Struggle

Hearing the commotion, Lu Heng picked up his Insect Armor Sword, turned around, and shouted, "Bone Demon, let's go!"

The Bone Demon emerged from the shadows at the valley entrance and followed behind him, rushing into the depths of the forest.

The decaying leaves crunched beneath his feet, branches brushed against his shoulders, but he didn't stop. The further he went, the more chaotic the sounds became—wolf howls stretched from east to west, interspersed with the low growls of wild beasts, so deep they shook his chest. The sound of flapping wings pressed down on each other from the sky, and the bird calls were shrill and piercing, like someone was pricking his ears with needles.

He stopped at the bottom of a slope and made a gesture. The Bone Demon crouched down beside him, lying motionless in the decaying leaves.

He climbed uphill in the dark, using both his hands and feet, until he reached the top of the slope. He lay down behind a rock and slowly poked his head out.

Below was an open area, a newly expanded woodland where the trees hadn't grown dense yet, allowing moonlight to filter through.

A row of people were squatting on the ground.

Black-Eyed Bear led the pack, its shoulders as broad as a wall, its fur stained with blood, its chest heaving heavily. Beside it was Ghost Tiger, its back arched, its tail swishing back and forth, its eyes gleaming greenish-blue in the moonlight. The Wolf Pack was scattered on both sides, the Alpha Wolf standing at the very front, its fur bristling, its ears pressed back. Next to it was Dark-Spotted Leopard, its body pressed against the ground, its muscles taut.

They were all people who had bred together during the Insect Tide.

A row of them also hung in the sky.

The eagles and falcons spread out in a semicircle, wings outstretched, circling low in the sky. The largest one in the very center was not a crow, but a raven. It was a size larger than a crow, with a thick beak and bluish-black feathers. It landed on a piece of broken wood, its claws digging into the wood, its head tilted, staring at the herd of beasts on the ground.

Lu Heng didn't move, and his spiritual power slowly spread out.

Like an invisible net, it descends from the top of the slope, sweeping across the ground and the sky, capturing every breath.

Black-Eyed Bear, Bronze Tier. Ghost Tiger, Bronze Tier. The Wolf Pack as a whole Bronze Tier, with the Alpha Wolf having the heaviest aura, already at its breaking point. Dark-Spotted Leopard, Bronze Tier.

The eagles and falcons in the sky were all at the Bronze Tier. When Lu Heng's mental energy touched the raven, it paused for a moment.

It's also Bronze Tier.

But its aura is different. It's not stronger, it's more "stable." Like a deep pool of water, the surface looks calm, but you don't know how deep it is underneath. Moreover, it's also at the critical point, even closer than the others.

Lu Heng withdrew his mental energy, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly.

He felt the same way inside himself.

That force was pushing upwards, like something swelling in the cracks of your bones—it didn't hurt, but it felt suffocating. This time, the forest expanded overnight, pushing the boundaries outwards a great distance. The soil loosened, the rules loosened, and all living things were enveloped within it. It wasn't that anyone wanted to change; the entire environment was being lifted upwards, carrying everything along with it.

He glanced down at the open space.

There were corpses on the ground.

On this side of the ground, there were two eagle carcasses, their necks broken, blood seeping into the soil, already turning black. Over there in the sky, there was a wild boar carcass, its belly cut open, its intestines dragging on the ground. There were also several birds of unknown species, their feathers scattered all over the ground.

We've already fought one battle.

It's not a fight now, it's a stalemate.

The beasts on the ground didn't charge forward, and the birds of prey in the sky didn't swoop down. They just faced each other like that, the sounds of breathing, flapping wings, and claws digging in the ground mingling together, all very low.

Lu Heng lay prone behind the rock face, slowly loosening his fingers from the hilt of the sword.

He didn't come to help.

He came to see who would win.

This newly expanded woodland is empty and unclaimed. After today's battle, whoever stands on this land will be its new owner. He needs to know who will be at the top of the forest in the future so he can prepare in advance—whether to win them over, be wary of them, or avoid them altogether.

But he realized that he couldn't interfere in this battle.

It's not that we can't win, it's that we shouldn't fight.

The group on the ground were temporary allies who had joined forces during the Insect Tide; they dispersed afterward, and while there was some acquaintance, it wasn't much. The ravens in the sky were outsiders, their aura carrying the chill of an unfamiliar forest. They themselves had a permanent, well-defined territory in this forest; the boundaries of Moonview Valley were demarcated by rules, and this forest had recognized them.

If he were to help the ground beast herd at this point, he would be using his status as someone who "owns territory" to meddle in the territorial dispute between the locals and the outsiders.

To outsiders, this was tantamount to Lu Heng using his territory in the Frost Forest as a pretext to take sides, helping the locals fight against outsiders, and incidentally consolidating his own territory.

That changes the nature of the matter.

The raven isn't stupid. If it could tell which side Lu Heng was on, it wouldn't think Lu Heng was "loyal"; it would think Lu Heng was using the guise of helping the locals to expand its own sphere of influence. Next time, it wouldn't try to seize this land; it would directly attack Moonview Valley.

He cannot afford to create an enemy who Bronze Tier and about to be promoted.

So he could only watch.

Lu Heng placed his hand back on the hilt of the sword, not drawing it, but simply holding it. The Bone Demon lay motionless beside him, like a stone.

The raven suddenly cawed.

It wasn't the cawing of a crow, but a lower, deeper sound, as if squeezed from the chest, with a metallic, abrasive quality. As soon as the sound came out, the eagles and hawks in the sky simultaneously lowered their wings, and the beasts on the ground also lowered their bodies, their feathers standing on end.

The talks have broken down.

Lu Heng lay prone behind the rock face, looking at the dark mass of shadows below. The moonlight shone on the raven's feathers, giving them a cold blue glow.

He didn't move.

But he didn't leave.

He needs to see clearly who will own this land after this battle.

After the raven cawed, the tension in the air dissipated.

The sky was the first to move.

An eagle folded its wings and slammed down like a stone, but instead of attacking the Black-Eyed Bear or the Ghost Tiger, it darted diagonally to the rear of the Wolf Pack —where two half-grown wolves, their fur not yet fully grown, were smaller than the Alpha Wolf.

Before the two wolves could react, the eagle's claws had already gripped the scruff of one's neck. The wolf howled in pain as it was lifted into the air, and the other wolf pounced to bite, only managing to catch a tuft of feathers that drifted down.

The Black-Eyed Bear roared and charged forward to strike, but the eagle had already leaped high, loosened its grip, and the half-grown wolf fell to the ground, its neck twisted, and it lay motionless.

Immediately afterwards, the second and third eagles also swooped down.

They don't mess with tough issues.

When the Ghost Tiger pounced, they dodged to the side, flapping their wings and soaring into the air; when the Black-Eyed Bear swung their paws, they dodged half a second in advance. They specifically targeted the thinnest, smallest, and lone Wolf Pack in the pack, hooking them with their claws and leaving without lingering in battle.

A half-grown wolf was picked up and thrown against a tree trunk, breaking its spine. Another wolf had its belly ripped open by claws, its intestines dragging on the ground; it collapsed after taking a few steps.

The Wolf Pack was thrown into disarray.

They tried to pounce, but couldn't reach it. They tried to protect the cubs, but the eagles were too fast—swooping down, grabbing, and leaping up in one fluid motion. By the time the Wolf Pack reacted, another one had already fallen.

The Alpha Wolf paced frantically in circles, its roars urgent and furious, but to no avail.

Ghost Tiger panicked. It leaped more than three meters high, its claws reaching the tail of an eagle, pulling down a trail of feathers. But the eagle only tilted slightly, flapped its wings, and flew away. Ghost Tiger landed on the ground, panting heavily, unable to reach it.

The Black-Eyed Bear had several cuts on its body, and blood was flowing down its fur. It tried to chase after it, but it couldn't outrun a flying creature, so it could only roar in place, the sound shaking the leaves and causing them to fall.

The Dark-Spotted Leopard was still moving towards the broken log, but its pace slowed down—it dared not get any closer; the eagles in the sky could swoop down at any moment, and it wasn't confident it could dodge them.

The raven remained still.

It tilted its head, its claws gripping the broken wood, looking at the chaotic mess on the ground. Those eagles were its subordinates, expending their energy for it, gradually wearing down the beasts on the ground, and slowly reducing the number of Wolf Pack.

It will only make its move when the ground troops are too exhausted to run, can no longer protect themselves, and are covered in wounds.

An eagle swooped down, its talons hooking onto the hind leg of a half-grown wolf. The wolf was dragged along the ground, its claws digging several deep furrows. The Alpha Wolf lunged to bite, but the eagle flapped its wings, the resulting gust of wind causing the Alpha Wolf to squint. When it opened its eyes, the half-grown wolf had been flung far away, landing motionless in the grass.

The Wolf Pack is missing three half-grown wolves.

Ghost Tiger had two more bloody gashes on its body, inflicted by the eagle's claws when it missed its target earlier. Black-Eyed Bear was panting even harder, its chest heaving like a bellows.

The eagles circled in the sky, their wings flapping leisurely, as if waiting for the right moment to swoop down.

These guys don't engage in direct confrontation.

They pick on the weak and attack the vulnerable; if they can't win, they run away, then come back.

Very cunning.