113: Chapter 113 It's just a child

Zhang Mu had completed the material list for refining the Owl puppet while traveling from Bala City to the Silent Forest.

He had specifically researched the main materials: Raging Bear fur and Earth Venomous Scorpion stingers.

Thus, when he saw the gray-furred bear roaring and clawing at the giant python coiled around it, he was certain this was the Raging Bear he was looking for.

"Boom—"

Seeing that its front paws couldn't tear off the unknown magical beast python, the Raging Bear frantically slammed itself against the thick surrounding trees.

The power was terrifying; with just one hit, a tree twice as wide as Zhang Mu was uprooted and crashed to the ground.

"Something's not right."

To avoid being flattened into a 2D pancake again, Zhang Mu retreated a few steps, climbed to the top of a tree, and looked down at the frenzied Raging Bear, muttering to himself:

"It's quite large, but its mana fluctuations are only around the fifth rank. How did it survive deep within the Silent Forest?"

A fifth-rank magical beast was equivalent to a High-level Magician. While not exactly weak, it depended on who you compared it to.

After traveling through the Silent Forest for a night, even the magical beasts on the outskirts were around the fourth rank.

Based on this, a fifth-rank beast trying to claim territory in the forest's core was clearly far from capable.

After pondering for a while without any conclusion, Zhang Mu didn't bother thinking about it further.

Whatever, as long as he got the materials he needed.

He turned his gaze back to the clearing created by the Raging Bear, which was moonlighting as a lumberjack.

Honestly, its tree-slamming move was quite effective.

The giant python was likely dizzy by now; its body, which had been tightly coiled around the Raging Bear, was half-shaken off.

The sharp claws on the Raging Bear's forelimbs stabbed deep into the python's belly, tearing at it desperately.

Zhang Mu scratched his head as he watched: "This thing is probably harder than steel. Will my fireballs even leave a dent?"

Fighting above one's level wasn't easy. At the very least, the Raging Bear's steel-like gray fur might resist even his mutated magic.

After all, it was only Apprentice-rank magic.

And if he couldn't kill it in one shot, the Raging Bear's charge would be no different from a bulldozer rumbling over him.

I'll use the barrett.

Having made up his mind, Zhang Mu pulled the barrett from his inventory, loaded a magazine full of armor-piercing rounds, crouched, aimed the black muzzle at the Raging Bear, and pressed his right eye against the sniper scope.

He had to wait for it to be stationary.

The crosshairs followed the swaying head of the Raging Bear, but Zhang Mu didn't fire immediately.

When he had first tested this batch of arms, the others were fine—he got the hang of them after a bit of tinkering—but this barrett was difficult to use.

It was okay at close range, but at long distances where ballistics needed to be estimated, it was a bit of a stretch.

That required extensive training to master, and Zhang Mu didn't have the time.

So, he either had to wait for the Raging Bear to stop moving or get closer.

In the magnified view of the scope, it had already torn the python off its body. Using both its front claws and sharp teeth, it sat there munching on the spicy strip.

He aimed for a long time, but its head kept swaying back and forth.

Zhang Mu lost his patience, jumped down from the tree, activated Shadow Technique, and approached.

But after just a few steps, the Raging Bear suddenly looked up, its fist-sized eyes scanning the area where he stood alertly.

Stared down by those terrifying eyes, Zhang Mu felt as if it could see him, even though he was invisible.

Fortunately, it was just an illusion.

Seeing no one after a while, the Raging Bear lowered its head and continued munching on its meal.

Zhang Mu cautiously retreated a few steps and estimated the distance between them to be about 200 meters.

If it stayed still, he was confident in a headshot, but it wouldn't stop moving... He'd have to find time to go abroad, hire a Professional coach, and practice with the sniper rifle for a while.

Before that, he had to deal with this Raging Bear; otherwise, who knew when he'd encounter another one.

Thinking that he couldn't let it escape, Zhang Mu scanned his surroundings, pondering a solution.

But after racking his brain for a while, he couldn't think of any clever tricks.

By this time, the Raging Bear had devoured more than half of the python. Seemingly full, it stood up, preparing to leave.

Let's just go for it!

Zhang Mu took out a grenade and several smoke grenades. He threw the former to the right, then laid a path of smoke between himself and the Raging Bear. Clutching the barrett, he sprinted!

"Boom—"

The sound of the explosion caught its attention, and the massive bear head turned to the right. Taking this chance, Zhang Mu burst forward at full speed.

One hundred and fifty meters passed in an instant.

Zhang Mu, who was clumsy even at stationary sniping, had no hope of hitting the target while moving.

Therefore, he didn't fire and kept charging.

But the Raging Bear had already discovered him, its dark eyes staring fixedly at the invisible Zhang Mu.

Damn it, it's clearly a fifth-rank magical beast. Dante, a High-level Knight, only noticed me when I was right in his face. Is its perception really this sharp?

In the time it took for that doubt to flash through his mind, Zhang Mu had rushed to the feet of the now-standing Raging Bear.

He was barely tall enough to reach the bend of its legs; jumping would only let him hit its knees.

His thoughts raced as he caught a glimpse of the Raging Bear leaning down, swinging its right claw at him.

You asked for this.

The corners of Zhang Mu's mouth curled up. Standing by the Raging Bear's feet with no intention of defending or dodging, he held the barrett vertically.

Just as the massive claw tore through his upper body, he shoved the muzzle into its wide-open mouth and pulled the trigger.

"Bang—"

Flesh and blood splattered everywhere—some from Zhang Mu, some from the Raging Bear.

The massive body toppled forward, pinning Zhang Mu's severed corpse.

A white light enveloped them. When it faded, Zhang Mu appeared beside the Raging Bear's corpse.

Stowing the gun, he grabbed the fur on its flank, climbed onto its back, and looked down at the back of its head.

"Unbelievable."

The back of the Raging Bear's head hadn't been pierced; instead, a large lump had formed.

Zhang Mu stood with hands on hips: "No wonder Knight Professionals are inferior to Magicians in the later stages. Dante and this Raging Bear are at the same rank, yet their physical toughness is worlds apart."

After his lament, he took a kitchen knife from his inventory, squatted down, parted the gray fur, and began cutting the skin.

One minute later.

"Snap—" With a forceful hack, the knife broke.

His facial muscles twitched: "What the hell..."

"Zhang Mu!"

A surprised shout suddenly came from behind. He instinctively turned around; it was actually Mihe.

His pace seemed slow, but in just a few seconds, he covered hundreds of meters and stood before the Raging Bear's head on the ground.

Looking up at him, Mihe smiled happily: "How fortunate. After wandering through the Silent Forest alone for a night, you're actually still alive."

No, I was treated like a snack and chewed on nearly ninety times.

Muttering inwardly, Zhang Mu jumped down: "Mr. Mi He, why are you here?"

"When I learned you had entered the Silent Forest alone, I was worried your life might be in danger."

"What could possibly happen to me?" Zhang Mu said nonchalantly.

Seeing that he was safe, Mihe's anxiety eased, and he finally noticed the prone Raging Bear.

After one look, his face turned pale instantly: "Quick! Leave this place!"

Zhang Mu was a bit confused, but his reaction was quick. He pretended to open his Storage Pouch, but actually used his inventory to store the Raging Bear's corpse.

"The Raging Bear is already dead, isn't it?"

Grabbing Zhang Mu's wrist, Mihe started walking back the way he came: "That's a Raging Bear cub!"

A cub?

No wonder it was only fifth-rank.

Uh, does that mean... it has parents?

"Rumble— Rumble—"

The ground shook violently. Zhang Mu instinctively turned his head to look behind him.

In the distance, though no figure was visible, rows of sun-blocking tall trees were falling toward them like dominoes.

Gulping, he said, "Mr. Mi He, please run a bit faster."