Sylvanus Statue

Chapter 24: Sylvanus Statue

In the southern district, a building that resembled a monument was emitting a foul odor. Residents of Alchemy City would steer clear when passing by, as prolonged exposure to the smell could cause dizziness and nausea.

This was one of the entrances to Alchemy City's vast sewer system. While everyone knew that sewers were where filth gathered, a stench like this had never appeared before.

After all, this was Alchemy City, a place that even made its sewer entrances into artistic sculptures. How could it tolerate such a pervasive stench? Two or three years ago, a stench like this would have been cleaned up within half a day due to resident complaints.

But now, people could only pinch their noses and take detours.

When Amber Xiu and Naomi arrived at the location, they happened to see the Thief and Ranger entering the sewers from a distance.

Naomi couldn't help but say, "They're even willing to put themselves in danger to harm others."

The two of them actually endured the stench and entered the sewers just to harm others. The naive little Druid was deeply shocked by such malice.

Amber Xiu felt nothing. This little Druid must have been protected very well since childhood. Coupled with the Druidic teachings leaning towards kindness, she was likely pure and wonderful within her tribe. Now that her tribesmen were in trouble, she had to face this cruel world herself.

The feeling of one's worldview being forcibly torn apart must be very uncomfortable.

Amber Xiu calmly said, "Welcome to the real world."

Having transmigrated for centuries, Amber Xiu, though only a mediocre Legendary, had witnessed countless human evils. Matters like this were not even worth remembering.

Naomi fell silent for a moment. She wasn't particularly dejected; instead, she became a bit more resolute.

"Master Ultraman, are we going in now?" Naomi asked.

Amber Xiu, however, said, "No rush. You're a Druid, you should be able to summon beasts, right? Do you know Raven Summon?"

Naomi nodded. Summoning beast companions was a Druid's specialty, and Raven Summon was basic among basics. Through a Magic Ritual, a projection of a raven could be summoned from the distant wilderness, indistinguishable from a real raven, making it an excellent scout.

Amber Xiu pointed to the sewer entrance at their feet and said, "Summon a raven, send it into this place, and detour to check under the statue."

Naomi immediately understood Amber Xiu's intention. He was afraid that the two of them had prepared a trap at the sewer entrance.

Naomi couldn't help but think, This Undead is so cautious. I really found the right person.

However, Druidic teachings were fundamentally opposed to the Undead. Naomi worried that even if she rescued her tribesmen, she might not escape punishment.

But now was not the time to think about that. Amber Xiu was her only lifeline. Even if she had to face punishment from a Deity, she would deal with it after her tribesmen were rescued.

Naomi summoned a raven according to Amber Xiu's instructions, and it entered the sewer from the opening at their feet. The moment the raven entered the sewer, Naomi's expression changed. Summoned wilderness companions shared most senses with their masters.

Therefore, Naomi felt as if she had personally entered the sewer. The nauseating stench was even more pronounced, almost causing her to lose control of the raven.

Naomi suppressed her discomfort, controlled the raven to circle around, and found no trace of the two who had entered earlier, nor any signs of a trap. Unable to bear the stench, Naomi quickly recalled the raven and reported her findings to Amber Xiu.

Amber Xiu sneered upon hearing this, "Looks like they're amateurs. If I were to ambush them, I'd at least set up five Magic Traps at the entrance."

"Then shall we go in now?" Naomi asked.

"No rush. What if they're skilled and left traps you didn't notice?" Amber Xiu said.

"Then are you going to scout again? Why didn't you just go yourself from the start? Undead don't even have a sense of smell!"

Naomi was quite displeased. If Amber Xiu didn't trust her, why would he have her scout? Wasn't that just making her endure the stench for nothing?

"Being cautious is always good. Don't worry, there's no need for more trouble. We'll just take a detour."

Amber Xiu cast a spell, and magical power fell upon himself and Naomi. Naomi thought it was another invisibility spell, but unexpectedly, their bodies turned into two wisps of mist.

This was the Vaporization Form spell, which could directly turn a physical body into gas. It preserved consciousness and allowed for floating movement. In this state, they were immune to physical attacks and some magical attacks, but apart from movement, they couldn't perform any other actions.

Naomi couldn't help but sigh, "As expected of a Mage, they have so many tricks."

Mages, unlike spellcasters of other professions, relied on intelligence to cast spells. Theoretically, they could cast any spell they could understand, so Mages knew far more spells than other spellcasters.

As for whether they were broad but not deep, that depended on the individual and couldn't be generalized.

Amber Xiu led Naomi, and the two entered the narrow sewer opening in their gaseous forms, descending into the underground world of Alchemy City.

However, Amber Xiu, who had initially planned to travel in his gaseous form, decisively dispelled the Vaporization Form upon entering the sewer.

Amber Xiu exclaimed in surprise, "How did this dump turn into this?"

Rot, decay, evil... these negative energies seemed to have become tangible. Even he, a Lich, felt deeply uncomfortable.

When he entered the sewer in his gaseous form earlier, Amber Xiu felt his body beginning to be contaminated. If he had maintained his gaseous form for a long time, he didn't know how many disgusting things he would have contracted, so he quickly reverted to his human form.

Naomi had even lower resistance than Amber Xiu. In just a short moment, her face turned green. The Vaporization Form had a large contact surface with the foul air, causing her to be rapidly infected.

After reverting to human form, her entire face turned pale, and she didn't even have the strength to stand steadily.

Amber Xiu was about to cast a spell to remove these negative effects from Naomi when he saw a flash of light in Naomi's palm. Suddenly, an oak statue appeared.

Pure green light spread out like waves from the statue, and vibrant life surged forth, creating a safe space within the foul sewer environment.

Naomi's stamina quickly recovered, and the contamination on her body was instantly cleansed.

Amber Xiu stood outside this green barrier, as if this layer of green light was more terrifying to him than the stench of the sewer.

Amber Xiu stared at the statue for a moment, then exclaimed in surprise, "A Sylvanus Statue? Your tribe has been blessed by a Deity?!"

Sylvanus, the God of Nature, was the deity most Druids worshipped. But worship was worship; believing in a god didn't mean the god would pay attention to you. Amber Xiu could sense the powerful divine energy emanating from this small statue. This was an object blessed by a Deity, a treasure for any Druidic tribe.

Things were starting to get complicated.

Such a treasure would never be taken out of the tribe unless the tribe was wiped out.

Naomi, alone, brought a divine artifact to rescue someone... either her tribe had been annihilated, or she had stolen it from her tribe.