202

Mark quickly climbed to the top of the waterfall, and Albert retracted all the branches and threw Mark to a safe place. The giant beast jumped up from the pool, its huge body covering the sky and the sun, and opened its bloody mouth towards Albert, and the fishy smell came to his face, making people sick.

The sharp teeth of the giant beast flashed coldly in the dim light, like a sharp knife, which made people shudder. The sound of the waterfall seemed to disappear at this moment, and only the heavy breathing of the giant beast and the splashing sound of water were left around. Albert dodged flexibly, and the huge tree trunk twisted like a flexible python to avoid the attack of the giant beast. After the giant beast landed, its huge body smashed a big pit on the ground, splashing countless gravel and soil. The falling gravel hit the surrounding plants, making a crackling sound, and some small branches and leaves were broken and fell to the ground. The ground trembled, as if a small earthquake had occurred.

After Mark stabilized his body, he immediately gathered energy and prepared to attack the giant beast. He put his hands together, and the black energy gathered in his hands, forming a black energy ball, emitting a heart-pounding wave. The black energy ball was like a small black hole, constantly devouring the surrounding light, emitting a suffocating sense of oppression.

Albert waved a thick branch and kept whipping the beast to prevent it from approaching Mark. The branches collided with the scales of the beast, making a dull impact sound, like a drum, echoing in the valley. The scales of the beast were extremely thick. Although Albert's attack could not cause fatal damage to it, it also made it feel pain and roared angrily. The roar of the beast was deafening, like thunder, echoing in the valley, and the surrounding trees trembled. It kept swinging its huge tail, trying to force Albert back.

Mark threw the energy ball in his hand at the beast, and the black energy ball accurately hit the head of the beast, making a deafening explosion. "Boom!" The explosion resounded through the valley, like thunder, making people's eardrums buzz. The beast wailed in pain, full of pain and despair, and echoed in the valley for a long time. The huge body shook a few times, and finally fell to the ground, motionless. Dust flew, covering the sky, and the surrounding trees were trembling with shock waves from the explosion, and leaves fell one after another, like a golden rain.

Mark and Albert approached the beast cautiously. Mark transformed a black dagger and held it in his hand, emitting a cold light. Albert stretched out a branch to the beast and tested its breath. After confirming that it was dead, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Mark's tense body finally relaxed. He took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, and the suppressed emotions in his chest dissipated. Albert also retracted the branch, and the huge crown shook slightly, as if celebrating victory.

Mark cut the skin of the beast with a black dagger. The dagger was extremely sharp and easily cut through the thick scales of the beast, revealing the black muscle tissue underneath. The blood of the giant beast was found to be black and exuded a pungent fishy smell.

The black blood flowed slowly from the wound like ink, emitting a disgusting fishy smell, and the air around it became turbid. He cut off a piece of the giant beast's meat. The meat was cold to the touch, and the texture was like rubber, emitting an uncomfortable fishy smell. He handed it to Albert, who rolled up the meat with branches. The branches were like dexterous hands, tightly wrapping the meat, and then slowly put it into his mouth. Absorb the energy in it. As Albert absorbed the energy, the trunk emitted a faint green light, flickering like breathing. The air around him also became fresh, and the pungent fishy smell gradually dissipated.

"How do you feel?" Mark asked, looking at Albert with concern in his eyes.

Albert shook the crown of the tree, and a few leaves fell down, as if responding to Mark's question.

"Can you still absorb it?" Mark asked again. Albert stretched out a branch and pointed at the body of the giant beast.

"It seems that you can absorb more energy." Mark nodded and cut off another large piece of flesh from the giant beast, which was twice as large as the one he gave to Albert before.

"Absorb it slowly, don't rush." ​​Albert rolled up the meat with two thick branches and slowly absorbed the energy in it. The cracks on his trunk healed at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the originally dull bark gradually regained its luster.

Mark walked to the edge of the pond, scooped up a handful of water to wash his hands, and then used a dagger to scrape off the blood and meat residue on his clothes. The water in the pond was clear and reflected his slightly tired face. He looked up at the sky. The sun was already setting in the west. The golden sunlight sprinkled on the waterfall, and the water vapor was misty, like a fairyland.

"Rest here today." Mark said to Albert,

"You absorb the energy well, and I will keep watch." Albert gently shook the crown of the tree to express his agreement. A few leaves fell in the breeze, landing in the clear water, creating slight ripples.

Mark found a relatively flat rock to sit on, took out some dry food and water from his backpack, and slowly ate. While he ate, he vigilantly observed the surrounding environment. The roar of the waterfall covered up other subtle sounds, and the surroundings were a little weird.

After Albert absorbed the energy of the beast meat, some small branches grew out from the broken parts, and the tender green new buds looked particularly vibrant in the afterglow of the sunset. It stretched out its branches, as if stretching its muscles and bones, making a slight sound. Mark finished eating the dry food, put away the remaining food, stood up, and walked to Albert. He gently stroked Albert's rough bark with his hand, feeling its vigorous vitality.

"Feeling better?" Mark asked softly. Albert bent down a branch and gently touched Mark's arm, as if responding to his concern.

As night fell, the temperature around the waterfall dropped sharply. Mark added some firewood and lit a bonfire to dispel the night's chill. The firelight illuminated a small area around, and the dancing flames cast dim shadows on Albert's thick trunk.

Mark sat by the bonfire, quietly keeping watch. Occasionally, nocturnal animals would make a few calls, breaking the tranquility of the night. Albert stood quietly beside Mark, like a loyal guard, guarding his safety.

Mark had no idea about Albert's condition. Albert was not like himself, who was invaded by the replica, but more like a complete transformation of race, from human to tree man. Mark suspected that there should be his power in this, otherwise according to the characteristics of the replica, he did not have the ability to transform.

Mark touched the black substance covering his body and counted the number of fragments collected so far. There were already 6 pieces, and 3 pieces were needed to restore the former glory of the holy stone.