Chapter 285: Beyond the Forest

Kali stared grimly.

She still wasn't used to the dog-people girl's drastic personality shift.

To be honest, during their earlier joint study of the Insertion Maze ritual, the three had gotten along well, and she'd held a favorable impression of the girl.

Luo De explained to her via the 【Far-Speech Chain】 the changes in Sharon.

It involved the 【Plague Mark】 and Amel's memory-knowledge.

"This is troublesome. Unlike spiritual magic, which leaves clear traces of tampering, once memories are digested, they're nearly impossible to purge."

The elf's delicate brows tightened further.

"She claims she's always been this way."

"Even foreign memories exert subtle influence—perhaps this is why she can't recognize herself."

Sharon suddenly scowled.

She ran over and shoved Kali aside, plopping down.

"What are you two whispering about? Talking behind my back?"

Luo De ignored her.

"Saving lives comes first. Let's deal with Yuna's condition. Kali, I'm counting on you."

"Do you think I haven't had enough of your troubles?"

The elf spoke coldly, yet her body moved obediently—she went to the arachnid elf's side to set up the ritual.

Luo De couldn't help, so he stepped back and waited quietly.

"Come to think of it, Amel was deeply versed in soul research. You've digested his memories—why don't you know soul transfer?"

He suddenly remembered and asked Sharon.

Sharon shook her head: "Certain soul ritual knowledge was deliberately erased from the memory core. Perhaps he knew the core could be decomposed. Still, the foundational knowledge is rich—I could figure out the soul transfer ritual in a week. But these two little spiders won't last that long."

"I see."

Thinking it over, it made sense. Amel's memory core was foreign—if it couldn't overpower the original owner's consciousness, yet still got its knowledge extracted, wouldn't that backfire?

"I'm not refusing to help you save them. Honestly, can't that succubus get off you? Is this how you usually are?"

Sharon's expression turned sour.

At that moment, Tally was cradled in Luo De's arms, one hand gripping his collar, her lips suctioning hungrily at his neck.

"When Tally's hungry, she acts like this. Ignore her."

"Tch."

The dog-girl grumbled in annoyance.

Soon after.

The girls in the forest, hearing of Luo De's return, all came out to greet him.

But unlike Kali, they weren't tense—not because they didn't care, but simply because they didn't understand the situation in the other dimension.

"Luo De!"

The pony-girl Bond sprinted over, followed by the giant squirrel Cui Qian.

The girl and the squirrel, both excited, spoke in unison: "Any local specialties?"

Luo De thought for a moment, then pointed to the nearby arachnid elf.

Bond's eyes lit up: "Roast spider!"

The half-deer Xiao Ke slapped her on the head: "That's not food."

She turned to Luo De, hands on hips, expression displeased.

"Another girl? What do you think this forest is?"

"I think it's great! It'll strengthen the forest's power—I support the master's decision."

The ghoul Pan Ni didn't speak loudly among the crowd, but firmly voiced her support.

Over there, the female beastman Amy hadn't arrived yet; seeing the large pruning shears stuck in the ground, her eyes gleamed, she lifted them and cheerfully slashed at empty air.

The tiefling Lin Saixier gasped and clapped softly beside her.

"Hey hey hey, I've got a brilliant idea—guaranteed to make the farm rich. But first, give me five hundred thousand Jin Along as startup capital."

The banshee Krist floated over, voicing her grand ambitions.

The treant Wei Wei An casually passed through her spectral form, making her shiver.

"Hey! Wei Wei An! Didn't I tell you not to pass through my spirit body? It's itchy!"

But Wei Wei An paid her no mind.

With a blank expression, she approached Luo De and pressed herself against his chest.

Then she lifted her delicate little face, her large eyes glowing with white light, gazing at her master with innocent, clueless eyes.

Luo De wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her forehead with a smile.

Listening to the girls' noisy chatter around him, he felt no irritation.

Instead, he felt satisfaction and relaxation.

"You'll die. No—you'll definitely die in bed."

Sharon stared in disbelief, watching eight girls clustered around this guy.

"Really? But compared to dying at the hands of cosmic beings, I'd rather die on your bellies."

"'Your bellies'? Does that include me?"

"Of course."

Luo De leaned close to her ear and whispered: "Come to my forest guard hut tonight."

Sharon's ears were always sensitive; the warm breath on them made her body go limp.

"Get lost!"

The group chatted for a long while.

Each had their own matters, so they dispersed.

Pan Ni and Krist reached a friendly business agreement and returned to the farm to prepare various arrangements.

Xiao Ke, after absorbing a spirit seed, saw a significant boost in her talent and had become very enthusiastic about training and accumulating spiritual energy.

Lin Saixier went to train combat skills with Amy.

The giant squirrel Cui Qian and the pony-girl Bond, being mischievous by nature, couldn't stay still—they returned to the forest for exploration.

Sharon took a scale from the 【Rotting Moon Seed】 and headed to Shi Ying Town to prepare the ritual to treat Dimea's mana surge.

Wei Wei An, meanwhile, was busy setting up the required number of Life Springs for the forest's ascension.

Only Luo De and Tally remained where they were.

The succubus, having been away from her master too long, was still absorbing his scent.

About another hour passed.

As expected, the ritual completed smoothly.

Luo De went to check.

He saw Yuna's body had completely collapsed, like soft mud slumped on the ground, unable to maintain even the basic shape of muscle and bone.

Meanwhile, her sister Yufei's body showed faint signs of breathing.

"What about her spider limbs?"

"They'll regrow. The arachnid portion has regenerative ability. Once it does, let Xiao Ke's 【Light Spirit Care】 help—it'll heal faster."

Kali wiped the fine sweat from her forehead.

The finger-threading bracelet on her hand glowed white in the sunset's afterglow.

The 【Mage Hand】 gently lifted the revived Yuna.

"She needs rest. I'll place her at the hospital treehouse."

"Thanks."

"Do you think I haven't had enough of your troubles?"

Luo De smiled: "Then when you ascend to seventh tier, be sure to call me. Otherwise, I'll feel embarrassed."

"Hmph."

She gave a cold laugh, saying nothing.

"By the way, where's No. 3?"

Neither the zombie Selena nor the mouse-girl No. 3 had appeared.

Selena was fine—she was buried in the lab, working hard to earn money, and Luo De had specifically told her not to come.

But No. 3 had always followed the elf around.

Kali's face darkened, a flicker of irritation appearing: "I locked her up."

(End of Chapter)