Distant Ghost Fire and Uncontrolled Greed

Night had fallen deep.

The wind in the forest carried the mingled stench of blood and rotting leaves.

The campfire crackled, the only source of light amid the deathly silence.

The members of the Mengli Squad sat like frightened quails, barely daring to breathe.

They wrapped the most fragrant, best-charred piece of meat in the cleanest leaves and respectfully offered it to Han Yuchen.

Leaning against a massive ancient tree, Han Yuchen did not even lift his eyelids.

These old hands.

Heh, men.

Strength was the only true currency.

He did not take the meat. He merely said flatly,

"You eat. I'll keep watch."

Meng Li and the others shuddered, shaking their heads like rattles.

"No, no, no! You rest. We'll do it!"

Was this a joke? Letting someone like him keep watch? Were they tired of living?

Han Yuchen said nothing more and closed his eyes.

He appeared to be resting, but in truth, his spiritual power had already spread like an invisible net, enveloping everything within several miles.

Every slightest movement—even an insect crawling across the ground—formed a clear image in his mind.

Boring, but safe.

Time passed second by second.

At midnight, a sudden change occurred.

Deep in the forest, a cluster of faint blue light appeared without warning.

Then came a second, then a third...

In the blink of an eye, hundreds upon thousands of fist-sized blue orbs appeared out of thin air like ghost fire.

They drifted silently through the woods, illuminating that area like the Netherworld Ghost Realm of legend.

"W-what... is that?"

One squad member's voice trembled.

Everyone in the Mengli Squad stared in stunned disbelief.

Their eyes held half fear of the unknown and half greed they could not suppress.

Such a heavenly phenomenon often meant that a rare treasure had emerged!

Ahu, the youngest hunter in the squad, suddenly began breathing heavily.

His eyes shone as he stared fixedly at the blue lights, muttering to himself.

"Heavenly Treasures... It has to be!"

"We're rich! We're rich!"

His body began tilting forward uncontrollably, as if he wanted to leap to his feet and rush over.

That faint blue radiance seemed to carry a deadly enchantment.

"Idiot!"

Meng Li was the most experienced among them. He grabbed Ahu and firmly pinned him to the ground, snarling in a low voice.

"Have you forgotten how people die? The prettier something is, the more dangerous it is!"

It was as though a bucket of cold water had been dumped over Ahu. He jolted, but the frenzy in his eyes had yet to fade.

"But, Captain... what if..."

At that moment, Han Yuchen's cold voice rang out.

His eyes remained closed, and his tone was as calm as if he were mentioning something insignificant.

"That isn't treasure. It's a deadly poison."

"A poison that stirs the greed in your hearts, magnifies the fear within you, and drives your souls into madness."

The moment he finished speaking—

ROAR—!!!

Several incomparably savage roars suddenly erupted in the distance!

The sounds were filled with pain and madness.

Following the noise, and by the faint blue light, they saw a scene that made their scalps go numb.

Several thick-skinned, hundred-year-old Ironback Bears had blood-red eyes and were attacking one another like mad.

They tore and bit, rammed each other, and used their most primitive brute strength to batter one another's heads.

RIP!

One Ironback Bear had its arm torn off alive by its companion!

Blood sprayed everywhere, and the scene was horrifyingly gruesome.

Yet the Ironback Bear that had lost its arm seemed unable to feel pain. Instead, it became even more frenzied and bit down on its opponent's throat.

Hiss...

The members of the Mengli Squad all sucked in sharp breaths, their backs instantly drenched in cold sweat.

Only then did they understand what Han Yuchen had meant.

If they had rushed over just now...

The consequences would have been unthinkable.

ROAR!

At that moment, the largest of the Ironback Bears, having bitten every one of its companions to death, suddenly turned its head.

Its blood-red, utterly mindless beast eyes locked onto the scent of living humans beside the campfire.

They had been spotted.

That thing had at least eight hundred years of cultivation.

Thick-skinned and immensely strong, it would give even a Soul Elder a headache once it went berserk.

"Prepare for battle!"

Meng Li's expression changed drastically. With a roar, he immediately summoned his martial soul—a heavy battle-axe.

The other squad members rose at once and formed a simple defensive formation. Their faces were grave as they prepared to fight to the death.

Roaring, the Ironback Bear spread its limbs and charged toward them like an out-of-control heavy truck.

The ground trembled.

Yet Han Yuchen, the core of the squad, remained leaning against the tree.

He did not even change his posture.

He simply slowly raised a hand and pointed toward a patch of swamp not far to the left of the camp.

His voice was not loud, but every person heard it clearly.

"Don't face it head-on. Lure it over there."

Meng Li and the others did not hesitate in the slightest.

Out of the absolute trust built over the past few days, they immediately did as he said.

Meng Li roared, channeling his Soul Power. The battle-axe in his hand expanded in the wind. He feinted to draw the Ironback Bear's attention, then turned and ran toward the swamp.

The Ironback Bear's reason had long been devoured by the deadly poison, leaving only its instinct to kill.

With an enraged roar, it changed direction and chased Meng Li headlong into the swamp.

Now.

Han Yuchen's eyes narrowed slightly.

Buzz—

An imperceptible, wondrous ripple quietly spread outward from beneath his feet.

He had stirred the Water Vein beneath the swamp.

The next second, the swamp beneath the Ironback Bear's feet seemed to come alive.

What had merely been soft mud instantly turned into a massive whirlpool of quicksand!

A terrifying suction force rose from underground.

The Ironback Bear's enormous body suddenly sank, and half of it was swallowed in an instant!

ROAR! ROAR!

It roared in terror and struggled desperately.

But the more it struggled, the stronger the whirlpool's pull became, and the deeper it sank.

Its brute strength, enough to shatter steles and split rocks, was now completely useless. Like a giant fallen into a bog, it possessed immense strength but could only await death in despair.

"Attack!"

Seizing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Meng Li gave the order.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Poisoned arrows, Soul Power-infused throwing knives, and all manner of ranged attacks rained down upon the immobilized Ironback Bear.

The berserk soul beast that had been so imposing moments ago had now become a living target.

In less than a minute, the eight-hundred-year-old Ironback Bear let out a final howl and fell completely silent.

The battle was over.

So quickly that it was hard to believe.

The members of the Mengli Squad panted heavily. The way they looked at Han Yuchen had changed from reverence to fervent worship.

Without lifting a finger, he had reduced a formidable enemy to ashes amid casual conversation.

This was the bearing of a true master!

Han Yuchen ignored their gazes.

His eyes swept past the wreckage left by the battle and toward a dark patch of shrubs in the distance.

Within his perception of moisture, a furtive figure, upon seeing the Ironback Bear so easily dealt with, had fled in a panic as though it had seen a ghost.

A Gao Family scout... They were following rather closely.

Fine.

Let them see just how deep these muddy waters run.

Otherwise, when they drown, they won't even know what happened.

Thud.

The young hunter Ahu's legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the ground.

His face was pale as he gasped for air, his entire body trembling from lingering fear.

Without Han Yuchen, he would already have been dead.

And he would have died in the most miserable way possible.

Han Yuchen slowly stood up and brushed nonexistent dust from his clothes.

He gazed toward the area where the faint blue "ghost fire" still drifted, as though it were connected to hell itself.

He spoke to the group, who had now completely become his devoted fans.

"You've rested enough."

"Let's go see the source of that 'deadly poison.'"