Front Line of the Beast Tide, Part 5

She almost forgot.

Su Qing also added her own name: Su Qing.

Yang Liu, Bai Ying, Xiaocao, Su Qing.

All four names contained radical of wood, or grass.

Su Qing pondered for a moment: “Flora.”

Indeed, even a forest as vast and sky-obscuring as the Myriad Beast Forest grew from a single blade of grass and a single tree.

It was not impossible that names, being the shortest form of fate, allowed them to form some unknown connection with this forest.

But how did the forest know their names?

Could it be that when she called out to her companions, in the depths of the silent forest, an unknown entity also pricked up its ears, fluttering its transparent lips, silently chanting these names with her?

But if it only knew the syllables, how could it confirm the written characters?

Su Qing and Bai Ying almost said in unison, “Qiu Er!”

When they first settled into the camp, they had registered their names with Qiu Er.

Because Qiu Er was akin to the logistics personnel of this camp, whether it was renting tents, chopping firewood, or borrowing fire, Qiu Er’s lean and eager figure was always present in such daily matters.

Su Qing frowned, “Only he knows all our full names.”

Bai Ying lamented, “I knew that when you’re out and about, your identity is what you make it.

We should have used fake names from the start.”

Xiaocao exposed him, “But you clearly said back then that if we used fake names and something happened to us and we died unrecognized, no one would know. It’s better to use the Sword School’s name and our real names.”

Bai Ying was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, “Xiaocao, did Su Qing ever teach you that sometimes being too honest isn’t a good thing?”

Su Qing didn’t participate in their bickering. She picked up the small wooden stick and continued writing on the ground: Qiu Er.

“If the opponent uses the meaning of characters to silently manipulate divine consciousness, that’s truly cheating.” Su Qing said, “Among the six of us alone, half of our names are related to plants. To put it simply, we naturally come from nature, so it’s perfectly normal to have names related to nature. If the entity behind this can manipulate to such an extent, it can only mean its power is far above ours.”

“Facing such a strong opponent, especially one that is unseen and intangible, according to the Sword School’s teachings,” Su Qing said calmly, “we can start writing our wills now.”

Bai Ying clicked his tongue, “That’s giving up too quickly, and besides, the opponent doesn’t seem to intend to harm us immediately, do they?”

“I hold the opposite opinion.” Su Qing shook her head. “I told you about our mission to capture Jade Bone Butterflies. If it weren’t for me, this variable, that team would probably have lost half its people, and they are the strongest in this camp. I can’t help but wonder if Yang Liu’s disorientation coincidentally represents the consciousness of the forest. Does it want to keep us here, or rather, does it want us to die here?”

The forest wanted them to die here?

At these words, everyone felt a chill down their spine.

Looking around, all they saw were dark tree shadows. They were caught in layers of forest maze.

If this forest truly wanted to harm them, then hadn’t they already fallen into the enemy’s web of killing intent?

The cold wind howled through the trees, making sharp, drawn-out sounds that made Su Qing and the others shiver.

Su Qing said, “I hope I’m wrong.”

Bai Ying said in fright, “You’d better be wrong. Otherwise, an entity that can manipulate karma through text—I dare not imagine how high its cultivation must be.”

Jiang Xiaocao said, “Su Qing didn’t feel wrong.”

Bai Ying quickly said, “This is not the time to agree.”

“It’s not agreeing,” he said seriously, his eyelashes casting layers of shadows in the candlelight. “But it’s truly the first time I’ve encountered a forest that isn’t friendly even to me.”

He originally thought this only concerned himself, but after Su Qing and Bai Ying pointed it out, he realized that this killing intent was indiscriminate, targeting him, humans, and even demon beasts alike.

“Anyway, let’s start by tracking Qiu Er these next few days,” Su Qing decided. “Let’s see if there’s anything unusual about him.”

Among the six-person team, besides Bai Ying and Xiaocao, Hua Ling’s name also contained botanical meanings.

She originally felt nothing, but after hearing everyone’s inference, she felt a little uneasy.

The task of tracking Qiu Er fell to Gu Zimou and the Golden Peng bird. Gu Zimou, with his idle demeanor, was perfect for loitering around the camp, pretending to be doing nothing while actually secretly gathering intelligence.

The Golden Peng bird stealthily perched on a treetop, keeping watch for him.

He truly seemed to have a talent for detective work. He was the first to discover the marks left by the Abyssal Void in Yinlan City. Now, after following Qiu Er for several days, he had indeed found some clues.

“So that’s why you stole his notes?” Hua Ling glared at him, questioning.

“This… a matter that’s lightly life-threatening, heavily concerns all living beings under heaven, how can you call it stealing?” Gu Zimou argued, “This is borrowing!”

Su Qing asked, “Are there any problems with this ledger?”

He put away his playful grin, sat up straight, and said, “There’s no problem with this ledger, but precisely because of that, it’s the biggest problem.”

“According to your inference, I followed Qiu Er for five full days, meticulously tending to his every need, asking after his well-being, and finally extracted from his mouth that he is just a runner, with no real power behind him. He’s just an ordinary cultivator serving the Rogue Cultivator Alliance. If there’s any difference, it’s that this person is quite meticulous in his work, mindful of leaving traces. The comings and goings of camp personnel, and material planning, are all recorded in this ledger, to be checked by his superiors.”

“So, only this ledger records your names, mine, and even almost all camp members’ names. Of course, there are probably not a few using fake names, but there are also many warriors like us who don’t change their names.”

He opened the thick ledger, pointing to the page recording their arrival at the camp. It clearly stated, “On the twelfth day, clear weather.”

“Arrivals: Bai Ying, Hua Ling, Jiang Shuyi, Su Qing, Xiaocao, Gu Zimou.”

After the names, two simple sentences were written: “Sword School disciples, not to be trifled with.”

Hua Ling saw it at first glance, “How did he misspell my name?”

Perhaps the character ‘Ling’ (翎) was a bit difficult to write, so Qiu Er perfunctorily wrote “Hua Ling” (花灵).

Gu Zimou followed, “Mine is also wrong.”

Hua Ling breathed a sigh of relief, “No wonder I didn’t feel anything. I thought I was just too carefree.”

Su Qing flipped through the ledger, and soon found Yang Liu’s name. Qiu Er’s comment was extremely concise: “Rogue cultivator, good strength.”

She looked at Gu Zimou. Gu Zimou still had a coy expression, his eyes brimming with light, practically urging her to ask.

She cautiously asked, “Do you have any other divine abilities you haven’t displayed?”

Not only had she noticed, but Bai Ying also, against his better judgment, said, “You are the most meticulous, thoughtful, and intelligent among us. You must have discovered other good things.”

Xiaocao blinked. He seemed to know who “a certain person” was now.

Only then did Gu Zimou sigh contentedly, saying, “Indeed, you’re all correct. There’s another important piece of information: the raw material for the paper used in this ledger comes from the Myriad Beast Forest—or rather, the paper products sold here, like books and talisman papers, are basically made from wood pulp from the Myriad Beast Forest.”

“That is to say,” Su Qing looked up, “in reality, our names formed a connection through this paper?”

Because this paper was made of wood, or rather, the entity behind it was very likely a wood-attributed spiritual creature or demon, it could use this to communicate with names related to wood, forcefully forming a causal connection.

Gu Zimou affirmed, “I guess so.”

Whether it was true could be verified with a test. Su Qing found the paper with the six names written on it, directly tore it off, and burned it to ashes with a fire spell. As the ashes scattered, everyone held their breath.

Nothing happened.

The sinister feeling itself was ethereal; its presence was never obvious whether it came or went. Yet, Su Qing just knew that the gaze-like projection of that entity on them hadn’t vanished; it was still firmly stuck to her.

Gu Zimou pulled out a pen and quickly wrote something.

Hua Ling asked, “What are you doing?”

“While my memory is still fresh, I’m quickly making a copy! I got this secretly; what if it’s discovered?” He often helped others with homework in the Talisman School, so he was particularly skilled at imitating handwriting, ensuring that after the ledger was returned, Qiu Er wouldn’t notice a thing.

Hua Ling choked. Was this the time for that?

But then Su Qing suddenly snatched the pen from Gu Zimou’s hand, “Lend it to me for a moment.”

This wasn’t a good pen, just the simplest wooden pen, and the ink was the worst quality.

The carbon powder in the ink stick was merely ordinary charcoal, but its origin likely traced back to the Myriad Beast Forest.

Su Qing flipped through the ledger, the pages with writing rustling before her eyes until she reached a blank page at the back.

Man Qing Sword floated in the air. She pressed the paper onto the sword, took up the pen, and wrote, “Who are you?”

She merely wrote it tentatively, casually, but subconsciously, her pen tip gathered some spiritual energy.

She dipped too much ink, and it flowed erratically on the coarse paper.

Su Qing held the pen, and suddenly, the jade-like object in her dantian began to rotate, as if foreshadowing something. She frowned, not yet having time to think clearly.

Jiang Shuyi had just opened her mouth to say, “Seems like no reaction.”

When a sudden change occurred, the thin pages suddenly fanned rapidly, each swelling up like a sail filled with wind.

In a dazzling light, ink automatically scribbled wildly on the paper, the strokes interweaving chaotically, as if some invisible force was controlling it all.

The pages flipped extremely quickly, making their edges as sharp as blades. The ink continuously expanded in the shifting light and shadows, and the pages were covered with terrifying characters.

“Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill!!!”

And within these endless “kill” characters, a small character was curled up in a tiny corner.

That character looked like a horizontally flipped “kill” character, but Su Qing was absolutely certain it was a small, painful character for “Ye”.

Facing such a sudden change, everyone was extremely horrified, instantly summoning their swords and standing ready.

The scene of six people surrounding a book was somewhat comical, but at this moment, no one could show a hint of a relaxed expression. Gu Zimou said fearfully, “Good thing we burned our names first! It can’t hurt us!”

His intention was to embolden himself, but in the next second, the ledger suddenly paused. It picked out a “Su” (苏) character with the same surname from a page, then furiously flipped through several pages, picking out a “Qing” (晴) character that recorded clear weather.

The two characters, “Su Qing,” immediately appeared on the paper.

It was actually calling her!

Su Qing was greatly alarmed. She recalled Man Qing Sword and was about to retreat.

Xiaocao simultaneously summoned countless grass filaments, pulling Su Qing backward to escape. She had reacted so quickly, yet she was still not faster than the ledger.

The pages suddenly spewed countless ink droplets.

The ink condensed into branches and vines, instantly entangling Su Qing.

Although these branches and vines seemed weak, for some reason, she simply couldn’t break free.

In just the blink of an eye, Su Qing vanished directly from the spot.

She didn’t even have time to leave a single word, dragged into the book.

Xiaocao pounced forward, grabbing the vines that were desperately retracting into the book.

Grass leaves grew wildly on his body, forcibly prying open the closing pages.

His hair flew in the wind, revealing his dark eyes, almost devoid of whites.

He forcefully pulled the black vines from the book by their roots.

Under the immense force, the vines actually turned into flowing ink, disappearing again in his hand.

In his haste, he chose to transform his true body into a blade of grass and tried to drill into the book pages, but he was rejected with an undeniable force.

Half a second later, before he could charge again, the ledger “thudded” shut, like a clam shell, leaving not a single gap.