[Race: Pale Pilgrim]
[Level: LV58]
This odd little tree moved like a Migration Tree, its countless roots wriggling like tentacles to push it forward.
Unlike the Migration Tree’s bulldozer vibe, flattening everything, its glide was eerily gentle.
But in lethality, it matched its cousin.
Its trunk gave off a hazy, soft white glow, and its near-clear, juice-packed fruits refracted light into a dreamy prism glow, dazzling in the dark, luring hordes of maddened beasts.
Most didn’t even reach it before their limbs gave out, collapsing to die under neurotoxin’s grip.
Its killing power came from LV10 [Neurotoxin] and, crucially, LV7 [Skin Permeation].
Toxins seeping from its fruits hit skin and took effect fast.
Only poison-immune treants forced it to pause, using tough roots for reluctant fights.
This Pale Pilgrim wasn’t touched by [Madness]. It just strolled through the chaotic battlefield, casually poisoning dozens of judgment-lost beasts.
It kept its leisurely pace, heading deeper, judging by its path.
Above its route, a plain white spider thread dangled, unnoticed, with an invisible Puffshroom clinging to its end.
As the tree passed, the Puffshroom’s mycelium tendrils snatched two plump fruits!
The odd touch sparked a reaction—roots lashed out, whip-fast, at the Puffshroom’s spot!
But the thread yanked up, pulling the Puffshroom clear, leaving the roots to smack the tree’s own branches.
The Puffshroom landed on a high branch, and half-demon Bastardos, who reeled it in, didn’t pause. Two swift leaps put distance between him and the Puffshroom.
Its surface was laced with toxic mist—he wasn’t sure he could tank it.
Stuffing the fruits into the Puffshroom, Lin Jun praised, “Nice work, half-demon! Got some spider blood in your ancestors?”
“Half-arachnid,” Bastardos said flatly, biting off leftover thread.
“Thought your webbing shot out… uh… from the back, like spider beasts,” Lin Jun said, curious.
“Some half-demon variants do,” Bastardos replied, unfazed.
“That’s rough.”
Two arrows dropped two crazed beasts trying to pounce. Once the Puffshroom’s toxins faded, Bastardos cautiously slung it back on, retracing his steps fast.
Maybe the glowing Pale Pilgrim drew most of the battlefield’s heat, because their retreat went smoother than expected.
Until floor ten.
“Dylan Two, switch course, head left-front!” Lin Jun said suddenly.
Bastardos didn’t ask why, darting toward the direction.
Boss’s scouting skills had proven spot-on countless times—just follow.
But this time, something felt off.
“Hm?”
“What’s up, Boss?” Bastardos asked, nimbly weaving through giant tree branches.
“We’re spotted.”
“Spotted? By who?”
“Elves… speed up, they’re trying to cut you off!”
Though he saw no one, Bastardos’s eyes flared purple, like burning ghostfire.
[Bloodline Boost]
This skill tapped mixed bloodline powers for a short burst, effects varying by half-demon ancestry.
For someone like Bastardos, with tangled bloodlines, it was a general stat boost with a slight strain.
Since the elf squad entered the Puffshroom backpack’s scouting range, their every move was open to Lin Jun.
Seeing them shift and speed up for an ambush, Lin Jun knew they’d somehow sniffed out Bastardos.
But the elves’ scouting wasn’t real-time.
They didn’t know their plan was busted, nor that their target had already bolted.
When the fastest elf ranger reached the intercept point, Bastardos was a blurry shadow fading into the gloom.
“Damn it!” the ranger cursed, reacting quick.
Realizing the intercept failed, he drew his bow, nocking an arrow in one fluid motion!
[Precision LV9]
[Arrow Speed LV6]
[Wind’s Favor LV7]
The enchanted arrow screamed, tearing the air!
But the distance was too great, and Bastardos was ready. At the sound, he dove sideways!
The arrow, packing terrifying force, grazed his afterimage, slamming into a tree trunk, blasting wood chips everywhere!
“What happened?” the elf captain asked from below, arriving late.
His higher level didn’t match the ranger’s agility.
“Captain, target’s gone!” The ranger stowed his bow, voice heavy with frustration. “It’s a demon!”
Days later.
Salian pushed open the Healing Ward’s flower-scented door, heading straight for the resting elf squad.
In the ward, the gold-tier elf druid lay still on a white bed.
Faint red veins pulsed under his exposed skin.
A healer stood by, hands hovering, casting Purification in a slow trickle of light, inching out the “Madness” in his body.
Seeing Salian, the elf captain stood, saluting respectfully. “Lord Salian.”
“What happened?” Salian’s eyes flicked to the bed.
The captain, grim, recounted their trip: the ecosystem’s oddities, losing a high-speed demon in an intercept, and facing a massive, frenzied beast tide on floor fourteen.
In that chaos, a teammate got infected, forcing their retreat.
“Demon…” Salian muttered.
Did demons have reason to provoke elves now?
Hell yeah they did!
The empire, stronger in troops and resources than the human kingdom, was stuck in a war stalemate.
Not because it couldn’t win—it didn’t dare go all-in.
On the empire’s east, the dwarf kingdom had mobilized heavily at human pleas.
Not fighting yet, but the empire couldn’t ignore that force, tying up elite units to watch them.
The elves’ stance stayed murky.
They wanted the empire to corner humans, forcing the “Hero” out to be crushed, ending that threat.
But they feared humans collapsing too fast, leaving the empire dominant, with elves’ fate uncertain.
In this mess, causing a weird dungeon eco-disaster in elf and dwarf lands would tie them up, leaving them no bandwidth.
Then the empire could shake off its worries, throw most of its might, and smash humans flat!
Salian didn’t hesitate, striding out of the ward.
This had to reach his mentor and the Elf King—now!
It was bigger than even the city’s “radical faction” issues.
(End of Chapter)
Man, the empire is too unlucky.