Capítulo 1523: Chapter 67: Surveillance
“Poor souls, without even leaving a na…”
Claire whispered.
Lu Li surveyed the surroundings, noticing not far away the gnarled roots bearing signs of chopping, an axe scattered beside them.
The desperate survivors wielded axes at the giant trees, and their fate was no better than those from Midnight City.
Lu Li ascended once more into the forest canopy, Claire hid in an unfinished treehouse, tilting her head at the window fra, watching the luminous figure weave into the branches.
A mont later, like moonlight erging from dispersing clouds, Lu Li descended beside the treehouse.
“Should we keep going?”
“The consciousness is just ahead.”
Lu Li and Claire continued onward.
No new treehouses appeared along the way, perhaps they reached a deep realm untouched by Midnight City.
No dangers lurked, but caution was needed; maybe this was a trap to lure them in deeper.
After a ti, deep enough into the Mysterious Dense Forest again breaching the tree canopy, the surrounding pervasive consciousness seed almost tangible, reminiscent of Belfast’s Elm Forest, emitting a certain clear emotion.
Pain, tornt, hatred, and longing, pleading.
These fragnted emotions filled the chaotic primal sentints, impossible to communicate, impossible to exchange words, leaving Lu Li to bring Claire up, allowing the twisted branches forming the canopy to lead him to places of intense emotional hovering.
An unexpected scene unfolded, as the twisted branches beneath their feet scattered like intertwined serpents, revealing a lone treehouse standing on black soil.
Most of the emotions Lu Li felt originated here.
Does the Mysterious Dense Forest resent the treehouse? Seems so. Midnight City made treehouses from the forest’s remnants, sheltering these outsiders, akin to nails uncontrollably embedded.
Thus, Lu Li understood the forest’s desire—hoping Lu Li would help dismantle the treehouses scattered throughout the Dark Forest.
Given that the influence of the Land of Light had yet to radiate to Ailen Peninsula, and for a long period ahead they would not touch the Barren Lands, Lu Li promised the forest’s plea, heading to the emotional lingering places, removing the nail-like embedded treehouses.
When Midnight City fell, those left in the Mysterious Dense Forest weren’t many nor were they few. At least while following Lu Li to dismantle treehouses, skeletal remains were found either on beds, in corners, or around wooden houses.
Yet, these small houses were no exception, everything able to burn had been dismantled, leaving only cold ashes in the fireplace.
During the cleanup towards the center of the dense forest, Lu Li discovered a special treehouse.
The signs of logging surrounding indicated survivors in this wooden house had lived in the forest for quite so ti. But when Lu Li entered the wooden house, seeing skeletal remains by the fireplace, it ant he still hadn’t held out until rescue arrived.
“Robert…” Claire suddenly whispered.
“You know him?”
“Those dentures…” Claire pointed with a wing to the notably intact teeth in the jaw of the skeleton, recounting an ‘interesting’ past incident.
Claire did not enter Giant Tree Academy with the identity of Vice-Chancellor Criss’s daughter. Therefore, the nurous privileges she received provoked envy and jealousy from classmates. Then, when these jealous students got increasingly out of hand, Claire picked an unfortunate student to teach him a lesson and knocked out all his teeth. The skeletal remains before them belonged to this student, Robert.
The final outco was Claire revealing her identity, and Criss crafting dentures for Robert to resolve the conflict.
“To think he died here…” Claire mused, looking around the wooden house, “but it’s still better than dying in Midnight City with no body left behind.”
“Lu Li, help bury him.”
Lu Li agreed with Claire, collecting Robert’s remains at the clearing beside the treehouse.
In the following actions, Claire didn’t et anyone familiar again—even encountering soone would be hard to recognize.
…
The deep night was about to descend from afar, returning to the dimness akin to the Mysterious Dense Forest.
The treehouse stood solitary beneath the giant tree forest, shrouded by the canopy that blocked out the sky.
This was the last treehouse that needed removal, simultaneously the beginning.
Claire quietly watched Lu Li reclaim the traces left by Midnight City one by one, recalling a long verse from an unknown poet: the disappearance of old things paves way for new rebirth.
The last wooden house crumbled before their eyes.
Claire watched Lu Li rise into the canopy but soon descended again. Because the twisted branches refused to yield despite Lu Li’s approach.
“Did it deceive us?”
“No.”
Lu Li recalled the fleeting sense of ethereal consciousness, “The Mysterious Dense Forest cannot assist us for now.”
“So we ca all this way for nothing?” Claire was dissatisfied with this, “Wasted ti dismantling a heap of small houses, resulting in failure?”
“Yet it wasn’t a failure. The forest is nurturing itself.”
Midnight City’s exploration inadvertently halted this process, and as Lu Li removed the treehouses, the forest began nurturing anew.
Perhaps with ti, in the foreseeable future, the forest will develop genuine cognition.
But until then, the forest could only serve as a refuge in tis of crisis.
“Still ca all this way for nothing.” Claire complained realistically.
The mont they left the Mysterious Dense Forest, rchant Anthony appeared nearby, bringing two pieces of news: the bad news was the swamp had finally unleashed its fury shortly after Lu Li entered the forest.
The good news was they were prepared.
…
The twilight shimred on the bay where the sailboats were docked.
“Please follow , He awaits you.”
Lu Li returned to the Land of Light, under the guidance of the Vine Cultist, arriving at the church.
However, he missed the awakening of the Eternal Drear, the priest waiting here inford Lu Li: “The Lord has recently gone to inspect the Divine Kingdom, leaving an oracle: You are the key to stopping the swamp.”
“Anything else?”
The High Priest shook his head: “He said you would understand.”
“I don’t understand.”
If the Eternal Drear rely wanted Lu Li to act freely, he had no reason to bring Lu Li back and leave an ambiguous prophecy.
Lu Li believed the Eternal Drear held so “unspeakable” future—he was only half correct. Just as Lu Li prepared to leave the Land of Light, heading towards the swamp, the priest stopped him, claiming the Eternal Drear had awakened.
Arriving at the ordinary study, the Eternal Drear reclined in a chair by the window, like an old man, draped in a blanket gazing at the twilight.
He hadn’t gone to sleep.
“What happened?”
Lu Li realized the Eternal Drear’s intent—he was concealing himself.
“The swamp is spying on that conversation.” The Eternal Drear’s response confird Lu Li’s guess.
“Here?”
The Dark Wilderness and the Land of Light are thousands of miles apart, if its power could monitor the distant Land of Light… what aning would all their struggles hold?
“The King of Ghouls is on Ailen Peninsula… the swamp has affected Him.”
Just by chance.
“So what is the true prophecy?”
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