Naji didn’t understand why it had turned into a zombie black bear.

But Nina Jacobs knew why.

A half-eaten zombie python was even hanging from the zombie black bear’s neck.

"..."

’That must be the zombie python I killed last night with my rat.’

Nina Jacobs felt it was a bit of a waste.

’This black bear is huge. We could get a lot of meals out of its meat.’

BOOM!

A Fireball was already hurtling toward the zombie black bear.

Its fur caught fire, but the zombie black bear felt no pain and continued to charge the group!

"Buy me some time."

Nina Jacobs said to Jessica Vance and the others beside her.

"Got it!"

Jessica Vance leaped into the air, sending two tornadoes of wind swirling toward the zombie black bear.

Holden Shaw and Chase Gallagher also charged in from two different directions!

The zombie black bear raised its thick paw. Just as it slammed it down, an incredibly fast figure flashed underneath it, blade in hand.

Foul, dark blood splattered as Holden Shaw lopped off one of its festering paws.

"He used its own momentum to sever the paw. Holden’s gotten even better," Leo Hale praised with an appreciative click of his tongue.

"What is she doing?"

Naji noticed that Trevor and the members of the rescue team were just watching the perimeter, with no intention of stepping in to help.

"You don’t understand. If we helped now, we’d just be getting in the way,"

Trevor replied.

It was the unspoken understanding they had developed throughout their journey.

Since they were all aware of each other’s capabilities, they knew not to interfere when someone was facing an opponent that could serve as good training.

Just like now.

Stella was displaying their teamwork.

Anyone who tried to help would just be superfluous.

But Naji didn’t get it. His people usually just dogpiled their enemies.

Two minutes later, a Fire Serpent coiled around the zombie black bear.

The others immediately got the hint and ran in the same direction.

The zombie black bear roared and gave chase, but after less than two steps, it plunged headfirst into the ground.

The ground beneath it had, at some point, turned completely to sand.

The sinkhole looked extremely deep. The bear, nearly three or four meters tall, was already submerged past its waist!

ROAR! ROAR!

Its roars were powerful enough to nearly shatter the dead trees nearby.

A sharp Stone Spike, wreathed in brilliant flames, shot forward!

The roaring stopped instantly.

The others in the group didn’t seem surprised that the zombie black bear had been dealt with in just a few minutes.

"Let’s go. It came from that direction."

Nina Jacobs pointed. The zombie black bear and the herd of mutated boars had all come from that direction.

Since the Mystic Ice Core was related to these Mutated Animals, they had to find the creatures’ lair.

Trevor, meanwhile, left markings on the surrounding trees that only his clansmen would understand.

He knew Aaron Axton and Greg Unger would be able to recognize them.

As they were leaving, Nina Jacobs casually incinerated the zombie black bear’s corpse. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Concealed beneath the sand, not a trace of it remained.

"Is it more of the same up ahead?" Adrian Shaw asked as they walked.

The bottom of the cliff looked the same in every direction.

"There’s a river up ahead, but it’s dried up now," Trevor explained. "This valley lies between two mountains. The one ahead of us used to be called the ’forbidden zone.’ It was incredibly difficult to cross."

"The ’forbidden zone’ is just a name some reckless hikers gave it. Back then, it was crawling with so many venomous creatures and fierce beasts that no one could make it through alive."

Naji added that even self-proclaimed experts with professional gear would easily get lost in the miasma.

"And now?" Shirley Lucas asked.

The valleys between the mountains weren’t connected. If they wanted to do a thorough search, they would probably have to cross the mountain ahead.

Naji gazed at the distant mountain, his voice tinged with nostalgia as he replied, "Ever since the Mawdrakes started running rampant here, we haven’t set foot on that mountain."

"Since what Toya saw fell somewhere between these two mountains, I think we should go take a look on that mountain."

Adrian Shaw had a dream last night.

He dreamed of Drakonia’s bleak future, where opportunities were snatched away and its very destiny was erased.

It all seemed to happen imperceptibly, yet it affected everyone’s future.

There were no concrete scenes in the dream, but it set off alarm bells in his mind.

It was the kind of anxiety that came from holding a treasure without realizing its worth, coveted by others while remaining utterly defenseless.

He didn’t know if the dream was some kind of premonition, but he remembered the only person in it was Nina Jacobs.

"Didn’t you say we should go back as soon as possible?"

Nina Jacobs recalled that just last night, Adrian Shaw had been planning for them to head back as soon as they finished searching the cliff bottom.

"I dreamed about you last night,"

Adrian Shaw replied.

"???"

Nina Jacobs shot Adrian Shaw a look, as if he were a psychiatric patient.

She had, in fact, already decided to stay behind and farm some System Experience Points in the nearby mountains after Adrian Shaw and his team left.

"Hey, Shaw! I’m warning you, don’t you get any ideas about my Summer,"

Shirley Lucas declared self-righteously as she caught up to them.

"I was just kidding. I just figure, since we’re already here, we shouldn’t leave with any regrets."

Adrian Shaw didn’t understand why he had dreamed about Nina Jacobs either.

But he remembered Nina’s proposal from yesterday to search all the surrounding mountains.

’Maybe Nina Jacobs was right all along?’

Nina Jacobs had no idea Adrian Shaw had been wrestling with so much all morning.

She was busy carefully observing the chaotic footprints on the ground.

"That black bear used to live in the hollow of an ancient tree up ahead, but it probably moved after it mutated."

Shawn said, pointing in the direction of the tracks.

It had once been a towering ancient tree, but now only a gray-white, tree-shaped husk remained.

Nina Jacobs walked over to the ancient tree, her eyes fixed on it.

"This tree must be a thousand years old," Chase Gallagher said regretfully. He reached out and gently touched the trunk, and a whole section of it crumbled away like dry earth.

The tree was completely dead.

"Yeah... it’s so old. Why is it still standing here so perfectly?"

Not far away, Leo Hale was about to leave with the rest of the group when he noticed Nina Jacobs was still under the tree, muttering something.

"Are you talking about this tree?"

Hearing Nina Jacobs’s words, Chase Gallagher suddenly realized what she meant.

Most of the other dead trees in the area had been smashed to smithereens.

The tree had crumbled at his lightest touch. There was no reason for it to have remained standing here, almost perfectly intact.

Not with so many Mutated Animals rampaging through the area.

Hearing the commotion, Adrian Shaw and the others turned to look.

They saw the weathered ancient tree being enveloped by layers of a Wind Element Superpower, and in an instant, the entire tree-shaped husk disintegrated.

Beneath the gray-white dust, a massive, smooth Mystic Stone was revealed.

"That’s..."

Shirley Lucas’s eyes widened.

’That’s definitely no ordinary stone. Judging by its luster and sheen, that’s clearly a gigantic Mystic Ice Core!’

"Oh my god!"

Although Beckett Abbott had never absorbed a Mystic Ice Core himself, he could guess what it was from everyone else’s reactions.

"It’s as big as my washbasin..."

Marcus Miller said, gesturing with his hands to indicate the size.

"It’s definitely a Mystic Ice Core,"

Nina Jacobs confirmed after placing her hand on it.

"Summer’s the one who found this, so don’t you dare try to snatch it, you hear?"

Shirley Lucas snapped out of her daze and blocked Adrian Shaw’s path.

"Don’t worry. I’ll apply for the appropriate reward from the base for her."

After Adrian Shaw said this, Shirley Lucas shot Nina Jacobs a look full of winks and nods.