"A forest," Azure commented dryly in my mind. "If one were to test a wood element practitioner, I suppose this would be the place."

I nodded slowly, taking in our surroundings. The trees seemed to stretch endlessly in every direction, their twisted trunks creating shadows that played tricks on my eyes.

"There are two possibilities here. Either Elder Molric is giving me an advantage..." I trailed off, watching as a nearby branch suddenly withered and crumbled to dust for no apparent reason.

"Or?" Azure prompted, though his tone suggested he already knew the answer.

"Or this is going to be hell-level difficulty even with my supposed advantage."

The air felt thick, almost syrupy. Every breath carried the metallic tang of concentrated red sun energy.

"Given what we know of the elder's... experimental tendencies," Azure mused, "I rather doubt he's chosen to be merciful."

"Yeah," I muttered, "that's what I'm worried about."

A faint rustling sound made me freeze, but it was just the vine shifting position to better guard my vital points. Still, no point in waiting around to see what had it so nervous. I pulled out one of the absorption stones Elder Molric had given me.

The stone pulsed as I activated it, converting its reserves into refined red sun essence that flowed into my Foundational Rune. The familiar warmth spread through my channels as my energy levels steadily rose back toward their peak.

Just as I finished absorbing the stone's power, I felt the vine suddenly go rigid against my skin. Its usual supple length became as taut as steel cable, and I could feel tremors running through its form - almost like it was shivering.

That... was not a good sign.

"Where?" I whispered, knowing it would understand what I was asking.

The vine's tip extended shakily, pointing toward a particularly dense cluster of purple-leaved trees. The shadows there seemed deeper than they should be, moving in ways that had nothing to do with wind or natural motion.

"Master," Azure's normally calm voice held an edge of concern, "what do you intend to do?"

I watched as something dark and sinuous began to emerge from those writhing shadows. "Well, the elder said to survive. He didn't specify that I had to kill anything." A grin spread across my face that probably wasn't entirely sane. "So, I'm going to do what any rational person would do in this situation."

"And that would be?"

"Run like hell in the opposite direction."

I spun on my heel and bolted, not waiting to see what horror Elder Molric had cooked up in his laboratory. The forest blurred around me as I sprinted between twisted trunks and under branches that tried to reach down for me with grasping fingers.

The vine had relaxed slightly once I started running, but it maintained a defensive posture, ready to react at a moment's notice. Good thing too, because we'd barely covered sixty meters when Azure's warning cut through my thoughts:

"Master! Left side!"

I didn't hesitate. Pure reflex activated the Blink Step rune on my thigh, and reality blurred around me as I teleported three meters to the right.

Not a moment too soon - something massive shot through the space where I'd been running, moving so fast it left afterimages in the air.

My eyes widened as I got a good look at our attacker. It was... well, I suppose it was technically a snake. In the same way that Elder Molric's fire-breathing plant was technically still a plant.

The creature was easily eight meters long, its scales a sickly mixture of purple and green that seemed to shift and writhe even when it wasn't moving.

But what really caught my attention were the modifications - wooden growths burst from its body at regular intervals, forming what looked like organic armor plates. Its head was surrounded by a crown of thorny branches and its fangs appeared to be made of some kind of living wood.

"The red sun energy emanating from it suggests mid-stage Rank 1," Azure reported as I dodged another lightning-fast strike. "Though these modifications are... concerning. It likely has some extra abilities."

I had to agree. The wooden elements weren't just attached to the snake - they were fully integrated, moving and growing as naturally as its scales. Someone, likely the elder, had done some seriously advanced work here.

Part of me wanted to try manipulating it - after all, those wooden components had to be susceptible to my control...

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

The vine's warning squeeze around my neck brought me back to reality. Right. Probably not the best time to experiment with mutant snakes, considering something much worse was still following us.

"Shame," I muttered as I used Blink Step to avoid another attack. "Would've been interesting to see if I could influence those modifications."

The snake's next strike missed by a wider margin as I resumed running. Its frustrated hiss followed us deeper into the forest, but it didn't give chase, instead it burrowed into the ground and disappeared.

Smart of it - whatever was chasing us was getting closer.

As I ran deeper into the forest, one thought kept circling through my mind: when (if) I survived this, I was definitely asking Elder Molric about flying runes. Running was great and all, but being able to soar above these mutated monstrosities seemed like a much better survival strategy.

The more distance I covered, the denser the forest became, but what concerned me was that the trees themselves seemed to be changing, their bark taking on a metallic sheen that reminded me uncomfortably of the snake's scales.

Something was following me.

I couldn't see it clearly through the twisted trunks and writhing shadows, but I could feel it. Each impact of its movement sent tremors through the ground that made the metallic trees ring like hollow bells.

Whatever it was, it was big. And it was getting closer.

The vine around my neck tightened rhythmically - three quick squeezes, pause, repeat. It was trying to time something...

"Master," Azure whispered, "the energy signature behind us is... significant."

Another tremor shook the ground, stronger this time. Closer. The metallic ringing of the trees had taken on a desperate pitch, like warning bells in a doomed city.

"How significant?" I asked, though I wasn't sure I wanted to know the answer.

"I can’t say for certain yet, but I’m beginning to understand why Elder Molric gave you those absorption stones."

Great. Just great.

The tremors were coming faster now, the intervals between them shortening as whatever was chasing us picked up speed. The sound of splintering wood and tearing earth filled the air as it carved a path of destruction through the forest.

My lungs burned as I pushed myself to run faster. The Blink Step rune on my thigh was ready to activate at a moment's notice, but I held back. Using it now would be a waste of energy.

The vine's warning pattern suddenly changed - two quick squeezes followed by a sharp tug to the right.

"DODGE!" Azure's shout filled my mind.

I activated Blink Step instantly, the world blurring as I teleported. But something felt wrong. The usual smooth transition hitched, like reality itself had caught on something jagged.

Then pain exploded across my left side as something massive struck me mid-teleport.

The world spun violently as I was sent flying through the air. My body crashed through one tree, then another, the bark shattering like glass on impact. A third tree finally stopped my impromptu flight, its trunk cracking from the force of the collision.

I hit the ground hard, the taste of blood filling my mouth. Through the haze of pain, I dimly registered the plants around me moving, responding to my distress. Purple leaves and twisted vines wove themselves into a protective cocoon around my battered body.

"Master," Azure's voice seemed to come from very far away, "you need to move. Now."

Groaning, I forced my eyes open, looking up through gaps in the makeshift shield the plants had formed.

My blood ran cold.

The thing that had been chasing us emerged from the destroyed section of forest with deceptive grace for its size.

It moved on six legs that looked like they'd been crafted from living stone, each step leaving deep impressions in the earth. Its body was a nightmare fusion of rock and plant life - granite plates interwoven with thick vines that pulsed with red sun energy. Multiple heads grew from its serpentine neck, each one a different horrific combination of stone and vegetation.

But what made my face truly pale was the energy radiating from it. This wasn't some Rank 1 mutated being like the snake. This... this was something else entirely.

The monster's heads turned toward my hiding spot, and six pairs of eyes began to glow with murderous crimson light.

As our eyes met, one thought managed to push through my terror:

I really should have asked more questions about those "failed experiments" the elder had mentioned.