Chapter 76
A flesh-colored wave clung to the ground, squirming, while the serrated edges beneath it sliced through all living creatures...
From time to time, reckless and savage beasts would charge into the vicinity of this fleshy wave, but before long, they would be dragged beneath it. Once caught, there was almost no chance of escape—the thousands of mouths beneath the wave would gnaw their flesh clean off.
By the time the fleshy wave rolled upward again, the beasts that had been pulled under were reduced to nothing but eerily clean skeletons.
Because of this, even amidst the ongoing beast tide, the area around the Flesh-Devourer remained eerily devoid of other beasts.
The jungle was packed with swarms of dark, surging beasts, and everywhere, the law of the jungle played out in real-time. Yet, around the Flesh-Devourer, an unusual calm prevailed...
Suddenly, that calm was shattered. The fleshy wave, which had been moving rhythmically along the ground, abruptly recoiled as if provoked. It reared high into the air, flailing wildly, its serrated edges gleaming like cold blades as they slashed aimlessly. The thousands of mouths gaped open, sucking in the surrounding air... The air rushing into its maws produced a deep, resonant humming noise.
With all those mouths emitting the same sound at once, the noise was deafening—like a pained, furious roar.
Yuan Heng watched from above, his expression grave. The Flesh-Devourer was the largest and most powerful beast in the jungle. Even he had to tread carefully around it, avoiding confrontation unless absolutely necessary. Yet now, during the height of the beast tide, when all creatures were at their most ferocious, someone had actually dared to provoke it...
Yuan Heng turned his gaze toward the distance. The Flesh-Devourer’s head was raised high, its bulbous eyes—perched atop writhing tentacles—bloodshot and crimson. They darted rapidly, scanning its surroundings as if searching for something...
At its side, a section of the fleshy wave was burning. Towering flames licked at its flesh, but the creature secreted a transparent slime that quickly smothered the fire...
Yuan Heng beat his wings and surged forward, speeding toward the fading glow of the flames.
As he drew closer, he spotted a swift white figure—a massive white fox, nimbly leaping across the undulating flesh of the Flesh-Devourer, evading the rolling waves of meat and the countless glinting teeth beneath... dodging the gaping maws that opened like bottomless pits.
"..." Yuan Heng hovered midair, observing the scene with a flicker of confusion.
The white fox was agile enough that avoiding the Flesh-Devourer’s attacks shouldn’t have been difficult. Yet it deliberately lingered, leaping back and forth across the waves, each evasion timed to the last possible moment—always positioning itself where the beast could see.
This didn’t seem like true evasion. It was more like... taunting.
A closer look revealed that the fox kept stealing glances at the Flesh-Devourer’s shell. Yuan Heng followed its gaze.
There, a small figure was crouched atop the massive shell, dragging a string of bamboo tubes behind them, dropping them one by one into the creature’s carapace.
Perhaps the disturbance of the tubes falling inside alarmed the Flesh-Devourer. Its fleshy waves convulsed, its tentacles twisting as it turned halfway, its enormous eyes swiveling toward its own back. Reflected in those blood-filled pupils was a deathly pale face—
That's...my little ger!
Yuan Heng’s breath caught. His body shot forward like an arrow, his jaws clamping around the Flesh-Devourer’s neck just as it lunged toward the boy.
The white fox reacted just as swiftly, catching Wang Jin as he toppled from the shell and dodging the surging waves of flesh—though this forced them to the very edge of the creature’s reach.
Wang Jin, spotting the white tiger diving toward him, felt a surge of relief. But before he could fully process it, he was already sprawled across Cheng Bai’s back.
Gazing up at the tiger locked in combat with the Flesh-Devourer, he steadied his trembling fingers, gripping the soft fur beneath him tightly as he shouted, "Cheng Bai! I didn’t get to light the fire!"
"..." The fox paused mid-step, then abruptly pivoted, dashing back toward the giant shell. Wang Jin clung on desperately, and in the brief moment they neared the carapace, he hurled a handmade firestarter into the gap between the shell and the flesh.
Whoosh! A colossal burst of flames erupted from the shell.
The Flesh-Devourer shrieked in agony, its fleshy waves thrashing wildly, dragging nearby beasts into the chaos.
Cheng Bai zigzagged through the onslaught while Wang Jin raised his right arm, fitted with a miniature wrist-crossbow. He pulled bamboo arrows from his waist, firing them one after another at the beast...
The Flesh-Devourer’s hide was tough. Most arrows shattered on impact, but a few pierced through, sending rivulets of blood streaming down its body.
When his arrows ran out, Wang Jin gritted his teeth, pulling a thin, makeshift iron rod from his robes. He loaded it into the crossbow, this time aiming for the beast’s eye.
With a thiwp, the iron projectile sliced through the air, striking true—piercing straight through the Flesh-Devourer’s eyeball. Blood gushed forth, splattering onto the ground in thick, dark pools...
The scent of fresh blood instantly drew the surrounding beasts into a frenzy. Driven mad by the smell, they salivated uncontrollably, charging recklessly at the wounded Flesh-Devourer.
Yet, despite its injuries, the creature remained overwhelmingly powerful. Not a single beast managed to land a lasting blow.
And it was still using its rolling waves of flesh to block the white fox’s path.
The white fox was agile, and the flesh devourer couldn’t harm him for the moment. However, he also couldn’t leap over those fleshy waves in a short time. Judging by the white fox’s demeanor, he seemed prepared to outlast the flesh devourer, waiting until it grew weary so he could break through…
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