Lin Mo had already distanced himself from the giant’s stomping range and observed the gruesome scene unfold from a safe distance.

Wu Di appeared beside him. “I can only help this much.”

He couldn’t get both eyes at once; they were too far apart for him to leap across without risking being slammed by the giant’s trunk.

Even from a distance, the two felt a shift in the air, as if it had become slightly heavier.

The forest began to tremble violently, as though shaken by an earthquake. Following this, the sky darkened ominously. Creatures of all sizes, from the smallest insects to the largest animals, swiftly hid from the impending threat overhead.

The giant fumed in rage, its aura transforming into that of a fearsome entity.

Lin Mo’s body shook uncontrollably as he struggled to maintain his composure. This was the overwhelming might emanating from a superior being, pressing down upon him with incredible force.

“This is the real tyrant of the forest,” Lin uttered through gritted teeth. It had been playing this whole time; now it was finally serious.

“It’s transforming!” the old ghost exclaimed.

“Yeah, I can see that,” Lin Mo replied, watching as the giant’s body slowly darkened and appeared to increase in size.

“Brother Wu, we should run while we can,” suggested Lin Mo, noticing the giant’s temporary stillness.

“No, it will catch up instantly,” Wu Di said before disappearing.

Wu Di’s body flashed swiftly toward the giant. He had observed that during the transformation, the giant seemed momentarily still. He aimed to seize this opportunity to strike at the remaining eye. Once successful, they might at least have a chance to escape.

“Brother, don’t!” Lin Mo tried to warn him.

Wu Di had already appeared in front of the giant’s remaining eye. However, before he could make a move, the giant unleashed its kingly aura. A wave of rippling energy blocked Wu Di’s strike.

Realizing he had failed, Wu Di attempted to retreat. But before he could do so, a blast of energy struck his defenseless body, sending him hurtling into the forest below.

“Damn it,” Lin Mo cursed, hurrying toward Wu Di’s location.

Unlike Lin Mo, Wu Di’s body was weak and untrained to endure heavy damage. When Lin Mo reached the area, he found Wu Di unconscious in the rubble.

“Brother Wu, that was reckless of you.” Lin Mo pulled Wu Di’s unconscious body from the rubble. “Why did you even think the same move would work twice?”

Of course, there was no reply. Wu Di had already fainted from the intense pain of the crash.

Carrying Wu Di’s limp body, Lin Mo ran, trying to create more distance.

While on the run, the old ghost suddenly spoke. “Brat, you should see this…”

Focused on the path ahead, Lin Mo hadn’t noticed the changes occurring with the giant. Hearing the old ghost’s voice, he took a quick peek without halting his steps.

When Lin Mo looked behind, he momentarily slowed his pace. The giant’s body had turned charcoal black, as if it could devour light itself. Its enormous crimson eye remained fixated on Lin Mo.

“Brat, there’s not much time before it finishes its transformation. Leave the body and climb toward the slopes. This way, at least you’ll have a sliver of a chance at survival,” urged the old ghost.

“Old ghost, you must be kidding. How could I ever face my master if I return alone?” After a moment of contemplation, Lin Mo made his decision and turned toward the high ground.

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“So you’ve decided?”

He carried Wu Di up the hill, reaching a flat area. There, he concealed Wu Di’s body between two large rocks and fed him a pellet.

“This should reduce the pain and stop internal bleeding,”

The location was not extremely tall but still high enough to deter ordinary beasts from climbing.

Taking a deep breath of fresh air, Lin Mo muttered, “I wonder how much tougher its skin has become after the transformation?”

“You… Don’t tell me you’re thinking of fighting that thing?” the old ghost bellowed. “This is madness! It’s impossible to defeat that thing with your strength.”

“I don’t have to win. I just have to stall until reinforcements arrive.”

The old ghost continued to pester Lin Mo to reconsider, but Lin Mo had already made up his mind.

If Wu Di had been alone, with his stealth, he might have been able to escape unnoticed. However, from the moment the giant targeted them, it became impossible for both of them to escape. Yet, Wu Di didn’t leave him behind.

Lin Mo went to Wu Di’s body and pulled out two daggers from his waist. He remembered his master had forbid him from using swords until he opened his second Dragon Gate.

“This is not a sword, so it should be fine.” He handled two daggers like swords in both hands. “This feels light. No wonder Brother Wu’s strikes appear swift and precise.”

Lin Mo stood on the high ground, his eyes fixed on the distant giant. Their gazes met, and a feeling of suppression washed over Lin Mo, momentarily freezing him in place.

Waving his hand, Lin Mo jumped from the hill into the forest. Leaving the unconscious Wu Di behind, he began running in the opposite direction.

The giant’s movements could cause the small hill to collapse, Lin Mo realized. He had to lure it a safe distance away.

As expected, the giant’s eye remained fixed on Lin Mo, ignoring the body he had left behind. To the giant, Wu Di was no different from dead.

Tracking his movements through the dense forest, the giant maintained its relentless focus on Lin Mo.

“This should be far enough,” he muttered, stopping.

Lin Mo felt the ground trembling. Quickly climbing a tall tree nearby, he saw the giant heading toward him.

“What was to come has come,” he prepared himself. The giant appeared slow due to its enormous body, but each step covered more than a mile. When it was a few miles away, it raised its trunk and snorted at Lin Mo.

“Huh! It’s not that suction again---”

“Brat, dodge!” the old ghost interrupted.

Without hesitation, Lin Mo jumped to the side. The spot where he stood got blasted away by a current of wind, creating a straight path in the distance.

“What the hell was that?”

“It’s a ball of condensed air. It used its trunk to shoot it at you like a cannon.”

“Can all king-ranked beasts do that?”

“Are you stupid?” the old ghost remarked. “Of course not. It’s the element this giant is proficient in.”

“Why can’t I see it coming, but you can?”

“Experience,” the old ghost boasted. “I’ve killed several of these giants in my prime.”

“Yeah, yeah. Keep boasting,” Lin Mo muttered, not believing a word from the old ghost.

“Here comes another one. Dodge, brat,” the old ghost warned.

Following the warning, Lin Mo took a long leap to the side.

The area where Lin Mo had stood was blasted away.

“How troublesome,”

The vortexes of air were lethal to his current self. A single hit could severely injure or even kill him. Lin Mo maintained his distance, giving himself enough room to dodge the incoming attacks.

Seeing Lin Mo evade repeatedly only aggravated the giant further. It charged at him with its massive body.

Lin Mo braced himself, daggers ready. When they collided, a resounding clash of iron echoed.

“Not even a scratch,” Lin Mo murmured, astonished.

The giant’s skin had transformed, becoming as tough as iron. The two daggers couldn’t leave a mark.

The giant’s gaze fixed on the daggers that had taken one of its eyes, fueling its rage. It charged at Lin Mo with the intent to crush him into a paste.

The giant’s enormous body made dodging impossible. Lin Mo leaped backward at the sight of an attack, hoping to minimize the damage.

As he blocked again, numbness washed over him, and he was flung far away.

Lin Mo rose from the rubble, his arms numb with pain, blood dripping from his mouth, and his appearance haggard.

“I said I would stall for reinforcements, but at this rate, I might die before they arrive,” he lamented.