Chapter 289: This Border Is Indeed Dangerous!

"Manager, the rabbit meat is roasted—please enjoy!"

"Mm!" Japas nodded in satisfaction, took the roasted rabbit meat from his subordinate, and couldn't help but salivate.

Of course, he immediately remembered that this roasted rabbit had been bought with money in Mai Tian Town.

Japas clenched his teeth again.

"Hm? Something's moving!"

At that moment, the two Silver Knights beside him suddenly became alert.

"What is it, Li'an? Sent?" Japas asked, puzzled.

It was also bad luck on their part—they'd chosen to rest temporarily by the riverbank for cooking convenience.

Normally, this wouldn't be a problem.

But now, distant movements were precisely masked by the sound of splashing water.

"Manager, we seem to have heard some movement."

"Could it be a mistake? Maybe it's just the water splashing—it's broad daylight!" Japas wasn't overly concerned.

No bandits would be foolish enough to attack a group like ours, especially during the day.

The two Silver Knights weren't just empty titles—they still had the necessary discipline.

They immediately stood up, guarding and watching the direction from which the sound came.

Japas now realized something was wrong. "Cavalry?"

"Manager, it's not horses—it's more like animals running, and not from the main road, but from those trees over there."

"Animal running sounds?" Japas exhaled in relief.

This was within the kingdom's borders—there couldn't possibly be any beast surge here.

Splash! Splash!

At that moment, movement came from the nearby bushes.

All the knights who had been eating immediately stood up, drawing their longswords from their belts.

Yet, what puzzled them was that the movement, which had seemed about to burst from the trees, suddenly stopped.

"What's going on?"

This inexplicable situation left the group both startled and tense.

Of course, they didn't know that the reason was the two Iron-Scaled Fire Lizards, about to burst from the trees, had halted their charge, bitten through the ropes binding the animal carcasses, and fled.

"Go check!"

The two Silver Knights exchanged glances and ordered their subordinates.

Though reluctant, the subordinates had no choice but to advance bravely.

Five of them cautiously approached the edge of the forest, then pried open the bushes with their swords—but found nothing.

Because the two animal carcasses were completely hidden by dense undergrowth.

As the three relaxed, they began to turn around.

"Manager, there's nothing—"

Splash!

Thud!

Just as they were about to report, a dark shadow shot out from behind them.

The shadow moved at incredible speed, lunging from the bushes and directly piercing a knight's body, spraying blood everywhere.

The knight didn't even have time to scream—he stared wide-eyed, looked down at the bloodied claw protruding from his chest, then slumped over, dead.

"This…"

Everyone froze for a moment.

Roar!

Thud!

As if savoring the terror and shock of these creatures, the Bloodthirsty Dark Panther raised its claw and smashed the knight's head clean off.

Blood sprayed everywhere—the knight's head flew at least five or six meters, rolling twice on the ground before stopping.

"D…Dark creature!"

"F…Fucking hell, run! Run!"

The scouting knights shuddered and finally reacted.

They began sprinting desperately toward the main group.

Roar!

Too bad, their speed couldn't match the Bloodthirsty Panther's.

Another lunge—thud! the second knight was knocked down, his chest pierced by the claw.

After eliminating the second knight, the Panther immediately locked onto its third target!

"Damn it!" The two Silver Knights cursed aloud.

These knights had all been selected and trained for years.

Every death meant the Prince's investment had gone to waste.

The two immediately prepared to draw their swords and deal with the Panther.

Clearly, they still hadn't grasped the true severity of the situation.

Splash! Splash!

Just as they took two or three steps forward, more movement erupted from the forest ahead.

Roar! Roar! Roar!

The next moment, they witnessed the most terrifying sight of their lives.

From the thickets, more dark creatures burst forth.

One after another, dense and countless!

"This…this…damn it, run!"

Even the two Silver Knights panicked now, shouting to flee!

Because the number and quality of these dark creatures had surpassed what they could possibly endure.

For example, the dozens of second-rank dark creatures at the front alone were enough to overwhelm them and their men.

But that wasn't all.

Roar! Roar! Roar!

The next moment, four massive figures appeared.

Two black serpents, each eight to nine meters long, and two blood-red wolves, each over two and a half meters tall.

Unsurprisingly, these four beasts were all third-rank dark creatures.

It was just their bad luck—the river had masked the dark creatures' approach.

Moreover, the reason these dark creatures had escaped pursuit by others was their agility and speed.

Otherwise, if they'd been larger, clumsier creatures—like giant lizards or black bears—they'd have been detected much earlier.

Instead, they were now directly surrounded by dark creatures beside the riverbank.

What followed was a brutal battle. Though some knights tried to cut the reins tied to the tree stumps and flee on horseback, they were quickly overwhelmed by the dark creatures.

Because the only path leading away from the riverbank back to the kingdom's main road had been blocked.

Facing dozens of second- and third-rank dark creatures, though the knights fought desperately, without the advantage of cavalry, they ultimately met their end.

The two Silver Knights fought fiercely too, but one Silver Knight could at best hold off a single third-rank beast.

Thus, facing the equivalent of three third-rank beasts, they soon sustained injuries and could only struggle desperately.

"Manager, swim across the river! We'll hold them off!"

"This…" Japas stared at the raging river—even if he could swim, it would be deadly.

"Manager, if you don't run now, it'll be too late! These dark creatures are too strong—we can't hold much longer!"

"Fine!" Japas gritted his teeth, grabbed a piece of dry firewood, and leapt into the river.

This had been firewood the subordinates had brought but not used—and now, at the critical moment, it saved his life.

Using the buoyancy of the dry wood, Japas quickly surfaced above the rushing current and was swiftly carried downstream.

At that moment, he heard screams behind him.

Glancing back with his peripheral vision, he saw one of the Silver Knights attempting to jump into the river—but was immediately seized by a third-rank black serpent in the water.

This serpent could swim?

Japas's heart nearly stopped—he dared not delay another second, frantically paddling with hands and feet toward the opposite shore.

After who knew how long, the original bank was now blocked by forests and towering mountains—Japas finally reached the opposite shore at a slower stretch of the river.

He dropped the dry wood and scrambled onto the riverbank with hands and feet.

Thud—he collapsed onto his back, utterly exhausted.

This place should be safe.

Recalling the terrifying scene just now, he still trembled with fear.

"Damn it all—this border is truly dangerous! Especially this hellhole, Stormlord's Domain—dark creatures just appear out of nowhere! Thank heaven I was lucky—I'm never coming back here again after this!"

Slightly regaining strength, Japas still dared not linger. He rolled over, braced his hands against the ground, and prepared to rise.

But the instant he pushed himself up, he suddenly noticed several pairs of feet standing before him.

Slowly raising his head along the legs, Japas shuddered. "I…It's you?!"