161 Enchanted Forest
With teary eyes, Deng Xiao looked at Cong Xia and pleaded, “Cong Ge, please save me quickly.”
Cong Xia anxiously glanced at the silver fungus continuously climbing up Deng Xiao’s forearm and asked, “Have you made any progress in dealing with the regressive neurotoxin after spending over a month on it?”
“Yes, it can poison ordinary people without a problem,” Deng Xiao replied.
Taking a deep breath, Cong Xia said, “I will infuse energy into your poison gland to help you secrete more toxins. Try using your own toxins to repel these silver fungi. If successful, your poison gland will undoubtedly evolve further. If it fails, chop off your arm before the fungi devour it entirely.”
Gritting his teeth, Deng Xiao said, “Let’s give it a try.”
Zhuang Yao nodded approvingly and took out his notebook, ready to make notes.
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Usdt Dky nsdhlavle bkp Uyxcakyd ldlatu kdvs oyvla ldlatu yde kdflnvle kv kdvs Pldt Dkys’p cseu. Tl zsnyvle y rskpsd tzyde wdela Pldt Dkys’p yaxrkv yde kdqwple vbl ldlatu kdvs kv. Mbl nlzzp kd vbl tzyde kxxlekyvlzu ynnlzlayvle vblka ekhkpksd, rasewnkdt bktbzu vsmkn dlwasvsmkdp nsdvkdwswpzu. Pldt Dkys nsdvaszzle vbl vsmkdp vs pralye esod bkp yax wdvkz vblu xlv vbl czsse-ale pkzhla qwdtk.
Pldt Dkys qlzv y pbyar rykd kd bkp yax, yp kq kv oyp ycswv vs lmrzsel yv ydu plnsde. Tl nzldnble bkp vllvb vktbvzu yde qsanlqwzzu rwpble vbl vsmkdp esodoyaep. Ls xyvvla bso rykdqwz kv oyp, kv nswzed’v cl osapl vbyd byhkdt bkp yax nbsrrle sqq yde altasokdt kv rykdqwzzu.
Mbl pkzhla qwdtk, yqvla nsxkdt kdvs nsdvynv okvb vbl vsmkdp, cltyd vs nswdvlayvvynj qklanlzu. Mblu pvawttzle elprlayvlzu kdpkel Pldt Dkys’p yax, nywpkdt bkx kxxldpl rykd. Tl nswzed’v blzr cwv asya, “Gb, kv bwavp ps xwnb!”
Ubldt Mkydck ryvvle bkp pbswzela yde pyke, “Odewal kv, sa lzpl…” Tl tlpvwale, kxrzukdt vbyv Pldt Dkys’p yax xktbv cl kd eydtla.
Usdt Dky watle, “Dkys Pldt, nsdnldvayvl!”
Mbl rykd yde pldpl sq nakpkp qsanle Pldt Dkys vs rasewnl vsmkdp okvb yzz bkp xktbv. Mbl plnalvksd sq vsmkdp kd bkp cseu oyp dso vball vkxlp pvasdtla vbyd wpwyz, yde vbkp yxswdv sq vsmkd yzsdl nswze yzalyeu cl y rsolaqwz sqqldpkhl qsanl. Ekvb vbl fskdv lqqsavp sq Usdt Dky yde Pldt Dkys, vbl pkzhla qwdtk olal qkdyzzu qsanle vs alvalyv pvlr cu pvlr. Mblu tayewyzzu nyxl swv sq Pldt Dkys’p cseu yde qlzz vs vbl taswde zkjl pvyavzle flzzu, vbld olal kdnkdlayvle cu y cwapv sq qkal qasx Fbld Ubydtgl, vwadkdt vblx kdvs ypblp.
Gp Pldt Dkys’p yax tayewyzzu alvwadle vs kvp dsaxyz nszsa, lhlausdl calyvble y pktb sq alzklq, yde Pldt Dkys bkxplzq qlzv zkjl bl bye clld taydvle y ryaesd. Tl ds zsdtla dllele vs byhl bkp yax nbsrrle sqq, yde bl yzxspv nakle okvb fsu.
Usdt Dky blzrzlppzu pyke, “Rd vbl qwvwal, esd’v vswnb wdjdsod vbkdtp alnjzlppzu. Nssj yv vbl vaswczl usw nywple.”
Deng Xiao pouted, feeling frustrated.
Zhuang Yao said, “It’s a blessing in disguise. Has the toxin level in your body increased?”
“Yes, several poison glands have secreted a lot of toxins.”
“Quite a bit. Your regressive process has advanced a step further.” Zhuang Yao walked over, “Stick out your tongue and let me see.”
Deng Xiao extended a pink tongue.
Zhuang Yao glared at him, “Are you an idiot? Who wants to see a human tongue!”
Deng Xiao’s tongue froze in mid-air and then retracted with a look of grievance. After a while, a long, snake-like tongue, about 15 centimeters long and purplish-blue, extended from his mouth. Zhuang Yao took out a transparent container from his bag, quickly scraped the tongue coating with a cotton swab, and then sealed it in the container. “Alright, retract it.”
The tongue snapped back into his mouth with a snap, and Deng Xiao smiled.
Zhuang Yao rolled his eyes, “What are you laughing at? You almost lost your arm.”
Deng Xiao glanced at the charred silver fungi on the ground and showed a somewhat regretful expression.
Li Dao’ai reached out from a distance, and the soil under the silver fungi was sucked up into Li Dao’ai’s hand as if attracted by something. He pinched the soil with his fingers and then threw it on the ground. People saw that his palm was already slightly cut, “This soil has been eroded by these silver fungi. I’m afraid that after a while, this place will also become a swamp.”
Cheng Tianbi squatted down to take a look, and indeed, a small patch of soil had turned dark red. Perhaps the large swamp had also started like this.
Zhuang Yao dug some soil and the silver fungus meat that had not been completely burned and put them into the container, “Interesting. These silver fungi can somehow integrate into a person’s body. I’ll experiment with them when we get back.”
San’er checked the sky, “Let’s continue walking. We’re very close to the big pine tree. In a few more kilometers, we should… um, see it.”
Cheng Tianbi asked, “Is there anything else we might encounter?”
“Hard to say, anything is possible.”
Li Dao’ai said, “Let’s go, we must reach the Devil’s Pine before it gets dark.”
Once again, the group set off, this time moving quickly. They were now only about ten kilometers away from the Devil’s Pine, and as long as they could reach the vicinity of the tree in one go, they would be temporarily safe.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned. After advancing another six or seven kilometers, they encountered a group of monkeys. These monkeys were large in size, swinging between tall and sturdy branches, screaming loudly at them, baring their teeth in a fierce and menacing manner.
Cheng Tianbi shouted, “Ignore them and move at full speed!”
A monkey swung down from a pine tree and pounced towards Zhuang Yao on Abu’s head. Before the monkey could reach Zhuang Yao, Abu slapped it away with a paw, and at the same time, roared loudly at the group of monkeys.
Abu’s roar was loud, and the monkeys responded fiercely, but none of them dared to approach again. They only jumped quickly among the bushes, closely following the group, and their speed was extremely fast, making it difficult for the group to shake them off.
Suddenly, a black object was thrown towards Abu’s head. Abu didn’t hesitate and slapped it away with a paw. Upon closer inspection, it was a pine cone the size of a water bucket, thrown by one of the monkeys.
The monkeys excitedly kept calling out, and one pine cone after another was thrown at them. Some were as big as basketballs, and the larger ones were like exercise balls.
With a large number of monkeys throwing pine cones at them, the group was having a hard time dealing with it. The pine cones were heavy, and even if they were split in half in mid-air, they still had inertia and continued forward. Bullets were not effective against them, and several people had already been hit.
“Damn, these damn monkeys!” Liu Fengyu fired the liquid gun at the monkeys, but the pine needles were too dense, and the monkeys were too fast. He shot for a long time, but still couldn’t hit any monkeys. The monkeys made faces at him, dancing and showing off, which infuriated Liu Fengyu.
Deng Xiao picked up the machine gun and angrily fired at the group of monkeys. The dense bullets from the machine gun finally had some effect, and several monkeys were hit and howled as they fell from the tall trees.
Cheng Tianbi’s ability was still advantageous against this group of monkeys, but some monkeys were standing on very high trees, beyond the range of his attacks. However, for those monkeys that came into close contact with him, he was nearly accurate with each swing of his knife.
Tang Yanqiu’s arrows were most effective at this moment, causing the monkeys to desperately hide behind the trees.
Shen Changze simply flew into the air and threw fireballs into the group of monkeys.
Al and Zhao Zixiang flew into the pine forest, grabbing the monkeys and throwing them to the ground.
A large monkey held a huge pine cone and fiercely smashed it towards Huo Bai.
Li Dao’ai swung his hand, causing the earth to surge two meters high, forming a sturdy wall that intercepted the approaching pine cones.
Despite the monkey’s attacks, they didn’t slow down much and continued to run forward with determination.
A large shadow was once again thrown towards Abu, and he let out an angry roar before swatting the object away with a paw. However, Cong Xia sensed an unusual energy fluctuation from the shadow. He immediately enhanced his vision, widened his eyes, and shouted, “Abu, don’t—”
But it was too late. Abu’s paw shattered the shadow, and suddenly, a swarm of finger-sized giant wasps flew out.
These monkeys were actually throwing wasp nests at them!
The ferocious wasps attacked them relentlessly, especially focusing on Abu, who had shattered their nest. Cong Xia protected Zhuang Yao under his body, covering his head with clothes, and huddled on Abu without daring to move. He knew he couldn’t deal with these wasps and could only pray that others would get rid of them quickly.
Deng Xiao cursed, “These damn monkeys are so despicable!”
As a group of wasps flew towards Cong Xia, Liu Fengyu ran up to Abu’s neck, and with one hand, his arm transformed into giant bright red petals. He slammed it towards the swarm of wasps, and their venomous stingers pierced the petals, only to be instantly dissolved by digestive fluids.
Shen Changze flew onto Abu’s back and spewed flames towards the swarm, killing a significant number of wasps.
Fortunately, the giant wasps, in terms of size and quantity, were only ordinary. They were quickly eliminated, and the monkeys also suffered heavy casualties and gradually scattered in all directions.
Abu’s face was stung several times, and his mouth swelled noticeably. He ran while rubbing his chest with his mouth, looking both funny and pitiful.
Although the crisis had passed, everyone was still filled with frustration. Since they entered this eerie forest, they had been constantly attacked and harassed. While these encounters were not enough to pose a deadly threat, someone was injured every time, and it severely slowed down their progress. The closer they got to the Devil’s Pine, the more they worried that the obstacles were far from over. After going through several battles, everyone was exhausted.
“Devil’s Pine is just ahead!” San’er suddenly shouted.
They looked ahead and saw an endless wall in the distance. Ever since they entered the forest, they couldn’t see the Devil’s Pine anymore because the towering trees obscured the sky above them. However, now they were so close to it that they could witness the nearly two-kilometer-wide trunk of the Devil’s Pine.
Xia Chen’s heart pounded wildly. The Devil’s Pine was just ahead, and they couldn’t help but wonder what they would encounter. Could they communicate with the Devil’s Pine? Would they be able to leave this forest alive?
The three quadrupeds sprinted at their fastest speed, with Huo Bai leading the way at over 200 kilometers per hour, like a golden lightning bolt rushing towards the Devil’s Pine.
A few minutes later, they entered the area within a 500-meter radius of the Devil’s Pine. As San’er had said, there were no towering trees in this area, only fertile black soil with tiny wild grass not even as big as a fingernail. It seemed that all the nutrients had been absorbed by the Devil’s Pine.
In front of them stood a brown curtain wall that seemed to have no end when looking up or around. It was enormous and unimaginable, as if it were the end of the world.
They cautiously walked forward, and San’er couldn’t help lowering his voice, “The area with only inch-long grass has clearly expanded since the last time I came here.”
Zhuang Yao nodded, “Yes, the Devil’s Pine has been expanding its influence.”
This area indeed appeared calm, like a park where one could enjoy a peaceful picnic. However, they were well aware that danger lurked everywhere.
As they got closer, they finally stood in front of the Devil’s Pine. Looking up, the tree trunk soared into the clouds, majestic and enormous, filling them with awe. Once again, they were struck by the magnificence of this divine creature.
Everyone could sense the tremendous energy emanating from the giant pine, far surpassing anything they had ever sensed from other beings, making them feel a great pressure.
San’er lay on the ground and whispered, “I’ve brought you here…” He hesitated and couldn’t finish his sentence.
Xia Chen looked at him, “San’er, what’s wrong?”
San’er forced a bitter smile, “I’m just a little scared. In fact, when I decided to bring you here, I had prepared myself for the possibility of not being able to return. Our village has lived in the Xiaoxing’an Mountains for generations, but if the Devil’s Pine continues to spread, within half a year, we will all be homeless. So, I came in with the determination to risk my life, hoping that you can truly stop it.”
Deng Xiao looked up at the towering tree and muttered, “Stop it…?”
How could they stop it? Everyone had the same question in their hearts. Facing a superlife form, they felt so tiny and insignificant.
Zhuang Yao said, “Someone is watching us. Can you sense it?”
After his reminder, everyone carefully sensed their surroundings and indeed felt a sense of being observed secretly.
Zhuang Yao raised his head and spoke loudly, “Mr. Pine, we are from the National Academy of Sciences in Beijing. We represent the country and the military and wish to have a conversation with you. Can you see us?”
Zhuang Yao’s tender voice echoed in the forest, and apart from that, there were no other sounds. It was eerily quiet here.
After waiting for a while without any response, Zhuang Yao continued, “Mr. Pine, you spoke to us when we sent reconnaissance planes here before. This proves that you have the ability to communicate. Why are you unwilling to communicate with us now?”
“We want to know the purpose of your choice to take root and grow here. Your existence has had a huge impact on the local people and ecology. If you continue to expand endlessly, it may not be good for you either. Please try to communicate with us now.”
Zhuang Yao persisted, shouting into the air. He could feel other beings’ brainwaves with his own brainwave ability. He knew that, apart from them, there was another brainwave working here—the vast brainwave of the Devil’s Pine. While shouting, Zhuang Yao analyzed the brainwave of the Devil’s Pine and noticed that its auditory nerves were emitting weak reception signals. The Devil’s Pine was indeed listening to him, but it still didn’t respond.
Zhuang Yao sat down on the ground and began to sing loudly, singing “On the Field of Hope.”
The others looked at him speechlessly, and Zhuang Yao glared at them, “Sing along with me.”
Tang Yanqiu smiled wryly, “Why? Is this useful? It probably didn’t hear us.”
“It did hear us. Its auditory nerves are receiving signals, very weak signals. Its brain waves are peculiar, with its sensory nerves spread far apart. For example, its visual nerves are close to us now, while its auditory nerves are far away. This may be related to its size, but it’s also possible that it has fragmented its sensory nerves. For example, its vision is working, but its brain is asleep, so its hearing is also asleep. Let’s wake it up.”
“Wake it up? Easy.” Huo Bai stood up impatiently and took a deep breath.
Everyone covered their ears, and Zhuang Yao said, “Wait, that’s too…”
Before he could finish, Huo Bai tilted his head back and let out a resounding roar that echoed throughout the forest, accompanied by the natural sound wall formed by the surrounding trees, creating a huge echo. The lion’s roar resounded through the entire forest, startling countless birds and animals.
After the echo subsided, everyone looked at the Devil’s Pine with caution. If what Zhuang Yao said was true, this tree ancestor was sleeping, and Huo Bai’s roar might have woken it up. If the ancestor wasn’t in a good mood, a hundred million pine needles could rain down, turning them into sieves.
They waited for a full half a minute, but the Devil’s Pine showed no response at all.
Cong Xia blinked, “It, it didn’t work?”
“It seems so…”
Zhuang Yao’s expression became serious. “No, its auditory nerves emitted a stronger wavelength.”
Everyone’s hearts began to pound, uncertain about what awaited them.
“Really noisy,” a deep, resonant voice suddenly sounded, echoing around the trees three times, with lingering reverberations.
Everyone took a big step back in fright, even Abbu felt the tense atmosphere and lay still on the ground.
“Really noisy,” the voice spoke again, asking and answering its own questions, “Should I eat them? Should I eat them?”
Cong Xia swallowed nervously, feeling a bit weak in the legs. Eat…what?
“Shouldn’t I eat them? Why not? Children? Children shouldn’t be eaten? Humans are really troublesome,” the voice sighed.
Zhuang Yao took a deep breath and unconsciously lowered his volume by eight notes, speaking cautiously, “Mr. Pine, can you see us?”
To be honest, it was the first time everyone had seen Zhuang Yao speak with such respect to anyone… no, anything. Smart people were indeed adaptable.
“Are you talking to me? Why should I talk to you?”
“Since you have the ability to speak, wouldn’t it be a pity not to talk?”
“Why is it a pity? I don’t need to speak the human language. Why am I talking to you again? How about eating you? Although you have no nutritional value, you are really noisy. Why do you keep stopping me from eating you?”
Cold sweat appeared on Zhuang Yao’s forehead. “Mr. Pine, who are you talking to?”
“Aren’t I talking to you?”
Everyone was dumbfounded. They had imagined countless scenarios for directly interacting with the Devil’s Pine, all of them fraught with danger and surrounded by a heavy aura of death. Although they were still far from being free from the threat of death, the way this giant pine tree was communicating was just too inexplicable, as if it had a split personality.
Cong Xia whispered, “Is it possible that its human consciousness hasn’t disappeared yet?”
Zhuang Yao nodded, “It’s possible.”
“Human consciousness? I am not a human, although I ate one, and he keeps talking in my head. It’s really noisy,” the voice replied. As the voice continued, a huge human face slowly protruded from the trunk of the Devil’s Pine, gradually taking shape until it formed a clear wooden face. It was the face of a man in his thirties, and he was surprisingly handsome. The Devil’s Pine lowered its eyes, looking at them.
The group watched nervously.
“Huh?” The face suddenly made a puzzled expression and fixed its gaze on Cong Xia.
Cong Xia’s heart skipped a beat in fear.
The face extended from the trunk, connected to a thick branch, and reached towards Cong Xia.
Cheng Tianbi’s eyes widened, and he lunged forward to block Cong Xia. However, Zhuang Yao grabbed him and gave him a signal. Cheng Tianbi furrowed his brows but tightly clenched his fists instead.
The wooden face, with a diameter exceeding 4 meters, stopped just in front of Cong Xia. Its thick eyelids blinked nimbly, and its pupil-less eyes stared fixedly at Cong Xia. Trembling, Cong Xia resisted the urge to sit on the ground and gazed back at the Devil’s Pine without moving.
After observing for a while, the Devil’s Pine suddenly said, “I know you.”
“Huh? You…you know me?”
“You often pour water and tea leaves on me.”
“Ah…yes, I water and fertilize you.”
The Devil’s Pine frowned and pondered for a moment. “No, you are too lazy to go to the restroom, so you pour overnight water and tea into my soil.”
“No! Absolutely not! It’s all fresh water and tea. It’s to make you healthier, really.”
The Devil’s Pine contemplated for a while, and then seemed to recall something. “Oh, you did water me and pruned my branches.”
Cong Xia nodded desperately.
“What are you doing here? I won’t go back into that thing called a flowerpot.”
Cong Xia sweated, “I’m not here to make you go back into a flowerpot.”
“Oh. What about the others? There was a woman who always wore very little clothing, a man with a loud voice, and a bald, chubby man. Why is it only you?”
Cong Xia never expected the pine tree to have such a memory, and it could remember so many people from the company. It was something he had never considered. He cautiously replied, “They are all at home.”
“Oh,” the Devil’s Pine retracted its face and closed its eyes, muttering to itself, “Don’t make noise, don’t make noise.”
Zhuang Yao asked, “Does the human you ate live in your mind?”
The Devil’s Pine replied, “Sometimes… he is always thinking about human things, it’s annoying.” It opened its eyes, “Did you bring human food?”
“Um, yes.”
“Give it to me.”
Zhuang Yao asked, “When he longs for human food, do you also crave it?”
The Devil’s Pine furrowed its brow, “You are really noisy.”
Deng Xiao took a moment and then unstrapped a bundle of dried meat from Abu’s back. “How do you want to eat it?”
“Throw it on the ground.”
Deng Xiao hesitated for a moment, but still dumped all the dried meat on the ground.
The ground slowly sank, and a large hand made of withered tree branches emerged from beneath, grabbing several pounds of dried meat and swiftly dragging it into the ground, disappearing without a trace.
Everyone was secretly alarmed. The underground was full of the Devil’s Pine’s roots, making them uneasy not only in the air but also on the ground. The pine tree could easily kill them with its numerous traps.
The Devil’s Pine fell silent for a while and murmured, “Finally, not so noisy.” It opened its eyes and looked at the group, “Humans, tell me the purpose of your appearance in my territory.”
Zhuang Yao took a deep breath. Although the Devil’s Pine did not show any signs of attacking, their hearts were still in their throats. They had to be extremely cautious about every word they spoke from now on.
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