Anna took Lu Li as far away from the northern swamp as possible, which forced her to enter the territory of the Swamp Mother. But until the deciduous mountains at the end of the swamp road came into view, the Swamp Mother never appeared, and only occasionally came from the dark jungle below.
A sense of voyeurism.
When they were about to fly out of the swamp road, the Swamp Mother took the initiative to contact them.
A shadow figure stood in the open space in the jungle, looking up at Lu Li and Anna flying by.
For those who are timid and afraid of light, this is already a clear sign.
After asking Lu Li, they settled down and set foot in the shadow swamp again.
But the danger has long since left them.
【I...want your...help...】
The Yingchuo man's mouth opened, and intermittent whispers came out.
Knowing that it was the Mother of the Swamp who was talking to them, Anna took the initiative and said: "We can't deal with the existence of the Northern Swamp."
【Why……】
The Swamp Mother's whispers were unintelligible.
"You should know our strength. If you can't resist, we can't resist either." Anna never thought that she and Lu Li were strong.
Anna was already a wraith during the Shadow Swamp incident. But she couldn't even get close to the half-separated old mother's body that was sealed under the giant banyan tree.
【I thought...we could...】
"The victory of the weak against the strong is just a coincidence." Lu Li said.
He and Anna had the same idea - facing the weirdness of the evil god, humans are no different than ants.
After he finished speaking, Lu Li asked: "What is the awakening existence in the North Swamp?"
After a brief silence, the Swamp Mother answered Lu Li's question: [A...thumb...]
"Be more specific." Lu Li frowned.
A thumb can be seen as a quirk, or as part of a quirk.
The latter is far more frightening than the former.
[It is the remains of a being... The consciousness of the being awakens... The same goes for the remains...]
"I'll give you a suggestion." Lu Li said suddenly, looking at Yingchuo Man as if he was looking at the mother of the swamp behind him: "Look for a new territory, give up here."
Lu Li understands the importance of territory to evil gods. Evil gods who lose their territory will decline due to losing their source of power. However... if you leave, you may still have a chance to occupy new territory, but if you stay, you will be completely wiped out.
A thumb of the remains of the dead body of that being can invade the territory of the Swamp Mother. Perhaps in the eyes of that being, the Swamp Mother is just a kind of ant.
[I will think about...your suggestions...]
After the conversation ended, Lu Li asked another question before the Swamp Mother's consciousness left: when the Shadow Swamp was invaded.
The Swamp Mother's answer is that within ten days, her territory will be completely occupied, regardless of resistance or not.
The feeling of powerlessness was the reason why the Swamp Mother sought Lu Li's help.
Ten days were enough for Lu Li to return and take away Adangfuya from Shadow Town. But just in case, he told the Swamp Mother about Adangfuya's situation, hoping that she would take care of her.
Before leaving, the whisper of the Swamp Mother suddenly floated slowly in the wind.
[Are you going to...the Lord's Continent...]
Lu Li paused slightly, remembered something, nodded and replied, "I will help you find the whereabouts of Grand Duke Edela's heir."
Archduke Edela, the father of Swamp Mother when she was a human.
There were no more whispers from the Mother of the Swamp, and Anna hugged Lu Li and flew into the sky. When she was about to get far away, she turned back and looked at the open space.
A dark figure still vaguely stood there.
…
Fallen Leaf Town.
This town is feeling its last warmth - many vehicles and people passing through the swamp road stop here to rest.
There was no need for Lu Li to stay here. He skipped Luoye Town and flew along the road and Luoye Mountains towards the coastal town on the coastline.
It was not on the route that passed through King Allen City. He came here because Lu Li wanted to confirm something.
During the final test, Lu Li, who resisted the temptation of "the body of the Old One", returned to the beach house and fell into a deep sleep accompanied by the star-like consciousness.
The seaside huts you see there are generally the same as those in coastal towns.
He had to know whether the scene was a subconscious projection or whether it was on the blurry border between illusion and reality.
As time goes by, the whine of the wind blowing through the treetops is replaced by the sound of the waves. Beyond the deciduous mountains, the flat and open coastline and small towns emerge in front of us.
Like Watchtown, this coastal town was abandoned due to its location and small population. The streets were deserted, but there may be some residents who didn't want to leave.
Anna had no intention of finding out how many people there were in the town, and took Lu Li straight to the beach house.
The remaining footprints have long since been smoothed away by the rising tide, leaving only the wooden house itself and the wooden boat on the beach not far away consistent with the scene in my memory.
With Anna's support, Lu Li stepped up the steps and pushed open the wooden door that was just covered.
The strong rotting smell of wooden corpses rushed towards her, and a surge of air swept Anna out of the house.
Lu Li stood outside the door and scanned the narrow room with his eyes. The messy bed, the half-closed cupboard door, and the deep traces of the abyss on the floor had disappeared at some point, and an old oil lamp was placed on the dining table in front of the window.
It shouldn't be there.
When reality left, there was only moldy and rotten food on the dinner plate.
It should be there.
When Trial fell asleep, a silhouette in a black robe walked into the wooden house and placed it on the dining table.
The lamp itself is stripped away from its dreamlike unreality.
Anna didn't notice anything unusual about the oil lamp that Lu Li was staring at, so she helped Lu Li get closer and saw him reaching out to lift the oil lamp.
When Lu Li touched the originally extinguished oil lamp, the wick lit up with a faint light. It was not a flame, but it was similar to a flame.
Anna suddenly felt a sense of rejection coming from the oil lamp.
This is not some ethereal force, but stems from inner emotions. Just like when faced with things that they dislike and hate, people always subconsciously stay away.
After telling Lu Li his feelings, Lu Li thought, and the faint light in the oil lamp gradually disappeared, making Anna's feeling of wanting to stay away also disappear.
"Is this what the black-robed being left for you?" Anna, who already knew the test process, asked.
Lu Li nodded lightly. It seemed that it knew that he would come here and take away what it left behind: "But the price is burning humanity."
The base of the old oil lamp is engraved with two lines of inscriptions that are integrated with the oil lamp.
[The brilliance of humanity gathers in the wick]
[It should be where it is]
The light of the oil lamp will become weaker and stronger depending on Lu Li's will, and can be controlled.
A practical prop that can effectively dispel the covetousness of Xiaoxiao. The only drawback is the price of burning humanity.
The oil lamp was the only thing left by the man in black robe. After getting it, Lu Li and Anna left the coastal town and headed for the penultimate stop of the trip.
