The clearing fell silent once more.

Only the slow drift of the mist remained, along with five ice sculptures reflecting a faint blue luster in the dim light.

Ian slowly exhaled, and the Spirit Devourer Rune in his Sea of Spirit gradually calmed.

After devouring five waves of Spiritual Shocks, the Rune was slightly brighter than usual. The Spiritual Energy it fed back to him restored nearly five percent of what he had spent.

’Smoother than I expected.’ He walked over to one of the ice sculptures and pressed his hand against its frozen surface.

His Spiritual Power seeped inside, confirming that the Tree Demon’s life fluctuations had vanished completely.

He gave it a casual tap. BANG! The ice sculpture shattered.

’Huh! Look what we have here.’

Amidst the shattered ice covering the ground, a bluish-black Crystal caught Ian’s attention.

The Crystal flew up, and he snatched it out of the air to examine it closely.

’Not bad. A Demon Core from a Soul-Devouring Tree Demon. This will be useful.’

Ian then shattered the remaining ice sculptures. After gathering the Demon Cores, he wasted no time and turned toward the three Ancient Trees of Life in the center of the clearing.

The closer he got, the richer the vitality in the air became.

The amber resin crystals on the trunks of the ancient trees glowed with a soft, pale gold light in the mist, like solidified sunshine.

Ian took a specialized set of Extraction Tools from his Dimensional Ring: a few Crystal Bottles, a Silver Tube, and a Bone Saber.

He selected the largest crystal on one of the ancient tree trunks. It was about the size of his palm and nearly two fingers thick.

He gently slid the Bone Saber along the edge of the crystal, severing its connection to the bark.

SSS...

A viscous, pale-gold liquid oozed from the incision, releasing a refreshing fragrance. The mere scent of it was enough to invigorate the spirit.

Ian quickly inserted the Silver Tube, connecting the other end to a Crystal Bottle.

The pale-gold Tree Sap flowed slowly into the bottle, every drop brimming with immense Life Energy.

He carefully controlled the flow, not daring to draw too much. Over-extraction would harm the ancient tree’s foundation and might trigger some unknown backlash.

He filled one bottle, about two hundred milliliters’ worth.

Ian sealed the bottle and moved to the second Ancient Tree of Life, extracting from another crystal.

Three minutes later, he had collected three bottles of the pale-gold Ancient Tree of Life Bark Extract.

Each bottle was priceless, enough to refine dozens of Concentration Potions.

Ian carefully stowed the Crystal Bottles and looked up at the three ancient trees.

The trees’ trunks trembled slightly, as if in gratitude. For the ancient trees, being rid of parasites like the Soul-Devouring Tree Demons was a great relief.

"We’re even," Ian said softly, turning to leave the clearing.

He didn’t clean up the battlefield. The shattered ice covering the ground had flash-frozen the Tree Demons into fine dust, almost completely erasing any trace of them.

Only the piles of white bones on the ground indicated that five terrifying Tree Demons had once resided here.

It was the best kind of warning, letting anyone who came after know that a powerful expert had passed through.

Following his original path, Ian moved much faster on his way back.

The Spirit Devourer Rune continued to operate, rendering the Whispering Forest’s mental interference almost useless against him. In fact, it now served to replenish his power.

Two hours later, he had left the core area. The surrounding trees gradually returned to normal, and the mist began to thin.

Another few miles would take him back to a relatively safe area.

Ian paused, took a Secondary Healing Potion from his Dimensional Ring, and drank it. He then meditated for a moment to restore his energy.

Casting Limit-Breaking Witchcraft repeatedly had taken a heavy toll on his Spiritual Power. Even though Spirit Devourer had restored some of it, he still needed to be in peak condition.

’Who knows what else might pop out of this forest.’

Once he had rested, he continued onward, drawing closer and closer to the outskirts of the forest.

He was unaware, however, that less than two miles away, three pairs of eyes were watching his every move through the mist.

"He’s out."

A hoarse voice whispered from the shadows of the dense woods.

The speaker was a tall, thin man in dark brown Leather Armor. A scar ran from the corner of his forehead down to his chin, twisting his otherwise handsome features into a ferocious mask.

He held a jet-black Short Staff, its head embedded with a dark red Crystal that faintly reeked of blood.

"My information was right. The kid really did go to the Whispering Forest."

Squatting beside him was a short, stout, bald man built like an iron block. His face was a mass of brutish flesh, and his bare torso was covered in twisted Runes, his muscles knotted like Rock.

He licked his lips, his eyes glinting with greed.

"Anyone who can stay that long in the depths of the Whispering Forest and come out in one piece has to be carrying something good."

The third person was a woman in her early thirties. She was beautiful, but her beauty was tinged with a cold, sinister air.

She wore a form-fitting black leather outfit that accentuated her curves. In her hands, she toyed with two Poisoned Daggers, their blades shimmering with a faint blue glow in the gloom.

"That bitch Mira seems to have a soft spot for him. We didn’t dare make a move back at Misty Creek."

The woman’s voice was seductive, yet it carried a bone-chilling cold. "But if we kill him here, who’s to say it was us?"

They were "Blood Staff" Saqi, "Stone Skin" Barton, and "Poisonous Spider" Serra.

These were the very villains Hawke had mentioned—the ones who ran rampant in the Glowing Forest, preying on lone Apprentices.

They had been in the crowd of onlookers earlier, when Ian was trading with Amos at the Dream Weaver’s Cottage.

Saqi had seen at a glance that the Blood Essence Ian produced was of extremely high quality, far surpassing anything an ordinary High Level Apprentice could refine.

After making some inquiries, they learned from a few loose-lipped Apprentices that Ian was a new Magic Potion Alchemist living alone on the outskirts of Hawke’s settlement.

A Magic Potion Alchemist with high-quality Blood Essence, who also traded with the Silver Ring merchants...

The combination of these three facts was more than enough to tempt them.

So they had trailed him quietly, picking up his tail the moment Ian left the settlement.

But Ian moved quickly and his route was unpredictable. They didn’t dare follow too closely, so they simply set up a surveillance Witchcraft at the edge of the Whispering Forest and waited patiently.

They waited for two days.

And now, finally, Ian had emerged.

As Ian walked out from the edge of the Whispering Forest, the mist thinned and the light between the trees grew a little brighter.

He didn’t break his stride, but his Spiritual Perception had already spread out like a spiderweb, covering a thirty-meter radius around him. High above, an eye swiveled, scanning the area.

Not far ahead, he sensed three sources of deeply hidden malice.

"What is the meaning of this, my three friends?"

Ian stopped, his voice calm. His gray robe swayed gently in the breeze.

Three figures emerged slowly from the shadows.

"Blood Staff" Saqi was in the lead. He held his dark red Crystal Short Staff angled toward the ground, the scar on his face seeming to squirm in the dappled light. "Your Perception is pretty sharp, kid."

"Stone Skin" Barton stepped out from the right, the ground trembling slightly with his every step. The Runes on his upper body glowed with a hazy gray light as his muscles bulged.

"Hand over what you got from the Whispering Forest, and the Potions you traded for with the Silver Ring."

"Poisonous Spider" Serra glided out from behind a tree to the left. She twirled the two Poisoned Daggers between her fingers, their shimmering blue edges tracing arcs in the air.

"I just love capable little guys with smooth, tender skin like you... I’ll be gentle when I slit your throat in a moment."

Ian’s gaze swept over the three of them, finally resting on the dark red Crystal atop Saqi’s staff. The stench of blood was overpowering, mixed with the lingering malice of at least ten different creatures.

"Hah! You think the likes of you can rob me?"