Chapter 87: Black Vines

Following the tall soldier’s order, the muscular soldier and their fourth member, a handsome soldier, ran back into the village.

As soon as they stepped back into the village, countless black vines shot out from the darkness.

Swish~! Swish~! Swish~!

Hearing the sound of something approaching, the tall soldier urgently shouted, "Be careful! Something is coming!"

Reminded by him, the muscular soldier and the handsome soldier quickly looked at the ground. When they noticed the approaching black vines, the handsome soldier opened his palm.

A second later, a fireball formed above his palm.

Without wasting even a second, he threw the fireball toward the incoming black vines.

Whoosh~!

The fireball exploded the moment it hit the black vines.

Boom!

As the fire burned the black vines, a shrill scream suddenly came from the depths of the village.

"Kii~!"

Seeing the black vines retreat, the muscular soldier and the tall soldier took this opportunity to free the youngest soldier from them.

Grabbing the black vines wrapped around the youngest soldier’s body, the muscular soldier’s muscles bulged as he ripped them apart.

"Break for me!"

Crack!

The second the black vines broke, the tall soldier grabbed the youngest soldier and dragged him back toward the village’s entrance.

"Retreat!" the tall soldier ordered while running.

Noticing that they had managed to free the youngest soldier, the handsome soldier created four more fireballs and threw them toward the black vines chasing after them as the team retreated.

Whoosh~! Whoosh~! Whoosh~!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sounds of explosions echoed through the silent surroundings, finally drawing the attention of the other teams.

Pointing toward the village’s entrance, a member of another team shouted, "There! The sound of the explosions is coming from that direction!"

Looking at the reddish glow illuminating the darkness in the distance, the captain of the small team hurriedly said, "Let’s go!"

With that, the team rushed toward the village’s entrance.

Before long, almost all the teams had gathered near the village’s entrance.

Seeing the four soldiers being chased by countless black vines, one of the captains shouted, "Quick! Support them!"

Without hesitation, all the soldiers charged forward and attacked the black vines with their abilities and weapons.

While they were fighting, Lian Tianci, who was leaning against a military armored car, suddenly looked into the distance. Listening to the faint sounds coming from there, his expression turned serious.

Pressing the communication device against his ear, he said, "Ten people, come with me. Something is happening near the village."

In less than thirty seconds, ten soldiers had gathered in front of Lian Tianci.

Before leaving, he turned to a nearby soldier and said, "The rest of you will stay here and protect the survivors. Stay vigilant."

The soldier saluted and responded, "Yes, Captain."

After giving the order, Lian Tianci held his gun and rushed toward the village with his team.

The moment they arrived outside the village’s entrance, they saw countless black vines dragging soldiers into the village.

"Ah! Help!" a soldier shouted as the black vines dragged him into the darkness.

Without thinking, Lian Tianci rushed after the black vines.

"Captain!" the soldiers exclaimed in shock when they saw him disappear into the darkness. Unfortunately, they were too late to give chase.

Left with no other option, the soldiers could only help their comrades fight the remaining black vines.

At the same time, Lian Tianci followed the black vines and ran deeper into the village. The farther he went, the denser the vegetation became.

Bound by the black vines, the soldier struggled to use his ability, but every time he condensed his energy, it disappeared into nothingness.

Gritting his teeth, the soldier looked toward Lian Tianci and shouted, "Captain, this thing is devouring my energy!"

The second he said this, a black vine suddenly wrapped around his mouth, preventing the soldier from saying another word.

"Mhmp! Mhmp!" The soldier struggled, but it was in vain.

Lian Tianci’s eyes turned cold at the sight.

Raising his hand, Lian Tianci channeled his ability into his palm. Two seconds later, countless sharp nails appeared above his palm.

Aiming at the black vine wrapped around the soldier’s body, Lian Tianci’s eyes flickered with murderous intent as he threw the nails.

Psyiu~! Psyiu~! Psyiu~!

As the sharp nails broke through the air, the black vines suddenly sped up.

Knowing that his attack would miss its target, Lian Tianci channeled his energy into the nails flowing through the air and gave them another push.

Whoosh~!

The nails’ speed suddenly exploded as they shot toward the black vines.

Stab! Stab! Stab!

When the nails stabbed into the black vines, Lian Tianci clenched his hand.

In an instant, the nails melted and transformed into thin, sharp metal sheets. Before the black vines could react, the metal sheets cut through them.

"Kii!"

As a shrill scream echoed from the depths of the village, Lian Tianci kicked the ground and leaped toward the soldier.

Grabbing the soldier’s arm, Lian Tianci pulled him free from the black vines’ entanglement.

Rolling on the ground, the soldier said, "Thank you, Captain!"

Lian Tianci didn’t respond but rushed toward the black vines. Seeing this, the soldier quickly followed him.

Sensing Lian Tianci’s murderous intent, the black vines retreated faster and faster.

Seeing this, the soldier said while running beside Lian Tianci, "Captain, it seems to be afraid of you."

Lian Tianci thought in silence for a few seconds before saying, "You go back and inform the others. Let them deal with the black vines out there first, then come find me."

When the soldier heard this, he protested, "Captain, it’s too dangerous for you to chase after the black vines alone!"

Lian Tianci glanced at the soldier, successfully shutting him up. "Go back and call back up."

Gritting his teeth, the soldier had no choice but to say, "Roger that."

With that, the soldier suddenly stopped chasing the black vines. He watched Lian Tianci disappear into the darkness before turning around and running back to the village’s entrance.

After sending the soldier away, Lian Tianci increased his speed. Soon, the dirt road changed, and the surroundings turned into a forest. ℯℯ𝑙.

Knowing that he had stepped into the black vines’ territory, Lian Tianci’s eyes flickered coldly.

Instead of slowing down, he created a few sharp daggers and cut through the thick vegetation as he chased after the black vines.

With every cut of his daggers, more and more vegetation was cut down, and he was getting closer and closer to that thing hidden in the depths of the village.