Chapter 109: Confrontation

The light source had already become incredibly dim, and the monster was no more than ten meters away from her.

“We have to come up with a plan.”

Aurora held Saga and backed away cautiously. Suddenly, she bumped into something behind her. She turned around anxiously and saw that it was just a large tree.

But the tree blocked her from retreating any further. The surrounding light grew weaker and weaker, and she could already smell the foul stench emanating from the monster’s mouth right in front of her.

At the very least… at the very least, she had to protect Saga!

She placed Saga at the edge of the last remaining light and then dashed into the darkness herself, shouting provocatively at the unseen monster, “Come chase me, you big dumb bear!”

The monster seemed to understand, letting out an angry roar towards the sky before thudding heavily in pursuit of Aurora.

Aurora’s silver hair was far too conspicuous in the night, and how could two legs outrun four? Not long after, the monster was already closing in on her.

She sprinted desperately into the depths of the darkness, her vision nothing but pitch black — almost like her eyes had been taken away.

Around her ears came the sound of dripping rain, insects hidden in the grass and trees, her own rapid footsteps, and—the sharp slash of claws tearing through the air.

Riiip.

Her clothes were ripped from behind, and Aurora stumbled, falling to the ground.

She rolled several times before crashing against a tree and coming to a stop.

The smell of mud and fresh blood filled her nose. She tried to get up from the muddy ground, but the fall had twisted her ankle and cut her palm. Now, she was like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, at the mercy of the monster.

Even so, her unwillingness to give up forced her to shakily rise.

Using the tree for support, she limped forward.

The monster seemed to have learned from its previous mistake. It didn’t rush to attack immediately but waited for her to be utterly exhausted before tearing her apart for good.

Despair had already engulfed Aurora’s heart. She could hear the monster right behind her, waiting for her to fall. But she still didn’t want to die—she still wanted to see her little sister, to live the life she dreamed of with her.

She tried again to rewind time like before, chanting the incantation, but no matter how she repeated the spell, nothing happened.

“Why isn’t it working?”

Her palm left a bloodstain on the tree bark. At that moment, a creaking sound echoed once more.

The tree suddenly began growing upward at a visible speed.

The monster, sensing something unusual, retreated step by step, maintaining a distance of ten meters from Aurora.

“This is…”

She looked at the blood on her hand and seemed to have realized something…

Her blood appeared to have a special effect. It accelerated the growth of plants.

An idea flashed through her mind. She picked up the stone that had caused her to stumble, then forcefully cut her arm.

Blood slowly dripped down her arm, and when it touched the soil, the surrounding grass and flowers rapidly grew, gradually concealing Aurora’s figure.

The monster, seeing her vanish into the thicket, suddenly charged at the patch of grass.

It swung its claws and sliced through the greenery but found no trace of Aurora.

The scent of blood was masked by the rain, and only the sound of heavy rainfall and creaking tree trunks filled the air.

The monster grew increasingly frantic, tearing through patch after patch of plants, but it was clear that destruction couldn’t keep up with growth. Soon, the entire huge beast was engulfed by the thicket.

“I’m here, you dumb beast!”

Aurora’s weak voice suddenly came from the right.

The massive monster roared furiously and bared its fangs, charging toward the direction of the voice.

It leapt powerfully, soaring more than ten meters into the air.

Its claws spread wide and pierced into the trunk of a tree, halting the beast’s flight.

Its blood-red pupils scanned the area and finally rested on Aurora to the right.

She was standing still, soaked through by the rain. Her silver hair clung behind her, and although there was a hint of fear in her eyes, they shone with unyielding determination. Her wet white dress clung tightly to her skin, revealing patches of blood underneath where her fair skin should have been. The red on her arm continued to flow as she let it drip to the ground.

In her other hand, she gripped the stone tightly, her gaze locked onto the monster perched on the tree trunk, seemingly waiting for something.

The charred creature roared at Aurora, then pushed off with all four legs, leaping toward her.

Sharp claws slashed through the air, glinting with deadly precision, aimed directly at Aurora.

But she neither dodged nor flinched. Instead, she bent her knees, waiting for the perfect moment.

The monster closed in quickly, and when the claws were about ten meters away, her eyes snapped sharp—

“Now!”

She sliced her radial artery on her wrist, and a torrent of blood sprayed out.

Suddenly, the ground beneath her trembled, like an earthquake or something violently breaking through the soil, struggling upward.

Summoning the last of her strength, Aurora leapt backward just as a sprout broke through the earth where she had stood.

That tiny sprout, upon touching her blood, grew rapidly. In moments, it became a full tree trunk, shooting straight toward the sky.

The monster, still airborne, saw the tree rushing up to meet it—and it was already too late.

Its body slammed heavily against the rapidly growing tree, which carried the beast ever upward.

The tree pierced through the clouds, dragging the monster to the peak of the clouds.

At the summit, the bright moon was veiled by dark clouds. As the moonlight shone on the monster, its skin seemed to burn, emitting black smoke.

The monster roared in pain, wobbled, and fell from the tree trunk.

From thousands of meters in the sky, the black figure plummeted straight down, breaking through the clouds.

With a thunderous crash, it created a bottomless crater upon impact.

Nearby, Aurora stared blankly at the scene. She had only intended to have the monster slam into the tree and be momentarily incapacitated. She hadn’t expected the random seed she picked up from the ground to be so extraordinary, growing so tall after drinking her blood!

Looking up at the towering tree piercing through the clouds, Aurora still found it hard to believe.

After collecting herself, she cautiously approached the giant crater and peered inside.

“It should… be dead, right?”

The crater was silent, but a foul stench seeped out from within…