Nahida

In the pitch-black space, an elf-like girl sat on a swing. Having deliberately come to Gandharva Ville, she observed the sleeping boy before her through a dream.

"Squeak?"

Xiao Bai, nestled in Lin Feng's arms, opened his eyes and looked toward the room, which should have been completely empty.

"This seems to be a creature called a Treasure-Hunting Weasel?"

Nahida looked curiously at Xiao Bai, whose little head was pointed in her direction.

After blinking, Xiao Bai went back to snoring soundly.

"This must have been a coincidence."

Seeing Xiao Bai fast asleep, Nahida cast aside a certain theory that was not at all "wise" and decided to first accomplish the purpose of her visit—making contact with the "culprit" behind the Elemental Anomaly.

Looking at the somewhat youthful boy before her, Nahida gently raised her small hand and attempted to enter his dream.

"Huh? I can't get in?"

—The little god let out a helpless cry of despair.

When Lin Feng woke up, he felt exceptionally refreshed.

It was as though he had swallowed a powerful restorative tonic in his sleep.

Curious, he opened his status panel:

Individual Information: @￥%&--Lin Feng

Level: 32→34 (Requirements not met) (Able to control Elemental Power to a certain degree, possessing strength beyond that of ordinary people)

Element: Dendro

Traits: #%*&, Elemental Control: Dendro (Requirements not met, currently unavailable), Dream's Blessing 3 (Requirements not met)

???

Seeing that his level had inexplicably risen by two, along with the extra trait, Lin Feng's mind filled with question marks.

He opened the detailed information for the new trait—

Dream's Blessing 3: A portion of dream power intercepted from a god. Increased adaptability to dream-related abilities, increased resistance to dream-related abilities, increased Dendro Affinity.

Lin Feng's face darkened. Knowing he had once again taken advantage of Lesser Lord Kusanali, he could not get excited at all. Getting fleeced twice in one day—only because Lesser Lord Kusanali had such a good temper. If it had been a certain shut-in, she probably would have brought a blade down on him already.

Forget it. Later, he would ask whether she wanted to leave the Sanctuary of Surasthana. He could not keep bullying an honest person to death.

Lin Feng silently thought to himself.

Even someone as thick-skinned as Lin Feng felt a trace of guilt over taking advantage of a little girl.

Putting that minor incident behind him, Lin Feng washed up as quickly as possible and set off for Tighnari's residence.

Looking at the slightly larger treehouse before him, Lin Feng raised his hand and knocked on the door.

"Coming."

Hearing footsteps draw closer from inside, Lin Feng found himself looking forward to today's itinerary.

"Squeak—"

Tighnari pushed open the somewhat stiff door and led Lin Feng inside.

Seeing that the interior decorations were not much different from his own residence, Lin Feng gained a deeper understanding of Tighnari's workaholic side.

Tighnari brought over a chair for Lin Feng to sit on, then picked up a green glass orb from the table.

"Before I inform the other team members about how you obtained Elemental Power, I hope you'll accept this."

Tighnari handed the glass orb to Lin Feng.

"This is... a Vision?"

Lin Feng was no stranger to its appearance. Looking at the "Vision," nearly identical to the one on Tighnari's waist, he immediately understood why Tighnari, who usually rose early, had needed him to knock on his door today.

"That's right. This is an ornament I made based on the appearance of a Vision. Once you accept it, you can tell others that you're a Vision holder."

"After all, someone who can use Elemental Power without a Vision has always been a highly sought-after special case at the Akademiya. Not to mention that even among Vision holders, the strength of your abilities is outstanding," Tighnari explained.

"And the current Akademiya... sigh."

Tighnari let out a sigh.

After watching Lin Feng fasten the "Vision" to his waist, Tighnari put the trivial matters aside and officially began the day's work.

Efficiently gathering the Forest Rangers, Tighnari briefly explained that Lin Feng had been granted a Vision and would henceforth join him in clearing out monster camps in the rainforest.

Although Nasrin and the other Forest Rangers all cast envious looks at Lin Feng, the friendly Forest Rangers were even happier that their team had gained another Vision holder.

After all, their supervisor had always shouldered every dangerous task alone. Now, someone could finally help the busy Tighnari share his heavy workload. This was undoubtedly excellent news.

After dismissing the Forest Rangers, Tighnari led Lin Feng deep into the rainforest, following recently reported sightings to search for Hilichurl Camps.

Along the way, Tighnari also took the opportunity to explain the traits of the roadside plants and fungi to Lin Feng. For example, the misleadingly named Sweetwater Mushroom, which caused hallucinations when eaten; the pale blue little flower that was clearly a vine plant yet named Kalpalata Lotus; and the Padisarah, whose calyx opened and closed on its own as time passed.

Lin Feng listened with great interest along the way, feeling a subtle sense of satisfaction like watching water monkey identification videos on some website in his previous life.

"Stop. We're here."

Tighnari stretched out a hand to stop Lin Feng from moving forward and pointed at a crude watchtower in the distance, nearly the same color as the trees.

"Look, that's a Hilichurl Watchtower. It's generally manned by Hilichurl Archers. The presence of a watchtower means the Hilichurls in the camp have reached a certain scale. If left alone, it's very likely that a troublesome monster like a Hilichurl King will emerge, so we need to clear it out quickly."

"Should I demonstrate first, or will you go in and fight directly while I provide support from the side?"

Tighnari took out his bow and asked Lin Feng.

"I'll go in directly. If anything unexpected happens, I'll have to trouble you, Senior Tighnari, to provide support in time."

Eager to give it a try, Lin Feng looked at the furry Hilichurls before him with interest.

In fact, Lin Feng had already checked the Hilichurls' levels. Most of them were only around level ten, and even the Hilichurl Brutes were mostly just above level twenty. They posed no threat to the current Lin Feng at all.

After observing the enemies' positions, Lin Feng gathered Dendro Element in his hand. Once he had compressed it as much as possible, he hurled it toward the Hilichurl Watchtower.

Boom!

A loud blast rang out. Not only were the ordinary Hilichurls sent flying, but even the two Hilichurl Brutes wielding massive axes lost their ability to fight on the spot.

"Kundala! Strong enemy!"

The attacked Hilichurl Camp reacted quickly and began searching for the attacker.

While the Hilichurls' attention was drawn away, Lin Feng charged forward. Once the Hilichurls noticed him, he decisively unleashed Vines.

"Entangle!" Lin Feng shouted.

The instant the words left his mouth, several thorny Vines as thick as an adult's thigh burst from the ground. The two targeted Hilichurl Brutes were instantly surrounded by the thick Vines, and the parts of their bodies caught in the Entangle visibly deformed under the crushing pressure.

"Tsk. I expected it somewhat, but this guy's fighting style is really bloodier than I imagined."

Tighnari, providing support from the side, looked at the Hilichurls, who had mostly not even been left with intact corpses. Usually calm, he rarely could not help but make a remark.