It was truly disgusting enough to make one's scalp itch.

 

“Indeed, something’s off!” Bai Ke said softly.

The narrow mountain path they had just walked through was so dark that they had to rely on the fluorescent glow of the bead in Jun Xiao’s hand to see. However, now, standing at the end of that path, they could see a whole expanse of dense forest ahead of them.

It was a very strange sight.

Behind them was endless darkness, while in front lay a sunlit forest with stippled shadows dancing among the trees. The two of them seemed to be a dividing line between these two worlds.

Since Junxiao had never been to the Sanqing Pool before, he didn’t know what the scenery inside should look like. He put away the bead in his hand and looked at Bai Ke.

Bai Ke said, “Last time, the mountain path wasn’t this long. I remember I only walked for a few minutes. Of course, when you’re in complete darkness, your sense of time isn’t very acute, but putting that aside, when I came out of the mountain path, I was immediately faced with the whole Ice Soul. Apart from that Ice Soul, I could hardly see anything else. I could only vaguely make out the outline of a cliff, which was too blurry to distinguish. But there was definitely not such a dense forest.”

“Mm.” Junxiao frowned as he listened to Bai Ke while looking at the forest ahead. He then nodded, “It seems that the Hengtian Sect not only set up the Nine Kill Formation and blood beasts, but they’ve also tampered with the Sanqing Pool, redirecting the path that originally led to the Ice Soul to somewhere else.”

“Redirected to somewhere else? What do we do now?” Bai Ke’s tone carried a hint of worry.

Junxiao squeezed his hand reassuringly and said, “Let’s first get through this forest. The Sanqing Pool was originally a complete secret realm; the Hengtian Sect simply inserted some obstacles in the middle. They’ve just bent a straight path a couple of times—there’s no need to worry.”

Bai Ke was generally much steadier and calmer than his peers, but in front of Junxiao, he still felt a stronger sense of reliance. So, after hearing Junxiao's words, he nodded and obediently followed him into the forest.

To reassure Bai Ke, Junxiao only mentioned part of the situation, omitting another crucial point—since the Hengtian Sect claimed to have set up the Nine Kill Formation and blood beasts near the Sanqing Pool, and they hadn’t noticed anything unusual outside, it meant these arrangements were likely made inside. Thus, where exactly they were placed was self-evident.

Stepping out of the darkness, they were bathed in the relatively gentle sunlight. As they got closer to the edge of the forest, the light became increasingly tinted with the rich emerald color of the trees.

When they finally stood before the forest and could vaguely see a path hidden among the intertwining branches, Junxiao paused for a moment.

He gazed deeply into the forest before turning to Bai Ke and saying, “This forest probably won’t be simple. No matter what happens, don’t let go of my hand.”

Bai Ke nodded and followed Jun Xiao, stepping into the forest.

In a place where ill intentions were clearly at play, following the established path would be foolish. So as they entered the forest, Bai Ke watched as Junxiao lifted his empty hand. His fingers moved slightly, and he rubbed out a small dot of bright blue flame from between his fingers. This flame, once freed from Junxiao’s hand, seemed to sprout wings and fluttered off into the deeper parts of the forest to the right front. It flew for quite a distance until Bai Ke could hardly catch sight of the bright dot, at which point the flame suddenly vanished.

“This way.” Junxiao pulled Bai Ke along, bypassing a seemingly safe path and following the direction where the dot of light had flown.

The branches in this area were denser than elsewhere, and as they navigated through, they sometimes had to bend down slightly to avoid being scratched by the twigs. After all, while the trees in this forest appeared ordinary, no one knew what kind of species they actually were.

Junxiao continuously protected Bai Ke, warning him about the contorted tree roots and tangled vines beneath their feet.

However, despite their caution, Bai Ke was still caught off guard and stumbled over a protruding rock hidden beneath half-rotted fallen leaves. The hand holding his tightened, pulling Junxiao along with him, while his other hand instinctively grasped a nearby branch to steady his leaning body.

The entire branch bent slightly under his weight, and when he let go, the not-so-sturdy tree shook a bit.

Just as Bai Ke regained his balance, he felt the hand gripping him pull with force, and he was suddenly pulled to the side, his body crashing into Junxiao's arms.

“What—” Bai Ke was startled and was about to ask Junxiao what had happened when he saw a shadow suddenly drop from the spot where Junxiao had been standing.

The creature had evidently fallen from the shaking branch and lay motionless on the ground.

Bai Ke frowned and leaned slightly to get a better look at what it was. Unfortunately, the thing that had landed was not strong in spiritual energy, so all he could make out was a vague outline. It seemed to be furry and had a long, thin tail trailing behind it, but its position was so contorted that Bai Ke took a while to find where its head was—

The creature’s head seemed to be broken, hanging at a very unnatural angle against its chest. Due to its low spiritual energy and unclear outline, its facial features were also indistinct. Bai Ke could only make out two hollow black eyes staring at him, looking as eerie and lifeless as a skull.

Even for someone as bold as Bai Ke, the moment he recognized it, he couldn't help but instinctively step back, landing right into Junxiao's embrace.

“Don’t be afraid, it’s just a wild monkey.” Junxiao reassured him. Of course, a wild monkey appearing in such an unusual forest would not be an ordinary species; it must have some spiritual energy.

Bai Ke couldn’t see it clearly, but Junxiao could see everything.

The wild monkey's body was emaciated and stiff, looking as if it had been dead for quite some time—hanging from the branch until it dried out, its muscles withered away, making it appear as if a layer of fur had simply been draped over its skeletal frame. Its eyes were hollowed out, possibly pecked by birds or something else, leaving behind two dark, ghastly sockets staring at them.

However, if this wild monkey had truly been dead for a long time, why was there still seemingly fresh blood oozing from its body, slowly pooling on the thick layer of fallen leaves beneath?

Bai Ke couldn’t see the blood, but his sense of smell was quite keen. He wrinkled his nose and said, “There’s a strong smell of blood.”

Junxiao glanced around before his expression shifted slightly. He wrapped one arm around Bai Ke’s waist and leaped into the air, floating down gently onto a nearby cluster of branches.

As they left the spot where they had just stood, a sudden rustling sound emerged from the seemingly tranquil layer of fallen leaves, as if something was sliding through them at great speed.

“Snake?” Bai Ke asked, having heard the noise. Just as he voiced his suspicion, several long, slender, snake-like appendages burst from the leaves, twisting towards the blood that was seeping from the wild monkey’s body. In a matter of moments, a series of nauseating tearing and swallowing sounds followed, and the body of the wild monkey, which wasn’t small, vanished completely, leaving not even a bone behind.

“…” Bai Ke had been standing casually on the swaying branch with Junxiao, but upon witnessing this scene, he couldn’t help but twitch his lips and clutch Junxiao’s clothing tighter, leaning closer to him.

If the ground was filled with such horrifying creatures, how could they dare to set foot on it!

The three snake-like appendages had moved so quickly before that he couldn’t discern their exact forms. Now that they had feasted on the wild monkey’s corpse, they leisurely slithered down to the ground, inching through the thick layer of leaves. The sound of their slow, rustling movements was enough to send chills down anyone's spine.

Bai Ke wasn’t sure whether these things were sensitive only to the scent of blood or if they had both sight and hearing, so he held his breath. Once the three appendages had completely disappeared, he leaned closer to Junxiao and whispered, “Did you see what that was?”

“They look like vine-like things.” Junxiao replied, pausing for a moment before adding, “Why are you being so cautious with your voice?”

Bai Ke questioned, “Are you sure they can’t hear us?”

Junxiao shook his head, “If these vines have developed consciousness like the ones in my secret realm due to rich spiritual energy, then they would be able to smell and see. But the spiritual energy in this forest is far weaker than that in the secret realm…”

Bai Ke gave a dry laugh, “I’ve never seen the branches in your secret realm eat things so viciously.”

“This thing is indeed very sinister. I feel that they rely neither on hearing nor on sight, but rather…” Junxiao pointed his toes at the branches they were stepping on, then pulled Bai Ke closer into his embrace. With a push off the ground, the two of them soared into the air like kites. While swiftly dodging, he finished his sentence, “They can sense everything with flesh and blood, whether it’s a living or a dead creature.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a multitude of “puffing” sounds erupted around them. From the ground, among the towering ancient trees, and through the gaps in the branches… dozens of tree vines suddenly burst forth like gigantic pythons, twisting and whipping through the air with a whoosh and immense force, racing toward the two who were hovering above.

Bai Ke could even hear countless “pop” sounds as the vines lashed out, the rushing wind of their movement, and what sounded like desperate gasps and swallowing noises emanating from deep within the vines, as if they were starved.

It was truly disgusting enough to make one's scalp itch.

The unnatural calm they had experienced upon entering the forest now stood in stark contrast to this bizarre and tense scene, serving as a foreshadowing of the danger to come.

Bai Ke could only hold on tightly to Junxiao, trying to avoid being swept away by a vine and becoming a burden.

Yet the sight before them was utterly despairing—countless man-eating vines twisted and tangled, coming from all directions, dense and overwhelming, leaving them nowhere to escape.

 

Translator : DarNan