Crisis Descends!

(Second update delivered. I'll write the third chapter after dinner. Um, today is the last day of July, so don't save your votes, they'll expire tomorrow~~)

Led by Willis, the group soon arrived at the entrance to the Giant Wood Forest.

Even though Gu Ding and his group had seen the spiritual fruits that grew in this forest beforehand, they were still somewhat stunned when they saw these huge plants in the forest.

"That mushroom is so tall... it must be at least three meters tall!" Elsa exclaimed, pointing to a mushroom not far away.

"This tree must be at least fifty meters in diameter, right?" Dokter looked up at the huge tree in front of them, his face also filled with shock.

Even Gu Ding found it difficult to look away for a moment.

"The rules of this place are carved on this stone tablet. Take a good look at them and don't break them!" Willis suddenly spoke up. "Also, you probably don't have any tools for drawing blood. I have three Bloodthirsty Mosquito Beast proboscises left here, so I'll give them to you. As for the containers for holding the blood, I don't need to provide them, right? Any porcelain or glass container will do."

After saying that, he handed Gu Ding three steel pipe-like objects that were nearly two meters long. "The Bloodthirsty Mosquito Beast is a third-tier demon beast with strength comparable to High-rank God. These mouthparts can easily penetrate the defenses of the first-tier demon beasts in this forest."

"Thank you, Uncle!" Gu Ding grinned as he accepted the three mouthpieces Willis handed him.

"Then I'll be going now. You only have ten hours, so hurry up." Willis said, leaping up and Queen immediately followed behind him, speeding away.

Although Gu Ding was somewhat eager to witness the battle between Willis and the Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine, he knew that with his current strength, he wouldn't gain anything and would only be wasting his time. Besides, he wasn't even a demigod yet, and he didn't know how far he was from becoming a god. It was more practical to use this time to collect more Beast Blood. He was also somewhat grateful to Willis, who not only led his group into the Giant Wood Forest but also proactively provided him with the tools for blood collection.

Unbeknownst to Gu Ding, Willis's preferential treatment of his group had a reason. As an inspector for the Federal Government, the Fei Me Universe Country was under his jurisdiction, and reinforcing the Giant Wood Forest's protective barrier every century was part of his job. The last reinforcement should have been completed a month ago, but he had delayed it due to personal matters. As a result, the Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine found a weakness in the barrier and Will Projection outwards.

Although he rushed towards the Fei Me Universe Country the moment he sensed the fluctuations in the restriction, he was still too late. If it weren't for Gu Ding, all the gods and demigods on Dragon Dock Star would probably have been killed by now. The ruler of the Fei Me Universe Country, and the members of the parliament—none of them would likely be alive. If things really developed in that direction, it would be a major mistake on his part. Not only would his position as inspector be in jeopardy, but he might even be sent to the Outer Domain Battlefield. Just thinking about the cruel environment of the outer realms sent a chill down his spine.

Willis was very grateful to Gu Ding. Although two guardians and more than a dozen demigods had died, he could still suppress the matter by pulling some strings. So when Sen Na said that Gu Ding and his group were not qualified to enter the Giant Wood Forest, Willis reprimanded Sen Na.

He didn't refuse Queen's request. He knew that at Queen's level, she was extremely eager to break through to the level of a god. For him, letting her watch was just a small favor. Gods have long lifespans, and who knows, maybe one day she would be doing better than him, and he would need her help then.

After Willis and Queen left, only Gu Ding and his group remained in the vast forest.

Gu Ding withdrew his gaze and saw the stone tablet at the entrance, on which were carved some words, including a few points that definitely needed attention:

"Everyone, please read the rules on the monument carefully and don't break them," Gu Ding said to the group. "Alright, time is limited, so I'll assign the teams. Liliath and Robert will be in one group, Tagore, Bigge, and Elsa in another, and Poseidon and I Sea Emperor. Bigge won't be able to return to his peak Combat Strength for a while after that battle, so Tagore, don't just play around, keep an eye on them. Bigge and Elsa, keep an eye on Tagore too, don't let him cause any trouble. All the beasts here are forbidden to be killed; you can only take ten liters of blood at most. Now, the three groups, each choose a direction, and when the time is up, return here to meet up. If you encounter any problems you can't solve along the way, contact Sea Emperor, and I'll have Sea Emperor keep an eye on your movements."

Afterwards, Gu Ding handed the two mouthparts to Robert and Bigge respectively, and the three groups dispersed.

"This forest is mainly divided into three layers: the outer layer, the inner layer, and the core area. Bigge and Robert, try to stay in the outer layer. The outer layer is mostly inhabited by beasts with one or two-star Combat Strength, with the occasional three-star beast, but in very small numbers. As for the inner layer, it's mostly inhabited by beasts with three-star or higher Combat Strength, and most of them are four-star. As for the core layer, it's mostly inhabited by beasts with five-star Combat Strength, and a small number of social beasts with four-star Combat Strength. Gu Ding, while your fiery state hasn't disappeared yet, you can spend some time in the core layer." The Sea Emperor gave everyone guidance and marked the distribution of beasts on the map.

Under the guidance of the Sea Emperor, Gu Ding soared into the air and sped towards the core area.

Robert's and Bigge's groups quickly encountered their first targets.

With Robert's strength, he fired the Freezing Ray directly, easily freezing the enormous rabbit and beginning to draw blood.

On Bigge's side, although Bigge couldn't use his ultimate move for a while, one-star and two-star gods weren't much of a challenge for him. They encountered a rabbit, Bigge didn't even have to lift a finger. With Elsa's help, Tagore didn't even need to transform and easily ended the battle.

As soon as Gu Ding flew to the core area, he heard the booming sounds of battle coming from afar. The roar shook the entire ground, and many beasts fled in panic. He knew that it must be the Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine battling Willis. The roaring sounds lasted for less than half a minute before completely subsiding. Gu Ding guessed that Willis had already dealt with the Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine. After all, Willis was a powerful High-rank God, and his Will Projection was also High-rank God. Although he didn't know what star level it was, it was definitely stronger than the Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine, which was only a low-level god. Even a low -Combat Strength High-rank God with only one star was a thousand times stronger than a low-level god who had just advanced to five stars. Suppressing the opponent in half a minute was not an exaggeration.

"Sea Emperor, did they record their battle?" Gu Ding asked hurriedly. After his cultivation improved last time, the Sea Emperor's authority was also enhanced, allowing him to investigate the movements of the gods.

"Their battle is not over. The Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine has escaped, and its aura is rather strange..." Sea Emperor said uncertainly.

"They escaped?!" Gu Ding found it a bit strange. Given the absolute difference in Combat Strength, it would be difficult for them to escape under normal circumstances. "Then you can record it for now, and I'll take a look at it when I have time."

After Gu Ding finished speaking, he sped off toward the coordinates of the first four-star beast horde given by the Sea Emperor.

Upon seeing the pack of beasts, Gu Ding grinned. It was a wolves, quite numerous, numbering around fifty. Gu Ding immediately swooped down, entering the pack and unleashing a barrage of punches and kicks. One after another, the giant beasts collapsed, and in less than a minute, not a single wolf remained standing. And from beginning to end, the wolves' claws and teeth hadn't even managed to harm Gu Ding in the slightest.

Gu Ding pulled out the steel pipe-like mouthpart and easily pierced the fur of a giant wolf. It was much easier than Gu Ding had imagined, and he began to draw blood from each wolf one by one.

When they had taken down about forty of the fifty-six giant wolves, the Sea Emperor's voice suddenly came urgently, "Gu Ding, run!!! That Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine is coming in your direction!"

Gu Ding frowned, pulled out the blood-drawing proboscis, and rapidly rose into the air, fleeing towards the edge of the forest. Gu Ding was a battle maniac, but he wasn't without self-awareness. The fact that the Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine had escaped from the hands of High-rank God like Willis meant its Combat Strength was far greater than Gu Ding had initially anticipated. At least Gu Ding knew very well that even Willis, merely Will Projection, could easily kill him with a single move.

"Gu Ding, move towards the ten o'clock direction. That way you can meet up with Willis and the others as quickly as possible," the Sea Emperor's voice came again.

Gu Ding immediately changed direction and sped away.

He clearly heard the mournful howls of giant wolves coming from behind him not far after he flew. He knew what kind of scene it was without even turning around.

Hundreds of incredibly thick vines shot up from the ground, rapidly entangling the giant wolves, tearing and twisting them. In just a few moments, all fifty-six giant wolves were completely reduced to dust. Their fur, flesh, and bones were all ground into powder, and crimson blood spurted everywhere, turning the ground into a river of blood.

Upon spotting Gu Ding fleeing at breakneck speed, the Bloodthirsty Demonic Vine let out an angry and frenzied howl, and several black-gold vines, moving at several times the speed of Gu Ding, lashed out towards his Gu Ding...