"Been walking forever, and we haven't seen a single monster."
"Relax, they'll show up soon!"
"Any more skewers left? I could use another bite!"
Four players strolled leisurely through the dense forest, scanning the surroundings with casual vigilance while looking for loot or monsters.
Suddenly, a feral roar split the air.
Before anyone could react, a pitch-black panther over four meters long leapt out and pinned one player to the ground.
"Holy crap!" The player instinctively raised an arm to block the beast's gaping jaws. The panther bit down hard, leaving his arm drenched in blood and mangled beyond recognition.
He hadn't even had time to activate Armament Aura.
"Help him!"
The other three players snapped out of their shock and rushed to attack.
Whoosh!
But the panther leapt gracefully into the trees, evading their crude bone knives and blades. A few quick bounds later, it disappeared into the foliage.
Realizing the panther was still nearby, the players quickly stood back-to-back, gripping their weapons tightly.
"That thing's smarter than the War Camel Beasts!"
"Yeah, the camels were dumb as rocks compared to this!"
"You guys are idiots. This isn't the starter zone anymore! Of course, the mobs are tougher here!"
The four players were left reeling, not from physical wounds but from sheer bewilderment.
In their minds, monsters should behave like the War Camel Beasts—charging headfirst into battle without strategy or caution.
But this panther had not only ambushed them but retreated immediately after missing its mark, biding its time for another attack.
Similar scenarios were unfolding across the forest as players ventured deeper into the jungle.
"Help! Someone save me!" screamed a player ensnared by a massive vine, which hoisted him toward a gaping carnivorous flower. Struggling helplessly, he could only wail for help.
"Run for your lives!!!" shouted another group of players, fleeing from a stampede of giant black bulls with twin horns. Not one or two bulls—there were over a hundred of them!
"Call for backup!" one player yelled before being swallowed whole by a ten-meter-long python.
Another player hastily grabbed his distress signal stick and crushed it.
Boom!
A streak of lightning shot into the sky, exploding into a green halo.
Moments later, He Yiming arrived, soaring in on his Bright Moon Flying Sword. Spotting three players cornered by the giant python, he wasted no time.
"Flying Sword, slash!" He Yiming commanded.
The glowing blade zipped through the air, slicing the massive serpent cleanly in half.
Even as its head remained intact and lunged to bite, He Yiming dropped from the sky, his entire body cloaked in Armament Aura. With one mighty punch, he smashed the snake's head into the ground, embedding it deeply into the soil.
"Quick! It hasn't digested him yet!"
The surviving players scrambled to the python's corpse, pulling their swallowed comrade out of its stomach.
"Ugh… it stinks!" The rescued player was drenched in slimy digestive fluids, his body battered and broken, a comically pitiful sight.
Before He Yiming could warn them to be more cautious, several more distress signals flared up in the distance.
Turning his head, he saw seven or eight green halos light up the sky in rapid succession.
"Oh, for heaven's sake…" He Yiming muttered, exasperated.
They'd only just entered the outer region of the Ten Thousand Mountains, and the players were already dropping like flies!
Sighing, He Yiming stepped onto his flying sword and hurried off to their aid.
An Hour Later
Outside the Spirit Armored War Chariot, a ragtag group of players gathered, each in varying degrees of disrepair.
Several had missing limbs, shattered armor, or broken weapons.
One particularly unfortunate player had a head that was half-caved in, resembling a bitten apple. Despite this grotesque injury, he was somehow still alive and functioning, though the compressed side of his face gave him an oddly comedic appearance.
"Why are the monsters here so damn strong?"
"Man, I didn't even kill one. If Ming hadn't shown up, I'd be toast!"
"I smacked a baby bull once, and the whole damn herd of a hundred went berserk chasing me! Where's the justice? Developers, come out and take your punishment!"
The players vented their frustrations while bandaging wounds and eating hotpot around the chariot.
"I miss the camels," one player sighed wistfully.
Though the War Camel Beasts were high in attack and defense, they lacked intelligence. Once players figured out their attack patterns, the fights were straightforward and predictable.
The monsters in the Ten Thousand Mountains were an entirely different story.
Living in an ecosystem of constant predation and survival, these beasts were either overwhelmingly strong, traveled in packs, or relied on cunning and ambush tactics.
For example, the panther that ambushed the earlier group wasn't particularly powerful but was highly opportunistic and always ready to retreat.
Most players were struggling to survive in the unforgiving wilderness.
However, some players thrived under these harsh conditions.
Roar!!!"
A ferocious tiger, over four meters long, lunged with razor-sharp claws aimed at its target.
Standing fearlessly in its path was ID: Wang Lufei.
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]