Withering

Two days had passed since Tighnari left to visit friends. With nothing better to do, Lin Feng had practically wiped out every monster camp in the nearby rainforest.

The enhancement progress of the Agility trait had also reached level 4. Lin Feng felt that his control over his body was now absurdly good. Crossing a single-log bridge was nothing; if he returned to his previous life and auditioned as an acrobat, he would probably outclass everyone else.

Naturally, the most obvious change was his improved reaction speed. It felt as smooth as upgrading from a 2G network to 5G.

Staring at the pile of combat traits on himself, Lin Feng felt that his fighting ability would probably be quite outrageous if he ever truly fought. As for Xiao Bai, with his steady-as-a-rock personality, Lin Feng figured he would just have it obediently serve as an inconspicuous mascot, eating and sleeping every day—that was what Lin Feng thought, at least.

When Lin Feng noticed that his level had stopped rising, he let out a sigh of relief. He knew it was because Lesser Lord Kusanali had temporarily given up after being unable to pull him into a dream.

After all, Nahida's real body was still within the Sanctuary of Surasthana. Aside from a few Aranara that would not approach human settlements, she had no one else at her disposal.

The more Lin Feng thought about it, the more pitiful he found Lesser Lord Kusanali. Before leaving Sumeru, he decided to meet her and see whether he could help with anything. After all, his level had risen from 19 to 36, and Lesser Lord Kusanali and her statue deserved much of the credit.

As usual, after breakfast, Lin Feng headed into the rainforest to carry out his daily patrol.

"Someone, help! Is anyone there?!"

Not long after entering the rainforest, Lin Feng heard a cry for help.

Helping travelers in distress was also part of a Forest Ranger's duties. Lin Feng immediately rushed toward the voice.

"I'm Lin Feng, a Forest Ranger here. Sir, please calm down a little. What happened?"

After immediately identifying himself, Lin Feng saw the source of the cries—a middle-aged Liyue Merchant with black hair, dressed in a long robe.

"Oh, young man, please help!"

"My daughter, my daughter was taken by monsters—"

The panicked merchant kept repeating those words.

"Please calm down!" Lin Feng released a trace of Elemental Power. The dreamlike Dendro Element successfully restored some of the merchant's reason.

"Which direction? Any distinguishing features? What monsters took her?"

Knowing this was not the time for pleasantries, Lin Feng asked the slightly calmer middle-aged merchant several key questions as concisely as possible.

"Up ahead, along this road!"

Understanding the urgency of the situation, the middle-aged man hurriedly explained.

"About half an hour ago, the two of us were passing through a dark patch of forest in our carriage when a group of mechanical monsters covered in black mist suddenly charged out. The pack horses beneath us were startled and bolted in different directions!"

"My daughter is from Liyue, around the same age as you! Please, you must bring her back!"

"I-I can give you all the caravan's property. Please save Xiao Lu!"

"I-I-I'll kneel before you!"

As he spoke, the merchant was about to kneel, but Lin Feng reached out and grabbed his arm, stopping him.

"There's no need to kneel. We can discuss payment later. I'm from Liyue too, sir. If you do that, you'll shorten my lifespan. I'll do my best to bring your daughter out. Please don't wander around. I'll take you to make the relevant report afterward."

After understanding the situation, Lin Feng also found it rather troublesome. He told the man not to run around, then hurried into the rainforest at top speed.

From the merchant's description, they had most likely encountered a Withering zone in the rainforest. It seemed they had only passed by its outskirts—otherwise, the man could not possibly have escaped.

But his daughter had most likely followed one of the frightened pack horses deeper into the Withering.

During his time studying under Tighnari, Lin Feng had gained a better understanding of the Withering.

First, Withering zones were not particularly common in reality at present, nor did they generally appear near the edges of the rainforest.

Second, the Withering was extremely dangerous to ordinary people. Even disregarding the phantom monsters within, staying there would continuously drain one's life force. After more than half an hour, it would become life-threatening. Only those with a Vision could endure it a while longer.

To clear a Withering zone, one needed to attack the Withering Branches with Dendro Elemental Power. After defeating all the phantom monsters, one could destroy the exposed Withering Core—the Tumor of the Withering.

Recalling the information about the Withering, Lin Feng estimated how long the merchant's daughter had been inside. At the thought of half an hour, his heart sank, and he quickened his pace.

I hope the monsters in the Withering aren't ridiculously strong, Lin Feng silently prayed.

The strongest monsters in a Withering zone often came from ley line projections. If they were relatively weak creatures such as Fungi, the Withering would not be difficult to clear. But if one was unlucky, they might encounter dangerous monsters such as high-level Ruin Drakes or Hilichurl Kings.

As Lin Feng hurried onward, he noticed the light around him gradually dimming. Both the sky and forest gave off an ominous purplish-red glow. The insects and birds that had once filled his ears had vanished without a trace, and the entire forest carried a deathly stillness.

The Withering was here!

Lin Feng's heart tightened as he felt that ominous force eroding him. An instinctive disgust surged through his mind—this was a power opposed to all life.

The moment he entered the Withering, Lin Feng sensed danger. He nimbly leaped backward to the side, avoiding an incoming laser beam, then turned to look at his attacker.

—Three centipede-like mechanical constructs, their triangular heads flashing as they clearly charged up their next attack.

"Entangle!" "Earthspike!"

Lin Feng did not hold back, opening with a full-powered Entangle and Earthspike.

Vines as thick as an adult's waist after his training sprang up and wrapped around the centipede-like constructs from every direction. Dense yet sturdy Wooden Spikes burst from the ground, stabbing at the bound Ruin Graders.

"Hmm?!"

Lin Feng found it hard to believe—although the bound Ruin Graders had taken damage after fully enduring the Wooden Spikes, they could still move.

The Ruin Graders destroyed the surrounding vines with lasers, spun their elongated bodies like drills, burrowed through the soil, and vanished underground.

!

Having experienced this enough times in the game, Lin Feng swiftly leaped away from where he stood.

The next instant, the three Ruin Graders burst from the spot where Lin Feng had been standing and unleashed indiscriminate laser attacks all around. Their brilliant light illuminated the dim surroundings like miniature suns, while the intense heat even filled the nearby air with a scorched stench.

"Good chance!"

Familiar with the mechanism of these things, Lin Feng did not hastily dodge this terrifying attack. Instead, he condensed pure Dendro Element into sharp arrows and shot them at the exposed cores of the three Ruin Graders from afar.

"Crackle."

A sound like poor electrical contact immediately came from the Ruin Graders. Orange-yellow arcs of electricity coiled around the three mechanical constructs, and they had clearly fallen into a brief state of paralysis.

Seizing the chance, Lin Feng compressed the Dendro Element in the surrounding environment and threw a Dendro bomb at maximum output into the center of the three constructs.

"Boom!"

—The three constructs trembled once, then turned into black ash and vanished into the air.