Misty Forest (1)

In the rustling jungle, a sturdy woman stood, her black hair braided and tied back with a gray ribbon. A gray long-sleeved blouse covered her hips, and slightly darker trousers of the same color hugged her strong legs, the cuffs rolled up slightly above her ankles, revealing bare ankles speckled with dark green. She wore green straw sandals, the soles of which were covered in mud. A longbow slung across her shoulder, and a bulging satchel was stuffed full of items. She nimbly climbed a large tree beside her, crouched among the branches, picked up the bow with one hand, and drew an arrow from the satchel with the other. With a "whoosh," the arrow flew. She remained crouched in the tree, observing for a moment, then drew another arrow and fired. In just a few moments, she had fired seven or eight arrows. At that moment, a pack of wolves surrounded her from beneath the tree. Each wolf was tall and wiry, their eyes gleaming with ferocity as they stared at the girl in the tree. This girl is Mi, who has walked alone in the forest for countless days and nights. Compared to when she first came out of the Witch Forest, Mi's eyes are fiercer, her muscles are more muscular, and her movements are more agile. Compared to the pack of wolves on the ground, Mi is more like a lone wolf.

Mi rose from the branch she had been crouching on, slung her bow over her shoulder, and a gleaming sword appeared out of thin air in her hand. Judging the distance between the trees, she leaped to another, sword in hand, and darted forward. Soon, she disappeared from the wolves' sight, and the howls of wolves echoed from the distant forest. Following the sound, Mi finally found the alpha wolf and the white-furred wolf behind it on the hillside. She concealed her presence, darting through the undergrowth to find the perfect angle, then drew her bow and fired an arrow into the alpha wolf's back. The wolf fell dead, and the enraged alpha wolf lunged at Mi, who raised her sword to parry.

The alpha wolf was much larger and more robust, its strength and speed far surpassing any of the wolves Mi had encountered before. Mi was quickly pounced upon, his sword piercing the wolf's belly. As Mi crawled out from under the wolf's stomach, the alpha wolf collapsed, its eyes wide with resentment. Mi pulled his sword from the wolf's belly, listened intently for any sounds in the forest, and swiftly climbed a tree and left. No sooner had Mi turned away than the emaciated wolf pack arrived at their alpha, howling and scattering. Hyenas, drawn by the scent of blood, quickly arrived and began tearing at the wolf king's carcass. The next day, vultures, who feed on carrion, emerged from some unknown corner, while ants and reptiles scurried about, racing against the forest's predators to steal the wolf king's corpse.

After leaving the tree, Mi returned to the spot where he had shot the wolves, retrieved the arrows he had fired, wiped them clean, and carefully put them back into his satchel. The arrow that had killed the wolf had been broken in two by the wolf king.

Before sunset, Mi found a large tree entwined with vines and set up a wicker bed. As night deepened, dappled moonlight filtered through the leaves. By the moonlight, Mi sharpened her arrows. The birdsong and insect chirps in the forest gradually subsided, leaving only the sound of Mi sharpening her arrows. The arrows Mi had brought from the Fallen Leaf Valley were long gone, and she had no idea where her hammock was, lost somewhere in the Misty Forest. Her sheepskin boots were worn out, and now Mi could only wear straw sandals. Her clothes were torn several times and almost beyond repair. After putting away her arrows, Mi rummaged through her satchel and found a piece of animal hide, which she didn't know what kind, and sewed it into a short skirt for herself.

Animals in the forest are highly territorial, especially large carnivores. Their noses are incredibly sensitive, and they could quickly find Mi as soon as she entered their territory. Mi didn't know how El and Joe had crossed the Misty Forest. She activated her combat mode, leaving behind many animal carcasses in her wake. When she encountered a wolf, she became a wolf; when she encountered a bear, she became a bear.

The Misty Forest stretched endlessly. Mi chose a direction and walked straight ahead. The weather grew warmer, and the forest was filled with the scent of spring. The leaves were becoming increasingly tender green, and flowers of all colors bloomed in profusion: vibrant reds, pure whites, bright yellows, delicate pinks, and tiny green blossoms trembling gracefully among the branches. The forest began to swarm with birds of all shapes and sizes, their calls a chaotic cacophony. Mi simply stopped to admire the spectacle of birds courting.

The tiny yellow bird, about the size of a palm, with a bright red crest on its head, looked like a miniature chick. Its head bobbed up and down, making Mi laugh. Its chirping sounded just like a chick's, "cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep," but to Mi's ears, these sounds meant "Look at me! Look at me!" "Choose me! Choose me!" A little while later, a grayish little bird appeared, so ugly it was almost endearing. The two contrasting birds spread their wings and circled and danced in the air. Before long, pairs of chicks began gathering twigs to build their nests.

The sturdy golden pheasant, about a foot tall, has grown new, magnificent feathers. It drags its colorful tail as it wanders back and forth in the grass. Occasionally, it encounters another brightly colored golden pheasant and insists on fighting it. They peck at each other until feathers fly everywhere and combs bleed. Before long, a short, stout, gray-black hen emerges from the grass.

The various birds and chickens in the forest vied for attention, dazzling Mi. As the birdsong gradually subsided and nests were completed, Mi shouldered her repacked bag and continued her journey. Whether in dense forests or open spaces, everywhere was the thriving of primitive animals, the forest filled with the scent of mating, making one feel weak in the knees. The air was humid and stifling, mingling with the pungent smell of excrement, leaving Mi dizzy and disoriented. Mi hurried on her way, eager to leave this forest brimming with life and desire as quickly as possible.

Mi continued trekking through the forest. The dense undergrowth stretched endlessly, with patches of overgrown weeds interspersed among the trees. The jungle and grasslands crisscrossed, seemingly without end. Mi's initial enthusiasm had turned into utter boredom. The tension and excitement he felt at the beginning had been worn away by the daily repetition, and his initial excitement had faded into weariness.

Spring in the Misty Forest is filled with the breath of reproduction; new life is born one after another, and the arrival of new life is accompanied by the loss of others. In this primeval forest, far from human habitation, lies a primal world of survival of the fittest, where hunting, killing, birth, and death play out daily. Soft clusters of light constantly appear, and equally different clusters of light constantly disappear into the forest.

Here, Mi encountered the eagle that always appeared in the Fallen Leaf Valley. Karin, who had run away from her arranged marriage, always received prey from the eagle and prepared various meat strips for it. This time, Mi witnessed the eagle's failed hunt and a rabbit's resistance. When the eagle appeared, Mi was studying the vegetation at the foot of the tree to see if it was a certain herb drawn by El. One brood of rabbits darted through the woods, and Mi had no idea that a life-or-death struggle was about to unfold before her eyes.

An eagle stood on a distant cliff, its gray plumage almost blending into the grey of the mountain. Mi, carrying herbs, sat resting on a tree branch. The distant mountains, the red sun overhead, the birds in the forest, the small animals on the grass—everything seemed so natural and harmonious. If the sound of the eagle's flapping wings hadn't startled Mi from his reverie, and if the frantic scurrying of the rabbit hadn't drawn his attention, Mi would never have witnessed this miraculous "rabbit kicking the eagle" event.

The eagle swooped down on the fattest and dumbest rabbit, and Mi tensed up. She leaned out, held her breath, and watched the chubby, dim-witted rabbit. Just as the eagle's talons were about to strike, the rabbit suddenly arched its back and hopped forward. "Thank goodness, the rabbit escaped!" Mi breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing the rabbit run away, the eagle wasn't about to give up so easily. It flapped its wings and continued chasing after the rabbit.

Seeing that the rabbit hadn't entered the jungle yet, Mi grew anxious. "Hurry, run into the forest!" The rabbit didn't hear Mi's calls, and the eagle caught up with it. With a hunt, no different from any other, about to end, Mi sat back down, picking at the withered leaves from the herbs in her hand, her eyes fixed on the eagle's movements: "I wonder if the eagle will give the rabbit to Karin this time?"

Mi stood up. The Witch Forest was now far behind, and Fallen Leaf Valley had lost its way several days ago. Mi thought that perhaps the direction the eagle had flown was towards Fallen Leaf Valley. Just when Mi thought the outcome was decided, the rabbit suddenly leaped up, its hind legs kicking at the eagle. To Mi's surprise, he saw the eagle clearly retreating and a pair of rabbit paw prints on its belly. After a brief retreat, the eagle continued forward, its sharp talons grabbing the rabbit's spine, the sharp tips piercing the rabbit's back. The rabbit, caught, curled up and kicked the eagle's belly again. The eagle swayed, gripping the rabbit tightly, flapping its wings and flying upwards. Halfway up, the eagle finally lost its strength, and the rabbit fell from its talons. Mi saw the rabbit crash onto the grass, briefly dizzy, then flip and run away. The eagle flapped its wings a few more times in the air before crashing down.

Mi ran over in surprise. The eagle was struggling on the ground, its wing broken, blood seeping from the base of the severed feather. The eagle's sharp eyes were fixed on Mi, its sharp beak hooking at the rocks, trying to get it up and fly again. Mi picked up the eagle to examine it. The broken wing was fractured, but the most serious injury was to its abdomen. Mi parted the soft feathers to reveal skin that was purplish-black, and there were even two deep cuts on its abdomen, revealing its internal organs sliding out of the wounds. Mi used a rope to bind the eagle's belly and a small twig to temporarily stabilize its broken wing before placing it beside the rocks.

The next day, Mi found the rabbit in the woods, the one that had been injured by the eagle the day before. The rabbit had several bloody wounds on its back and was crawling on the ground. Mi went to check on it and found that in addition to the wounds on its back, the rabbit had two broken legs and could no longer hop. In this forest full of predators and prey, this rabbit would soon reach the end of its life and become food for some carnivore. Meanwhile, the eagle that Mi had placed on the rock had also perished in the jaws of some predator overnight, leaving only half of its head and a pile of scattered twigs that Mi had used to bandage it.

Two days later, in a clearing in the jungle, Mi encountered a doe giving birth in distress. The fawn was struggling frantically, one leg sticking out of its mother's body, and large tears streamed from the mother's eyes. Mi heard the voice again: "Help me, please help me." "Save me, save me, I can't breathe." Mi went over, watched quietly for a while, and then bound the doe's hooves with vines. In her mind, she desperately cried out, "Don't move, don't move!"

Mi reached out to comfort the mother deer, but this time she saw a patch of blood on the mother's body, and intense pain tore at Mi. Mi trembled all over, she opened her mouth wide and took a deep breath, finally reaching out to touch the fawn. A surge of maternal love washed over her, and the fawn stopped struggling, quietly nestled against Mi's palm.

Despite the intense pain, Mi reached in with her other hand and gently pulled the fawn out of the mother's arms. Unsure if this was the right way for the fawn to give birth, she placed the fawn before its mother. The mother licked her newborn, and a surge of joy welled up in Mi's heart. The fawn was truly beautiful. Mi stood up and cautiously stepped back, gathering some grass and leafy branches to place before the mother. Then, she broke the vines binding the mother's hooves and immediately leaped up, grabbing the branches and swinging to the tree above the mother's head.

The mother deer looked up at Mi, then lowered her head to continue grazing. The fawn that Mi had pulled out had already opened its eyes. Mi sat on a tree branch, watching the fawn intently as it struggled to stand up, its limbs swaying, and began to call out to its mother.