“How could the Outpost City be under assault?”

Bai Cheng froze the instant she saw the message.

Their Outpost City was inside the Dark Forest—basically a newbie zone. Even if Silent Night saw some riot, hundreds of thousands of settlers could handle it easily.

Yet the other side had begged for help; things had clearly turned critical.

Bai Cheng didn't know what the destruction of the Outpost City would trigger, but she couldn't afford to lose such a massive logistics hub.

Without waiting for details, she spun around and moved.

“I'll take Purple Iris back to check; that should be enough.” She glanced at Purple Iris, then headed for the parking spot to fire up the powered railcar.

Yu Nian and Leng Ningxue both nodded. The latter added, “With Purple Iris along there shouldn't be a problem. I'll get the specifics and update you in a moment.”

“Good!”

The train kept rolling; naturally, Liu San and the rest had received the SOS too.

Seeing Bai Cheng and her companion about to leave, they asked with some worry, “Miss Bai Cheng, shall we come with you? What exactly happened at the Outpost City?”

Bai Cheng shook her head. “No need—keep going.”

When she refused, Liu San didn't press.

He knew Purple Iris's strength; one King-tier fighter was ample, and Bai Cheng herself was no weakling.

Moments later the powered railcar uncoupled from the train.

After coordinates were punched in, Purple Iris took the controls; her vast energy slammed the railcar to top speed.

The speeding vehicle tore through clouds—and seemingly through space—vanishing in an instant.

Inside the car, the scenery on both sides blurred beyond recognition.

When the view outside finally stabilized, black trees and plants filled the landscape, deathly and grim; nearby, a seven-tier floating mountain hovered silently.

Bai Cheng immediately scanned the area, yet—perhaps because they were still some distance from the Outpost City—everything in the Dark Forest felt normal; nothing odd was happening.

“Strange,” Bai Cheng frowned. “Purple Iris, notice anything?”

“Miss, there's a faint, strange scent in the air...” Purple Iris fell silent, either thinking or sensing.

A moment later her eyes lifted. “Miss, it's wood-element and life energy contained in some plant.”

The instant those words left Purple Iris, Bai Cheng's nerves snapped taut.

“Wood element and life energy?” she echoed under her breath, brows knitting tighter.

The Dark Forest was notorious for being eerie and treacherous, yet its plants were mostly withered and decayed, rarely so vibrantly alive; undead creatures were the norm.

“Is someone forcing the vegetation to grow?” Bai Cheng wondered aloud.

“No, Miss—I also sense a living creature's aura!” Purple Iris's voice chilled as her gaze swept the surroundings.

Her perception outstripped Bai Cheng's; she could tell the energy wasn't natural but guided—like some colossal spell taking shape.

Bai Cheng's heart lurched; she pulled up the Outpost City's comm channel, but only harsh static answered.

The signal was being jammed.

“Something's wrong.” She judged instantly. “Purple Iris, punch it—break through the outer barrier!”

Without hesitation Purple Iris flicked a finger; the railcar's energy core erupted in blinding violet light.

The vehicle shot like lightning, ripping through the darkness toward the Outpost City beneath the floating mountain.

Yet just as they were about to arrive, the forest ahead twisted; countless thick vines burst from the soil, weaving into a sky-blocking net.

The vines glowed a sickly dark green, each pulsing with shocking vitality yet rotting the instant they met the air, ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) reeking of decay.

“An ambush, just as expected!” Bai Cheng's eyes sharpened as she summoned her scythe.

Purple Iris stepped out of the slowing car, violet flames rising around her, staring coldly at the shadows behind the vines.

“Show yourself.” Her voice carried crushing pressure, shaking the trees.

After several seconds of silence, a soft laugh drifted from the dark.

“Didn't expect the leader to return so quickly,” a figure in a black robe said, slowly emerging. “Seems you really are somewhat capable.”

He extended a long brown tongue to lick the rotting flesh on his cheek, nauseating to behold.

Bai Cheng's brows clamped tight the moment she saw him.

She recognized the black robe—he was clearly a Survivor from the special channel.

But he was utterly different from those she'd killed before: they had been skeletons wreathed in ghost-blue flames, whereas this one was covered in putrid flesh and brimmed with wood-element and life energy.

“Because of the hunt, huh,” Bai Cheng muttered, eyes locked on this special channel Survivor of another race.

She had no time for banter; the safety of the Outpost City mattered more—she couldn't be stopped here.

“Purple Iris—attack!” she ordered at once.

A gigantic purple crescent slashed outward, slicing every plant and tree in its path straight toward the enemy.

The foe didn't even dodge; he merely lifted a hand and countless black vines erupted.

Purple Iris had thought the slash would shred them easily, yet the vines absorbed its power, growing weaker as the cut drove deeper.

As the vines blocked the first strike, Purple Iris moved again.

“Blocked one—can you block a second?”

She unleashed a second, fiercer slash, and this time the result was devastating.

In an instant the grotesque vines were sheared clean as tofu.

A thunderous blast followed; dust mushroomed, and the opponent's figure vanished entirely.

“Dead?” Bai Cheng looked around, puzzled.

She could no longer sense his aura.

After all, Purple Iris was King-tier; anyone who could take two of her strikes couldn't survive, right?