Chapter 316: Dare Not Provoke!?

"Provoke or not provoke?" The Blue Monkey laughed heartily, pointing a hand toward the Vine Entanglement not far away, where a pile of withered and broken Fruit could be vaguely seen. "That was my lunch. And you three bastards—actually made the stream muddy and filthy, preventing me from drinking clean water! This is simply unreasonable!"

"Heh." Xiao Qing stood up, hands on her hips, and said indignantly, "It was clearly you who were lazy and let the fruit you hung randomly fall into the water and pollute it, so how can you shift the blame?! Do you want your big sister to teach you how to be reasonable?"

The Blue Monkey was stunned for a moment, then roared in anger: "You're courting death!" It then swung its tail and charged straight at Xiao Qing!

"Move aside!" Wang Zhenqiu stepped forward and clenched his fist, throwing a fierce punch. But the next moment he regretted it—the Blue Monkey's movements were agile beyond imagination; it circled directly behind him and swiped at him, tearing his collar and nearly wounding his skin.

Lin Xuan rushed over to help, holding a short blade to seize an opportunity to face the Blue Monkey's frontal attack. Although he struck the target several times, it was a pity he only cut off a few tufts of fur and caused no actual damage.

On the other side, Xiao Qing took the opportunity to pull out a thin, long rope, attempting to bind the Blue Monkey's range of movement, but the opponent keenly sensed it and knocked her flying with a tail swipe.

As the situation grew increasingly critical, Wang Zhenqiu took a deep breath and focused on observing the surrounding environment. "This won't do!" He lowered his voice to warn the two, "Look for a chance to retreat; we cannot fight head-on."

But before they could discuss the next strategy, the Blue Monkey lunged at the unsuspecting Xiao Qing again. In a flash, Lin Xuan gritted his teeth and leaped high to block in front of her. "Stop!"

Lin Xuan's eyes suddenly glowed with golden radiance, and a faint golden light shield condensed around his body. A powerful pressure emanated from him, actually forcing the Blue Monkey to freeze in place, unable to move an inch!

"This is... an Awakening Ability?!" Even Wang Zhenqiu, who had rich combat experience, watched all this happen with a face full of shock.

A complex look appeared in the Blue Monkey's eyes; it finally sighed, took a few steps back, and said: "Good fellow, so you humans are not simple characters either... Since I've suffered a loss, I'll consider it my mistake in judging you. Retreat!"

But before it left, it did not forget to look back and throw out a sentence: "However, when we meet next time, it might not end so easily~"

After the dust settled, the three young people sat on the ground, looking at each other and smiling bitterly.

"Hey, so Brother Lin Xuan was hiding his strength." Xiao Qing patted his shoulder and teased.

Lin Xuan rolled his eyes in return: "Don't you dare go around talking about what just happened, you hear?"

Wang Zhenqiu stared silently in the direction where the Blue Monkey had disappeared, lost in thought, and only after a long time did he mutter in a low voice: "Perhaps our journey really won't be too ordinary... Does everyone think that laughter is still nearby?"

No sooner had Wang Zhenqiu finished speaking than a low tremor came from the ground. The three of them looked up simultaneously, alert, toward the depths of the woods not far away. The leaves rustled, branches were knocked flying by something, and immediately after, a huge Yinying slowly appeared in their field of vision.

"A Mammoth?" Lin Xuan widened his eyes, the short blade in his hand tightening involuntarily, "Are we going to fight this big guy again?"

"This isn't a question of 'wanting' to, it's a must." Xiao Qing said coldly, a long spear flickering with cold light already in her hand. Her gaze was as sharp as a falcon's, focused intently on the behemoth gradually approaching. "This is a great opportunity for experience points and materials! Don't tell me you're going to back down."

As the distance closed, the Mammoth's massive form was fully revealed before them—stronger than an ordinary giant beast, its fur mixed with bits of bluish ice crystals, refracting strange light under the sun. Every step it took made the earth tremble slightly, as if this forest were submitting to it.

Wang Zhenqiu swallowed his saliva: "This size... could it be a grand prize package sent by some artificial intelligence system? We only finished off the Blue Monkey less than half an hour ago!"

"Shut up, hurry and think of a way to deal with it!" Lin Xuan complained through gritted teeth while adjusting his stance to stand firm. His heartbeat had begun to accelerate, but his eyes revealed a sense of determination, "I'm not some small character who only knows how to run."

"Who said I was letting you carry it alone?" Xiao Qing sneered, flicking her hand to nock an arrow onto the bowstring behind her shoulder. The next second, she pulled the bow to its full draw, and with a "whoosh" of air being pierced, the sharp arrow accurately struck the Mammoth's thick flank. However, it only kicked up a bit of dust and failed to even pierce its skin.

The Mammoth seemed disturbed, raising its massive trunk and letting out a deafening roar. Then, its huge body lunged toward the three, crushing countless thorns and vegetation.

"Scatter!" Wang Zhenqiu shouted decisively, leaping backward quickly at the same time.

The three moved cleanly and nimbly, each scattering to positions to form a triangular formation. Lin Xuan quickly climbed a towering ancient tree nearby, using agile movements to dodge the Mammoth's charge; Xiao Qing used the terrain to cover herself while constantly attempting to attack the opponent's weak points; and Wang Zhenqiu stood in a relatively safe position to observe the battlefield and direct the strategy.

"This guy's defensive ability is too strong; fighting head-on won't work." Lin Xuan looked down at the Mammoth in the field from high up, his brows locked in a frown. He took out the slingshot hanging at his waist, pulled it hard, and a sharp small stone whistled out, successfully grazing the tip of the Mammoth's ear, making it incredibly furious.

"Aim for the joint connections!" Wang Zhenqiu shouted a hint, his hands waving constantly to guide the direction of the attack, "Although it is huge in size, its flexibility will definitely be affected!"

Hearing this, Xiao Qing had a flash of inspiration and immediately changed tactics. She quickly circled to the rear right of the Mammoth, using the bushes as cover, and kept closing in on the joint area near its legs. At this moment, Lin Xuan launched another attack, throwing a ball of burning resin that smashed into the Mammoth's thigh area.

The flames licked the fur around the thick leg bone, causing intense pain. Stimulated by this, the Mammoth immediately turned to try and crush the hidden Xiao Qing, but in doing so, it exposed the Core soft spot on its left flank.

"Now!" Wang Zhenqiu gave the order decisively, being the first to throw the throwing disc in his hand, which drew a beautiful arc and embedded itself directly into a thinner area below the Mammoth's chest cavity. Blood gushed out, and a heavy, bloody scent filled the air.

Hearing the news that his companion had successfully broken the defense, Lin Xuan grinned excitedly, jumped off the tree without a word, and lunged straight at the back of the injured Mammoth. "My turn to show off a special skill!" As he shouted, he crossed his arms and gathered all his strength to stab fiercely at the crack!

"Pfft—" The Dagger sank to the hilt, and accompanied by a low, mournful cry, the giant beast swayed for a few seconds before finally collapsing, kicking up dust that filled the sky.