Chapter 94

Inside the secret realm “Abundant Flow Basin,” the Beastmasters who had passed the trials anxiously watched the changing scenery around them.

The mysterious restrictions that had previously appeared also vanished with the abnormal changes, but they did not dare to leave their original positions rashly.

A few brave Beastmasters tried walking toward the dried-up riverbed.

Xu Chenglu looked at Mu Huiyue, recalling that she was quite knowledgeable about secret realms—at least far more so than an average university student. It was Mu Huiyue who had first uncovered the truth within the body of the Angry Rock Xuanwu during their earlier adventure.

“…We’re not going to get sucked into another ultimate-level creature’s body again, are we?” Xu Chenglu asked with a tremor in his voice.

The previous experience left him with unpleasant memories. It wasn’t until many days after returning from the island secret realm that he vaguely remembered the perilous adventure they had inside the Angry Rock Xuanwu.

Mu Huiyue glanced at the readings on the investigator wristband. Unlike before, the test results quickly stabilized after an initial fluctuation.

The normal hidden energy value range exceeded 300 million P, with spatial measurements showing wood and earth attributes, and a hidden energy coverage rate exceeding 200%. The probability of chaotic areas appearing was estimated at 42.5%.

Aside from the hidden energy coverage rate being impossibly high, the other data could all be derived as belonging to the wood and earth attribute S-level secret realm.

Looking solely at the wristband’s readings, they match the detection results for “Abundant Flow Basin.”

But a region filled with wood attribute hidden energy should not resemble the desolate and decaying landscape before them.

Mu Huiyue shook her head and said, “No, we are indeed in the S-level secret realm ‘Abundant Flow Basin’ this time.”

Even for ultimate-tier extraordinary beings from mythological races, the normal hidden energy value would hardly exceed 300 million P; this is the level of energy found in S-level secret realms.

She thought for a moment and then looked at her companions. “Has anyone here been to ‘Abundant Flow Basin’ before?”

Lin Lin and Xu Chenglu both shook their heads. Even though the Withered Glory Spirit Deer is one of the most friendly and gentle mythological species to humans, the location of the West Continent’s guardian god is not easy to enter.

Apart from the contract trials of the Harvest Festival, ordinary people hardly have the chance to enter the “Abundant Flow Basin.”

Han Ruoyunn thought for a moment and said, “Although I haven’t been here, however—”

She was suddenly interrupted by a horrific scream.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound, and it came from the beastmasters who had exited the forest earlier.

One of them came running back, trembling and pointing toward the direction of the scream, gasping, “Over there, over there… there’s…”

Han Ruoyunn’s expression hardened. She recognized this beastmaster; he was a younger member of a local prestigious family in the West Continent. He was one of the people she had been about to mention to Mu Huiyue, someone who had previously been to the “Abundant Flow Basin.”

She pushed through the crowd in front of her and quickly headed toward the direction he had pointed.

Mu Huiyue and the others followed.

Not far from the forest, they quickly found the person who had gone out earlier.

The area where the forest was located was a highland, and once they passed the trees obstructing their view, the landscape suddenly opened up. What greeted their eyes was an endless wasteland.

The person who had screamed was another beastmaster from their group. He was now sitting on the ground, his mind shattered as he stared at the scene in the distance.

Han Ruoyunn and Mu Huiyue’s group were also stunned, rooted to the spot.

A giant skeleton lay in the wasteland.

It was enormous in size. Even though only the skeleton remained, it looked like a small mountain from afar. The smallest bones were still larger than a human’s body.

It appeared to be the skeleton of a giant stag, with its four limbs and massive antlers resembling dried trees still vaguely visible.

It seemed to have fallen here a long time ago, as the pale white bones were full of signs of erosion from the wind and sand, with fractures and hollowed-out sections, leaving uneven, mottled marks on the bones.

The skeleton exuded an aura of death and decay, much like the once fertile and thriving secret realm, now reduced to withered branches and fallen leaves.

Han Ruoyunn took two steps back in disbelief, murmuring, “This… could it possibly be…?”

“It’s very likely to be the Kurogami Spirit Deer,” Lin Lin answered from behind her.

She was the last to catch up with the group. “I asked the person who reported the incident earlier. They had entered the ‘Abundant Flow Basin’ before and knew where the West Continent’s guardian god lay dormant, so they dared to venture ahead recklessly.”

“They just couldn’t find the Kurogami Spirit Deer, but instead stumbled upon this giant stag’s skeleton and were scared back.”

After Lin Lin finished speaking, she shrugged. “In that case, it seems like there’s only one possible answer.”

Han Ruoyunn closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and forced herself to calm the storm inside her.

The Kurogami Spirit Deer was the guardian god of the West Continent. Even locals who didn’t worship it still held a sense of reverence for it.

It had always been a symbol of abundance, vitality, and flourishing life, but now it was surrounded by death and decay. Anyone who saw it would be shocked and find it hard to accept.

What had happened in this secret realm? Was the fallen giant stag skeleton truly the Kurogami Spirit Deer itself?

“Anyway, let’s return to the forest first…” she said to her companions.

Acting recklessly in an unknown secret realm was very dangerous, even the most skilled A-level investigators wouldn’t do that.

Mu Huiyue turned her head and once again looked at the giant stag’s skeleton in the wasteland.

After upgrading her Dark Beast Mastery talent, her perception became several times sharper.

It was a skeleton that had been dead for a long time, yet she could still sense some strange… emotions emanating from it.

The shadow beneath her feet slowly stretched forward, and Ellen seemed to have also noticed the abnormality of the skeletal remains.

Just then, an unexpected change occurred.

The sky suddenly darkened. There was no sunlight in the dim sky, and the night brought an endless darkness that quickly engulfed the sky, wrapping around the entire secret realm.

A dense, dark aura swirled around the giant stag’s skeleton before suddenly erupting.

An extraordinary creature, never seen before, emerged from the darkness, slowly opening its eyes.

The group, who was about to retreat, stopped in place and stared at the unexpected guest.

It was a… scarecrow.

Its body was made of withered yellow straw, and its head was slanted under a large, wide-brimmed hat that obscured its face. Behind it was a cross-shaped wooden stake, one end rooted in the earth while the other supported its body. The wood was dark and gleamed with faint, star-like specks of light.

Its outer clothing was made of withered thorns, adorned with shriveled fruits and seeds. A group of crows perched on the scarecrow’s arm, which was supported by the wooden stake, their crimson eyes glaring intently at the group.

The night wind howled as the scarecrow swayed slightly in the dark air, producing a low, rustling sound.

The head hidden beneath the hat lifted, and within its blurred outline, there was only a single eye that shimmered with a blood-red glow.

Mu Huiyue’s investigator bracelet displayed the extraordinary creature’s data.

[Name]: Night Demon Scarecrow

[Attributes]: Dark, Wood

[Race Level]: High Lord

[Growth Rank]: First-Stage Juvenile

[Talent Core]: Scarecrow Substitute (Wood B-Level)

[Race Description]: A powerful dark-type creature born from a collective prayer resonance. Its characteristics vary greatly depending on the type of prayer, with most known individuals accompanied by the Night Crows, using them to move. Individuals with the Scarecrow Substitute talent core are especially dangerous. Direct combat within the secret realm should be avoided.

[Normal Hidden Energy Value]: 2462P

Mu Huiyue finally understood the strange emotion she had sensed—this was actually a wild extraordinary creature, just born in the secret realm, a first-stage juvenile!

Although its appearance seemed dark and terrifying, from the perspective of extraordinary creature habits, this Night Demon Scarecrow was undoubtedly still a baby.

While thinking this, Mu Huiyue glanced at the creature’s data once more and couldn’t help but widen her eyes slightly.

The night wind picked up again, and a thin mist rose over the wilderness. More crows appeared on the Night Demon Scarecrow’s arm.

Even though everyone kept their gaze fixed on it, no one noticed exactly when the additional crows appeared.

Behind the Night Demon Scarecrow, the giant deer’s skeletal remains were also enveloped in the mist, as if swallowed by the night fog, leaving only a faint, blurred outline.

The readings on the bracelet jumped two stages—now the Night Demon Scarecrow had reached the third stage of its juvenile phase, with a normal hidden energy value of 4625P.

It seemed to be absorbing the withered, decaying energy of the secret realm, growing at an unimaginable, astonishing speed.

The mist thickened, and the already dim night was further obscured by the rising fog. Visibility dropped sharply, and the once boundless wilderness could now only make out the location of the giant deer’s skeletal remains.

The group no longer dared to take another step forward. It was difficult to return to the forest in such thick fog, leaving them in a dilemma of indecision.

In the brief moment of hesitation, the Night Demon Scarecrow reached the fifth stage of its juvenile phase.

A sharp cracking sound rang out from the mist, like the sound of breaking bones. The group immediately jolted, looking toward the giant deer’s skeletal remains, now just a vague shape in the night fog.

A pair of blood-red eyes opened within it.

Then two pairs, four pairs, six pairs… More and more blood-red eyes turned toward the group.

Mu Huiyue swallowed hard, and Ellen’s shadow shrank slightly, protecting the Beastmasters in the shape of a circle around her feet. White Fang beside her also took a battle-ready stance, lowering its body and baring its teeth.

“Be careful.” Han Ruoyunn whispered.

The group slowly began to retreat under the gaze of those eyes.

In the next second, countless black shadows surged out from the night fog.

Mu Huiyue’s shadow immediately pulled her into the shadow space, while White Fang leaped forward using Shadow Steps, pouncing on the nearest black shadow.

The Hammer Soldier swung its hammer toward the ground, and the [Imaginary Alchemy] ability created a simple protective shield in front of them. Meanwhile, the Red-Scaled Turtle spewed a stream of high-temperature flames toward the black shadow right in front of them.

The Mycelium Mushroom beside Lin Lin released many shimmering spores, blowing them toward the front, but the undulating black shadows remained unmoved.

White Fang blocked the first black shadow, which turned out to be a gigantic Wind Scorch Rabbit.

This was one of the commonly seen wild extraordinary creatures in the “Fenghe Basin.” When their numbers increased, they could easily cause small-scale droughts. The group had previously encountered them in the trial illusion of the second layer.

However, this particular Wind Scorch Rabbit looked very strange. One half of its body was covered in fluffy fur, while the other half was entangled in black mist with stark white bones exposed. Its eyes had turned blood-red, and after White Fang knocked it to the ground, it let out an ear-piercing screech, unlike anything a rabbit would make.

More and more black shadows with red eyes appeared. Most of them were extraordinary creatures from the “Fenghe Basin,” but like the Wind Scorch Rabbit, they were entangled in strange black mist. Despite their half-dead appearance, their agility was not affected in the slightest.

“The Mycelium Mushroom’s sleep spores aren’t working. These things aren’t living creatures,” Lin Lin said quickly.

Mu Huiyue emerged from the shadows, looking at the growing number of black shadows with a slight frown.

There were so many extraordinary creatures here, yet the Investigator’s wristband only reacted to the Night Demon Scarecrow.

Lin Lin was right. These things weren’t truly living extraordinary creatures.

She looked toward the giant stag’s skeletal remains, now dissolving into the night mist. The black mist wrapped around the white bones wasn’t unfamiliar to her. It was the “Death Mist,” unique to undead creatures.

These weren’t living beings but rather undead puppets controlled by a higher, more powerful force.

Grade A Undead Manipulation Skill · Undead Mirage!