Right now, if Roland returned to the Forest of Dreams on the other side of the strait, he probably wouldn't be able to recognize this place anymore. That was because the Forest of Dreams had changed far too much.
The trees that reached the clouds were taller and taller, and there were more and more strangely shaped green plants. However, the greatest change wasn't due to "nature."
"Ha, I obtained another mutated zombie today. Ten Justice Points! "
"My luck's not bad, but I think there's only three Lesser Fruits of Strength left this month. If I don't hurry up, I won't be able to exchange for them in time, and I'll have to wait until next month."
"Only three left? When I saw yesterday, there were only five left. It's only the tenth now. How did it end so quickly? "
"Yep, the Ferocious Bear squadron returned with a great harvest. They exchanged for Lesser Fruits of Strength for their captain and main shield warrior. I'm so envious. "
"Damn it, I need to hurry up. I'm still 200 Justice Points short. Otherwise, I'll have to wait until next month."
If one had to find some differences from two months ago, the most obvious would be that this place was now extremely "populated." This was no longer a gathering place for the wood spirits.
When flyers were posted in the adventurer associations of the various countries, even the frightening Undead Calamity didn't scare these adventurers who were willing to die for wealth. The temporary houses were already filled with people, and tents had been set up in the forest. Every day, hundreds or even thousands of people would enter this forest by sea.
Seeing how popular it was, some adventurers who had come earlier even set up taverns and inns with the help of the local residents and started doing business. The mercenary and adventurer guilds also started their daily business. The blacksmith shop and the alchemy laboratory had also been completed and were about to be put to use.
After Nightrain City was attacked by the undead, the adventurers of the Forest of Dreams received the Bardi Empire's recognition in order to reduce the pressure on the frontlines. Killing the undead here would not only earn Justice Points, but they would also receive rewards from the Bardi officials.
One job, two jobs, two incomes. The Forest of Dreams also provided miraculous treasures that could increase one's basic stats. This attracted countless powerful individuals to come here to earn Justice Points.
The undead were quite frustrated as well. It was indeed difficult for them to face pressure from two fronts at the same time. However, attacking the Forest of Dreams in the west had already been proven to be impossible. So, they could only choose to strengthen their attack on Nightrain City, which was protected by the Dragon Knight. Nightrain City was the main battlefield, after all.
The moment that the battle finally erupted, the Bardi citizens, who had long since been prepared for this, began their internal cleansing. The undead in the capital city were directly wiped out. Both sides had completely shed all pretense of cordiality. Aso's absence caused the Tark Republic to lose contact with and control over the higher-ups of the Bardi Empire. In the end, the Tark Republic could only fight head-on.
The regular army of the undead army, which had been in existence for tens of thousands of years, wasn't something that the Contract Heroes could deal with. The Contract Heroes who barely managed to probe the undead army had to drag their wounded and corpses back with them.
However, the scattered undead recruits who had just finished their teleportation were the targets for the adventurers to test the waters against. The warriors who had formed large groups or even armies could also try to eat up a small number of undead.
These "hunters" who went berserk for the sake of spoils did indeed create a lot of trouble for the undead. Not only did they draw away a lot of the undead's forces, but they also greatly reduced the pressure on the frontlines of Nightrain City. Many undead also benefited greatly from this.
Of course, not everyone was the lucky one.
"What happened to them? They're so pitiful …"
"Shh, don't talk about it here. The 'Eyes of Justice' adventurer team just ran into a skeleton general riding a bone dragon yesterday. Only two of them managed to escape. That's their leader, the Gold Holy Knight Ostia, right? How pitiful. "
On a temporary stall, a young human warrior who had lost an arm was hugging a blonde female's head and sobbing. Behind him was a female werecat thief who had lost her right eye and right leg. She was tied to the back of her only companion. Her only remaining eye was numb and numb. It was obvious that she had lost all will to fight. Her face, which was slightly better, even seemed to have lost the will to live.
Blood was still dripping from their wounds, which were bandaged with white cloth. The path they took back to Nightrain City was covered in blood.
"The Eyes of Justice is finished …"
The famous leader of the Holy Knight, Ostia, had died in battle. Not even the corpses of the main members had returned. The legendary mercenary group of White Catalan had come to an end today. The remaining two rookies were completely unable to carry this heavy battle flag. Not to mention, they were so heavily injured that they couldn't continue in this line of work anymore.
However, the young warrior, Carter, didn't think so. He seemed to have cried enough. He wiped away his tears, bit on a bandage, and bandaged his left arm. His eyes, which were still red and swollen, were like raging flames. His eyes contained both the determination for revenge and the heavy responsibility.
He handed his leader's severed head to his companion and walked towards the hall where the mission issuer was. He seemed to be intending to report his mission, but someone stopped him.
"With your injuries, you probably won't be able to go on any more missions. Waiting to starve to death isn't a solution. Why don't you just join us?"
Some mercenary groups were recruiting people at this time. It seemed as if they were sending charcoal in a snowstorm. However, in the eyes of those who understood the situation, it wasn't because they cherished talent. Instead, it was because they had ill intentions.
"Are those fellows planning on taking this opportunity to swallow up the Eyes of Justice mercenary group? Profiting from the dead? How disgusting. "
Even if the mercenary group was almost completely annihilated, it didn't mean that this mercenary group didn't have any wealth left. Its mercenary rank and reputation were its greatest wealth. Its glorious history and mission records were the hard criteria to gain the trust of its clients. Not to mention these non-material items, many mercenary groups would have a deposit with the guild for completing missions. They would also store some weapons, equipment, and items. These were all accumulated by a mercenary group over countless years.
"Don't be impulsive. That's the Ottoman Solok mercenary group. Or perhaps I should call it a bandit group. They don't have a good reputation. It seems that they want to throw away their past reputation and change their shell. "
The old mercenary stopped his companion, who was hoping to fight for justice. This was obviously against the rules of the mercenary group, and it was quite unkind. However, seeing that the other party had forty to fifty strong and well-armed people, even if he was dissatisfied, he didn't dare to do anything.
However, they didn't dare. There was someone who dared. In fact, this was her duty.
"Please step aside."
Her icy childish voice caused everyone to pause in surprise. Her bright red hair caused everyone to move to the sides, as if she was a hero from the legends who parted the seas.
This seemingly weak and young wood spirit girl had killed a mercenary who had committed robbery and murder here three days ago. She had a calm expression as she sliced off the mercenary's flesh, asked him how he felt, collected his blood, and then watched him die. Her calm expression left a deep impression on everyone.
"Bloody Rose" Samantha, the first leader of the wood spirits, had already left a deep enough impression on outsiders. At the very least, these visitors knew that this seemingly gentle species was definitely not to be trifled with.
But right now, this wood spirit girl had a calm expression as she stood there. The Solok mercenary group members hurriedly moved aside.
These past few days' encounters had made all the outsiders realize who the true boss of this forest was. Those unlucky fellows who had been teasing these little fellows had used their actions to show what it meant to have a death wish. Nobody wanted to be stuck several hundred meters in the air for three days and three nights without being able to go up or down.
Samantha's eyes flashed with praise as she looked at the young one-armed mercenary who was still resolutely standing there without a shred of hesitation or fear in his eyes. However, she simply asked him a question calmly.
"How's the patrolling mission in the D2 area?"
"… The mission has been completed. There's a newly built undead scouting outpost hidden there. There are two squads of black-armored Knight soldiers, as well as an Undead Lord level skeleton general. They even have a bone dragon with them. Leader … Leader Ostia said that their goal is to scout out and control the paths we use to enter the forest, so that they can intercept and kill us first."
Everyone felt that it was a pity when they heard this. They could only say that the Eye of Justice's luck was terrible. It was just a daily patrolling mission, yet they just so happened to run into an Undead Lord who had come here to set up a scouting outpost. No wonder they were almost completely annihilated. But fortunately, two of them managed to escape and spread the news.
"Well done. 100 Justice Points will be transferred to your account. The promised resources will also be delivered to you. How's your leader? "
Carter turned around and glanced at the beautiful golden-haired head. He was biting his lip so hard that blood was dripping from his mouth. He tightened his grip on the Trial's Eye flag.
"From now on, I'm the leader of the Eye of Justice. Honorable Lady Samantha, Bronze-ranked Holy Knight Carter, at your service."
However, Samantha shook her head.
"Ostia is the one who accepted this mission. The resources and Justice Points can only be delivered through her."
"But …"
Carter had an anxious expression. However, the "smart" people around him already saw through the "truth."
"I never expected that the wood spirits, who appear so cute on the outside, are actually so cunning. She intends to go back on her word."
However, to everyone's surprise, Samantha had no intention of stopping the conversation. She even directly pointed at the human head and spoke.
"I'll directly talk to her."
Samantha pointed with her finger, causing a collapsing white mist to float out of the human head. In the Forest of Dreams, if a soul wanted to return to the Gui Ming River, it would require the approval of the world's will.
The temporary obsession and broken body of a heroic soul that died in battle would make it so that it was unwilling to leave. Obsession would also cause a person's soul to sink into insanity. This soul was already dead and was in a state of confusion. It was obvious that it was impossible to communicate with her. If this continued, it was highly likely that she would transform into an undead creature.
"There's no way to talk about this …"
As Samantha spoke in a soft voice, a flower suddenly rose up and protected the white mist soul. Several seconds later, a green glow covered the entire area. The cycle of life and death was restarted. Then, a nostalgic voice spoke out from the flower.
"Eh, didn't I die …"
"Leader!!"
The cat thief who had been in despair suddenly became excited and struggled to crawl over. Carter's expression was filled with astonishment as well. Tears of joy poured out of his eyes.
"How is this possible!?"
However, when the flower dissipated, what remained wasn't that familiar tall beauty. Instead, it was a young blonde girl. Her pointy ears and glowing eyes indicated her species — a wood spirit.
"Transforming into a wood spirit requires 50,000 Justice Points. You don't have enough. Ostia, since you're now one of my tribe, I'll allow you to temporarily owe me."
"Sister Ostia!"
The overjoyed cat girl had already thrown herself into the blonde girl's arms. Blood and tears were flowing out of her wounds. Kite, who was standing on the side, also had an excited expression. The surrounding audience was indeed astonished. "Resurrection" was something that went against the cycle of reincarnation. They had never heard of such a thing before.
* Snap. *
Samantha snapped her fingers, causing a dark green glow to envelop the two injured warriors' broken hands and wounds. When the light faded, the new limbs were as white as jade, and the crippled warriors were restored to their peak condition.
The two injured warriors were so excited that they didn't even notice that their wounds had healed after witnessing their leader, whom they admired so much, being revived with a different identity.
Seeing this scene, Samantha knew that it was impossible to talk about anything else right now. She ignored the astonishment and disbelief around her as she turned around and left.
Soon, the options of using the power of the forest to heal the crippled and transform into a wood spirit's body appeared on the wood spirits' exchange list. Healing the crippled only required a large amount of Justice Points, but the requirements were obviously too much.
"50,000 Justice Points is one thing, but they're even asking for a female who hasn't done any evil deeds in the past? That's too much. What does that mean by being recognized by the wood spirits? That means that the wood spirits are the ones who have the final say. "
"Look, there's even a small line of text below: 'If a male doesn't mind living a different lifestyle, it's possible. However, in order to prevent any moral confusion, there will be an additional magical rune on their face that indicates their previous gender.'"
Even though the requirements were so harsh, many powerful individuals still went crazy over this. News that wood spirits had a Silver Bloodline had long since spread. Many powerful individuals who desired to climb to the peak were even willing to start all over again. There were also many powerful individuals who were nearing the end of their lifespans that wanted this opportunity. Of course, the fact that the wood spirits didn't have any male characteristics also scared away many normal individuals … Fine, it had to be admitted that there were many abnormal individuals who wanted this opportunity.
"Thank you so much! In the future, as long as you have any requests, we're willing to serve you faithfully. "
However, Samantha shook her head at Ostia's gratitude.
"I didn't do anything for you to thank me for."
Ostia expressionlessly sent off the first new member of the wood spirits who still retained their past memories and personality. However, she mysteriously recalled what that man had told her before he left.
"You're asking me how to manage those outsiders … If they're players, then it's enough for the wood spirits to be good NPCs. It's safe and rewarding. Just a little bit of effort will be enough for them to fight to the death for you."
"You don't understand? Yep, the most important part of being an NPC is being 'neutral.' That means that you need to maintain a certain distance from those outsiders and treat them fairly and equally. "
"You can't do that? I didn't ask you to truly be emotionless. You just have to pretend to be emotionless on the surface. Samantha, you're born with a paralyzed face that never smiles, so you're the most suitable for this job. When the time comes, you'll naturally be the most suitable person to deal with matters. "
Although judging from her current reaction, what that man had said was correct, Samantha mysteriously felt displeased. She turned around and looked at the mirror on the wall, doing her best to squeeze out a smile.
However, after trying for half a minute, she discovered that her face seemed to have stiffened. She stuck her left and right index fingers into her cheeks and forcefully pulled on them, forcing a smile onto her face.
“smile！ (Smile!) "
The red-haired girl in the mirror had a smile on her face. Meanwhile, another face that suddenly appeared, that of "Modest" Jill of the Three Virtues, was filled with despair and disbelief, as if the world was about to end.
"Sister! Are you under some sort of curse? If you're not feeling well, you should have told us earlier! "
Alright then, the rest of the time was just like any other day. The farce of a cold-faced older sister chasing after a single-celled younger sister replayed itself.
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