Seriously? There's Actually More

Under Lumina's gaze, the group stepped through that door.

Moon-white light closed in from all around.

Silver Wolf only felt the world before her eyes as if it had been folded.

Beneath her feet was originally the soft grass of the Elf Tribe, but the next second it turned into a pale silver wooden floor.

It was not an ordinary hollow tree.

They stood upon a wide root passage.

Translucent leaves hung down from both sides of the passage, faint starlight flowing within the leaves. The sky could not be seen above, only interlaced layers of tree veins and branch shadows, like an upside-down forest.

Windchaser tilted her head back and looked for quite a while.

"Whoa..."

Vernacular Poet reminded her in a low voice, "Seriously, don't touch random things."

"I know." Windchaser immediately pulled back the hand she had just extended, "I'm very cautious right now."

Sunken Crow squatted down, her fingertips coming close to the root beneath her feet, "Not an ordinary interior space."

Vernacular Poet tapped open his interface, "The map... cannot be loaded."

Windchaser was stunned for a moment.

"None at all?"

"Yeah." Vernacular Poet looked at the blank map edge in front of him, "It only shows we're still near the World Tree Branch Shadow."

Silver Wolf pushed her goggles down a little, data lines unfolding in her field of vision.

At first it was very clean.

Tree roots, branches and leaves, light currents—all of them were outlined by pale silver lines.

Yet a few seconds later, Silver Wolf saw things deeper within.

Beneath those pale silver lines, very thin black-red patterns were hidden.

It was like the inside of the bark had already rotted, yet was forcibly covered up by the outer layer of gloss.

[World Tree · Interior]

[Status: Corrupted]

[Record Interference: Medium]

[Pollution Source: Unknown]

Silver Wolf did not speak immediately; she turned her head to look at Vernacular Poet.

Vernacular Poet was attempting to use his terminal to scan the surrounding environment. The interface flickered a few times, leaving behind only a few broken lines.

"The Abyss index in this place is definitely high," he said.

Sunken Crow stood up, "There's a sound ahead."

Windchaser immediately quieted down.

The four of them stopped in their tracks.

At first, nothing could be heard.

There was only the subtle rustle produced when leaves rubbed together.

After a little while, a very faint sound came from deep within the passage.

It was like crying, yet not quite like human weeping.

It was more like wind passing through a tree hole, cut into intermittent sobs by something.

Windchaser's expression grew serious, "There really is crying."

Vernacular Poet looked toward the direction the sound came from.

"Walk a bit slower. Sunken Crow scout ahead, Windchaser in the middle, Silver Wolf follow behind me."

Windchaser looked at him, "Why am I in the middle?"

"Be more cautious; intuition tells me things are very bad."

Sunken Crow said calmly, "Watch out..."

Windchaser: "..."

Silver Wolf followed behind, chewing bubble gum without chiming in.

This space was very strange; there were no monsters, nor were any traps triggered.

They walked forward along the root passage, their footsteps falling on the wooden floor and being swallowed by the surrounding branches and leaves. Every certain distance, moon-white patterns would appear on the walls, and those patterns flickered like breathing.

When Windchaser passed one of these spots, she suddenly stopped, "Doesn't this look like an eye?"

Vernacular Poet immediately looked over.

It was a tree node embedded in the tree wall.

The outer ring was moon-white, yet the center held a hint of extremely faint red.

When pointed out like that by Windchaser, it truly resembled a half-closed eye.

Sunken Crow said in a low voice, "Don't stare too long."

Windchaser instantly shifted her gaze away, "What's wrong?"

"It moved."

Windchaser: "..."

Silver Wolf glanced at that tree node.

The data inside her goggles jumped.

[Tree Node]

[Status: Under Observation]

[Corruption Synchronization: Low]

Silver Wolf's steps paused.

Under observation.

She raised her hand and lightly swiped across in front of that tree node.

Silver-blue pixel blocks flashed past.

That trace of red in the center of the tree node shrank rapidly deep into the tree bark, as if startled.

Vernacular Poet looked at her, "What's up?"

"It's looking at us."

Windchaser couldn't help shuffling a little closer to Sunken Crow, "Aren't the problems inside this World Tree a bit too big?"

Silver Wolf looked at her, "Just noticed?"

"I was just maintaining optimism beforehand."

"Pretty good."

For a moment, Windchaser couldn't tell whether that was praise or criticism.

The crying drew closer and closer.

The end of the root passage was a wide-open cavity.

A large number of fine roots hung down around them, like an inverted curtain. In the center of the cavity was a pale silver cocoon of light, held aloft in mid-air by several tree roots.

The weeping came precisely from there.

Windchaser gripped her sword hilt tightly.

"Is it a living thing?"

Sunken Crow went around to the side and observed for a while.

"Doesn't look like it."

Vernacular Poet unfolded Purifying Light.

Light golden radiance fell upon the surface of the light cocoon. The cocoon quivered slightly, and the crying instead became more distinct.

It was as if something inside had been awakened.

Silver Wolf narrowed her eyes.

The information given by the goggles was very chaotic.

[%￥#Rebirth@#]

[Status: Abnormal]

[Pollution: Low]

[Residual Memories: High]

[Handling Method: Purify / Pacify / Sever]

"Rebirth?" Silver Wolf murmured softly.

Vernacular Poet heard her, "Can you see the name?"

"Yeah."

"Any discoveries?"

Silver Wolf looked at that cocoon of light, "Doesn't look like a mob." She paused.

Vernacular Poet looked at the light cocoon, "Is it some sound recorded by the World Tree?"

Sunken Crow spoke from the side, "Could be bait."

This sentence made everyone fall silent for a split second.

Silver Wolf glanced at Sunken Crow.

Not bad.

This assassin was indeed very steady.

Vernacular Poet did not make a move directly, instead taking half a step back. "Don't touch the core first. Windchaser guard the left side, Sunken Crow watch the back right. Wolf Venerable, I'll have to trouble you to keep an eye on status changes."

"Got it."

Vernacular Poet raised his staff.

The Purifying Light did not press down directly, but instead spread out bit by bit like a thin layer of golden water, covering the outer side of the light cocoon.

The crying began to change.

Within the originally intermittent sobs, blurred words gradually mixed in.

"...Don't..."

"...Root..."

"...Below..."

Windchaser's expression changed slightly.

"It's speaking?"

Vernacular Poet did not stop.

"Can't hear clearly."

Silver Wolf watched the data continuously jumping in her goggles.

[Residual Memories Releasing]

[Pollution: Low → Medium]

[Warning: Structure Unstable]

"Pollution went up."

Vernacular Poet immediately lessened the Purifying Light.

The crying stopped for an instant.

Following that, a fine crack split open across the surface of that light cocoon.

A streak of black-red liquid flowed out from inside, dripping onto the tree root below.

The tree root immediately emitted a soft sound akin to being corroded.

Windchaser subconsciously wanted to step forward, but was pressed on the shoulder by Sunken Crow, "Don't get close."

Silver Wolf raised her hand.

"Bottom left."

Windchaser reacted quickly; her scabbard swept horizontally, swatting away a fine root that was about to spread to her feet.

That fine root fell into the distance, twitched a few times, and shrank back into the ground.

Vernacular Poet said in a deep voice, "Don't purify for now, clear it out first."

Silver Wolf looked at the light cocoon, "Sever the outer layer."

Sunken Crow asked, "Which one?"

Silver Wolf raised her hand, several silver-blue pixel patterns landing around the light cocoon in sequence.

Simple markers, making a mark.

"These roots are supplying pollution. Don't touch the others."

Sunken Crow did not ask further.

Her figure sank into the shadows, and the next moment she appeared on the right side of the light cocoon.

A short blade flashed.

The first fine root was severed.

The crying spiked sharply.

Windchaser frowned, yet did not retreat. She stood on the left side, using her scabbard and wind currents to block those fine roots that had been startled into action.

The second.

The third.

Sunken Crow cut very fast and also with greater precision.

Taking advantage of the pollution-supplying roots being severed, Vernacular Poet pressed the Purifying Light back down.

This time, the crying did not grow shriller.

Instead, it slowly grew lower.

The cracks on the surface of the light cocoon widened.

There were no monsters inside.

There was only a small piece of transparent resin.

A leaf was sealed inside the resin.

Half the leaf had already withered, while the other half still glimmered with a pale silver light.

Vernacular Poet carefully held it up with Purifying Light.

A system-notification-like flash flickered before his eyes.

Windchaser saw something as well and let out a breath. "The mission progress went up."

Vernacular Poet nodded. "The source was handled well."

Windchaser patted her chest.

"Thank goodness. I thought some kind of monster was going to crawl out of there."

Sunken Crow did not relax. He looked at the thin roots hanging all around them. "Too smooth."

Windchaser clapped her hands. "Who cares whether it was smooth or not? The experience is ours!"

Silver Wolf looked at the purified leaf.

Inside her goggles, the Weeping Root's data was fading away.

[Weeping Root]

[Status: Processed]

[Contamination: Cleared]

[Residual memories: Fully released]

Very clean.

A little too clean.

Vernacular Poet sensed that something was wrong too, but before he could speak, Windchaser suddenly looked at her mission interface, confusion appearing on her face.

"Mission complete." Windchaser blinked. "Investigate the source of the crying and deal with the anomalous record... complete."

The moment her words fell.

The root passage around them suddenly fell silent.

Not ordinary silence.

Every rustle of leaves, every sound of sap flowing, every distant echo—all of it was snuffed out as though someone had pressed it flat with a hand.

Silver Wolf looked up.

A stream of data flickered inside her goggles.

[Warning: Internal records abnormal]

[Warning: Exit coordinates shifted]

[Warning: Contamination synchronization rising]

Silver Wolf spoke. "It's not over yet."

Windchaser froze for a moment.

The next second, her expression changed.

It was as if she had seen a new mission prompt. "Seriously? My mission was already complete..."

Her voice grew quieter and quieter. "A new mission..."

Windchaser looked up, her eyes widening. "Survive?!"

Vernacular Poet's expression completely darkened.

Sunken Crow drew his short blade.

Silver Wolf did not move.

She merely looked in the direction they had come from.

The root passage that had originally led outside had vanished.

The thin roots hanging around them gradually blackened. The moon-white light faded from the branches and leaves, replaced by a damp, dark red glow.

One knot after another opened in the tree walls.

Like countless eyes.

They all looked at the four of them at once.

Silver Wolf chewed her bubble gum and slowly spat out three words.

"High-level round."