Chapter 341: Observation and Reception

The two conversed, gradually clarifying the origin of the Golden Crown.

There were three crowns in total.

They were ancient relics found among decades-old clutter before the Mycelium Clan relocated from their damp marshland homeland.

Strong psychic hallucinogens had minimal effect on the Fungoids, who constantly inhaled hallucinogenic spores.

In fact, the intensity of the spores they inhaled may have been stronger than the psychic hallucinations on the crowns.

Thus, they lowered their guard.

Fungoids like Scarlett, who avoided hallucinogenic spores, were a tiny minority, so none of them had ever encountered the three crowns before settling on the Koshi Plains.

But ultimately, these objects shared the same space with them; seeing them was only a matter of time.

So an accident occurred.

A Fungoid caring for infants accidentally saw the crown—she was not from the faction that avoided hallucinogenic spores.

She merely needed a clear mind to care for the Fungoid hatchlings, so she reduced her spore inhalation to a bare minimum.

When other Fungoids returned to the cave to retrieve supplies,

all thirty-five hatchlings had been crushed to fragments.

Enraged Fungoids killed the mad creature wearing the crown.

They deemed it an evil artifact and sealed it behind a hidden door.

The next morning, the elves of Bicui Ting arrived, requesting to purchase the mind-disrupting crown.

"Could the elves' arrival have been too swift?"

Luo De said.

"The crown bears a spell that obscures stellar fate; divination and star-gazing cannot locate it. But the moment the first Fungoid was killed, that spell was broken."

Oona arranged Scarlett's drape.

Then, after a moment's thought, she took a small blanket from her spell satchel and covered her massive spore sac.

She added: "I suspect those two elves have been watching the Koshi Plains fungal colony all along. The moment they obtained the Golden Crown's location from stellar fate, they moved immediately."

"Very likely. But what connection is there between the crown that opens rifts to other dimensions and the elves?"

"In my experience, traditional elves are those rigid, arrogant old things who constantly drone on about 'nature belongs to elves,' 'inferior humans,' 'is this all you're capable of?'—and they never even bother to call others by name."

Luo De shrugged.

He voiced his stereotype of elves.

Look, Kalist never called him by name.

Hmm… maybe she did—on that night during the raid, Kalist screamed his name while whipping herself.

Oona smiled.

"You'd better ask your forest elf lady—Bicui Ting is always so mysterious."

Luo De couldn't linger long beside a patient needing rest.

After leaving some comfort items, he prepared to depart.

"By the way, Luo De."

Just before leaving, Oona called him back.

"What is it?"

"Two days ago, five Hesmo rubies slipped into a caravan's trinkets and circulated in Shi Ying Town. I discovered they all bore 【Arcane Sight】. This is a common method dragons use to observe mortals."

"A dragon is observing Shi Ying Town."

Luo De felt a heaviness settle in his chest.

His first thought was Coral Bay.

Recently, the dark elves of Coral Bay summoned a red dragon and a black dragon.

Dragons rarely appear on the Twilight Hills; the climate and resources here are precisely what such giants favor.

Dragons have appeared before on the Koshi Plains.

But right next to it lies the Giant Mountains, where giant tribes dwell.

For these giants, that distance isn't far.

"That's right—at least he's interested in Shi Ying Town. But don't worry, I've already cleaned those five rubies."

"You've gone to too much trouble again."

Oona smiled sweetly: "Leave it to me."

In the afternoon.

Dust swirled endlessly.

Luo De crouched low, propelled by the repulsion spell and his leg strength, surging into the yellow veil of the sky.

At the peak of his leap, just before descending, he activated the group flight spell.

He thrust his palms backward, firing two more repulsion spells to boost momentum.

Boom.

Two circular trails of reactive force exploded in the sky, his speed surged sharply, hurling Luo De far into the distance.

Today was Little Ko's day to return home.

Bored, Luo De arrived early to meet her.

Originally, he intended to seek out the elf Kalist and ask about Bicui Ting and the Golden Crown.

But Kalist was likely in a critical phase of her spell experiments, hiding in her magic treehouse—she only replied with a single "busy" through the 【Far-Speech Chain】.

He didn't dare disturb her.

Soon after, as he looked down again at Shi Ying Town, he sensed a stark difference.

Shi Ying Town had begun expansion.

Through the dust, he could faintly see workers laboring.

At the outer outpost, scattered tents and camps could be seen.

The current town hall had its own ambitions; even with limited funds, they chose to accommodate more people.

First came low-wage jobs.

Expansion would bring more land resources, ease housing pressure, and relieve population strain.

Second, it would attract investment.

Few wealthy merchants came here to flee the world with their families, but some did—there were always those who recognized the value of "the only town-level settlement with a protective array."

Rosalia always found ways to squeeze profit from such people.

Most crucially, the food issue.

For now, it was manageable, barely.

After all, no true war had erupted on the Twilight Hills; there were no massive waves of refugees.

Though the influx of outsiders was large, half of them treated Shi Ying Town as a transit point.

Some were drawn to Coral Bay, others to Stormwind City, or perhaps challengers heading even farther north to the Supreme Glacier.

Even in past years, there were always foolish old men attempting to conquer the glacier—especially in winter.

Some challengers, misjudging their route and supplies, always stopped in Shi Ying Town for a few days.

But.

Given the current state of the Aetheron Kingdom, war's shadow was merely a matter of time.

In yesterday's Snow Hill Evening News, Luo De read that Melwort City, far east of Stormwind City, had erupted in a civilian uprising over oppressive taxes; a noble's mansion was stormed by furious mobs, and its owner, wife, and children were all beheaded and displayed.

Preparation could not wait.

After crossing the outpost, Luo De flew over the Twilight Hills for a while before landing.

The dust was too thick—he feared missing Ko and the others.

After clearing a group of bandits along the way, Luo De spotted three figures in the distance: one large, two small.

Mostly because the orc woman Amy's green skin and the massive crystal cleaver—thicker than her waist—she carried made her unmistakable.

Beside Ko stood another, slightly larger, half-deer.

Probably her new friend who had recently relocated here.

Luo De waved to them.

From afar, Ko's face lit up with delight, her four delicate deer hooves bouncing excitedly.

The white tuft of fur at the back of her rump, like a tiny flower, trembled.

Amy also smiled.

"Ha! Master came to meet Amy!"

(End of Chapter)