Spiritual Power: Town Protection

Yu An wasn't aware of what kind of trouble the beast had caused in the Settlement earlier.

He also didn't know that Tiezhu wasn't the only one feeling despair within the Settlement at this moment.

All he knew was that the beast, lingering outside as if testing or waiting for something, gave him a vague sense of crisis.

The problem was, beasts shouldn't be gnawing on a tree, right?

Yu An stayed in his small hut. Although he couldn't see outside, he had heard the heavy footsteps of the beast approaching earlier, the unevenness between them, and its rough panting.

He could basically confirm that the beast was injured.

And there was a high probability it was the same one Old Man Yu and Tiezhu had wanted to hunt previously.

Otherwise, it was too coincidental for Ox Ridge Settlement to have two powerful beasts appear, both of them injured.

Therefore, the commotion he heard earlier must have been caused by this beast fighting the insectoids.

To survive for over ten days during the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster while injured, and to fight an insectoid, even if it was just the lowest-level servant insectoid, was enough to prove the beast's power.

Old Man Yu's refusal to cooperate with Tiezhu earlier and his decision not to rashly pursue the beast had clearly been a wise move.

However, why didn't the beast flee immediately and instead stop outside the walls?

Yu An's mind stirred, and he quickly thought of the Corpse Stench Devil Plant.

After all, in his current state, it was impossible for a beast to sense him through the thick stone walls.

Recalling the tree root space and Old Man Yu's deep, satisfied breaths, it was enough to show that the scent of the Corpse Stench Devil Plant was highly attractive to humans or beasts with olfactory organs.

So, was this crisis something he himself had provoked by using the Corpse Stench Devil Plant's juice?

But then, Yu An denied it in his mind.

After the beast's fight with the insectoids earlier, huge roars had echoed throughout the Settlement, but those roars sounded less like fighting and more like destruction.

Ordinary insectoids, due to their size, couldn't create such a massive commotion. It was more likely the giant beast.

Why was it causing so much destruction under the threat of the insectoids?

"Misdirection?"

This was the conclusion Yu An could come up with.

Since there were many ordinary people in the Settlement, if the beast destroyed the houses where those people were hiding and the entrances to the cellars, it would draw the insectoids' attention.

At that time, would the insectoids still relentlessly pursue this beast?

Thinking of this possibility, Yu An couldn't help but be surprised. A beast actually possessed such high intelligence?

If not for the scent emitted by the Corpse Stench Devil Plant's juice, the beast would have probably started destroying Old Man Yu's house by now.

In that case, even the hut he was in would not have been spared.

That would have meant being directly exposed to the beast and those insectoids.

Therefore, judging by the current outcome, Old Man Yu's failure to unite the Settlement's people to kill the beast earlier had instead left a greater hidden danger.

Whose fault was it?

Was it Tiezhu's fault, or Old Man Yu's?

But both Tiezhu and Old Man Yu had their reasons for choosing as they did.

After all, who could have imagined that after the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster descended, the beast would not only refuse to leave but would linger nearby, possessing such high intelligence and a vengeful spirit?

With the beast's intelligence, and having smelled the Corpse Stench Devil Plant's juice, what would it do?

Back when Zhao Kun delivered the Corpse Stench Devil Plant's juice, Yu Ershan had introduced the plant to Yu Xiaoshan, and Yu An had overheard it all.

Corpse Stench Devil Plants often grew in swamps or rotten places. Just from the scent they emitted, there was a certain artistic conception of "emerging from the mud unstained."

Initially, people used the Corpse Stench Devil Plant's juice to make perfumes and wore them.

Later, by chance, someone discovered that insectoids actually disliked this smell and wouldn't even approach it.

From then on, the use of the Corpse Stench Devil Plant was finally developed. After cultivation and improvement by Spirit Planter Masters, its effectiveness was maximized.

But other than that, the Corpse Stench Devil Plant had no other uses. Eating it wouldn't bring any benefits.

Even though it smelled fragrant, it was difficult to swallow.

Therefore, even if the beast smelled the scent, it wouldn't want to eat 'him'.

Or, with the beast's intelligence, did it also know the effect of the Corpse Stench Devil Plant on insectoids?

So, was it not destroying Old Man Yu's house because it wanted to hide there, away from the insectoids' senses?

Yu An was somewhat surprised by this conclusion.

But other than this, he couldn't think of any other reason for the beast to choose to stay instead of destroying Old Man Yu's house.

Just as he thought his guess was correct, the beast suddenly roared and then bolted away.

Not long after, Yu An heard sounds of fighting.

"What's going on?"

Yu An was puzzled. Was the beast out of its mind, or had he guessed wrong?

However, since the beast chose to leave, and even continued to fight the insectoids, Yu An breathed a sigh of relief.

But it wasn't long before Yu An heard a faint sound of footsteps again, as if some being was tiptoeing, cautiously approaching.

"What the hell?"

Before Yu An could figure out what was happening, something lightly hopped over the wall and landed in the yard.

"That beast is back?"

Yu An was completely bewildered.

He originally thought the beast would come to his small hut, but unexpectedly, he heard the sound of scratching at the door again.

What was it trying to do?

Was it planning to get into Old Man Yu's room and then enter the cellar?

But with the beast's size, that was impossible.

Moreover, in the narrow space of the cellar, Old Man Yu, who carried a spear, clearly had the advantage.

Helpless, Yu An could only listen quietly.

Soon, the beast pushed aside the stones Old Man Yu had used to block the room door and squeezed inside, then there was complete silence.

"Could it be that the reason this beast chose to come here wasn't because of the Corpse Stench Devil Plant? Then what reason could have made it act so strangely?"

Yu An wondered, puzzled.

Suddenly, he seemed to think of something, and a Spiritual Power came to mind.

Spiritual Power: Town Protection (A home with an elm tree brings abundance every year, can slightly increase the luck of the land, and bless descendants.)

Spiritual Powers are called Spiritual Powers because of their mystery; they are abilities that are close to rules, often making the impossible possible.

The magic of the Bonding Spiritual Power can be seen from the fact that it can form Immortal Destiny, and it also has an effect similar to 'returning to one's roots'.

But with the Town Protection Spiritual Power, Yu An hadn't experienced its magic for so long. It felt like it was just there, and its ability was passive, related to luck.

Only now, after sensing the beast's strange actions and choices, did Yu An finally gain some understanding.