369: For freedom

Wang Yan

’s transformation silenced the people around him. They watched the man who was continuously hacking away, their expressions varied.

As large sections of the tree wall were broken, these people were not dragged back by the wall.

However, there were some people on those tree walls who were crying for help.

They were currently tied to the branches of the Ancient Trees, their blood being sucked by vines.

There were still some remnants of the pinkish fruit in their mouths, clearly indicating they were brought along while they were exchanging blood for food.

Hao Zhi glanced over but did not move.

In fact, when he left earlier, he had noticed someone secretly approaching the branch he had been guarding.

But he did not bother, because he was already tired.

These people clearly were not completely unable to survive; rather, most of them were doing it just to eat that pink fruit.

He had never eaten that fruit, but it clearly possessed a strong addictive quality.

As for those who were truly struggling to survive, they had provided some help according to their means, yet there were still people who secretly exchanged for that fruit.

If it were not for these people feeding It over a long period, this Mutated Ancient Tree would absolutely not have grown to this extent.

“Save me! I still have a child! Save us!”

A terrified voice rang out, causing Wang Yan to look over involuntarily.

It was the woman he had let go earlier; now she was also trapped by vines, still clutching those fruits tightly in her hand.

Wang Yan sighed and chose to ignore her.

All the Professionals here made the same choice; not a single person went to save them.

Seeing that no one was coming to her rescue, the mother immediately wailed:

“I just wanted to live! What did I do wrong!

If you don’t save me, you will suffer retribution!”

Just then, Hao Zhi suddenly moved.

As a Scout Professional, he had a great advantage in terms of speed.

He reached the woman in a few bounds, inserting a short knife into the tree wall to secure himself.

Joy flashed across the woman’s face, and just as she was about to speak, she saw him suddenly raise his right hand.

With a loud smack, Hao Zhi slapped her.

“We save you? Then who will save our deceased comrades!

You want to live? No one stopped you. We even provided food for you.

But what about you? By repeatedly offering your blood, you indirectly killed them!”

Saying this, he jumped down from the tree wall and said to the woman:

“This slap is on behalf of our fallen comrades. If retribution comes for me, I will accept it.

But right now, you should accept your own retribution.”

The woman screamed, but she could not change the fact that she was being carried away.

Exchanging blood for food over a long period had already made their bodies incredibly weak.

Even some Professionals among them who were quite strong could now only exert less than ten percent of their original power.

Gu Qinghan watched all of this but did not interfere.

This was a conflict among themselves, but the way Hao Zhi and the others handled it satisfied him.

Not killing these people showed that this group was not malicious.

But not saving these people showed that they were not fools.

Everyone must pay for their choices, and at this moment, both groups faced different outcomes because of their initial decisions.

As for these people being absorbed by the Mutated Ancient Tree, he was completely unconcerned.

Unless the opponent possessed the ability to immediately convert energy like a Source Worm, he was certain he could destroy It before It grew again.

By the time Gu Qinghan finished killing the nearby treants, the retracted tree wall had already returned to the side of the Mutated Ancient Tree.

And it was at this moment that the Mutated Ancient Tree finally... stood up!

Gu Qinghan looked at the enormous tree that blotted out the sky. This was probably the largest enemy he had encountered so far.

Several hundred meters was likely insufficient to describe Its height, yet Gu Qinghan showed no intention of retreating.

It had completely occupied his former university campus, and Gu Qinghan had reason to kill It.

First, he must rescue Chen Yuting.

Second, he would not allow this thing to continue growing.

If Mutated Creatures also had talent levels, then the talent of this Mutated Ancient Tree was definitely top-tier.

The branches and trunk of the Mutated Ancient Tree began to grow rapidly, bend, and transform.

Finally, It transformed into a treant several hundred meters tall, slowly stepping and walking toward them.

Gu Qinghan looked back at Wang Yan, who was slowly approaching, and joked:

“Now you can only go up with me, since you can’t run away.”

Wang Yan paused for a moment, then smiled:

“After all, you are the boss now. I’ll listen to you.

But I noticed that you seem different than before.”

“How so?”

“You seem much more optimistic now. Before, I felt like you were constantly wary of everyone.”

This was not the first time Gu Qinghan had heard similar words, but he did not offer any explanation.

After experiencing certain events, he truly was different from before.

“You are walking too slowly. I’ll give you a ride.”

As Gu Qinghan finished speaking, a Crow King clone lifted Wang Yan and quickly ascended into the sky.

Meanwhile, Hao Zhi shouted loudly from behind:

“Hey! What about us?”

Gu Qinghan looked back and said with a smile:

“Brother Hao Zhi, although it might hurt to say this, there’s no difference between you going up there and committing suicide.”

Hao Zhi scratched his chin awkwardly, but then suddenly pointed at the sky with a look of shock.

Gu Qinghan turned around and saw that the several-hundred-meter-tall treant seemed to have just made a throwing motion.

A sphere made of branches and vines unfolded in the air, and many treants emerged from it, falling toward their location.

If these things caused trouble from the rear, it would indeed be quite troublesome.

But at this moment, Hao Zhi laughed heartily:

“Brothers and sisters, it’s our turn!”

A scarred hand rested on Hao Zhi’s shoulder, and Han Zhigang appeared weakly from behind him.

Han Zhigang looked at the scene in the sky and said with a grin:

“I always felt you would become a strong person, but I didn’t expect you to be this strong.

Everyone, get ready! This battle is for the freedom of the past two months!”

“For freedom!”

Everyone shouted loudly, their voices converging like a sharp sword piercing the sky.

Even Gu Qinghan was moved by this atmosphere, getting goosebumps all over his body.

He turned his head, glanced at the giant that seemed capable of flattening everything, then turned back to these pale and thin Professionals and said:

“I hope that when we celebrate victory later, the number of people remains the same as it is now.

So now, let me clear the way for you.”

He turned around, looked at the many treants falling from the sky, and gently let out a breath of stale air.

Immediately afterward, the shattered bones on the ground suddenly trembled and flew up as if summoned by some force.

They quickly gathered above Gu Qinghan’s head, gradually forming a hundred-meter-long Giant Skeleton Whale.

A whale cry suddenly sounded, dispersing the suffocating sense of oppression.

Following this, a giant bone wave swept out, crashing towards the giant over there.

And the crowd on the ground, at this very moment, launched a charge against the treants landing on the ground!