Chapter 21

Yuan Ming's heart tightened, and he quickly looked in the direction of the sound.

Amidst the swirling dust, a towering figure emerged, revealing a brown bear with a body covered in yellow fur. It was much larger than the black bear he had killed earlier, almost as tall as a one-story house.

Under the bear's gaze, Yuan Ming felt as if he were being watched by some terrifying monster, his hair standing on end. Although he appeared calm, his heart was filled with unease.

"This ferocious beast is far from the wild boar I just encountered. Could it be that I am so unlucky to have run into a mid-level first-tier creature?" his heart sank.

Not to mention that he had just been through a battle, which, though easily resolved, had drained a significant amount of his magical power. Even at his peak, he would not dare to face a mid-level first-tier ferocious beast head-on.

Yuan Ming's thoughts raced, and he suddenly let out a thunderous roar, his muscles bulging as he prepared to pounce.

The ferocious brown bear paused, its eyes showing a hint of caution.

At that moment, Yuan Ming suddenly leaped backward, nimbly climbing up a large tree behind him and quickly ascending to a higher branch.

"Roar!"

The brown bear realized it had been deceived and roared in anger, charging forward with astonishing speed. In an instant, it was beside the tree Yuan Ming was climbing, its thick paws striking out forcefully.

With a "bang," the tree, as thick as a water bucket, was severed. Yuan Ming, who had just climbed halfway up, fell headfirst.

Though startled, he did not panic. He kicked off the tree with his feet and leaped to another tree.

The brown bear let out a deafening roar, the sound like the clashing of metal, causing Yuan Ming's ears to ring and his head to feel heavy. His limbs stiffened, and he plummeted like a stone.

Before he hit the ground, the Nine Elements Technique in his body activated on its own, a surge of pure magical power flowing from his dantian and spreading throughout his body. The numbness quickly subsided as his blood and qi recovered.

As soon as his arms regained sensation, he swiftly extended them, his claws piercing the tree trunk.

With a "swoosh," the claws sank halfway into the wood, and his body hung in mid-air.

The brown bear, which had been waiting below, was taken aback. It pounced again, its thick paws striking the tree.

"Boom!"

The tree was severed and crashed to the ground.

However, Yuan Ming had already leaped to a nearby giant tree, spreading his magical power throughout his body to guard against the bear's roar.

To his surprise, the roar did not come.

A hint of surprise crossed Yuan Ming's face as he quickly climbed to the top of the giant tree.

From this height, about ten zhang above the ground, he was no longer affected by the bear's roar.

The ferocious brown bear, unwilling to let Yuan Ming escape, pounced at the giant tree, its paws striking left and right.

The tree swayed violently, the bark cracking, and leaves fell in large quantities. However, aside from a few claw marks on the bark, the tree showed no signs of collapsing.

"Such a massive tree can still be shaken; this brown bear is likely a mid-level first-tier ferocious beast. Unfortunately, its brain isn't very smart," Yuan Ming muttered, picking up a stone and throwing it down.

The stone, glowing gray, struck the brown bear's head with a "thud."

The stone shattered, causing little damage to the bear, but it only made the bear angrier, attacking the tree even more fiercely.

The tree swayed more violently, but it was so large that it would not collapse easily.

Yuan Ming smiled, watching the scene below like a spectator, occasionally throwing down more stones to provoke the bear.

As time passed, the brown bear's ferocity waned. Its chest heaved, and its breath came in gasps. The anger in its eyes had also diminished.

After a while, the brown bear let out a low, reluctant growl at Yuan Ming, lowered its body, and turned to leave.

Yuan Ming threw another stone, hitting the bear's back of the head.

However, the bear seemed to have learned its lesson and ignored Yuan Ming's provocation, continuing to run away without looking back.

"Not too stupid, but it's too late to run now!" Yuan Ming, no longer content to watch, leaped to the bear's back, his body transforming into a white ape. He pounced, his claws turning into two sharp, cold rays, striking the bear's back.

The ferocious brown bear, sensing the wind behind it, rolled to the side to avoid the attack, but it was still grazed by the claw.

A shallow, half-foot-long wound appeared on the bear's tough skin, and a faint purple color stained the wound.

This was the soft bone poison Yuan Ming had obtained from Ulu, which he had secretly applied to his claws.

The ferocious brown bear was enraged again, swinging its paw to strike Yuan Ming's head.

However, the bear's movements were much slower due to its earlier exertion. Yuan Ming, transformed into a white ape, dodged under the bear's paw.

As they passed each other, the white ape's right claw reached out, leaving another shallow wound on the bear's waist.

"Roar..." The ferocious brown bear grew even angrier, its paws striking wildly.

Yuan Ming had no intention of facing the bear head-on. He used the nearby trees to dodge and evade, occasionally leaving small wounds on the bear with his claws.

The ferocious brown bear's strength far exceeded Yuan Ming's, but it had wasted much of its energy on the giant tree earlier. Combined with its lack of speed, it was now at a disadvantage, with small wounds covering its body, and blood streaming down.

As the soft bone poison gradually took effect, its movements became increasingly sluggish.

The brown bear, realizing the situation was dire, abandoned all defense and dodging, charging directly at Yuan Ming in a desperate attack.

This final, desperate attack was much faster than usual.

However, Yuan Ming was prepared. He leaped to a nearby tree, using it as a shield.

"Roar..."

The ferocious brown bear continued its charge, its eyes turning blood red, and it let out a deafening roar.

"I knew you would use this move." Yuan Ming was prepared, his dantian's magical power surging and spreading throughout his body.

He only swayed slightly, and his movements were not significantly affected. Just before the bear reached him, he dodged to the side.

"Bang!"

The ferocious brown bear, unable to stop its momentum, crashed into the tree, its massive body bouncing back and falling to the ground, dazed.

The entire tree crashed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

The ferocious brown bear struggled to stand up and tried to flee, but after a few steps, it collapsed to the ground.

Yuan Ming emerged from the dust, instantly reaching the bear's side, and his right hand struck down.

His sharp claws pierced the bear's neck, sinking deep with a "swoosh," and he pulled down forcefully.

The bear's neck bone was severed, and its head was cut in half, blood gushing out. The massive body convulsed twice and then lay still.

Yuan Ming extracted the bear's blood into a storage bag, not bothering to refine it immediately. He collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, clearly exhausted from the intense battle.

This ferocious brown bear's physical strength was truly terrifying, with its fur providing remarkable defense. If not for his tactics to drain its energy and the soft bone poison, he would not have been a match for it.

Yuan Ming's entire body ached, and he felt as if even the slightest movement was difficult.

However, the area was soaked in blood, and he could not stay long.

Yuan Ming bit his tongue to stimulate his senses, leaned on a nearby tree to stand up, and began to return the way he came.

However, not far from there, a sudden change occurred.

He felt as if struck by lightning, and the white ape skin on his body began to wriggle, emitting a frenzied aura.

The remaining magical power in his body became agitated, and his eyes turned bloodshot, a desire to kill rising in his heart.

"It's happening again."

Yuan Ming's heart tightened, and he quickly sat down, practicing the Nine Elements Technique.

After three full cycles, the killing desire was barely suppressed.

He gathered magical power in his left hand and touched the incense burner mark on his right arm.

A green light flashed over the mark, and the mysterious incense burner appeared in his hand.

As a warm aura from the incense burner spread through his body and into his head, Yuan Ming felt as if he were soaking in a hot spring. The bloodshot look in his eyes gradually faded, and the killing desire quickly subsided.

After a quarter of an hour, the disturbance caused by the white ape skin completely disappeared.

Yuan Ming's expression relaxed, and he deactivated the Fur Transformation Technique, looking at the incense burner in his hand, silent.

This had happened twice in the past three months, always after intense battles when his magical power and physical strength were greatly depleted.

The bloodlust and desire to kill were now very strong, and the Nine Elements Technique could only suppress them, not eliminate them. When he first encountered this, he did not know how to handle it. Later, he remembered that the warm aura from the incense burner could nourish his spirit, so he quickly retrieved the incense burner to suppress the desire.

"Perhaps it's because I've been a white ape in this forest for too long, and I've unknowingly picked up some of its ferocity. Fortunately, I have the incense burner." Yuan Ming felt relieved but also worried that this desire might grow stronger over time.

He had intended to ask Hu Huo about the changes in the white ape skin, but he had not found a good opportunity.

Yuan Ming shook his head, put away the incense burner, and quickly left, finding a nearby tree to climb.

Even without the Fur Transformation Technique, he climbed much faster than before, quickly reaching halfway up the tree. He found a relatively flat spot, sat down, and practiced the Nine Elements Technique to recover his magical power.

After a while, he took out the storage bag and used his magical power to refine the bear's blood. The blood quickly reduced, forming a clump of essence blood.

This clump of essence blood was much larger than that of the green fox and the wild boar, and the magical power it contained was much stronger.

"It seems this brown bear is likely a mid-level first-tier ferocious beast." Yuan Ming gripped the storage bag tightly.

Through this battle, he gained a preliminary understanding of the true strength of mid-level first-tier ferocious beasts. Although they were powerful, they were not invincible.

After putting away the storage bag, he used the Fur Transformation Technique again, transforming into a white ape, and continued deeper into the forest.

An hour later, a wide stream appeared ahead. The stream flowed from a nearby mountain ravine, the water clear and refreshing.

After traveling for so long, Yuan Ming was thirsty and bent down to drink some water. Just as he was about to continue, he paused, looking at the ground beside him.

There were several fresh green fruit shells, clearly just peeled.

Yuan Ming recognized the fruit, which was sweet and sour, a rare delicacy in the forest. He had eaten it a few times before.

It was common for fruit shells to fall in the forest, as many apes and monkeys would eat them. However, apes and monkeys would not peel the fruit so neatly.