Lost Forest 04: All Right, I'll Come Find You [Second Update]...

Ye Chuqi understood at once. This boy held a grudge, and he had been waiting for his chance!

Chapter 20: Lost Forest 04: All Right, I'll Come Find You [Second Update]...

Xiaojiu was not the only one with that idea. Not long after they crouched down, San San told Ye Chuqi that people were approaching from nearby, one group after another.

"One group after another" was exactly right.

"Looks like three groups," San San reported after a quick survey. "Only two or three people in each. They're probably here to scout first."

Bringing more people would alarm the magic beasts. Once threatened, the beasts would join forces to deal with the humans plotting against them, then settle their own fight. But these two were different. By now, their battle would not end until one of them died. The humans might really get to reap the spoils.

The three scouting parties had spotted that possibility too. Each contacted their team, and more people began moving this way.

Ye Chuqi and Xiaojiu were on the far side of the battlefield. Unless someone deliberately came to investigate, it would be hard to find them in this blind spot. Ye Chuqi quietly held a few Purified Beast Cores, ready for anything. She thought they could serve perfectly well as spirit stones, though she still needed to test how stable they were.

Xiaojiu sniffed. "There's something over there." He pointed to the right, where dense trees severely limited their view.

San San confirmed it. "That should be the Tree Fern Eagle's nest. There's another Tree Fern Eagle there, badly wounded."

A Tree Fern Eagle was one of the two magic beasts fighting before them.

The other was a Horned Python, notorious for its deadly venom. Ye Chuqi knew the species well. The first high-rank magic beast she had seen in this world was a Horned Python. Even as a corpse, it had left her stunned.

These two were low-rank magic beasts, far smaller than that high-rank Horned Python. According to the books, Tree Fern Eagles and Horned Pythons were natural enemies, each able to counter the other. Whenever they met, the fight ended only in death. A Horned Python's favorite food was Tree Fern Eagle chicks, while Tree Fern Eagles could eat Horned Pythons and had some resistance to their venom.

But no amount of resistance could withstand repeated doses of venom from the Horned Python. This Tree Fern Eagle was at the end of its strength. The python had fared no better: the eagle's sharp talons and beak had torn it to pieces. Both were covered in wounds.

Feathers and scales littered the ground. Blood and flesh flew. It was a brutal sight.

At this rate, both beasts would be too badly hurt to continue, and they would plainly fall into the adventurers' hands. Ye Chuqi and Xiaojiu would gain nothing either. The others outnumbered them, putting the two of them at a disadvantage in a fight.

We can't beat them, but we can outrun them. Ye Chuqi was confident of that.

Ye Chuqi reached over and poked Xiaojiu.

Xiaojiu: Hm?

Ye Chuqi gestured toward the place Xiaojiu had found and spoke softly. "Go hide over there. When this is over, come find me."

Xiaojiu: ???

"What are you planning?" The boy's instincts told him Ye Chuqi was about to do something big.

Ye Chuqi pressed several Healing Potions and Antidote Potions into Xiaojiu's hands. "There really is something there. There should be another injured Tree Fern Eagle. Go help it. I'll find a way to get the Leaf Pearl."

"But!" The boy clutched the potion tubes, his expression anxious.

Ye Chuqi made it sound easy. Sending him to help an injured Tree Fern Eagle meant sending him away from this dangerous place. Going after the Leaf Pearl herself meant exposing herself to the magic beasts and adventurers, becoming a target for them all to hunt down.

It was far too dangerous.

But Ye Chuqi wagged a finger and smiled. "Be good. Trust me. I'll keep heading north and find somewhere safe to wait for you. Once you've helped that Tree Fern Eagle and everyone else has left, come find me. You can find me, right?"

Xiaojiu had a keen nose. He could detect another injured Tree Fern Eagle from this far away, and he was excellent at tracking. Even in the Lost Forest, where directions were hard to judge, he could find his way precisely. Splitting up was their best choice now. Ye Chuqi was more agile, and when it mattered, she had her Portable Space to fall back on. She could simply duck inside, and no one would find her.

Xiaojiu was fast too. When she had first met him, he had kept pace with a berserk magic beast despite his severe injuries.

The boy sniffed, his hoarse voice tinged with hurt. "All right. I'll come find you."

Time was running out. There was no telling when the beasts' fight would end, or when those people would make their move. Clutching the potion tubes, Xiaojiu slipped into the dense woods and vanished in the blink of an eye.

Ye Chuqi tied her long hair tight. After a moment's thought, she pulled a cloth over her face, then shot into the beasts' battlefield like an arrow loosed from the string. Her figure moved like a specter, her golden hair cutting a dazzling streak through the scattered sunlight and leaving a trail of splendid afterimages in everyone's sight.

Only then did the others react. Oh no! Someone's going for the Leaf Pearl! If we don't act now, it'll be too late!

The two beasts locked in battle noticed Ye Chuqi too. But they were holding each other in check, giving her an opening.

In the blink of an eye, Ye Chuqi appeared, snatched the Leaf Pearl, then became a streak of golden light and vanished from sight.

"After her!" For once, the three groups agreed. They exchanged glances and gave chase.

The balance of the battle had been broken, and all the adventurers had revealed themselves. Some stayed behind, their sights set on the Tree Fern Eagle and Horned Python still struggling for their lives. They were determined to claim both.

With a head start, Ye Chuqi raced through the dense forest. She moved as nimbly as a deer leaping between the trees, clearing every obstacle with ease and drawing farther away.

"Damn, how is she that fast?"

Naturally, the ones chasing Ye Chuqi were the fastest members of their teams. The three groups were competing with one another too. Each had sent their most agile people, determined to catch Ye Chuqi and take the Leaf Pearl for themselves.

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