"Didn't you hear the mother tree talking to you?!"

Long, silky green hair swept past her eyes, and beneath it, a swift, sweeping leg came hurtling towards Xu Ling with lightning speed.

Xu Ling noticed only a fleeting green glint in the corner of her eye, but she immediately became alert without a second thought.

Therefore, as the attack was about to begin, she reacted quickly by stepping on her right foot with her left, which changed her forward momentum and caused her to fall backward.

That wasn't enough. Xu Ling immediately bent back, her supple waist instantly forming an arch, successfully dodging the elf's attack.

When her first attack failed, Emerald snorted and withdrew her leg. If she hadn't been seriously injured last night, her sweeping leg would have probably made that useless Lingling vomit blood, not to mention that she dodged it!

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. By the time Kaopu reacted, the attack between the two had already ended!

"Tsk!"

Unable to hold back any longer, the elf looked at Xu Ling, who had stumbled back several steps before finally regaining her footing, and clicked her tongue lightly, her expression filled with utter contempt.

Xu Ling's gaze immediately darkened. She had previously thought the elf was indescribably beautiful, but now she found him repulsive.

Why are you stopping me?

Emerald twisted her long hair with her right hand, glancing at her impatiently.

"Didn't you hear what the mother tree said?"

Emerald's eyes clearly conveyed, "You can't possibly be unable to understand human language, can you?" She even gave Xu Ling a smirk.

"Jade, what did you promise me?!"

The Tree of Life roared at the elves, but its voice remained weak and feeble, utterly lacking any deterrent power!

However, at least it spoke up, and Emerald pouted but didn't open its mouth again to continue being annoying.

Seeing that Emerald had calmed down and stood aside with her arms crossed, Xu Ling pursed her lips but didn't say anything. She just expressionlessly lifted her foot and started to walk forward again.

However, Xu Ling underestimated Emerald. Just as she took a few steps forward, before she even reached Emerald, Emerald took a step forward and, oblivious to her rudeness, blocked her way again.

"you--"

Xu Ling was immediately enraged, her eyes blazing with fury, and she glared angrily at Jade.

What is she trying to do?!

Emerald shrugged fearlessly, but before she could say anything infuriating, the Tree of Life spoke up, attracting Xu Ling's attention.

"Lingling, there really are no enemies!"

With that extremely weak voice, the Tree of Life emphasized it again and again.

Nevertheless, the suspicion in Xu Ling and Kao Pu's eyes did not lessen much.

Left with no other option, the Tree of Life had to tell the truth.

"My tree roots were bitten off by insects, so... that's why so many leaves fell!"

Xu Ling and Reliable: ······

Even a ghost wouldn't believe that!

The suspicion in their eyes deepened.

Jade was utterly speechless.

What a lame excuse!

Let alone others, even she, the instigator, would have to be suspicious after hearing this!

The Tree of Life itself knew that this was a lie that couldn't be more fake, but... in this desolate place, who could it possibly blame?

Should we just openly admit that it was done by the jadeite?

Don't forget, this troublesome elf hasn't left a good impression on Xu Ling and the others since it appeared yesterday!

If this is added to the mix, it goes without saying that everyone will be wary of jade!

Whether or not she takes precautions, Jade is naturally not concerned.

Be on guard! You've got guts; even if you're in danger, keep being on guard against her!

However, what was no big deal for Jade was a different story for Xu Ling and her group!

Putting everything else aside, these women are almost all elderly, weak, sick, disabled, and young. What would they do if they encountered a highly skilled enemy?

Resisting might just make you look like a clown in their eyes!

Or should we simply surrender and let ourselves be slaughtered?

In any case, the Tree of Life does not want to see such consequences!

They clearly have powerful allies who could fight them, so why don't they use them?

In order to prevent such a terrible situation from occurring, the Tree of Life had to conceal the truth.

Besides, Jade promised it that it would help Lingling find Ruth!

It still suspected that Ruth's disappearance was related to it, and with Emerald's help, wouldn't it be twice as effective?

Therefore, even when faced with Xu Ling and Kaopu's undisguised suspicion, the Tree of Life still insisted that this was the case!

Xu Ling asked repeatedly, but received the same answer from the Tree of Life, causing her brows to furrow deeply.

His deep gaze remained fixed on the Tree of Life.

If you said there wasn't something fishy going on, even a fool wouldn't believe it!

How could there be insects in a barren land, a place where not a single hair can be found?

Is this bug stupid, or just plain stupid, to insist on coming to this place where there's nothing at all to die!

In short, the Tree of Life is definitely hiding something!

Xu Ling was about to press for details when Kaopu stepped in front of her, stopping her from speaking.

Just then, Fei Er ran towards them from afar.

"My lord! What's wrong?"

As an adult Moonlight Silver Wolf, Fei Er was naturally much more perceptive than others. Although Xu Ling only uttered one word, he still clearly caught it.

Almost instantly, Fei opened her silver-gray eyes, which were devoid of any trace of chaos.

Fei Er did not act immediately, but listened quietly for a while until he heard muffled voices coming from outside the door. Only then did he stand up and walk out of the granary.

At that time, Thanos was still rolling around beside him, fast asleep.

As Fei'er got closer and closer to Xu Ling, his previously confused expression suddenly changed.

"Who did this?!"

Seeing the fallen leaves scattered on the ground, Fei Er roared in surprise and anger.

For the first time, Xu Ling clearly read shock, anger, and terror on Fei Er's face.

"What are you yelling about! What's there to yell about!"

Before Xu Ling could say anything in response to Fei Er's shock and anger, the Tree of Life immediately retorted loudly and without any politeness.

Xu Ling is one thing, but why is Moonlight Silver Wolf getting involved?

"Waaah—"

To everyone's surprise, the Tree of Life responded in this way, its anger undisguised, and it charged straight at Fei'er.

Immediately, Fei'er tucked her tail between her legs, lay down on the ground, and whimpered for mercy.

"I'm sorry, Tree of Life!"

Although he didn't know what he had done wrong, he didn't utter a single word of rebuttal and immediately apologized and admitted his mistake.

"snort!"

The bare branches began to shake violently, and the few remaining green leaves swayed precariously before finally succumbing to the weight and falling to the ground.