Chapter 266: Change

【The Blood Marrow Tree emits a strong mating signal. Accept?】

【The Blood Marrow Tree desires contact with the friction of your shoe sole. Accept?】

"Reject the second one—it's still fine if the job gets done."

His right hand pressed against the Blood Marrow Tree, making it tremble even more fervently.

The hanging vines twisted together, spiraling taut.

The trunk suddenly split open into a wide mouth, gasping "Ssshhhh—ssshhh," with pale yellow stinking fluid oozing from its corners.

"."

Hmm.

Why do I feel like I've become dirty?

"What are you doing?"

Sharon glanced at the state of the Blood Marrow Tree, then at Luo De's finely rubbing right hand.

Her expression twisted strangely: "You—"

Luo De twitched his eyebrow.

"Just watch."

With that, he stepped on the trunk.

The "ssshhh" grew louder.

And by the pond, an immediate change occurred.

They did not separate—they drew closer together.

The bald student fetching pond water dared not use 【Mage's Hand】, fearing he'd alarm the Gardener, so he bent low to scoop.

A tentacle nearby, previously swaying upward, suddenly made an unusual motion—a sweeping strike aimed straight at them.

The five were stunned.

Everyone except the bald student reeled backward to dodge the sweep.

The bald student, already bent over, was completely out of reach.

It was a futile strike.

But at that moment, a dramatic scene unfolded.

Because the five were packed tightly together, the bald student had been squatting with his rear raised to scoop pond water, while the four behind him, trying to dodge the sweep, all leaned back.

They directly shoved the bald student forward.

Splash—

A large spray of yellow-green fecal water erupted from the pond.

"Ugh—"

The Gardener dozing in the pond slowly opened his eyes.

(°﹃°)

Even though his innate laziness urged him to sink back into slumber, the sight of a figure drenched in fecal sludge climbing out of the pond and sprinting away instantly enraged him!

"ROOOOAR!!!"

He let out a thunderous roar!

The ripples shook his fatty warts and the entire pond.

The Blood Marrow Trees seemed to respond to his call, rustling violently—but their trembling may not have been for him.

The next instant.

Countless miniature Gardener beasts surged from the other side of the botanical garden.

The fat Gardener rose, dragging a trail of disgusting slime, heading toward where Bahadur's student had fled.

Watching a horde of disgusting creatures pass just ahead.

Sharon stared at Luo De in shock.

"You can control plants too? Don't tell me you have Tree Spirit bloodline—no wonder Vivian likes you so much."

Luo De, stomping on the Blood Marrow Tree's mouth, cursed:

"I'm pure human. Fuck, these trees here are insane—they've got hive consciousness, and now they demand I step on every single one."

Damn it.

It reminds me of my experience with the Azure Ancient Tree Eva in the Jade Domain!

The two no longer delayed.

Immediately, they began setting up the destruction ritual centered on this fecal pond.

Luo De had no time to care for her.

Every tree now cooed and begged him to step on it—the 【Tree's Blessing】 prompts kept flashing nonstop.

Sharon, however, had time to talk.

As she squatted, she cast her spell:

"This is actually Amel's ritual. He was among the first to discover the botanical garden, and it was here he acquired the 【Plague Mark】."

"He believed all 【Marks】 were shackles, and long ago began plotting to destroy the garden, thinking it would free him from the 【Plague Mark】. But he soon abandoned the plan, shifting instead to researching the transfer of 【Marks】."

Luo De kicked hard, snapping a Blood Marrow Tree's tooth.

Crack—making the hair on one's neck stand on end.

"This 【Mark】 isn't a good thing. It's normal he wanted to get rid of it."

Yet the thing beneath his foot was ecstatic.

Its tongue flailed wildly, frantically wrapping around Luo De's shoe sole.

Ugh… so disgusting.

He stole a glance at the dog-girl's peach-shaped buttocks.

Good. Eyes cleansed.

"I don't know about the rest, but the 【Plague Mark】 is definitely a good thing."

Sharon scoffed:

"You might not know, but Amel gained immense knowledge about Aether and Spirit Energy from his 【Mark】—that's why he understood soul and flesh creation spells so deeply."

"I've seen him. He's hard to kill."

She smiled: "I heard from Dimea you and six girls hunted him down, fought for hours."

They walked and talked.

After about half an hour, they finished setting up the ritual to destroy the botanical garden.

The garden was vast, but the ritual didn't need to encircle the entire area—only the pond before them.

Sharon said this was the core point, the water source center of the entire garden. Destroy it, and the garden's plants could no longer survive in the Fear Field's spiritual dimension.

"There are many like me. They treat the 【Mark】 as a book of knowledge. Luo De, since Amel was killed by you, the two 【Marks】 peeled from his soul are surely in your possession—handle them well. Otherwise, they might attract those who seek them."

The dog-girl clapped the silver dust from her hands and tossed aside the silver carving knife.

Luo De nodded.

He hesitated, then said: "I know a lady who can neutralize the 【Mark】's effects. Sharon, would you like to…"

"Don't bring this up again, okay? I've said it many times—I need the 【Mark】."

Sharon's expression grew colder.

She adjusted her mood.

From her spell satchel, she pulled out a staff.

Made of dark red wood, it was wrapped with several strands of crystals that amplified magical power.

She added: "The botanical garden regenerates fiercely. Ordinary spells can't destroy it. But Amel spent a fortune buying the 【Ultimate Annihilation Orb】 ritual from a ninth-rank mage—it's perfect here."

Ultimate?

That sounds impressive.

"But won't this also disintegrate the 【Rotting Moon Seed】?"

"Of course not. The 【Rotting Moon Seed】 isn't a physical object or spiritual construct—it appears only under specific conditions, like the 【Mark】. The garden's Grand Cultivator relied on the 【Rotting Moon Seed】 to relocate the garden into the Fear Field. Amel calculated that when the garden is destroyed, the 【Rotting Moon Seed】 will inevitably appear."

With that, the dark red staff was infused with Aether energy.

It immediately floated in place, slowly rotating.

Sharon and Luo De stepped back together.

"That's enough. We wait until the ritual completes its 102nd rotation—we'll seize the 【Rotting Moon Seed】 and leave immediately, with no one around."

Luo De smiled, hands in his pockets.

He couldn't help saying: "Surprisingly smooth."

Sharon turned to look at him, her beautiful face breaking into a mischievous grin: "Don't say things like that. They're all foreshadowing—in novels, unexpected twists always follow such lines."

As she spoke, her voice faded.

Her expression grew distant.

The prophecy bracelet in Luo De's hand suddenly vibrated.

This bracelet had once broken, later repaired by Xiao Ke, who added extra effects.

He immediately looked at Sharon.

The dog-girl's expression was startled.

Then curious. She glanced around, then relaxed into a faint smile.

"A disgusting scene of fear."

She spat out a few words, her tone and speech habits utterly unlike Sharon's.

Luo De's lips twitched.

Drew his sword and slashed.

(End of Chapter)