The Bamboo Forest's Counterattack

Plans never kept up with changes. Though they had anticipated the Bamboo Roots' whipping and prepared to chop them off with axes as soon as they blocked them with their shields,

they hadn't expected the strikes to be so powerful. The force was nearly beyond what anyone could withstand, and the sheer number of Bamboo Roots made the attacks come at an incredible pace.

Under such powerful and relentless blows, all they could do was brace themselves behind their shields with all their might. They had no chance to draw their axes and counterattack.

As the leader of this operation and the head of the group, Lin Chenxing had to make a decision, then act on it.

"Everyone, close in around me!" Lin Chenxing shouted.

At his command, they endured the Bamboo Roots' whipping and slowly moved toward the center.

"Those with odd-numbered designations, take one step back. Bring the two rows together again."

"Odd-numbered members, lower your shields and get ready to use your axes."

"Even-numbered members, leave a gap between your shields so the others can thrust their axes through."

"I'll push forward a few steps again to draw most of the Bamboo Roots' attacks. Everyone, be careful when you move."

After passing on his orders, Lin Chenxing took a deep breath and leaned his weight against his shield. He planted his feet firmly, leaving deep impressions in the ground, and started moving forward one step at a time.

He had barely advanced a little over a meter when the attacks against him intensified again. Fully thirty percent of the Bamboo Roots turned on him, forcing him to stop and focus on defending.

Lin Chenxing was giving it everything he had, and the pressure on the others eased considerably. The share of Bamboo Roots attacking each person fell from five percent to just over three percent. They began changing formation as Lin Chenxing had instructed.

With the formation changed, they could finally put their axes to use. But the members in the front line, who bore the brunt of the attacks, now had to withstand much more than before. Still, seeing how much pressure Lin Chenxing was under, they no longer felt burdened by their own task.

Under the axes' relentless blows, some of the Bamboo Roots began to break. Once severed, they could no longer reach the ground where the team stood.

The Bamboo Forest noticed what was happening. It began pulling back the severed Bamboo Roots and redirected its attacks toward Lin Chenxing, the target at the very front. It meant to knock him down first, then unleash its full force on the group of hopping turtles behind him.

But human ingenuity far surpassed that of a newly awakened plant. When people encountered a new situation, they always looked for a new solution.

Once they realized the Bamboo Forest's hold over the rear had weakened, the team members there began advancing without disrupting their formation.

When Lin Chenxing rejoined them, they left him in the safest spot in the formation to rest for a while.

Even after lowering his shield, Lin Chenxing's arms continued to tremble. It took quite some time before they steadied.

Meanwhile, the team members kept reducing the Bamboo Roots' length and numbers. By now, fewer than eighty percent of the roots remained.

Once he had recovered, Lin Chenxing quickly found an opening and joined the attack, aiming at the Bamboo Roots outside the formation.

At last, they pushed through to the edge of the remaining Bamboo Forest.

Their arrival meant that all the Bamboo Roots on the outskirts had been severed.

At last, everyone thought the bamboo had few tricks left.

But faced with the threat of death, the bamboo began its final struggle.

With Bamboo Leaves and Bamboo Roots gone, the bamboo had only itself left to use as a weapon.

But if the stalks leaned down to attack, they would cover too wide an area. In these surroundings, they would likely do more damage to themselves than to their enemies.

Then, before everyone's eyes, swathes of bamboo in the forest began to wither. Only a few stalks remained within each patch, leaving just seventeen across the entire forest. Yet these seventeen grew even greener and more upright, and their leaves began to regrow.

It was clear that these Bamboo Leaves were vastly different from the ones before. They had grown much thicker, and their edges were sharper, flashing in the sunlight.

The stalk closest to the team bent down. Its top swept straight toward them, and its leaves sprang upright, ready to shred every shield the moment the stalk made contact—and kill a few people in the process.

How could the team fail to notice such an obvious move?

But an open attack had its advantages. If they wanted to wipe out all the bamboo, they had no choice but to face it.

The bamboo swept across the area quickly. The members of the Third Exploration Team reacted at once and tried to dodge, but the attack covered too wide an area. Several were still cut by the Bamboo Leaves.

As they dodged, Lin Chenxing and the others finally made it into the area the bent bamboo could not reach. They kept their feet in contact with the ground to sense the Bamboo Roots beneath them, staying alert for ambushes and looking for chances to sever more roots.

The bamboo's next move took everyone by surprise. Its Bamboo Leaves fell once more, forming a shower of leaves.

The shower forced everyone to raise their shields again, hoping their sturdy defenses would hold off the attack.

And they did—but some of the leaves finally pierced through the shields, their tips poking out the other side.

Another stalk of bamboo fell, and the team prepared to attack the next one.

But the bamboo gave them no such chance. Of the sixteen remaining stalks, seven began to wither. The other nine absorbed all their nutrients, causing their appearance to change once again.

The branches near the tops of the stalks began to soften and droop.

As they hung down, the branches gradually grew longer, then twisted around the stalks.

This left everyone in the Third Exploration Team at a loss. They had come to cut down a patch of bamboo, but it had turned out to be even harder than fighting monsters.

The only option now was to grit their teeth and respond to each new attack as it came.

As before, they picked fifteen people to focus on blocking the bamboo's attacks. The remaining six, including Lin Chenxing, would chop down the stalks and the Bamboo Roots underground.

This approach would have worked well enough against a single bamboo stalk. But this was a Bamboo Forest that had already shown far too many surprises.

As everyone fought with all their might, the nearest stalk began shedding its leaves without a sound. Then they darted toward the Third Exploration Team.

One team member happened to catch sight of them and immediately shouted, "Watch your backs! Shields up!"

Some of the team members quickly huddled together and formed a shield wall, keeping all the Bamboo Leaves out.

But among them were several specialized leaves, much sharper than the rest. How could shields already riddled with holes possibly stop them?