Once he confirmed there was no danger, he signaled for everyone to come up.
The dense branches and thick leaves formed a soft bed. After Mei Shuang spread out a layer of clothing beneath her, she couldn't help but feel drowsy and quickly fell asleep alongside Shijieyu.
Anriyan gave Kato a brief reminder before leaning against a branch and closing his eyes to rest.
Cong Fei and Cong Yue stood guard at a higher point on another tree.
The night was like a large curtain, shrouding the mountains and forests in darkness, with only the half-moon hanging high in the sky filtering through the gaps in the leaves, barely illuminating the surroundings.
The entire forest seemed to have entered a dreamlike state, quiet and still. When Mei Shuang turned over in her sleep, she momentarily thought she was on the comfortable sandalwood bed in the palace. The rustling leaves nearby produced a soft "whoosh" sound, reminding her that she was outdoors, causing her drowsiness to dissipate significantly.
Noticing Mei Shuang's restless movements, Kato, who was closest to her, took out a small pill from his sleeve. He casually crushed it and tossed it into the air.
The crushed pill released a faint fragrance, akin to a sleeping aid, and Mei Shuang quickly fell into a deep slumber...
At this moment, the forest was not as tranquil as one might imagine.
A Bear-like Creature, injured and panicked, dashed through the dense woods until it reached an open area in a mountain hollow, where it finally collapsed and began to lick its bloody wounds incessantly.
Moonlight illuminated the hollow, revealing two figures standing on a large rock.
The person in front wore an ornate robe and stood tall like jade. A silver mask covered most of his face as he coldly observed the severely injured Bear-like Creature below.
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