Fortunately, within the 300-meter and 500-meter range around the evil tree, they had set traps and lethal mechanisms. These were enough to contain the spirits, allowing them to be sealed later, preventing the tree from taking advantage of the situation.
The process, however, was far from simple. By the time the handlers dealt with the prematurely fallen spirits, it was already evening. During this period, Xu Dongyou had been resting. When night came, it was once again his turn, along with others, to keep watch.
As for the researcher, he was still in a state of extreme excitement. This was their first chance to study the evil tree up close, even though they remained at a distance of 500 meters from it.
They were highly curious about the origins of the tree and how this small world had been created.
The director and a few others were discussing plans. To prevent the tree from overhearing, they communicated through their spiritual energy watches.
The unprovoked daytime attack by the resentful spirits confirmed that the tree indeed had some degree of intelligence or at least instinct. It was similar to animals and monsters, lacking human-like cognitive abilities but still capable of fear and adapting its actions in response to environmental changes.
This was not good news.
It also meant that the difficulty of destroying the tree had increased. But regardless of the complications, they still needed to stick to their original plan.
Time quickly passed into the later part of the night.
Xu Dongyou wasn’t tired but was feeling a bit bored, so he decided to browse the internet on his spiritual energy watch to pass the time. However, before long, he sensed that the gray mist around him seemed to have thickened significantly.
He immediately put down his watch and saw the vague figures of several people moving in the distance.
No, not people—several resentful spirits. Their bodies were almost entirely shrouded in mist, but with his enhanced powers, Xu Dongyou could focus and see their bodies beneath the mist. Despite their differing appearances, they all had strange, eerie expressions.
The spirits were clearly headed toward them.
Xu Dongyou stood up at once, signaling to the other night watch members. They quickly understood, waking everyone and preparing to confront the approaching spirits.
By the time the ordeal was over, dawn had arrived.
As they approached the defense perimeter, they discovered that two of the traps had been damaged, leaving gaps. No wonder the spirits had managed to slip out for a night raid. If Xu Dongyou hadn’t spotted them early on, those spirits could have already attacked.
“Reinforce and repair the traps. Everyone, stay alert,” the director ordered.
Everyone immediately sprang into action.
Xu Dongyou carefully inspected the damaged opening nearby. The muddy ground showed signs of disturbance, which was odd. Resentful spirits didn’t leave footprints and the area had been smoothed over when the group originally set up camp.
Logically, there shouldn’t have been any marks here.
The director approached, glancing at the disturbed ground. In a voice only Xu Dongyou could hear, he said, “You noticed too?”
Xu Dongyou snapped out of his thoughts, shaking his head. “I didn’t notice anything in particular, just wondering why there are these disturbed tracks here.”
The director replied, “It’s because someone intentionally damaged this spot to allow the spirits to escape. But as you know, resentful spirits don’t leave footprints or marks, so the person must have destroyed their own footprints to avoid being identified.”
Xu Dongyou was stunned.
He hadn’t considered this possibility. But this also meant that someone among them was a traitor!
Xu Dongyou couldn’t fathom the person’s motives and was even more worried about what they might do in secret next.
The director continued, “That’s why I’m telling you this. Your heightened senses can detect many useful things. Pay attention and find this person.”
Xu Dongyou nodded in agreement. Then, remembering another important matter, he asked, “Director, could it be that other handlers have noticed this too? If they start suspecting each other, it might lead to distrust and affect the entire team.”
The director replied, “That’s exactly why we need to find this person quickly before others catch on and start growing suspicious.”
Xu Dongyou nodded again, his expression serious. “I’ll do my best.”
In the following days, the saboteur, likely worried about being exposed, didn’t tamper with any more traps. The resentful spirits were trapped and the next day they were sealed away.
Moreover, with no new spirits emerging from the tree, their numbers dwindled. This was part of the Bureau’s plan: exhaust the spirits first, then deal with the evil tree, using the opportunity to conduct tests and experiments.
As time passed, the tree seemed to grow increasingly restless, and it stopped sending out spirits. Everyone became vigilant, suspecting the tree was preparing for a final strike.
Late one night, Xu Dongyou faintly heard a sound in the distance. He immediately opened his eyes and scanned his surroundings, but saw no resentful spirits.
It seemed like a mere illusion.
But Xu Dongyou trusted his heightened senses completely. Instead of alerting the other handlers, he grabbed his dagger and cautiously moved forward. After walking for about ten minutes, he finally discovered the source of the sound.
From the filthy black ground, something was crawling out, but its massive size meant only a few hairy legs were visible. One glance was enough for Xu Dongyou to recognize it—it looked exactly like a spider.
However, the legs of this spider were as tall as a full-grown man, suggesting the main body was enormous.
Could it be that the evil tree, realizing the spirits were ineffective, had sent this nearby creature to attack them instead? Unfortunately, it had been spotted by Xu Dongyou first. Without hesitation, he activated his spiritual energy watch and sent a danger alert to all the handlers. Then, gripping his dagger, he swiftly dashed forward and hacked off several of the spider’s legs.
A thick, foul-smelling substance, reminiscent of greasy sewer sludge, oozed from the severed limbs. Xu Dongyou suppressed the urge to vomit and, without sparing a glance at the still-twitching legs on the ground, channeled his demonic energy to manipulate the earth, quickly compressing the creature’s buried body beneath the soil.
The ground began to churn as Xu Dongyou’s demonic energy was steadily consumed. He intensified the pressure, squeezing harder until the creature finally used all its strength to crawl out of the earth. However, its body was already shattered beyond recognition. Hundreds of its eyes glared viciously at Xu Dongyou, letting out an eerie, high-pitched scream.
By this point, Xu Dongyou had used up about a quarter of his energy, but he remained unfazed. He swiftly controlled his dagger and finished off the creature, which let out a howl of unwillingness before collapsing, lifeless.
Xu Dongyou exhaled in relief. By then, the others had heard the commotion and rushed over, staring at the creature’s corpse on the ground in shock and silence.
No one had expected Xu Dongyou’s power to have grown so quickly. He had single-handedly and effortlessly dealt with a monster that most of them couldn’t even imagine handling. They silently wondered if they could have done the same.
Then, there was another round of silence.
Xu Dongyou turned his head and smiled at them, just as friendly and harmless as ever. With his extraordinarily good looks and innocent demeanor, it was easy for people to see him as trustworthy and approachable.
Yet, it was precisely this person who had accomplished something they could not.
And this wasn’t the first time.
One of the handlers’ eyes flickered, and a subtle killing intent arose.
Xu Dongyou noticed the person out of the corner of his eye but quickly shifted his gaze away. When he later returned to rest, he quietly sent a message to the director, naming the person he suspected.
Just moments ago, that individual had directed a momentary, albeit fleeting, murderous intent at him. Although it lasted only a second, Xu Dongyou had sensed and captured it.
The director immediately responded, instructing Xu Dongyou to stay calm and avoid exposing any suspicion.
Xu Dongyou acknowledged the order and then carried on as usual. However, after effortlessly slaying the monster, there was a subtle shift in how others treated him. The senior handlers, who had previously held an inexplicable sense of superiority and arrogance over Xu Dongyou, now interacted with him more as equals. Some even showed traces of respect and attempted to curry favor.
Xu Dongyou felt somewhat uncomfortable with the change but didn’t want to tell them outright to stop, as it would likely create an awkward atmosphere. Instead, he maintained his usual demeanor—respectful toward the veterans and friendly to the others.
This only made them like him more.
After all, thinking about it, if they had accomplished what Xu Dongyou had, they probably would have let it get to their heads. Yet, Xu Dongyou remained humble and true to himself, which was a rare quality.
They were all happy to befriend someone like him.
Whether it was due to the crisis caused by Xu Dongyou’s easy defeat of the monster or not, in the following days, the creatures began to launch sneak attacks late at night, likely attempting to wear down his energy. However, Xu Dongyou wasn’t foolish. Whenever danger arose, he would immediately coordinate with the others to fend off the attacks, while ensuring the rest got enough rest to face the resentful spirits during the day.
Meanwhile, with the confirmation that the miniature world wouldn’t consume humans, the other prepped handlers entered the realm as well, joining the efforts to deal with the resentful spirits.
Within just half a month, the number of spirits hanging on the evil tree had significantly dwindled. Only two or three particularly formidable ones remained. At the same time, nearly twenty traps had been set around the area.
So much so that some monsters triggered traps the moment they emerged, getting injured, and were then overwhelmed by the handlers and defeated in a rather pitiful manner.
The saboteur among the handlers could no longer sit still. He had to think of a plan. Otherwise, if things continued like this, the evil tree would be in real danger of being completely destroyed.
And this was precisely the moment the director and the others had been waiting for.
