This Lich Requests More Remuneration-Chapter 179 - 166 Entering the Emerald Dream Forest
Chapter 179: Chapter 166: Entering the Emerald Dream Forest
Chapter 179 -166: Entering the Emerald Dream Forest
Mute, that name was unfamiliar to Amberser.
After the president of the Elegy Poetry Society made an appearance last time, this member code-named Mute spoke a few words.
All Undead are mad, each in their own way. Amberser wasn’t the type to be good at making friends, so he didn’t make private contact with them to avoid any taboos.
Unexpectedly, Withered Rose actually started chatting with this Mute.
However, even Withered Rose didn’t seem to know much about Mute’s specific race, only that she claimed to have a considerable influence in the sea.
Amberser could only sigh, the Elegy Poetry Society truly was a place with hidden dragons and crouching tigers, each member a powerhouse. If not for his recent change in fortunes, Amberser might have been the least impressive member of the Elegy Poetry Society.
[Withered Rose: I will talk to Mute about it, and then contact you later. By the way, don’t try to enter the City of Dawn, that place is hell for Liches. For ordinary people, it’s heaven, but only temporarily; someday, Laine will be destroyed by its own madness.]
Amberser didn’t dare respond to that, given that this was the realm of the Lord of the Dawn.
But Withered Rose hadn’t spoken inaccurately; starting with the royal family, Laine began to go mad. Once the upper echelons collapsed, the demise of this kingdom would be quicker than others.
He just didn’t know when that thread would finally snap.
Abandoning the idea of roaming the City of Dawn, Amberser quietly waited beside the Teleportation Circle.
He occasionally bantered with Hake Stone in the group, prompting this Dwarf Vampire to send out more “XXXXX”.
When the Teleportation Circle’s light lit up again, Amberser left with Katherine.
The Laine Imperial Capital’s Continental Transmission Array had direct access to the border, and when Amberser reappeared, the Emerald Dream Forest was already before his eyes.
Under the “protection” of a group of Paladins, Amberser and Katherine walked out of the city, where greenery filled their vision.
From the silent desert to the primeval forest, a smile immediately appeared on Katherine’s face; the Elf Tribe always preferred such vibrant environments.
Katherine asked, “What do we do now, do we have to trick people again?”
Amberser shook his head and said, “No need, it was so troublesome before because Laine is a sworn enemy of the Undead, we had to deceive the Holy Light. Now it’s not that difficult, the Emerald Dream Forest is just a loose alliance, without strict surveillance like in Laine. We can just alter our appearance and find any place to enter, the target being the West Coast of the Emerald Dream Forest.”
Katherine excitedly said, “Okay, then I’ll continue using the identity of the runaway heiress! I want to add some more to that story.”
Amberser: …
Is she really this serious about playing pretend, was the Elf Queen so strictly controlled in her youth?
But Amberser also cooperatively changed into a human form, continuing to use Hawkeye Barton’s persona.
Amberser took Naomi out of the private space and told her, “Ahead is the Emerald Dream Forest, you can enter with us using your Druid identity, or you can choose to disguise as my mount, but in that case, you’ll have to maintain beast form and can’t revert back to human…”
Naomi was key to this journey, not only because they were searching for the Time Dragon’s Divine Artifact for her but also to improve Naomi’s Druid abilities, at least to the extent of being able to transform into a dragon. She needed to be eligible to transform into the Time Dragon.
Normally this would have taken decades or even a century of effort, but Amberser’s Ranger ability happened to be able to share power with his pet, so Naomi now skipped decades of accumulating “power” and only needed skills.
So, choosing how to enter the Emerald Dream Forest was an issue, closely related to the subsequent plan.
For Amberser, either form was not a big problem, just with different means of operation, so he consulted Naomi for her preference.
Upon hearing Amberser’s explanation, Naomi almost immediately said, “I would rather maintain the state of a beast.”
Katherine, anxious, said, “How can this be, you’re a person too, don’t let that Lich brainwash you, you’re not some pet!”
Naomi said gratefully to Katherine, “Thank you, Your Majesty, but this is my choice. I don’t want to interact with other Druids as a Druid, I’d rather be a beast that doesn’t have to worry about anything, that’s better for me.”
Katherine then remembered Naomi’s history and knew she had some issues with Druids. Realizing she had inadvertently reopened her wounds, Katherine quickly apologized, “Sorry, I was inconsiderate, please forgive me.”
Naomi showed a bitter smile and said, “Not at all, Your Majesty, besides my master, you are the second kindest person to me.”
The girl transformed into a giant Black Panther and wagged her tail at Amberser.
Amberser climbed onto the back of the Black Panther, shrugged at Katherine, and gave a “she’s willing” expression.
Katherine was so annoyed she gnashed her teeth; for the first time in her life, she found someone so detestable, and what’s worse, she couldn’t find any evidence of Amberser’s “wrongdoings.”
Contrary to what the Elven Elders had said when she was young, this Undead didn’t need to slaughter and pillage to get what he wanted. Wealth and beauty seemed to flock to him willingly.
Since working for Amberser, Katherine hadn’t seen him kill any humans, but he had earned tens of millions of Gold Coins and acquired a Druid girl who was willing to be his beast companion. He had even made a group of Paladins kneel before him.
He had extorted Paladins in the Temple of the Lord of the Dawn and walked out unscathed.
The thought made the lich seem terrifyingly powerful, probably even the God of the Liches wouldn’t dare be so brazen in front of the Lord of the Dawn.
With a sense of fear, Katherine and Amberser rode their black panthers into the lush forest.
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Halfway through the journey, Katherine asked, “We must be close to the coastline by now, right? Why don’t we just fly over?”
If they rode giant eagles and flew, they could reach the West Coast of the Emerald Dream Forest in at most two days and then they could head straight into the ocean without needing to use a teleportation circle.
However, Amberser said, “Would your Silvermoon Tribunal allow others to fly over their heads?”
Katherine, reminded by Amberser’s comment, quickly understood, “I see, there’s a no-fly zone here.”
There were many ways to fly on the continent: mages with flight spells, rangers with flying mounts, druids transforming into birds, and airships made through alchemy. With many methods of flight, kingdoms naturally had to develop corresponding no-fly measures.
Although the Emerald Dream Forest was a loosely allied entity, there surely would be no-fly zones over certain key areas. If the two carelessly intruded, it could very likely lead to war.
Amberser said, “Our goal is to find a guide. As long as we find the right path, we’ll head straight for the coast, and avoid entanglements with the people of the Emerald Dream Forest.”
Katherine took out a notebook and recorded Amberser’s words, invaluable experience for adventuring. Currently in a self-imposed exile, Katherine didn’t know how many years it would be before she returned to the Silvermoon Tribunal, making this adventure experience particularly important to her.
The two people and their two panthers ran swiftly. Even the dense jungle couldn’t slow down the panthers—on the contrary, the environment seemed to make them run faster.
The Emerald Dream Forest was somewhat different from forests in other regions. Upon entering, Amberser immediately felt a distinct discomfort.
This was due to the pervasive life essence throughout the forest, which repelled the dark magic power within Amberser’s body. Although it was not as incompatible as holy light, it still made him quite uncomfortable.
All he could do was try to contain his dark magic power and not confront the entire environment.
Despite being unfriendly to the undead, this rich life force meant that the creatures within the forest were thriving.
The trees were tall, with many reaching forty to fifty meters, their trunks thicker than houses. The animals in the forest were also larger than elsewhere—Amberser saw squirrels bigger than cats and butterflies bigger than human faces.
The natural harmony of the Emerald Dream Forest was at the opposite end of the spectrum from the Golden Desert.
Riding the black panthers through the woods, Amberser did not control the direction, but let Naomi choose the path instead.
Within the jungle, the beasts’ sense of smell was more reliable than his perception for finding signs of human habitation.
Naomi did not disappoint; just about ten kilometers into the dense forest, she quickly found a tribe.
From a distance, several trails of cooking smoke rose slowly.
The tribe was not large, probably comprising only three or four dozen wooden houses roughly built in a barbaric style that resembled druidic design. But a faint stench and bloodiness carried over, causing Naomi and Katherine’s mounts to sneeze several times, clearly uncomfortable.
Druids revered nature and balance, disliking urbanized living, but they were not without standards for their living environment. How could they endure such foul smells? Wouldn’t their transformations into beasts be self-torture?
But whether it stank or not didn’t matter. As long as there were living people, they would certainly be able to gather useful information.
“Let’s go. Don’t waste time,” Amberser urged Katherine, who looked disgusted, to continue.
The closer they got to the tribe, the stronger the putrid smell became. Amberser was fine, but Katherine had to cast an air purification spell on herself and the two panthers.
When they were still several dozen meters from the tribe, an arrow flew in and hit the ground.
A shrill voice followed, “I warn you, stay back!”
Amberser’s face changed when he heard that piercing voice.
Katherine asked curiously, “What’s wrong?”
Amberser said with some resignation, “That’s a goblin tribe.”
“Goblins?”
Katherine had never seen a goblin before and looked on with curiosity, only to spot a grotesquely filthy green creature standing on the watchtower at the entrance of the tribe. Its gruesome appearance, with a hook nose and fanged mouth, wrinkly skin covered in long hair and bumps, was absolutely revolting.
Katherine couldn’t help but say, “What a disgusting creature.”
It wasn’t just their ugliness; their bodies seemed coated in filth, and the sight alone felt polluting to the eyes.
Amberser glanced at the goblin, then at Katherine.
Finding living people only to run into a group of goblins, and with an elf queen at his side, too.
It was decidedly unlucky.
