Forest Consciousness
Lu Heng walked back.
The Mycelium was tucked into the sole of the boot, the Bone Demon followed behind, and the insect armor rubbed against the ground with a rustling sound.
His heart sank.
It's not that I'm tired, it's that I feel stifled.
Dozens of birds, ranging from Bronze Tier to common level, were all dead. These were not ordinary wild monsters; they were the reserve force of the future mid-to-high-level combat power of the Frost Forest, a key group for ecological iteration. He wiped them all out in one go.
Lu Heng frowned.
unlucky.
Back in Moonview Valley, the wind at the valley entrance carried moisture, feeling cool on his face. He went straight into the Shelter, not saying a word to the Bone Demon, and went directly into the bathroom.
As the hot water cascaded down, he glanced down at his body. The Blood Taisui- Stained Armor clung tightly to his skin, its dark red surface smooth. Raven's blood splattered on it, already half-dry, had congealed into several dark brown streaks. He reached out and wiped it; the surface of the armor trembled slightly, like a living creature breathing. The bloodstains were swallowed by the armor itself and disappeared.
Nail guards do not need to be washed.
But his hands and face were still stained with blood. He rubbed his hands to wash away the remaining blood on his face, rinsed his hair, turned off the water, dried himself with a towel, changed into clean clothes, and walked out of the bathroom.
The Shelter was quiet. The Bone Demon didn't follow them in; he stood guard at the door.
Lu Heng ignored it and walked straight into the Astrology Room.
The stone platform in the center of the Astrology Room still bore traces of his last meditation. He sat cross-legged on it, closed his eyes, and adjusted his breathing. His mental energy was still somewhat fatigued and needed to settle.
He slowly emptied his mind and entered a meditative state.
Just a few seconds after things calmed down, a will suddenly appeared and entered.
It was very light and soft, like a feather falling into the depths of his consciousness. But Lu Heng tensed up instantly. It wasn't his mental power, it wasn't the feedback from the Blood Taisui, and it wasn't anything he was familiar with.
It is unfamiliar. It is the will of this forest itself.
The will did not speak, nor did it make a sound; it simply inserted a piece of information directly into his consciousness.
The information is very clear.
--You've killed too many.
Lu Heng's consciousness suddenly sank.
The information continued to unfold. This group of birds was the reserve force for the future mid-to-high-level combat power of the Frost Forest, a key group in ecological iteration. His complete annihilation disrupted the natural iteration rhythm of the forest. The forest needs to nurture and cultivate new mid-level groups, severely delaying the ecological cycle.
Ecological destruction is unacceptable. His excessive and ruthless actions this time have been marked by the rules of the forest.
A cold sweat broke out on Lu Heng's back. He knew what this meant. Being recorded by the "rules administrator" of this world was no small matter. Today, he was only given a warning and there was no punishment, which was already a stroke of luck. If he did it again, the consequences would not be so simple.
The message paused here.
Then, the second message came in.
The Forest Will's perception swept over his body—more precisely, over the Geothermal Talisman deep within his Talent, which had become one with it. It was a wondrous item he had obtained in the special territory of the Geothermal Valley; at the time, the Forest Will hadn't awakened, so there had been no notification or appearance. But now, the Forest Will" saw" it.
Lu Heng had already absorbed the Geothermal Talisman, integrating it into his own Talent and making it a part of him.
The Forest Will did not pursue the matter further. They let it go before, but they would take the initiative later.
The third section unfolds as the rules given by the Forest Will:
If Lu Heng subsequently acquires something that can enhance the forest's foundation, or targets anything harmful to the forest, the forest will forgive the previous wonders.
There are also brand new wonders that he cannot take entirely away—he only has the right to use them, not the right to own them.
Lu Heng's consciousness trembled.
The right to use is not the right to own.
This means that the territorial artifacts he possesses are essentially still from the forest. He is merely "using" them, not "occupying" them.
Meanwhile, the fourth paragraph provides the answer—a unique artifact of the territory is also hidden deep beneath the Moonview Valley Waterfall.
The message was transmitted. The will vanished silently, just as it had arrived.
Lu Heng suddenly opened his eyes.
The Astrology Room was pitch black, with only a faint glow emanating from the edge of the stone platform. He sat on it, breathing rapidly, his forehead covered in cold sweat.
I was terrified. I was genuinely terrified.
He used to think that in this forest, as long as you were strong enough, you could do whatever you wanted. Today's experience made him realize that wasn't the case. This forest had its own rules and its own will. You could kill monsters and steal resources, but you couldn't cross the line. If you did, the rules would come after you.
He took a deep breath, slowly calming his racing heart. Thank goodness, it was just a warning. Thank goodness, there was compensation.
He suppressed the pounding in his heart, immediately stood up from the stone platform, walked out of the Astrology Room, passed through the Shelter, and headed straight for the valley entrance.
When the Bone Demon saw him come out, it stirred, wanting to follow. Lu Heng raised his hand, signaling it to stay in the valley. The Bone Demon stopped, its insect armor trembling slightly, and did not follow.
Lu Heng walked alone to the edge of the waterfall cliff.
The waterfall cascaded down the cliff top, crashing into the pool below with a deafening roar. A mist of water sprayed out, hitting his face, icy cold. He stood on the edge of the cliff, looking down into the bottomless pool.
The pool was pitch black, and he couldn't see anything. But he was resolute.
The wondrous treasures belonging to his Moonview Valley territory are hidden beneath these deep waters.
Lu Heng stood by the lake, staring at the dark water.
Without hesitation, he jumped down.
The moment he entered the water, the Blood Taisui spontaneously surged from his skin, quickly condensing into a transparent respirator around his mouth and nose. The Mycelium trembled slightly in the water, filtering oxygen from the water. Fungi don't need to breathe, but Lu Heng does.
The more Lu Heng carried the Blood Taisui, the more he felt that cooperating with it was a wise choice. With other symbiotes, they would have to hold their breath underwater, but the Blood Taisui directly solved his problem of underwater breathing.
The lake was deeper than I had imagined.
The further down he went, the dimmer the light became. Many fish swam around him, all quite large, some even longer than Lu Heng's arm. But these were ordinary creatures; sensing Lu Heng's presence, they scattered to the sides, not daring to approach.
The underwater pressure was immense, but the armor formed from the Blood Taisui Sui clung tightly to his body, its dark red surface shimmering faintly in the water, distributing the pressure evenly. Lu Heng swam steadily.
He groped around underwater for a moment and soon spotted the thing.
A treasure chest.
It was no ordinary wooden box; its entire body was a pale, icy blue, and its surface was covered with a thin layer of frost-like patterns, as if it had been carved out of ice. It lay quietly in a crevice in the rocks at the bottom of the water, and the water flowing past it carried a hint of chill.
Special environment treasure chest.
Lu Heng reached out and grabbed the treasure chest, then swam upwards.
When he surfaced, the Bone Demon was still standing by the lake, its insect armor gleaming coldly in the moonlight. Lu Heng dragged the treasure chest ashore with one hand and placed it on the ground.
Water dripped down his clothes, but he ignored it, squatted down, and placed his hand on the lock of the treasure chest.
Click.
The treasure chest has been opened.
There was a talisman lying inside.
It was entirely ice-blue, with fine frost patterns engraved on its surface. It felt icy cold to the touch, like holding a piece of ice that had never melted. A faint chill emanated from the surface of the talisman, and the surrounding air condensed into a thin layer of frost because of it.
The moment Lu Heng picked up the talisman, a surge of information flooded his mind.
[Frost Talisman]
- Rank: Rare Item from a Special Environment
- Belongs to: Frost Forest - Frost Authority Fragment
- Scope of application: Only effective within the Frost Forest area.
- Effect: The holder activates the Frost Seed within the rune, borrowing the power of Frost; while the rune is active, it can amplify power output and directly drive the Frost Seed's abilities.
- Limit of 3 uses. Uses will replenish naturally over time after use.
- Note: Once the Frost Seed is implanted into the Talent core, it remains permanently. Even if the talisman is removed, the ability will not disappear, but the user needs to practice and hone it to gradually master it. When the talisman is present, the power of the Frost Seed can be directly invoked, and its power increases as the user's proficiency improves.
Lu Heng held the Frost Talisman in his palm.
The talisman was icy cold, and the chill seeped into his arm from his palm. Before he could react, a surge of power welled up from the talisman, flowing through his meridians and into his body, heading straight for his Talent core.
It's not that he's absorbing it; it's that the talisman is actively integrating it.
Lu Heng frowned but did not stop him. He could feel that the power was very gentle, not rejecting his Talent, but rather as if it was looking for a place for him.
Soon, the power stopped beside his Talent core and condensed into a small Frost Seed. The Frost Seed was ice blue all over, with fine frost patterns flowing on its surface. It floated quietly next to the Talent core, one on the left and one on the right, opposite the heat source formed by the Geothermal Talisman rune.
Lu Heng immediately brought up his Personal Panel.
The Talent bar originally only had "Temperature," followed by the branch "High Temperature" developed from the previous Geothermal Talisman. Now, there's an extra parenthesis with new text inside.
Temperature (high temperature, frost)
He stared at the word "frost" and pondered it for a moment.
What is frost?
It's not ice. Ice is frozen water, a solid, inanimate object. Frost is different; frost is alive. It's ice crystals formed when water vapor in the air encounters low temperatures and directly condenses on the surface of an object. It doesn't need water as a medium; as long as there's a temperature difference and moisture, it can grow on anything.
It can adhere, spread, and penetrate.
High temperatures burn, frost corrodes.
High temperatures confront things head-on, while frost seeps in silently, freezing and cracking things from the inside.
Lu Heng released his grip, and the Frost Talisman lay back in his palm. The surface of the talisman was still icy cold, but it was different from before—before it was just simple coldness, but now he could feel the power within the talisman resonating with the Frost Seed within his body, as if telling him that the seed had been planted, and how to use it next was up to him.
He tried to mobilize the power of the Frost Seed.
A wisp of extremely cold air emanated from the palm, flowing down the fingertips onto the stone table beside it. Instantly, a layer of white frost condensed on the surface of the stone table, the frost patterns spreading outwards from the fingertips like an ice-blue spider web.
Lu Heng withdrew his hand, but the frost pattern did not disappear; instead, it continued to seep into the stone table. He stared at it for a few seconds, and then small cracks began to appear on the surface of the stone table. These were caused by moisture freezing and expanding in the cracks.
It's not that the surface is frozen; it's cracking from the inside.
Lu Heng nodded.
This ability was more useful than he thought.
High temperatures are suitable for direct damage, while frost is suitable for penetration, control, and structural disruption. Combining the two creates a wider range of methods.
He put the Frost Talisman into his robes and stood up.
The Blood Taisui retreated from its mouth and nose, reattaching itself to the skin's surface and reverting to its dark red armor. Lu Heng glanced down at the armor; the Blood Taisui seemed even more solid than before, as if it had absorbed some kind of underwater energy.
He turned and walked towards the Shelter.
The Bone Demon followed behind, its insect armor scraping against the ground with a rustling sound.
Back at the Shelter, Lu Heng went straight into his bedroom and placed the Frost Talisman on his bedside table. He didn't try it again; his mental energy had been greatly depleted tonight, and he needed to rest.
He lay down on the bed and closed his eyes.
Everything that happened today is replaying in my mind.
The Forest Will warned. The ownership of the Geothermal Talisman. The difference between usage rights and ownership. And the Frost Talisman in my hand, and the Frost Seed that was just planted in my body.
He used to think that obtaining a magical artifact meant obtaining power. Now he understands that the artifact is just a key; true power must be cultivated through practice. The forest doesn't give things away for free; it gives opportunities, and whether you can seize them depends on yourself.
And there's that rule—strengthening the forest's foundation and thwarting harmful events will earn you compensation.
Lu Heng opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling.
This means that he can use the rules of the forest to gain more resources for himself, provided that what he does is beneficial to the forest.
This road is wider than he imagined.
He closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.