Ley Line Blossom

After leaving the cave where Haypasia trained, Tighnari finally finished his investigation report.

The only problem was that his wording had been too concise. Though he had investigated many things, the word count was still a little short.

Unable to pad the word count with punctuation, Tighnari could only sit properly at his desk and rack his brains to make up the final tiny deficit.

"Finished!"

With the polishing complete, Tighnari looked at the paper in his hands with relief. It had just barely exceeded twenty thousand words. Having finally completed his task, he stretched deeply in his chair before rising wearily to his feet.

After checking it one last time and confirming there were no errors or omissions, Tighnari went out to find a nearby courier and mailed the investigation report he had spent so many days on to his mentor, Nafis.

With nothing weighing on him anymore, Tighnari felt that everything around him seemed especially bright and lovely. Even the sunlight outside his door appeared far more brilliant than usual.

"It's finally done. Nothing else should be my problem now, right?"

Now that the report was settled, Tighnari felt he could finally relax for a few days. In his cheerful mood, he immediately decided to make himself a hearty Mushroom Stew that evening as a reward.

Lin Feng, whose progress had already neared two-thirds completion, was still diligently working within the Ley Lines. As his energy reserves increased, his spirit drew ever closer to that of a true god. Curious about his current condition, Lin Feng brought up his status panel for the first time in a while:

Individual Information: @￥%&--Lin Feng

Level: 71→75+15 (requirements not met) (With a complete Authority, the chasm between god and man is insignificant to you.)

Element: Dendro

Traits: #%*&, Elemental Control: Dendro (connected to the Ley Lines, temporarily unlocking), Dream's Blessing 7 (requirements not met), Elemental Resistance 7 (requirements not met), Elemental Affinity 7 (requirements not met), Robust Physique 7 (requirements not met), Agility 7 (requirements not met)

The four levels he had gained earlier came from the Ley Line feedback he received after clearing the various Withering zones.

As for the additional levels afterward, those were the fruits of Lin Feng's efforts over this period.

The more he worked on it, the more Lin Feng felt that Teyvat's Ley Line system was truly something incredibly miraculous.

The energy flowing within it could not be absorbed or used by the vast majority of living creatures. If it leaked out carelessly, it could even severely pollute the surrounding ecosystem.

Yet once other lifeforms completed the challenge of a petrified ancient tree or cleared a Withering that had eroded the world, the Ley Lines seemed to possess a will of their own. They transformed that violent energy into rewards and granted challengers the benefits they deserved.

What Lin Feng was doing now could be summed up in one phrase—exploiting a bug.

Since an Adeptus equaled a complete Authority plus sufficient divine power.

Then, working backward, if Lin Feng possessed a complete Authority and sufficient divine power, there should be no problem with him calling himself an Adeptus.

In theory, Adepti were all born that way. A non-Adeptus individual could never wield a complete Authority, much less imbue Elemental Power with their own will and refine it into divine power.

But the problem was that Lin Feng happened to possess a complete Authority. Though he himself had no idea where it came from, that did not stop him from using it.

Previously, limited by his insufficient level and finite energy reserves, the Dendro Authority had remained only partially unlocked.

Now that he was connected to the Ley Lines, the Authority of Flora was temporarily unlocked under the abundant supply of energy.

And this Authority, unlocked on credit, could in turn convert even more elemental energy into divine power and temporarily store it within his body.

By stepping on his own foot to climb upward, once he finished converting all the power inside him, Lin Feng would become a complete Adeptus—temporarily.

As for the system level, that was even simpler—I have an Authority and divine power already. If you don't give me Level 100, are you looking down on me?

Having confirmed that his plan was viable, Lin Feng intended to continue his bug-exploiting journey.

He gained power, while the rainforest received its benefits. Without question, it was a win-win situation.

—As for how many hairs poor Tighnari had shed in order to cover for Lin Feng, buried underground as he was, Lin Feng naturally had no way of knowing.

Liyue, Guili Plains

The endless plains were overgrown with weeds, with sparse shrubs scattered everywhere.

Other than the Hilichurls dancing around iron pots, the only regular inhabitants of these plains had been the enormous forest boars roaming freely about.

Yet on this peaceful land, dozens of young people of varying builds now stood packed together.

"Boss, we're not going to lose to this Ley Line Blossom, are we?" A short young man in the crowd looked worriedly at the senior beside him.

"Sigh, relax. When I first entered the business, I was just as scared of everything as you."

"It's easy enough to cure. Just stay in the group honestly for two days, and you won't have that problem again."

The weathered, unshaven Treasure Hoarder senior consoled the newcomer beside him with a melancholy expression.

"Oh? Does that mean our boss is... really strong?"

Hearing the senior's words, the young man who had just joined the Treasure Hoarders looked toward the sturdy, fat man at the front, his eyes flashing with admiration.

"No. Other than being foolish and loaded, our boss is pretty average." The senior ruthlessly shattered the young man's fantasy.

"Then are there other experts?" The young man looked toward the skinny men beside their boss, marveling that appearances could be deceiving.

"No. Aside from their bragging skills, everyone in our Treasure Hoarders is pretty average."

The senior once again crushed the young man's unrealistic hopes.

"Then why is that?" the young man asked in confusion.

The senior fell silent for a moment, looked up at the sky, and said with a pained expression:

"Because you'll realize that being scared is useless. Everyone's just as pathetic as you."

The young man: "..."

Realizing that he had accidentally extinguished the young man's enthusiasm, the senior comforted him again:

"Although most of us Raven members are worthless nobodies, even a rotten ship has a couple of nails. With this many people fighting one Ley Line Blossom, there probably won't be any major problems."

After looking around and making sure no one was nearby, the senior quietly leaned close to the newcomer's ear and whispered, "If things start looking bad, run immediately. Don't listen to all that crap the boss used to fool you before you joined. The people who joined with me back then either went down or went in. The reason this senior has lasted until now is entirely because I know how to see when things are going south and make a timely escape."

The young man: "..."

This is bad. What if this isn't anything like the bold life of stuffing my face with meat and drinking from huge bowls that I imagined? Can I quit the group?

The young man, who had been brimming with excitement just moments ago, seemed to suddenly lose the innocence in his heart after receiving the senior's personal instruction. Together with the unshaven, world-weary senior beside him, he gazed melancholy at the empty sky.

Many thanks to all the readers for your support, and to Luo Chenyu and Hei Youyou for their donations. My motivation to write is up! ↑