Chapter 117

Su Jing's trouser leg was gently carried by Xiao Jin, following the little golden fluffy ball as they traversed the woods—

Xiao Jin walked faster than before, her short legs scrambling through the decaying leaves, stopping every now and then to turn back and call out, as if afraid she wouldn't be able to keep up.

The vines under the layer of decaying leaves sometimes tripped up the little goldfish, which would go back and use its little claws to dig up the soil at the base of the vines to reveal a gap where it could stand.

When it encounters a half-dried branch blocking the road, it will look up at Su Jing and bark, signaling her to clear it with a dagger. The broken leaves on the tips of its round ears sway with the movement, making it exceptionally clever.

After walking for about 15 minutes, a low, painful beastly roar suddenly came from ahead. It was not the ferocious beast roar that had been heard before, but rather a sound of dejection.

Su Jing immediately stopped, and Xiao Jin also let go of her trouser leg, bent over, gently scratched at the decaying leaves with its front paws, and stared at the bushes in front of it with its black eyes.

Su Jing mobilized her mental energy, expanding her perception range to 10 meters—there was no energy fluctuation from the red-named ferocious beasts, only a gentle aura belonging to herbivorous monsters, mixed with a faint fishy smell, like the smell of rotting wounds.

"Let's go take a look." Su Jing patted Xiao Jin's back and pushed aside the bushes in front of her.

The sight before her made her pause in surprise: on an open ground not far away, a blue deer about 2 meters long was lowering its head, its light blue fur dotted with tiny white spots, like a handful of snowflakes, and its short antlers gleaming with a pale blue light, but without the luster they should have.

On the outside of its left foreleg was a boil the size of a bowl. The purplish-black sore was oozing pale yellow pus. The surrounding fur had fallen off, revealing red and swollen flesh. The green deer would occasionally lift its leg to rub the ground, its movements stiff. It also lacked strength when eating the spiritual herbs in front of it, putting them down after a few bites. Its eyes were downcast, revealing obvious weakness.

"It's a second-tier friendly demon beast, the Azure Deer. Judging from its condition, it's been poisoned by a low-tier beast poison."

Su Jing's communicator automatically popped up a notification: [Second-tier Azure Deer (Herbivore): Gentle in nature, good at sensing natural energy, can shield its own aura, current status: poisoned (low-tier beast poison "Bone Rot Poison"), requires antidote fruit to alleviate] .

Just as she finished reading the prompt, Xiao Jin suddenly darted out, ran to the green deer, circled it twice, then looked up at Su Jing and called out twice. It turned around and ran a few steps in the northwest direction, then turned back and called out again, its dark eyes filled with an urgent "follow me" look.

"Do you know where I can find an antidote fruit?" Su Jing's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly followed Xiao Jin.

This time, Xiao Jin ran even faster, but always stayed within Su Jing's line of sight. When it passed a pool of water, it deliberately waded through the water, and the splashing water droplets landed on the stones on the shore, as if marking the route.

After running about 300 meters, Xiao Jin suddenly stopped and called out to a short tree about half a person's height. The tree trunk was grayish-brown, and the branches had oval-shaped dark green leaves with fine serrations on the edges. Several orange-red fruits, about the size of a fist, with smooth skin and a faint sweet aroma, were hanging from the branches. These were the "first-level detoxification fruits" indicated by the communicator.

Su Jing approached the fruit tree, first using her fingertips to activate a wisp of lightning energy, and gently touched the fruit—there was no abnormal reaction, ruling out the possibility of poison.

She took out her golden dagger and carefully cut off two antidote fruits. The fruits were warm to the touch, and she could feel the juicy flesh under the skin. There were no signs of insect infestation or rot.

"That's enough. One should be enough. Keep one as a backup." She put one antidote fruit into her pocket, held the other, and turned to walk towards the Green Deer. Little Gold followed beside her, sniffing the fruit in her hand from time to time, as if to confirm that there was no problem.

When Su Jing returned to Qinglu's side, Qinglu still kept its head down. When it saw Su Jing coming over, it raised its head slightly, its eyes filled with vigilance. It took half a step back, and the poisonous sores on its front legs oozed a little more pus due to the movement. Qinglu couldn't help but groan softly.

Su Jing stopped and gently placed the antidote fruit in her hand on the decaying leaves in front of her. She then took two steps back to indicate that she meant no harm.

Little Jin ran to the antidote fruit, nudged it with its little paws, then ran to the green deer's feet and rubbed against its leg, as if trying to persuade it.

Qinglu stared at the antidote fruit for a few seconds, then looked at Xiaojin, and finally slowly walked forward. She gently touched the fruit with her nose, smelled its sweet aroma, and carefully picked it up and began to chew it slowly.

The juice from the fruit dripped down its mouth and onto the decaying leaves. Soon, the green deer's eyes brightened, and its head, which had been drooping, lifted slightly. The purplish-black swelling on its left foreleg subsided at a visible speed, and the pus stopped oozing out, revealing fresh, pale pink flesh.

"Great, it's working." Su Jing breathed a sigh of relief. Suddenly, a notification popped up on the communicator: [Detection of relief from the second-tier Azure Deer poison sores. Affection level increased: Stranger → Friendly. Unlocked Azure Deer exclusive ability "Natural Aura Barrier" - can shield the aura of all living beings within a 10-meter radius and resist the perception of low-tier ferocious beasts. Duration: 1 hour/time. Cooldown: 30 minutes.]

After finishing the antidote fruit, Qinglu walked up to Su Jing, lowered its head, and gently rubbed its forehead against her arm. The light blue fur was soft and warm, with a faint fragrance of grass and trees. The previous weakness had disappeared, and its eyes were full of affection.

Just then, a deep roar came from afar, causing the leaves around them to fall in a rustling sound. Su Jing's communicator instantly lit up with a red alert: "[500 meters to the northeast, a Tier 1 ferocious beast, the Earth-Splitting Bear, is approaching. Energy fluctuation: low-tier, highly aggressive. Please take precautions.]"

Just as she was about to adjust her flight wing membrane to avoid it, Qinglu suddenly raised its head and gently exhaled towards the northeast. A layer of pale blue light emanated from its body, which quickly spread and enveloped Su Jing and Xiao Jin.

Su Jing instantly felt as if an invisible barrier had been added to the surrounding air. The roar of the Earth-Splitting Bear in the distance was getting closer and closer, but it never got any closer. The communicator prompted: [The Azure Deer's "Natural Aura Barrier" has been activated. The Earth-Splitting Bear has not detected your presence and is moving away from the current area.]

"So this is the aura barrier. It's so useful." Su Jing patted the green deer's head, and the green deer let out a soft groan, as if in response.

Xiao Jin ran between Su Jing and Qing Lu, darting back and forth happily, her dark eyes full of excitement.

Su Jing glanced at the time on her communicator; there was still plenty of time in the instance. Just as she was about to continue exploring, Xiao Jin suddenly grabbed her trouser leg again and pulled her southwest, its eyes filled with the same anticipation as before, clearly having discovered a new clue—