The group rested for a while and set off again. As they went deeper into the forest, the surrounding environment changed again. There were no tall trees. Instead, there were bushes that were as tall as a person. The forest was filled with a faint fog. After the sunlight passed through the fog, it became incomparably bleak. The chirping of birds and insects disappeared. There was an aura of death.
Lu Qing felt a chill in her heart. She asked in surprise, "Sir, are we going the wrong way?"
Lao Cai took out the hunting rifle behind him and said calmly, "We have just entered the Misty Mountain. Be careful. There are many swamps and quagmires around. Once you get stuck, it will be difficult to get out."
Yao Guangfa smiled and said, "Miss Lu, don't be afraid. It is because of this unique environment that so many herbs are born. There is a kind of snake bone grass in this swamp, which can increase the flexibility of living creatures' bones. It is worth tens of thousands of gold coins!"
Luo Kai looked at the colorful unknown insects on the surrounding vegetation. Obviously, they were all highly poisonous. According to geographical knowledge, places where poisonous creatures were more concentrated would definitely have precious herbs. He thought for a moment and asked, "What does the snake bone grass look like?"
"It looks like a small ring-shaped snake. Generally speaking, there must be poisonous creatures around the snake bone grass. So, we have to lure them away before we can pick them."
"Oh." Luo Kai nodded. It seemed that picking herbs was also a job that risked one's life to earn money.
Everyone cheered up and walked carefully. Maybe because there were fewer animals, Luo Kai's nose finally smelled a scent similar to Lady Hua's. It was very similar, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Lao Cai looked up at the sky and said, "If we continue to search today, we will have to spend the night in the forest."
They didn't see any danger along the way, not even a few animals. Luo Kai said, "It's okay. Let's spend the night in the forest."
Lu Qing couldn't suppress the doubts in her heart. She asked softly, "Sir, why are there so few animals in the forest?"
Lao Cai smiled and said, "Haha, little girl, you don't understand. Animals are far more sensitive than humans. We made such a big noise that it scared them away. But some animals won't leave. They will hide in the dark and watch us."
Lu Qing was startled and hurriedly looked around.
Luo Kai's nerves were extremely sensitive. Naturally, he had long sensed that there were some felines quietly following them around. However, these ordinary animals did not pose a threat to them, so he ignored them.
After walking for a while, they saw a large number of vine-like plants in front of them. They intertwined with each other and formed a large vine net. Lao Cai was puzzled. "That's strange. These vines weren't here the last time I was here."
Yao Guangfa also said, "I haven't seen it either, but the forest plants grow very quickly. It might have just grown out in the past few days."
Everyone pulled out their swords and walked forward. After walking for an unknown period of time, when the sky gradually darkened, a faint rustling sound came from the surroundings. Luo Kai's face changed. He stopped and said, "Are there many rats in the Misty Mountain?"
Yao Guangfa was puzzled. "No, there are the most snakes here."
Luo Kai pointed to the front and said, "There are many rats around."
As soon as he finished speaking, a pair of small green dots appeared in the surrounding vines. It was a strange rat the size of a house cat. Its sharp mouth opened and closed, and its eyes were full of brutality. With an ear-piercing shriek, the strange rat rushed over without hesitation. It jumped a few meters with a kick of its four limbs. It shuttled through the vines like lightning and soon arrived in front of them.
Lao Cai raised his hand and shot. "Bang!" A cloud of blood mist burst out in front of them.
"Uncle Cai's marksmanship is still so good." Yao Guangfa complimented him.
Lao Cai looked a little serious. He said, "This rat is not a creature of the Misty Mountain."
Luo Kai looked around and said in a deep voice, "There are many more, and they are gathering towards us."
The rustling sound came into everyone's ears. Small green dots appeared in the vines one after another. At first, there were not many, but gradually, there were more and more of them.
"Hurry up!"
Yao Guangfa's face changed greatly. Three to five of these strange rats were not a threat to them, but a group of them was different.
"It's too late."
Luo Kai retreated to Lu Qing's side. The Severing Blade in his hand felt the impending battle and began to buzz.
The group of rats surrounded them in an orderly manner. With a squeaking sound, they started to attack.
Everyone hurriedly fired. They were all holding powerful rifles. Every gunshot was accompanied by a cloud of blood mist.
Luo Kai also moved. He did not rush out, but stayed close to them to defend. With a flash of his blade, no matter how many strange rats rushed in, they were all cut in half.
Now, Yao Guangfa and the others had nothing to worry about. They focused on shooting and reloading.
In a short while, the ground was covered with rat corpses. The deaths of their own kind made the rats even more restless. They rushed over almost one after another. Gradually, Yao Guangfa and the others were about to run out of ammunition. More and more rats rushed to the front. Some circled around, some climbed up the surrounding trees and pounced on them. The rats attacked from the sky, the ground, and even the ground.
Every time Luo Kai swung his blade, it would be accompanied by a rain of blood. These monsters were not strong. No matter how many of them there were, they would not be a threat to him. He began to expand his defense circle, quickly circling around the group. The sharp blade completely covered them. Not a single rat could enter the defense circle. The area around the group was covered with rat corpses, but the rat horde was still endless.
Now, it was as if Luo Kai was blocking the rat horde alone. Yao Guangfa and the others were holding their blades, but they could not help at all. They all stared at the figure that was rapidly circling them. Lu Qing was so frightened by the bloody massacre that her face turned pale. As she gradually overcame her fear, a thought suddenly appeared in her mind. The person who was wantonly killing in front of her was the real Luo Kai.
Luo Kai, on the other hand, was not having a good time. If he wanted to maintain this kind of combat power, he would need to go all out. The speed of his Qi and blood circulation gradually broke through the limit. He released his vitality magnetic field and his consciousness frequency uncontrollably spread out. He immediately felt the murderous energy that was everywhere in the forest.
Compared to the murderous energy produced by humans, the animals were more violent. When his consciousness frequency came into contact with the murderous energy, a roar similar to that of a tiger or a dragon seemed to resound in his mind. His vision turned black, and his consciousness was almost shattered.
Luo Kai paused and retracted his consciousness frequency. He felt that the rat horde in the distance was still endless. They seemed to have emerged directly from the ground and were not creatures of the forest. They could not go on like this. They had to leave.
"Everyone, we can't go on like this. Let's go back the way we came. I'll bring up the rear."
Yao Guangfa and the others hurriedly nodded and retreated the way they came. With Luo Kai as their super bodyguard, they retreated out of the vine-covered forest without any danger. Strangely, the rat horde did not chase them out of the vine-covered area.
After escaping far away, everyone stopped, panting. Lao Cai was the most familiar with animal habits. He said, "These rats are definitely not creatures of the Misty Mountain. It's said that there are many caves at the bottom of the Misty Mountain. They might have come from somewhere else."
Yao Guangfa nodded. He thought for a moment and suddenly said, "Could there be something important under the vines? The rat horde is protecting it. That's why they didn't chase us.