Chapter 334: Hero and Branches

"Actually, why did he insist on coming over from the other dimension?"

The body of a cosmic being is excellent material for spellcasting, let alone one bearing a true name.

Several mages gathered to discuss how to divide the corpse.

Luo De hated the stench on Gorgon's body and kept his distance.

"Gorgon's body shows clear wounds, and they appear to have been inflicted before he entered the rift—maybe he was fleeing in panic," replied the rabbit-person Oona.

"Yes, recent aether storms in the other dimension have thrown cosmic beings into chaos—not just our reality, but the other dimension too."

The witch Dimia smiled bitterly.

"By the way, didn't that legendary elder of Silver Hoof Valley predict the emergence of six 【Heroes】 who will save the world?"

Even while observing Gorgon's corpse, the star-spirit Hali chose a position directly facing Luo De.

Whether intentional or not, as she leaned forward to examine it, she exposed a vast expanse of her blue translucent chest, the hollows deep.

"Heroes?"

Luo De looked puzzled.

"Just a self-staged trick by the half-deer folk."

Sharon sneered dismissively: "The half-deer folk excel at exploiting times of turmoil to spread prophecies across the continent, then send their own people to join in and gain fame and fortune."

That much couldn't be denied.

Around every major power's leadership on the continent, there was always at least one half-deer advisor.

Though this race believed in a life of poverty, unlike the elves, they didn't force all members to live that way.

Many half-deer folk took advantage of their youth to travel across the continent, seeking fame and fortune.

Xiao Ke, the half-deer in the forest, was an oddity.

Her social anxiety essentially eliminated any chance of her venturing out.

Come to think of it.

For someone as socially anxious as Xiao Ke to actively visit a newly relocated friend

Was quite remarkable.

Wait—could it be some childhood sweetheart thing?

Just to be safe, Luo De decided to ask the female beastwoman Ami, who traveled with her.

Not because he was troubled, but simply because he worried Xiao Ke might be deceived.

【Ami: Female, cooks as badly as Xiao Ke. I want to go home.】

He received the beastwoman's reply.

Luo De exhaled in relief, warned her to be careful on the return trip, then severed the link.

After a while.

The corpse division up front was complete.

Sharon used her mage hand to lift a brown spiral wooden spike, over a meter long.

"This was pulled from Gorgon's body—likely the wound he suffered before entering. A valuable item. We've agreed: you can have it, along with the corpse."

"Are they okay with this?"

Luo De glanced at the spiral wooden spike.

Black mist clung to it, uncarved and crude; though made of wood, its hardness was instantly obvious.

"Take it. When I'm gone, how will you protect yourself?"

Sharon glanced around and noticed Dimia wasn't looking this way.

She reached out and affectionately patted Luo De's head.

This spiral wooden spike was the most valuable thing on Gorgon's body. She'd intended to forfeit her own share of the spoils to give him this.

But Oona and Hali had already wanted to curry favor with Luo De and didn't care about such details; Dimia certainly didn't either, so her share remained untouched, and the spike went straight to Luo De.

The matter was settled.

Before everyone left,

They went to the other side of the fork and found numerous fungal clan mushroom-person corpses.

The mushroom-person corpses were interwoven with fragments of cosmic beings like phantom mushrooms, their filamentous threads spreading like beads, releasing spores and rotting miasma.

Alone, the mushroom-person corpses weren't too bad—they were, after all, a kind of plant—but mixed with uncontrollable cosmic beings, the situation worsened.

Worse still, Sharon sensed the early signs of plague forming here.

Reluctantly, the group cleaned the area before dragging the dazed Noah and the Mushroom King out of the cave.

The star-spirit Hali would take Noah and the Mushroom King back to the fungal tribe; they'd deal with things once they woke up.

After crossing the Claw Valley mountains,

Sharon and Dimia parted ways with them.

Luo De first accompanied Oona into the Windwall Forest to find a suitable place for the mushroom people to rest.

Ideally underground, since mushroom people disliked sunlight, and recent sandstorms had made the surface dry.

Second, there should be an underground river—even a faint trickle would do.

They first explored the abandoned mine, but it was too dry and the soil too poor.

So they decided to search within the forest.

The Windwall Forest was vast, with many holes, but Luo De had always focused more on trees and hadn't recorded any hole locations.

Unexpectedly, the large squirrel Cui Qian, who often wandered the forest looking for snacks, came to their aid.

Earlier, she and the pony-girl Bond had explored many underground holes; after more than an hour of fruitless searching, it was her recommendation that led them to the right underground cave.

The location was in the dawn redwood zone of the forest.

That meant another resident—or perhaps two, since Oona would likely stay for a while.

【Selina: Have you returned?】

The long-distance link suddenly sent a message.

As the sunlight softened and dusk approached, Luo De had planned to visit the hospital cabin to check on the arachnid elf Yuna.

Gorgon calling him "Ros's dog" had worried him.

He intended to ask her for details.

【Luo De: What's wrong?】

【Selina: The ritual for relocating the emerald branches has been completed.】

So efficient?

He'd only been gone two days—already finished?

He returned to the dawn redwood zone.

Far off, he saw short, undead Selina in a black robe, with the tiny fairy Tami perched beside her shoulder.

"Lord Luo De!"

Tami spotted him and immediately brightened, hurrying over.

"Miss Selina is amazing! She just—snap! And then—plop! she cuts the emerald branches without harming their spirit!"

The fairy gesticulated excitedly, her movements endearing.

Selina, expressionless, handed him a pale green wooden box containing the severed branches.

"Kalist's magical data and calculations were comprehensive, anticipating nearly every scenario—saved us a lot of work. Also, Tami helped."

Luo De smiled.

He patted the undead's head and tapped the fairy's tiny cheek, making her giggle.

"Well done. What reward do you want?"

The fairy Tami raised her clean white arm high first.

"Speak."

"I want Lord Luo to come visit me and the emerald tree more often!"

"I will. But you can also come find me."

"Really?! You won't think I'm too small or too annoying?!"

"Of course not. Tami is adorable."

The fairy froze, then her face flushed crimson, steam rising hotly.

Even the sparkle in her eyes dimmed from the heat.

(End of Chapter)