Chapter 474 - 471: Change in the Forbidden Land

Chapter 474: Chapter 471: Change in the Forbidden Land

"This is bad! There’s a disturbance in the forbidden area!"

"An enemy attack? Get in there, quickly!"

After their initial shock, the Beastmen erupted in furious, earth-shattering roars!

The Orange Rank males guarding the entrance and the other Beastmen hidden in the shadows were all filled with shock and rage. Like a tide, they surged toward the Life Tree!

"Go!"

Zhu Xiu reacted fastest. He swiftly pulled Bai Wanwan into his embrace and turned to Jin Yi and Yin Ze. "We have to leave immediately," he said. "Let’s try to get away without them noticing us."

The gap in Talent Power between Red Rank and Orange Rank was immense. It wouldn’t be difficult for the three males to escape undetected.

And so, after creating a diversion to draw the attention of the Orange Rank Beastmen, they vanished from the forbidden area like shadows...

Inside the Life Tree’s forbidden area, although the towering pillar of emerald green light had dissipated, the miraculous burst of light and the restless life energy still churning in the air proved that what had just happened was no illusion.

Jiao Yuan’s tall figure quickly appeared in the heart of the forbidden area. When he saw the Life Tree, which seemed to have been infused with a brief burst of vitality, his eyes flashed with incredulous delight.

Its once-withered, yellowing leaves had unfurled. The dim green light had grown bright and gentle. A few new buds were even visibly sprouting from its branches.

’Is... is this a sign of the Life Tree’s revival?’

’There was a glimmer of hope for the bloodline crisis that had plagued the tribe for years!’

However, the joy was fleeting.

Just a moment later, the revitalized life force receded as quickly as it came, like a tide going out.

The bright green light dimmed at a speed visible to the naked eye, the growth of the new buds stagnated, and even the edges of the newly unfurled leaves were once again tinged with a withered yellow.

The aura emanating from the entire tree was even more listless than before the phenomenon occurred, as if the shocking eruption had just exhausted the last of its strength.

The delight on Jiao Yuan’s face instantly froze, replaced by a heavy gloom and even deeper anxiety.

"What’s going on?"

His authoritative voice echoed in the silent forbidden area.

’The Life Tree wouldn’t undergo such a strange transformation for no reason!’

He spun around, his gaze as sharp as a blade falling upon the head of the guards—an Orange Rank male.

"Has anyone been in here?" Jiao Yuan’s voice was glacial. His immense Red Rank pressure instantly made the guard break out in a sweat.

"N-no, Clan Leader!" the guard leader subconsciously denied, but his eyes flickered. "We have been diligently guarding our posts and haven’t seen any Beastmen enter or leave."

"No?" Jiao Yuan’s brows furrowed so tightly he could have crushed a bug between them.

"Then what was that light from the Life Tree just now?"

"Clan Leader, we don’t know either."

Jiao Yuan pondered for a moment. "No other strange signs in the forbidden area? You didn’t notice anything suspicious?"

Under the Clan Leader’s pressure, the guard leader had no choice but to report the recent strange occurrences.

"Clan Leader, we really didn’t see any Beastmen come in with our own eyes. But before the green light erupted, the guards near the entrance seemed to hear a strange noise, like... like something moving quickly. We tightened security, but we didn’t find anything."

"And then the Life Tree erupted with green light?" Jiao Yuan stared at him, pressing for an answer.

"Yes, Clan Leader."

Jiao Yuan said no more. He had already reached a conclusion in his heart.

’The most likely possibility is that a Red Rank Powerhouse broke in and triggered the Life Tree’s strange transformation.’

He didn’t dwell on the insult and provocation. He was more interested in what method the intruder had used to revitalize the Life Tree.

"Investigate! Find the intruder, even if you have to turn the entire tribe upside down!"

The entire Flood Dragon Tribe was instantly mobilized, and the atmosphere became unprecedentedly tense.

The number of patrol teams multiplied. Unfamiliar faces were harshly interrogated, and no suspicious trace was overlooked.

However, a day passed, and the news from the search party Beastmen was disheartening.

The intruder seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving no valuable clues behind.

Jiao Yuan stood beneath the Life Tree, watching its light grow dimmer and dimmer, as if it could be extinguished at any moment. His heart felt as if it were being crushed by a colossal stone.

To have hope ignited only to be so quickly extinguished was more despairing than having no hope at all.

He wearily rubbed the bridge of his nose and recalled the tribe’s ancient records.

The Life Tree’s vitality needed to be nourished by a pure and powerful bloodline. Every fifty years, a ritual involving a new bloodline was required to truly rejuvenate it.

Otherwise, they could only rely on an extremely taxing ancient formation—three or more Red Rank Males continuously channeling their own Talent Power to forcibly maintain the Life Tree’s basic vitality.

The first time, three Red Rank Beastmen joined forces and barely managed to sustain its vitality for five years.

The last time, the formation had been active for less than three years, and the Life Tree already seemed to have its vitality depleted.

’Next time... how long can it last?’ He dared not imagine.

And his Wife, Lan Yi, had been injured during her last birth. The Clan Witch had determined she could no longer bear offspring.

Facing immense pressure from the clan elders, he had placed all his hopes on his only female cub, Coral, hoping she could become the new bloodline for the ritual.

But no matter how hard Coral tried to communicate with the Life Tree, the ancient Holy Tree gave no response.

"Jinying... any news from him?" Jiao Yuan asked a trusted subordinate beside him, his voice hoarse.

"Clan Leader, Jinying has sent word. He will be arriving at the Flood Dragon Tribe soon."

* * *

Unlike the tense and grim atmosphere in the tribe, Shuang Hua’s remote treehouse courtyard was filled with a rare, warm tranquility.

"Don’t worry, Aunt Shuang. We’ll just stay home. We won’t go anywhere."

Bai Wanwan obediently agreed to Shuang Hua’s earnest advice.

She knew this was all because of the trouble caused by their nighttime visit to the forbidden area the day before yesterday.

The three Red Rank Beast Husbands were extremely good at concealing their auras. That, combined with Zhu Xiu’s flawless cleanup, meant the tribe’s search never came their way.

The afternoon sun was just right, filtering through the sparse leaves and spilling onto the platform.

Bai Wanwan sat on a thick animal-hide cushion, the smooth, jade-like Phoenix Eggs nestled beside her.

A few fluffy little tiger cubs happily padded all over her, occasionally nuzzling her cheek with their small heads and letting out contented purrs.

A gentle smile on her face, Bai Wanwan caressed the eggs nestled beside her with one hand, feeling the faint but vibrant pulse of life within. With her other hand, she playfully teased the tiger cubs snuggling on her shoulder.

She looked at the tiger-stripe markings on the cubs, so similar to Chou Rong’s, and her gentle gaze held a trace of guilt. "I’m sorry, little ones. You still haven’t met your Father Beast, and I don’t know how he’s doing in the Tiger Clan..."

The tiger cubs seemed to sense her low spirits. They licked her neck even more affectionately with their small, barbed tongues, making soft whimpering sounds, as if to say, ’We’re here for you!’