Chapter 32: Attack in the Underground Forest
For Elus, Lonis becoming a little pet was a good thing.
This was because, at least for now, she could safely keep her on the ship and prevent her from being in danger.
As for this exploration team, it was composed of Elus, Cécile, Bai Ye, Candelle, and Zhisheng Luo.
Senior Isumi was left on the ship because Elus was worried about any accidents happening.
Furthermore, if Senior Isumi stayed in the cockpit, she could not only protect the companions inside the ship but also provide timely support when the exploration team was attacked.
“Wuwu meow, wuwu woof!”
“Okay, okay, Lonis, good girl… I’ll be back soon. You stay on the ship and play with Su Ling and the others.”
“Woo…”
“Everyone, we’re departing.”
This was an underground forest densely packed with darkness.
Every moment, the bark of the trees was black, and the purple leaves had dark red veins. However, the ground was pitted and covered with rough stones.
“These plants… are so strange…”
Cécile frowned in confusion. As a princess, she naturally loved plants. The feeling of being immersed in nature only brought her peace and tranquility.
But at this moment, she felt an indescribable chill, as if these jet-black trees were not mere plants but malicious humans—they watched your body, observing every inch of your weakness, waiting for the moment you let your guard down to launch a surprise attack.
Moreover, the deeper they went into the forest, the stranger the shapes of the plants became. Some were twisted together, while others resembled grotesque human bodies, looking terrifying.
…
“It’s not the Tree of Origin Collapse, but why… does it give me such a familiar feeling?”
Bai Ye also clutched her palm, looking nervously at the surrounding trees.
Although she wanted to activate the power of the Tree Abyss to communicate with these trees, the trees did not respond to her call at all.
Zhisheng Luo and Candelle’s expressions were also quite solemn. They didn’t say anything, but this forest gave them a very strange feeling.
As for Elus?
She remained expressionless, simply looking coldly at her surroundings and saying:
“So that’s how it is… I understand.”
“Junior Elus, what’s going on?”
“Well, it’s very simple. Senior Zhisheng Luo is human, Princess Cécile is a half-demon, Candelle is a pure demon, and Bai Ye is a puppet that controls the Tree Abyss. If everyone feels something is off, it means the power in this forest is different from all five of the above.”
“Different…?
“Mm, perhaps this is the new power Castor is pursuing? Isn’t that right… the one hiding in the forest?”
Elus’s eyebrows rose, and she looked into the depths of the forest.
—————–
…
…
“Wuwu, wuwuwu…”
“Ah, Lonis-chan, no, you can’t go out.”
Seeing Lonis constantly clutching the glass with her small hands, Zhou Suling quickly picked her up.
Ever since Elus had left the ship, the silver-haired little fox had been restlessly looking out the window.
She must be very worried about Elus’s safety, right?
Hmm… Lonis really likes Elus~
Thinking this, Zhou Suling smiled and said, “Lonis-chan, don’t worry anymore, okay? Elus is very powerful!”
“Wuwu…?”
“Mm-hmm, although it’s a bit embarrassing to recall, Lonis was the one who told me Elus was very strong before?”
“Meow?”
“It was on our journey to the Boundless Land. That was the first time we were surrounded and attacked by monsters! And now, it’s my turn to protect the little fox.”
Zhou Suling smiled gently, stroking the fur on Lonis’s tail with her palm.
…
…
——————-
…
…
“You can actually find my trace… as expected of the Snow Country Princess, Lonis?”
As she spoke, a girl with dark green beautiful hair emerged from the forest.
Her height was around 1.53 meters, and her figure was very petite.
However, she wore high heels that seemed to be entwined with roots on her toes, and her eyes were also dark green, like autumn water with no discernible source.
Facing the green-haired girl, Elus took a step forward, as if to match her, radiating a black radiance that could devour everything:
“Snow Country Princess, Lonis? No, I am just a demoness-Elus now, okay?”
“Can you cast aside your past by abandoning your name? How foolish, like an ostrich burying its head in the sand.”
“Haha, I haven’t abandoned my past. Princess Lonis is hiding in a safe place. As her hero, I don’t need the Princess to do the job of killing you.”
After finishing speaking, Elus, holding her black sword, directly launched her attack.
The green-haired girl’s reaction was equally swift. Faced with Elus’s surprise attack, she didn’t even dodge; instead, she transformed herself…
into a tree.
The root-like high heels from her ankles continuously spread upwards, engulfing the girl’s body in an instant… as if entangled by countless tentacles, the girl’s body turned into a tree trunk, and her hair turned into leaves.
Elus’s black sword slashed down, but it only cut down a tree. On the other side, a tree twisted grotesquely, its bark peeling off and transforming into the girl’s appearance.
“How is this possible!”
Bai Ye exclaimed and took a step back in shock. Although it was her first time seeing it, she still recognized the technique used by the green-haired girl.
The Tree Body Technique.
Simply put, it was like merging one’s consciousness and existence into this forest, becoming a part of nature.
And such power undoubtedly came from the Tree Abyss.
When they were in the Boundless Land, Dr. Marin had forcefully merged himself with the Tree of Origin Collapse using this method, obtaining exceptionally powerful strength.
As for Bai Ye?
After becoming the successor of the Tree Abyss, she naturally learned this technique. However, this method was quite dangerous, so she had only used it once during the incident with Insoraia.
At that time, she had guided everyone’s will, allowing the Tree of Origin Collapse to bloom a miraculous barrier in the Royal Capital.
But now, why was this green-haired girl in front of her using her own power?
Had she been abandoned by the Tree Abyss?
Just as Bai Ye’s heart grew cold, Cécile placed her hand on her shoulder and said, “Bai Ye, it’s not your fault. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Sister Cécile, I…”
“Castor wants to replicate the power of all Rainbow Abysses, and your power was likely analyzed by him in the Royal Capital.”
“Ah!”
“According to the plan, we shouldn’t make a move now, nor reveal more of our strength. We should just wait for Elus to subdue the opponent.”
…
The girls had great confidence in Elus.
This was because they had all witnessed Elus’s outstanding strength before, and Candelle had even completely surrendered after witnessing Elus’s sword strike.
And as everyone had predicted, Elus was indeed fighting from an advantageous position.
Her black sword continuously cut down tree trunks, and even though the green-haired girl occasionally reshaped her body using the Tree Body Technique, the total amount of trees was fixed.
However, at this moment…
Something that no one could have predicted happened.
