Thorn Valley
Three days later, Linsey and Red finally saw Thorn Valley.
On their way there, they clearly felt an increased probability of encountering Devil Beast, and they saw many battles between various Devil Beast in the mountains and forests, as well as the corpses of Tree Spirit that had failed to escape.
The sense of crisis intensified as they moved forward.
All the details also confirm that they are about to arrive at a dangerous place.
It was early morning, and the thin layer of sunlight was torn apart by the dense canopy of trees, making the view ahead hazy.
Linsey walked to the center of a nearby hill and looked ahead.
The Thorn Valley ahead is a natural depression in the Hilly Area, where towering trees stand deep within, like umbrellas supporting the sky or ancient guardians that stand firm and unyielding.
Shifting the gaze downwards, countless Vines and Thorn cover the valley floor.
Something seemed to be rushing through, but upon closer inspection, it was impossible to detect.
The dappled sunlight flowed through the Thorn Maze, weaving a fragmented and mottled scene.
Thorn Vale...
Facing this landscape brimming with natural beauty.
Linsey frowned slightly and opened the map.
He didn't even need to go inside; he could see several Red Dot lurking in various places just from the outside.
Beneath the tranquil dawn lurked a long-foreseen danger.
Behind Linsey, Red, who had also followed, vaguely sensed danger.
The girl even changed her previous impulsive and violent ways. She frowned and asked Linsey with great caution, "Linsey, something seems off here?"
Linsey nodded and said, "After all, we're already close to the core area of Starshine Forest."
As she answered, Linsey pointed ahead.
Although this Thorn valley is vast, it is not high in elevation.
From where Linsey and her companion are, they can see over the mountain and into the distance.
It was a vast Banyan Forest.
Dense green banyan trees cover the entire mountainside, their aerial roots intricately intertwined, making the whole forest seem like one continuous expanse. In the center of the forest, a colossal old banyan tree stands out from the rest, its canopy almost completely obscuring half the sky.
"That thing is the Tree Mother's true form?"
Linsey muttered to herself.
According to the answers given by the previous Tree Spirit, the Tree Mother is a spirit of plants and trees born in this banyan tree.
The Tree Mother usually lives in the banyan tree.
Without the overwhelming power to conquer cities and seize strongholds, she could simply stand there, and ordinary people couldn't harm her.
This is a similarly insurmountable and hopeless situation for Linsey and Red now.
"Lure her out of the banyan tree, or find a way to destroy it..."
Linsey frowned and gazed into the distance, beginning to ponder a solution.
Such an exaggeratedly giant tree is difficult to attack with fire, let alone with a Tree Mother inside that would definitely fight back.
But to say that we should lure the other party out.
Now, what methods should we use to deal with a Sixth Stage Devil Beast? Linsey frowned in deep thought, a scene noticed by the girl beside him. She patted Linsey on the shoulder and asked, unusually, "Linsey, should we take a detour?"
"..."
Linsey remained silent.
Fighting the Tree Mother at this moment would be an unwise choice, and Linsey had no intention of risking her life.
But what about the future?
Beyond the Black Mountain World, a Seventh Stage Dragon Beast awaits them!
Thinking of this, Linsey's gaze became fixed on the distant Banyan Forest.
Ordinary awakened beings naturally need to train constantly, undergo a long process of skill development, and then defeat powerful enemies.
But Linsey's logic is different.
As long as he passes the tests of danger and battle, whether he gains new skills or items, the characteristics of the [Game Player] will allow his power to increase by leaps and bounds.
If we can find a way to defeat this Sixth Stage Tree Mother right now.
This improvement in Linsey's strength would be a huge help in achieving the ultimate goal of defeating the Dragon Beast! Linsey must kill the Dragon Beast! Therefore...
Smack! Suddenly, Red slapped Linsey hard on the head.
Linsey turned her head with a puzzled look, only to be stunned by the red pupils that met her eyes and the girl's gaze.
"Linsey, didn't you teach me that I should never act impulsively when I shouldn't?"
"What are you trying to do with that look in your eyes right now?!"
Her red gaze was like a tranquil lake.
The lake water reflected Linsey's past thoughts onto himself at this moment, and at the same time, the cold lake water poured into his heart, making him suddenly realize something.
There's nothing wrong with pursuing improvement in strength.
However, we must not lose our rational judgment of reality because of this.
Linsey chuckled to herself:
"Why does it feel like our roles have been reversed?"
"Hong, let's replan our route and find a way to bypass it..."
After accepting Hong's suggestion, Linsey prepared to minimize his tracks and sneak through the Starshine Forest unnoticed.
But just as he turned his gaze away...
The scenes that appeared before his eyes, along with the information he had gathered since entering the Black Mountain World, gave him new ideas.
The ultimate goal of defeating the Dragon Beast; the Sixth Stage Tree Mother, whose Essence was extracted and who went mad;
And the messenger sent by the Dragon Beast to oversee the Tree Mother.
These three are mixed together.
"Since we're already here, we should at least take some local specialties with us before we leave, right?"
Linsey had an idea. "Red, wait for me a moment, I'll go up the tree and check the situation."
After giving a quiet instruction, Linsey walked up the hill and quickly climbed a tall oak tree.
He took out his binoculars, something he hadn't done in a long time, and looked eastward.
The terrain ahead is actually built on the basic topography of the hilly area, and its shape is similar to a reclining capital F.
The prominent Thorn Valley is the depression at the very front.
Behind it lies the Banyan Grove where the Tree Mother is located, and on a hill to the north, there is a large open woodland.
"..."
"Is this where the envoy lived?"
Linsey was quietly analyzing the situation when another voice sounded beside her the next second, "Linsey, what idea do you have now?"
Hong didn't wait obediently down there.
The girl followed Linsey up the tree, and the two of them hung on the branches, one on each side.
Linsey simply handed over the binoculars:
"Take a look at the situation ahead."
Hong mimicked Linsey's movements with great enthusiasm, and when she noticed something being zoomed in through the binoculars, she immediately exclaimed with delight, "Linsey, I can see so far!"
"Where did this thing come from? Why didn't you let me play with it before?"
Linsey rolled her eyes at the other person. "I told you to take a good look at the situation ahead!"
Hong hugged the binoculars tightly, burying the prop in her arms to express her attitude:
"What's so interesting about it? Isn't it just like what those Tree Spirit said before?"
"..."
"I'll give this to you, okay?!"
Linsey was speechless. He hadn't expected that someone with Hong's personality would like binoculars so much.
He immediately reassembled one on the Workbench.
Then Hong and he each took one side and gazed into the distance:
"Red, our goal is to kill the Dragon Beast."
The girl nodded without hesitation to confirm, "That's right, is there a problem?"
Linsey pointed to the forest ahead and then said what she had just thought of, "That Dragon Beast is far away, and we have no way of knowing more about it."
"But now, things seem to be different."
Red, as always, was quick-witted; she soon realized what Linsey meant. "You mean its messenger!"
Linsey put away her binoculars and nodded vigorously:
"That's right!"
"We might not be able to defeat the Tree Mother."
"But we can find a way to find this messenger and, incidentally, pry information about the Dragon Beast out of him!"