Having been raised by Geng Hui for so many years, Sun Yuanhao had amassed quite a few valuable items. He had stolen this iron crossbow from a villager.

He raised the iron crossbow, his expression filled with malice as he looked at Cen An: “You slut! I never thought my luck would be this good—to catch you alone so quickly. Finally, you’re in my hands.”

Cen An stared at him coldly, patting Xiao Yi’s shoulder reassuringly.

Sun Yuanhao stared at her face. “I never noticed before, but you’re actually quite attractive…” He shifted the iron crossbow in his hand, aiming it at Xiao Yi, but his leering gaze remained fixed on Cen An. “Take off your clothes and spend the night with me, then let me kill you like a good girl, and I’ll spare this little one. How about it?”

As soon as Cen An heard those words, he knew something was wrong. His reaction was just a split second too slow; Xiao Yi had already charged forward like a predatory cub. “Xiao Yi!”

Xiao Yi was more agile than many adults. He swiped at his waist, and a green bead appeared in his hand—it was the Green Explosion Crystal Pill Cen An had given him for self-defense.

He flung the green bead, and a cloud of smoke erupted. Sun Yuanhao, who hadn’t yet realized what was happening, immediately passed out.

Xiao Yi pounced on him like a wild beast. His right hand—he didn’t even know when he’d grabbed it—clenched a small dagger, ready to strike!

“Don’t kill him!” Cen An rushed over as fast as he could.

Xiao Yi’s eyes flashed, and the dagger veered three inches off course, plunging viciously into Sun Yuanhao’s left shoulder.

Sun Yuanhao woke up instantly from the pain, letting out a scream like a pig being slaughtered, and the iron crossbow in his hand flew off into who-knows-where.

Cen An pulled Xiao Yi to his feet, wiped the blood from his face, and held him close. “It’s okay, it’s okay. You’re safe now. Don’t be afraid…”

Xiao Yi buried his face in Cen An’s chest, but his eyes remained cold as he watched Sun Yuanhao writhing on the ground, biding his time…

Then he lowered his head again. No, he couldn’t let his brother know…

“What a fine display of brotherly love,” a voice suddenly spoke from behind. “Thanks to this fool, otherwise I wouldn’t have had the chance to meet Mr. Cen…”

Cen An’s heart skipped a beat; he instinctively turned around just as a cloud of white powder swept toward him. His vision went black, and he collapsed to the ground.

His final thought was still: Xiao Yi, run!

Shi Long tossed aside the paper packet in his hand and poked Cen An a few times. Seeing that he didn’t move a muscle, he finally felt reassured and hoisted him onto his shoulders.

He’d suffered too many setbacks at Cen An’s hands. Even though the other was just an ordinary person, he still inspired a certain fear in him…… Luckily, this idiot had distracted Cen An; otherwise, this might not have gone so smoothly.

He pressed his hand against his chest, which was throbbing with a dull ache, stepped over Xiao Yi, who was also lying unconscious on the ground, and trampled past Sun Yuanhao, who was still wailing, as he carried Cen An away.

Little did he know that in the woods not far away, someone had been watching the entire scene.

Xie Xiuping quickly ducked behind a tree trunk to avoid Shi Long’s gaze, beads of cold sweat beading on his forehead.

He had been collecting tree sap in the woods today when he spotted Cen An and Xiao Yi from a distance. Since he’d already gathered a batch of sap, he thought he’d come over to say hello.

With his lame leg, he moved slowly. Halfway there, he saw Sun Yuanhao appear. He quickened his pace to offer help, but events unfolded faster than he could have imagined—Sun Yuanhao was injured by Boss Cen’s younger brother, and then an ability-user in black robes materialized out of thin air, knocking Cen An and Xiao Yi unconscious before carrying Cen An away.

It wasn’t until the ability-user vanished that Xie Xiuping wiped the sweat from his brow. Realizing the gravity of the situation, he hobbled as best he could toward the village.

Mr. Cen had been abducted; he had to hurry and find someone to help!

Cen An slowly came to, and a name flashed through his mind: Mist Pollen. The pollen from the Mist Flower could induce unconsciousness…

He didn’t open his eyes rashly, but instead listened intently to the sounds around him: a rustling sound, as if someone were dragging their shoes across the ground, and the clatter of stones hitting the floor…

He quietly opened his eyes, but what he saw startled him. It was a stone cave, dimly lit, with only a few flickering torches on the walls.

He shifted slightly. His limbs felt weak and limp, and his head was spinning—the aftereffects of the Mist Pollen. He wasn’t bound with ropes, but a heavy iron chain was fastened around his ankle; even the slightest movement required immense effort, so he refrained from making any sudden moves.

The fresh flowers he’d picked earlier were gone, and everything in his pockets had been discarded… but that didn’t matter much; after all, he still had his backpack.

Cen An quietly opened his backpack and took out a bottle of recovery potion, downing it in one gulp. As the slightly bitter potion slid down his throat, all the debuffs vanished, and his body immediately felt lighter.

Only then did he look toward the center of the stone cave, where a figure stood—but it was not the Shi Long.

Bathed in the dim glow of the fire, the figure shuffled along, holding a stone or some other object in his hand, drawing a strange pattern on the ground.

Cen An watched quietly for a moment, then suddenly felt a chill. This man’s disability was not like Xie Xiuping’s; rather, his joints were unable to bend.

His knees wouldn’t bend, so he could only move by dragging both feet along the ground. Similarly, his waist wouldn’t bend either, so when he drew on the ground, his entire body from the waist down was folded 180 degrees—his face pressed against his calves, his hands stretched forward—leaving him twisted into a grotesque, unrecognizable shape…

As if he had finished the final stroke, the pattern suddenly burst into light.

Cen An suddenly sensed something was wrong. He looked up and met the inverted face wedged between the calves—his hair stood on end instantly.

The man’s pupils had shrunk to the size of pinheads as he stared intently at Cen An. He slowly straightened his back, his bones creaking with every movement. “Awake…” he muttered.

Once the man stood upright, Cen An realized he recognized him.

It was Diao Qi. Since he’d been inciting the villagers to come to him for the Wind-Cold Fruit, several villagers had warned Cen An to be careful of this man and had even pointed him out specifically.

Naturally, Cen An had no particular fondness for Diao Qi, but in his memory, this man was just a good-for-nothing loafer, a slacker who never did any real work. There was no way he should look like this…

Diao Qi’s head had twisted 180 degrees, his neck twisted like a pretzel, his eyes still fixed intently on him—he hardly looked like a living person…

“Wake up…” Diao Qi mumbled indistinctly again, “Time’s up.” He turned his body as well and walked toward Cen An in that inhuman posture.

Cen An dared not make a move, but his hand had already secretly clenched the Illusory Light Incense Mist.

Diao Qi didn’t approach him, however; instead, he bent down, picked up the iron chain from the ground, and pulled it toward him.

The heavy iron chain weighed at least several hundred pounds, and with Cen An—a grown man weighing 140 pounds—attached to it, Diao Qi handled it as if it were a mere rope, lifting his hand to pull him toward him.

The immense force bore down entirely on Cen An’s ankle. He instantly felt a searing pain there and immediately gave up resisting, moving forward with the force of the pull.

Two meters, one meter, half a meter… The moment he neared Diao Qi, Cen An swiftly released the Illusory Light Mist, and a glowing mist billowed upward.

It didn’t work! Diao Qi moved straight through the mist toward him!

A thought flashed through Cen An’s mind: The Illusory Light Mist only affects living beings…

Diao Qi, still gripping his ankle, dragged him onto the drawn pattern. With his right hand, he drew the knife from his waist, muttering under his breath, “Bloodletting, bloodletting, sacrifice…”

A thin sheen of sweat broke out on Cen An’s forehead, yet his expression grew increasingly calm as he analyzed the situation… Bloodletting? Sacrifice? Was he the one? Was he the sacrifice the other party had chosen?

Diao Qi must have been controlled by the mastermind behind the scenes, but what purpose would sacrificing him serve…

He quickly scanned the pattern on the ground… Something seemed off!

Cen An opened his map and compared it to the pattern on the ground… The sections of the map that had been altered earlier, when connected, formed the exact pattern on the ground! And his current location was right at the center of that pattern!

Putting this together with the other side’s mentions of “bloodletting” and “sacrifice”… This beast tide was a conspiracy!

Xie Xiuping hadn’t run this fast since he’d become lame. He made his way to the village, but hesitated—who should he go to?

Everyone in the village knew the ability-user squad was currently outside fighting off the beast tide.

As for the rest of the people… after much deliberation, he gritted his teeth and headed toward his home.

Yu Fei—that mysterious, black-robed ability-user whom the villagers dared not approach—and his younger brother, who’d fallen ill with some strange disease… He’d heard that Boss Cen was close with these two brothers; they were his only hope!

“Help!”

The wooden door was kicked open. Yu Lin, who’d been sunbathing in the courtyard, glanced up indifferently. “Wrong place. We don’t save lives here.”

Xie Xiuping ran up, drenched in sweat. “No… no, Boss Cen has been kidnapped!”

Yu Lin sprang to his feet. “What did you say?!”

Bang—

A red signal flare whistled into the sky.

In the woods, Tian Yuan, who had been paying his respects at a grave, sprang to his feet. “The village… Brother Cen?” The next second, a flash of fire lit up the sky, and he was already racing down the mountain.

Out in the wilderness, the special abilities squad, who had been setting traps, also spotted the signal flare. Wang Lie leaped to his feet. “Oh no! Something’s happened to Brother Cen!”

As soon as he said this, he ran back. The rest of the squad exchanged glances, then realized what was happening and immediately followed!

Qu Yue and Zhao Wu even activated their abilities, and within seconds, they were already far ahead.

The sound of the large group’s footsteps even startled a flock of birds in the forest…

Over at Yu Lin’s location, almost the moment he fired the signal flare, a spatial ripple occurred beside him. Su Rui had already sliced through space and teleported over. “What happened to him?”

On the other side, Yu Fei—who had been dozing off somewhere—also appeared out of thin air. “Where is he?”

Xie Xiuping didn’t know how to explain it, so he simply pointed in the direction, “At the foot of the eastern mountain—Mr. Cen was taken there.”

The next second, his eyes flashed, and he vanished from where he stood.

Xie Xuping’s expression darkened. Gritting his teeth, he dragged his leg and ran back. He wasn’t as capable as Boss Cen and his friends, but…

Thinking back to the meals he’d eaten from Boss Cen these past few days, his once-numb lame leg had begun to tingle and ache, and his grandparents’ health had improved significantly. How could he just stand by and do nothing?

At the foot of the mountain, Su Rui, Yu Fei, and Yu Lin had arrived. Tian Yuan was running up from below, and Wang Lie, Zhao Wu, and Qu Yue had also reached the scene, with the rest of the Ability-Users Squad arriving one after another.

Seeing the bloodstains and medicinal powder on the ground, everyone’s expressions darkened.

Xie Xiuping had run into Qu Yue along the way and was dragged over. He cut straight to the point: “Sun Yuanhao came over first, aiming his iron crossbow at Boss Cen, but he was taken down by Boss Cen’s younger brother. Then a superpowered individual in black appeared—I didn’t see his face. The moment he appeared, he knocked Boss Cen unconscious and took him away.”

Whether by luck or misfortune, Sun Yuanhao hadn’t gotten far—he’d only crawled a few dozen meters away.

Wang Lie grabbed him by the neck. “Who took Boss Cen? Did you see?”

Sun Yuanhao was in so much pain that tears and snot streamed down his face. “I don’t know! It hurts so much—ahhh—someone, please help me! I don’t know anything…”

“Cough… cough… It was Shi Long.” A hoarse voice rang out. Everyone looked up to see Xiao Yi climbing to his feet.

He was young, so the Mist Pollen had a stronger effect on him. If you looked closely, you could see that he was currently clutching the dagger’s blade tightly; blood was dripping drop by drop through the gaps between his fingers. He was using this method to stay awake, his voice hoarse as if filled with sand. “Shi Long took my brother away. I heard his voice.”

“Shi Long!” Qu Yue lashed a vine violently against the ground. He had actually escaped from the stone dungeon!

Sun Yuanhao shuddered in fear. “I-I told you it wasn’t me. Please let me go…”

Wang Lie looked at him with disgust and was about to toss him aside when Xiao Yi spoke again: “He told my brother to take off his clothes.”

Sun Yuanhao’s eyes widened in shock. “I didn’t, I… Aaaaaaah!”

His eyes bulged as if his brain were suddenly subjected to immense pressure. At the same time, tiny grass seeds burrowed into his wounds, taking root and sprouting, growing along his blood vessels, and rapidly expanding… Leaves began to sprout densely from his skin.

Sun Yuanhao’s screams immediately reached a new level, sounding almost inhuman… Yet soon, he could no longer make a sound. In the next instant, his entire body exploded, showering the sky with blood.

Yu Fei and Yu Lin both turned to look at Su Rui.

Su Rui, who had remained silent, looked utterly calm. Yet upon closer inspection, one could see his eyes had turned vertical, revealing the savage fury within.

Wolves are not known for their patience. Before, he had merely been restrained by Cen An. But a restrained wolf does not become a dog.

Sun Yuanhao was completely obliterated by the spatial ability, and the blood spraying everywhere slightly soothed Su Rui’s emotions. He closed his eyes; the scent of Cen An’s presence still lingered in the wind.

He strained to discern it and finally pinpointed the direction… The next second, he vanished entirely.

Cen An dodged Diao Qi’s blade, slapped his chest, and a thorn-covered armor instantly materialized.

Just as Diao Qi swung his blade, a wound appeared on his own chest. Yet he seemed to feel no pain and pursued Cen An without hesitation.

The iron chains around Cen An’s ankles severely restricted his movements. He swung his sword a few times, but the iron blade—made of some unknown material—left not a single mark.

Second by second, the glow of the pattern slowly faded, and the entire cave began to shake.

“It can’t be collapsing…” Cen An gasped. Was this a timed mission? Dodging left and right, he finally reached the stone bearing the pattern and clutched it tightly. The next second, he pulled out a wooden whistle and blew it—

Seeing the stone seized, Diao Qi felt as if a red-hot coal had been shoved down his throat. He immediately let out a savage, inhuman roar and lunged at Cen An with a ferocious expression.

That moment seemed to stretch on forever…

A tall, slender figure sliced through the air, appearing out of nowhere. A gleaming blade cut Diao Qi open from top to bottom, and blood gushed out.

Diao Qi’s internal organs spilled out of his body, splattering all over the floor. The heavy stench of blood hit Cen An’s face, and his complexion turned pale. “Let’s get out of here first…”

Su Rui wrapped an arm around his waist, while his other hand grabbed the iron chain on Cen An’s ankle. With a gentle squeeze, the chain crumbled into iron dust, scattering to the ground.

The cave shook more and more violently, with huge chunks of rock falling from the ceiling, but Cen An’s vision blurred, and in an instant, he found himself outside.

Unable to hold back, he retched twice. Cen An waved his hand, his voice weak: “Could you please not make it so bloody next time?”

After he spoke, he didn’t hear Su Rui reply. Just as he was about to turn around, his entire body was gently, ever so gently, set down on the ground.

Su Rui crouched in front of him, grabbed his ankle, and gently rolled up his pant leg. A circular abrasion came into view.

In that instant, a terrifying, brutal aura erupted from Su Rui!

Perhaps because he was used to comforting Xiao Yi, Cen An instinctively hugged him and patted him. “It’s okay, it’s okay. Don’t be afraid. I’m fine…”

After hugging him, he felt something was off. He awkwardly tried to pull away, but Su Rui, having snapped out of it, suddenly pulled him back and held him tight…

After a long moment, Su Rui finally released the person in his arms. Looking dejected, he rummaged through his spatial pocket, pulled out some healing ointment and moss bandages, and began applying the medicine and bandaging the wound.

His entire demeanor shifted from that of a fierce, bloodthirsty wolf king to that of a dejected little puppy.

Cen An watched as he bandaged his wound, layer after layer, layer after layer, until he finally couldn’t help but say, “Okay, are you wrapping a faucet?”

Su Rui paused in his movements, finally stopping to tie a careful knot, even channeling his wind-elemental ability to ensure it wouldn’t be too tight.

Cen An couldn’t help but smile a little. He nudged him with his elbow. “Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Su Rui mumbled dejectedly, “I didn’t protect you well.”

“Who asked you to protect me?” Cen An ruffled his bowed head, running his fingers through his short hair and gently shaking his head. “It wasn’t you who came out with me today.”

Su Rui didn’t know either—Cen An wasn’t his anything, and he had no obligation to protect him…

But the moment he heard Cen An had been taken away, his blood boiled. That terror and rage—so intense he wanted to set the entire forest ablaze—could only be soothed by his presence. The thought that if he’d arrived just a moment later, this human would have…

He wanted to slaughter the entire world, yet he also wanted to crush this human into pieces and tuck him away in his chest, to prevent him from being snatched away again without warning.

Damn those attackers—they let them die too easily. Both of them…

“Speak up!” Cen An slapped his forehead. “What are you trying to be so cool for?”

The turmoil in his blood subsided. Su Rui snapped back to reality, stared at him for a moment, then suddenly had an idea. “I’ll give you a few more wooden whistles. Hang them on your hands and feet. The slightest movement, and I’ll know where you are.”

Cen An kept tapping his head. “Why don’t you just attach yourself to me?”

Su Rui shrugged indifferently. “That wouldn’t be out of the question.”

Just as Cen An was about to scold him, a shout came from the distance: “Brother Cen!”

“Xiao Cen!”

“Is Brother Cen okay? Are you hurt?”

The members of the Special Abilities Squad and Yu Fei’s group had arrived.

Su Rui turned his head impatiently, feeling that this group had arrived at the worst possible time.

The group ran over. Upon seeing the bandage on Cen An’s ankle, Yu Lin’s eyes welled up with tears. “Brother Cen, are you hurt?”

“Just a minor injury, nothing serious,” Cen An quickly reassured them. “Where’s Xiao Yi? Have you seen him?”

“Xiao Yi is fine,” Qu Yue said, her brows furrowing with concern. “I had someone take him back to rest. Xiao Cen, I heard it was Shi Long who captured you?”

“Speaking of which,” Cen An’s expression turned serious, “I suspect this wave of beasts might have…”

Before he could finish, the ground suddenly trembled.

Everyone froze. In the distance, a thick plume of smoke suddenly rose.

Qu Yue gasped in alarm, “The beast tide has begun! Why today?”

She turned to leave but was grabbed by Cen An. “Wait, Sister Qu! There’s a conspiracy behind this beast tide! This incident is connected to the mastermind behind it all!”

He quickly recounted what they’d discovered in the cave and produced the stone. “This is a ritual stone used to create a sacrificial array. I suspect the mastermind intends to sacrifice the entire village of Yongning!”

No sooner had he finished speaking than the modified locations simultaneously burst into sky-high beams of blood-red light. At the same time, the earth shook even more violently, and the distant roars of beasts could be heard—the Beast Tide had indeed begun…

The group fell silent for a moment. Then Qu Yue spoke up, “No matter what, we have to stop the beast tide. Xiao Cen, tell us what to do—we’ll all follow your lead.”

Wang Lie chimed in, “Right, I’ll listen to Brother Cen.”

“I’m all for Brother Cen.”

“Wherever Brother Cen tells me to go, I’ll go.”

“I’d gladly die alongside Brother Cen!”

“What nonsense! Children speak without restraint!”

Cen An wanted to say he wasn’t capable, but when he looked up, he met pair after pair of eyes brimming with trust. Had he truly earned this much gratitude and trust?

He really couldn’t let them down…

He took a deep breath and quickly ran through the tasks in his mind. “The traps we set earlier should hold them off for a while. The wind-elementalists should go out first to scout the beast horde—their numbers, types, and direction of approach.”

“Yes!” A group of wind-elementalists stood up, including Old Geng.

“Wait! ” Cen An remembered something else and produced several Swiftness Pills from his sleeve. “These increase movement speed by 30%. There aren’t many—Shen Wan compiled them—so use them as needed.”

“Yes!” Old Geng smiled as he accepted the pills. “We’ve always heard that the medicines in Boss Cen’s possession are effective. This time, we wind-elementalists will be the first to use them.”

Cen An smiled helplessly. “Please stay safe, Elder.”

A group of Wind-elementalists rode the wind away.

Cen An then produced over ten pieces of Silverlight Armor and eight Rock Crystal Daggers. “The rest of you will split into two squads. One squad will head to the front lines to hold off the beast horde, while the other will come back to the village with me. Rotate through using this equipment.”

He had prepared these along with the wooden talismans that night; he’d been waiting for an opportunity to give them to the team.

The squad members’ eyes widened wider than a cow’s… Equipment? Over a dozen pieces of equipment, no less!

This time, it wasn’t sensory gear like the wooden talismans—it was genuine combat gear!

Brother Cen… just who is their Brother Cen, anyway!

The group of ability users practically cradled the gear with reverence, saying from the bottom of their hearts, “Brother Cen, if we let the beast horde overrun the village while wearing this, I’ll bring my head to you!”

Cen An winced. “Don’t make such bold promises. This beast horde has someone meddling behind the scenes—it’s far more dangerous than anything you’ve faced before!”

The ability users all laughed, but they took his words to heart.

One pair of ability users donned their gear and left.

Cen An paused in thought again. With a flick of his hand, several pieces of thorn armor and obsidian swords clattered out onto the ground.

The obsidian swords were even more powerful than the rock crystal daggers, but unfortunately, they were heavier than iron swords—he couldn’t swing them at all.

He looked at Yu Fei, Tian Yuan, Qu Yue, Zhao Wu, and Wang Lie. “These are for you. Since your ability-user ranks are higher, you can provide support in any direction at any time. Better equipment means greater efficiency.”

Tian Yuan and the others laughed as they took the gear and put it on.

Everyone understood that although Cen An had tried to come up with an excuse, in reality, he had subconsciously reserved the best gear for his friends.

The obsidian sword was already the weapon with the highest attack power in Cen An’s possession.

Once his friends had donned their protective gear, Cen An breathed a sigh of relief. “Our next task is to go and persuade the villagers.”

He said calmly, “This beast tide is no simple matter; it’ll be difficult for us to handle alone. I need a group of people to help gather supplies, while I set the traps… These are tasks ordinary people can handle. If the villagers are willing to help, things will be easier for us, and our chances of surviving the beast tide will be much higher.”

The others exchanged glances. As ability users, they believed it was only natural for them to protect ordinary people; they had never considered involving the villagers in the beast tide… unless they couldn’t hold the line and the beasts overran the village.

Could ordinary people really stand up to the beasts…? But the moment that thought crossed their minds, they suddenly realized—what did they mean by “ordinary people”? Wasn’t their Brother Cen just an ordinary person himself?

Could they do it…? If their Brother Cen couldn’t handle it, then surely no one in the world could, right?

“That’s great! More people means more traps set—it’ll save us a lot of effort!”

“Exactly! Brother Cen always has a plan!”

“Let’s go, let’s go! We’re heading back to the village right now!”

Cen An nodded. He was picked up by Su Rui, and together they led the remaining squad toward the village, though his mind wasn’t as carefree as those of these simple-minded ability users.

He’d said he wanted the villagers to join the resistance against the beast horde… but the villagers were supposed to just wait at home. Now they’d have to risk their lives—on what grounds? Just because he’d said so? Would any villagers actually be willing to do this?