27: It smells so good!

As per usual, the Wind Bamboo Worm was summoned again, circling at low altitude, transmitting back a blurry view.

After walking for about ten minutes, the path ahead suddenly opened up.

A forest clearing, covered in vibrant green grass, appeared before his eyes.

Dozens of fluffy creatures dotted the landscape.

They were considerably larger than domestic rabbits, their long ears twitched occasionally, and their pink, three-lobed mouths chewed incessantly on the grass.

Some were leisurely grazing, while others were curled up in the grass, sound asleep, looking harmless, and even somewhat... cute?

That's right, adorable.

Giant Horned Rabbit

Strength: Tier 1

Quality: White

Star Rating: 1 Star

Type: Demonic Beast

Skill: Combat Horn Transformation: When first transforming into combat form, its two ears will turn into two large, extremely sharp horns.

Note: A rabbit doesn't eat the grass by its burrow; if you eat its grass, it will go berserk!

The Giant Horned Rabbit camp had arrived!

Lu Yuan's gaze swept over the rabbit herd, finally settling on the center of the clearing.

There, a rabbit noticeably larger than its peers was the most conspicuous.

Its entire body was covered in a layer of soft, pink fur, looking plump and cute.

At this moment, this pink rabbit was comfortably leaning amidst several female Giant Horned Rabbits, lying on its back, its belly rising and falling, emitting soft snores.

Giant Horned Rabbit King

Strength: Tier 2

Quality: Green

Star Rating: 3 Star

Type: Demonic Beast

Skills:

Combat Horn Transformation: When first transforming into combat form, its two ears will turn into two large, extremely sharp horns.

Sprint: Bursts out with maximum speed for a short period, charging wildly.

Note: The Rabbit King also doesn't eat the grass by its burrow; if you eat its grass, it will go berserk!

A Tier 2, 3-star Green card-level Demonic Beast!

Lu Yuan licked his lips.

It looked much more benevolent than the Gray Wolf King.

These rabbits seemed to have no offensive capabilities.

However, the data clearly indicated that they would undergo a form change when encountering danger.

Those seemingly soft long ears would transform into deadly weapons.

He couldn't let his guard down.

Lu Yuan observed the terrain, quietly circling to an upwind position, and, using the cover of a sturdy ancient tree, squatted down.

A plan quickly formed in his mind.

The same old method!

Aura suppression, Crocodile control, Mantis harvest!

He silently chanted.

Buzz... an extremely subtle fluctuation spread out.

Almost simultaneously!

"Crocodile!"

"Mantis!"

"Sharpness Technique!"

Blue light, white light, and the glow of the skill card instantly lit up!

Roar!

The massive Swamp Crocodile landed with a thud, biting off a rabbit's head in one gulp.

The Shadow Mantis transformed into a blurry black shadow, its bone blades covered in the energy halo of the Sharpness Technique, silently pouncing on the nearest dozing Giant Horned Rabbit.

And that faint aura of pressure just happened to envelop the entire rabbit herd.

The rabbits that were grazing froze, raising their heads in confusion.

The sleeping rabbits were startled awake, their eyes still heavy with sleep.

They felt that tremor from the depths of their souls, but it was fleeting, merely causing a brief delay.

Now!

Pfft!

The Shadow Mantis's bone blade sliced through a Giant Horned Rabbit's neck as if cutting tofu!

The rabbit's head rolled, and blood gushed out!

One, two... seven, eight...

This bloody scene finally completely awakened the rabbit herd!

"Screech!!"

Sharp cries rose and fell!

Some of the closer Giant Horned Rabbits' fur stood on end, their eyes instantly turning crimson!

Their long ears suddenly straightened, elongated, and were covered with a layer of tough keratin, transforming into two sharp, pointed short horns!

Combat form!

"Screech!!"

Several transformed Giant Horned Rabbits, without hesitation, charged towards the Shadow Mantis and the Swamp Crocodile, horns leading the way!

But it was too late!

How fast was the Shadow Mantis!

It weaved through the rabbit herd like a ghost, its bone blades, enhanced by the Sharpness Technique, taking a life with every swing!

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Rabbit heads flew, and severed limbs were scattered everywhere!

The Swamp Crocodile was even more simple and brutal; its huge mouth opened and closed, directly biting in half several combat-form Giant Horned Rabbits attempting to charge over!

Crack! Crack!

The sound of bones shattering was incessant!

The scene was extremely bloody and brutal.

However, amidst this chaos...

"Screech—!!!"

A sharp cry, full of anger and terror, came from the central area.

It was the pink Giant Horned Rabbit King!

It had finally been startled awake!

Looking at the ground covered with the corpses of its companions, the Rabbit King's pink eyes instantly turned blood-red!

Its fleshy body trembled, and its pink fur stood on end!

Its unusually long ears also transformed into two thick, sharp, pink giant horns, gleaming with a cold light, at a speed visible to the naked eye!

A Tier 2 Demonic Beast's aura erupted!

"Screech!!"

The Rabbit King let out a roar, its hind legs stomping hard on the ground!

Its massive body transformed into a pink streak, its target... shockingly, Lu Yuan, who was standing behind the tree!

So fast!

Lu Yuan's mind stirred, and he instinctively dove to the side!

Rip!

The pink giant horn grazed his clothes, crashing into the ancient tree behind him.

Boom!

With a muffled thud, the ancient tree shook violently, leaving two deep marks.

What powerful impact!

Lu Yuan's heart skipped a beat; he was just about to command the Crocodile and Mantis to attack.

However, the Rabbit King, having missed its attack, didn't pause for a moment!

Using the recoil from the impact, its massive body executed a nimble roll in mid-air, landing on all fours.

Then... Swoosh—!!

It suddenly pushed off the ground again, not charging towards Lu Yuan, nor towards the Crocodile or Mantis, but instead, with an incredibly fast speed, it fled desperately into the depths of the dense forest in the opposite direction from Lu Yuan!

That speed was simply incredible!

In a few leaps, it vanished behind the dense bushes.

"..."

Lu Yuan got up from the ground, patted the dirt off his body, and looked in the direction where the Rabbit King had disappeared, somewhat speechless.

"It... ran away?"

What was going on?

Given its aggressive demeanor just now, he thought it was going to fight to the death!

But instead... a feint, and then a direct escape?

Even the Shadow Mantis didn't have time to chase!

Lu Yuan shook his head, too lazy to pursue.

The Rabbit King was too fast; once it entered the forest, it would be impossible to find.

Never mind, if it ran, it ran.

Anyway, the main goal was to gain experience.

He looked at the scene.

The battle was over.

Except for the escaped Rabbit King, all dozens of other Giant Horned Rabbits had met their end, turning into cold corpses.

The Shadow Mantis and the Swamp Crocodile were covered in bloodstains, silently awaiting orders.

"Well done."

Lu Yuan recalled the two cards.

He began to clean up the battlefield.

Unfortunately, no cards dropped. To be honest, the probability was indeed low.

While rabbit pelts weren't as valuable as wolf pelts, they made up for it in quantity.

Rabbit meat... hmm, it looked quite plump and delicious.

Most importantly, the beast cores!

He skillfully dissected the corpses of the Giant Horned Rabbits one by one, extracting the white beast cores that contained faint Source Power.

He absorbed them one by one.

Warm currents continuously flowed into his body.

Source Power: 67 / 86

...Source Power: 68 / 87

Buzz!

His Source Power was replenished again, and the upper limit increased by 1 point!

Level: Card Master Apprentice (8 Star)

Source Power: 68 / 87

"Only 3 points of upper limit left until nine stars!"

Lu Yuan clenched his fist, feeling the more solidified power within his body; just a few more, and he could reach 88!

The efficiency was very high; this wave of harvesting was comparable to killing several waves of Gray Wolves before.

By the time all this was done, night had completely fallen.

His stomach also began to rumble.

Lu Yuan looked at the rabbit corpses scattered on the ground, then at the meager amount of compressed biscuits left in his backpack.

An idea popped into his head.

He gathered some dry branches and fallen leaves, skillfully building a bonfire.

Then he picked a few of the plumpest-looking rabbits, skinned them, removed their entrails, skewered them on sharpened branches, and placed them over the fire.

Soon, fat dripped, making sizzling sounds.

The aroma of meat began to spread.

Lu Yuan swallowed, thinking that even without much seasoning, the natural and unpolluted demonic beast meat should taste good.

Char-grilled Giant Horned Rabbit!

He felt a little excited just thinking about it.

While turning the rabbit meat, he vigilantly paid attention to the surroundings.

In the wilderness, nights were always more dangerous.

The firelight flickered.

The meat gradually turned a tempting golden-brown.

"It smells delicious!"