Chapter 413

Beastfolk's eyes narrowed dangerously: "What does it mean there's no tribe?"

Eagle Beastfolk jumped onto the back of a giant beast and sat down: "I went to the bases of the four major tribes mentioned by the Scorpion Shaman; although there were signs of activity, I didn't see a single person."

"Not a single person?"

The leader Beastfolk of the super tribe frowned and looked at the Eagle Beastfolk: "Didn't you search around these tribes?"

Eagle Beastfolk shrugged: "Of course I searched, but not a single person."

Although some small tribes still lived in the more remote territories, none of those tribes had a Beastman Warrior, and asking them yielded no answer.

As for the news of the four major tribes... hehe...

Eagle Beastfolk Warrior snorted: "These lowly commoners only hunt in the small woods around the tribe; how would they know news of the four major tribes far away?"

The news brought back by the Eagle Beastfolk Warrior was really not good.

The leader Beastfolk frowned and looked behind: "Shamaness, come here."

The Salt Tribe Shamaness naturally also heard their conversation; upon hearing the Envoy Beastfolk Captain call her, her heart jumped.

But facing absolute strength, she didn't dare say anything, and could only be carried forward by the Beastman Warrior beneath her.

"After your last trade fair, is there anything different about the Polar Forest?"

The Envoy Beastfolk Captain's words made the Salt Tribe Shamaness frown; after thinking carefully, she still shook her head: "There's nothing different at all; in fact, we even exchanged all the soft animal hides we brought."

Moreover, the Snow Tiger Tribe built many warm and sturdy stone houses, which doesn't look like they're planning to leave.

Building stone houses requires a lot of effort, so if a tribe is preparing to migrate or does not intend to stay long in one place, it would not waste time building them.

So, the sudden disappearance of the Beastfolk of the four major tribes most likely...

The Envoy Beastfolk Captain narrowed his eyes; the four tribes learned of their coming to the Polar Forest to search for crystal cores.

That's why they hid in advance, or left the Polar Forest.

"It seems the Polar Forest already knows we're coming."

Healing Shaman looked toward the endless forest ahead: "Someone leaked the news, or..."

He turned his head to look at the Salt Tribe Shamaness beside him: "Your two tribes' people are loose-lipped; you talked about this while hunting, and the Beastfolk of the Polar Forest who came to gather news overheard it."

He leaned more toward the second possibility, because they never imagined that, in a place where they existed, this tiny Polar Forest would dare to send Beastfolk to scout for news.

Although sending Beastman Warriors from each tribe's outskirts to scout for news is not unusual.

As the Healing Shaman's words fell, the Salt Tribe Shamaness's expression also turned very grim.

She recalled that, when she was in the tribe, she had indeed heard the tribespeople constantly talking about this matter.

So it's very likely that the Beastman Warriors who went out hunting leaked the news.

Damn the Snow Tiger Tribe, they actually let them escape again.

"Without the leadership of these four tribes, it will be very dangerous for us to venture deep into the forest."

The Envoy Beastfolk Captain's gaze toward the Salt Tribe Shamaness grew somewhat displeased.

Noticing the undisguised gaze from above, the Salt Tribe Shamaness's cheeks twitched a few times, and she finally lowered her eyes, saying nothing.

"Let's go in and take a look; if it's truly proven that this crystal core can be safely upgraded, we'll bring more Beastman Warriors back with us this time."

The Healing Shaman said in a low voice.

Another Shaman sighed with some regret: "It's just a pity that the people of the four major tribes here have all fled; otherwise, controlling them to hunt crystal cores for us would be even better."

The other few Shamans didn't say anything, but their eyes involuntarily glanced at the Salt Tribe Shamaness standing beside them.

Actually... they still have someone usable.

At this moment, the Salt Tribe Shamaness, immersed only in hatred for the Snow Tiger Tribe, Yuan Lang, and Wu Yue, didn't notice these people's different gazes at all.

Instead, having lost their target for revenge, they followed the group in a dazed manner to the outskirts of the deep forest.

By now, it was noon of the second day.

The giant beast ridden by the super tribe looks clumsy on the outside, but when rushing at full speed, its speed is extremely fast.

Not wanting to delay the Salt Tribe Shamaness and her group's progress, they were also allowed to sit on the back of a giant beast.

The forest where the Polar Forest tribes and ordinary beasts live differs greatly from the deep forest where ferocious beasts live; the most obvious difference is the latter's dark and sinister feeling.

The edges are overgrown with thorny thickets; the ground is covered with a thick layer of dry branches and leaves, beneath which many dangerous poisonous insects and snakes live.

Even at such noon, the deep forest feels gloomy.

Although we know those precious crystal cores are hunted from the deep forest, the Salt Tribe Shamaness is truly visiting this place for the first time.

The Scorpion Tribe Beastfolk leading the way ahead had once followed the Gu Shaman here before, but because they didn't understand the territory of the ferocious beasts in the deep forest, that time their tribe was reduced to fewer than five survivors.

"Envoy lords, the territory of the ferocious beasts in this deep forest is divided, with a certain range; if you're unfamiliar and just rush in, it's easy to get lost, and you might even intrude into the territories of intermediate- and high-level ferocious beasts."

We've heard before that when the four major tribes of the Polar Forest hunt crystal cores, they don't come out at night; they hide in places they've already scouted, which only the four major tribes know.

At this moment, the Envoy Beastfolk Captain had already jumped down from the giant beast's back, gazing at the gloomy deep forest ahead, his eyes deep.

"Didn't the Gu Shaman say you went in last time?"

Hearing this, the Scorpion Tribe Beastman Warrior gave a wry smile: "Last time, because we didn't know the distribution of the ferocious beasts' territories inside, we directly entered a terribly dangerous ferocious beast territory; of the dozens of Beastman Warriors who went in, fewer than five came out."

Those ferocious beasts live in groups and can also spit fire; once touched, it's hard to extinguish, and they burn the victim to death.

As the Beastfolk spoke, his face turned deathly pale; he recalled the tragic deaths of his clansmen, those mournful wails nailing his feet to the ground, and he simply did not want to step forward into this deep forest that bore countless desperate deaths.

But in the face of the super tribe, his lingering fear amounted to nothing.

"Let's go hunt for food first; we'll enter at dawn tomorrow."

The Envoy Beastfolk Captain decided with a single strike.

The four shamans also didn't say anything; since they couldn't find the Beastfolk of the Polar Forest's four major tribes, entering the deep forest naturally fell to them.

What the super tribe's Beastfolk and shamans didn't expect was that, while everyone was sound asleep at night, a shrill wail came from outside.

In an instant, everyone was jolted awake.

The Envoy Beastfolk Captain roughly shoved aside the Salt Tribe Shamaness in his arms, rose, and ran toward the source of the wail.

Yet he saw the Beastman Warriors he had brought facing several creatures with scarlet eyes, stiff black hair all over, about the same size as the giant beast he had previously ridden... wild boars?

Though they looked like wild boars, their hair, scarlet eyes, and even the bloody tusks still dripping told him these were definitely not the same breed as the boars they had hunted before.

If any Beastfolk from the Four Great Tribes were present, they would surely recognize these as the lowest-grade saber-toothed boars among ferocious beasts.

But obviously, these people didn't know; they merely felt that the wild boars in the Polar Forest were growing strangely.

Sniffing the increasingly rich scent of fresh flesh in the air, the saber-toothed boar leader could not help but drool uncontrollably.

"Ao—!"

After all, it was a low-grade ferocious beast, its mind filled only with craving for flesh, caring for nothing else; it let out a roar and charged forward with its underlings.

The Beastman Warriors of the Superior Tribe also now saw clearly these attacking 'wild boars', and their tense nerves relaxed considerably.

Earlier, hearing the giant beast's roar, they had thought they encountered a formidable wild beast, but it turned out to be merely a few unusually special boars.

Feeling no threat, they naturally enjoyed the spectacle; the Envoy Beastfolk Captain waved his hand, and the few weakest Silver-rank Beastman Warriors in the unit stepped forward.

They had thought it would be a quick job, but what surprised everyone was that these boars were vastly different from any they had seen before; their formidable combat power left several Silver-rank Beastman Warriors unable to withstand them.

"Captain, these boars are problematic!"

A Silver-rank Beastman was repelled by a saber-toothed boar, his face paling as he let out a low growl tinged with anxiety.

The other Beastman Warriors standing nearby naturally saw this, immediately put aside their thoughts of watching the fun, sent a few late Silver-rank Beastman Warriors forward, and after a dozen or so Beastman Warriors faced off against the few saber-toothed boars, it took a while before they finally subdued them.

Now that the saber-toothed boars were dead, everyone's expressions were still not pleasant.

"Captain, are the beasts of the Polar Forest really this formidable!"

As the Beastman's words fell, the atmosphere in the clearing grew somewhat solemn.

"This is neither a wild beast nor a wild boar; it is a low-grade ferocious beast, the saber-toothed boar."

The Scorpion Tribe Beastfolk who had been hiding far away only dared to approach slowly after seeing the saber-toothed boars fall, and then spoke up.

The Envoy Beastfolk Captain's eyes brightened: "Since it's a ferocious beast, go see if these saber-toothed boars contain any crystal cores."

The Scorpion Beastman Warrior's cheek twitched, he gave a dry laugh, about to say something, but meeting the Envoy Beastfolk Captain's indifferent gaze, he swallowed his words at once.

After swallowing, he stepped forward, his right hand forming claws as he searched the ferocious beast's skull.

After a moment, however, he found nothing.

"My Lord Envoy, there is nothing on these saber-toothed boars."

Seeing the Envoy Beastfolk Captain's unpleasant expression, the Scorpion Beastman hurriedly added: "Earlier, the Eagle Tribe Beastfolk said that among ferocious beasts, saber-toothed boars are the hardest to find crystal cores in—and sure enough, that's true."

Upon hearing this, the faces of the Superior Tribe's Beastman Warriors eased somewhat.

They had slain seven or eight saber-toothed boars, yet obtained not a single crystal core, suggesting these cores are indeed rare.

Some Beastman Warriors carried the dead saber-toothed boars away, for leaving them here would reek of blood and might attract unknown dangers.

After the saber-toothed boar incident, the Envoy Beastfolk Captain assigned two more Beastman Warriors to patrol, and only then did everyone finally fall asleep again.

The next morning at dawn, the Superior Tribe's people finally woke up; having yesterday's saber-toothed boar meat, they did not go out hunting today, simply ate some food and pressed on into the deep forest.

At this moment, Wu Yue had just awakened in the newly occupied mountain cave, eaten some food stored in the system space, and, leaning on a staff exchanged for a full 200 points from the system mall, set off on her continued search for Yuan Lang and the others.

These past few days, while searching the deep forest for Yuan Lang and company, Wu Yue would, when resting at night, gather herbs or rare plants around the cave to sell to the system, indeed earning some points in return.

Through these exchanges, Wu Yue discovered that the system always gives a high point yield for the first-time redemption of an item, but subsequent redemptions yield a much lower price.

But Wu Yue was not greedy; as long as she could exchange for points, she naturally worked with great enthusiasm.

Wu Yue's staff looked quite intimidating in appearance, and its attribute bonuses suited her perfectly.

It is a staff highly suitable for enhancing healing-type shamanic power.

When channeling shamanic power, the healing attribute receives a twenty percent boost, and if upgraded later, the boost increases further.

Moreover, the staff is astonishingly heavy; before being recognized as its master, Wu Yue could not budge it even with all her strength.

But once recognized as its master, holding it in her hand felt as light as a small wooden stick.

She lightly swung it and knocked down a tree trunk as thick as her waist.

This made Wu Yue, who had spent two hundred points, instantly feel it was worth every point.

As for its intimidating appearance, that goes without saying; she also did not know what attribute her system possessed.

Merely a staff, yet it had been made extraordinarily splendid; especially when channeling martial power, its rich and sacred feeling made her feel as if she were a heavenly courier of excrement.

"Host, if we find nothing after searching this area today, Yuan Lang and the others may have ventured even deeper."

Tongzi did not voice another guess, knowing the host would surely be displeased.

But the chance of mishap is small; even if corpses were devoured, their belongings would usually drop something, yet with the aid of Cloud-Stepping, they had combed the vicinity of the Snow Tiger Tribe and found nothing.

Wu Yue's little face was scrunched up; Yuan Lang was truly bold—now that ferocious beasts' activity range had shifted outward, he still dared to go deeper inside.

"Host, if we can't find them today, we'll have to venture further into the mid-grade ferocious beasts' territory to search, but we also can't... huh?"

Tongzi's small body froze, and even the Cloud-Stepping beneath Wu Yue tensed up, gazing in a direction and letting out a low growl.