FI CH 9

Chapter 9: Rainforest Siege (III)

Among the six of them, An Shi was the most severely injured. The wolves had torn into him without mercy, ripping through flesh and leaving several wounds so deep that bone was visible—gruesome and shocking to behold.

But this wasn’t the time to focus on healing. They had merely escaped the enemy’s spiritual landscape temporarily. Their opponent could launch the same mental assault again at any moment.

Kurosawa couldn’t afford to worry about his own injuries. He once again activated his spiritual power to guide the group toward a safer route, steering them away from falling into another trap. However, having just used a large-scale spiritual suppression, his head throbbed painfully after only a short time.

Wei Yang, supporting the Sentinel who had saved him, was fully occupied and unable to assist. Another Guide named Zhu Yan took the initiative and stepped in to take over Kurosawa’s task.

They remained on high alert, cautiously moving at a steady and safe pace to avoid further danger.

Just then, Bai Hua said, “No signal…”

Their tracking devices had apparently stopped working the moment they entered the enemy’s mental landscape.

“This was premeditated,” Kurosawa added. “Jing He was just the bait. We walked straight into their trap.”

Everyone’s heart sank at his words.

Bai Hua asked, “But why lure us here? What do they want?”

“I don’t know. What’s certain is that up until now, they’ve only been testing us. They haven’t actually gone in for the kill.”

Wei Yang glanced at the wounded Sentinel beside him, then at Kurosawa. His fists clenched tightly, eyes filled with frustration and anger.

The fact that their opponent was toying with them left everyone deeply unsettled.

Bai Hua asked again, “If we can’t contact the outside, what now?”

“We head in the direction where the helicopter was supposed to wait. We need to retreat as soon as possible.” Kurosawa, with his wealth of field experience, had already instructed the helicopter to remain at a specific location, anticipating the possibility of a communications blackout.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yan immediately took the lead and guided the team toward the helicopter.

Fortunately, they didn’t encounter any further attacks along the way. But things didn’t improve—in fact, they got worse. When they arrived at the designated site, they discovered the helicopter had already been destroyed. It had been consumed in a blaze, charred completely black. The pilot hadn’t even had time to escape—he’d been burned alive inside.

Another Sentinel, seeing the scene, cursed angrily. “No wonder they didn’t attack us again. Are they planning to slowly toy with us?”

Bai Hua glanced at the Sentinel, whose name was Wu Jin, and calmly said, “Don’t lose your temper. That would only play right into their hands.”

Frustrated, Wu Jin turned away and kicked at a nearby pebble.

At that moment, Wei Yang finally lost his composure. He gently set An Shi down on the ground, tore open his clothes, and began emergency treatment on his wounds. An Shi’s blood had pooled beneath him, staining nearly half his uniform. Wei Yang didn’t care. He pulled out a medical kit, stitching and bandaging the worst of the gashes, then used his spiritual ability to soothe An Shi, who was slipping into semi-consciousness due to blood loss.

Seeing this, the rest of the team stopped talking and began tending to their own injuries in silence.

Bai Hua’s wounds, though numerous and dense, were mostly superficial. Even without treatment, they’d heal on their own within a day. He turned to look at Kurosawa, who had taken off his shirt and was applying medicine to himself. His body was strong and well-trained, but across his chest, near his heart, was a deep gash left by claws—so deep the flesh curled outward. A matching wound marked his back, symmetrical but just as brutal. Kurosawa clearly couldn’t reach that far on his own, so Bai Hua walked over to take over for him.

Looking at those vicious wounds, Bai Hua could almost visualize how dire that moment must have been. The raptor that attacked him had clearly aimed to pierce straight through his heart. Just a little deeper…

“You didn’t have to…” Bai Hua began to speak without thinking. He had meant to say that Kurosawa didn’t need to protect him—but halfway through, he swallowed the rest of the sentence. This had been a matter of battlefield coordination. Saying something like that would’ve only disrespected Kurosawa.

During the mission with Jing He, they hadn’t developed any kind of rapport. And yet, this accident—this near-death crisis—had forged a seamless synergy between them.

Kurosawa didn’t press the issue. As if he understood what Bai Hua had wanted to say, he simply smiled and said, “Don’t worry. I know my limits.”

Hearing that, Bai Hua was nearly driven to madness. He could barely hold back a string of sarcastic retorts.

After a short rest, everyone’s strength had mostly recovered, and their nerves weren’t as tense as before. They hadn’t truly reached a point of despair yet. Once the Sentinel-Guide Association realized they’d lost contact with the team, they would definitely send a rescue squad. For now, their only option was to wait—conserving their strength and mental energy to deal with whatever tactics the enemy might throw at them next.

Kurosawa was mentally retracing the sequence of events—from when they first fell into the trap, to the ensuing battle. It was then he seemed to have realized something. He turned to the others and said, “This person must be a Guide, and they specialize in dealing with groups of enemies through entrapment. The mental landscape they created blended seamlessly with the physical environment—that has to be connected to their spirit form. But… it might also require a specific condition.”

Bai Hua asked, “A condition?”

“Yes. All predators have certain hunting habits,” Kurosawa replied. “Like how snakes need to constrict or poison their prey before they can swallow something larger than themselves. This Guide waited until we unknowingly circled back to our original location before launching the attack. It’s like their method of binding prey—suggesting that doing so may make their illusions harder to detect or disrupt. Also, when we were retreating earlier, we kept to the safe perimeter, and they made no move against us. It might be because they couldn’t find another opening to strike.”

Bai Hua asked again, “Are you saying you’ve figured something out?”

“I suspect their spirit form is similar to that of a spider—or some other creature skilled at ensnaring prey,” Kurosawa answered.

Realization dawned on everyone.

Although they had already heard that Kurosawa was an outstanding Guide, witnessing his keen powers of observation and deduction firsthand still left Bai Hua quietly impressed.

“If that’s the case,” Wei Yang added, “it’ll be much easier to counter him now that we know.”

But Kurosawa shook his head. “His ability is actually best used in support roles. But if he has a partner—a skilled Sentinel backing him up…”

Everyone fell silent.

Then Bai Hua spoke, “If I’m not mistaken, excluding Jing He, there are three people on their side.”

Kurosawa nodded. “Which is exactly why I said they were merely testing us, not trying to kill us yet.”

Bai Hua looked at him, and from his expression, it was clear he already had a strong idea of what the enemy’s next move would be. After all, Jing He alone had already proven capable of killing six Sentinel-Guides. Let alone the other combat-hardened experts accompanying her.

Who these people really were no longer mattered as much as what they were going to do next. Because once the probing ended… the real assault was likely coming.

“The next time they strike,” Bai Hua warned, “everyone needs to stay together. They’ll likely try to split us up.”

The mood turned heavy again after that last exchange, but no one showed signs of fear or avoidance.

At that moment, An Shi finally regained consciousness. He slowly sat up with difficulty, yet his back remained perfectly straight. The bandages they had just applied were already stained red with fresh blood.

Wei Yang, who had been sitting beside him, immediately scolded him not to move, but An Shi didn’t seem to feel any pain at all. He even turned to the Guide next to him and quietly said “thank you”—a sign that he’d remained at least partially conscious during the worst of his injuries.

Seeing this, Bai Hua felt considerably more at ease. On the other hand, Wei Yang inexplicably blushed.

Despite still being in an extremely dangerous environment—perhaps even still under enemy surveillance—none of them flinched. They had already steeled their resolve… calmly awaiting the enemy’s next assault.

(To be continued…)
T/L: Oh… I smell something fishy… Wei Yang x An Shi?? Hahaha ¬‿¬