Lord: I can see loyalty.

The last bit of smoke slowly settled, completely revealing Ronan's terrifying, inhuman form.

He stood there, a twisted hybrid of a giant tree and a human, nearly three meters tall, his bulging muscles covered with a layer of dark brown keratin resembling tree bark.

Several thick, sharp-tipped thorns pierced his back and elbows, swaying slowly as if they were alive.

He looked down at his powerful arms, let out a deep, satisfied laugh, then looked up at the crowd before him.

"Do you see that? This is the true power of the King of the Forest!" Ronan's voice deepened and became strange, echoing. "I didn't want to go this far... after all, absorbing the entire giant tree was still a bit of a stretch..."

"But you, especially you, the Earl from beyond the mountains!" He stared intently at Vio, "you actually forced me into a situation where I had no other choice. I truly underestimated you..."

Vio didn't reply, but calmly observed as the panel in front of him rapidly refreshed:

Name: Ronan Ferguson

Race: Human

Age: 29

[Faction: Cooper Clan Leader]

[Hobbies: Hunting, training, and beautiful women]

【Characteristics: Self-healing, superhuman strength, ability to manipulate plants and beasts, and proficiency in various weapons】

Loyalty: Not loyal to you

[Status: Highly excited, sheltered in the forest, energy absorption buffer period, mild mania]

Another troublesome regeneration type... Vio's heart sank slightly, but his eyes remained unmoved.

He slowly adjusted his breathing, and the internal energy of the Dune Sword Technique began to merge with his body muscles.

"What have you done for your own desires and power... Ronan, you have betrayed the forest." Albright's voice was icy as she gripped her spear tightly.

Valerie stood beside him, also holding a spear, her eyes sharp.

"Betrayal? No, the forest has chosen to give me greater power to eliminate you traitors and outsiders!" Ronan roared, refusing to waste any more words, and took heavy steps that shook the ground.

He first charged towards Vio, who posed the greatest threat to him, and his huge wooden fist, accompanied by a strong wind, slammed down!

Vio neither dodged nor evaded, but slid half a step to the side like sand, drew his longsword, and thrust it swiftly along the inside of Ronan's arm, accurately landing on the glowing 'vein' at Ronan's joint!

With a "hiss," a green light flashed, and Ronan's movements paused slightly. The bark at the point where he was stabbed cracked, oozing amber-like viscous liquid, but it healed almost instantly.

"Hmph!" Ronan laughed wildly, sweeping his other hand across, the resulting wind pressure kicking up dust.

Vio ducked and slid to dodge, and the sword flashed again, adding another wound to Ronan's ribs, but it healed just as quickly.

Meanwhile, Albright and Valerie's attacks also arrived.

Albright's stone spear pierced Ronan's back, but it was like hitting hard wood, only penetrating an inch before getting stuck.

Valerie's twin blades grazed Ronan's knees, leaving only two white marks; their attacks were simply too difficult to break through his defenses.

Ronan punched Albright and his spear flying with a backhand punch, then kicked Valerie, who narrowly avoided it by rolling away.

His attacks were powerful and heavy, but his techniques were still crude, relying more on absolute strength and speed, as well as his amazing regenerative ability.

Vio ran at top speed. His sword could not kill with a single blow, but each attack landed precisely on Ronan's joints. Although the wounds healed quickly, they clearly interfered with Ronan's movements, making him extremely irritable.

"Annoying!" Ronan roared, no longer focusing on Vio.

He began to attack everything around him indiscriminately, his huge wooden fists slamming into the ground, cracking the earth, and the flying debris and wood chips forced the Cooper villagers watching to retreat in fear, screaming repeatedly.

He even grabbed a huge piece of wood and threw it at several elderly Cooper elders!

"Damn it!" Albright's eyes widened in fury as she rushed forward to try and stop him, but she was too late.

At this critical moment, a figure flashed by, and a sword flashed!

With a "whoosh," the giant log was precisely split in two mid-air and fell in front of the elders.

Vio sheathed his sword and stood in front of the elders, his breathing slightly disordered.

The continuous high-intensity, precise attacks and burst speed also put a considerable burden on him.

"You madman, do you even care about the lives of your people?!" Albright shouted at Ronan.

The elders were pale-faced, their eyes filled with shock and disappointment as they looked at Ronan, who was acting like a madman and wreaking havoc.

The elderly elder, his beard trembling, murmured, "Absorbing the giant tree... the will of the forest will not condone such atrocity..."

Just as Ronan was about to attack the weakened Vio again, a sudden change occurred!

Ronan, who was about to pounce on Vio again, suddenly froze, and the ferocious expression on his face was instantly replaced by extreme pain!

He let out a bloodcurdling scream, clutching his head with both hands, the glowing blood vessels on his body flashing erratically.

Fine cracks began to appear on the tree-like skin of his body, as if it were about to disintegrate.

"Now!" Vio's eyes flashed with a sharp light. Although he didn't know why, this was a good opportunity!

He exerted force with his feet, his figure turning into a blur, and his longsword gathered extreme power and speed.

puff--!

This time, the longsword pierced deep into the center of Ronan's chest, which was vulnerable due to pain, without any resistance!

The sword seemed to have struck his limit precisely, and a scream erupted from him.

"Ughh ...

The thorns on his back snapped off quickly, and large patches of tree-like bark peeled off his body. His massive frame seemed to have been stripped of all its support, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud.

Vio drew his sword and stepped back, watching warily. On the panel, Ronan's status quickly updated:

[Status: Physical pain, mental breakdown, loss of forest protection].

Ronan knelt on the ground, looking down at his rapidly shrinking and withering arms, his face filled with unbelievable despair, his previous arrogance vanished without a trace.

The eldest elder, supported by his clansmen, stepped forward and said with a heavy heart, "Ronan, the forest gives power to its guardians, not for you to plunder and dominate. You have completely betrayed your oath as king, and the forest has withdrawn its favor. This is inevitable."

"No... I am the king..." Ronan whispered hoarsely, a final glimmer of madness flashing in his eyes.

The last few branches behind him, which were not yet completely withered, suddenly shot out like venomous snakes, stabbing towards Albright and Vio, who were closest to him!

"Watch out!" Valerie exclaimed.

But Vio was prepared. His sword flashed again, like an unfolded silver fan, precisely severing all the withered branches that were attacking him!

At the same time, Albright seized this last opening, took a step and leaped into the air, thrusting the spear in her hand with all her might into Ronan's now unprotected throat!

"Well……!"

Ronan froze completely. He stared wide-eyed at Albright, whose expression was icy, and then at Vio, who stood with his sword. The light in his eyes quickly dimmed and finally froze.

His swollen body deflated completely as if air had leaked out, and he fell to the ground, lifeless.

The dust settled.

All the Coopers watched this scene with bated breath, watching their once-worshipped king die for betraying his oath.

At the same time, he looked at Albright, who was holding a blood-stained spear, and the Earl of the Mountain, who had come to his aid and whose swordsmanship was superb.

The silence lasted for several seconds.

The eldest elder took a deep breath and stepped forward first.

He glanced at Albright, then at Vio, and then turned to all the clansmen, announcing in an aged but clear voice:

"Ronan Ferguson, having betrayed the oath of the forest and harmed his own people, has been abandoned by the forest and has lost his right to be chief! Albright, brave and loyal, protected her people, stood up in times of crisis, and with the help of her friend Earl Vio from beyond the mountains, eliminated the traitor within the tribe!"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. Seeing no one object, he continued, "According to ancient custom, when the old king breaks his oath, and a warrior can lead the people to restore order... Albright, are you willing to take on the responsibility of leadership and become the new king of our Cooper tribe?"

All eyes of the villagers turned to Albright, and Valerie gazed longingly at the tall figure beside her.

Albright's chest heaved as he dropped his spear, knelt on one knee, and pounded his right fist into his chest. His voice boomed, "Albright swears by his life and the honor of a warrior to take up the chieftainship, to protect the Coopers, to drive out the filth of Harlow, until a new guardian is chosen for the forest!"

After a moment of silence, cheers erupted.

"Albright! Albright!" The shouts began to rise from the crowd, quickly growing into a chorus of voices.

Valerie and the warriors who followed Albright cheered excitedly, and more of her people recovered from their shock and gradually came to accept the warrior who had stood up in their time of crisis.

Vio watched this scene and nodded almost imperceptibly; this was exactly the result he wanted to see.

Albright also stood up, walked to Vio, and solemnly extended his right hand. Vio sheathed his sword and shook hands with him in return.

"Count Vio," Albright's eyes were utterly sincere, "the Cooper Clan thanks you for your assistance. Ronan is dead, the internal strife has been quelled, and now, we are left with only one common, and only, enemy."

"The Haro tribe, hiding deep within the sacred forest of Mount Loba, and the monster they worship. The Cooper tribe is willing to fight alongside the Earl of the South to completely eradicate the darkness from this forest."

Vio squeezed his hand, smiled and nodded: "This is exactly what I wanted, Chief Albright. The South will always be an ally of the Coopers. Let's end this nightmare together."

Sunlight pierced through the dissipating dust and fell upon the ruins of the giant tree and the hands of the two people clasping together.

Ronan is dead, the alliance is formed.

Vio understood that the only remaining problem was the Harlow barbarians.