Chapter 6: Groundhog!

  "It's really the Sacred Heart Pill." Zhan Xiu carefully examined it, muttered to himself for a moment, and still looked at Ling Wu with some disbelief, asking: "Wu, is this something you refined yourself?"

  Musō apparently said she was an alchemist, and on that day at the base, when competing for the divine medicine, Futaki Kusakabe, she said that thing could be used by her, which means Musō is at least a sacred medicine master!

  Ling Wudao is already a Saint Medicine Master at such a young age, it's really unbelievable. Seeing Ling Wudao easily take out the Sacred Heart Dan, Zhan Xiu became even more certain of his thoughts.

  "War Big Brother" saw War Repair self-out of god, Ling Wu Shuang smiled and raised the jade-like Dan medicine in his hand.

  "In that case, I won't be polite." Zhan Xi came back to his senses and didn't decline or show any hesitation. He took the medicinal pill from Ling Wushuang's hand and put it directly into his mouth.

  The Sacred Heart Dan melted instantly, merging into a warm current that surged towards the several bleeding wounds on Zhang Wuji's body. The surrounding crowd focused their attention on Zhang Wuji, and an eerie silence fell over the scene. After taking the elixir, it seemed as though one could hear the sound of flesh growing. In just a moment, the wound healed at a visible rate, scabbing over!

  "It's indeed the miraculous Sacred Heart Dan"

  "What's going on? This little girl is actually an alchemist?"

  "Maybe she bought it or maybe it was her family's, but she gave it away so casually, that's a bit too generous"

  "If I had one, I'd be able to afford it"

  ……

  The hunters around, gazing at Ling Wu's eyes, became even more fervent. For those who were fighting for their lives on the edge of life and death, what they needed most was this lifesaving elixir. At a critical moment, one pellet of miraculous medicine could be equivalent to an extra life!

  "Unmatched, you truly surprised me." Zhan Xi corrected his posture, and his entire body, not to mention the wounds, even a hint of pain, all disappeared without a trace. He couldn't help but smile: "This little injury is nothing, wasting a Sacred Heart Dan is really somewhat of an overkill."

  A Holy Heart Pill is extremely precious, even if Wu Xie were an alchemist, refining one would be extremely difficult. You should know that the Holy Heart Pill not only has healing properties but also has a divine effect of enhancing one's abilities. Now it has only quickly healed his external injuries, and the remaining effects of the pill have yet to be fully utilized.

  Jian Zhan Xu had nothing to do, Ling Wu Shuang couldn't help but hehe smile twice, "It's okay, just a small Sacred Heart Dan, War Big Brother doesn't need to mind it, I still have many"

  Everyone suddenly rolled their eyes collectively, it's really infuriating. Alchemists are extremely noble, and Sacred Alchemists are even more rare. Refining a single Sacred Tier Dan medicine is not something to be taken lightly, consuming time and energy. And she has many of these small Sacred Heart Dans? How can she say such things?!

  This little girl, where did this local tyrant come from?

  "You little girl, if we find any good medicine this time, even if War Brother has to fight for it, he'll get it for you." War Xiu didn't think much of it and laughed loudly a few times, thinking that Ling Wushuang was just saying that so he wouldn't feel indebted.

  Ling Wushuang rubbed his nose and casually said, "Alright."

  After finishing speaking, she secretly curled her lips, what she said was actually true, but it was directly ignored.

  A trial of wit and courage ended unexpectedly with Ling Wu Shuang emerging victorious, and then, astonishingly, she casually produced the Sacred Heart Dan, a pill of such high quality that everyone's curiosity about her grew even more.

  After passing through the edge of Xiling Nationality, Ling Wushuang followed the wandering tribe and rushed for more than ten days. The farther they went, the closer they got to the central area of Luori Forest. Along the way, they encountered many ferocious beasts.

  "Master, we're almost there."

  Hong Shu looked around and signaled to the crowd to stop and rest for a while. Along the way, they found more and more hidden marks left by the vagrant tribe, and at most half a day's journey, they would definitely arrive at their destination.

  "What's that noise?" Just as a group of people had sat down, Ling Wushuang furrowed his brow in puzzlement and raised his hand to signal everyone to pay attention.

  Yu Wei sat on the ground with a thud, muttering in a low, mysterious tone: "Even Grandpa didn't notice anything wrong, what can you possibly discover, being so suspicious and paranoid?"

  That day's embarrassing incident made Yuwei want to find a crack in the ground to crawl into, but in the end, she gritted her teeth and continued on the road together with him, albeit in silence. However, from the moment she knew that Ling Wushuang had already reached the Holy Stage, Yuwei was secretly going crazy.

  "It's just a bit of strength, but it's really because of who you are" Yu Wei muttered to herself, her voice full of disdain.

  All along, Yu Wei thought that only Xing Xi was more talented and stronger than her, but suddenly a woman appeared, surpassing her in every aspect, making the arrogant and proud Yu Wei feel uncomfortable and unwilling to accept it.

  "Yu Wei, you'd better calm down for a while." However, the old man was quite clever and knew how to adapt to the situation. He secretly stopped Yu Wei from causing trouble for Ling Wu Shuang.

  People like him, without absolute certainty, will not easily take action. Before investigating Ling Wushuang's background, he rashly took action and suffered a great loss, so he would not act rashly again.

  "No, it's true" After a while, Hong Shu and Zhan Xiu et al. discovered the rustling sound.

  "Whoosh, whoosh"

  In the dark of night, the surrounding trees cast eerie shadows on the ground, as if everything was trembling slightly.

  "General alert!" War Xiufeng's long spear was drawn out of his hand, and he immediately issued an order.

  Just as everyone was about to rest, they immediately became alert and highly focused upon hearing this.

  "Crack!"

  The first crisp sound entered the ear, and after a moment, the surrounding large tracts of forest, as if flooded by a flood, began to collapse.

  Rumble, crack

  The creaking and screeching sounds, in the quiet and dense forest, sent chills down people's spines. Hong Shu and other experienced forest hunters felt a surge of bad premonitions in their hearts, secretly worrying that it might be what they were thinking!

  "Rumble!"

  With hundreds of people at its center, the surrounding trees collapsed and fell one after another, the ground shaking as if it were an earthquake.

  "Squeak!"

  The first gray figure quickly darted out, emitting a strange cry of "squeak squeak" from its sharp mouth, revealing its body shape. After everyone saw it clearly, they instantly gasped in unison, and some people with shallow strength turned pale.

  Unlucky, it's them after all!

  A one-meter-tall mysterious beast, surrounded by a layer of gray fur, with a meter-long thin black tail that is almost as long as its body. Its long mouth is open, revealing sharp white teeth in the moonlight, with two particularly prominent canine teeth.

  This is one of the most numerous and troublesome Shadow Beasts in the Forest of Sunset, the Groundhog!

  Layer upon layer of groundhogs, one after another, burst out from the dense forest, like a river, swarming in, chirping and squeaking sounds, filling this world, making people's hair stand on end.

  "Oh no, why is this happening to me!"

  "So many landmines, it seems like we'll be settling accounts here today"

  "Almost all of them are high-ranking officials, how can this be!?"

  In the forest of sunset, encountering a high-ranking Xuan beast is not the most frightening thing. The most frightening thing is to encounter a Diying mouse, which will not let go once it has caught up with you. These are all formidable and numerous as cow hair. Now, however, both have been fully possessed, forming groups of high-ranking Diying mice!

  The Ground Shadow Mouse is the overlord of the Fallen Day Forest, with razor-sharp teeth that can easily crush even the hardest minerals like adamantite and iron. Not to mention Tian Xuan, even high-ranking Saints who are caught by them will be left with no bones remaining. Even high-ranking Saint Realm beasts will have to dodge when encountering a group of Ground Shadow Mice.

  Wherever he goes, no grass grows!

  "Squeak!"

  A countless number of ground shadows, overwhelming the dense forest, came from all around, a pair of small eyes shining with a faint light, instantly locked onto Ling Wu Shuang and his party.

  "Full alert!" War Xiuzhen shouted with a raised arm, and even as a Saint-stage cultivator, he didn't dare to be careless.

  "It's all over, how could I have encountered these things" Yu Wei's legs were almost softening, she hadn't expected that before even reaching the safety zone of the main troops' barracks, she would encounter a group of the most troublesome and deadly Xuan beasts.

  "What's going to happen? What's going to happen? I'm doomed for sure!" Yu Wei's whole body was trembling, and her words were stuttering.

  She had heard her uncles talk about such situations before, but this was the first time she had followed everyone on a long trip, and now that she actually saw such a terrifying situation, her heart began to tremble.

  "Damn it, they're all high-ranking officials!" Hong Shu's square face was calm and quiet, even with a large beard covering his cheeks, you could still feel the tension in his face.

  Rumbling sound

  "Prepare for battle!" The Dark Shadow Mouse Army is getting closer and closer, Hong Shu calls on everyone to line up in a defensive formation. Then, he looks at Ling Wushuang beside him and comforts her: "Little girl, don't be afraid, just protect yourself." After finishing speaking, he seriously reminds her, "Remember to follow Uncle Hong's side, never fall behind!"

  This little girl is probably a young lady from a big family, although her strength is higher than theirs, but after all, she has not experienced such a real and dangerous situation, if she gets nervous and panics, if she falls behind and is surrounded by these things, something might happen.

  Many ants can kill an elephant, the saint of the high stage on the ground was bitten to death by a large army of shadow mice, countless, he couldn't take it lightly, let alone this time's shadow mouse army, the high-ranking ones occupied nearly half, and he had never encountered such a terrifying beast tide before!

  Listening to Hong Shu's direct and almost shouting words of concern, Ling Wushuang's heart warmed up at this moment. Without saying much, he nodded and smiled: "Uncle Hong, don't worry, I will take good care of myself."

  "Squeak!"

  Everyone only drew their swords for a moment, and a vast expanse of dark shadows rushed in from all directions, covering the sky. At a glance, within sight, there were tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands!

  "Kill!"

  Zhan Xiu's long spear points to the sky, issuing a killing order.

  Faced with such a situation, in order to survive, there is no other choice but one way out, that is to fight and kill your way out!

  "Yes!"

  A hundred people shouted in unison, their voices hoarse from cheering, accompanied by the ups and downs of murderous intent. This situation can only be met with a desperate gamble.

  "Hmmph!"

  Zhan Xiu charged into the mouse tide first, his black long spear thrust out, and with a "puchi" sound, blood and flesh flew everywhere. A ninth-level ground shadow mouse was instantly pierced by the spear. Immediately after, the squeaking sounds grew louder, and the enraged mouse tide instantly submerged Zhan Xiu's tall body.

  "Be careful, young master!" Hong Shu loudly reminded, but when he looked up, he could no longer see Zhan Xiu's figure, only saw that among the dense grayness, there were constantly shadows of mice being picked up and thrown to the ground.

  "Kill!"

  Hong Shu swung his large knife and charged after War Repairs Body, intentionally or unintentionally protecting Ling Wushuang by his side.

  Yu Wei followed closely behind the elder, her face pale and frightened, as she was startled by the sudden appearance of ground shadows, which made her look even more eerie with blood splattered on her pale complexion.

  Usually in the tribe, listening to everyone talking about adventure, encountering all kinds of fierce and mysterious beasts, couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. But now that she's encountered it herself, she realizes how truly terrifying it is.

  "Ah!" Yu Wei let out a sharp cry, her left arm was bitten by a groundhog's sharp teeth on her waist, the sleeve was torn open in an instant, and the delicate skin was pulled off with it. The pain made her break out in cold sweat, and she shouted out in shock, "Grandfather, I'm hurt!"

  "Damn it, shut up!" The elder sliced the ground shadow mouse in half with one knife, and his gaze turned to stare at Zhan Xiu and Hong Shu, who were surrounding Ling Wu Shuang, muttering viciously under his breath, "Abominable".

  That damn Ling Wushuang, she's a Saint-level expert, do all these people need to surround her and protect her every step of the way? Can't they see that Yuwei is injured?!

  "Musō, follow me! Nobody falls behind!" Senri shouted loudly as he fought at the forefront, his spear sweeping across a wide area.

  Ling Wushuang followed behind Uncle Hong, the dagger in her hand flashed once, and a knife cut off a ground mouse that suddenly came out from the seam of the crowd. Her expression was a bit laughable, these people really treated her as a delicate young lady to protect, she had just rushed out for a moment, and then was surrounded by several people again to protect her.

  "Chirp, chirp!"

  A dark tide of rodents surged forward, seemingly endless, as if the very earth itself was undulating with their numbers. As one fell, another instantly took its place, and the moment a gap appeared, it was immediately filled by more, until they were packed in so tightly that not a breath of air could penetrate. The glint of thousands upon thousands of sharp white teeth and the shine of countless pairs of black eyes sparkled like diamonds against the darkness.

  But over a hundred forest hunters, surrounded by a protective circle, with people outside and inside taking turns, it was clear that they had often encountered such situations. However, looking at the exhausted expressions of the crowd, they were having a hard time coping, with people constantly getting injured and blood splattering everywhere.

  Ling Wushuang's eyes scanned the surroundings, her slender legs suddenly kicked out from the crowd and rushed to the front of Zhan Xiu.

  "Unmatched!" War Xi's eyes widened slightly, his gun swept horizontally, clearing away the dozen or so ground shadow rats that were pouncing on him, their bodies covered in fresh blood. "Fall back, this place is dangerous."

  Musou is probably encountering such a situation for the first time, rushing out recklessly would be dangerous.

  "It's nothing." Ling Wu's red lips curled up, and with a swing of her arm, the Flame Gun was fired, instantly sweeping across a large area. In an instant, a group of shadowy figures fell to the ground, accompanied by the sound of flesh being pierced and blood splattering everywhere. One shot after another, it seemed as simple as killing chickens or cutting melons.

  Zhan Xiu was slightly taken aback, what a neat and clean move!

  Hong Shu's worried gaze saw Ling Wusuo's calm and composed appearance, and he was also slightly surprised. In the midst of chaos, he couldn't help but smile slightly. This little girl's fierce appearance, coming and going freely among a group of ferocious Xuan beasts, was even more agile than this group of people who had been mixed up in the Luori Forest for their entire lives.

  The most important thing is that majestic aura!

  In the midst of life and death struggles, the most important thing is a fearless heart!

  "The detestable woman" Yu Wei saw this situation, but in her heart she was secretly scolding Ling Wu Shuang. Seizing the opportunity, she showed off, and for some unknown reason, perhaps because her brain suddenly short-circuited, Yu Wei gritted her teeth and stabbed the long sword in her hand into the abdomen of a Shadow Mouse beside her, then rushed out with her head down, wanting to kill her way to War God's side.

  "Ah!"

  But just as she took a step forward, she was knocked down by a nine-stage shadow mouse. She let out a cry of surprise and stared at the sharp teeth that were gleaming with a layer of cold light as they bit towards her neck, instantly frightening her into stiffness all over her body.

  "Yu Wei!"

  Fortunately, the old man was quick-witted and swift-handed, pulling her out with one hand, narrowly avoiding a fatal outcome on the spot. However, she herself was scared silly.

  Many people here have strength below Rainy, but facing such danger, if they really fight to the death, their combat power is several times higher than hers.

  "Flying Eagle Slash!" War Xiū made his move, a powerful and fierce slash that swept away the air, creating a rift in an instant. However, it was immediately filled up by a group of ground shadow mice that pounced on him, restoring everything to its original state.

  "This won't do!" Ling Wu's eyebrows furrowed slightly as her gaze quickly swept around, the number of Shadow Rats increasing without decreasing.

  She wants to get out of trouble, of course it's no problem, but she can't just ignore these people either.

  Ling Wushuang's eyes shone brightly, and she leapt up, landing on one foot on the back of a giant shadow mouse. Her agile body sprang out, and she coldly shouted: "Everyone get back!"

  A cold female voice, amidst the chaotic chirping of the groundhog's cries, was exceptionally clear. The crowd's hearts skipped a beat as they swung their hands to kill the groundhogs pouncing on them, and then retreated intentionally or unintentionally.

  Ling Wu's eyes flashed, her wrist lightly raised, and in the blink of an eye, a huge ball of light burst out from her slender body, illuminating the night sky with a dazzling display. With a swing of her hand, she shouted, "Flying Fire Meteor!"

  "Rumble, rumble, rumble!"

  The momentum came suddenly, and the crowd retreated one after another. The light ball was shot out, like a brilliant firework, bursting in the dark ink sky, turning into a million shooting stars and arrow rain, rushing towards the ground!

  "Squeak!"

  A flash of fiery light, and a Shadow Mouse let out a pained cry as it fell to the ground, its fur burnt and smoldering. The smell of charred flesh instantly filled the air, followed by a downpour of starlight that seemed to come from all directions. In the blink of an eye, a large area had been cleared, with scattered sparks of fire burning the Shadow Mice as they scurried about.

  The people around were stunned, and before they could react, they heard a clear shout, "Flying Fire Meteor!"

  "What's more!?" Everyone was shocked and frightened, it was really deadly.

  Nowadays, the most dangerous thing is not the groundhog around us, but someone in mid-air.

  "Everyone get back, quickly! Get back!" Hong Shu shouted loudly after a moment of stunned silence, rapidly warning the people around him. Such power was something they could not withstand.

  Uncle Hong's expression was even more helpless, how could he forget that Wú Shuāng this little monster's spiritual power seemed to be endless.

  "Rumble!"

  Several beams of light burst forth, turning into tens of thousands of crimson swords that descended like a dense rain, carrying an unstoppable momentum as they charged towards the area where the Shadow Rats were densely packed. Wherever they touched, everything fell to the ground, clearing out a large area.

  "Chirp, chirp", "Squeak, squeak"

  All around were the stifling atmosphere and the shrill cries of agony, which made one's hair stand on end.

  Ling Wushuang pushed with both hands, and another huge light ball was lifted above her head. She coldly shouted: "You beasts, if you don't leave now, I'll roast every one of you to death!"

  Although they were a group of earth shadow mice, the vast majority had already reached a high level and possessed a hint of spirituality. Facing such a terrifying aura threat, humanized fear flashed quickly in their eyes, and they all had the intention of retreating.

  "Boom!"

  Ling Wushuang's flying hand descended with an attack, and several hundred ground shadow rats were like a layer of grass clippings, being swept away with their skin and flesh, leaving nothing behind. Then, in threes and twos, they fell to the ground with a series of loud crashes, squeaking and chirping pitifully, their cries echoing continuously, making everyone's scalp tingle.

  "My goodness" The people around him stopped their hands and stared blankly at Ling Wushuang.

  Zhan Xu's face was covered in blood, and he was shocked to the point of opening his mouth. This little girl's methods were truly endless, and it seemed that she had not used her full strength in their previous exchange.

  "Chirp, chirp", "Squeak, squeak"

  A group of groundhogs, their bodies trembling with fear, formed a dense circle around them, growing larger and larger. Finally, seeing the situation was unfavorable, they cunningly turned around and ran away, dashing into the surrounding thicket. That scene was truly a case of "rats abandoning ship"!

  "Retreat! Retreat!... Retreat!" The crowd cheered excitedly, their voices growing louder and louder. People looked at each other in twos and threes, still exhilarated.

  Ling Wushuang spun around a few times and landed beside War Repair.

  "Peerless Little Sister, good job! This time we really owe it to you!" In the blink of an eye, the mouse tide retreated cleanly, and Uncle Hong strode over to Ling Wusuo's side, heartily patting her shoulder, laughing loudly with his whiskers twitching, "I'm convinced by you now!"

  If it weren't for Musou, this time, out of these hundred or so people, I'm afraid only a few would be able to leave alive.

  Hong Shu finished speaking, and the people around him also cast grateful glances at Ling Wu Shuang.

  "It's nothing." Ling Wu Xiang smiled and looked around concernedly, "Uncle Hong, quickly check if anyone is seriously injured. I have healing medicine here."

  Hong Shu was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said: "We are thick-skinned people, a little injury doesn't need to waste your precious medicine."

  The medicine is precious, unless it's a severe injury that can't be helped, they generally won't waste it easily. However, the extent of this time's injuries is indeed very serious. This little girl has already lent a hand to help, how can he bear to ask Wú Shuāng for the precious healing medicine?

  Ling Wushuang let out a soft sigh and chuckled, shaking his head slightly in resignation. He then flipped over his hand to produce a porcelain bottle, which he handed to Uncle Huzi. "Take this for now and distribute it among everyone. If it's not enough, just say the word and I'll give you more."

  Hong Shu's body stiffened, and he hesitantly accepted the thing from Ling Wusuo's hand.

  "Tian Xin Dan, and also Sheng Xin Dan" After seeing clearly, his eyes widened instantly like bronze bells. Tian Xin Dan was the most effective medicine for treating injuries for Tian Xuan, at least a hundred pills! He wasn't seeing things, was he? There were even several Sheng Xin Dan.

  "This...this" Hong Shu, a rough and burly man, held a precious medicinal pill, as if it were a hot potato, somewhat at a loss.

  Ling Wushuang rushed towards him and winked slyly, "Uncle Hong, are you still going to be formal with me?"

  She doesn't easily give her things to just anyone, and over the past few days of contact, apart from those two extremes, she has truly regarded this group of straightforward and frank forest hunters as friends.

  And they are worth it, just like Hong Shu, even if he knew she had the ability, in the face of such a dangerous situation, he would still care about and protect her.

  "Ah... Ah..." Uncle Hong was stunned for a few moments before he couldn't help but laugh and said loudly: "Alright then, I won't be polite anymore. If there's anything you need help with in the future, just let me know, Uncle Hong will definitely lend a hand, no questions asked!"

  Ling Wushuang didn't say anything more and simply smiled: "Good"

  "Hahaha" Hong Shu burst out laughing, he just liked Wu Shuang's refreshing and straightforward personality.

  As a result, when everyone was treating their injuries on the spot, they unexpectedly received a healing medicine pill each.

  "Where did so many precious elixirs come from?"

  "Haha, I've never seen an alchemist so generous, this is simply too extravagant"

  "I'll remember this kindness"

  ……

  While everyone was shocked and amazed, they all cast grateful glances at Ling Wushuang.

  "Wuduan, where did you get so many elixirs!?" Zhan Xiu was shocked. Even if Wuduan was an alchemist, it's impossible to take out so many precious elixirs casually. If he had been brewing them, they would have taken at least a year to produce.

  Ling Wushuang rolled her eyes and smiled casually: "I said this is what I'm playing with, do you believe it or not?"

  "Cough" war Xiuyuan was almost choked by her own saliva, she pointed at her silently with a stretched hand, and after a long while, for the time being, really didn't know whether to believe or not.

  His rationality told him that this didn't make sense, but his intuition believed it. After being in contact with Musou for a while, he found that the things about him that conformed to common sense were actually abnormal.

  Next, cleaning up the battlefield also delighted a group of people, with groups of groundhog corpses lying around, among which almost all were high-ranking. This batch of crystal nuclei was scraped together, and it was an astonishing amount.