"Yahoo!!!!"
A tremendous roar echoed through the silent forest, amidst which were the cheers of a young boy and…
The screams of a young boy and girl…
"Waaahhhh!!!" *2
Due to the immense propulsion, Tenza and Nurugai clung tightly to each other, pressing themselves into Shion's embrace, who was leaning against the stern.
Although Shion didn't cry out, his tense body and the bulging veins on his hands, tightly gripping the boat's edge, betrayed his inner emotions.
In front of the three, at the bow of the boat, a figure with his back to them was cheering, one foot planted on the bow.
And this dugout canoe, unusually, was speeding through this abnormal forest in a land-sailing manner, at an extremely fast pace.
This seemingly out-of-control dugout canoe ignored all obstacles in its path; whether it was boulders or trees, they were all effortlessly shattered. Even the monsters attracted by the loud noise were instantly pulverized into scattered flesh and blood.
However, neither the shattered pieces nor the flesh and blood stained the four, nor even the small boat, with any blemish.
If one looked closely, they would notice a layer of colorless energy surrounding the dugout canoe.
By wrapping his Nen around the boat, Takatsuki alone protected the entire vehicle.
Combined with the floating ability of the Chicken Talisman and the super speed of the Rabbit Talisman, this created the mad dugout canoe.
What he hadn't expected was that a skill he had forgotten was now in play.
It was the Riding skill from Iskandar. His A+ rank Riding allowed him to control this temporary vehicle like a fish in water, even feeling immense pleasure.
However, this was not a good experience for the passengers.
Leaving aside the reckless driving here…
At this moment, in another location, a somewhat strange group encountered their greatest threat since landing on the island.
"Zhu Jin was defeated by humans. Was it your doing?"
In a dilapidated village, a man with flower-like hair grinned as he looked at the few… people in front of him, asking this question.
However, he quickly shifted his gaze in another direction, looking at a young girl with pink hair and saying, "Sister, I didn't expect to find you here. Everyone is waiting for you to come back."
But in response to the man's greeting, the young girl just hid fearfully behind a tree-person resembling a withered tree.
Before the man could say anything, a woman dressed as a kunoichi in the crowd suddenly moved her feet and swiftly ran in the opposite direction.
But she had only run a few meters when she was grabbed by someone.
And then quickly restrained: "Don't be so scared. I didn't intend to kill you."
"So fast!"
"Gah!"
Only after the kunoichi named Gah was seized did the others react; the man who had just been in front of them was now behind them.
If he had attacked them at that speed, would they really have been able to react?
"The Peony Immortal, Mu Dan."
The tree-person, shielding the young girl behind him, spoke in a low voice to the man.
"Is he… a Tensen?"
While the others were still stunned, a white-haired young ninja suddenly stepped forward and covered the lower half of his face with black cloth: "Where is the Elixir of Life?"
"Gabimaru…"
Sagiri hadn't expected that even when facing such an enemy, Gabimaru could still remain true to his original goal, solely focused on the Elixir of Life.
"Elixir of Life? Since ancient times, every human who has come here has said those words."
Peony made a thoughtful expression: "The Elixir of Life for eternal life, the Water of Transformation, the Perfumed Fruit of Timelessness… but I'm sorry, there's no such thing here."
Seeming genuinely apologetic, Mu Dan said to the group, "We only have elixirs made from humans here. Elixirs are indispensable to us, but humans who drink them will only turn into trees."
"While the Tree People and Flower People are nearly immortal, they are not ageless."
"My companions are still researching, but it will be a long time before they achieve results. In short, this island doesn't have what you're looking for. However, it seems thanks to it, many humans have come to the island searching for the so-called Elixir of Life, providing me with plenty of material."
As he spoke, several people with sallow skin and various foreign objects impaled in their bodies quickly embraced Yuzuriha, freeing Mu Dan's hands.
Mu Dan sat straight down on the spot. Another bizarre figure, just like the rest, immediately got down on all fours in an orz pose to serve as his stool.
"These are Doshi zombies. They were just so interesting that I messed around with them a bit. Fun, isn't it? Though the quality of you people is quite exceptional—you could be turned into some very high-grade Elixir."
"Which means your journey ends here. Come along quietly; I want to play around with you all properly."
Just as Mu Dan finished speaking, he looked to his side, only to find that Yuzuriha—who was supposed to be restrained by the zombies—had vanished, leaving behind a piece of dead wood in the zombies' arms.
In the eyes of the others, Yuzuriha had already flashed behind Mu Dan's back. Several shuriken instantly pierced through Mu Dan's defenseless body, striking him down immediately.
Stomping one foot onto Mu Dan's back, Yuzuriha swung her sharp blade mercilessly, severing his head cleanly. She then leapt backward to rejoin the others.
"Phew~ No matter how strong a monster is, he ought to be dead after that."
Yuzuriha took a long breath and rested her hand on Sagiri's shoulder: "Now, what about his minion zombies? They're just standing there frozen."
Sagiri, however, paid no attention to Yuzuriha's words. She was simply staring at Gabimaru with a look of concern.
Unlike Sagiri, who had a lot on her mind, Gabimaru showed no emotion at all. He just kept his eyes fixed right on the spot where Mu Dan had fallen.
"This woman is pretty good. Quite talented, actually."
Right before their eyes, vines rapidly sprouted from Mu Dan's body, reforming a brand-new head.
"And by the way, these aren't minions—they're toys."
With a wave of Mu Dan's hand, the previously dazed zombies instantly charged at the group.
"Ninja Art: Thunder Pebbles!" (Ninpo: Raigoreki!)
Facing the rushing zombies, Gabimaru, standing at the very front, stomped hard on the ground. The earth shattered immediately, sending several pieces of rubble flying into midair, which he then lashed into the enemies ahead with a powerful whip kick.
Every piece of rubble struck an enemy with pinpoint accuracy, smashing the zombies' heads to bits. Mu Dan, however, casually swatted the rubble away with a wave of his hand.
"Not bad. Though not quite on par with that ninja girl earlier, still pretty impressive."
The group had no idea how Mu Dan evaluated them; in his eyes, Gabimaru's strength was actually inferior to Yuzuriha's.
What they didn't realize was that to a Tensen, individual raw combat power wasn't very important—what mattered most was talent in wielding Tao.
Most of Gabimaru's attacks relied on technique rather than the manipulation of Tao. In contrast, the essence of the techniques Yuzuriha used was fundamental control over Tao.
Regardless, a fierce battle was about to erupt.