Chapter 172: The Great Magic—Man-Eating Vine

“You’re not coming? Then I’ll go on ahead. Everyone, be careful.”

Sang Chu and Xi Rui pressed forward, but the further they walked, the more uneasy they felt, as if something was lurking nearby.

“Sang Sang, something’s not right…”

Xi Rui tensed up, standing in front of Sang Chu. Yi Ge also moved up beside Xi Rui, but he didn’t see anything. The little snow fox on his shoulder whispered, “Master, I think something is getting close to me!”

Yi Ge asked, “Xiao Xuehai, what’s getting close?”

“I—I don’t know what’s getting close…”

Mu Xue was confused as well, but she didn’t dare speak loudly. She quickly expanded her senses as much as she could.

The surroundings were eerily quiet.

Xi Rui wasn’t sure if it was just her nerves, but she instinctively pulled Sang Chu back with her, retreating slowly. “It feels like a plant, but also not quite. Normal plants don’t attack people, but I can sense something here that’s not right!”

Granny Xiang followed Xi Rui’s lead, slowly backing away. When she realized what it might be, she quickly searched her memory. “Is it a man-eating vine?”

“Man-eating vine?” Xi Rui’s expression changed slightly, and she retreated even faster.

Sang Chu looked at her in confusion. “What’s so dangerous about a man-eating vine?”

“Man-eating vines aren’t that scary by themselves, but they always appear in groups. If you see one, there are bound to be hundreds or thousands nearby.”

Mu Xue’s face went pale, but she truly hadn’t sensed any danger around!

Mu Xue’s voice trembled slightly. “Th-then what do we do? I didn’t sense anything at all! Is it already really close to us?”

Xi Rui didn’t answer, but her bow was already drawn, a cold, icy arrow shimmering in her hand, ready to fire.

“The presence of man-eating vines is very faint. If I weren’t a plant spirit, I probably wouldn’t have noticed it either. It’s right in front of me.”

Whoosh—

A sharp sound pierced the night. Suddenly, the vine lashed out, whipping toward Xi Rui.

Xi Rui shoved Sang Chu aside and rolled to dodge, drawing her bow at the same time and firing straight at the base of the vine.

But just then, a huge blood-red flower suddenly opened wide, swallowing the arrow whole and even smacking its lips as if savoring the taste.

It grew larger and larger, its demonic appearance both enchanting and terrifying.

Xi Rui narrowed her eyes at it, nocking another magic arrow. “Yi Ge, you and Huo use fire attacks. I’ll look for a chance to shoot its root.”

“Got it!”

Yi Ge quickly gave Xiao Huo a command, and the two launched their assault.

“Go, burn it!”

The flames in his hand instantly turned into a fire dragon, roaring toward the man-eating flower. Xiao Huo, not to be outdone, spat out a fireball, but when it saw that Yi Ge’s magic was even more powerful, it put all its effort into spewing a massive fireball.

Xi Rui was surprised by Yi Ge’s display, but there was no time to dwell on it. The man-eating flower used its vines to block the flames as they came.

The little snow fox clung to Yi Ge’s shoulder, trembling in fear, while Xi Rui squinted, waiting for the perfect opportunity.

With the boost from his spiritual power, Yi Ge’s fire quickly burned through the vines, creating a huge opening in the man-eating flower’s defenses.

Now’s the time!

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

Xi Rui fired five arrows in quick succession. The man-eating flower couldn’t dodge in time and was struck by one. It shook with rage, and countless small flower buds burst open, each one swallowing up Yi Ge’s flames!

One flower devoured an entire fireball in an instant.

Yi Ge cursed, “Damn, this thing can just keep eating our attacks! We’ll run out of energy before we kill it!”

Sang Chu stood calmly to the side. “If that’s the case, then let’s wear it down. Xi Rui, how many arrows can you conjure at once?”

“Twelve.”

“Good. Conjure all twelve now and set them aside. Jingwen, you control those arrows and send them behind the flower to attack its roots. Xi Rui, keep up the feint from the front. Yi Ge and Huo, alternate your attacks. Ignore the flowers—just go for the vines.”

“Understood!”

Xi Rui conjured twelve arrows and placed them on the ground, then drew her bow and continued attacking from the front.

Sang Jingwen used her spiritual power to control the arrows, sending them behind the man-eating flower. If any were blocked, she would maneuver them around and keep going.

Xi Rui, focused on drawing her bow, was momentarily distracted, and one arrow flew off target. But to her surprise, the next moment, the stray arrow corrected its own course.

Sang Chu helped Xi Rui up, noticing her pale face. She handed her a demon pearl. “Hold this in your hand and absorb the energy inside. It’ll help you recover quickly!”

Xi Rui didn’t know what Sang Chu had given her, but she didn’t hesitate. As soon as she started absorbing it, she felt a surge of power she’d never sensed before.

With the demon pearl in her hand, Xi Rui closed her eyes and absorbed the energy. Demon power flowed into her body, instantly replenishing her depleted magic, and even making her stronger than before!

Xi Rui’s eyes snapped open, shining with new light. She nodded at Sang Chu, turned, drew her bow, and fired a thunderous arrow.

The vine was pierced clean through.

The man-eating flower tried to escape, but Sang Jingwen, waiting behind it, instantly controlled the arrows to stab into its root.

Thick, green blood gushed everywhere.

Hidden in the shadows, Tu You immediately dipped her magic card in the blood.

[A Chu, someone’s coming at me fast!]

Mu Xue sensed someone approaching at high speed and quickly warned Sang Chu. But before she could finish, the person appeared in the sky, with a pair of white wings on his back. He looked down at the battlefield and couldn’t help but applaud.

“What a wonderful show.”

Tu You moved to Sang Chu’s side. [This guy is strong—his magic level must be high. A Chu, be careful.]

Sang Chu didn’t reply. She simply put her hands behind her back. Tu You instantly understood, handed her the blood-soaked card, and bit Sang Chu’s finger to drip blood onto it.

Sang Chu looked up at the man in the sky and said, “Honored sir, thank you for your praise. However, we need to be on our way, so we won’t keep you. Goodbye.”

Even though she was on guard, Sang Chu didn’t immediately collect the man-eating vine and flower—they still lay sprawled across the ground.

But as Sang Chu’s group began to retreat, the man in the sky called out, “Don’t leave so soon! My people haven’t arrived yet. You were following me before, so why did you suddenly change direction? It took me a while to find you!”

“I wonder, sir, what business do you have with me?”

“Of course, I’m here to chat with you.”"