Chapter 10: Playing Dumb

Chapter 10: Pretending to Be Stupid

He was genuinely curious about what Wen Ying would do next. There was indeed an antidote for Brown Rafflesia, but he had checked and none of the plants needed to prepare it grew here. It would take too long to find them in this vast forest, make the antidote, and return. By then, the tiger demon would have digested the poison and bounced back again.

Wen Ying also knew that Aruda had planted many Brown Rafflesias near the castle. Among all the poisonous herbs, this one left the deepest impression on him, as it resembled a radish from the Human Realm.

When dug up, the root of the Brown Rafflesia looked like a miniature radish.

"You stay here for a while. The antidote needs to be freshly picked and prepared."

As Wen Ying spoke, his gaze lingered on Tiger's Pearl's ears, which were fixedly staring at him. He remained silent for a while, causing Tiger's Pearl to suspect that the guy was planning something again. Suddenly, his ears felt warm, and he froze in disbelief before slapping away Wen Ying's hand that touched his ear, filled with embarrassment and rage.

"What the hell do you want to do to me?! I warn you, if you dare to take advantage of me, I'll make sure you die a gruesome death!!!"

Tiger's Pearl had used all his strength to raise his hand just now. After shouting, he panted heavily, collapsing on the ground with his fur on his ears and tail fully puffed up. If looks could kill, Wen Ying would have died hundreds of times over.

Startled by Tiger's Pearl's roar, Wen Ying jumped backward a meter, realizing that he might have unknowingly broken some unknown demon realm rule.

"Um," Wen Ying paused, putting his hands behind his back as he noticed the other's desperate determination to preserve his dignity, "I'm from the countryside and don't understand the rules of demons in the city. What did you mean by your words just now?"

The Tiger Soul's expression of shame and fury froze, as Wen Ying's words echoed in his mind. He found it hard to believe, "Doesn't rubbing someone's ear mean you're interested in them in your world?"

Li Jie was even more confused about the origin of this white devil. In this age, which corner of the world would there be a devil without such common knowledge?

Wen Ying nonchalantly changed the subject, "Your fur on the ear looks quite lustrous. I'll go find an antidote. Hopefully, when I come back, your ear will still have that shine."

Tiger Soul: "..." No one had ever dared to act indecently towards him since he was born.

Li Jie was astonished. After touching his ears just now, he was now teasing him with words. Though he seemed short in stature, his personality turned out to be quite wild.

Li Jie didn't believe that there could still be a devil without common sense in this era. Similarly, Tiger Soul found it impossible for such a backward place to exist.

Wen Ying sensed something amiss and quickly spread his bat wings to fly away.

The rules of devils were truly troublesome, Wen Ying grumbled inwardly. It was just a touch on the ear. If not for how soft and fluffy it felt, he wouldn't have been so tempted to reach out.

That devil's ear resembled a tiger's, and it was twitching... He actually wanted to touch that long tiger tail too.

To be honest, the texture of the ear felt nice.

The cure for Brown Moss was something Wen Ying couldn't even begin to search for; he didn't even know about it. To Aluda, this kind of plant wasn't considered poison at all, so there was no need to mention an antidote.

Li Jie secretly tailed Wen Ying, observing that Wen Ying didn't seem to be searching for a cure at all, which filled him with curiosity.

Wen Ying retrieved a notebook from his pocket, tore out a page, bent down, and spotted a darker colored grass. He plucked it, crushed it vigorously, then used its juice to scribble on the paper.

Li Jie watched as Wen Ying wrote on that sheet of paper, allowing it to air-dry for a while before carefully folding it and then taking his leave. He hastily concealed himself, retreating backward just as Wen Ying zipped past him, separated by the girth of a single tree.

Feeling that an eternity had passed, HuPo's body had grown numb. The silence in the vast and deep forest, even the chirping of birds, induced a sense of unease. This was the Everlasting Forest, after all.

Surely that fellow wouldn't just abandon him like this...

Hu Po suddenly felt a twinge of fear. As an outstanding young member of the Yellow Tiger Clan who had yet to reach adulthood and make his mark in history, it would be too humiliating to die just like this.

Upon hearing the sound of footsteps after the landing, Hu Po found the white devil less menacing than before.

Wen Ying had only taken a few steps after landing when he saw the big fool in front of him looking at him with... an indescribable expression, one that made Wen Ying feel somewhat disgusted.

Could Brown Vine have the ability to induce illusions? A doubt flashed across Wen Ying's mind. He walked over, ignoring the expectant gaze of Hu Po.

Tiptoeing, he turned in the direction of a large tree a few meters away from Huo Po and stood before it. Addressing Huo Po, he said, "The antidote is inside that paper wrapper."

Li Jie: "…" He had watched that white devil scribble something on the paper using grass juice; apart from the grass juice, there was nothing else.

Huo Po nodded subconsciously. Whatever the devil said, he would agree first.

He had expected Wen Ying to hand him the antidote, but the devil placed the folded paper bag on the ground in front of his bewildered gaze and even used a rock to weigh it down.

"You…."

"The antidote is right here. Try your best to get it. I'll be on my way now. No need to see me off." Wen Ying waved at him with a smile and flew away, clutching the string of score plates.

Huo Po twisted his face in anger, cursing profanities that would have been bleeped out on a platform if aired. If not for the fear of attracting magical beasts or the lack of energy, he would have kept going.

Li Jie was amazed by Wen Ying's actions. He stroked his chin and muttered, "Could this devil be related to the Evil Terror Birds?"

This move reminded him of Muershi.

Despite the unexpected detour with Huo Po, the devil's destination remained unchanged – the spider cave. Li Jie continued following.

Wen Ying glided low through the air for a stretch, encountering no other demons. The score card in his hand felt heavy, a burden of value. Curving his eyebrows, he caught a glimpse of a change in the terrain ahead – a small hill.

And a dark cave.

As Wen Ying approached, he noticed a cluster of score cards in front of the cave, his expression startled.

There must be a trap.

Stopping by a large tree some distance from the cave, Wen Ying used its cover to conceal himself while scanning the surroundings, narrowing his eyes slightly.

Through the layered leaves, sunlight illuminated something that shimmered for a few seconds.

Spider silk?

That word surfaced in Wen Ying's mind. The black goat-horned demon had mentioned spiders earlier. Could it be that the score cards on the ground belonged to that unfortunate creature? There seemed to be quite a number of them.

Monsters in the Realm of Demons were intelligent, capable of setting traps.

Li Jie was bleeding internally. He had worked diligently to snatch score cards from numerous demons, only to be robbed by a monster in one fell swoop. His composure was shattered, as if all his efforts had been undone overnight.

Li Jie gazed intently at the demon with a faint expression, his thoughts stirred by Wen Ying's audacity in teasing Hu Po and his peculiar cards. Somehow, Li Jie had developed a subtle confidence in Wen Ying.

As Wen Ying snatched the score cards, expending a great deal of energy and mana, Li Jie planned to seize the opportunity as a bystander. If Wen Ying failed, Li Jie could still snatch the cards that Wen Ying had obtained from Hu Po – it was a win-win situation.

Hiding behind the tree, Wen Ying pondered over the current scenario. The most cautious approach would be to bypass the spider den, but a quick estimate revealed at least forty score cards at the entrance.

Finding and charming forty demons would require considerable effort and time, but one successful plunder of the spider monster would save all that trouble.

Wen Ying pulled out his Charm Card from his pocket, studying it briefly before glancing back at the spider den. An idea flickered in his eyes.

He subtly glanced behind him, ensuring that if the Charm Card failed, a black-horned demon lurking there could serve as a buffer.

Unbeknownst to the unsuspecting demon, who was banking on the notion of profiting from others' strife, Wen Ying wouldn't hesitate to exploit the situation.

With the magic card lightly touching the tip of his nose, concealing the wicked curve of his lips, Li Jie felt a chill run down his spine.

Wen Ying strode forward, stepping out from the tree's cover, brazenly exposing himself to the sunlight.

Around the Spider Cave, there was an open stretch of about fifty meters without any tall trees, making it seem rather desolate.

There wasn't a single bird chirping or insect buzzing. It was eerily quiet, so much so that anyone could sense that something was amiss.

The vines flashed with a glimmer, and Wen Ying manipulated them to hook onto the scorecard at the entrance of the cave.

Li Jie's heart leapt to his throat, as if it was about to burst out. He clung tightly onto the tree trunk with both hands, craning his neck further out than Wen Ying, even more nervous than him.

Sure enough, this guy had a reckless personality, actually choosing to confront the danger head-on.

In the next second, a bone-chilling growl accompanied by the rapid sound of footsteps echoed from within the cave. Wen Ying swung his arm with force, causing the scorecard to slice through the air and land in his hand.

He had long prepared the Enchantment Card, but when he saw the giant spider with a demonic face before him, he almost turned tail and ran.

It was disgustingly creepy, especially with its furry appearance. Its black carapace resembled a giant cockroach from the South, shiny and black enough to drive one mad. Goosebumps littered his skin.

The demonic-faced spider paid no heed to Wen Ying's thoughts. It opened its mouth, drooling strings of saliva that reeked of bad breath, causing Wen Ying to instantly put away the Enchantment Card and turn to run.

He really wasn't suited to encounter spiders. Feeling thoroughly uncomfortable, Wen Ying rubbed his arms as he flew towards Li Jie, goosebumps rising on his skin one by one.

Li Jie watched in surprise as Wen Ying flew towards him. In that moment of distraction, Wen Ying, who had already used a Speed Card, was now right in front of him, pulling Li Jie out from his hiding spot with another Vine Card.

Spotting another prey, the Ghoulface Spider roared and spat out its web.

Li Jie dodged and followed in the direction Wen Ying had flown. He realized that Wen Ying was swift; after casting a Speed Spell on himself, he flapped his wings to keep up with Wen Ying.

"You knew I was following you all along?"

Wen Ying threw a few cards behind him. Explosions echoed, accompanied by a smoky scent.

"I'm not an idiot. You've been tailing me for quite some time," Wen Ying replied matter-of-factly. Suddenly, he changed direction, and before Li Jie could instinctively follow, Wen Ying tossed out a card, conjuring an ice wall.

"Damn it?!"

Breaking through or bypassing the ice wall would take time, and the Ghoulface Spider was hot on their heels. Li Jie had no choice but to fly in another direction.

The spider chased the nearest target, and Li Jie could now empathize with Hu Po's predicament. Swearing inwardly, he flapped his bat wings so fiercely they seemed ready to catch fire.

Wen Ying flew for a while without any pressure from behind. He then slowed down, landed, and, after confirming that the spider was gone, happily counted his gains from this encounter.

The demon from the Yellow Tiger Clan had exactly forty points, while the Black Goat Horn Demon had fifty-one. Including his own, he now had a total of ninety-two.

Wen Ying glanced at the sky, which had already darkened. He found a tree hollow and climbed up into it. This time, he was wiser and deliberately hid among the foliage, also plucking some plants to crush their juices and smear them around him, attempting to mask his scent as much as possible.

After completing these preparations, Wen Ying fetched a large leaf to use as a makeshift blanket over his abdomen. The temperature difference in the forest was significant, and the night could still be rather chilly.