I am the sacred tree, evergreen for eternity.

The search team set off from the Sacred Tree Valley and has been on its way for more than half a month.

Xuan led his people back into the eastern mountain range, traversing mountains and valleys, advancing for hundreds of miles.

If it weren't for the fact that everyone was a Totem Walker, this would have been an insurmountable distance for the Xia family in the past.

but--

No trace of human activity has been found yet.

Only the boundless mountains gazed silently.

"Captain, have we gone the wrong way?"

He squatted down on a rock, his face etched with exhaustion and disappointment.

Xuan stood on the mountain ridge, gazing into the distance.

The wind swept across the mountain ridge, ruffling his disheveled hair and revealing a pair of bloodshot eyes.

These days, he has hardly had a full night's sleep.

Every time I close my eyes, the stories my father told me come to mind—

The oppressed and enslaved people, their desperate escape when natural disasters struck, their wailing cries as they were scattered in the dust and smoke...

"By the Tree God."

"We will definitely find it!"

Xuan's voice was deep and firm.

Yan took out the animal hide map from his pocket, which was already worn and frayed, gestured on it, and sighed.

"Captain, based on the direction the leader fled in back then, we should have entered the area where they might be hiding long ago. But..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

But everyone understood what he meant...

Just as everyone fell silent, and disappointment spread through the ranks—

"etc."

Feng suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze sharp as a knife.

Almost at the same moment, the spirit's perception also detected the anomaly.

"Something's coming, soon."

"There's more than one, and they're quite large."

Xuan's hand was already gripping the hilt of the iron sword behind his back.

The other team members reacted quickly as well. The archers nocked their arrows, the melee fighters gripped their weapons, and the dozen or so men spread out in a fan shape, facing the direction from which the sound came.

They are seasoned hunters who have spent their childhoods in the forests of the Sacred Tree Valley, where they have seen blood, killed beasts, and experienced real life-or-death battles.

Although young and impetuous, he possessed just as much vigilance and instinct as one would expect.

The rustling sound came from the dense forest below the hillside, growing closer and louder.

The bushes shook violently a few times, and then—

Several huge black shadows darted out from the dense forest!

"put!"

The arrow pierced the air and struck the dark figure at the front with a dull thud.

The dark figure let out a sharp screech, its speed undiminished as it continued to charge towards the group.

The resounding clashes echoed across the hillside.

The iron knife clashed with the sharp claws, sparks flying everywhere.

The team members were locked in combat with the dark figures, and amidst the flashing blades, they finally saw the true forms of these uninvited guests.

mouse.

A giant rat.

Each one is the size of a calf, covered in short, grayish-black fur, with strong, powerful limbs, sharp, hook-like claws, and blood-red eyes.

They are incredibly fast, traversing rugged hillsides as if on flat ground, their fangs exposed and saliva dripping from their mouths.

Three of them, all of them are demonic beasts!

Xuan slashed back the giant rat that lunged at him with a single blow, his brows furrowing slightly.

Based on past experience, monsters are usually mutated individuals born from special opportunities, but this time three appeared in a row, even more ferocious and violent than ordinary monsters.

Fortunately, the search team had a full twenty totem walkers, making the hunt relatively easy.

however--

His gaze inadvertently swept over the largest demon rat.

The beast had something in its mouth.

Xuan's pupils suddenly contracted.

That was a piece of an arm.

A person's arm.

The bone broke at the elbow, and the cut was jagged, clearly indicating that it had been torn off.

The skin of the severed arm was sickly pale, the fingers were thin and long, and the nails were full of dirt.

The blood had dried, turning a dark, blackish-red color.

"They...are eating people?!"

The thought flashed through his mind like lightning, instantly igniting Hong's rationality into a raging inferno.

"kill!"

Xuan roared, his spiritual energy surging within him, and a faint glow appeared on the iron blade.

The other team members also became furious and charged at the three demon rats.

After a hunt.

The two demon rats lay in a pool of blood, twitched a few times, and then fell still.

The largest one remaining—the one with a human arm in its mouth—had its hind leg pierced by Yan's iron spear. Dragging its wounded leg, it desperately fled into the dense forest, letting out a mournful howl.

The man-eating rats fled for their lives, completely unaware of the danger behind them.

A dozen or so figures silently followed behind the injured demon rat, maintaining just the right distance.

The blood dripping from the monster emitted a strong, foul odor in the darkness, which served as a perfect guide.

The tracking lasted for most of the day.

The sky had completely darkened, and it was pitch black in the mountains and forests, but for the totem walkers, the darkness did not hinder their vision.

The demon rat, dragging its injured leg, dashed left and right through the forest, fleeing deeper into the mountains.

Finally, the roar of the waterfall came from ahead.

A rushing stream cascades down the cliff, splashing up a cloud of water mist.

The injured demon rat staggered to the waterfall and leaped into the curtain of water without hesitation.

"Whoosh—"

The iron arrow streaked through the air with a cold light, followed by a piercing scream, which was then swallowed up by the roar of the water.

The monster crashed to the ground, the arrow piercing its eye socket and tearing its brain to shreds, leaving it utterly dead.

Xuan put down his bow and walked towards the waterfall first.

With his Body Refinement stage cultivation, he easily saw through the hidden cave behind the waterfall.

Xuan, carrying an iron knife, passed through the water curtain and indeed found a long, narrow passage behind it.

The passage was about two people high and no more than a few feet wide. The rock walls were covered with slippery moss, and the air was filled with a damp, nauseating stench.

The team members filed in.

Xuan took out a small cloth bag from his pocket, took out a few dry grass leaves, and distributed them to the team members.

"Putting it into your nostrils can mask the smell."

These are herbs prepared by the Xia family pharmacist, which can effectively mask the human body's scent and prevent it from being detected by monsters with a keen sense of smell.

The team members took the blades of grass, stuffed them into their nostrils, then silently drew their weapons and followed Xuan deeper into the passage.

The passage was long, winding, and widened as you walked.

After walking for about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, a faint light appeared ahead.

Xuan walked lightly, pressed himself against the rock wall, and slowly poked his head out.

At the end of the passage, the view suddenly opened up.

It was a huge cavern, tens of feet high, and incredibly large, enough to hold thousands of people.

There are several natural cracks in the cave ceiling, through which moonlight and starlight leak in, forming dappled beams of light that barely illuminate the cave hall.

This is a huge underground river cave.

On the floor of the cave, an underground river meanders through, its water gleaming with a cold, eerie light in the darkness.

Xuan silently made a hand gesture, and the team members stealthily sneaked into the cave.

They moved along the shadows of the rock wall, masking their scent with herbs, carefully avoiding the demon rats that were patrolling the cave.

The beasts, like sheepdogs, wandered around the cave, occasionally nudging something on the ground with their noses.

Xuan led his team toward the deepest part of the cave.

It was the darkest, dampest corner, far from the underground river and close to the base of the rock wall.

The light barely reached that area; only a blurry outline could be seen faintly in the darkness.

The young Xia clan practitioners crouched behind a huge stalagmite, cautiously peering out.

Then they saw—

A scene they will never forget.