She reached out and picked up a withered branch, then waved it over the damp soil with a flowing ease, leaving behind a series of mysterious patterns and carefully drawing several points that exuded an air of mystery in specific positions. Subsequently, she slowly closed her eyes, as if sinking into a deep meditation. After a while, her eyes snapped open suddenly, and in an instant, a strange crimson light flashed in the depths of her eyes before quickly reverting back to the deep black pupils, as if some mysterious power from the depths of hell had just awakened and then slumbered within her eyes.
"So that's how it is. The divine beast has emerged, and hundreds of beasts are guarding it. The beast tide will descend in about half an hour." She murmured softly, her voice floating faintly in the air like a prophecy from an ancient and mysterious land.
Suddenly, the silence was broken by the sound of footsteps, some heavy and some light. With a flash, Alice rose like a light and nimble bird, her toes barely touching the ground as she climbed up the nearby tree with lush and thick foliage in the blink of an eye. She crouched on a thick branch, like a leopard ready to pounce, watching vigilantly below.
Sure enough, a group of people was approaching in a mighty procession, their momentum like a surging tide. Among the leaders were some old acquaintances of Alice. There was one person who made her heart skip a beat, but she quickly realized that it was the lingering emotions of the original owner causing this. That man had a face as if carved from fine jade, a true Adonis. But compared to Caesar, he was like the glow of a firefly against the radiance of the bright moon, a world of difference. This man was none other than Arthur, the third prince of the Augustan Empire, the one who had broken off the engagement with the original owner.
"Brother, we've been wandering around here for several rounds already. Why can't we find the place where the divine beast is emerging?" complained a coquettish and beautiful girl beside Arthur, pouting impatiently. Her delicate face was slightly distorted with dissatisfaction, like a tender flower battered by a heavy rain.
Arthur affectionately ruffled her hair, his tone as gentle as the spring sun, "Anne, be patient. Good things come to those who wait."
"I heard from Sister Irina that that useless Alice also came to the Flaming Forest. But she's lost now," said Anne, a trace of venom flashing in her eyes, like a poisoned arrow. However, she quickly concealed it, as if it had just been an inadvertent shadow.
As soon as Arthur heard the name "Alice," his brows instantly furrowed tightly together, like two approaching storm clouds.
"Why are you mentioning that useless thing? Even if she's dead, it has nothing to do with me," he said coldly, his voice like frost from the frigid regions, carrying a bone-chilling coldness.
The handsome man beside Arthur, holding a folding fan, shook it gently, looking suave and debonair. He curled the corners of his mouth into a teasing smile, "Oh, Your Highness the Third Prince, you shouldn't say that. She's been infatuated with you for years. Although she's useless, her beauty is truly stunning. Your Highness, why don't you consider taking her as a concubine? What do you all think, everyone?" he said, looking back at the others with a teasing glint in his eyes.
"Right, right, haha..." The others burst into laughter, the sound gratingly loud in the silent forest, like a flock of noisy crows.
"Your Highness, even if she's useless, she's still a great beauty. You should take her," other pampered young masters also chimed in, their eyes twinkling with the anticipation of a good show, like hunters waiting for their prey to fall into a trap.
"Nock, you can have this 'good fortune' instead," Arthur said with a dark expression, his voice cold. His gaze was like tangible frost, shooting straight at Nock as if to freeze him.
Nock, the handsome man with the folding fan, just smiled unrestrained ly, his smile carrying a hint of nonchalance, "Too bad. The beauty doesn't like me. She's been pining for Your Highness all along. It wouldn't be right for me to force my way, would it?"
"Nock, shut up!" Arthur's low voice was filled with suppressed anger, like a volcano on the verge of erupting.
Nock smiled and rubbed his nose, wisely choosing to remain silent, though the smile still lingered in his eyes.
They continued on their way, the sound of their footsteps gradually fading away.
Alice, crouching in the corner of the tree, her eyes slightly darkened, like the deep waters of a lake sending out a chill. It seemed that if she didn't give Arthur and the others some "fun," she wouldn't be able to feel at ease in her heart.
She looked up at the thick foliage as if searching for something. Suddenly, she reached out and quickly plucked dozens of leaves like lightning, her movements as fast as a phantom. Then, with a light leap, she descended like a feather. She glanced in the direction where Arthur and the others had left and then, like a gust of wind, took a detour along the nearest path.
A quarter of an hour later, she arrived at a secluded place. After making a rough calculation, she was certain that Arthur and the others would pass by here. With a meaningful smile on her lips, she began to set up a trap.
After setting up the trap, she didn't linger and immediately turned to leave. After all, the beast tide was about to arrive, and she didn't want to waste time waiting here to see them fall into the trap. Moreover, if she stayed here, there was a high chance of being discovered, which would be troublesome.
If her enmity with Arthur and the others was just a minor grudge, then Irina was her sworn enemy, someone she must kill. The original owner had been so kind to Irina, taking all the good resources from the palace and giving them to her. But what did she do? She mistreated the original owner, tried to kill her, and even threw her off a cliff... Those cruel scenes flashed through Alice's mind, making her eyes colder, like the ice in the polar regions.
Irina, Irina, has your conscience been devoured by the devil?
More and more groups were pouring into the Flaming Forest. Alice encountered several groups along the way, some from the Augustan Empire and some from other countries.
On this vast Camelot Continent, it was divided into the Eastern Continent and the Central Spirit Continent. The Augustan Empire was located on the Eastern Continent, and among the countless countries on the Eastern Continent, the Augustan Empire was only a mediocre and small country, like a dim star among the countless stars.
However, on this continent, a country was not necessarily the most powerful entity. Above the countries were powerful forces such as the Holy Academy, the Alchemy Guild, the Forging Guild, and the Beast Taming Guild.
Nevertheless, those super-first-class great powers had the strength on a par with the Holy Academy and other forces. They were like towering peaks, standing firm on the continent.
The Holy Academy was the sacred land that all the geniuses on the Eastern Continent dreamed of. It was like a treasure trove of knowledge, a cradle for nurturing the strong. Countless powerful individuals were born here, and their names shone like stars on the continent.
The Central Spirit Continent, on the other hand, was full of mysterious colors, as if shrouded by a layer of mist, making it elusive.
The Eastern Continent and the Central Spirit Continent were separated by a vast and boundless sea. That sea was like an insurmountable chasm. There were countless saint-level sea beasts in the sea, and they were the overlords of this sea area, each possessing the power to destroy the world. Crossing this sea was already as difficult as climbing to the sky. Moreover, there were various natural disasters and man-made calamities in the sea, like the numerous obstacles set by the devil, blocking people's footsteps.
Therefore, there was almost no connection between the Central Spirit Continent and the Eastern Continent, like two parallel worlds.
However, it was said that the area of the Eastern Continent was only a quarter of that of the Central Spirit Continent, and the vastness of the Central Spirit Continent was unimaginable.
Alice ran swiftly in the direction she had calculated. Her figure was like a meteor streaking across the night sky. Before long, she arrived at her destination, only to find that several groups of people were already waiting there.
They were all tightly guarding a pitch-black cave, their eyes glittering with greed and anticipation, like a pack of hungry wolves eyeing their soon-to-be-caught prey, ready to pounce at the opportune moment. Around the cave, countless high-level magical beasts were circling, and among them, several saint-level magical beasts were lying on the ground. Their huge bodies exuded a powerful aura, like small hills.
The gazes of those magical beasts were extremely fierce, staring fixedly at the humans, as if the moment the humans made the slightest move, they would rush forward like a surging tide and tear the humans into pieces.
However, at this moment, both sides remained restrained, and no one made a rash move, like the calm before the storm, maintaining a strange and fragile balance.
Alice immediately spotted a familiar figure among the crowd. Her eyes instantly became as sharp as knives, gleaming with a cold light, like the cold glint of winter.
With a flash, she quickly hid behind a big tree, her movements so fast that they left almost no trace.
Her emotions stirred slightly. So Irina was here too! Wanting to contract with the divine beast? Hah, what a pipe dream!
She reached out and tore off a piece of bloodstained cloth from her dress, then skillfully tied it around the back of her head, covering most of her face, leaving only her clear and beautiful phoenix-like eyes visible, like twinkling stars in the night sky, mysterious and charming.
Alice deliberately leaked a trace of her aura, which was like a tempting bait in the dark, exuding a dangerous allure.
"Who is it? Come out!" A thunderous shout suddenly rang out, breaking the oppressive silence and echoing in the air, making the surrounding leaves tremble slightly.
"Boom—"
The huge tree that required five people to encircle was suddenly broken in an instant, with wood chips flying everywhere. What came into everyone's view was a woman dressed in a loose and ill-fitting black robe. The woman's long black hair was tied up high by a ribbon into a neat ponytail. She wore a white face-covering scarf with bloodstains on it, revealing only her eyes, yet one could still sense the authority in her gaze. She stood with her hands behind her back, her posture upright, calm and composed, as if nothing around her could shake her.
"Who are you?" A middle-aged man with a kind face frowned and asked, yet the occasional glint of a sinister look in his eyes betrayed that he was not as kind as he appeared.
Alice gave a cold laugh, the sound like the freezing wind on an iceberg, bone-chilling and cold: "It's not your place to question who I am." Her voice was neither male nor female, yet carried an air of natural superiority, like a surging and powerful wave, sweeping over everyone and inspiring awe.
Alice delicately picked up a tender green leaf with her slender fingers and casually tossed it in the direction of the middle-aged man. The leaf spun in the air and slowly floated towards the middle-aged man.
The middle-aged man immediately became vigilant, activating his magic power throughout his body to prepare for defense, like a frightened hedgehog raising its spines. However, the leaf landed lightly on his hand without any movement, just like an ordinary fallen leaf.
"How dare you play tricks on me, you brat?" The middle-aged man flew into a rage, his face instantly turning red, his eyes seeming to spit fire. In his fury, he unconsciously clenched his hand, crushing the leaf into powder.
At that instant, a deafening explosion rang out, like a thunderclap on flat ground. The middle-aged man's hand was blown to a bloody mess, and he let out a painful scream. Fortunately, he reacted promptly and quickly activated his magic power to protect himself, avoiding the misfortune of having his entire hand blown off.
However, although his hand wasn't blown off, the skin on his hand that had been blown off still looked ghastly, with blood continuously gushing from the wound and dripping onto the ground, like blooming blood flowers.
"Father!" A delicate and beautiful girl saw this and her pupils constricted sharply, her eyes full of horror. She rushed forward immediately, supporting her father's slightly trembling body, her voice choked with sobs.
"How cruel you are!" The girl suddenly raised her head, her eyes burning with angry flames, glaring at Alice, "My father just asked you a few questions, and you were so ruthless!"