Chapter 186: Druid

Vivian went to notify Kalist and Xiao Ke, then vanished using 【Tree Walker】.

The former was highly knowledgeable, the latter skilled in divination, both always able to find traces amid the withered woods.

Especially Xiao Ke's divination technique—its applications were extremely potent.

Luo De wanted to infuse her with 【Life Spirit】 to enhance it, but she was too shy, and they never had a chance to be alone together.

Little Horsemaid Bond was Xiao Ke's weak point; mention that, and she'd definitely bite.

Luo De nodded silently in his mind.

He decided to find opportunities to pressure her harder.

Soon.

Luo De arrived first at the withered zone, accompanied by the giant squirrel Cui Qian.

Unexpectedly, it wasn't far—right at the edge of the oak grove.

This area lay far from the forest's center, with trees spaced loosely, so not far away lay the designated route of the Land Naga rebels.

They dared only walk this route planned by the Shiying Town Hall, for recently the forest's seventh-rank Tree Spirit had terrified them into absolute submission.

"Like last time?"

Luo De said grimly.

Observing the withered zone, he saw it all spread outward from a single tree—the center most severely withered, weakening gradually outward.

Residual magical fluctuations remained; clearly, not much time had passed.

Too bad Luo De didn't know any magic-tracing spells—he could only wait for Kalist to handle it.

"Again, 【Plant Withering】. Likely the same person's handiwork."

The giant squirrel Cui Qian was furious, her tiny paws clawing wildly at the air.

"Despicable! Shameless! Disgusting bastard!"

Luo De: "Can you tell which direction the perpetrator came from? You're a servant of the World Tree—you should be able to talk to trees and such."

"I—I don't understand this dialect."

"."

At that moment, a disturbance appeared within Luo De's perception range.

He turned to see, on the opposite side of the withered circle, a pale-blue giant wolf, its eyes filled with human-like fury.

The giant wolf carried considerable magical accumulation—likely seventh-rank early stage.

Clearly, this was the half-wolf Druid's transformed form.

Luo De: "A plague mage's doing—the spell is 【Plant Withering】. They did the same thing on the other side of the forest not long ago."

Druids have many tricks, especially in shapeshifting—perhaps they can find a way to track them.

Hearing this, the pale-blue wolf fell silent for a moment.

It gave Luo De a deep look, then twisted its body into a radiant red falcon, flapping its wings upward above the treetops.

Then it shot eastward at incredible speed.

Luo De frowned—he knew she likely knew something.

"Cui Qian, wait here for them. I'm chasing her."

"Oh! Don't worry!"

But she immediately called out to Luo De as he turned to leave.

"What is it?"

Cui Qian looked embarrassed: "Mr. Luo De, could you lift me onto the tree? I'm afraid of the ground… it's all because gravity in the real world is too strong…"

". How did you get up the tree before?"

"For the past few days, that half-wolf Druid helped me."

Fine.

Luo De didn't bother arguing—he tossed her onto the tree and hurried after the direction the Druid had flown off.

You know what? This thing really flies fast.

Luo De activated 【Rapid Step】, yet still couldn't close the distance.

After a long while.

He had already run past Shiying Town and reached the edge of Dusk Hills.

Finally, the red falcon above changed direction, folding its wings and diving like a fighter jet.

Just before hitting the ground, it transformed again into the pale-blue giant wolf.

It landed with unnatural lightness, defying gravity.

Almost the instant it landed, a magical trap on the ground activated.

Sharp, magical fangs erupted violently from the earth.

Luo De was no longer a magic-blind novice—he recognized this as the spell 【Sharp Fang Trap】.

"Ah, I forgot to tell her—the plague mage's tactic is to lure people out of the forest for kidnapping."

The 【Sharp Fang Trap】 was powerful—clearly, the caster had reinforced the spell materials and magical input.

After all, this was someone bold enough to target a seventh-rank Tree Spirit.

The fangs pierced the wolf's fur, carving several bloody gashes across her body.

But the wounds were very shallow.

At that moment, warriors and mages leapt out from behind the slope.

Their ranks were surprisingly high—all above sixth-rank, even two at half-seventh-rank.

"Huh? A wolf?"

"A shapeshifting Tree Spirit! We hit the jackpot!"

"Idiot! Tree Spirits can't learn shapeshifting!"

As they spoke—

The pale-blue wolf inside the 【Sharp Fang Trap】 roared.

Its body swelled—the wolf's torso thickened, limbs shortened and thickened, shifting from quadruped to bipedal stance.

A towering four-meter-tall xiong bear erupted from the ground, its fur incredibly dense, rendering the magical fangs useless.

With a surge of powerful magic, it shattered the 【Sharp Fang Trap】.

"It's 【Wild Shape】—this is a Druid!"

"Druid? What good is a Druid?! We want to capture Tree Spirits! Why didn't anyone tell me there were Druids in Windwall Forest?!"

"Can't you sell Druids for money?"

"Sell them? Pfft! Druid is a profession, not a innate race! No uniqueness means no rarity, no rarity means no value, you idiot!" This man was clearly their leader.

"Then what do we do? We prepared only gear and rituals specifically for Tree Spirits—we can't fight a seventh-rank Druid!"

"Damn it! Don't waste spell materials—pack up and run now!"

As they spoke—

The xiong bear had already charged into the crowd.

A burly sixth-rank crocodile-man warrior, foolish enough to try to stand his ground, was swatted away like a fly.

With the xiong bear's physical strength and rank superiority, all the spirit warriors here combined couldn't withstand two of her slaps.

The rear-line mages frantically cast spells to block her advance, buying time for others to flee.

But the half-wolf Druid wouldn't let them escape so easily.

Seeing most had retreated beyond melee range, she slammed her massive palm onto the ground.

Boom—

With a violent tremor—

Countless magical thorn vines erupted from the earth, racing outward in a fan shape.

Several spirit warriors who hadn't escaped in time were crushed, twisted into bloody fragments by the thick vines.

Her combat power was immense.

Even watching from the sidelines, Luo De knew the battle would end in under five minutes.

But they were too numerous—someone would surely escape.

Besides, Luo De was deeply intrigued by their mention of "Tree Spirit Special Equipment."

"This Druid lady is seventh-rank early stage—and you still dared to kidnap her with gear? What about Vivian, seventh-rank mid-stage? You'd dare attack her too? Hmph."

The next instant, he vanished with a hum.

The leader was skilled—he sensed something.

He turned instinctively, instantly pinpointing Luo De's position midair.

Someone else?

"Who are you?!"

Seeing this sudden intruder's spiritual accumulation was only sixth-rank mid-stage, he sneered.

He swiftly drew his blade and slashed—its spiritual power was formidable.

Ssshh—

Sparks erupted from the blade's edge.

Like a blade striking rock… yet rock wasn't even hard—since his fourth-rank, he could slice through it easily.

Yet now, he felt as powerless as a child swinging a wooden stick, claiming he'd break a boulder.

(End of chapter)