Chapter 335

The garden was filled with blue-white fluorescent light, and a cold voice devoid of emotional fluctuation, accompanied by the fresh scent of Mist Lamp Grass, drifted over from ahead.

It caused the Druid to freeze for a moment.

On his purple-blue face with distinct features, there even remained the feigned reserve and arrogance from when he had just been seducing Xia Nan and giving the other party a mission.

Now, however, just like his lower limbs intertwined with the plant root system, he was as stiff and frozen as a statue.

The sudden change in the attitude of the black-haired youth before him clearly exceeded his expectations; for a moment, he didn't even react, thinking he had misheard, and subconsciously said:

"Wha... what did you say?"

Staring at the evil Druid ahead with pitch-black eyes, his sharp gaze sweeping over vital areas like the neck and heart, Xia Nan slowly opened his mouth while quickly formulating a battle plan in his mind, his tone calm:

"The training method for 【Mist-Hidden Light Steps】, the physical accessory 【Green Grass Wood Ring】, and the recipe for 【Mist Lamp Grass Concentrated Essence Potion】."

"Hand over all the things you just mentioned."

"I don't want to repeat myself a third time."

Clatter—

Branches and leaves trembled!

The Druid looked up abruptly, an expression of incredulous shock on his face.

What was he saying!?

The suddenly changed tone and attitude, and the naked threat in the words, made the Druid feel somewhat absurd at this moment.

"You, how dare you..."

A weak, inferior, novice professional who probably wouldn't have dared to look him in the eye during his prime, actually dared to say such things to him?

Did he really think that in his current state, he was just a lamb to the slaughter, to be butchered at will?

The half-plant body trembled violently, and the vines of the lower limbs couldn't help but intertwine and knot due to the overly agitated emotions, emitting a harsh sound of tightly rubbing plant fibers.

The mist lingering around his body drifted and expanded, and even the blue-white fluorescent light emitted by the surrounding Mist Lamp Grass flickered unsteadily.

Standing in front, Xia Nan could clearly feel the mental fluctuations radiating from the plant Druid in the center of the garden, mixed with shock, anger, and disbelief.

At the same time, his perception ability, as high as 11, also allowed him to detect the unnatural, slight vibration of the ground beneath his feet; it seemed something was moving rapidly deep within the soil.

Having dealt with Mist Lamp Monsters, he already had a certain understanding of this type of attack method.

Without the slightest hesitation, Xia Nan suddenly exerted force with his calves, and his entire body transformed into a phantom, disappearing from his original spot as if teleporting.

The next second...

"Bang!"

Soil debris exploded from below.

A thick vine, like a shark in the deep sea, waved its barb-covered appendages, breaking through the soil and emitting a terrifying sound in the air.

His head turned violently, and those eyes, devoid of pupils and composed purely of whites, stared fixedly at the sharp figure ahead that had easily dodged his surprise attack.

As the Druid's inner emotions fluctuated, he finally realized that the young adventurer with black hair before him seemed... not quite what he had imagined.

That instantaneous speed and explosive power had far exceeded the level a typical novice professional should possess.

It seemed... he really had the ability to turn against him.

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant; the failed evolution ritual and his extremely poor state meant his combat power was less than one-tenth of its peak, and unless necessary, he did not want to fight an enemy of this strength level.

His expression changed abruptly, and he suppressed the anger and hatred that were almost overflowing from his face, appearing as if he wanted to say a few nice words to the other party to smooth over this brief conflict.

But the next second, a cold, sharp wolf howl erupted on the field, and the faint yet deadly sense of danger that accompanied it blocked the words he was about to utter in his throat.

Awoo—

With mane swaying, a pitch-black giant wolf with long, slender limbs stepped out.

It appeared to move slowly, but its actual speed was like a phantom.

An inexplicable sense of threat climbed into his heart.

Not daring to be careless, the Druid, acting on survival instinct, opened his mouth wide.

"Hum!!"

An invisible wave symbolizing the special effect of mental control spread outward from the Druid, accompanied by a sharp, piercing screech that no human could possibly make, sounding like branches and leaves rubbing together to the extreme.

Xia Nan, who was using 【Tooth Hunt】 to close the distance between them as much as possible, collided head-on with this mental wave.

【Direct Gaze into the Abyss】 triggered, the perception bonus took effect, and the saving throw was passed instantly.

At the same time, the feat's counter-effect was activated.

For Xia Nan, he only felt a slight tightening between his brows, and the mental force attempting to invade his brain was isolated outside;

As for the Druid on the other side, the mental force he emitted collided as if against an iron wall; not only did it have no effect, but it also caused his own brain a burst of stinging pain.

It was only the half-plant state of being unable to move for a long time that had made his willpower increasingly resilient through years of torment; otherwise, he would have fallen into a "brief stun" state from just this one blow.

"Damn it! Damn it!"

The deep black wolf approaching in his line of sight, and the increasingly strong sense of danger in his heart, placed the Druid in an extremely struggling situation.

Since the failure of the evolution ritual left him trapped in this garden, he had once again felt the threat of death after so many years.

With his combat power already greatly reduced in such a terrible state, facing the powerful enemy before him, the Druid used all his means almost instinctively.

Hum—

The blue-white fluorescent light of the Mist Lamp Grass expanded violently, transforming into an energy force field composed purely of light, enveloping Xia Nan's entire body; in an instant, he felt his own physical strength draining rapidly under the brilliant light, and his body became weak at a speed visible to the naked eye.

He had always lacked counter-measures for this type of magic attack, so he could only rely on his "stats" and "template," which far exceeded those of adventurers of the same level, using his 8 points of Constitution and the rapid dash of 【Tooth Hunt】 as a means to push through by brute force.

Boom—

Countless tender buds of Mist Lamp Grass suddenly sprouted on the surface of the Druid's smooth skin, which resembled plant protective tissue; like some kind of missile launcher, they drained the life force from his body and fired violently.

Small and dense, they covered Xia Nan like rain out of thin air, but a second before they were about to touch his body, they were blocked by a translucent, ochre-red elliptical energy shield—【Ring of Dead Line】 - "Deflection Field."

Sizzle—

Using all his strength, the Druid's lower body, which was almost fused with the root system of the ground, exploded violently, stirring up mist and fluorescence as countless vines and thorns burst from the soil, whistling toward Xia Nan in a tangle.

Yet, the black wolf charging straight at him showed no sign of wanting to dodge.

Ochre-red light condensed on the surface of the long, slender, grey-black straight sword; as it swung, the force field energy exploded like fireworks, significantly increasing the attack range and turning the vines in front of him into debris and sap.

In just a few breaths, all the means the Druid had used were resolved one by one by Xia Nan through his own feats, combat techniques, and equipment effects.

A wolf howl echoed, and leather boots landed on the ground.

When Xia Nan stood firm on the ground once again, the plant-like Druid, fused with the roots of the Mist Lamp Grass, had already entered his attack range.

"No... you cannot..." Because of the excessive consumption of life energy within his body, the Druid no longer even had the strength to speak, only transmitting his intent intermittently through weak mental force.