Chapter 32: Jade Domain

After reading Daphne’s letter, Luo De couldn’t help but sigh.

She was a rare noble young lady without any airs.

Though she wasn’t open with her words, her actions were evident to all, and everyone in Shi Ying Town liked her.

She shouldn’t have ended up like this.

As Luo De folded Daphne’s letter, he noticed another, slightly smaller sheet of paper inside the envelope.

“Huh? Isabella Daphne’s letter?”

【Dear Forest Warden Luo De:

I hope this letter finds you well.

I sincerely thank you for your contributions to the Windwall Forest and for saving Daphne Argyle.

I apologize for the long delay in writing; as mentioned in my previous letter, my sister’s condition remains grim. The Igao Sect not only cast a mind-control spell but also implanted a dangerous mental construct inside her skull, leaving the mages of Stormwind City powerless.

According to our investigation, completely resolving this threat requires the petal of a plant known as the “Spirit Heart.”

Rumors say you are on good terms with the Tree Spirit of the Windwall Forest—please kindly inquire about it. The Argyle family will not withhold any reward.

I look forward to your reply.

Also, given your talent, I believe you will soon accumulate enough spiritual energy to reach the peak of the fifth tier. At that time, the Argyle family will recommend you for admission into the Jade Domain in Jade City for your advancement.

—Isabella Argyle

}

Spirit Heart.

A very unfamiliar name. Something named after a deity could hardly be ordinary.

“I’ll ask Vivian tomorrow. Elves are a knowledgeable race—Falshad might know.”

As for the Jade Domain.

As previously mentioned, the transition from sixth to seventh tier is a critical threshold.

The manifestation of spiritual energy will change.

Before that, the sixth tier—the closest to the seventh—is also the stage requiring substantial preparation.

Using the power of a “domain” to acclimate early to spiritual changes, transitioning from fifth to sixth tier, is one of the best methods.

Of course, this is not a mandatory step to reach seventh tier.

Many people bypass all preparation entirely and still ascend to legend without issue.

It simply becomes much harder and takes far longer.

Luo De intended to accept this favor. He felt no psychological burden—his sole goal was to strengthen himself.

For the past few days, he had risen early, quickly fed Tally, then immediately joined Bond to patrol the forest and train.

Xiao Ke expressed great dissatisfaction.

But the child loved playing with the eccentric human.

To prevent the human from revealing his true nature, she had no choice but to follow them every day.

“Sorry, Luo De, I don’t want—”

Bond slowly released the bowstring, her face filled with disappointment.

On the grass far away, a gray rabbit hopped playfully, completely unaware that an arrow had once aimed at it.

“It’s fine.”

Luo De patted the half-horse girl’s head.

He remained optimistic about it.

Being unable to kill an innocent rabbit meant nothing.

Humans only unleash their survival instinct under mortal threat. Bond, with her centaur bloodline, was still young—she would learn to act eventually.

Her current state was more like a psychological setup, a mental preparation.

“Let’s take a break, then continue later, Bond?”

The half-deer Xiao Ke offered no objection.

She firmly believed that on this continent dominated by humans, one must possess some self-defense capability.

Even the gray rabbit had been caught by her.

“Can you stop catching rabbits?” Luo De said helplessly.

Intelligent races, after all, are ultimately visual creatures.

A cute rabbit versus a grotesque, ugly toad—clearly, killing the latter carried less psychological burden.

“Why not rabbits?!”

“At least use toads, lizards, or snakes—something ugly. I can’t bring myself to kill a rabbit when I’m not even hungry.”

“What use are toads, lizards, and snakes? I can crush them with one step. The issue is appearance, human!”

“?”

Xiao Ke shook her head, arms crossed, wearing an expression of condescending superiority.

“How many things on this continent are glittering on the outside but rotten within? Bond is young and kind—she’ll fall for their tricks! We must desensitize her in the forest first.”

Luo De admitted she had a point.

At least this would help cultivate a habit of not being deceived by appearances.

At that moment, Tally rode over lazily on her horse. She always preferred sitting whenever possible.

Except during meals.

“She’s talking about you. Haven’t you noticed?”

“What?”

“When she said ‘glittering on the outside, rotten within,’ she glanced at you.”

Luo De looked again and indeed saw Xiao Ke constantly sneaking wary glances at him.

“.”

Moments later.

Bond devoured a large bag of dried rations.

Then she climbed a tree and gazed into the distance.

Whether [Eagle Eye] or [Archery Mastery], both fell within the category of innate spiritual arts—so they had potential for growth.

Luo De needed Bond to train as much as possible.

“Ah, Luo De! There’s a fight over there!”

Bond suddenly pointed far off from the tree, shouting.

“In the forest?” Luo De immediately tensed.

“No, outside the forest, near the edge of all those stone buildings.”

Near Shi Ying Town?

“Wow, their skin is rotting—it looks like corpses, so disgusting,” Bond added.

“Sounds like ghouls,” Tally said.

Were ghouls attacking Shi Ying Town?

Was it the Ruin Brotherhood?

Luo De thought it possible. After all, those who controlled ghouls were indeed connected to outcasts.

“Bond, can you hit them?”

“Of course.”

Good news: Bond’s hesitation only applied to cute creatures.

Corpses didn’t bother her at all.

Bad news: Xiao Ke was right—Bond might indeed be deceived by appearances.

Twang—

The sound of the bowstring relaxing suddenly echoed through the sky.

A gust of spiritual energy swept through the dense foliage.

A streak of blue spiritual light shot toward the distance.

Moments later, Bond gasped.

She had hit her target, and soon the ghouls were driven back by armored humans.

Hearing this, Luo De was delighted and rewarded her with a large piece of dried meat.

This incident did not disrupt the half-horse girl’s patrol training.

Soon after.

After a full day of training, dusk arrived.

Xiao Ke took the reluctant Bond back to her residence.

On the way back, Tally, as usual, licked and nipped at him, using every trick to seduce.

Luo De calculated—her dinner time was due.

Just as he considered simply feeding her on horseback—

A figure in the distance dispelled the thought.

Her green-and-white clothing clung tightly to her skin, with not an ounce of excess fat, a perfect nine-heads-tall proportion.

Golden, silky hair was tied back, strands falling to frame her long, pointed ears—clean and sharp as her face.

If only her expression weren’t so sour.

The arrival — elf, Kali.

(End of chapter)