### Chapter 444: 61. The Dreadful Her
“.”
Due to the translation artifact’s effect, perhaps there was a slight miscommunication from Fisher, and in any case, the camp fell into a strange silence.
Tang Zeming Asuka, sitting next to Fisher, opened her mouth first, her brain seeming to malfunction as she momentarily failed to respond.
Even the maidservant with a white scarf serving Duke of Peach stood there in a daze until Fisher behind the table spoke up again to remind her, and she barely managed to respond,
“I would like a Subhuman of the White Tiger Race. I wonder if Duke of Peach can fulfill my request?”
“I see.”
She contemplated for a moment and then immediately replied,
“The habitat of the White Tiger Race is far from the Royal Capital. If you want one, I must first report to Duke of Peach and wait for his consent before I can bring back a Subhuman of the White Tiger Race.”
“That’s troublesome.”
“Then please wait here for a moment.”
The maidservant wearing the white cloth nodded silently and exited the tent that had just been set up. Soon her figure disappeared into the peach blossom grove and was never seen again.
Gouwen glanced at Fisher and asked,
“Why do you suddenly want a White Tiger?”
This question was exactly what Tang Zeming Asuka wanted to ask. If accepting the reward from Duke of Peach before was helpless, then with the reward already delivered, why bother to ask Duke of Peach for another Subhuman, still such a somewhat ambiguous one?
Fisher certainly couldn’t divulge that he wanted to collect a complete series of rewards for researching Subhumans. Just as he was silent for a moment, preparing to fabricate a reasonable excuse, Hela, sitting nearby, yawned and leaned over the table with a smile, saying,
“Who knows? Perhaps he truly loves Subhumans and cannot be satisfied with the ones here; or maybe the White Tiger has some unique quality that could help in further steps? Oh, it could also be that he wants his White Tiger to be…”
Fisher shot her an expressionless glare, and she immediately chewed on a juicy peach, raising her hand in surrender. Nonetheless, even after going silent, the smile on her face did not fade; her blue-golden eyes twinkled mischievously, not knowing what devious thoughts were stirring in her mind.
“In that case, it’s up to you, Brother Fisher. I’m heading back to rest. Tomorrow I have to help Duke of Peach. By the way, Brother Fisher…”
Gouwen only casually asked, as this was entirely unrelated to him, who had a lovely wife back home. Seeing there was nothing else to do here, he stood up to stretch, preparing to return to rest. However, just as he nearly reached the tent entrance, he seemed to recall something and turned back to Fisher with a serious look reminiscent of someone with experience,
“Remember, remember, you must absolutely keep yourself pure!”
Fisher opened his mouth, as if sensing the inexplicable hope emanating from the other person.
But he was equally bewildered, taking Gouwen’s advice as a doctor advising him to practice restraint, while it seemed both Eil and the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans suggested he indulge. Was it really the case that true doctors advocated restraint?
Mikhail, witnessing this, immediately stood up and followed Gouwen, casually stating, “I’m tired too,” before leaving the tent.
Having also eaten and drunk enough, Hela stretched, stood up, and looked around at the misty peach blossom grove, muttering to herself,
“I really want to take a walk. I’m so full~”
She swayed away from the tent, leaving Fisher with a faintly hazy silhouette mingling with the subtle aroma of peach blossoms.
Hey, hey, hey?!
Seeing all her companions leaving the tent to rest, Tang Zeming Asuka tilted her head, looking at Fisher. She was unsure whether she should stay.
Did she suspect that Fisher might engage in some strange activities with these Subhuman girls? Impossible. Fisher wasn’t that kind of person; his request for a reward was entirely out of necessity.
Then, since there was no reason for suspicion, what other reasons could she have for staying here?
Was it to consult and learn magic under Duke of Peach’s watchful gaze? Simply admiring Fisher’s looks or having some time alone with him?
“I, I, I, I! I’ll head back to rest too! Good night, Fisher! Get some rest early!!”
In truth, it didn’t matter whether Tang Zeming Asuka stayed or not. She just wanted to study Subhumans, but unexpectedly, she blushed and shookly stood up to excuse herself, even before Fisher could retain her, running out of the tent to rest as well.
“.”
Fisher was slightly taken aback and did not try to stop Tang Zeming Asuka from leaving, leaving him as the sole living force in the holy realm team within the entire tent.
At the same time, Fisher turned back to glance at the beautifully adorned Subhuman women kneeling in the tent, unconsciously swallowing a gulp.
Though ostensibly for research, for Fisher at this moment, it was undoubtedly a trial.
“Human, the White Tiger you asked for has been delivered by Duke of Peach.”
Just as Fisher was struggling against the fragrance within the tent, whether it was from perfume or the innate scent of the women, the tent’s curtain was suddenly lifted, revealing the maidservant and a figure behind her.
Fisher looked up, only to see a delicate female with abundant fur and a huge white tiger head peering at him curiously, seemingly surprised that a human would specifically request her, a White Tiger living a thousand miles away.
Seeing the heavily beastified Subhuman, Fisher’s agitated heart finally calmed down considerably, and even his resistance to the fragrant air within the tent strengthened.
“Thank you. Sorry to trouble you.”
He took a deep breath, looking at the White Tiger Subhuman who had entered the tent, as his mind surged with ethereal texts,
“I have a small errand that requires your assistance, and I hope you can cooperate. What’s your name?”
At the same time, he instantly bound the newly introduced adult female White Tiger known as “White Howling Sky.”
In reality, Fisher hadn’t done anything out of line; to expedite understanding these Subhuman women’s information, he simply had them surround him like a small meeting, so he could ask a question that everyone could hear and they could speak in turn.
The several Subhuman races sent by Duke of Peach earlier were numerous, including the Cloud Antelope Race living in the south of the continent, a Subhuman that lived between mountains and foraged for food by climbing.
There were also the Thick-Claw Race residing in the east of the continent, near the Cedar Kingdom. This female Subhuman had many sticky appendages on her back resembling octopus limbs, living among the water systems spread throughout the eastern Tree Continent, a place with numerous water systems and mist, thus called the “Water Dream Land.”
Fisher bound them all together, checked their racial tags, and found that due to geographical factors, these Subhuman sequences were basically unrelated. Even if there was overlap, it was like the Tree Continent race, which had hundreds, if not thousands, of racial tags—making it challenging for Fisher to piece together. It was likely only the initial contributors of the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans had the time and energy to record all these racial tags.
His true focus remained on the White Tiger race female with the somewhat peculiar name.
After a brief inquiry, when asked about the White Tiger Race’s uniqueness, she revealed a special ability that surprised Fisher, akin to the Phoenix’s foresight of futures that had no future.
When a White Tiger concentrated, they could easily sense the movement of winds and disturbances within several miles. This ability varied by individual; according to White Howling Sky, before she became a slave, there was a notable White Tiger in her clan serving in the military in the Pear Kingdom—a relatively weak elf at the lower end of the 15th rank, thus receiving little land and slaves.
It was said that this White Tiger could sense the winds and movements up to dozens of miles around, perceiving terrain, creatures, and even birds flying in the sky. This ability earned him significant trust in the Pear Kingdom, while the White Tiger race primarily resided in a country named “Zha Kingdom.”
Although these White Tigers were completely unaware of their subtle connection to the rules of fate, on the surface, their special qualities seemed to have no correlation with destiny at all.
However, following a reminder from the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans, Fisher quickly realized where the key to the White Tiger’s abilities lay.
Space.
Moreover, it appeared they had not been granted the aspect of time, which is another component of the fate rules. This led to the possibility that the Phoenixes might also not have been granted the aspect of space.
The special ability exhibited by the Phoenix once their powers were activated showed them specific developments in the near future, much like how the outcomes of the coming time period were presented to them.
In other words, only elves possessed the necessary two elements that composed “fate” and could perfectly combine them.
The wizard’s intuition told Fisher that the two elements of fate could be separated, just as the White Tiger race and the Phoenix race were granted different gifts; in magic, time and space corresponded to different ring heads.
So, how did the elves combine and utilize them? The method might represent clues to the true essence of the “fate” ring head!
Fisher quickly summarized some other properties.
For instance, the average rank of the Phoenix race was notably higher than that of the White Tiger race, with a gap of four to five ranks. Could it symbolize that in the distribution of “fate,” time was weighted more heavily than space?
Fisher grasped this insight and recorded all the critical points from this line of questioning. Of course, he did not neglect the biological and social research progress regarding these Subhumans.
“So, this Water Dream Land is such a place? I didn’t even know there were palaces beneath the rivers. Can the elves there dive as well? I was sold as a slave when I was very young and have never left Zha Kingdom.”
“The elves are quite powerful, but the Duke of Cedar doesn’t live underwater. The palaces beneath the water are where aquatic nobles reside; I was originally a private slave of an aquatic noble but was later given to the Duke of Cedar, thus becoming an official slave. After that, I was given to the Duke of Peach, and now I have been sent by him to…”
“I’m somewhat similar. I had a younger sister; I heard she escaped to the country of Duke of Chuan. It’s a nice place where there are no slaves.”
“Duke of Chuan? I’ve never heard of that name. Are there other countries without slaves? However, if so, how does the nobility there live?”
Only after hearing these Subhumans’ descriptions did Fisher hazily glimpse a corner of the Tree Continent.
Previously, it had been hard to imagine what a land governed by mythical beings would look like because, although the mythicals he encountered so far were rather unorthodox, this was predicated on them not taking action. When relaxed, they naturally displayed their diverse personalities openly—like Lord Shiran, who loved Subhumans; the deranged Gabriel; the toy-loving Michael; and the fun-seeking Hela.
However, in the northern region’s “Book of Stars,” there were records of how the five chaos beings who descended into reality fought fiercely, causing the skies to darken; during the subsequent two conflicts among creatures, how the magnificent World Tree fell and how the Tree Continent sunk.
To the elves, who were all mythical beings, everything else below the mythic level served merely as useful tools and inferior animals. They could give care due to liking them, yet they could also grant them status based on their usefulness. Nonetheless, one cannot deny that in the Tree Continent, all beings revolved around them or served them.
At first, these Subhuman slaves were somewhat reserved, as they seemed to have been chosen to serve the person designated by Duke of Peach. However, as Fisher gently guided them, this group of slaves shared plenty of information about their clans and homelands.
In reality, humans constituted the main force of slavery in the Tree Continent. As mentioned earlier, in this prehistoric era when magic had yet to emerge and as those at the bottom of the hierarchy, their utility was far inferior compared to other Subhumans. With short lifespans, low ranks, and no outstanding intelligence, their principal function mainly revolved around increasing the number of slaves.
History is a cycle; Fisher didn’t interfere with the rare freedom of conversation among these slave women. He even shared the peaches Duke of Peach sent from the table with them to eat while he took the opportunity to record their appearance data and social details.
Now, it was time to conduct a specific study on these Subhuman women’s bodies.
Fisher was careful in his approach; he emphasized that he was merely conducting research and would not engage in any peculiar activities, but unexpectedly, this group of Subhumans was very understanding, even asking if they should disrobe, leaving Fisher utterly flustered.
“Those few claws on your back… hmm, have some stickiness to them. Do they have feeling?”
“Um, that’s because I’ve been away from the water for too long. If I return to the water, it’ll improve a lot. As for feeling, yes, it hurts if pulled hard, but if broken, it’ll grow back after some time.”
“I see.”
Fisher’s gaze fell uncomfortably upon the non-human parts on the other’s back, trying his best not to look at the fair skin above or the round contours below… was that a peach?
He then turned to the other side, looking at the eager Cloud Antelope race woman who patted her chest,
“My horns can be taken off because my original horns weren’t this long. My previous master sawed off part of the curved end. This way, I can wear additional horn decorations, and it also looks nicer. Though in our clan, this length of horn is only had by male antelopes.”
Fisher silently modified some details of the appearance he had previously recorded as he watched her remove the horn decoration that nearly matched her original horns perfectly.
The Cloud Antelope race hooves were also pretty. According to this female Cloud Antelope, there were shoes in their clan specifically made to assist them in climbing mountains, which usually jingled with bells when climbing in the mountains.
Going up, the size of this Cloud Antelope race’s calves looked robust, much like the sheepkin sub-species in the northern region that Fisher studied earlier, though not as exaggerated as their huge physique.
The appearance of the White Tiger race was far simpler than those of the two others, with fluffy fur and two fleshy paws; the pads were still pink, looking very squeezable. She also shared how they appeared when activating their abilities.
So, when they concentrate, the black patterns on their bodies change color, emanating a faint glow.
However, Fisher and the other Subhuman slaves waited for White Howling Sky for a long time; her tiger-like head finally revealed a distressed expression as she discovered that she couldn’t perceive anything here. It wasn’t so bad to not sense anything, but once she did, it felt like being trapped in a sealed cage that restricted her breathing.
No wonder, since Duke of Peach was a being of the nineteenth rank; it was strange for her to sense the spatial barrier surrounding him.
As the night in Peach Blossom Spring deepened, the atmosphere in the tent remained hot, and the Q&A shared depth together, subtly satisfying Fisher’s research progress.
He was unsure how long had passed. Face somewhat flushed, Fisher finally bent down and walked out of the heated camp.
While chatting closely allowed him to quickly reach his research goals, it did seem like there was a bit too much intimacy.
Except for the White Tiger slave who was brought along at Fisher’s request, the other beauties were exceptional among the slaves, highly skilled at enticing others and garnering their favor; otherwise, they wouldn’t have survived this long, being continually transferred by the elves until reaching Duke of Peach.
As conversations progressed, these beautiful slaves didn’t know if they had genuinely developed feelings; they seemed to want to devour Fisher whole. Initially, they merely touched him, but as Fisher continued questioning, they leaned in closer, almost overwhelming Fisher, the virtuous gentleman.
He turned and glanced at the few Subhumans sleeping haphazardly in the tent due to fatigue, letting out a slight sigh of relief.
These slaves were pitiful; having the chance for a night like this was already lucky, so let them rest well.
Bent over, Fisher blew on the cool wind in this ethereal Peach Blossom Spring, yet the heat in his lower abdomen showed no sign of easing.
After several attempts to adjust without relief, gasping for breath, Fisher had no choice but to suddenly recall the methods Gouwen had advised him.
Thus, he hurriedly made his way to the base of a distant peach tree, placing his hands in the proper stance as taught by Gouwen, slowly calming his mind and repeating the motions that distanced him from desire.
“Steadying the essence and calming the mind, abstain from lust and restlessness.”
However, after completing a set of actions, Fisher was horrified to find that the heat in his lower abdomen not only failed to diminish but worsened significantly, causing beads of sweat to trickle down his brow, as if undergoing some unspeakable trial and torment.
Fisher furrowed his brow, leaning against the nearest peach tree, discerning that the refreshing night breeze seemed to be tainted by the women sleeping a hundred meters away in the tent, becoming sticky and fragrant, making him grip the peach tree tighter.
No effect? How could that be?
Could it be Gouwen’s doing?!
Yes, Fisher keenly sensed that after perfectly replicating Gouwen’s actions, the flames of desire surged even more terrifyingly, as if a canister of strong alcohol had been poured into water, incinerating the flames to a gruesome extent.
But upon further reflection, Gouwen had no reason to scheme against him over something trivial like this, and such thoughts were especially low-class and baffling. With Gouwen’s personality, he would never do such a thing—only a lunatic like Hela would.
Just as this notion began to surface in his mind, Fisher’s expression froze slightly, as that imagination rushed into his mind and became inescapable.
He thoughtfully scanned the surroundings, glancing around for any findings. Just when he was shaking his head, preparing to abandon this speculation, a big, round peach suddenly fell from the peach tree before him.
Fisher was momentarily stunned, leaning against the peach tree to look up slowly.
At the top of the peach tree he was leaning against, under the ethereal dim moonlight, a delicately-figured angel in a white robe, Hela, blinked innocently at him.
In the night, mischievous, her jade-like white legs swayed playfully until Fisher noticed her, at which point she lifted her dainty foot and awkwardly blocked her line of sight with Fisher’s gaze.
Then her alluring voice slowly floated over, sounding half-teasing and half-surprised.
She said,
“Oh dear, what a big tent.”
“.”
Fisher’s hand gripping the peach tree suddenly plunged deeply into the tree’s bark, producing a sharp, violent crack.
“Crack!!”
(End of this chapter)
