The jungle smelled like old rain and rotting flowers. Lin's sneakers squelched in mud as he shoved aside another curtain of hanging moss. He had barely recovered from the Candy Biome fiasco — his throat still sore from being choked by a sentient caramel stick — and now this place looked like the set of a horror movie.
"Where the hell are we now?" Lin muttered, brushing sticky sap off his shirt.
Lina adjusted the strap of her spear and gave a nervous laugh. "Looks like an Amazon rainforest."
"More like Jungle of Death," Sera said, her braid clinging to her neck with sweat. She'd only just discovered she could spit out bursts of wind and fire, and now she walked with a strange confidence.
Aria, the mysterious girl who had appeared like a vision two biomes ago, crouched and touched the soil. Her fingers came up dark green. "This isn't ordinary earth. The plants here are alive… and listening."
Lin stared at her. "Great. Plants with Wi-Fi. Just what we need."
[System Notification!]
Warning! You have entered: JUNGLE PREDATOR ZONE – VINE PANTHER TERRITORY.
Survival Rate: 3%. Rewards for surviving 1 hour: 500 EXP + Random Jungle Skill.
Lin's stomach dropped. "Three percent?!"
Sera forced a smile. "Hey, at least it's not zero."
They pushed deeper, trees towering like skyscrapers, vines thicker than his leg. It felt less like walking and more like crawling into a beast's throat. All the while, Lin kept muttering under his breath: "I swear, Erevos, if I make it out of here I'm coming for you. Lawsuit. Punch to the face. Maybe both."
The first growl came like a low hum. The second one was closer. Lin's spine tingled.
"Don't move," Aria whispered, eyes darting around.
"Oh yeah sure," Lin hissed back, "let's just stand here and die like NPCs."
The leaves rustled. Something slithered through the undergrowth. Then glowing green eyes appeared—ten of them. No, twenty.
Out of the shadows stepped sleek black panther-like creatures, but their tails were whips of living vines, and thorned tendrils curled from their shoulders like extra limbs. Their claws glinted like polished obsidian.
"Vine Panthers," Aria whispered. "Plant-beast hybrids. Weak to fire… maybe."
Sera grinned nervously. "Good thing I breathe fire now."
Lin swallowed hard. "Yeah, but there's about twenty of them and we're the buffet."
The Panthers hissed, a sound like leaves tearing. One leapt from a tree, tail snapping. Lin dove, rolling in the mud. A vine lashed his ankle and yanked him upward.
[System Notification!]
Emergency Danger Detected. Unlocking Temporary Skill: Jungle Instincts (Passive).
Ability: Sense ambushes and detect weak points of plant-based creatures.
A pulse of green light ran through Lin's body. His eyes flickered emerald. Suddenly the world slowed, the Panthers' movements outlined in glowing patterns.
Lin grinned. "Alright, Erevos, you cheat, I cheat back."
He twisted midair, slashed the vine with a sharp stone he'd picked up. Landing hard, he sprinted, instincts guiding him through their attack arcs.
"Lin!" Lina cried, spearing one Panther. It shrieked, green sap spraying. But instead of dying, the beast split into two smaller Panthers, both hissing.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Lin yelled. "Duplication?! What is this, Jumanji: Nightmare Mode?"
Another Panther lunged at Aria. She raised her hands, chanting under her breath. A burst of wind whipped through the clearing, scattering leaves and knocking two Panthers off their paws.
Sera inhaled sharply, flames curling in her mouth, and spat a narrow stream of fire. It scorched one Panther, its vines shriveling.
"Nice!" Lin shouted.
"Don't thank me yet!" Sera yelled back. The scorched Panther convulsed—and from its charred body sprouted a cluster of thorny seedlings, which immediately grew into smaller, faster Panthers.
[System Notification!]
New Enemy Variant Detected: Thorn Cubs – 75% Speed Increase.
Lin groaned. "Great. They reproduce like viruses."
Aria grabbed his arm. "We can't fight them all. We have to move."
They bolted through the jungle, dodging whipping tails and snapping jaws. Lin's Jungle Instincts showed him glowing escape routes—narrow gaps in the vines, safe footholds. But the pack kept coming.
Trees trembled. The ground quaked. A roar echoed like an earthquake.
[Hidden Boss Approaching!]
Vine Panther Queen – Level ???
Lin glanced back—and his heart froze. A massive silhouette pushed through the trees. Twice as big as the others, its body a throne of living vines, its eyes burning like emerald suns. The Queen's roar sent birds scattering.
"Oh hell no," Lin gasped.
"Run!" Aria shouted.
They sprinted, but the Queen's vines shot out like harpoons, impaling the ground around them. Lin barely dodged one, tripped, rolled, and kept running.
[System Notification!]
New Class Unlocked – Jungle Stalker.
Abilities: Blend into the environment, counter plant-based enemies, +20% speed in forests.
Green light wrapped around Lin again. His body felt lighter, faster.
"Finally!" Lin yelled, darting ahead. "You want a jungle fight, Erevos? I'll give you a jungle fight!"
The Queen pounced, vines snapping. Lin dove into the undergrowth, vanishing from sight, system power cloaking him.
The last thing the girls saw was the massive Queen landing where Lin had been, claws tearing earth apart.
"Lin?!" Lina shouted.
Silence.
The screen faded to black.
[To Be Continued…]