Collapse and Fall

Ah!

They've already started?

I still have questions to ask!

Red's questions and actions were extremely fast, leaving Linsey somewhat bewildered.

But in that instant, the Meteorite Spear fell from the sky, piercing through the Rock Golem's hands upon contact.

If it had been a second later, the Root Elder below would have certainly died.

In that brief moment, only Linsey was able to react.

Thud! At the critical moment, Linsey caught the Meteorite Spear that Red had thrown, and at the same time slammed her fist into the ground.

Boom! This attack looked like it was done with bare hands.

However, the Wolf Tooth Club in the Equipment Slot was still active, so the actual power unleashed far exceeded expectations. At the same time, the power of the [Emblem of Ice and Fire] took effect, smashing the Rock Golem's hands to pieces.

The Root Elder, still somewhat dizzy from the shock, was dragged out again by Linsey.

"Linsey?"

Red was baffled by Linsey's decision to stop her from killing the enemy. "Why would you save someone who succumbs to power, betrays in times of crisis, and acts so furtively?"

Because on my map, it shows neutral units.

If the two of them were alone, Linsey could have explained it that way, but since there were outsiders present, he changed his explanation:

"Red, your goal is also to kill the Dragon Beast, right?"

The girl answered without hesitation:

"Certainly!"

Linsey continued the conversation, saying, "Then you should be able to see that no matter what it did before, its stance is ultimately opposed to the Dragon Beast. Even if it's to achieve our goal, we can't just kill it so easily."

Red crossed her arms and turned her head away:

"Ha! I don't believe anything this guy says!"

Hong's idea is very simple.

The Root Elder before her had once served the Dragon Beast force that imprisoned her, and later became fickle, betraying its master to survive. She had absolutely no desire to speak with such a thing! However, even with her disdainful attitude...

Red also accepted Linsey's advice and abandoned the idea of killing the Root Elder immediately.

Linsey turned her gaze to the Root Elder in her hands and the motionless Rock Golem beside her. "You all saw it too, I..."

Rumble—

Just then, Linsey felt her foot slip.

The Root Elder had fled to the cliff, and now they stood here.

Later, the Rock Golem's rescue caused the ground to shake, and with Linsey and Red's actions, the soil and rocks on the cliff edge finally couldn't withstand the pressure and began to collapse.

"Ah?"

"Um!"

People reacted in different ways.

Linsey opened her bag and took out some items.

Red then rammed into Linsey, clearly intending to knock him back to safety first.

However, the sudden downward slide of soil and rocks made it impossible to catch up, and everyone who was halfway through their actions immediately fell into the deep valley below the cliff.

Snap! Snap! Snap! A few seconds later, strange sounds came from the cliff.

Falling off a cliff amidst slids and rocks is a perilous situation with a slim chance of survival.

But Linsey seized the opportunity and used his own Resource Conversion soil to create a foothold on the cliff.

Then Linsey grabbed the Root Elder with her left hand and the red one with her right.

The three of them stopped in this extremely dangerous way between the cliffs.

"Human, what have you done?"

They were all somewhat shaken, but the Root Elder had a keen sense of the earth. It was certain that Linsey's abilities had nothing to do with the earth, yet they had somehow altered the terrain and saved them.

Unable to comprehend this phenomenon, it couldn't help but ask, "What exactly has your skill done to the earth?"

At the same time, strange noises came from the cliff below.

The three looked down and saw that it was the Rock Golem that had just fallen down, now climbing back up.

However, its condition was somewhat strange; its lower body had merged into the soil and rocks under the influence of its ability, while its upper body was exposed on the cliff surface.

As for that strange sound...

It was also the sound made by the exposed upper body of the Rock Golem as it rubbed against the rocks.

Linsey seemed to be deep in thought.

The Rock Golem had previously demonstrated its ability to move completely underground.

Use this method of movement that makes a sound.

Perhaps it was to remind Linsey that he was getting close, to ensure that this contact would not cause any other misunderstandings.

Before long, the Rock Golem 'swam' up.

Just as Linsey predicted.

Instead of attacking, it seemed to have accepted some reality and said to the two serious-looking humans:

"Humans, you are right, we have a common enemy."

"We shouldn't be fighting here to solve the crisis facing the world."

Having clearly expressed goodwill, the Rock Golem turned to the Root Elder: "Zong Shu, bring them to see me."

"..."

The Root Elder clearly somewhat reluctant, so the voice from the Rock Golem continued:

"I understand your caution and your desire to protect me."

"But look, a misunderstanding has already been created."

"We have very little left, and that beast's advancement is imminent. We must hold onto every glimmer of hope now."

The Root Elder could not refuse the voice emanating from the Rock Golem.

It nodded slightly, indicating that it accepted the command:

"Human, come with me."

"..."

With the help of the Rock Golem, going down the cliff became much easier.

During this time, Linsey opened the map.

This lifeless, purely functional tool, as expected, didn't appear on the map. This served as a reminder to Linsey that she couldn't rely entirely on the map's reconnaissance capabilities.

Otherwise, someday in the future...

He might make a big mistake for this very reason.

Before long, led by the Rock Golem, they arrived directly at the bottom of the canyon.

The journey that followed was somewhat unexpected, yet also quite predictable.

The people behind the Root Elder are far removed from them.

They spent an entire day traversing the canyons, even entering some hidden underground tunnels with the help of Rock Golem.

Even so, it wasn't until the next morning.

They found an inconspicuous cave at the bottom of a canyon.

"This is it."

The Root Elder made the introductions and took the initiative to walk ahead into the cave.

At the same time, the Rock Golem that had led them there also merged into the earth and disappeared.

"It's right here."

Linsey and Red exchanged a glance, then pulled out torches and followed.

The cave hidden at the bottom of the canyon is just an entrance; there is a very deep tunnel behind it.

Instead of mentioning the length, only the depth of descent is discussed.

After walking down for more than twenty meters, the narrow space in front of us suddenly opened up.

This is a stone hall hidden underground.

A strange creature, its body made of rock and shaped like Rock Golem, but with glowing joints, sits here.

It saw Linsey arrive and seemed to want to get up.

But a sense of weakness lingered over its body, and it gave up helplessly after only the slightest movement.

In the end, he could only sit there and greet Linsey: "Human, Mountain's Blessing, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"There may be some misunderstandings between us, but I believe that sincere communication can resolve these unpleasant issues."