Chapter 5 Dark Growing Vine
Demon Race Territory, Gate of Eclipse.
This is the deepest part of the Demon Race Territory, a place that even most of the Demon Race has never been to.
Because here…
is simply too desolate.
The sky is filled with perpetual smoke, and the land is scorched black and barren, yet it is covered with sharp trees called Blood Crowns, which feed on the blood of living creatures.
However, at this moment, a light gold ship is sailing here.
This is Elus’s mount, the Time Shuttle.
…
Sitting in the observation window, Zhisheng Luo asked the little loli beside her:
“Candelle, haven’t we arrived yet?”
“Almost, almost! We should be there after we cross this next mountain ridge.”
“You’ve been saying that for half an hour now.”
“Don’t rush me, I’ve only been to the Ancient Elevator once! It’s normal to not remember clearly… Ah, I see it, I see it! It’s over there, we can go save Cécile and Master Elus~~”
The red-haired little loli jumped up, gesturing excitedly towards the black building in the distance.
It was hexagonal, very much like a small military fortress… except that many black, viscous substances grew on top, seemingly covering the entrance.
“It’s the Dark Growing Vine, this place hasn’t been used for too long and has already been occupied by these corrupted plants.”
With just one glance, Isumi identified the shape of the plants.
“Senior Isumi, should we force our way through?”
“No, that would consume a lot of energy, and once we get to the Underground World, we will have several battles to go through.”
“In that case…”
“Let’s dock the ship near the fortress. I’ll see if there’s any way to clear these corrupted plants.”
Black vines grew on the obsidian walls.
As time passed, they writhed as if breathing, like blood vessels connected to a heart.
If Su Ling or Lonis were here, they would probably have jumped up in fright and hidden behind their companions.
But Isumi simply took a step forward.
“Hmm… a familiar scent. Is it that guy’s doing again?”
Isumi pushed open the door, and three thick tentacles shot out rapidly, instantly entangling her body.
Lower abdomen, arms, thighs.
In just a second, they dug into her muscles like perverted stalkers craving the girl, their uneven surfaces constantly rubbing against Isumi’s body.
“Senior Isumi!”
Zhisheng Luo exclaimed, wanting to rush forward and help.
However…
“Stay where you are.”
Isumi, without any joy or sorrow, simply commanded calmly.
“!”
“Please stay where you are, this is an order.”
Isumi didn’t even resist, letting the thick tentacles entangle her body.
First her limbs, then her torso and head…
In just 1 minute, the orange-haired girl’s body was completely enveloped by the tentacle monster, with layers of tentacles mixed with countless small tendrils writhing and groping all over the girl’s body.
Viscous liquid could be seen dripping from the ends of the tentacles, slowly pooling onto the ground. These tentacle monsters had tightly enclosed her into a sphere, leaving no space for the girl to even breathe.
Seeing this scene, Zhisheng Luo would have thought that Senior Isumi had been eaten by the tentacle monster.
Completely trained by the tentacle monster, turned into some kind of fallen entity.
However…
It was after 5 minutes…
A ray of orange light burst from the tentacle monster.
At first, it was just one ray, then two or three, four or five… numerous rays of light, like exploding new stars, completely destroyed the mass of tentacle monsters.
“Mm, genome analysis complete, with a 11.5% error. This is a new type of dark domain plant, unlike any known species.”
Isumi walked out of the mass of vine tentacles with her head held high and chest out.
Despite being covered in slime, with the strange digestive fluids even dripping down her black stockings and filling her boots… Isumi’s expression remained calm and composed, as if she had merely gone for a stroll.
“Junior Zhisheng Luo, get out the A7 injection. This should break through the plant’s blockade.”
“Ah, ah! I know, but Senior, are you… are you alright?”
“Me…?”
“This slime on your body, do you want me to help you clean it?”
This slime was strange. Besides being very viscous, it also emitted an unpleasant, squid-like fishy smell.
But Isumi didn’t mind it at all, and instead said:
“Mm, the slime… don’t worry about me, some of this slime needs to be sealed. So it can’t be wiped off yet.”
“Eh?”
“If you mind the smell, Junior, you can return to the ship first…”
“No, it’s alright! I’ll… stay with Senior.”
…
…
——————-
…
…
(Wuwu… so tired?)
Following the team, Lonis was already panting from exhaustion.
Although the “curse” from the Ember Shield had expired, and she had put on clothes again… this rugged terrain was too difficult to walk on!
It was like an unexplored underground cave, with no flat paths at all. The difficulty of advancing was no less than climbing some mountains, going up and down. Lonis, who was already physically weak, felt her legs cramp after less than an hour and was unable to move forward.
But…
there was still a considerable distance to the agreed meeting point.
And besides herself, neither Zhou Su Ling nor Bai Ye had complained about being tired… which made Lonis too embarrassed to ask for a rest.
After all, she was a man!
And how could a man be embarrassed in front of girls?
So Lonis wanted to continue pretending to be strong, wanting to get over the giant rock in front of her in a clean and swift manner.
However…
“Wuuah?!”
“Lonis!”
A cramp in her calf made Lonis unable to stand steadily, completely losing her balance.
If Elus hadn’t grabbed her arm, Lonis would have felt herself rolling down the mountain… and even if she didn’t die from the fall, she would probably have been turned into pulp.
This was because there were not many weeds in the Underground World, and the weathering effect was very weak, with most rocks being as sharp as knives.
“Lonis, be careful.”
Elus frowned, with a slightly reproachful expression.
“S-sorry…”
“Junior Elus, I think Classmate Lonis seems to be unable to hold on. Shall we rest here for a bit?”
“Hah? Rest? We’re in the middle of nowhere, how can we rest?”
Elus was not wrong. They were currently on a steep slope, with no standing room for a long time.
“But, Lonis she…”
“Forget it, who knew I had such a clumsy maid? Lonis, come here.”
Elus grabbed Lonis’s wrist and said with a serious gaze.
