Splurt... The sudden disturbance made the onlookers, who were previously just watching the show, completely unable to remain calm. Just as the man was shouting at the top of his lungs, a dark shadow suddenly lunged out from the dark depths of the forest.
Before anyone could react, the shadow pounced on the man like lightning, instantly cleaving him in two at the waist. The man didn't even notice a hint of pain before his vision began to spin uncontrollably. Then, the two halves of his body slumped down, blood carving a vivid arc in the air, contrasting with the silence of the forest.
Thud... "Aaaah!!!"
In an instant, the scene fell into chaos as the crowd scrambled in panic. Witnessing the first person truly fall and their life fade away, everyone's expression was instantly consumed by fear, their eyes filled with panic and helplessness. They didn't even have time to see what kind of creature the attacker was—they only felt a dark shadow flash by, and the man was already on the ground.
This phenomenon, which completely defied common sense, was like a heavy hammer smashing their perception and overturning their long-held worldview.
"He... he... he's really dead!" "Hey, did anyone see what that dark shadow was just now?" "Help! I'm still young, I don't want to die yet!" "Fuck, who the hell brought me to this dangerous place for no reason!"
At this moment, those with poor mental fortitude completely forgot Acheron's warning, wailing in terror and racing to flee into the woods. They vanished without a trace, leaving behind only the cowards whose legs had turned to jelly, those knocked down by the crowd, and a few who were dazed, their thoughts unknown.
In just a few breaths, the once-bustling crowd was left with only a handful of people. Acheron remained as motionless as an ancient rock throughout, letting the wailing and the scattering crowd carry on around her; she still stood solitary in her original spot. She tilted her head slightly and looked back leisurely, her gaze slowly sweeping over the man's cold corpse on the ground without a ripple of emotion.
Acheron was well aware of the dark, filthy thoughts in this man's heart. However, Acheron's level of tolerance for ordinary people was actually quite high; it was far from the point where she would think 'you have already found your way to death' at every turn. Unless someone touched a bottom line or taboo in her heart, she would at most give them a 'little punishment' and would not easily take their life.
But since he insisted on seeking death, Acheron respected that choice. She lowered her eyes slightly. 'You brought this on yourself. Since you are bent on dying, then it shall be as you wish.'
After thinking this, Acheron turned her gaze toward the darkness of the dense forest. Ignoring the accusations and curses of others, she began to reflect on what had just happened. Ever since arriving here... Acheron had vaguely heard movements within this forest. Therefore, Acheron concluded that there might be more than just their group in this forest.
Who would have thought this group would insist on making such a racket, ultimately attracting the attention of the 'indigenous inhabitants.'
"Its form seems to be a bird, about a meter long. It's likely not a creature from Blue Star; the aura it reveals is very similar to Mo Xi's."
Acheron whispered softly, her eyes never ceasing to scan the surroundings. At this moment, her five senses completely blocked out the commotion of the remaining crowd.
Shring... Acheron turned to face the remaining crowd, and in the instant she turned, 'Naught' had already been quietly gripped in her hand. Then, she gently thrust the blade into the ground, leaning against the hilt with her arms crossed, closing her eyes to rest.
This striking scene once again left everyone dumbfounded. Facing the approach of death, they actually gave up on themselves, venting their mouths recklessly in their final moments. In their view, although the man had met his end at the hands of the dark shadow, it might not be unrelated to this woman—after all, she had maintained an air of indifference throughout his death.
However, when Acheron produced a long blade out of thin air, they instantly fell silent from the bottom of their hearts, choosing to shut their mouths out of cowardice. Acheron didn't care at all about the crowd's tendency to bully the weak and fear the strong. Instead, she dispersed her attention to the surroundings, thinking to herself:
'Is it wary of my presence? That means its intelligence isn't low.'
Fortunately, Acheron was in no hurry, still leaning against her long blade with her eyes closed. Sure enough, after just a short while, the dark shadow, whose intelligence was clearly insufficient, could no longer hold back. It writhed in the darkness like a glob of thick ink, quietly circling behind Acheron.
Suddenly, the dark shadow surged, its form turning into a blade that tore through the night, pouncing toward Acheron's back amidst a fishy wind, attempting to repeat its old trick and cut her in half!
However, the dark shadow's surprise attack played right into Acheron's hands. She didn't even lift her eyelids; she merely tapped the hilt with her heel, and the entire sword spun upward like a top. 'Naught' flipped in mid-air and finally landed steadily in Acheron's hand.
Acheron turned instantly, her gaze piercing the darkness and locking onto the nearby dark shadow. The blade did not leave its scabbard; she swung the sword down with one hand. Before the dark shadow could react, it felt a cold light rush toward its face; the scabbard struck right between its eyes. Like being hit by a heavy hammer, it instantly slumped to the ground, devoid of life.
Thud!
The dark shadow fell to the ground, no longer capable of struggling. Acheron withdrew her hand with smooth, fluid movements, holding the sword at her waist with one hand. The rest of the people watched this scene in stunned silence, their mouths agape, not knowing what to say for a moment.
Acheron stepped forward slowly and began to examine the dark shadow.
"Just as I expected."
The true form of the dark shadow was exactly what Acheron had seen: an unprecedented giant bird. Its size was astonishingly large, completely different from ordinary birds on Blue Star, as if it came from another world. Although she had finished it off just now by simply feigning a weakness, the process was enough to prove it possessed significant intelligence.
"Forget it, I should look around."
Acheron shook her head, no longer paying attention to the cold corpse on the ground. Acheron was quite confident in her own strength. However, staying in one place was ultimately futile; it was better to keep moving forward.
Thus, Acheron set off again, walking firmly toward the depths of the forest... After a long while, the dazed crowd saw Acheron's receding back and finally snapped out of it.
"Beautiful lady, don't leave! The wilderness is so dangerous, let's go together!" "Wait for me, miss! We're all girls, how about we go together!"
Obviously, even the dullest people remaining now saw Acheron's capabilities. In this life-or-death, peril-filled situation, if they didn't hurry and cling to her, when would they!
But when the crowd rushed forward, scrambling to catch up and try to accompany Acheron, they were stunned to find that her figure had vanished after turning into the darkness. This caused the crowd, whose hope had suddenly been rekindled, to fall back into panic.
But Acheron knew none of this, and even if she did, she wouldn't care. She had no reason to act as a babysitter for these people. Acheron's primary goal at the moment was to find a way back home.
It's just... scanning the surroundings where the environment was almost indistinguishable, it was simply impossible to tell directions apart.
Acheron ಠ_ಠ: 'Which way should I go?'