Lu Li’s dark eyes fell to the depths of the shattered swamp.
There lies the origin of the swamp, now nurturing sothing new.
Lu Li is favored by the world—an undeniable fact to all, he is the world’s self-rescue, the hope of order.
As it should be, the swamp, with the world’s favor, the prophecy of the Eternal Drear, and the expectations of the order’s alliance, will be resolved by Lu Li.
Just like the other anomalies he dealt with.
Except the Cursed Title lost its effect upon entering the swamp—whether the swamp has its own rules or is becoming a new world... it’s not good news for them.
"You shouldn’t have co in..."
Margaret’s ethereal soul tinged with pessimism. The swamp suppresses all powers. Like those anomalies without external powers, they could only cower under the Alchemical Tower, barely surviving.
Only the Jimmy siblings firmly believe Lu Li can succeed.
"I’m not the one solving the swamp."
They still didn’t know about the Spider Princess, and Lu Li revealed that he plans to seek help from Dark Star City.
"So, the swamp has suddenly begun to labor."
Raimy showed sudden understanding. With the world’s favor and the Eternal Drear’s prophecy... she felt that they would conquer the swamp.
"You should go find the Spider Princess, and help her."
However, she worried about unforeseen events, that Lu Li hadn’t t with the Spider Princess since coming in.
Lu Li was preparing to do so: "What about you?"
"We can hold on, Dean Chris has been maintaining the operation of the four Alchemical Towers."
Clearly, nurous anomalies are more suited to move in the swamp than Lu Li, but only he has had contact with the Spider Princess, and only he can command her.
"Where is the core of the swamp?"
Raimy pointed to the depths of the swamp, towards the direction of a dull heartbeat: "It should be where life is being nurtured."
"But that’s just one of them."
The swamp is currently becoming two.
As Lu Li prepared to et the Spider Princess, an anomaly occurred with the floating island of the World Tree, shielded by the four Alchemical Towers.
The Shattered Isles bearing the World Tree collapsed massively, revealing the drooping and decaying roots.
Under the watch of Lu Li, the Jimmy siblings, Margaret, nurous anomalies, and other allied companions from the islands, the rocks and soil condensed by the roots were riddled with cracks, splitting and crumbling, as the soil diminished, the withered giant tree fell into the dark yellow abyss of this swamp world.
The World Tree, symbolizing past glory, has collapsed.
But a new World Tree is already growing in the Land of Light.
Regardless, this scene left the beings in the swamp indifferent.
At this mont, Lu Li suddenly noticed sothing and gazed towards the edge of the swamp.
The direction he and the anomalies had entered from, the shell mbrane lted, burrowing into a skull larger than the World Tree.
A terrifying behemoth tore through an opening, like a predator outside an eggshell, inching its way into the swamp.
"Lu Li! Mother and I have co to help you!"
A small silhouette atop the skull shouted distantly, with a swarm of figures behind it.
Mother flapped bone wings, heading towards the Alchemical Tower where Lu Li resided.
This unity of all anomalies against a common enemy was inspiring.
Detached from the sorrow of the World Tree’s demise, Raimy whispered softly: "Just like the end of a story..."
"What did you say?" Jimmy asked his sister, glancing down.
"Nothing."
Lu Li awaited as Mother drew near. It couldn’t descend, the floating island of the Alchemical Tower was not even as long as its rib cage, rely nearing the island, resting its skull on the island’s edge.
"Lu Lili-lili-lili—"
The big sister jumped onto the island, dragging out her voice, rushing into Lu Li’s arms.
"How did ’Mother’ enter the swamp?" Lu Li asked.
"Mother is the Keeper of the Realm!" the big sister declared proudly.
Lu Li lifted his head, the massive creature before him gradually overlapped with the outline of the Keeper of the Realm he had seen in a vision in Midnight City—
"Mother" was either the Keeper of the Realm in life, or the Keeper of the Realm’s skeleton; either way, it no longer mattered.
"Can humanity restore your power from when you were alive?" Lu Li asked it.
But Mother told Lu Li that she had died and could no longer eliminate the swamp, only suppress its expansion.
"Chris is at that Alchemical Tower, she knows what to make you do."
Lu Li gently placed the reluctant big sister at the front of Mother’s skull.
"And you?"
"Reuniting with the Spider Princess."
Lu Li called upon the Heretic that spun webs, commanding it to construct a mycelium path, a slender, iridescent bridge extending slowly into the distance.
The swamp seed to have cast all its attention on the Spider Princess and the birthing, even ignoring Lu Li and the Keeper of the Realm’s corpse. As he proceeded along the continually collapsing mycelium path, the frequent crumblings and the dwindling floating islands indicated that the swamp’s devouring was nearing completion.
As the iridescent bridge spanning the swamp appeared in the distance, Lu Li called out from afar: "Can you go any faster?"
The Spider Princess looked towards him, and Lu Li continued: "The swamp has sensed your arrival and is nurturing a new swamp."
"Knight, I can’t proceed any faster..."
And that’s not the only problem, they still hadn’t located the other core of the swamp.
Lu Li cast his gaze downwards, where there should be clues: "Let’s go deeper."
The mycelium spun by the Heretic ford into spiral steps, and after reaching several stories in height, Lu Li halted it, switching to a sturdy rope hanging down to the murky lower levels.
Lu Li gripped the mycelial rope with his right hand, descending vertically with the Heretic deeper into the swamp.
The somber yellow enveloped everything, confirming they had reached the depths of the swamp, where an oceanic rotten mire surged.
Lu Li saw ghouls, many ghouls. Their decayed corpses bobbed amidst the mire. At that mont, he once again saw the outline embedded with inscribed tal plates.
A Blood Spirit lay sprawled atop several decaying ghoul corpses, its chest heaving slightly, even lifting its head to gaze at Lu Li and the Heretic intruding the deep yellow swamp.
"Bloodman?"
It caught a familiar scent on Lu Li, "You’re really human..."
"Did you guess?"
"I suspected," the Blood Spirit murmured, propping up its decaying body, "If you had revealed yourself earlier, I would have cooperated with you..."
"You still can now," Lu Li did not linger on the past, "Do you know where the swamp core is?"
The Blood Spirit lowered its precarious head, its finger bones pointing downward: right below.
"What about the other swamp it is nurturing?"
"Nurturing? No... human, it’s splitting..."
Suddenly, the swamp surrounding the Blood Spirit swelled with foul bloating.
Its decaying head rolled off its neck, the Blood Spirit’s dry mouth opened and closed: "It’s coming..."
The dangling mycelium instantly tightened, pulling Lu Li away from the swamp.
"Mycelium and roots coexist..."
Tugged out of the Deep Yellow Sea by the mycelial rope, Lu Li saw the Heretic chanting doctrines and the Blood Spirit engulfed by the exploding festering bubble.
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