Chapter 63-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation
Although Ye Zheng didn't know why Percy had triggered a warning, she guessed it was probably because her changes had caused some chain reactions.
This world didn't need more uncontrollable variables; that would make the matters at hand more troublesome for her.
So, Percy should just be a brave and kind manga character according to the original plot. He didn't need to think too much. This was for his own good.
Ye Zheng quietly wiped away the water stains on her fingertips. [Stream] had a healing effect. Even when the target had no wounds, it could bring a calming and soothing effect to the mind.
The youth's green eyes shifted slightly, reflecting the smiling face of Percy chatting with his teammates. Sometimes, ignorance is a form of bliss.
The Cloud-Soaring Squad rested at the camp for half a day. To prevent more incidents, they decided to head to the red forest sooner rather than later.
Yu Tianming selected a few knights to go with them, and the Bai siblings also joined. But Percy couldn't find Zhao Mei for a moment.
He weaved through the crowded camp, passing by hungry crowds and crying children, and was finally drawn by a sound from the depths of the camp. He pushed through the onlookers and finally found Zhao Mei.
The youth had one hand restraining a middle-aged man, forcing the man's face against a tree trunk, able to only cry for help.
"Help! I didn't even do anything! Can ability users just do whatever they want?"
"So, should I have waited until you stole their food before I acted?"
"I just took a look! Are you crazy?"
An elderly man with a somewhat frightened expression walked over, a little girl by his side. She spoke with a trembling voice, "Thank you, my lord. We-we're fine."
"We will protect the food you gave us. Thank you so much..."
The youth released his grip. The middle-aged man had just turned around in relief when he immediately met the youth's threatening green eyes.
"Don't even think about touching their things. I will be back."
Percy noticed the youth's voice was a little louder than usual and quickly understood that Zhao Mei's words were not just for that middle-aged man.
After doing all this, the youth once again picked up the large backpack from the ground. The crowd of onlookers spontaneously made way for him.
"Zhao Mei, I feel like I've gotten to know you a little better. I didn't realize you had such an assertive side," Percy said half-jokingly. He felt that after meeting Zhao Mei in this Demonic Domain, his temperament was no longer as quiet and gentle as before, but had a restless quality, as if something was about to erupt at any moment.
"If I'm not assertive, the food I gave that elderly couple and their granddaughter will soon be snatched away by others."
Hearing Zhao Mei's words, Percy's expression also grew grim.
He had already heard that some people here had died from eating poisonous plants in the jungle out of extreme hunger. There weren't many edible fruits left nearby. The Royal Knight Order led by Yu Tianming did have food, but even those knights could only eat once a day. It was impossible for them to share with the civilians.
They had to destroy this Demonic Domain as soon as possible and get everyone out.
...Not just for everyone, but also for the nightmare that had plagued him for so long. Ten years ago, he had watched everything happen, only able to cry powerlessly for his parents. This time, he would destroy this nightmare with his own hands.
Percy noticed that Zhao Mei was still carrying that large backpack, which looked like it still contained a lot of things. He asked curiously, "Zhao Mei, are you still bringing all that stuff? We probably won't be spending too much time in the red forest."
In his experience, they would either deal with the core in the red forest within the day, or they would be the ones dealt with. It was unlikely they would be camping in the territory of an Exotic Plant.
"There are some essential things to bring," the youth said with a smile, briefly dismissing the topic.
Her bag contained more than just daily necessities.
The two of them walked out of the camp. The others were waiting for them at the edge of the forest. When Yu Tianming saw the black-haired, green-eyed youth approaching, he felt an inexplicable sense of relief.
Bai Muqing habitually took a few steps forward, then suddenly remembered that in others' eyes, she and Zhao Mei shouldn't be that familiar. The one she was familiar with was Ye Zheng. So, Bai Muqing held herself back.
"Let's go. We can't delay any longer."
The youth walked to the front of the group, turning his fair face to the side, and gave a gentle command.
This time, no one felt it was out of place. It seemed as if following him was the most natural thing to do.
The group stepped into the tall forest once again. Ye Zheng took out a compass from her bag to determine the direction.
The red forest was some distance from the camp, so the camp was relatively safe. But to be on the safe side, Ye Zheng had most of the knights stay behind.
Although Sierra was a mobile danger, Ye Zheng guessed she probably wasn't very interested in killing civilians. Sierra's interest in her would be much greater.
Ye Zheng suddenly remembered the scene that appeared in the manga spoiler and asked in her mind, "Has the plot point where Sierra kills me already passed?"
She had run into Sierra yesterday, but for some reason, Sierra hadn't attacked her directly.
The System checked.
[The action points haven't changed. This plot point hasn't been altered. It should be waiting for you later.]
[You have to be careful. In the original plot, Percy would have saved you, but just now, even Percy got an OOC (Out of Character) warning, although that bug has been fixed.]
Ye Zheng blinked. She was growing more and more curious about why the System had appeared on her, waking her up from the manga world.
Unfortunately, now was not the time to explore these questions. Ye Zheng led the group for over an hour and finally saw the strange, pale red forest again.
Surrounded by tall, dark green trees, this cluster of trees in the center looked particularly peculiar, like a beating heart.
From the trunks to the branches, they displayed varying shades of red. Some of the long tendrils hanging from the crowns swayed. They weren't swaying with the wind, but each moved on its own, like a bored child swinging its legs.
"Should we go in directly? Won't it be too dangerous?" Yu Tianming asked uneasily, pushing his glasses.
"I've walked around this forest once. At our normal pace, it would take about half an hour to get to its center from this position."
Lucy said optimistically, "That's not too far! We can just run faster and get to the core!"
"Idiot Lucy, do you think those man-eating trees will just let us run around freely?" Roy said with his arms crossed, his expression pessimistic.
"Why not?"
The youth had, at some point, walked over to the white-haired girl's side and leaned in with a smile, "If it's Muqing, there won't be a problem."
Faced with the close proximity, Bai Muqing's heart skipped a beat. She hadn't expected Ye Zheng to not only ignore pretending they weren't familiar in front of so many people but to actively bring her up.
"Muqing and I met in the forest yesterday. Her ability is very powerful; she can control creatures within a certain range."
Lucy remembered. Bai Muqing had helped control the core monster in the shelter before. She immediately chimed in, "That's right, Muqing can control those weird trees!"
Yu Tianming hesitated for a moment, then decided to speak up, "My ability can enhance others' talents. I can support Bai Muqing. Perhaps this method could actually work."
Everyone's hopeful gazes turned to Bai Muqing. The white-haired, white-eyed girl could feel the weight of this expectation, even if she couldn't directly see their expressions.
She walked forward. Beside her, another tall figure reflexively tried to follow her, then stopped in a daze.
Bai Mulin looked at his sister with a complex expression as she walked to the very front. She didn't actually need his protection. In fact, his protection might even be a burden to her.
Walking up to the swaying, pale red forest, Bai Muqing's chest heaved. After a moment of hesitation, she closed her eyes.
White specks of light suddenly drifted down from the sky, landing like snowflakes on the tall tree crowns and swaying roots. The bizarre forest seemed to hold its breath, and even the swaying branches paused for a moment.
Everyone held their breath, following Bai Muqing and walking into the territory of this Exotic Plant with bated breath.
After entering the forest, everyone felt even more creeped out. Up close, what should have been brown, rough bark was as smooth and pale red as blood-engorged human skin.
Walking through it was not like being in a forest, but rather on the body of a sleeping giant. Even the ground beneath their feet seemed to be breathing.
Everyone was on edge until, after a good while, they finally confirmed that Bai Muqing's control was effective against them. The strange branches and roots right next to them did not attack, and most of them relaxed slightly.
"Don't let your guard down," the youth walking behind Bai Muqing reminded them in a soft voice.
"There might be an uncontrollable little lunatic hiding in this forest."
Once Sierra appeared and nullified Bai Muqing's ability again, not only would these man-eating trees attack immediately, but they would also be in an extremely passive position under the threat of Sierra's ability.
Now that everything was peaceful and the surrounding Exotic Plants were as quiet as normal plants, Ye Zheng didn't relax. Instead, she became more focused, a faint shadow of worry on her brow.
The fact that Sierra hadn't appeared was even more troublesome. It likely meant she...
"What's that up ahead!"
Lucy, walking at the front, widened her eyes, pointing at a statue-like white, hard object revealed among the pale red trees.
Everyone present paled, quickened their pace, and rushed out of the red forest, arriving at the center of this Demonic Domain.
Ye Zheng looked up, complex emotions flickering in her illusory green eyes.
An abnormally thick and tall red tree trunk held up a massive white skull, looking down on the arrivals from high above with great majesty.
The white skull was long and narrow, with a protruding mouth revealing a row of sharp teeth. Two huge eye sockets were hollowed out. It must have been a terrifying and mighty beast when it was alive.
The pale red trees connected to the lone, massive skull, as if reassembling a winding body for it, one large enough to entrench itself throughout the entire Demonic Domain.
A familiar aura washed over her. Ye Zheng's palm trembled slightly. She immediately realized something, her eyes widening in disbelief, and her pupils uncontrollably constricted as she stared at the giant skull.
"N-no, sitting up there is..."
Yu Tianming adjusted his glasses, staring in shock at the skull that looked down on them mercilessly, speaking in disbelief.
In the two hollow eye sockets of the white bone sat two figures, one in red and one in blue. They both had the same dazzling golden hair, the same merciless and contemptuous gazes.
Author's Note: Next, Zheng is going to fix two golden-haired mad dogs...
Comments
Post a Comment