Chapter 400 - 209: Level 4 Soul, a Ticket to Hell (Part 2)

Chapter 400: Chapter 209: Level 4 Soul, a Ticket to Hell (Part 2)

’In any case, whether it was the Owl-Wood, the Rainbow Tree Rope Demon, or the Flame-toothed Giant Elephant, they were all only thinking of themselves. They had no intention of leading the other races of Magical Creatures to fight the xenoinsects together.’

’She had once held out hope, expecting the four most powerful races to work together. She imagined they would unite all the races in the Red Agate Mountain Range, form an alliance to fight the xenoinsects, and it was for this reason that she joined their little circle. But now, it was clear that had all been wishful thinking.’

She sighed.

Letting out another sigh, Tining rose to her feet and called to her people.

A moment later, more than five hundred Ancient Tree Deer Spirits had gathered around her.

The Ancient Tree Deer Spirit Race had never been numerous; a single clan would rarely exceed a thousand members.

Coupled with the constant battles against the xenoinsects in recent years, they had suffered many casualties, leaving only a little over five hundred members now.

In fact, if not for Pei Ze’s Moonlight Orchids and Wood Spirit Potions, their numbers would have been at least halved. For this, Tining was deeply grateful to Pei Ze.

"Let’s go. We’ll find another place."

Tining stroked a small deer’s head, then started north on her hooves.

However, just as she stepped out of the woods, her expression suddenly tightened. A faint yellow light bloomed from her antlers, gathering surging elemental energy. She fell into a guarded stance and barked out a single word.

"Who’s there?"

RUSTLE!

The Owl-Wood emerged from the forest, followed by the Rainbow Tree Rope Demon and the Flame-toothed Giant Elephant.

"It’s you."

Tining frowned, her expression remaining wary.

Her sharp instincts told her something was amiss.

’The Flame-toothed Giant Elephant and the other two were always at odds. For them to be together now, and to appear here... that in itself was deeply suspicious.’

"What do you want?"

Sensing Tining’s wariness, the Owl-Wood dropped all pretense. "Nothing much," it said with a cold laugh. "We just want to borrow your soul."

’Soul?’

Tining’s expression changed slightly. Recalling the Owl-Wood’s previous talk about preparing to go to Hell, she instantly understood.

"I see. You want to use my soul as a ticket to enter Hell."

Tining’s expression immediately turned cold and hostile, and her daunting aura made her appear even more beautiful.

"There’s no other way. Those demons are too greedy. Ordinary souls aren’t enough to satisfy them," the Owl-Wood said coldly.

The Rainbow Tree Rope Demon chimed in with a low, sinister chuckle.

A flicker of pity crossed the Flame-toothed Giant Elephant’s eyes as it looked at Tining.

’If it had a choice, it wouldn’t have attacked the Ancient Tree Deer Spirit Race. But there was no other way to save its own life. Tining could only blame her own bad luck.’

Tining knew a battle was inevitable. She waved a hand, signaling her people to move back and get clear.

In a battle of this level, her people would be of no help at all; their presence would only lead to pointless casualties.

The Owl-Wood let out a strange laugh. A crack suddenly split open on its dark trunk, forming a gaping, bloody maw that unleashed an ear-piercing shriek.

The sound was thick with despair, transforming into an invisible shockwave that swept over Tining and the other Ancient Tree Deer Spirits in an instant.

Shriek of Despair!

The Owl-Wood’s signature ability.

The shriek, filled with intense despair, was enough to make the weak-willed immediately fall into hopelessness, lose their will to fight, and even kill themselves.

Even with the Ancient Tree Deer Spirits’ high resistance to Magic, many of them still collapsed on the spot, whimpering incessantly.

Tining’s expression changed. Her face filled with fury as she immediately reared up on her fore-hooves and stomped down hard.

In that instant, a pale purple ripple spread out from her body, dispelling the desperate aura that had filled the air.

The Ancient Tree Deer Spirits quickly returned to normal and hastily retreated.

However, in that brief delay, the attacks from the Rainbow Tree Rope Demon and the Flame-toothed Giant Elephant had already arrived.

More than ten tentacles, glowing with an eerie rainbow light, tore through the air and whipped viciously toward Tining!

Strange patterns faintly shimmered on the tentacles’ surface; just a single glance was enough to make one feel dazed and drowsy.

Meanwhile, the Flame-toothed Giant Elephant burst into raging flames and charged forward like a meteor, aiming its pair of sharp, blazing tusks straight for Tining’s chest!

In the blink of an eye, Tining was caught in a three-pronged assault!

The Half-Deer Maiden showed no panic. With a sharp cry, several hard Rock Shields materialized at her sides, perfectly positioned to block the path of the incoming rainbow tentacles.

A series of sharp cracks rang out as the Rock Shields shattered one after another, but the rainbow tentacles lost their momentum.

Simultaneously, the Half-Deer Maiden’s slender form blurred into an afterimage, letting the Flame-toothed Giant Elephant charge straight through her. The beast’s momentum carried it far into the distance.

Tining instantly solidified, raising her hands to the sides of her antlers. She frantically gathered Earth Elemental Energy, summoning a dense barrage of sharp stone spikes that rained down on her enemies like a tempest.

"As expected of the Ancient Tree Deer Spirits, known as the Children of the Earth. Their defensive power is simply astonishing!"

The Owl-Wood clicked its tongue.

The Ancient Tree Deer Spirit Race wasn’t aggressive and their attacks were on the weaker side, but in terms of defense, they were top-tier among all Magical Creatures.

It was precisely for this reason that it had convinced the Rainbow Tree Rope Demon and the Flame-toothed Giant Elephant to join forces. Otherwise, it wasn’t confident it could kill Tining on its own.

’Fortunately, it’s now three against one. We can just wear her down to death!’

The Owl-Wood let out another strange laugh. Its dark branches trembled madly, instantly splitting off dozens of twisted, blurry black shadows that shrieked as they lunged at Tining!

...

"So this is the Red Agate Mountain Range?"

Pei Ze looked down at the mountain range coiled upon the earth below, which resembled red agate, and knew he must have reached his destination.