hsntnovel Chapter 3 The Strange Forest
Chapter 3 The Strange Forest
Unknown area, more than ten kilometers from the shelter.
In the wilderness, Xu Yang was hiding behind a rock with his backpack on.
Ahead of him, a figure with a mottled black and green hue was staggering back and forth at the edge of a small grove of trees.
From a distance, combined with his hunched back and stooped posture, he looked like a strange old man taking a stroll.
but it is not the truth.
[Thorn-eating creature]
Humans infected by the Thorn Banshee have become immortal monsters, puppets of the banshee. Their bodies are covered in tangled, otherworldly plants, forcing them to move with hunched backs and dragging feet. As they move, the thorns completely enveloping their upper bodies seem to come alive, constantly twitching and writhing, their paralyzing spikes ready to kill any enemy at any moment.
[Note: Bulletproof vests! We need more bulletproof vests!]
Xu Yang seized the opportunity to lean out from behind the rock.
Flame Bullet!
A fireball the size of a billiard ball formed in his hand and shot out instantly.
boom!
The host's body swayed slightly.
The edges of the thorns that were hit had some scorch marks, and upon closer inspection, there were several more such scorch marks on the possessed person's body.
Overall, there was no major problem, and it did not affect its counterattack.
Upon being attacked, the spikes on the parasitic thorns shoot out.
bang bang bang...
The spikes struck the boulder in front of Xu Yang, scraping off only a few stone fragments and causing no harm.
The thorns wriggled even more violently, and new spikes quickly took shape.
Xu Yang seized the opportunity when the opponent's new thorns had not yet sprouted, and once again leaned forward and threw a fireball.
Another charred spot appeared on the thorns.
The cycle repeats itself...
Xu Yang felt fortunate.
Normally, using fireballs to deal with symbiotic beings is like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.
Fortunately, the latter's behavior pattern is limited, which is why we have this situation today.
Half an hour ago, Xu Yang encountered this thing in the woods.
They seized the initiative and fired a fireball, but found that it had little effect.
He decisively ran away.
Of course, the possessed creatures did not let Xu Yang go and almost immediately began to hunt him down.
He survived by being impaled by thorns thanks to the shelter he received from the tree trunks in the forest.
Once he reached the edge of the woods and there was no more cover around him, Xu Yang was still worried that he might turn into a hedgehog.
They can run even faster.
After all the noise stopped behind him, he turned around and saw a green figure stopped at the edge of the woods!
They returned to the woods not long after.
Xu Yang sensed something was amiss, so he entered the woods again, only to witness the same outcome once more.
No matter how he tried to "seduce" it, the monster just stayed at the edge of the forest.
It turns out this thing can't leave the forest.
At this point, Xu Yang finally realized—
The advantage lies with me!
He then circled halfway around the edge of the woods, found a suitable hiding place, and then entered the woods for the third time, luring the possessed creature out again.
This time, however, he didn't run far away, but hid behind a boulder not far away.
Let's begin discussing a protracted war.
Whenever the possessed creature tries to return to the forest, the fireballs will firmly hold its aggro, but when it tries to pursue further, some kind of restriction prevents it from leaving the forest, and its ranged attacks are blocked by boulders.
Thus, the parasite became Xu Yang's sitting duck.
Death is only a matter of time.
……
boom!
The monster's head was charred and then shattered by a single blow. Its entire body staggered and fell to the ground.
To prevent the possibility of the corpse coming back to life, Xu Yang deliberately fired several more fireballs at the corpse.
Only then did he step forward to check.
Beneath the charred thorns, human flesh had long since rotted away, leaving only a few tattered strips of cloth tied to it, perhaps once clothing.
Xu Yang was somewhat disappointed.
Judging from the condition of the corpse, there probably won't be anything of value to be found.
And the others?
He pulled a poisonous thorn from a thorn bush.
It is about an inch long, dark green in color, and very smooth and hard to the touch.
Corresponding information also appeared in the field of vision.
Paralyzing poison sting
[It is entirely hard, and its surface keratin layer can interact with biological blood to produce a powerful numbing effect.]
[Note: Despicable outsider!]
Paralyzing effect!
Xu Yang's heart stirred.
If you scrape this stuff off and apply it to weapons, wouldn't that make excellent material for sneaky attacks?
After removing the remaining poisonous stingers and putting them in his backpack, Xu Yang decided to go back into the grove.
If we're lucky, we might even find other parasites. If we just follow the same method, Stinger's freedom will be within reach.
Walking through the woods, the surroundings were very quiet, without a single bird chirp or insect sound.
It resembles some kind of tomb.
The further you go, the bigger, more numerous, and denser the tree trunks become...
This prompted Xu Yang to frequently look behind him to locate the exit, so that he could escape in time should a battle break out.
Unfortunately, they didn't find any other possessors along the way.
However, in the central area of the woods, he discovered a "wooden wall".
The "wooden wall" is made up of neatly arranged large trees, with the trunks tightly packed together, and black thorns wrapped around it, but they are just ordinary spikes and there is no need to collect them.
Xu Yang walked around the wooden wall but found no gaps.
It's as if the interior area is being deliberately protected.
He guessed that there might be something behind it, and it might even be the reason why the previous possessors couldn't leave the Green Forest.
After all, besides the strange ecology of the forest, this place is the most suspicious.
Moreover, Xu Yang also remembered a description from the previous guide—
"The Banshee's Puppet".
Perhaps what's inside is related to the so-called female demon.
Based on the parasitic creature's behavior, he vaguely had a guess—
Perhaps the thorn-borne creature plays the role of a "security guard"? Its purpose is to protect this place for the banshee.
This also explains why the parasites cannot leave the forest.
So what is worth taking care of?
Xu Yang felt he needed to go in and take a look.
But the wall made of trees and the thorns clinging to it made things complicated.
He didn't have an axe.
How can we tear down this "wall"?
After a moment's thought, Xu Yang had an idea.
There's no axe, but there's fire; this shabby place doesn't have any rules against fire.
Just burn it down and that's it!
The only concerns are how long the fire will last and whether the things inside the "wooden wall" will be damaged.
According to Xu Yang's observation, the former forest was relatively small, just a small patch of land that suddenly appeared in the desolate wilderness, and it would be terrible if it burned for half a day.
As for the latter, Xu Yang believed that only what he had in hand was real.
He might not gain anything by setting a fire, but if he doesn't, he will definitely gain nothing.
And there was another reason—he felt something was wrong with the forest.
There wasn't even a bird in sight.
It's terrifying.
In short, after much consideration, Xu Yang decided to burn it, as it was both convenient and simple.
He first gathered some dry branches and fallen leaves around the woods and piled them all under the "wooden wall".
Then a small fireball condensed in his palm, quickly igniting the igniter.
The flames rose upwards, igniting the thorns, and then continued to spread in all directions.
The fire has spread.
Xu Yang covered his mouth and nose and ran out of the woods.
……
"It burned pretty quickly."
Outside the woods, Xu Yang looked at his masterpiece with amusement.
The entire forest was like a lit fuse, spreading outwards from the center, forming a torch brighter than the sun across the wilderness...
Time passed by, second by second.
The firelight gradually disappeared at the edge of the woods, leaving a dark patch in the wilderness.
Xu Yang waited outside for a while longer until the temperature dropped slightly.
He covered all his exposed skin with cloth, leaving only his eyes to find his way.
He took a stick and carefully crept into the woods.
The journey was incredibly difficult, but thankfully the soles of my shoes were sturdy enough to prevent them from melting into the ground.
We walked and stopped, and it took us a full half hour to finally reach the center.
This time, without the "wooden wall" obstructing him, Xu Yang kicked open the charred tree trunk.
They barged in.
This is a small, circular area, with only a pile of charred remains in its center.
Upon seeing this, Xu Yang's heart skipped a beat.
Was all that work for nothing?
He hurriedly used a stick to pry away the top layer of charcoal, but underneath were only a few dark pieces of wood.
guide!
As several identical pieces of information about charred wood flashed across his vision, Xu Yang grew increasingly disappointed.
Suddenly, a glint of light flashed in his eyes.
He stared intently at a piece of oval-shaped black wood.