The two of them almost proceeded with caution, not daring to speed up, and could only slowly move forward.
It was now deep into the night. If it were ordinary disciples, visibility might not reach twenty meters, but Lin Hao and Lin Nangong were different; they could clearly see scenes hundreds of meters away.
As they got closer to the area where the fierce beasts gathered, Lin Hao and Lin Nangong noticed something unusual.
"Strange..." Lin Hao's brows slightly furrowed. About a hundred meters away from the fierce beasts, a black flower was growing. The scent from the flower seemed to be the main culprit attracting the fierce beasts.
"What is that?" Lin Nangong looked ahead and also noticed the black flower. Judging from the scent, it should belong to a demonic creature.
"Jimiaoluoyi (a variant of the Datura)." Lin Hao thought for a moment and then replied.
Jimiaoluoyi is a seed of the Datura, also a demonic creature. Its scent can attract fierce beasts. Initially, it can only attract ordinary fierce beasts, but as the Jimiaoluoyi grows, the scent becomes stronger, eventually attracting even high-level fierce beasts.
Lin Nangong pondered, observing that the Jimiaoluoyi had not yet fully grown. At this stage, it had only lured mid-level king fierce beasts. If this continued, it wouldn't be long before high-level fierce beasts were attracted, which would inevitably trigger a beast tide. This place was very close to Liuyun City, and the beast tide would likely surge directly into Liuyun City, with disastrous consequences.
"Strange, Jimiaoluoyi is just a seed of the Datura. Logically, it shouldn't naturally grow. Even if it did, it would directly grow into a true Datura." Lin Nangong was puzzled. The appearance of the Jimiaoluoyi here already defied common sense.
Lin Hao had previously suspected that Xingchen Yu was up to something, and now it seemed highly likely.
If the high-ranking members of the four major families of Liuyun City were here, they would be shocked. This was clearly not a naturally grown treasure but a deliberately planted demonic creature. Once the Datura matured, it would attract high-level fierce beasts, with disastrous consequences, leading to a disaster for Liuyun City.
After much thought, Lin Nangong finally said, "We should go and destroy the Jimiaoluuyi, or Liuyun City will surely be overrun by fierce beasts."
Lin Hao was somewhat helpless. The Jimiaoluoyi was only about a hundred meters away from the fierce beasts. If they went to destroy it, they would easily be detected by the fierce beasts.
But the current situation was like an arrow on the string, ready to be fired. From the maturity of the black flower, it wouldn't be long before it fully matured. If the two of them left now, a beast tide would likely be triggered soon.
Although Lin Hao couldn't confirm whether it was Xingchen Yu's doing, the possibility was still very high. In short, this matter was caused by him, so he also had the responsibility to destroy the Jimiaoluoyi.
"Unfortunately, when the high-ranking members of the four major families came to investigate, the Jimiaoluoyi had not yet matured, making it hard to detect with the naked eye. Otherwise, we wouldn't need to venture into such a dangerous place." Lin Nangong sighed, his shiny bald head seemingly illuminating the night.
"You stay here, I'll go and destroy the Jimiaoluoyi." Lin Nangong glanced at Lin Hao and was about to move forward.
Before he had taken two steps, Lin Hao stopped him.
"Let me go; I'm afraid your bald head will blind the fierce beasts." Lin Hao smiled and vanished.
Lin Nangong remained expressionless, hiding in place.
In terms of agility, Lin Hao was definitely more skilled, so his chances of success would be much higher.
On the way, Lin Hao sometimes walked slowly, sometimes used the "Yunfeng Step," making him elusive and hard for the fierce beasts to detect.
At this moment, Lin Hao was hiding at the top of a giant tree, looking down at the fierce beasts. In just a short while, there were already seven or eight more mid-level fierce beasts.
"This is already on the scale of a beast tide..." Lin Hao thought, gazing at the fierce beasts.
Currently, there were about thirty to forty fierce beasts, with five mid-level kings. This force could destroy any inner gate of the four major families, and even a few high-ranking members would not be a match.
If high-level fierce beasts appeared, a single aura impact could trigger a small beast tide, surging into Liuyun City.
However, with only thirty to forty fierce beasts, it was not yet a significant threat. If they truly surged into Liuyun City, none of the fierce beasts would escape and would be completely annihilated.
At the moment, Lin Hao was not too worried; he still had some time.
But what made Lin Hao uneasy was that once the Jimiaoluoyi fully matured, it would instantly attract all the nearby fierce beasts. At that point, it wouldn't be just dozens of fierce beasts but hundreds.
High-level demonic beasts, with strong self-awareness, would be hard to attract by the Jimiaoluoyi, so there was no fear of demonic beasts appearing. The main concern was still high-level fierce beasts.
Standing on the branch of a giant tree, Lin Hao took a deep breath, completely shielding his aura. This way, the fierce beasts would find it hard to detect any anomalies from his aura, greatly enhancing his safety.
Currently, the growth rate of the Jimiaoluoyi was very fast, and it could be distinguished with the naked eye. If this continued, it might fully mature within an hour.
Time was pressing, and Lin Hao didn't have time to think much. He leaped from the tree to the ground, about thirty to forty meters away from the Jimiaoluoyi.
Originally, Lin Hao planned to control a flying knife from a distance to destroy the Jimiaoluoyi, but this would require using his spirit body's power. If he did so, he might be detected by the fierce beasts before he could destroy the Jimiaoluoyi, and they would kill him.
Therefore, Lin Hao could only continue forward without using his spirit body's power, or the consequences would be disastrous.
The distance of thirty to forty meters was just a few steps for Lin Hao, but it took him a long time to cover those few steps.
...
In the distance, a black-robed man suddenly appeared in the dark, staring at Lin Hao, who had not yet been detected. His lips curled slightly.
If a Lin family disciple were here, they would recognize that the black-robed man was the Chief Steward.
At this moment, the Chief Steward also shielded his aura, and even Lin Hao did not detect him.
"Hehe... Lin Hao, if you are discovered by the fierce beasts and your body is completely destroyed, it can only be blamed on your own incompetence, not on me." The Chief Steward thought coldly.
Originally, the Chief Steward followed Lin Hao, planning to act directly here. However, Lin Hao was too close to the fierce beasts, and if he acted rashly, he might also be killed.
Moreover, there was still Lin Nangong behind. If this matter were exposed, he would face a catastrophic disaster.
Therefore, the Chief Steward thought of a perfect plan: as long as Lin Hao was exposed to the fierce beasts, he could use the fierce beasts to eliminate Lin Hao, and it would have nothing to do with him.
Quickly, the Chief Steward took a silver needle from his pocket, gathered strength in his palm, and with a swift motion, the silver needle shot through the air toward Lin Hao, who was hiding in the grass.
The silver needle was not poisonous. The Chief Steward did not intend to kill Lin Hao with it. With Lin Hao's strength, a single silver needle could not kill him. The Chief Steward's goal was only to force Lin Hao to reveal himself.
At this moment, Lin Hao was about to draw his evil heavy sword to destroy the Jimiaoluoyi when he suddenly heard a terrifying sound of something breaking the air.
Lin Hao immediately turned around and saw the silver needle shooting toward him.
Instinctively, Lin Hao activated his spirit body's power, stopping the silver needle in mid-air.
Swoosh!
At the same time, a black-robed man in the grass about thirty meters away quickly fled, disappearing in an instant.
"Chief Steward?" Lin Hao's eyes flashed with cold light. The black-robed man wore a black veil and a hat, making it hard to see his face in the darkness. However, Lin Hao could tell that the black-robed man was definitely the Chief Steward. The appearance and actions matched, and who else would be lurking here and trying to kill him?
Lin Hao's brows furrowed deeply. In just a moment, he felt a chill. He had instinctively activated his spirit body's power without much thought, but now he realized that the fierce beasts a few dozen meters away...
"Bad!" Lin Hao heard the roar of the fierce beasts and turned to see dozens of them staring at him from all directions.
Seeing this, Lin Nangong's expression also changed. He never expected that just as Lin Hao was about to succeed, a fully armed black-robed man would appear.
Lin Nangong did not see the black-robed man's face clearly, but he suspected it was the Chief Steward. Lin Nangong knew that the Chief Steward had sent Lin Hao to search the area where the fierce beasts gathered with ill intentions.
"Run quickly!" Lin Nangong shouted to Lin Hao. After speaking, he stomped the ground with great force.
With a loud boom, the ground beneath Lin Nangong's feet shattered, and he leaped dozens of meters backward, fleeing.
Lin Hao's reaction was also very quick. He immediately used the "Yunfeng Step," his figure moving like a cloud and wind, reaching the maximum speed.
Although Lin Nangong's speed was not as fast as Lin Hao's, he had the advantage of not being detected by the fierce beasts. The main target of the fierce beasts was still Lin Hao.
A deafening roar came from behind, and Lin Hao felt a chill. He did not dare to look back.
The ordinary fierce beast that was originally chasing Lin Hao was suddenly shattered by a mid-level king fierce beast that caught up, its body exploding into pieces!
The mid-level king fierce beasts would not let the ordinary fierce beasts catch Lin Hao, who was their target.
This situation made Lin Hao's heart race. The speed of mid-level king fierce beasts was much faster than his. If they were determined to keep him there, Lin Hao had no confidence in escaping.
At this moment, two mid-level king fierce beasts were chasing Lin Hao. If it weren't for the occasional provocations between the two king beasts, Lin Hao would likely already be dead.
Swoosh! Lin Hao leaped onto a giant tree branch, moving through the forest of giant trees. Occasionally, some ordinary fierce beasts would appear on the ground, and if he encountered them, his speed would be hindered.