236: Chapter 236 Wild Man in the Grass?

"That stupid bird wouldn't still be in the same spot, would it?"

Nie Ning suddenly asked.

Heloise checked the contract on her wrist and then shook her head.

Nie Ning's expression turned sour for a moment. "That stupid bird, I'm going to roast it when we get back!"

They were running all over the place, yet that stupid bird had stayed in one spot the whole time; it was truly infuriating.

At the very least, through the contract, Chi Yu should have been able to sense Heloise's location, especially since Chi Yu was a powerful type of exotic beast even among the Third Rank.

"Forget about it. If it wants to die, let it!"

Nie Ning could no longer be bothered to worry about Chi Yu.

He had no desire to save such a burdensome teammate; in fact, the more he thought about it, the more annoyed he became.

Heloise was speechless and could only keep urging the contract in secret.

If it didn't show up soon, it probably wouldn't have a good time once Nie Ning caught it.

Suddenly, Nie Ning turned his head to look in another direction with a solemn expression.

Just now, one of his Flesh Spiders had been attacked!

One had to know that the current Human-Faced Balloons were very strong; even the dispersed Flesh Spiders had strength comparable to an Elementary Stage Great Knight.

The locusts weren't that strong, so they clearly couldn't cause much damage to the Flesh Spiders.

Thinking of this, Nie Ning glanced behind him. The rising black smoke had formed a dark cloud in the sky, with a large number of locusts circling within it.

Nie Ning looked at the water on the ground and didn't continue lighting the weeds, because it would be raining here before long.

Without hesitating for long, Nie Ning changed direction and ran toward the left.

This area was too bizarre now. Heading toward the black box was clearly not a wise move; he planned to wait until this entire area had finished burning.

...

After running for over ten minutes, only one Flesh Spider remained alive.

Nie Ning wasn't worried about whether the Flesh Spiders died; he just wanted to see if there were other monsters in this area, perhaps to find some clues about leaving this place.

Just as the two were about to reach the Flesh Spider, the last one died as well.

Lightning flickered in Nie Ning's palm, and with a wave of his hand, a several-meter-long Lightning Edge Blade slashed horizontally forward.

Weeds flew everywhere, and a path appeared before them.

A hundred meters away, the sharp-eyed Nie Ning saw a puddle of minced meat floating on the water's surface, while a dark shadow ducked into the grass at extreme speed.

Seeing this, Nie Ning quickly gave chase, but in the blink of an eye, that upright figure vanished.

Nie Ning stopped and looked around, frowning. "A monkey-like creature?"

The distance had been too great just now, and the unknown creature was too fast. He had only seen a hairy, pitch-black creature run past.

From its hunched body, it did indeed look like some kind of monkey or ape.

"Why do I feel like it looked a bit like a person?"

Heloise, who was clinging to Nie Ning's back, suddenly spoke up.

"A person?"

Nie Ning raised an eyebrow.

If it were a person, how long would they have to stay in this place to turn into such a ghostly state?

After a moment's thought, Nie Ning set Heloise down and then took the Human-Faced Balloon sealing box from his robes.

Under Nie Ning's control, dozens of Flesh Spiders crawled out and scurried off in all directions.

No matter what, he couldn't allow a creature of unknown origin to remain here.

Furthermore, they still didn't know how to leave this place; perhaps they could get some clues from that anomaly.

Heloise knew what Nie Ning intended to do, so she took four formation plates from her spatial ring and tossed them nearby. Immediately, a blue light barrier enveloped the surrounding ten meters.

Although its power wasn't as great as the Blazing Sun Zenith Array, it could still stall for a moment if they encountered danger.

Seeing that Heloise was ready, Nie Ning said nothing more. He left Heloise where she was and followed the Flesh Spiders into the grass.

Before long, Nie Ning felt a Flesh Spider come under attack.

Seeing this, Nie Ning rushed toward the site of the attack.

...

Meanwhile, Heloise stayed inside the formation, boredly taking out a stick of candied haws from her spatial ring.

Just as Heloise was eating with gusto, a dark shadow silently approached her from behind.

Heloise sensed something and turned her head to look back.

But there was nothing behind her, only the slightly swaying weeds dancing in the wind.

When Heloise turned her head back, a dark shadow was standing silently right next to the barrier, giving her a huge fright.

Just as she had guessed, the creature hiding here was indeed a person.

The man was disheveled, making his age impossible to tell, and his thick beard made it impossible to distinguish his features.

He was pitch-black and thin all over, as if he hadn't bathed in years, and his clothes were tattered, barely covering his vital parts.

However, the man's gaze was sharp, revealing a cold aura like that of an eagle.

But...

After Heloise calmed down, she noticed the man's gaze and shook the candied haws in her hand.

The man's eyes were actually drawn to the candied haws.

"Do you want to eat?"

Heloise said with a smile.

But as soon as she spoke, the man suddenly reached out, his hand penetrating the formation barrier with extreme speed, and snatched the candied haws from Heloise's hand.

Heloise was shocked by this scene.

This formation might not be able to block the Fourth Rank, but it wasn't easy for a Wizard below the peak of the Third Ring to break either.

More importantly, she hadn't sensed any blood energy or magic fluctuations.

In other words, the opponent had likely broken the formation using pure physical strength!

The man finished the leftover candied haws in one bite and then fixed his gaze on Heloise again.

Heloise felt extremely nervous.

For someone who could break a formation with physical strength alone, their true power had likely already exceeded the Fourth Rank!

As the man stepped toward Heloise, she could only retreat backward.

After all, she was only a Second Ring Wizard. Even if the opponent was just a Knight, reaching this level was enough to kill her easily.

Suddenly, Heloise had an idea. She took a piece of roasted meat from her spatial ring and threw it into the distance.

She thought the man would go for the meat, but he showed no intention of leaving.

The man stared straight at Heloise, a look as if he were watching an idiot appearing in his eyes.

He opened his mouth, and as if he hadn't spoken in a long time, he made an indistinct sound.

Heloise's face turned slightly red, and she couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed.

Treating someone like a dog just now, only to be treated like an idiot in return—anyone would feel humiliated.

"Would you believe me if I said I didn't do it on purpose?"

Heloise gave a forced laugh, struggling for a while before squeezing out those words.

But the man had clearly already marked Heloise as prey, an irrepressible wildness hidden beneath his sharp gaze.

...