Rainbow Bear commanded Sugar Bear to submit to him, forcing Sugar Bear to become a source of perpetual power, a loyal puppet. This would allow Rainbow Bear to continuously draw Sugar Bear's blood to enhance his comprehension of healing witchcraft and further strengthen his control over the newly acquired spells, thereby swiftly restoring his realm to its former height.

  Although Sugar Bear cherished the bond he shared with Rainbow Bear, he would not back down in the face of a brother determined to kill him for personal gain. Thus, on a night when all the townsfolk were safely asleep in their homes, Sugar Bear and Rainbow Bear engaged in a life-or-death magical duel.

  As their battle intensified, the two tacitly moved the fight from indoors to the forest outside the town, avoiding the townspeople being awakened by the noise and ensuring their image would not be tarnished by the discovery of their conflict.

  Despite being described as a magical duel, both Sugar Bear and Rainbow Bear's current cultivation focused on healing witchcraft, rendering their spells of little practical combat value. Therefore, their confrontation was essentially a contest of strength and strategy, with witchcraft serving only as a supplementary means of attack.

  Soon, Rainbow Bear realized through the battle that Sugar Bear's body, riddled with injuries, was even weaker than he had anticipated. Sugar Bear should have been rendered completely defenseless under his continuous poisoning.

  This allowed Rainbow Bear, who was already more intent on killing, to quickly gain the upper hand in the fight. Sugar Bear, after a brief period of resistance, soon found himself at a disadvantage, forced to desperately parry Rainbow Bear's fierce attacks while using the dense fog of the night to evade his pursuit.

  Both being in the heat of battle, their spirits were highly excited. Thus, even deep in the forest, they remained unaffected by the nightly fog. Additionally, the intense killing intent they displayed was so strong that the wild beasts roaming at night only dared to watch from the shadows, none daring to attack the two.

  The two continued to fight, unknowingly making their way to the vicinity of the sacrificial altar. This altar was deliberately built deep in the forest after Candy Town was officially established. The purpose was to hold sacrificial activities on specific days each year to express gratitude to the spirit of the forest and to pray for prosperity in the coming year.

  Furthermore, to demonstrate their reverence for the spirit of the forest and to instill a sense of awe among the residents of Candy Town, thereby strengthening Sugar Bear and Rainbow Bear's control over the townspeople, the two had long ago issued a new sacrificial decree.

  It stated that during the large-scale sacrificial event held once every three years in Candy Town, a virgin of marriageable age must be selected as an offering to the spirit of the forest.

  Since Sugar Bear and Rainbow Bear were well acquainted with the terrain of this area, once they entered it, Sugar Bear found it difficult to use the landscape to evade Rainbow Bear's relentless attacks.

  Sugar Bear, already covered in wounds, was slowing down in his movements to block with his blade. The killing intent in Rainbow Bear's eyes grew stronger, and a gruesome smile couldn't help but form on his lips.

  Rainbow Bear then increased the intensity of his attacks, aiming to defeat Sugar Bear completely with a series of rapid and merciless strikes. In this way, Rainbow Bear could then use the moonlight to bleed Sugar Bear's corpse and feast on his flesh.

  However, what Rainbow Bear did not expect was that just as he began to consider how to deal with Sugar Bear next, Sugar Bear, who seemed to be at the end of his strength, suddenly dodged a heavy blow with extremely agile movements and then struck back, landing a blow on his chest.

  Although Rainbow Bear was wearing armor, the force of Sugar Bear's counterattack was so great that it still managed to slash open a large gash in his chest armor and inflict a deep wound. Rainbow Bear was then sent tumbling backward by Sugar Bear's strike.

  At this moment, Rainbow Bear finally realized that Sugar Bear's seemingly exhausted appearance was merely a ruse to let his guard down. Sugar Bear's true intention was to lure Rainbow Bear into a false sense of security and then seize the opportunity to strike back.

  Unfortunately, due to Sugar Bear's severe injuries and his body being already too weak from the effects of the poison, even though he exerted all his strength in a counterattack at the critical moment, he still failed to defeat Rainbow Bear outright.

  However, Sugar Bear's attack did manage to cause some damage to Rainbow Bear, leaving him unable to stand up and rejoin the battle for a while due to the intense pain from his chest and the dizziness from rolling over several times.

  Seeing this, Sugar Bear did not hesitate and immediately dragged his battered body back into the fog. Now, Sugar Bear only wanted to put as much distance as possible between himself and Rainbow Bear before the latter could recover, using the night's fog to conceal his tracks and thus making Rainbow Bear completely lose sight of his target.

  Only in this way could Sugar Bear escape this disaster. As long as he could survive this ordeal, Sugar Bear could heal his injuries and then regroup to seek revenge on Rainbow Bear!

  Under the cover of the fog, Sugar Bear quickly put a great distance between himself and the sacrificial altar. Rainbow Bear, who resumed the chase, completely lost Sugar Bear's trail amidst the fog.

  In his anger, Rainbow Bear began to roar furiously and ran around wildly in the surrounding forest, hoping to somehow discover the direction in which Sugar Bear had fled. But this time, Rainbow Bear had completely lost Sugar Bear's tracks. He could only blindly charge deeper into the forest, wildly swinging his blade in frustration.

  Hearing Rainbow Bear's angry roars growing increasingly distant, Sugar Bear couldn't help but quicken his pace of escape, knowing that his roars had been completely blocked out by the surrounding forest. It was only then that the weight on Sugar Bear's heart truly lifted.

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  However, not daring to let his guard down, Sugar Bear continued to push forward with all his might. He knew he had to run far enough to hide and ensure that Rainbow Bear would not find him again.

  It was precisely because Sugar Bear was still focused on evading Rainbow Bear's pursuit that he neglected to carefully observe his surroundings, leading to an accident when he tried to circumnavigate a large tree.

  As Sugar Bear disappeared into the dense undergrowth at the base of the giant tree and used the jungle to conceal his tracks while circling around to the back of the tree, he suddenly felt his foot give way, followed by a strong sensation of falling.

  At first, Sugar Bear thought he had fallen into a trap hidden at the base of the giant tree. But soon, he realized he had not fallen into a man-made trap but into a slippery, vegetation-covered Venomvine tunnel.

  As soon as Sugar Bear fell into the Venomvine tunnel, he was assaulted by the toxic gas released by the fruit flowers. Fortunately, Sugar Bear was no ordinary being. He immediately cast a sustained healing spell on himself and, despite his injuries, began to search for a way back to the surface.

  However, Sugar Bear's injuries made it impossible for him to climb back up the way he had come. So, he had to abandon the idea of returning the same path. But soon, Sugar Bear noticed the stream flowing inside the Venomvine tunnel.

  Realizing there might be another exit within the tunnel, he dragged his weary and aching body and walked as quickly as possible into the tunnel, hoping to leave this toxic gas-filled passage as soon as possible.

  Sugar Bear eventually managed to exit the Venomvine tunnel, but the effort to combat the toxins inside had nearly exhausted him, causing his realm to suffer further damage. After entering the forest covered in snow and ice, Sugar Bear temporarily settled down here. However, he remained vigilant every day, avoiding being caught off guard by Rainbow Bear, who might have come here to hunt him down.

  Once Sugar Bear had recovered from his injuries, he immediately used his previous experience to optimize the witchcraft against the toxic gas, ensuring he could more easily enter the Venomvine tunnel and climb back to the Lost Woods from where he had fallen.

  Of course, Sugar Bear's intention to return to the Lost Woods was not to seek revenge on Rainbow Bear, but to collect more sweetaurum flowers and hunt more beasts to make candies, ensuring he could once again move about freely in the Lost Woods without worry.

  Only in this way could Sugar Bear find opportunities to secretly return to Candy Town to investigate the situation and formulate the best plan for his future revenge.

  Sugar Bear's logic at the time was quite simple. The decline in his strength and realm led him to think that perhaps making honey from the blood of beasts and then making candies from that honey would be enough to protect him from the fog's invasion in the forest. However, the reality was that the candies made in this way were completely ineffective.

  Thus, while cultivating in the snowy and icy realm, Sugar Bear meticulously calculated the timing of Candy Town's sacrificial events. In this way, he could rescue the human sacrifices just after the live sacrificial ceremony held once every three years, before those beasts that only came out at night could tear them apart, and then use the blood of these women to make candies.

  On several occasions, the women he rescued unfortunately succumbed to the toxic gas of the Venomvine tunnel, which caused Sugar Bear great heartache. But after repeated failures, Sugar Bear finally found a way to ensure these women could survive and exit the Venomvine tunnel.

  After saving these women, Sugar Bear used the method of controlling the townspeople in Candy Town to require these women to donate blood regularly, so that he could have a stable supply of blood for making candies.

  However, things did not go as planned.

  Even though Sugar Bear, after much effort, finally managed to make candies that met the standards again, he was disappointed to find that even when entering the Lost Woods during the day, he still could not resist the fog's invasion for long. It was then that Sugar Bear realized these candies no longer worked for him. From then on, he found that he could no longer resist the rejection of that fog-filled forest for long.

  This made Sugar Bear feel an immediate sense of loss, as if he had been expelled from his home. But he did not give up hope and continued to search for a way to return home.

  So, Sugar Bear persisted in regularly going to the Lost Woods above to rescue the women who had become sacrifices and to collect sweetaurum flowers, then returning to his newly established village to research new candy formulas.

  "So, have you made any new breakthroughs?" Yun Ge asked curiously.

  The Candylord scratched the fur on his face and sighed, "Alas! No progress at all. It seems that because we both passed through the Venomvine tunnel before entering this forest, the sweetaurum flowers in the upper forest no longer have any effect on us."

  "So you're saying that we're essentially trapped in this forest and can never leave?" Yun Ge asked again.

  "From the current situation, it appears so. Hey! But on the bright side, whether it's the Lost Woods above or here, it's all about living! As long as we can live without worries and in peace, that's what matters!" the Candylord replied.

  Yun Ge looked at the Candylord with a skeptical gaze, indicating that he didn't believe a word of his nonsense!

  Seeing this, the Candylord laughed heartily and said, "Hahaha! Of course! If given the chance, who wouldn't want to return to their former home? Although we can live a more equal and mutually supportive life here, instead of spending our lives under the illusion of being oppressed by Rainbow Bear as before."

  "But who wouldn't want to return to that warm and resource-rich forest above? After all, both I and the vast majority of the residents here were forced to leave Candy Town. We all have a blood debt that Rainbow Bear owes us. Therefore, we must keep striving, hoping that one day we can return to Candy Town and reclaim everything that was originally ours!"

  "But don't forget, you were also the one who pushed them towards the altar! So why should they believe that you can lead them to reclaim what they've lost?" Seeing the Candylord speak so confidently, as if he were standing on the moral high ground, Yun Ge immediately poured cold water on his enthusiasm.

  The Candylord nonchalantly waved his hand and responded, "Just because I saved their lives and revealed the truth behind the scenes to them, allowing them to live with clarity and to break free from the shackles of lies, no longer indulging in an illusory life."

  "Moreover, it's not just me who wants to go back and reclaim what's rightfully mine. Those women who were forced to become sacrifices also wish to return to Candy Town. They are eager to go back and expose Rainbow Bear's lies, to save the residents who have been kept in the dark from their illusions, and thus completely shatter Rainbow Bear's control over everyone, reclaiming the lives that should have been theirs."

  "It is precisely because we share this common hope that they are willing to trust me and unite around me, working together for our shared vision."

  "Additionally, I'm not the only one who wants to return and reclaim what's rightfully mine. Those women who were forced to become sacrifices also wish to return to Candy Town.”

  “They are eager to go back and expose Rainbow Bear's lies, to save the residents who have been kept in the dark from their illusions, and thus completely shatter Rainbow Bear's control over everyone, reclaiming the lives that should have been theirs."

  "It is precisely because we share this common hope that they are willing to trust me and unite around me, working together for our shared vision."