Chapter 355: A Lone Man

“Su Yan, please save them!” Ma Chulan pleaded, her voice trembling.

The moment she spoke, Su Yan was already in motion.

Because she was uncertain whether this tree was aggressive, she cautiously chose to use talismans, intending to burn through the vines entangling Zhou Li and the other.

But to the surprise of both her and Ma Chulan, the burning flames failed to affect the vines in the slightest.

“How can this be? What kind of tree is immune to fire?” Ma Chulan couldn't help but murmur.

Su Yan’s brow furrowed beneath her black cloth. Since the talismans were ineffective, she immediately switched to a sharp dagger and threw it toward one of the vines.

The dagger, which could normally slice through iron like mud, struck the vine without leaving even a single scratch.

Seeing this, Ma Chulan’s palms broke out in a cold sweat from anxiety; looking at Zhou Li and Zhou Chong’s current state, it was clear they wouldn't be able to hold on much longer.

“Su Yan, what do we do now?”

If even Su Yan couldn't do it, then she was even more helpless.

Just as Su Yan was about to try other talismans, a thick branch lunged toward them as if it had come to life.

“Watch out!”

Su Yan’s reaction was even faster than her warning. She first shoved Ma Chulan aside and then swiftly dodged herself.

This sudden turn of events caught both of them off guard.

However, after a brief moment of panic, Ma Chulan quickly regained her composure.

The moment she and Su Yan moved in different directions, the attacking branches increased from one to two.

“Don't let it bind you!” Su Yan warned Ma Chulan, who was also moving quickly, while dodging the attacks herself. A second later, she realized that Ma Chulan currently couldn't hear her at all.

However, seeing Ma Chulan’s evasive maneuvers, she clearly understood how to dodge.

Having confirmed this, Su Yan began to focus entirely on dealing with the branches that were attacking her frantically.

It seemed that the sound produced by this thing's leaves could not only bewitch the mind, but even its branches could automatically clear out external intruders.

Zhou Li and Zhou Chong must have been momentarily careless, which was why they ended up in this state.

The speed of the branches' attacks grew faster and faster, and Su Yan’s movements grew faster as well.

She first attempted to put distance between herself and the tree to see if she could escape its attack range.

But even after she retreated several hundred meters, the branches continued to pursue her relentlessly. It seemed that if she wanted to retreat to a point where it wouldn't attack, it would be impossible to save the people.

“Ah!”

On the other side, Ma Chulan was clearly beginning to run out of stamina. A slight failure to dodge resulted in her being struck by a branch, causing her to let out a cry of pain.

Seeing this, Su Yan knew that if she didn't find a way quickly, Ma Chulan would end up just like Zhou Li and Zhou Chong.

“I originally intended to leave you be, but since you want to harm my companions, don't blame me for being ruthless!”

She let out a low growl with a sharp voice, as if the great tree could understand her words.

After perfectly evading another incoming branch, Su Yan tore the black cloth from her face.

Within her pitch-black pupils, a vast energy seemed to surge, and a beam of crystalline light shot out from them.

Those incredibly powerful branches were instantly burned to ash the moment they touched the light emanating from Su Yan’s eyes.

Su Yan let out a cold laugh.

By this time, Ma Chulan’s physical strength had reached its limit; her ankle was tightly bound by a branch. She instinctively tried to call for help, only to see Su Yan standing not far away.

The moment she saw that Su Yan’s eyes were no longer covered by the black cloth, her heart raced uncontrollably.

Immediately following that, the energy emanating from Su Yan’s eyes surged toward her. Before she could even react, the constriction on her ankle was completely released.

Even though Ma Chulan had long since witnessed Su Yan’s prowess firsthand, she was still so shocked at this moment that her mind went blank.

Su Yan did not linger on her for long, instead turning her gaze back to Zhou Li and Zhou Chong.

Following those bursts of energy, broken leaves and branches fell pattering down, offering no resistance whatsoever.

Ma Chulan watched, dumbfounded. She had originally thought Su Yan would stop after saving the people, but she hadn't expected her to continue using that terrifying energy incessantly.

Every burst of energy precisely targeted a branch. In just a few breaths, one-third of the originally dense tree had been stripped away.

She even had a momentary trance-like feeling—was Su Yan angry? Was she trying to turn this great tree into a bare pole?

Under Su Yan’s overwhelming and precise targeting, the incredibly thick trunk actually began to shake continuously, as if it were begging for mercy.

Yes, begging for mercy.

Ma Chulan didn't know why she had such a feeling, yet it was incredibly clear.

Even so, Su Yan stripped away dozens more of the lushest branches before finally stopping.

Ma Chula’s scalp tingled; looking at the bald tree, the muscles on her face twitched slightly.

She didn't know if it was her imagination, but she actually felt as if the tree had "shrunk" back.

When she was a child, she had heard her father say that some "things" that lived for too long would gradually develop their own intelligence.

Could this tree before her be one of them?

“Su, Su Yan, are you okay?”

After regaining her senses, her primary concern was Su Yan’s condition.

After all, the scene of Su Yan losing control last time was hundreds of times more terrifying than being attacked by this tree.

Su Yan calmly re-tied the black cloth and walked back to Ma Chulan’s side unhurriedly.

Ma Chulan stared at her with a mix of tension and excitement.

The next second, Su Yan directly lifted the spell that had sealed her hearing.

“I’m fine.”

“Su Yan, you were so cool just now! Truly heroic and magnificent... wait, that ringing sound seems to be gone?” Ma Chulan confirmed repeatedly in her excitement.

Indeed, the ringing was gone, as was any sense of discomfort.

Su Yan explained, “That wasn't a ringing sound, but the noise produced by those leaves; it has a mind-bewitching effect.”

Now that it had been dealt with so brutally by her, it had naturally become well-behaved.

Ma Chulan realized the truth.

“Let’s go check on Young Master Zhou,” Su Yan said, gesturing for her to come along.

Zhou Li and Zhou Chong were still unconscious. There wasn't a trace of color left in their faces, and even their breathing was extremely weak.

Su Yan checked Zhou Li’s pulse. “Excessive exhaustion, but nothing serious.”

Ma Chulan also confirmed Zhou Chong’s condition; the two of them had finally survived the ordeal without major harm.

Su Yan composed her thoughts and looked toward the "great tree" once more.

The people were saved; naturally, the next step was to "deal with" the "thing" in front of her.

“Su Yan, what’s wrong with you?” Ma Chulan immediately noticed that Su Yan’s expression seemed... somewhat excited?!

There were very few things that could elicit such an expression from her.

(End of Chapter)