Chapter 918: Chapter 916: Waiting in the Dead of Night
The gray wolf’s struggles were of no use, instead causing adverse effects.
Some strands of grass not only entered through its mouth but also penetrated the wolf’s other head openings — its nostrils, ears — invading the body. There were even strands that pried open the wolf’s tightly shut eyelids, bypassing the eyeball, entering deep into the head, and infiltrating the brain’s most vulnerable areas.
The next moment, the gray wolf convulsed violently, and its entire body went limp. It wasn’t dead, but it lost all its ability to resist, staring blankly ahead.
“Swish!”
The giant tree’s branch descended once more, wrapped around the motionless gray wolf, and tossed it into the tree hole.
Soon, the face on the tree trunk displayed a somewhat cautious and solemn expression.
A few seconds later, the expression became sly, slowly smiling before returning to normal.
In the same place, it appeared as if nothing had happened, except for the slightly bloody air.
…
On the other side.
Richard, Bobbobovic, and Heluo delved continuously into the forest, continuing until dusk.
The three appeared on a clearing, slightly wary as they looked around, inspecting clues — this was the site where the third exploration team was brutally slaughtered. The only survivor could provide limited clues, so the three worked hard to collect more information, trying to piece together the scene that occurred here.
By now, the bodies of the Truth Society Wizards killed on the clearing had long disappeared without a trace, carried away by carnivorous animals in the forest as stored food, leaving only some shredded clothes and blurred battle traces.
The three studied this for half the day, speculating that the exploration team initially engaged in fierce combat with the enemy. However, they weren’t defeated head-on but suffered some unknown ambush, causing their formation to crumble and become unable to cooperate, leading to their massacre.
“What a pity.” After the research, Heluo dropped a piece of cloth fragment and spoke regretfully, “If only a complete body were here on site, maybe we could use Prediction Magic to obtain more information. But now, forget about the body, not even a single part remains, so all we can do is make uncertain guesses.”
Bobbobovic carefully picked up the piece of cloth Heluo dropped, stepped away, fiddled with it for a while, then looked at Heluo and asked, “I remember, there are certain Prediction Spells where you could use Spirit Communication to gain information using items once touched by the deceased. Can’t you do that?”
Heluo listened, glanced at Bobbobovic, and calmly asked, “Who told you that?”
“Well…” Bobbobovic hesitated, “It’s something I heard from a not-so-familiar wizard friend.”
“I assume both you and your wizard friend aren’t well-versed in Prediction Magic, right?” Heluo stated.
“Why do you say that?”
“Because if either of you were familiar with Prediction Magic, this conversation wouldn’t be happening.” Heluo replied, “Prediction Magic is indeed amazing, but it isn’t almighty. In most cases, it’s a rather disadvantaged method, a last resort choice.
Prediction Magic has many uncertainties and limitations. Like you said, acquiring information just by obtaining items contacted by the deceased would already be in the realm of gods, something wizards cannot achieve.”
“Not entirely.” Bobbobovic said, “My wizard friend mentioned that according to some records, ancient wizards were indeed capable of this.”
“A long time ago? Ancient Wizards?” Heluo didn’t expect Bobbobovic to say this, paused for a moment, and noncommittally responded, “Maybe. However, a lot of ancient Prediction Magic has been lost. In this current era, it’s truly impossible.”
Bobbobovic shrugged, no longer dwelling on the point.
At that moment, Richard called out from not far away, “You two, come over here.”
“What’s up?” Bobbobovic and Heluo stepped over and saw Richard squatting, observing a small patch of slightly bent grass nearby.
“This is the trace of some creature that walked here not long ago.” Richard stated.
“So?” Bobbobovic asked.
Richard spoke, “As mentioned earlier, the animals in this forest, manipulated by the culprit, are deliberately avoiding us. If an animal appears in our vicinity, it’s naturally abnormal.
Look, these traces weren’t hastily left behind. Pay attention to the direction these grasses are bent — there are several different ones, indicating something was pacing here. This suggests the entity was not an animal driven away by the culprit fleeing us, but probably an animal specifically arranged by the culprit.”
“A spy monitoring us?” Heluo looked at Richard, speculating.
“Not quite.” Richard shook his head, “If it were a spy, pacing here serves no purpose. Rather than a spy, I lean towards believing this entity is an ambusher.”
“Ambusher? Ambushing us?” Bobbobovic queried.
“Yes, ambushing us.” Richard replied, “This place is where the third exploration team was slaughtered. If we encounter it, we’d logically and emotionally stop here, allowing for ambush attacks.”
“How should we handle it? First locate them, then disrupt their ambush?” Heluo suggested.
“No need to hassle.” Richard shook his head, “If they truly wish to ambush us, then they should be prepared for a head-on confrontation with us, meaning they’re poised for a showdown — isn’t that what we actually want?
We’ll just wait here, let them initiate the attack on us. Their ambush naturally loses effectiveness, and we conserve energy, witnessing their true nature.”
Upon hearing Richard’s words, Bobbobovic and Heluo pondered briefly, then nodded in agreement, “Alright, let’s do that.”
…
Night, descended deeply.
The night’s darkness in the forest, due to numerous towering trees blocking the view, was much deeper than on the open plains. Even in the clearing within the forest, this remained unchanged.
Richard, Bobbobovic, and Heluo silently rested on the clearing, seeming as though submerged in thick ink. The damp and chilly night air roamed around, like a hungry devil continually seeking potential vulnerabilities, preparing to exploit them, yet repeatedly blocked by the invisible force field the trio maintained.
Everything was extraordinarily quiet, like a somber toned oil painting, or a group of sculptures.
This situation persisted for a long time until a gentle breeze stirred.
“Whoosh—”
The wind blew from the side, skimmed along the ground, then suddenly lifted high, departing from one direction like a mischievous elf.
Heluo opened her eyes, sensing something, looking into the depths of the night’s shadows.