Chapter 59: The Trees

“Land nagas? Are there land-dwelling nagas?”

Luo De had always assumed they were a type that couldn’t survive out of water.

Nagas combine human and serpent forms, often appearing in the sea, though some also dwell in rain-rich forests.

They are greedy by nature, numerous, obsessed with expanding their military, and many coastal cities frequently suffer harassment from them.

Even during normal trade, they will betray their word and seize both money and goods the moment they get the chance.

“Of course, while land nagas are fewer than their oceanic cousins, they hold their own in many desert regions,”

Xia Li explained.

Tally chimed in: “Come to think of it, one of my mother’s cousins nearly got killed by a land naga—she was caught draining her husband’s essence.”

“You demons really think nagas are a matriarchal society, and an extremely loyal, wise race—said to love only one person in their entire life.”

The half-dragon smiled and shot Luo De a suggestive glance.

She remembered what they’d done behind the house not long ago, her heart pounding.

The group passed through Guli Xian’s territory.

Here, Luo De saw women and children washing clothes in sulfuric hot springs fed by geothermal vents, others weaving garments.

No signs of livestock or cultivation—likely, the locals still relied on hunting.

The Feng people’s females were much slimmer than males, nearly as frail as humans, appearing even more delicate.

They stared curiously at the four, forgetting their work.

“I can only say you’ve heard rumors and know only half the truth.”

Tally shook her head smugly, adopting a lecturing pose.

She said: “Nagas don’t love only one person in their lifetime—they love only one at a time. If you betray her, or she betrays you, the one who gets devoured alive will be you. My relative escaped precisely during the moment the naga was swallowing her husband!”

Another secret.

Did demons spend their hundred years in the egg learning gossip?

Soon, the group passed through Guli Xian’s tribe and entered a forested mountain region.

The Feng people pointed them in the right direction, then left.

“The Labyrinth Trees.”

As Luo De neared the grove, he immediately felt a sense of kinship.

The area was thick with jujube trees, their trunks faintly pink; judging by the bark and foliage, most were in excellent health.

【Tree Armor (Enhanced): When an individual with the ‘Blessing of Trees’ casts Tree Armor, the skill is uniquely enhanced based on the forest’s tree species.】

Current trees: Thornless Jujube (Mutated)

Enhanced ability: Source of Inspiration

【Details: The stillness and harmony beneath the trees awaken your creativity, granting new inspiration and direction in painting and poetry.】

“Alright.”

Luo De didn’t know what to say.

The path had been cleared by the Guli Xian clan; demons were scarce, yet the group remained vigilant.

They walked forward for nearly two hours without encountering danger.

Xia Li and Gaima both sighed in relief—such luck was rare in the Labyrinth.

Luo De felt it was a pity; the Open-Air Labyrinth’s access required killing, and here there wasn’t even a single creature to kill.

He thought so, but he wouldn’t go out of his way to provoke anything.

“Look.”

The Labyrinth’s moonlight was unusually bright; standing on the hill, they could clearly see the landscape below.

Xia Li pointed to a massive circular depression in the distance.

It looked like an impact crater.

“That’s the crater formed when the red dragon Sapan crashed here—the must-see attraction for any half-dragon Xia Li’s Labyrinth tour,” she grinned, striking a pose as cheerful as a girl group Luo De had seen on TV.

Gaima had clearly seen it before—her expression remained utterly blank.

Tally gasped.

“Someone killed a dragon here?”

Demons’ knowledge was limited to X-lore and gossip; they knew little of such matters.

Xia Li laughed:

“It was a fallen dragon. Many years ago, a young red dragon named Sapan crashed here for unknown reasons. After death, his resentment prevented his body from decaying naturally—it continued growing in irregular forms. The surrounding races feared his mutation and spent great effort to dispose of Sapan’s corpse.”

“Not unusual.”

Tally commented.

“Not unusual yet—but thirteen days after the corpse was disposed of, the Open-Air Labyrinth was born.”

They walked while chatting.

Luo De recalled the details of Tree Armor.

【Tree Armor: Ancient trees possess extreme resilience and defense; when bound to the body, they absorb most damage. This skill may evolve into the higher-tier skill—Dragon Scale.】

“We can try it when we pass by.”

As he thought this,

he suddenly felt the access pass inside him shift.

【Noticing the Labyrinth Trees’ affection for you, the ‘Open-Air Labyrinth of Chire City’ access pass has changed.】

【The pass will upgrade to a higher rank, granting richer rewards, while trial intensity increases—the more you kill, the greater the rewards!】

【Warning: Monsters are approaching!】

“?”

What the hell?

Affection this suddenly?

Luo De expanded his perception to its maximum—and immediately saw massive mounds of earth rising in the west, surging rapidly toward him.

“Everyone, my access pass has changed—monsters are coming.”

Xia Li and Gaima froze.

“What’s going on? Need help?”

“No, they’re targeting me—I can fight better alone.”

Luo De glanced at their spiritual accumulation.

Gnome: mid-stage fourth tier. Half-dragon: high-stage fourth tier.

They understood, and nodded.

“Then meet at the Dragon Pit—and remember the Labyrinth’s rules!”

“Understood, Tally.”

The demon obeyed, zipping instantly into Luo De’s shadow.

A glow erupted around Luo De.

【Swift Shadow Step】—【Dash】.

Boom!

He shattered the ground, leaving a crater with each step, racing swiftly in the opposite direction.

Because of the Tree Blessing, he couldn’t bring himself to fight where trees grew.

Soon,

Luo De met the monsters inside the mounds.

A massive high-temperature worm burst from the earth, spewing magma straight at him.

Luo De didn’t dodge.

A transparent spherical shield formed around him, repelling all magma.

From his golden-hued blade, an elongated beam of light extended.

【Giant Slash】!

Whoosh—

The high-temperature worm was cleaved in two, its viscous blood splattering the ground.

Xia Li said their mouthparts were valuable spell components, but Luo De had no time now.

As he landed, a second high-temperature worm charged him.

Ping—

Its suction-like mouthbit the spiritual shield—and shattered its serrated teeth.

Luo De instantly detonated the Lightless Shield—the worm’s head burst like a watermelon.

Scalding blood splashed over him, sizzling as it burned.

In his peripheral vision, beyond the four fifth-tier-low-stage high-temperature worms, a woman with a human upper body and serpent lower body hid behind a rock, watching him stealthily.

Land naga.

(End of Chapter)