NOVEL NEXT Chapter 71: Chapter 71: Devouring the Wailing Vine
Three vines, each as thick as an adult's arm, were the first to collide with Fang Chang, sending him flying backward. The vines, however, only trembled slightly, with the areas that had touched Fang Chang turning black and purple, clearly affected by the encounter.
Next, Fang Chang was struck by another vine from behind, slamming him back to the ground. He skidded across the ground for over a hundred meters before finally coming to a stop.
HP -755
HP -413
HP +233
...
After all, this was a 55,000-year Wailing Vine. The force of its vine attacks was no joke.
Even with all of Fang Chang's overpowered skills, his defense was now comparable to some human Soul Douluo-level experts. Yet, he still took significant damage from just the initial contact.
Fortunately, he now had the "High-Level Poison Immunity" skill. The poison that had harmed him last time now had no effect on him. Instead, it acted as a healing agent, restoring his HP.
This encounter left both the Wailing Vine and Fang Chang momentarily stunned. Fang Chang was surprised that the Wailing Vine wasn't as strong as he had imagined, while the Wailing Vine was shocked that this intruder could withstand its attacks so well.
Race: Wailing Vine
Soul Power: 55,000 years
HP: 37,000/37,000
Strength: 3,068
Attack: 2,888
Defense: 2,199
Speed: 99
In theory, a 55,000-year soul beast, based on soul power alone, should be equivalent to a peak Soul Sage, nearing the level of a Soul Douluo. Its actual combat power was likely even stronger.
However, as a soul beast formed from the mutation of Ghost Vines, the Wailing Vine's attributes weren't overwhelmingly powerful. Aside from its unusually high HP, its other stats were relatively weak compared to other soul beasts of its level.
Its true offensive strength lay in its poison, but the poison was completely ineffective against Fang Chang. This left the Wailing Vine at a loss for how to deal with him.
As for Fang Chang, seeing that the poison had no effect and the damage from the vines was manageable, he became even more reckless.
He turned around and activated his "Leap" skill again, jumping toward the vine that had initially struck him. He then used his "Bloodsucking" skill to take a big bite.
Although the Wailing Vine was a plant-type soul beast, the "Bloodsucking" skill had no restrictions on its targets. Fang Chang sucked out a mouthful of bitter, medicinal-tasting green liquid.
He frowned but forced himself to swallow it.
HP +1,02
With the "Bloodsucking" skill at level 10, it could restore 10% of Fang Chang's maximum HP in one go. This single bite nearly fully restored his health.
Combined with the level 9 "Regeneration" skill and the healing effect from "High-Level Poison Immunity," Fang Chang's HP remained remarkably stable.
The Wailing Vine, naturally unwilling to be attacked by an intruder, gathered its vines and launched an even more ferocious assault.
Countless vines blotted out the sky, striking Fang Chang one after another. Fang Chang gritted his teeth, enduring the pain, and chose to tank the hits.
Thanks to his "Blade Armor" skill, while Fang Chang took significant damage, the Wailing Vine's HP also dropped. The vines striking him occasionally cracked, oozing green sap.
Fang Chang seized the opportunity to "suck blood" from the Wailing Vine during the gaps between its attacks.
At first glance, it seemed like the Wailing Vine was dominating Fang Chang, suppressing him to the point where he could barely lift his head, forced to defend passively.
But looking at their HP, the Wailing Vine's HP had dropped from 37,000 to 33,450 and was still falling.
Meanwhile, Fang Chang's HP remained resilient. Although his health bar dropped periodically, it quickly recovered, fluctuating between half and full health.
The scene was reminiscent of a Li Bai without制裁 chasing a full-tank Cheng Yaojin. Despite all the flashy moves, Cheng Yaojin would still be at full health.
The Wailing Vine soon realized that blindly attacking wasn't working. It changed tactics, wrapping several vines around Fang Chang's body to restrict his movement.
Then, the vines tightened, squeezing Fang Chang in an attempt to crush him.
Initially, Fang Chang's hardened body could withstand the pressure, but as his "Hardening" skill wore off, his defense dropped significantly, and the vines' crushing force began to take effect.
Watching his HP steadily decline, Fang Chang tried to fight back, but his body was firmly entangled by the vines, suspended in mid-air with no leverage.
Moreover, the Wailing Vine was clever. It avoided wrapping vines around Fang Chang's head, preventing him from using his "Bloodsucking" skill.
The vines tightened further, their pressure increasing. Fang Chang's tough exoskeleton began to deform under the strain.
Realizing the danger, Fang Chang intensified his "Fire Armor" skill. Fire was highly effective against most plant-type soul beasts, and the Wailing Vine was no exception.
The vines restraining him quickly began to char and blacken, emitting a pungent, acrid smell.
The pressure from the vines gradually lessened as some of them burned through and fell away.
But the Wailing Vine wasn't giving up. As soon as one vine burned away, another would take its place, maintaining the pressure on Fang Chang.
In the brief moments when the vines loosened, Fang Chang used his "Flexible Size" skill to slightly enlarge his body.
The vines' grip expanded with him, and as he grew, the area of the vines exposed to the "Fire Armor" increased, shifting the pressure back onto the Wailing Vine.
The Wailing Vine, still relentless, summoned all the vines in the forest, throwing them at Fang Chang in a desperate attempt to crush him.
In this tug-of-war, Fang Chang's condition deteriorated rapidly. His HP recovery could no longer keep up with the damage from the vines.
When his HP dropped to around 20%, Fang Chang's body, under the effect of "Flexible Size," had expanded to three or four times its original size.
Suddenly, he reversed the "Flexible Size" skill, shrinking his body to one-tenth of its original size. The drastic change in size caused the vines that had been wrapped around him to lose their grip and snap together.
Fang Chang's main body fell between the vines, frantically using "Bloodsucking" to restore his HP. He then slipped through the gaps in the vines and landed back on the ground.
By this point, most of the vines in the forest had been drawn to Fang Chang's previous location. Only two areas still had vines: one above Fang Chang, where the Wailing Vine had been restraining him, and another about 150 to 160 meters ahead, where the Wailing Vine's core vine was likely located.
Realizing this, Fang Chang surged forward, using "Leap" repeatedly to close the distance. At the same time, he maximized his size using "Flexible Size."
The Wailing Vine, now aware of his intentions, quickly retracted its vines, trying to ensnare Fang Chang again.
But Fang Chang's body was still expanding. The vines that touched him couldn't hold him and were quickly pushed aside.
When the Wailing Vine's core vine came within range, Fang Chang, now at his maximum size, bit down on the area protected by the vines, tearing away half of the tree in the process.