Chapter 132

Chapter 132: Discovering Ten-Thousand-Year Myriad-Transforming Wood

Along the way, Shen Sang Ruo had found several pieces of Protean Wood, but each was only a hundred years old, and no heart core had formed inside the trunks yet.

The two of them and one bear kept searching through the Phantom Mirage Domain, and at last they started to find Protean Wood that was more than a thousand years old.

She stopped before a giant tree so thick it would take more than a dozen people joining hands to circle it. This was the oldest Protean Wood they had found so far, already five thousand years old.

She traced the bark’s patterns and said: “Search for two more days. No matter what we find, we return to Wuqing Stockade first.”

In just a few days the Old Shaman would appear, and she had to be back before then.

If they could find a Ten-Thousand-Year Myriad-Transforming Wood, that would be best. If not, it was fine; this trip was mainly to scout the route.

By now she knew where the Protean Wood groves lay and had marked them on her map.

Fang Yu nodded; he would follow all of Shen Sang Ruo’s plans.

They skirted around that Protean Wood and searched ahead. The Bamboo Bear hanging behind her neck twitched its nose and suddenly opened its eyes. It bit the cloth at her shoulder and tugged hard toward another direction.

Shen Sang Ruo looked surprised. She lifted it to face her, big eyes meeting little ones, while the furry body kept twisting toward the way it had tugged.

She frowned and muttered: “Strange. It has been quiet these past few days. Why act up all of a sudden?”

Ever since it had latched on to her, the Bamboo Bear was like a hanging ornament. If it didn’t sometimes thump her with its thick paw to ask for bamboo, she would almost forget it was there.

Fang Yu guessed: “Maybe it wants bamboo and wants us to take it that way to find some?”

He coaxed: “Here, this is tasty. How about we don’t go over there?”

He pulled out a piece of Bloodtear Jade Bamboo and held it to the Bamboo Bear, but the bear smacked it away with its chubby paw pad.

He blurted: “Hey, you…”

The Bamboo Bear still didn’t stop. It slid down her body to her feet, bit her skirt hem, and dragged her toward that direction.

The little guy used all its strength and almost pulled her over.

After a few seconds of tugging, it plopped onto the ground, panting hard. Once it caught its breath, it got up and tugged again, as if she had to follow, no matter what.

Fang Yu said in a mocking tone: “You just have to go that way, huh? Who is even over there?”

The little one ignored him and stubbornly insisted that she walk that way.

Shen Sang Ruo watched its odd behavior, thought for a moment, and said: “The Phantom Mirage Domain is a mysterious place. The Bamboo Bear is called the Spirit of the Wilds here, so maybe it found something. Let’s go see.”

With only two days left, the chance of finding Ten-Thousand-Year Myriad-Transforming Wood was slim. It was better to see what this little Bamboo Bear wanted to do.

She stepped out in the direction it wanted.

Seeing her move, the Bamboo Bear lazily crawled back onto her. It truly did not want to walk even one extra step.

Since Shen Sang Ruo had spoken, Fang Yu had no objections and followed.

All along the way, the Bamboo Bear kept tugging her clothes to guide her, and the path it showed was surprisingly clear.

Shen Sang Ruo grew more certain it wasn’t acting on a whim or playing around. It really had a goal.

The Bamboo Bear led them around twist after twist, along odd little trails that normal travelers would never choose.

After almost half a day, they had gone far from the Protean Wood forest behind them.

Fang Yu’s voice turned doubtful as he said: “Big sister Sang Ruo, this chubby ball isn’t tricking us, right?”

She marked her map, lifted her gaze, and said: “No rush. If in another half day we still find nothing, we head back.”

The little Bamboo Bear nodded along, then rolled its eyes at Fang Yu as if to say it could only carry them so far.

After about four more hours, the little Bamboo Bear stopped tugging in new directions and signaled for her to look up.

The trees here were not very dense. Through a gap above, Shen Sang Ruo saw a tree in the distance that was clearly taller than the rest.

Its crown looked a bit yellow, which was why she noticed it at once.

She stared and asked: “Is that… Protean Wood?”

The Bamboo Bear sat straight on her shoulder, chest puffed out, full of pride.

She asked: “You kept pulling me over here to help me find Protean Wood?”

By her judgment, that Protean Wood looked bigger and older than any they had seen before. Its age might be close to ten thousand years.

The Bamboo Bear nodded and gave her a pleased look, as if to say she finally understood bear logic.

Fang Yu did a complete about-face and exclaimed: “Brother Bear, I bow to you!”

The Bamboo Bear didn’t bother with him. It twitched its nose; something smelled strange.

Joy rose on Shen Sang Ruo’s face. She patted the little guy and said: “Thank you.”

They quickened their pace toward the Protean Wood.

Soon a towering tree came into view.

Fang Yu exclaimed: “Goodness, the trunk is big enough to build a three bedroom and a living room inside.”

Shen Sang Ruo said nothing and stepped straight up to it. This had to be a Protean Wood more than ten thousand years old.

But her joy did not last. A heavy look replaced it.

On the far side of the trunk, someone had dug a huge pit, and piles of wood shavings filled the bottom.

That spot was exactly where the Heart Core of Myriad-Change Wood should be. The core was gone.

She frowned and said: “We came late. The heart core has already been taken.”

From the digging marks, it seemed to have happened within the last few months. It was impossible not to feel regret.

Ten-Thousand-Year Myriad-Transforming Wood was so hard to find. Who knew where the next one was.

The Bamboo Bear sneezed, rubbed its nose, and peered into the pit. In the next moment, fire flashed in its bead-like eyes.

Sensing its mood, Shen Sang Ruo asked: “What is it?”

The Bamboo Bear angrily pointed at the bottom of the pit. Only then did she see that the Protean Wood’s life line had been cut.

If the life line broke, the Protean Wood would die.

She spoke in a low voice: “Normally, when people take the heart core, they don’t dig a pit this big, and they don’t cut the life line. Whoever did this was very rough, almost on purpose.”

No wonder the crown looked yellow from afar.

This tree had grown for over ten thousand years. She stroked its strong trunk, not realizing its life was already draining away, and her eyes filled with pity.

Fang Yu shook his head and said: “Who is so shameless? They took the heart core and then took the tree’s life too.”

Shen Sang Ruo followed the pit down into the trunk, heading for the life line.

As they got closer, the Bamboo Bear sneezed several more times.

When she reached the life line, a familiar scent hit her nose.

Her face changed at once.