237: Giant Bear and Demon Tree

The group suppressed their auras and, using the cover of ancient trees and jagged rocks, stealthily advanced to the edge of a relatively open forest clearing. The sight before them made even the experienced Tao Yuanyi's pupils contract involuntarily.

The center of the clearing was a mess. The originally dense shrubs and short trees had been roughly flattened, revealing the dark brown soil beneath. Deep claw marks, broken tree trunks, and strange vegetation torn up by the roots and scattered everywhere were all around. The air was filled with a strange mixture of strong earthy smells, wood chips, the sweet fragrance of honey, and... a faint scent of blood.

The two combatants, vastly different in size, both exuded a terrifyingly savage aura.

One was a brown-black Giant Bear over three meters tall, resembling a moving hill. Standing upright, its muscles were knotted like ancient tree roots, its thick fur stained with mud and a certain golden-yellow sticky liquid—that liquid was dripping from its gaping maw, emitting an enticing sweet fragrance, clearly precious Spirit Honey.

The Giant Bear's eyes were blood-red, filled with frenzy and greed. Each swipe of its claws carried a terrifying shriek that tore through the air; wherever the claw wind passed, ancient trees as thick as a person's embrace were easily snapped like paper, leaving deep trenches in the ground. A faint yellowish-brown halo rippled around its body—a sign of power strong enough to stir the earth's veins: the pressure of a Martial Emperor-level Yao Beast! Although it seemed to have recently entered this realm, its aura slightly unstable, the domineering presence and sense of power belonging to an emperor-level creature were unmistakable.

The other side battling the Giant Bear was even more peculiar. It was an ancient tree that had "come to life," or rather, some kind of tree demon that had gained sentience. Its trunk was five meters tall, deep brown in color, with bark cracked like dragon scales. Countless thick branches were no longer rigid parts of its body but flexibly whipped and lashed like giant serpentine whips, creating whooshing sounds. A distorted, pained human-like face faintly appeared on the trunk, emitting silent shrieks and wails that seemed to act directly on the Soul. Its roots had pulled out from the ground, like thousands of tentacles, constantly entangling and thrusting, trying to restrain or pierce the Giant Bear. The aura it emitted had clearly reached the Peak of Half-step Martial Emperor, carrying a rich, pure Plant-Based Demonic Power and an ancient resentment that had accumulated over countless years.

"Boom! Boom! Crack—!"

The Giant Bear unleashed another powerful sweeping blow, and two thick, wildly dancing branches snapped in response, splattering sap (like green blood). The Tree Spirit emitted an even more piercing silent wail, the face on its trunk twisting further.

The trigger for this battle, or the "spoils," was also scattered across the field—not far from the Giant Bear's feet lay the shattered remains of a strange Honeycomb as large as a house, made of a material resembling both wood and wax, shimmering with a faint reddish-gold luster. Honeycomb fragments and golden Spirit Honey were spilled everywhere, with countless corpses of Fire Fierce Wasps densely covering the ground. Some remaining, fearless wasps still frantically charged at the Giant Bear, stinging its thick fur with their dark blue venomous stingers.

However, this Wasp Venom, potent enough to kill a Martial King, had minimal effect on the thick-skinned Giant Bear, which seemed protected by Earth-Based Demonic Power. The bear couldn't even be bothered, occasionally swatting impatiently with its giant paws to crush the attacking wasps into pulp. Instead, the wasps suffered heavy casualties, like moths to a flame.

Not just the wasps. At the edges of the forest clearing, shadowy figures of other types of Yao Beasts lurked, prowling, snarling, and even occasionally attacking. There were extremely fast Iron-Beaked Strange Birds diving from the sky to peck, agile Ghost-Faced Monkeys throwing hard fruits from branches, and even a few large, fanged Demonized Giant Rabbits with red eyes ramming into the bear's legs... These Yao Beasts were generally not highly cultivated, ranging from Martial Master to Grand Martial Master, but they seemed driven by some force, or perhaps infected by the Tree Spirit's wails and anger, attacking their common enemy—the Giant Bear that had disrupted the forest's balance and stolen the precious Spirit Honey—regardless of life or death.

The scene was chaotic and brutal. The Giant Bear, fighting alone against many, steadily held the upper hand. Its goal was clear: to completely destroy this annoying Tree Spirit and seize the remaining Spirit Honey core, likely hidden within the Tree Spirit's body or under its roots.

"No wonder the wasp swarm went berserk..." Qin Feng understood inwardly. That shattered giant Honeycomb was clearly the nest of the Fire Fierce Wasps, wiped out by this intruding Martial Emperor-level Giant Bear. The panicked swarm had scattered, affecting their area.

"Brother Feng," Xiao Chun's voice carried a barely noticeable tremor. She tightly gripped Qin Feng's sleeve, her face pale, but her gaze was involuntarily fixed on the struggling Tree Spirit. "Be careful... this Tree Spirit's aura feels so painful, so sorrowful... It's already Half-step Martial Emperor, but that bear... I'm afraid it's already a true Martial Emperor level..."

The Myriad Medicine Body was naturally attuned to plant life, and Xiao Chun could clearly feel the Tree Spirit's emotions washing over her like a tide: anger, pain, despair from its territory being violated, and a deeper sorrow that seemed to emanate from the entire forest. This tightened her heart, instinctively giving rise to pity.

In the field, the Tree Spirit's situation grew increasingly dire. Although it had many branches and flexible roots, it was steadily retreating in the face of absolute power disparity. The Giant Bear seemed to grow impatient. It suddenly stood upright and roared, clasping its paws together as yellowish-brown demonic power frantically gathered, condensing into a giant rock phantom shimmering with heavy light, which it hurled fiercely at the Tree Spirit's trunk!

If this strike landed solidly, the Tree Spirit's trunk would likely shatter on the spot!

"Screech—!" The Tree Spirit emitted an unprecedented sharp wail. All its branches and roots retracted and entangled desperately, forming a thick wooden barrier in front of it. Simultaneously, the entire forest's plants seemed to rustle, countless green light points converging from all directions to reinforce its defense.

"Boom—!!!"

The giant rock phantom and the wooden barrier collided violently! A fierce energy shockwave exploded in a ring, devastatingly blowing away and shattering the surrounding remaining trees, rocks, and even some weaker Yao Beasts that had gotten too close! Dust and wood chips soared into the sky!

Faintly, the sound of the wooden barrier cracking under pressure and the Tree Spirit's silent, Soul-piercing death scream seemed audible.

Xiao Chun's face grew paler, her fingers clenched so tightly her knuckles turned white.

At that moment, Cold Peach Blossom, who had been silently vigilant with her senses fully extended, suddenly changed expression. A rare flicker of alarm passed through her cool eyes as she abruptly turned to look deeper into the forest, in a direction darker and more ancient than the Tree Spirit's territory, urgently saying:

"Retreat quickly! I sense... an even stronger, more ancient, violent, and icy aura... approaching rapidly! Extremely fast!"

Almost simultaneously, Tao Yuanyi and Qin Feng also felt their hair stand on end. A sense of crisis far stronger than when facing the Martial Emperor Giant Bear, originating from their life instincts, flooded them like ice water! That aura... seemed like the entire ancient forest's will, materialized into fury after being thoroughly enraged!

"Go!" Tao Yuanyi decisively growled, not even having time to explain. He swept his spear backward, repelling a few Yao Beasts that had panicked from the explosion's impact and crashed toward them, signaling the group to immediately retreat the way they came, far from this place that was about to become a true hell!

Qin Feng grabbed Xiao Chun, whose mind was somewhat unsettled, while Xia Ya and Ji Ruxue instantly reacted, protecting the flanks.

The group no longer cared about concealment, pushing their speed to the limit as they frantically dashed back the way they had come!

Behind them, from the center of the clearing where the dust had not yet settled, came the Giant Bear's suspicious and uneasy roar, and... a low, majestic, terrifying roar that seemed to come from primordial antiquity suddenly sounded!

The entire Ancient Wood Deep Forest seemed to tremble at that roar.