Somewhere in the Woodland of the Dream World.
The sudden sneak attack caught Grego completely off guard. Facing Jade, who was currently absorbing Thomas's Spirituality, he glared forward, his teeth tightly clenched.
In the Dream Hunting Technique, the Spirituality hunted through Dream World mimicry is not immediately transmitted back to the main body. Instead, it is stored within the mimicry. Only after the mimicry returns to the dream cocoon is the hunted Spirituality truly accumulated within the human body. During this process, if the mimicry is killed and destroyed, the Spirituality it collected on this trip will dissipate, and other mimicries capable of the Dream Hunting Technique can absorb it.
This was exactly what Jade was doing at this moment. Facing Jade, who was absorbing Thomas's Spirituality, Grego shouted sternly.
"Are you insane? Jade! You're attacking a comrade!"
"Comrade? No, no, no... Don't get it wrong, I've never considered you comrades. You're all just prey. In this hunting ground, the Woodland, the only relationship between everyone is that of Hunter and prey."
With a disdainful tone, Jade slowly spoke to Grego, his expression indifferent, as if everything he had just done was only natural. Seeing Jade's reaction, Grego spoke again, quite angered.
"You're also a member of the An Yin Bureau! Aren't you afraid we'll report you for doing this?"
Grego said this. In the Dream World, the death of a mimicry does not cause the main body to die as well; it merely results in mental trauma that will keep them bedridden for about a month. This means that even if Jade eliminated his and Thomas's mimicry bodies here, Grego could still report him after waking up.
Grego questioned Jade like this, hoping to deter him and make him hesitate. But to his surprise, Jade responded with a light chuckle.
"Report? What will you report? Report Jade from the North Yild subdivision? Do you think I'm really Jade? Or does the person Jade really exist? Or am I really someone from the An Yin Bureau?"
"Even if you want to report, you need to remember the situation at the scene. The mental damage caused by the destruction of a mimicry can easily lead to temporary amnesia. It's uncertain whether you'll even remember what happened here after you wake up."
Jade's series of questions sent a chill down Grego's heart. He suddenly realized that the other party claiming to be Jade from North Yild was entirely a one-sided statement. In this Woodland where everyone appeared in similar mimicries, he had no way of knowing the other party's real appearance. If the other party had given a false identity, there would be no way to investigate.
"You, aren't you afraid we'll call Mr. Fulandi?"
"You're welcome to try calling and see if Mr. Fulandi and the others can hear you. I've taken you far enough away from the main group, heading a considerable distance towards the forbidden area in the east. I can guarantee that no one from the Bureau nearby will be able to hear your call."
Jade continued to speak smugly. After hearing the other party's words, Grego's heart grew even heavier. He knew that this time he had been tricked due to his lack of experience in the Dream World.
The deterrence failed, and now a fight was unavoidable. However, with Grego injured, defeating the other party was almost impossible, and he couldn't outrun him either.
Finally, Jade, having finished absorbing Thomas's Spirituality, arched his back and launched a forceful attack towards Grego in front of him. Facing Jade's frontal assault, Grego dodged urgently, his injured body making it quite difficult to evade Jade's first sneak attack.
Grego's dodge also finally allowed the Little Fox, who had been struggling under his claws, to regain her freedom.
"You Black Dog can take your time with your infighting, I'm leaving first!"
Just as the Little Fox was preparing to get up and flee, Jade had no intention of letting her go. He swiped a claw at the Little Fox, who hadn't fully gotten up yet. The Little Fox, unable to dodge in time, had her left hind leg scratched by Jade's attack. She cried out in pain and rolled several times, ending up some distance away.
Although he didn't know where this fox mimicry came from, since she had appeared before Jade, she wouldn't be let go so easily. What if she also had Spirituality on her at this moment?
Without stopping, Jade's subsequent attacks came one after another. He lunged another claw towards the Little Fox who had fallen not far away. However, as another Black Dog flashed past, the Little Fox instantly disappeared. Jade focused his gaze and saw that it was Grego who had picked up the Little Fox in his mouth.
Grego, who had picked up the Little Fox, shook his head, throwing the Little Fox onto his back, and then fled towards the deeper parts of the Woodland. The Little Fox on his back couldn't help but say in surprise upon seeing this.
"Black Dog, you actually still have the mind to save me?"
"This is our An Yin Bureau's matter. It was my fault for getting you involved by accident, so naturally, I won't leave you unattended," Grego said to the Little Fox on his back whose leg was injured. If he hadn't been the one to grab the Little Fox, she wouldn't have gotten involved like this. Grego therefore felt he had an obligation to save her.
Just like that, Grego, in his Black Dog mimicry, carried the Little Fox and ran all the way towards the depths of the Woodland, while Jade followed closely behind, relentlessly pursuing the figure ahead.
Since Grego had been sneak-attacked at the beginning, he was also injured, and his movement and stamina were affected. With Jade pursuing him like this, he wouldn't be able to last long.
"Hey, hey... An Yin Bureau's Black Dog, you don't seem to be able to outrun your colleague."
Clinging to Grego's back, the Little Fox looked back at the relentlessly pursuing Jade while speaking, and Grego responded while running.
"I'm trying to run back in the direction we came from... after running for a while, I'll call for comrades. As long as they can hear me and come as reinforcement, we'll be safe."
"Running back... You mean running back to the hunting ground? Don't be foolish! You absolutely won't be able to last until then!" the Little Fox said urgently. She was indeed much more familiar with the environment of the Dream World than Grego.
"Listen to me, Black Dog! You absolutely won't have enough time to run back to the hunting ground now. Turn left now, run towards the east. If you run that way, we still have a chance!" the Little Fox continued to speak on Grego's back. Listening to the Little Fox's words, Grego was filled with doubt.
"Continue east? Our leader said that's a forbidden area!"
"Forget about forbidden areas or not, if you don't want the Spirituality you worked hard to collect to be lost, listen to me now. My familiarity with this area is a hundred times yours, Black Dog!"
The Little Fox said in a forceful tone. Stung by her words, Grego paused in his heart. After some thought, he finally decided to listen to the Little Fox, turning and sprinting towards the east. Jade, who was behind, paused slightly before accelerating and chasing straight after them.
Just like that, in the quiet Woodland, the chase between two Black Dogs unfolded. They ran all the way towards the east, the direction from which countless animals were being driven. Due to Grego's injuries, the gap between them was constantly shrinking.
Lying on Grego's back, the Little Fox looked at Jade, who was getting closer and closer behind them, a Laugh appearing on his mouth, her gaze heavy. She shouted to Grego again.
"Now, Black Dog, call out, call out loudly! Try to make your voice heard as far away as possible!"
Listening to the Little Fox's words, Grego paused slightly, then, while sprinting, he let out a long, loud howl.
"Awooo!!!"
Grego's howl spread widely throughout the surrounding Woodland. The An Yin Bureau's Black Dog mimicry has a characteristic: their howls can travel especially far. This is very beneficial for collective action in the Woodland. All Black Dog mimicry Hunters can understand this howl and can immediately come to provide support when called upon.
Jade, running behind, heard Grego's howl and couldn't help but snort inwardly, thinking disdainfully.
'Trying to call others? Hmph... No one will come into this forbidden area. In this place, they can't hear your voice. Even if they did, it would be too late.'
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Thinking this way, Jade quickened his pace, chasing forward at an even faster speed. The distance between him and Grego had become dangerously close, which startled Little Fox, who was looking back from Grego's back.
And just then, in the sky ahead of them, a deep, long, and ancient roar sounded.
"——!"
Long, ancient, profound... like a powerful roar from ancient times echoing among the giant trees of the Woodland. The moment they heard this roar, both Grego and Jade couldn't help but be startled, while Little Fox felt a burst of wild joy in her heart after hearing this sound.
'Finally, it's here!'
The three people galloping on the grassland of the Woodland couldn't help but look together in the direction the roar came from, looking towards the deep darkness between the giant trees. They saw that from the darkness ahead, the outline of a huge figure was gradually appearing.
That majestic giant shadow, like the night, appeared before everyone's eyes. Broad black wings flapped the air of the Dream World, propelling the massive body to emerge from the gloom.
Horns, sharp claws, and scales as thick as rock, conveying fierceness and ferocity within its might. The jet-black Dragon roared towards them. Witnessing this unprecedented scene that almost overturned their understanding, Grego and Jade's hearts leaped into their throats.
'Dragon! What a joke! It's actually a Dragon! There's actually a Dragon in the Dream World!'
'Is this... the source of fear for those dream creatures?'
Upon seeing the Black Dragon appear, an instinctive sense of fear immediately arose in the hearts of Grego and Jade. Realizing they had encountered the source of fear for the dream creatures in this area, they immediately stopped and then ran in the opposite direction. The situation now instantly reversed, with Jade in front and Grego and Little Fox behind.
However, running could never compare to flying. After casually flapping her wings, the Black Dragon quickly caught up to the fleeing people and then swooped down.
The Black Dragon swooped down. The wind pressure from her giant wings wildly swept across the grassland of the Woodland, directly blowing the fleeing Grego and Jade head over heels. Little Fox, who was on Grego's back, was also thrown off, rolling several times with a cry and being tossed far away.
And at this moment, accompanied by a tremor in the ground, the black Dragon also landed. She raised her neck and silently observed the scene before her with crimson eyes, watching the two Black Dogs who had been blown to the ground struggle to stand up, and then look towards the Black Dragon who was watching them with terrifying eyes.
Facing the huge figure nearly twenty meters long before them, the two Black Dogs, each just over a meter in length, immediately lowered themselves. After witnessing the Black Dragon's speed and knowing they couldn't escape, they didn't dare to make any rash moves for fear of accidentally provoking the other party.
'Dragon... Among the Dream World creatures... there's actually a Dragon?! Is this why the Dream World creatures in this area are being driven away? Are they all avoiding the Dragon?'
Standing dumbfounded on the spot, Grego thought this way in his heart as he looked at the body before him. He hadn't expected to actually see a legendary creature like a Dragon with his own eyes. The largest Dream World creature he had seen before was just a Dream World Deer, and the most fantastical thing he had seen was Fulandi's winged hunting dog's mimicry.
Grego had heard James say before that the higher-ups in the An Yin Bureau had high-level fantasy creature mimicries like the winged three-headed dog, and Dream World creatures also had extremely rare fantasy forms like griffins, but he had never heard of there being a Dragon.
Meanwhile, Jade on the other side was more than just shocked; his mind was also rapidly thinking, pondering how to deal with the current situation.
'Damn it... I originally wanted to use the restricted area to set a trap... I didn't expect to actually encounter the reason the restricted area exists... There's actually a Dragon?! I can't act rashly now. The fact that this Dragon didn't attack immediately means it's temporarily not hostile. I must find a way to escape.'
Jade thought this way in his heart. At this moment, after the black Dragon scanned the scene before her, she opened her mouth and spoke slowly in an ancient, deep, and somewhat indistinct voice.
"The howling just now... was it made by you?"
The Dragon's booming voice echoed in Jade and Grego's ears. Hearing this voice, the two of them couldn't help but pause, simultaneously realizing an important fact.
This Dragon can talk! He possesses intelligence!
After realizing this, an idea quickly flashed through Jade's mind. He immediately ran in front of the Black Dragon, bowed his body, and spoke in an extremely respectful voice.
"Yes, esteemed Dragon, I dared to use such a call to attract you. The reason is to warn you that someone has trespassed into your territory!"
As he spoke, Jade glanced towards Grego on the other side. Hearing Jade's words, Grego was startled again.
'This guy... actually accused first!?'
"Esteemed Dragon! I was originally a hunting partner with this fellow. We were originally patrolling and hunting on the edge of your great territory, but who would have thought this guy suddenly got greedy and actually wanted to trespass into your territory to seek treasure? After my dissuasion was ineffective, I followed him in, wanting to stop him."
With a humble and submissive attitude, Jade spoke to the black Dragon before him. He knew an important piece of information: the boundary of the restricted area in this Woodland region had not changed since its formation. This meant... the being residing within would not venture outside the restricted area.
What does this mean? It means that within the restricted area, that powerful creature that makes all other Dream World creatures tremble possesses territorial awareness. A creature with territorial awareness will not easily leave its own territory and will absolutely not allow other creatures to invade.
At this moment, Jade seized upon this point, believing he had figured out the territorial creature's mindset. He preemptively accused and framed Grego, wanting to clear himself.
Sure enough, after hearing Jade's words, the black Dragon turned her attention to Grego. Her crimson pupils stared directly at him. After being stared at like this, Grego couldn't help but panic in his heart. He immediately spoke.
"Dragon, please don't listen to his nonsense. We were originally members of the An Yin Bureau in the real world, and we were originally hunting outside your territory. It was him who deliberately led me into your territory, wanting to attack me when our other companions couldn't detect it!"
Grego said loudly with his own voice, while Jade on the other side also immediately spoke up.
"Don't listen to him, Dragon. This guy is being deceitful now. However, although he's full of lies, he is still my companion after all. Please give me a chance to take him back. We will absolutely never step into your territory again!"
After Jade finished speaking, he continued to observe the Dragon before him. He saw that it was still staring at Grego, who was further away, and its posture remained motionless. Grego, being stared at by the Dragon, instantly felt immense pressure.
'It's done... That Dragon is starting to suspect that kid!'
Seeing this scene, Jade felt a surge of secret joy in his heart. Just as he was preparing to add more fuel to the fire, he saw the Dragon's gaze turn towards him.
And this time, in its gaze, there was indeed a trace of chilling killing intent.
Jade, who instantly felt things were bad, wanted to say something, but he didn't have the chance. The spiky tail whistled as it swept rapidly towards him. Before he could even open his mouth, he was pierced by the spikes, and his entire body was instantly torn into pieces by the immense force.
The torn Jade's eyes were wide open, filled with astonishment and confusion. He didn't understand why the Dragon would suddenly turn the spearhead of hostility towards him.
"Why..."
Just as Jade was vanishing in astonishment and confusion, Dorothy, in her Dragon mimicry form, thought this in her heart...
'Why? Because that dog you mentioned is my brother...'