Chapter 12 Taboo of the Restricted Area

Facing the provocation of Blood Shadow, Luan Ya's eyes were filled with killing intent as he looked towards Thunder Team. Thunder Team remained unfazed, speaking calmly. "Cross." Upon hearing this, Cross immediately took up his bow, swiftly drawing it back and shooting an arrow towards the sky. The speed was astonishing, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound, as the arrow, like a streak of lightning, pierced through the sky and struck the circling eagle in an instant. Blood burst from the sky, and the eagle let out a mournful scream, plummeting to the ground with a thud, landing between the two teams. At the same time, one member of Blood Shadow Team trembled violently, spitting out a mouthful of blood, his face turning pale in an instant. That was his eagle; unlike the dog raised by Luan Ya, this eagle was controlled by his own spiritual energy. At this moment, under the backlash, he was severely injured. The other members of Blood Shadow Team were shrouded in killing intent, but were stopped by their captain. He slowly stood up from the dog’s corpse, not looking at Luan Ya but staring at Thunder Team. Thunder Team also coldly regarded him. The two exchanged glances for a long time, each snorting coldly. "We’re leaving," Thunder Team said calmly, moving forward, with Luan Ya and the others following, including Xu Qing. He sensed the deep animosity between the two teams, and glanced back at the members of Blood Shadow Team, noticing they were waiting for Ma Si and Fat Mountain. Unfortunately, these two would never appear again. Xu Qing remained silent, retracting his gaze as he gradually left the camp with Thunder Team. The forbidden area appeared to be not far from the camp, but in reality, it was still a considerable distance to walk. After about half an hour of walking, they finally saw the dark jungle in the distance. From the outside, this forbidden jungle seemed boundless, extending who knows how far. It was now midday, with the sun shining brightly, but inside the forbidden jungle, it felt like a different world. In the distance, at the edge of the jungle, storm clouds seemed to gather, with visible lightning flashing within, giving the entire forbidden area a sense of mysterious danger. Xu Qing observed everything quietly, following along. No one from Thunder Team spoke as they approached the forbidden area, but as they got closer, Xu Qing keenly noticed that everyone's muscles began to tense up, including his own. The feeling of stepping into a cold world washed over Xu Qing, as all warmth from his body was instantly cleared away, and he entered the forbidden area. It was as if everything he had seen in the normal world was also cleared away. The familiar bone-chilling cold awakened memories of his past in the ruined city, amidst the blood rain. He took a deep breath, feeling a strong sense of vigilance rise within him, instinctively gripping the iron spike tightly, just like he did in the ruins. The difference was, in the city, there were broken walls and ruins, while here... The trees twisted like the shadows of vengeful spirits, the muddy ground rotted like the soil of the Yellow Springs, and the branches and leaves spread out like claws blocking the sky. But clearly, the members of Thunder Team were very familiar with this place. They carried their weapons, and the path they walked was obviously one they frequented; every step was detailed. In some places, where everything seemed normal, they deliberately skipped; in others that looked dangerous, they walked boldly. There were also areas they inexplicably avoided, thus skillfully bypassing certain dangers. Xu Qing followed closely, paying close attention and memorizing everything. However, he also noticed some strange occurrences; not all the paths were led by Thunder Team; sometimes it was the Barbarian Ghost, sometimes Luan Ya, alternating between them. Although the group's pace was not quick, they encountered only the distant roars of ferocious beasts along the way, making it relatively safe. Even some venomous insects stayed away after Luan Ya lit an incense stick. After walking for about an hour, they stopped by a muddy area, breathing a sigh of relief. Xu Qing noticed Luan Ya took out some medicinal powder and sprinkled it into the mud. Soon, a swarm of venomous insects emerged, seemingly aggressive, but she remained calm, waving her hand to produce another type of powder that dispersed them, calming the mud once more. After completing this, everyone crouched down, skillfully scooping up the mud and applying it all over their bodies. "Did you remember the details of the path?" Thunder Team asked as he applied the mud to himself, gesturing for Xu Qing to do the same. Xu Qing nodded, without hesitation, scooping up the mud and applying it, while glancing at Luan Ya, who seemed to have some understanding of poison techniques. "The places we jumped over to avoid were because the leaves were severely wilted but intact, indicating that no ferocious beasts had passed, thus presenting an unknown. "The areas we stepped into had ferocious beast droppings, as creatures instinctively choose safe areas to relieve themselves, indicating there is no excessive danger or man-eating mire. "As for the areas we circumvented, it was due to the Barbarian Ghost's keen nose; he can smell the presence of dangerous exotic beasts. You will learn a lot from this journey, remember as much as you can." Xu Qing glanced at the Barbarian Ghost, who turned his head and bared his teeth in a smile. "As for this mud, it is a place our team discovered years ago that contains Night Lizard skin damage. Applying it all over not only masks our presence but also has a certain deterrent effect." "Ahead is the direction we need to go, while heading north leads to the Poison Dragon Pool. The forbidden jungle is divided into several areas due to different terrains, established by scavengers." "The Poison Dragon Pool is one of them, but we won’t be going there this time," Thunder Team said as he finished applying the mud. Xu Qing had also completed the process, and as he stood up, Cross, who walked past him, despite having questioned Xu Qing's presence yesterday, coldly said one sentence. "Pay attention to your points of mutation; the anomalies in the forbidden area are intense, and you must always be cautious. Once the mutation exceeds the limit, no one can save you." Xu Qing nodded, having already sensed this. He could feel the high concentration of anomalies in the forbidden area, but it was much weaker than during the peak of the ruined city. However, he had already accumulated quite a bit of anomalies in himself, so even now, not cultivating, just breathing made his arm's mutation points begin to ache. Thus, he took out a white pill and placed it in his mouth, not swallowing but letting it dissolve slowly. Soon, everyone finished applying the mud, looking at each other before continuing onward. However, unlike the previous journey, the next road was slower, and everyone took out their weapons. Xu Qing scanned their weapons. The Barbarian Ghost had a steel shield and a wolf tooth club, Thunder Team had knuckle dusters, Cross had a longbow, while Luan Ya took out a serrated dagger that gleamed coldly. A few days ago, when Xu Qing was out monitoring Fat Mountain, he had other gains. With his keen hearing, he overheard many scavengers talking to each other, learning a lot of information he had never known before. For instance, regarding weapons, he now knew they were divided into magic treasures, talismans, and heavy treasures. Among them, magic treasures were legendary items and quite rare. It is said that every magic treasure has varying degrees of anomalous contamination, which increases with use and is extremely difficult to eliminate. Thus, they are basically non-renewable resources and, coupled with their immense power, are extraordinarily precious. This gave rise to a special existence known as treasure keepers, who often are raised from childhood to dilute the anomalies of magic treasures with their bodies. Thunder Team had mentioned this before. Besides magic treasures, there are also talismans and heavy treasures. The former, while also rare, is relatively more attainable compared to magic treasures, while the latter is quite common, often made from special materials that ordinary people can use as weapons. Xu Qing felt that his iron spike might be a heavy treasure, and those in front of him were clearly of that type. Time slowly passed as Xu Qing followed Thunder Team, gradually venturing deeper into the forbidden area. Along the way, they encountered various troubles, most of which were handled by the Barbarian Ghost alone. Occasionally, when they faced stronger ferocious beasts, Cross's bow would shoot out. As for Luan Ya's actions, they mainly relied on techniques; she seemed to perform some form of deterrence, causing the approaching ferocious beasts to freeze momentarily, becoming uncoordinated. During this time, Xu Qing also made a move, catching and crushing a poisonous snake that shot toward him from behind. After handling these, and noticing that Xu Qing had followed them all along without making any rookie mistakes, Cross looked at Xu Qing with less scrutiny and shared some experience with him. "Kid, this forbidden area seems dangerous, but for those of us who have been crawling around here, as long as we don't encounter three situations, we are generally safe." "You need to remember these three situations." "The first is the unfamiliar exotic beasts deep in the forbidden area that have come to the outskirts. This situation is not very common, and the area we operate in is actually the outskirts of the forbidden area." "But if we encounter this, it is incredibly dangerous because we only understand the habits and abilities of the exotic beasts on the outskirts, while the forbidden area is vast, with a wide variety of exotic beasts whose abilities are unpredictable. One moment of inattention can lead to death." "The second situation is the song." As he spoke, Cross's expression showed apprehension. "There is a saying in this forbidden area that a song may be heard, and those who hear it rarely survive. However, I've never heard the song; only Thunder Team has heard it." Xu Qing looked at Thunder Team, who remained silent, only lifting his head to gaze into the depths of the forbidden area, a complex look in his eyes. "As for the third situation, I'll explain it," Luan Ya said with a smile, glancing at Xu Qing. "Kid, the third danger here is quite common, and that is the fog." "Once the fog appears, it’s as if people become blind, getting lost, and the fog tends to linger for a long time. If one loses their way here and cannot exit in time, they will be trapped in the forbidden area. With the corrosion of the anomalies, their own anomalies will gradually rise, which often signifies the arrival of death. "But there are two methods to resolve this: one is fire, and the other is having a strong mental power, either innate or acquired." "The former addresses the symptoms but not the root; while fire can disperse the fog in a small area and restore vision, the fog is peculiar, and fire is hard to sustain. As for the latter, typically, a strong mental power individual appears in the camp once every few decades, and this type of person usually leaves quickly for better opportunities." "There is a fourth danger, which is encountering hostile ambushes." The Barbarian Ghost, leading the way, said quietly. Luan Ya was about to speak, but at that moment, Thunder Team, looking into the distance of the forbidden area, suddenly changed his expression and shouted. "Silence!" In the next moment, Cross drew his bow, Luan Ya's eyes glimmered, the Barbarian Ghost's body swelled, and Xu Qing felt the hairs on his body stand on end as a strong threat suddenly emanated from the dark jungle ahead. Soon, in the darkness, pairs of glowing eyes appeared, cold and emotionless, staring at the group. There were many eyes. As these eyes manifested, a pack of giant wolves, their bodies covered in black scales and as large as water buffaloes, slowly emerged. There appeared to be at least dozens of them, and further back, there seemed to be even more, possibly hundreds. Each wolf emitted a wave of spiritual energy that reached about the second level, causing the Barbarian Ghost and the others to change color. "Black-scaled Wolf Pack!" "They typically live at the intersection of the depths of the forbidden area and the outskirts, not in this range. How did they end up here!" Cross's pupils contracted, and Luan Ya's face also turned a bit pale. They understood very well that while a single black-scaled wolf wasn't much, such numbers would pose a severe test to them. Most importantly, the anomalies within the forbidden area were dense; once their internal spiritual energy was overly depleted, they could only absorb external spiritual energy for replenishment. During battles, there would be no time to separate the anomalies. In that case, the accumulation of anomalies within them would rise rapidly, significantly increasing the risk of mutation. Xu Qing's breathing became slightly hurried, as the pressure from the wolf pack was immense. "You all retreat first, I'll hold them off." As the others were shaken, Thunder Team spoke in a deep voice, slowly stepping forward. A wave of spiritual energy emanating from him, surpassing Cross's by at least a fold, erupted as he moved forward. The wolves all paused, turning their gazes towards Thunder Team.