Ghost Forest Cannot Be Entered Without Serena

Prince Nolan and Serena looked up. Suddenly, thick, arm-like vines sliced through the air with a sharp whoosh, whipping toward them from every direction...

The vines struck without warning. Apart from dodging, they had no other option.

"Quick, get down!" Prince Nolan immediately grabbed Serena beside him and fell straight to the ground, rolling them out of the vines' strike zone.

Crack... Crack...

The vines moved like living creatures, swooping down from above like dragons, lashing fiercely at their position. When people dodged, the vines struck the ground directly.

Crack... A deep groove appeared where the vines hit, tearing up chunks of earth. It was clear that anyone struck by these vines would meet a gruesome end.

Crack... A few of the Eighteen Riders reacted too slowly and were struck. Flesh and blood sprayed everywhere, misting onto the soul-capturing two-world blood-flowers on both sides, making their vivid red even more dazzling and ghastly.

Fortunately, the vines didn't hit any vital spots. Otherwise, a single blow would leave no time for last words.

That was just the first wave—and definitely not the last. Before Serena and the others could catch their breath, another barrage of vines came crashing down. With nowhere safe, Prince Nolan's group could only roll to the sides of the road to escape the relentless strikes.

Crack, crack, crack... The vines whipped the ground nonstop, leaving it shredded and ruined. Luckily, after suffering earlier, the Eighteen Riders dodged much more nimbly, so no one was struck again—at worst, only grazed by the tips.

The vines came in wave after wave, giving Serena’s group no chance to catch their breath. They were left battered and miserable, like someone rolling around in a pile of ash.

After nearly half an hour, the vines finally vanished. No one dared to move recklessly or relax. They waited another incense-stick’s time, making sure the sky-falling vines were truly gone, before cautiously climbing up from the ground.

Three people were seriously wounded—one on the face, one on the left arm, and one with his back flayed open. The others, more or less, had been grazed by the wind from the vines; fortunately, their injuries weren’t severe, just bleeding scratches on faces, hands, or backs, which could be treated with a little medicine.

Serena was the only one completely unharmed—not even her clothes were torn. Emerging from Prince Nolan’s arms, she motioned for everyone to gather close: “There won’t be any more vines coming. This spot is safe for now. Let me bandage your wounds.”

Serena opened her Smart Med-Pack and took out all the supplies she needed, laying them out one by one. Everyone once again witnessed the benefits of the Med-Pack: if those transparent bottles and jars had been carried on their backs, even if the vines hadn’t smashed them, they’d have been shattered in the chaos.

“This is medicine for external injuries. First, wash the wounds with solution, sprinkle white medicinal powder, then wrap them with white bandages.” Serena handed the external-injury medicine to Sean Xuan, letting him and the Eighteen Riders bandage each other’s minor wounds while she personally treated the three most seriously hurt.

They needed to reach the tomb while the sun was at its peak, so Serena dared not waste a moment—and there was no time for anesthesia. She almost simultaneously cleaned and medicated all three, and the wounded men cooperated, enduring the pain in silence, lips bitten bloody, waiting for her to finish bandaging them.

After two quarter-hours, Serena had finished bandaging the three wounded men, and the group continued on their way. The next stretch was peaceful; guided by Snow Wolf, they reached the end of Yellow Springs Road without incident.

"Awooo..." Snow Wolf howled, announcing that his work was done.

Only then did everyone open their eyes and look around. It was still the same road, but now the terrifying two-world blood-flowers and the headache-inducing vines were gone.

Though the tomb was still out of sight, after a single turn they saw a vast forest ahead.

Seeing the forest ahead, Serena finally felt they’d reached the tomb’s domain. Just one turn and everything changed—where they stood now, sunlight bathed every spot, but the woods ahead were gloomy and pitch-black, not a single ray of light could penetrate.

One step forward was hell, one step back was the human world. Serena couldn’t help but slow her pace...

"Ghost Forest." Prince Nolan halted, no longer moving forward. Instead, he looked up at the sky: "Rest for one hour. We’ll enter at noon."

Noon was when yang energy was strongest. Though Prince Nolan didn’t believe in ghosts or gods, seeing this ominous place at the tomb, caution came first.

Better to believe it exists than not.

No one objected. After the vine attack, everyone was exhausted—especially the three worst wounded. An hour’s rest was just what they needed.

An hour was enough to do a lot. Serena took out bottles of saline from the Smart Med-Pack and set up IV drips for the three gravely injured men to prevent their wounds from getting infected.

Now that the Smart Med-Pack’s existence was known, Sean Xuan and the Eighteen Riders calmly accepted whatever odd or miraculous item Serena took out.

If they could accept the Med-Pack, what couldn’t they accept? Everything Serena produced was useful to them, so that was enough.

“Good thing Serena’s here. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have made it past Yellow Springs Road.” Sean Xuan sighed, eating the food Serena handed out.

They’d carried some rations before, but after the vine attack, all their food had vanished. If not for Serena’s Smart Med-Pack, they’d be digging for roots and eating dirt next.

This haunted place—deeper in, there was no sign of life; probably not even an animal could be found.

Serena just smiled and didn’t reply. After everyone finished eating, she waited another quarter-hour, then handed out a few anti-inflammatory pills: “To prevent wound infection.”

In addition, Serena re-bandaged their wounds to guard against the damp or yin air in Ghost Forest that might hinder healing.

Sean Xuan and the Eighteen Riders knew Serena was doing it for their sake, so of course they didn’t refuse. Only Prince Nolan, watching Serena tirelessly move from patient to patient, showed a trace of heartache in his eyes.

Serena always thought she was a burden—no martial arts, needing protection when danger struck. All along, she’d been extra cautious, afraid of dragging others down.

But in reality, without Serena, whether any of them could have made it in alive was doubtful—and even if some did, not all would have survived.

For the three most badly wounded, if not for Serena, they’d surely have been abandoned or told to turn back alone to avoid dragging the group down.

But with Serena here, no one had to worry about being left behind because of injury—or dying from a minor wound.

With Serena in the group, their cohesion was even stronger. Yet Serena herself never seemed to notice—she only worried about slowing everyone down...