Chapter 136: Assault on the Boar Forest

Dong Jian suppressed the shock in his heart and checked a few other places to see how things were. It turned out that these bloodthirsty mosquitoes were present throughout the surrounding territory. Swarms of black clouds swept past, leaving behind dry corpses across the land. Realizing that these were monsters released by someone, he dared not lay a hand on them, even though their presence meant there were no monsters left for him to hunt. The sheer number of bloodthirsty mosquitoes was overwhelming; what he saw alone numbered no less than thirty thousand. Just how powerful must a faction be to control so many mosquitoes and release them to hunt with such indifference? Would they come looking for trouble if they found out he had killed some? Thinking of these questions alone made him fear taking action. A first time might be called an accident, but anything after that would be deliberate. Deliberation and accident were two very different things. After much wandering, Dong Jian finally found a location devoid of the mosquitoes.

Across the wilderness, Dong Jian was not the only one shocked. In some settlements that were being besieged by monsters, just as the people had fallen into despair, a black cloud descended, and they discovered that all the monsters below the sixth rank were sucked dry into corpses. They stared, dumbstruck, at the cloud that had just arrived. Sharp-eyed individuals realized they looked like bloodthirsty mosquitoes. Some people being pursued by monsters felt utter despair as a black cloud approached them from the front. They had monsters chasing them from behind, and a mysterious mass of monsters coming from ahead; it was as if their lives were truly at an end. Yet, just as they waited for death in despair, the black cloud bypassed them and attacked the monsters behind them. They watched in a daze as the cloud surrounded their pursuers and flew off just seconds later. The monsters that had been hunting them now lay on the ground as shriveled husks. Swallowing hard, the survivor knew these flying monsters must be under someone's control; otherwise, they would not have spared him to attack the monsters behind. He did not know who had saved him, but that did not diminish his gratitude toward the master of the cloud. Scenes like this played out repeatedly across the wilderness, and as the reach of the bloodthirsty mosquitoes expanded, these occurrences became increasingly frequent. In the eyes of many, this was a miracle.

At this moment, Lu Sheng was unaware of how many people his casually released mosquitoes had saved. To him, this life-saving act was nothing more than a trivial gesture. Now, Lu Sheng was preparing to destroy the Wild Boar Men in the Wild Boar Forest. After informing Xiong Dabiao and his group, Lu Sheng led his subordinates toward the forest. No one questioned Lu Sheng anymore; his strength had been demonstrated to them just yesterday. Those dozens of sixth-rank monsters were proof of his power. Coupled with Lu Sheng's own strength, destroying the Wild Boar Forest should be a simple matter. However, when Lu Sheng was saying his goodbyes, he heard Xiong Dabiao complaining that there were no low-rank monsters left in the vicinity, claiming they had searched all morning and found only dry corpses, not a single monster worth fighting. As he said this, Xiong Dabiao looked at Lu Sheng with resentment. He could easily guess where those corpses came from. The army of bloodthirsty mosquitoes Lu Sheng had unleashed the previous night was still fresh in everyone's memory. How could Xiong Dabiao forget the sight of massive numbers of monsters being drained by that black cloud?

Lu Sheng ignored the complaints and marched toward the Wild Boar Forest with his monster army. Although he had released a vast number of mosquitoes the night before, he had deliberately kept them out of the forest. He had his clone take his subordinates to kill while his true self cultivated at Tiantan Mountain. The newly acquired attribute-less Law Stone allowed him to enter a state of deep cultivation once again. At the same time, thanks to the massive slaughter by the mosquitoes, he had gained many other types of monsters, though their strength and quality were mediocre and of little help to him. Furthermore, the number of sixth-rank monsters under his command had now increased to over eighty. Forty were raised by his own hand, and the other forty-plus were gained through constant hunting since the beams of light descended the previous night. Most of these were of the same species, with only a dozen or so different types; otherwise, he would have unlocked the resurrection conditions for blue-quality monsters by now. With a total of eighty-three sixth-rank monsters—twenty of which were at the peak of the sixth rank and the rest at varying levels—Lu Sheng arrived outside the Wild Boar Forest. He summoned all his sixth-rank monsters, arranged them in front and back rows, and led his force into the fray.

The massive commotion caused by Lu Sheng's arrival naturally alerted the Wild Boar Men hiding within. In the Wild Boar tribe, a large number of them had gathered, many already armed. Over a thousand Wild Boar Men were assembled, all at least fifth-rank, with the tribe leader standing at the forefront. Beside him were two powerful warriors, one of whom spoke up: "Leader, these humans are coming in force. They have brought nearly a hundred sixth-rank monsters." The Wild Boar Man looked grave; a great battle was clearly imminent. The leader gripped his long spear and spoke in a low voice: "Call out the clansmen who are in meditation. With just us, there is a risk. Activate the Berserk Array; this time, we will deal these fellows a heavy blow." The leader spoke through gritted teeth, his hatred for humanity evident.

Following the leader's command, the entire tribe sprang into action. Wisps of red gas began to spread throughout the forest. Some Wild Boar Men who had been cultivating in their huts were called out, increasing their numbers from one thousand to two thousand. The number of sixth-rank warriors was not the ten reported by rumors, but nearly thirty! There was more than just one seventh-rank leader; there were also two aged elders with patches of white fur. This was the full strength of the Wild Boar tribe, which was why the leader felt no panic after learning of Lu Sheng's power. With three seventh-rank beings, thirty at the sixth rank, and the boost from the Berserk Array, the leader believed that even if the enemy outnumbered them, it would be useless. In the end, they would all become ghosts under their weapons.

Lu Sheng knew nothing of this, as he had been in the forest for some time without seeing a single Wild Boar Man. It made him wonder if they knew he was coming and had fled. Of course, he only pondered it briefly; the Wild Boar Men would never run. As he expected, less than five minutes after he ventured deeper, large numbers of Wild Boar Men emerged from the woods. These creatures were thick-bodied with coarse fur along their backs, wielding various weapons: swords, spears, bows, and arrows. Lu Sheng was briefly taken aback by the variety of weapons, but he quickly realized they were a successfully evolved intelligent race, so he was no longer surprised. In an instant, Lu Sheng’s position was completely surrounded. He felt the presence of at least fifth-rank Wild Boar Men everywhere.

Before he could think further, the first wave of attacks began. A hail of arrows shot toward them, and Lu Sheng ordered his subordinates to counterattack. No matter how many there were, he could always release a wave of bloodthirsty mosquitoes. Moreover, using battle to fuel battle was his greatest trump card. When a Wild Boar Man died, it was truly dead, but Lu Sheng would receive a Wild Boar Man card. The battle broke out immediately. Facing the overwhelming arrows, Lu Sheng's sixth-rank monsters released their respective Law Shields. However, even with the shields, the monsters dared not ignore the projectiles. The shields were meant to deflect unavoidable attacks, but a sixth-rank Law Shield could not fully ignore such an onslaught. The monsters used their own attacks to swat away the incoming arrows. It was easy enough to deflect those within their immediate range. Some of the larger, bulkier monsters could not avoid them, but they possessed excellent defenses and could fully immunize themselves against the arrows. For instance, the Giant Crocodile used its "Hardened Shell" skill, causing the arrows to merely bounce off with a metallic clanging sound, unable to penetrate its defense. Lu Sheng drew his Frogman Spear, casually deflecting the incoming arrows. When the volleys were too dense to block completely, he used Space Shift to blink through the blockade.

The Wild Boar leader saw Lu Sheng suddenly change position, dodging the arrow rain, and his eyes widened in shock. "Space power." The leader frowned; this level of power was usually very advanced. If the opponent were seventh-rank, he would have fled without a second thought, but the strength displayed was only sixth-rank. "Two elders, do you see that human?" the leader asked, gesturing toward Lu Sheng. The two elders nodded. "We see him. Is there a problem?" They had not noticed Lu Sheng’s maneuver, so they were confused by the leader's concern. "He possesses space power," the leader said in a deep voice. "What!?" The two elders felt a flicker of panic but quickly calmed down, asking the key question: "What is his strength? Since you can sense his space power, you should have sensed his cultivation level as well." The leader nodded. "Yes, I have felt his power; he is only at the late sixth rank, so we still have hope." One of the elders grew excited. "Good! It seems we might actually get to kill a human genius!" With their seventh-rank strength and the Berserk Array, killing a sixth-rank foe seemed like an easy task. Even if the opponent had immense talent, talent that had not yet reached its full potential was nothing to fear.