Amplification

The wind is still on the slope.

There was no sound in the forest except for the low growls of the monkeys, which lingered intermittently in the air.

Scattered at my feet were many ripe wild fruits, their peels cracked, their sticky juice seeping into the thick layer of dead leaves, carrying a faint sweet and sour smell. Several dwarf fruit trees grew at an angle, their branches spreading out in all directions, their dense leaves casting dappled shadows on the ground.

Lu Heng gripped his knife and stood still, his limbs relaxed, his muscles and bones gathering strength.

He implicitly acknowledged that a prolonged standoff was about to begin.

Wild beasts hunt in packs, always cautious, probing, observing, and looking for weaknesses, rather than charging blindly. Especially these gregarious beasts with leaders and hierarchies, they understand the art of attrition and wear down their prey. He was prepared to patiently maneuver and deal with them one by one.

But he wasn't given any time to wait.

The strongest Rockhowl Monkey at the very front of the pack rolled its throat and suddenly let out a loud roar.

The moment the words left his mouth, the entire encirclement moved instantly.

Without warning or any probing, all the ordinary monkeys pounced on them at once.

All around, there were darting black shadows.

Some leaped down from the leaning tree trunks, using the height to pounce directly on his face; others circled around along the low-lying slope, intending to ambush his legs; still others grabbed broken twigs from the ground and threw them haphazardly in his direction to distract him. They were incredibly fast, sprinting along the ground, rustling the dry leaves under their feet, baring their sharp teeth, and spreading their limbs to bite him. They were densely packed, layered upon layer, a complete swarm attack.

A thought immediately popped into Lu Heng's mind.

They lack martial ethics.

He quickly scanned the entire room out of the corner of his eye and immediately saw through the trick.

The ones that charged the fiercest, ran the fastest, and practically pounced on his face were all ordinary monkeys without any rank.

The four true Black Iron Tier Rockhowl Monkey were all huddled at the back of the troop.

Motionless.

He coldly watched as his kin mindlessly threw themselves to their deaths, clearly using these small fry as cannon fodder to wear him down and disrupt his rhythm through sheer numbers.

A monkey that missed its target fell heavily to the base of a fruit tree, its hind legs getting stuck in the roots. It kicked and struggled frantically, its piercing screams mingling with the chaotic howls.

Only a fool would charge forward recklessly; those who throw their lives away are the most brainless.

Lu Heng no longer hesitated, shifted his feet, and took a half step forward.

He swung his Bronze Hunting Blade in a swift motion.

Two short, sharp whooshing sounds rang out.

The two monkeys running in the lead didn't have time to change direction; their momentum was too strong, and they couldn't stop themselves due to their own inertia.

The blade sliced cleanly across the body.

One on the left, one on the right, the two monkeys were split in two.

Chunks of flesh and blood slammed onto the pile of dead leaves with the force of the impact, instantly releasing a warm, pungent stench that splashed onto the trunks of the low-lying fruit trees nearby.

Without pausing, Lu Heng continued to flip his wrist.

The monkeys kept rushing towards him, each one crashing into the blade.

His sword strikes were swift and precise, each blow hitting a vital point. He closed in, slashed, deflected the force, and then turned around, his movements repeating in a continuous cycle without any unnecessary flourishes.

In just over ten seconds, a pile of corpses appeared in front of him.

However, the monkey troop was too large.

After one wave is wiped out, a new one immediately takes its place.

They charged forward relentlessly, driven by pure, bestial lust, without fear.

The battle instantly escalated into a high-intensity tug-of-war.

Lu Heng maintained high-speed dodging, sword swings, and parries throughout the entire process.

The continuous high-frequency movements are extremely mentally and physically exhausting.

Before long, his movements visibly slowed down.

It wasn't exhaustion from being too tired; it was the continuous, high-intensity combat that had pushed my physical strength to its limits.

swarms of monkeys kept attacking him closely; some missed, some were deflected by his blade, and some crashed directly into his shoulders, back, arms, and thighs.

If you do it too many times, you're bound to get infected.

Claws, monkey claws, and charges rained down on the armor time and again.

The arm armor, chest armor, and leg guards withstood all impacts steadily; the outer shell was sturdy and undamaged, and the skin and flesh were completely unharmed.

The layers of dull impact, the numbness, swelling, and heavy force constantly pounding on the body, greatly affected the rhythm of movement.

The more he fought, the more familiar the monkeys became with his fighting style.

At first, they just charged around randomly, but gradually they began to test each other's positions, closing the distance and making their attacks more and more cunning.

Instead of just attacking the body, they began to deliberately target unprotected blind spots such as the neck, sides of the face, and top of the head.

They are testing the waters, learning, and shrinking his space for maneuver.

The ordinary monkeys on the front lines suffered heavy casualties, with corpses strewn everywhere. Fallen wild fruits were trampled and crushed, their purplish-red flesh mixed with mud and blood, smearing the ground.

The cannon fodder has almost all died.

The few Black Iron Tier Rockhowl Monkey that had been hiding in the back watching the show finally stopped holding back.

The largest and most robust individual stepped forward first, its speed suddenly exploding as it charged straight at the enemy.

The other three Black Iron Tier Rockhowl Monkey flanked from both sides, blocking their way, cutting off any angles for evasion.

The battle situation changed drastically in an instant.

Just now, they were exhausted by sheer numbers; now they are being pressured head-on by high-level alien beasts.

Four Black Iron Tier entered the fray simultaneously, working together with the remaining monkeys to encircle and kill them from all sides.

Lu Heng was under immense pressure instantly.

The maneuvering became extremely difficult.

He knew that continuing like this would only make them more and more passive.

With stamina dwindling and opponents becoming increasingly resilient, a prolonged stalemate will inevitably lead to a fatal flaw sooner or later.

The game must be decided in one decisive move.

There's no need to keep any cards up your sleeve.

Lu Heng dodged a lunge by sidestepping, and in the opening, his fingertips quickly touched the Geothermal Talisman in his arms.

A thought struck me.

Ignite.

There was no blinding flame as a prelude, no other signs.

The entire orchard slope was instantly engulfed in terrifying heat.

A wave of heat exploded outwards, the scorching heat slapping hard against Lu Heng's face. His cheeks stung instantly, and his eardrums felt slightly muffled from the sudden surge of heat. The intense heat swept across the entire battle zone, centered on him.

The leaves of the surrounding fruit trees instantly shriveled and turned yellow from dehydration, and the branches cracked with tiny popping sounds. Wild fruits hanging on the branches were scalded by the heat, and the juice evaporated instantly, leaving only shriveled and charred shells. The surface soil was baked by the high temperature, and the surface hardened rapidly. The thick layer of dead leaves on the ground turned into a pile of black ash in an instant.

All the monkeys that pounced nearby, surrounded them, or blocked them from behind were enveloped in the intense heat.

The air distorted, the vegetation instantly dehydrated and scorched, and the withered leaves were directly carbonized.

The dense cacophony of roars, screams, and struggles was abruptly cut off in a split second.

In just two seconds.

All restlessness has been completely reduced to zero.

The entire battlefield was eerily quiet.

The ground was littered with charred monkey carcasses, their bodies completely carbonized and their limbs twisted. The air was thick with the pungent smell of burnt meat, mixed with dust and blood.

The heatwave gradually subsided.

Lu Heng's tense body completely relaxed, his legs went slightly weak, and he took two steps back before collapsing onto the thick layer of fallen leaves.

His chest heaved violently as he gasped for breath.

My muscles were sore and stiff all over, and even raising my arms felt tiring and difficult.

The intense, continuous fighting, coupled with the mental strain of unleashing his trump card, left him completely exhausted.

He looked down at his slightly trembling hands and murmured softly.

"We still need to practice."

His physical fitness is a major weakness.

After resting for a while, his breathing gradually calmed down.

Lu Heng pushed himself up from the ground and scanned the entire room with his eyes.

Many fruit trees were half-burnt black, with broken branches hanging down, and the ground that was once covered with wild fruit was now a mess. There were no living things left on the ground.

He raised his Wristband, selected all the monkey carcasses in the area, and decomposed them with a single click.

Tiny streams of light continuously flowed into the Wristband's storage space.

Monkey tendons, animal bones, complete monkey head skin, and uniformly sized black Energy Core were successively processed.

The quantity was considerable, and the harvest was plentiful.

Looking at the supplies, he had a clear idea in his mind.

Keep them all and trade them across regions later to exchange for more practical survival resources. The cost-effectiveness is far better than consuming them yourself.

After clearing the battlefield and collecting all the loot,

The scorched ground and scattered fruit tree branches slowly returned to calm.

Lu Heng looked up into the depths of the dense forest.

This large-scale battle resulted in significant losses, but it also completely eliminated the biggest threat to the area.

The real resources are always deeper inside.

After a short rest, my condition has stabilized.

Lu Heng gripped his Hunting Blade, brushed the dust off his clothes, and took a step forward, steadily venturing deeper into the dark forest.