Chapter 129. Outside Situation.

Words : 1230 Updated : Sep 25th, 2025

Chapter 129. Outside Situation. Ariel sat on the carriage, looking at the forest on the side of the road. They were returning from a city to the east of Sirol City. In her hand, there was a letter with information difficult to swallow. However, the signature below made it quite challenging to take it as false information. "Hello, Miss Ariel. I am Verena Liferoot, and I have written this letter so that you stop visiting the Golden Sap Forest for the foreseeable future. The situation is too complicated to involve more parties in. Regards." Ariel frowned and stored the simple yet clear letter. While she didn't know what had happened, she knew that a few people knew about the existence of the World Tree in the middle of the grove. "What do I do with this...? Sigh." Ariel muttered. "Well, at least no one really managed to associate us with the World Tree. Lady Verena probably knew because she had been observing her daughter's movements." The old explorer approached and asked. "Can we really do nothing for that young tree?" Ariel looked at her companion with a complicated smile. After Liu Shu's berries helped him reach Level 10, the man's loyalty toward the World Tree was deep. Sadly for them, this time, Level 10 was not enough to help. "We can't. Families in the world's canopy are getting involved. Those involved are influential enough even to force Lady Verena Liferoot to send someone like me a letter." Robert hummed and scratched his beard. "Well, if in the future that young tree manages to overcome things, we should pay a visit." Ariel laughed. "Agreed. Let's try to grow until then. We actually have a favor to pay out. Her fruits have made us very popular. Sunflower Caravan, forward!" Robert smiled. "Order received, Caravan leader!" Larte, the caravan's ex-leader, snorted in the distance. "Ariel, don't let success go to your head because I appointed you as the leader!" Ariel laughed louder. "Aye, aye! Sir!" *** Meanwhile, in the White Flower Forest to the northwest of Liu Shu's position, the remnants of the Void Witherwood Exarchs gathered in their operation base. One of the highest-level ones who remained alive, a Level 17 Human, slammed the table and asked, "What do we do!? The leader is gone!" Another Level 17 frowned. "Without our leader, we are done for as an organization. The people left are not enough to sustain our activities." A Level 14 man screamed. "We should take revenge!" "Take revenge?" A woman by his side snorted. "Are you stupid? We had 80% of our forces gathered in that town, and not one of them has returned! If we hadn't received news from Lord Eldric that everyone there has been annihilated, we would still be stupidly waiting for orders!" The woman commented. "How about we join Lord Eldric? He said that he wouldn't let this slide since it was quite a significant investment on his part. Moreover, he lost around 10 Stormbird Riders and their mounts the first time. That has angered him quite a lot since it is the first time that wanting to get something has cost him so much. Moreover, he has yet to be successful." "Become the lapdogs of a noble? You are dreaming!" "Sir Eldric, isn't it enough?" Eldric frowned. "What do you mean?" "Sir Eldric has been free and has done many wrong things. We've been complicit to all your wishes, evil or otherwise. So, we are not much better people than you." Eldric frowned as he listened, and the captain continued. "How about you start to learn how to lead and become stronger properly?" Eldric placed the glass on the table and crossed his arms, raising his handsome brow. "Are you lecturing me?" The captain stood from the couch. "This time, your arrogance caused the death of 10 brothers and sisters and their companions. Time to learn from that." Eldric leaned on the couch and supported his chin with one hand. After the captain left, his lips arched mockingly. "Does he think that he is my actual uncle?" Eldric retook the glass and drank from it. His lips arched mockingly, and he stood up. Walking to the side of the room, he opened an adorned red and brown box with a golden key. Inside, three fruits lay on a luxurious cotton pillow. "Malachai gave me one of these each, telling me it came from that World Tree," Eldric remembered the towering World Tree, and greed flashed in his eyes. "<Low-Rank Breakthrough Berry>, <Low-Rank Delicious Berry>, and <Low-Rank Phoer Berry>. Who would've thought that a miracle fruit like this existed?" Eldric hummed. "More than Cinderielle, I now want that World Tree. If I can get it, don't talk about becoming the next family head. My Stormrider Family will leap to the next stage!" "But, it is difficult. It seems that the Liferoot family has already placed their eyes on that tree... Do I involve my family? A direct confrontation doesn't really benefit us. They are powerful, but these fruits have limited value in critical high-level battlefields." Eldric pondered, not knowing what to do for now. "Father will probably recall me back to the family after he learns I lost 10 Stormbird riders. I guess I need to gather support from others in my generation and create an alliance. After I eat the breakthrough berry, I will become much stronger, so garnering attention and benefits will be possible." With many thoughts in mind, undercurrents started moving in the nearby areas. *** While it wasn't that large of an event for outside forces, the borderline destruction of the Void Witherwood Exarchs didn't go unnoticed. Something drastic must have happened for a power led by a Level 20 to be silently annihilated. Yet, as everyone investigated each other, nobody found conclusive clues about anybody's participation. Soon, though, reports of Verena Liferoot's recent movements around that area started coming alight, making many guess that those people angered Verena by targeting her daughter one way or another. After all, there were reports that said that they saw Verena Liferoot carrying her injured child and another two away from a forest. With this new information, many leaders rolled their eyes and ignored it. 'Provoking that woman is not something a faction with just a Level 20 should do.' Still, many realized that there have also been recent movements in the Golden Sap Forest. This made the <Explorer Association> change the category from a Level 5 to 10 F zone to a Level 10 to 19 F+ Zone. This change shocked many living in nearby cities like Fortuna and Sirol City, and they wondered what caused such an abrupt change. After all, being Level 10+ meant that people lower than Level 10 had a really high chance of encountering lethal danger. The Level ranges were placed to tell explorers where they could go and harvest resources or hunt efficiently. After all, a Level 15 would never purposefully go to a Level 5 zone to hunt. The Experience Points gained that way were just too little. While not aware of it, Liu Shu's actions silently affected the world around her, moving everything towards a new era.

Chapter 129. Outside Situation.

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