The fierce battle had lasted for more than six hours.
This was the second checkpoint, with humid and hot air, and a vast primeval rainforest.
To pass this checkpoint, Gu Masters had to cross the entire dense forest and reach the stone hall at the other end.
However, crossing this forest was not easy.
Although there were no beast groups in the forest, there were massive numbers of green vines.
These vines coiled around the tall trees and piled up on the damp ground. Each vine was at least as thick as a sea bowl and at least seven or eight zhang long.
Ordinary vines were called green snake vines, with smooth snake scales on their stems. When Gu Masters approached, the vines would suddenly shoot out, wrap around them like giant pythons, and strangle them to death.
Within a radius of a hundred bu in the rainforest, there were about a thousand green snake vines, an extremely high density.
It was extremely difficult for Gu Masters to advance.
Along the way, green snake vines attacked from all directions: some descended from the sky, some shot up from the ground, some burst through the soil, making it hard to cope and impossible to defend against.
Gu Masters advancing through the forest were attacked by vines at every moment, as if immersed in an ocean of green vines.
The attacks of the green snake vines were powerful and swift. More dangerously, they often had wood path Gu worms parasitizing them, and it was because of these worms that the Gu Master teams suffered heavy casualties.
"Report! We found a green snake vine king ahead. Currently, Lord Yelü Sang is engaging it." After a while, a scout Gu Master returned from the front and reported to Hei Loulan.
Hei Loulan nodded and continued walking slowly.
In each group of green snake vines, there was one vine king with combat power comparable to a rank four Gu Master.
But Yelü Sang was a peak rank five expert. The current clan head of the superpower Yelü tribe, he cultivated the fire path, which greatly suppressed wood path Gu worms. He also had a fire path support Immortal Gu parasitic on him from the Yelü family, so dealing with a vine king was a piece of cake.
Indeed, after a while, good news came from ahead: "Lord Yelü Sang has successfully eliminated the green snake vine king. He has withdrawn, and Lord Chang Shanyin is taking over, leading the wolf pack to clear the path."
"Hmm," Hei Loulan responded indifferently.
The wolf pack was good at offense but not defense, and fighting vine groups was not advantageous. However, Chang Shanyin had turtle-backed wolves that excelled in defense, and also vermilion flame wolves with fire path Gu worms parasitic on them, making them excellent path openers in this situation.
"The wolf king is powerful, arguably the top combatant. Especially with that Flying Bear Phantom Immortal Gu on him, a small checkpoint like this can't stop him," Hei Loulan mused as he walked.
"If the Flying Bear Phantom Gu and the Flying Bear Strength Gu were combined, that would be perfect. Hmph, let Chang Shanyin work for me for now. When the time is ripe, I'll make him hand over that Flying Bear Phantom Gu! Once I become a Gu Immortal, that mere wolf king will be clay in my hands."
"This second checkpoint seems to test the endurance of Gu Masters in battle, but actually it tests reconnaissance ability. In the forest, there are not only green snake vine groups but also green dragon vine groups. Green dragon vines are dozens of times more dangerous than green snake vines, considered monsters among plants! Our chosen route avoids these dragon vine groups as much as possible. Only one or two areas are territories of green dragon vines. There will probably be one or two tough battles, but they are the biggest obstacles of this trip."
Hei Loulan felt pleased: "The end is getting closer. At this pace, we'll clear this checkpoint in half an hour!"
Just as he was thinking this, suddenly a change occurred.
Swish swish swish…
The green snake vines around the team suddenly leaped up, piercing the air. They were so fast that they made the sound of arrows flying!
The attack of the vines suddenly increased dozens of times.
Before, the battles were only between Gu Masters and the nearby green snake vines; vines outside the range remained still and unmoving.
But now, vines within a radius of a hundred li, no, a thousand li joined the fight, rising up in a tidal wave, madly surging towards the Gu Masters.
Gu Masters caught off guard immediately suffered heavy casualties. Countless Gu Masters fell on the battlefield in an instant.
"How is this possible? The green snake vines suddenly went berserk!" the experts cried out in alarm.
"Quick, come save me!" Gu Masters on the periphery were being freely slaughtered by the vines.
"I order a full attack, regardless of cost! Block them or die!!" Hei Loulan shouted, rising into the air to try to control the situation.
But soon, hundreds of green dragon vines flew high into the sky to attack him.
Hei Loulan roared in anger, used dark path techniques, and killed two or three dozen green dragon vines on the spot, then descended to the ground.
But the ground was not safe either; countless green snake vines and green dragon vines burst through the soil, and the entire army fell into chaos.
"Impossible! We scouted well, how could we encounter green dragon vines here?" Hei Loulan's eyes were bloodshot, he couldn't understand!
Vines have a strong sense of territory. As long as you don't invade their territory, they stay quiet and never attack.
But these vine groups were completely enraged, as if they saw a mortal enemy, madly attacking the Gu Masters.
Vines have strong vitality; even if a Gu Master cut them into five or six pieces, those pieces could still bite back before dying. Hei Loulan even saw many green dragon vines tearing off their roots and attacking directly.
"How is this possible? What the hell is going on?!" Hei Loulan was completely baffled; these green dragon vines were cutting off their own roots, essentially committing suicide.
All living things have an instinct to survive.