Chapter 112: The Black Giant
Although the situation was frozen, the ten treasure hunters didn’t dare delay too long, as they couldn’t stay in one place for long. Moreover, if anyone else found this place, the competition would become even more fierce.
In desperation, they resorted to a rock-paper-scissors game to select the luckiest loser, who would go and check the box.
Losing meant losing—it was considered divine will. With a gloomy expression, the loser slowly approached the statue. He had no choice but to go; otherwise, he would face collective punishment, as agreed beforehand.
Upon reaching the altar, the slightly overweight young man first bowed respectfully to the statue before, with trembling hands, reaching for the box.
Seeing this, not only Su Che but also the other nine laughed inwardly: That was a witch tribe statue. As a human, even if you kowtowed to it a hundred times, it wouldn’t bless you. If you deserved to die, you’d still die!
Yet, they kept their laughter hidden. Everyone was extremely nervous, unsure of what would happen once he touched the box.
As his hands slowly pressed against the box, he suddenly let out a groan, his body beginning to tremble violently, his eyes rolling back as if struck by low-level lightning…
What was going on?
The other nine immediately scattered, ready to retreat at any moment, ready to dash into the stone forest…
A few moments later, the man in front of the altar stopped trembling. Suddenly, he turned his head, gave the others a sinister smile, licked his lips, and said in a gloomy tone, “I’m so hungry…”
“What do you mean?”
The other nine realized something was wrong. No normal person would make such a joke at such a critical moment…
Retreat! Retreat quickly!
In the Little Mi Immortal Realm, if something strange happened, you had to leave immediately—run as far as possible. That was another piece of wisdom.
“Waaah!” The man in front of the altar screamed wildly, tearing apart his robes. Then his body swelled rapidly, and in the blink of an eye, he turned into a pitch-black giant over thirty feet tall. His body was covered in countless pustule-like bulges, resembling a flesh-tumor monster, a terrifying sight.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
He randomly chose one of the treasure hunters and charged over with heavy steps, like a mammoth.
That treasure hunter had already run to the edge of the stone forest. With a single leap, he tried to dart into the gaps between the stone pillars, but with a thud, he collided with an invisible wall full of elasticity. Instead of escaping into the stone forest, he was bounced back several yards and sat down on the ground, dizzy and disoriented.
His remaining sense of reason allowed him to think of getting up and continuing to flee, but as soon as he left the ground, he was grabbed by the approaching giant and brought to its mouth.
“I’m so hungry!”
With a crunch, the treasure hunter was torn in two. His upper body went into the giant’s mouth, leaving only his legs below his buttocks kicking wildly.
Crunch, crunch, crunch…
The giant chewed forcefully, blood splattering from its mouth—a truly terrifying scene.
The other eight treasure hunters were also blocked by an invisible wall. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t return to the stone forest.
Only Su Che, who had been hiding inside the stone forest from the start, was unaffected.
Crunch, crunch…
The giant, standing three yards tall, consumed a living person in just a few breaths, yet it still cried out of hunger.
“Hungry.”
“So hungry.”
“I’m starving!”
As it cried out of hunger, it searched for its next prey.
The eight treasure hunters trapped there were all experienced cultivators. Since they couldn’t penetrate the invisible wall, they didn’t panic and start running around randomly. Someone immediately shouted, “Everyone, don’t panic! Hiding isn’t the solution. Let’s unite and fight it together…”
“Ah!”
Before he could finish speaking, a scream echoed, and he turned into a puddle of flesh, staining a large area red.
While urging others not to panic, he himself forgot that loud noises were not allowed in the Little Mi Immortal Realm, and he was immediately punished by the sacred realm’s protective forces. Perhaps only the Witch Clan could shout loudly here…
“Hungry, hungry, hungry…”
The giant kept shouting about its hunger, yet it wasn’t punished. Or rather, it had already suffered another form of punishment.
“I haven’t eaten in millions of years. It’s no wonder I’m hungry,” muttered Lao He in the Immortal Prison, grinding his fangs. “His cries are making me hungry too. Let’s find something to eat.”
Of course, Lao He wouldn’t eat people. The Immortal Prison stored plenty of food, after all, it housed more than a dozen prisoners.
At this moment, the seven surviving treasure hunters had united and used their spells, magical artifacts, and spirit talismans to bombard the giant relentlessly.
Boom! Boom! Boom…
The giant’s flesh was torn apart, black blood spraying everywhere, but it no longer felt pain. Half-crouched on the ground like a giant chimpanzee, it endured relentless attacks and pursued its next prey with stubborn determination.
The seven explorers worked in close coordination, taking turns and positioning themselves to disrupt the giant’s vision, while continuing their attacks. This kept the giant struggling to focus on a single target, yet none of them could be captured. If they could persist like this, they might eventually exhaust the giant—after all, it wasn’t a true sorcerer but just a monster transformed from a human, not particularly powerful.
But since something strange had already happened here, things couldn’t be that simple. Soon, the seven explorers realized the invisible wall was shrinking rapidly, shrinking their space even more…
“How is this possible?”
“We’re doomed! We’re completely doomed!”
“Hurry! Everyone, think of a solution!”
All seven were panicked, and their movements became chaotic. As the invisible wall continued to shrink, they were forced to move toward the statue in the center…
“Hungry… hungry…”
The giant had approached one of the explorers with a sharp chin. In this critical moment, he not only unleashed his full potential but also the darkest side of his humanity. His body twisted like a serpent, turning the impossible possible—he managed to get behind another companion and pushed hard on their back with both hands.
“If you’re hungry, I’ll give you another person to feed on—let’s see if that’ll satisfy you,” was his thought at that moment.
“Ah!”
The person pushed by was caught off guard, flying into the air with no chance to stop, crashing headfirst into the giant’s arms. The giant held him close, opened its massive mouth, and swallowed his head in one bite.
Crack, crack, crack…
Another living person was devoured in just a few bites. The giant grew even larger, its flesh tumors expanding significantly. Meanwhile, the remaining six explorers had even less space to move, now forced to the edge of the altar.
The others couldn’t blame the “sharp-chinned” monk for his despicable act—perhaps they would have done the same. After all, it seemed no one could escape now.
“Hungry… hungry…”
It was still crying out for food!
“Ah! I don’t want to be eaten! I’d rather eat people!” A treasure hunter, driven to near madness, suddenly rushed onto the altar and pressed both hands on the box. He would rather become a monster that eats others than be torn apart and swallowed alive by a monster—the thought was simply too terrifying. Thus, he too went through moments of trembling and rolling his eyes, eventually transforming into a black giant over thirty feet tall. Unexpectedly, the giant that had appeared earlier let out a roar and collapsed, instantly turning into a wisp of black smoke, leaving no trace at all. Why did this happen? Smart people quickly realized that only one giant could exist at a time; the one that transformed later would replace the previous one. “I’m so hungry!” This giant also began to roar, its fierce gaze fixed on the remaining five people. The five treasure hunters looked at each other and, without agreement, all gave a grim smile. The one with the sharp chin asked in a hoarse voice, “Who goes first?” “I’ll go first! Don’t fight over me!” A bearded monk was the first to lie on the altar and press both hands on the box. Better to die than to become a monster and then be replaced by someone else… But even such a desperate wish couldn’t be fulfilled. As soon as he pressed the box, before he could even enjoy the transformation process, he was grabbed by the giant that had already completed its transformation. Crack, crack, crack… While the giant devoured them hungrily, the remaining four exchanged glances and rushed at the box at the same time… Hurry up, or it will be too late! Although they all pressed the box at the same time, there was still a sequence to their transformations. In this way, the first of the four turned into a giant, was then replaced by the second, and so on… In the end, it was the guy with the sharp chin who became the sole remaining black giant. The others all turned into black smoke and disappeared. “Hungry!” “So hungry!” “I’m starving!” He wandered around, shouting repeatedly, “Hungry, hungry, hungry…” In the stone forest, Su Che was stunned by these changes and couldn’t figure out whether the last guy had the best or worst luck. “I think he has the worst luck!” Lao He mumbled, chewing on a cow leg, “Being that hungry is worse than dying.”
“Perhaps his soul is already dead.”
Su Che shook his head silently. Anyway, this last remaining giant had become an obstacle to him. To get that box, he had to deal with it first.
“Lao Hei, are you sure that box is a top-tier magical artifact, not some evil curse?” Out of caution, Su Che asked again.
“Yes, master. I can sense it—it’s at least a spiritual treasure-grade artifact,” Lao Hei explained patiently. “The so-called curse power you mentioned is likely some powerful magic. It isn’t attached to the box but originates from that statue.”
Su Che nodded in his mind. “Then fine, we need to find a way to get it!”