The old man attacked the dummy Raed had left behind with all his might.
"Die, you damned child! Learn not to offend me in your next life."
The old man snarled with a fierce grin as he struck, but his expression changed to one of horror when he realized the target was merely a wooden dummy.
The real shock came when a strange powder fell from the dummy onto him.
"What is this strange powder? It's not poisonous. Has this kid lost his mind?"
Despite being an alchemist, the old man couldn't identify the powder. But soon, he understood its nature when a distant monkey rushed toward him with a lustful gaze.
"Damn it, it's an aphrodisiac for demonic monkeys. This is dangerous. I need to escape immediately!"
The old man tried to flee quickly, but the demonic monkey was incredibly fast, especially among the trees.
The monkey struck the old man in the back, knocking him to the ground. It tore at his clothes and approached him, trying to assault him.
"Get away, you damned monkey! Damn it, get off!"
The old man struggled, drew his sword, and stabbed the monkey in the belly, killing it. However, he was left both enraged and deeply embarrassed.
"I'll kill you..."
The elder roared loudly, shaking the entire forest, and pursued Raed again, following the energy trail.
Blinded by rage, he didn't consider that Raed might have deliberately left the energy trail as a trap.Raed heard the old man's roar and laughed heartily but continued to flee.
"You'll like the next gift even more, you old fart."
Raed said with a grin. After a while, another furious roar echoed behind him.
"Ah... Damn you, I swear I'll kill you, you damned child."
Earlier, the old man had been following Raed's energy trail at full speed when he stepped on a thread across the path.This thread was the one Raed had set up, made from the silk of a caterpillar.
Raed had tied one end to a tree and the other end to a tree across from it, pulling one tree toward the other.
The tightened tree had a wooden board attached to a barrel at the end.
The barrel was directly above the area with Raed's energy, but this time the energy trail continued so the old man wouldn't realize it was a trap.
Before reaching the thread, Raed had set up another trap nearby—a different thread connected to an arrow on the other end.
The old man, moving with anger, stepped on the first thread, causing the arrow to shoot toward his face at high speed.
"Hmph, do you think this trick will fool me?"
The old man used his power to deflect the arrow, but it had already achieved its purpose. The old man's speed was slowed.
The arrow released another powder Raed had prepared to fall when the old man destroyed it.
Feeling the powder, the old man was horrified and finally stopped.
But it was too late—his steps halted after he collided with the second thread and stopped directly above the barrel.
The tightened tree snapped back in the opposite direction, causing the barrel to tilt and spill its contents all over the old man.
"Ugh... What is this smell?... Damn it, it's the filth from that eye... Vomit... Vomit... I'll kill... Vomit."
Then he saw a shiny energy forming words:
"This is a token of appreciation from the young master for your hard work. Enjoy."
This message made the old man even more distressed and furious.The old man vomited heavily. Raed's plan was truly devious.
But the worst was yet to come—had he forgotten the powder?The old man hadn't finished vomiting when he noticed a massive swarm of insects heading toward him, crawling all over his body and starting to bite.
"Ah, damn it, it's an insect-attracting powder. I need to find a lake quickly. Ah, yes, fire will scare some of them away."
The old man hurriedly searched for a lake, temporarily abandoning the chase after Raed. He needed to rid himself of the foul smell and insects, or he would truly die if they continued to bite him.
"Damn, damn, damn... It's so painful and filthy. I need to get rid of it quickly. Ah... Stop, you damned insects... Ah!"
The old man continued to suffer, and his cries attracted many more monsters that attacked him. He fought them off, but the smell of blood drew even more beasts.
The old man sustained numerous injuries but still hadn't found a lake.After about thirty breaths, the old man finally found a lake after great difficulty and numerous injuries from the monsters.
He jumped into the water fully clothed, washing away the filth and powder, and dispersing the insects.
"Ahhh... Water is truly the holiest thing. It's a blessing from the heavens. I hope it cleanses me of that bastard's filth."
The old man stayed in the lake for three hours, then emerged and used fire to dry himself. He used his spiritual power to inspect himself.
"Ahhh... Damn it, why does my face look like this?"