Chapter 15: Seeking Wealth and Prosperity Amidst Danger

The present was indeed different from the past; even a small patch of woods could harbor dangers deadly enough to warrant extreme caution.

As he moved slowly forward, his gaze never stopped sweeping the area, as if he desperately wanted to take in the entire scene of the forest at a glance.

But of course, that was unrealistic.

Before long, Gu Ran quickly noticed something amiss. In his memory, this greenery was quite small, yet now, after several minutes of walking, the woods ahead still stretched on with no end in sight.

"What's going on? I couldn't have remembered it wrong!"

With confusion in tow, Gu Ran chose to continue onward. Although the size of the woods didn't seem right, he hadn't encountered any danger so far, and his curiosity and yearning for that sudden red light from the skies ultimately overcame the alarm in his heart.

After walking a bit more, just as Gu Ran himself was unaware of exactly where he was, the forest in front of him suddenly opened up.

Tucking himself behind a large tree, he carefully peered out.

What came into view was a clearing about several dozen meters in diameter, with a dozen trees strewn haphazardly on the ground as if to suggest that this was not a natural occurrence.

His eyes narrowed slightly as countless thoughts flashed through his mind.

Considering the destruction, he guessed that the perpetrator was most likely some giant creature, even more fearsome than an African elephant.

The thought alone sent a chill down Gu Ran's spine; it meant that the woods were not devoid of danger, rather it was just that he hadn't encountered it yet.

After pondering for a moment, just as he was about to turn around, a sudden brilliant red light caught his peripheral vision at that very moment.

Instantly, the previously resolute Gu Ran's heart once again became tumultuous.

Squatting back behind the trunk, once he confirmed that this red light was indeed the same one he had seen three days before, Gu Ran's crouching form trembled slightly.

...…

Time ticked away by the second; it was hard to tell how much time passed, only taking the occasional look at the property panel of the Chieftain's Whistle in his mind.

The moment the cooldown time for the Chieftain's Command reached zero, the Goblin Warrior, left with just one last chance at revival, was summoned once more.

Indeed, the previous Goblin had not managed to escape the pursuit of the Dark Skeletons and had been killed again before the duration was up.

Suppressing the helplessness and discomfort in his heart, he quickly ordered the Goblin Warrior at his side to sprint full speed toward the front right direction.

To ensure it wouldn't die too quickly and fail to buy enough time for him, Gu Ran forcibly commanded the Goblin Warrior to discard its Wolf Fang Club, which prompted several complaining squawks from the creature.

...…

Rustle!

Accompanied by the sound of trampling branches, a gray-green figure suddenly burst out from behind the trunk and sped off rapidly toward the front right.

Now, unburdened by the Wolf Fang Club, the Goblin's running speed was noticeably faster, which made Gu Ran slightly joyful since it increased the chances of success.

He fixed his gaze intently ahead, scanning back and forth through the layers of bushes and branches.

As the Goblin Warrior ran, letting out various strange noises, an anomaly soon occurred. Not far from where the red light was, the thick shrubbery began to split apart and move swiftly towards the direction of the Goblin Warrior.

Clearly, the commotion caused by the Goblin had alerted that unknown creature.

As the figure moved away from the red light, Gu Ran also quietly sprung into action.

Crouching low, he slipped out from behind the tree and ran nimbly towards the red light, keeping his speed up while also ensuring his footsteps were light, careful not to alert the unknown monster.

But with a low-pitched scream quickly approaching from afar, Gu Ran's complexion abruptly changed, recognizing it as a sound made by a Goblin Warrior.

Apparently, that Goblin Warrior had, with about an eighty to ninety percent certainty, been caught up to and even lost his life.

At that moment, he couldn't bother controlling his steps anymore; if he didn't give it his all now, he feared he would no longer have a chance.

He rushed to the red light sphere, grasped the card within, and without taking the time to examine it, turned and sprinted back in the direction he had come from.

Without any pause, Gu Ran exerted all the strength he could muster, dashing toward the exterior street.

After about twenty seconds of frantic running, the sight of the concrete road brought a brief joy to Gu Ran's face, which quickly turned pale—the thunderous sounds behind him were drawing closer, and he could already picture in his mind a massive monster rampaging through the forest.

In the midst of his sprint, Gu Ran knew well that this was no solution; at his current speed, he definitely couldn't make it back to the apartment building.

Gritting his teeth, he slightly slowed his pace while his mind raced, casting a glancing look behind him.

Not even daring to look for an extra second, he quickly activated the "Soul Capturing Spirit Eye" ability of the Eye of Insight card and then swiftly turned his gaze away, so that he didn't even catch a glimpse of the monster's attributes.

His speed once again reached its peak, and the distance to the road ahead was rapidly shortening.

At the same time, a creature nearly ten meters long and as tall as a single story building was barreling down the path that Gu Ran had taken.

Its size was truly astonishing; thinner trees were effortlessly snapped in two by its charging form, but at that moment, above the place where Gu Ran had turned his head, a vertical pupil quietly formed.

...…

Up ahead, a delighted expression appeared on Gu Ran's face as he continued his flight—the roaring sound behind him ceased abruptly.

"Nice, the Soul Capturing Spirit Eye really worked!" he murmured under his breath, but his pace didn't falter, fully aware that the Soul Capturing Spirit Eye wouldn't be able to hold the other party for long due to the vast difference in their strengths.

However, seizing this opportunity, he finally made it onto the road.

This time, instead of avoiding the Dark Skeletons, he purposely ran toward areas where Dark Skeletons were abundant, making sure he wouldn't be trapped among them. It didn't take long for a large group of Dark Skeletons to follow him.

Without looking back to count, Gu Ran estimated there were no fewer than seven or eight.

But now, the creature who still couldn't be identified was once again gaining on him.

Thump, thump, thump!!

As he sprinted, his massive body was like a speedy, armored personnel carrier, and his heavy footsteps echoed hundreds of meters around.

For a moment, the attention of nearly all the human survivors in the vicinity was drawn to it.

"God, how could such a monster appear?"

"Is this really Blue Star? Do we genuinely have a chance of surviving?"

"Damn it, who brought this monster here?!"

...…

For a moment, the nearby survivors almost simultaneously erupted in panic.

PS: Seeking readers for the new book!