When Zhao Hai saw Buffy release such a wide-ranged magic spell, he quickly felt something was wrong and avoided it by entering the Space. Immediately opening the screen, he saw the situation outside on the battlefield. Obviously, the red dots represented his side while that lone green dot represented Buffy. The magic that Buffy casted on the battlefield took away all of the attention, so it was harder to spot him.
However, this was enough. Zhao Hai managed to find out that Buffy was planning to head back into the Carrion Swamp. He understood Buffyâs intent; allowing Buffy to escape and re-enter the swamp would make him difficult to find, even if they had the Space and werenât afraid of the poison fog.
Zhao Haiâs hand pointed out at the green dot and he launched the Capture function. He immediately went out of the Space, wanting to see if the Capture function would be successful.
Upon leaving the Space, a large hand appeared in the sky. This large hand was white, a gleaming white that soared directly towards Buffy.
This large hand was very quick and Buffy couldnât escape the large hand, even though he wasnât slow. As it was about to catch Buffy, the large hand suddenly opened and Buffy was caught in its palm.
Buffy still hadnât understood what had happened before he was suddenly grabbed. He hastened to escape. However, at this moment, a large fly swatter appeared in the sky, targeting Buffyâs head.
This fly swatter was fast and everyone could only see a blurred motion before the fly swatter slammed a total of twenty times onto Buffyâs head. Buffy fell directly to the ground.
However, it was obvious that Buffyâs strength was a lot stronger than Zhao Haiâs, as he wasnât dead. At this time, a Light Sword flew out from the Space, cutting across Buffyâs neck, cleanly separating his head from his body.
After Buffy died, the huge tornado disappeared. Green quickly ran towards Buffy and looked down at his corpse.
Taking a moment to breathe, Green said, âHe was indeed a Rank Nine expert. If not for Master moving in during the final moments, he wouldâve been able to escape.â
Zhao Hai smiled and said, âItâs nothing. Anyway, he wasnât able to escape. Grandpa Green, watch me.â
After he said that, he picked up Buffy with his right hand and transformed him into a high rank skeleton.
It really was a magical thing, this black magic. Zhao Hai cast his Soul Trap technique and the head that had flown away now came flying back to Buffyâs body. The disappearance of flesh followed quickly and a skeleton appeared in front of Zhao Hai.
With Zhao Haiâs intent, Green, along with the others, returned to the Space. Upon entering the Space, the Space immediately gave Buffy upgrades. Buffy became a zombie and now looked younger many times over compared to when he was still alive. He now looked like a middle-aged man.
Zombies didn't necessarily decay or waste away when they died after a time. On the contrary, people who were turned into zombies would have their bodies strengthened. They would undergo transformations which would result in some changes. For instance, Buffy looked younger as an example of a change.
After being transformed into a zombie, a tongue would be reproduced and their consciousness would become their own once again. These zombies would then be able to speak like a normal person. This was the result Zhao Hai wanted. He wanted Buffy to tell him his knowledge of the Carrion Swamp. If Buffy were only a skeleton, then only Zhao Hai could communicate with him. Zhao Hai would then have to reiterate everything to Green and the others, which would be troublesome.2
After Buffy was transformed into a zombie, the Space suddenly beeped:
[Discovered new magical energy.
Prompting energy.
Strengthening the Spaceâs attack performance.]
Zhao Haiâs attention was focused on the Ghost Caneâs notes. He immediately understood what the Space meant. Right now, the Ghost Cane could use spells from a new magic element, that of the wind element.
Zhao Hai didnât care about this and led Green and the others back into the villa. He asked Buffy, âBuffy, tell us everything you know about the Carrion Swamp.â
Buffy bowed to Zhao Hai and said, âYes Master. This time around, I had gone deep into the Carrion Swamp, over 5,000 kilometers3. Everything was going well then and I only encountered some poisonous plants and flying insect magic beasts, as well as other magic beasts. I didnât encounter too many risks during this time. However, as I went deeper into the swamp, after traveling around a 10 square kilometer area4, I found a city.â
Zhao Hai and Green seemed distracted for a moment. Then Green looked at Buffy and asked, âDid you just say a âCityâ?â
Buffy nodded. âYes, it was a city, also a very large city. However, there was no one in the city, not even magic beasts or undead. The entire city was full of flowers though, a strange kind of flower.â
Green immediately asked, âWhat kind of flower?â
Buffy said, âThis flower was very strange as it was like a vine that grew upright on its own. It had thorns on its vines, and the vines were dark green in color. At the top there was a fully bloomed flower with seven petals. Each petal had its own color. It was just like the different colors of the smog covering the Carrion Swamp and they were very bright.â
Zhao Hai and the others looked surprised as this was the first time they had heard about it. The entire city was full of flowers? What kind of situation was that?
Zhao Hai then asked, âHow many people could live in that city?â
Buffy replied, âIt is very big. Although it was a little smaller than Casa City, it is about the size of an average medium-sized city. So, around half a million people could live in it. Furthermore, this city had its own wall, and the walls were made of stone. However, the strange flower was odd. As it could give birth to vine roots, these roots attached themselves to the stone. I tried attacking it with my Wind Bladedge to move the flowers, but failed. The entire city was covered by this flower, which was very strange.â
Zhao Hai, Green, and the others were shocked. A city that could be populated by half a million people, on the Ark Continent, wouldnât be small. Such a big city was covered by a strange flower, how large a flower could that be?
Moreover, the flowerâs root could attach itself to the stone, which was amazing. What root of a plant could be this sharp? Most importantly, a Rank Nine magicianâs Wind Bladedge couldnât even cut or move the vines? In the end, what kind of flower was this?
Furthermore, there was one point that Green was mostly concerned about. Buffy had said that the color of the flowerâs petals were the same colors as the smog covering the Carrion Swamp. Could there be a link between this flower and the Carrion Swamp? Was the flower the cause of the smog, as well as the variation of the smogâs color?
They really wanted to enter the Carrion Swamp, so these circumstances were very important for them. Zhao Hai turned to Buffy and asked, âWhat else is there? Tell us everything.â
Buffy nodded his head and said, âOriginally, everything was normal. There were many undead and magic beasts in the Carrion Swamp, and they had their own territories. The outer periphery had low ranks, while the areas nearer to the city had the higher ranking magic beasts and undead. During the four weeks that I had been exploring, I saw several Rank Eights and Rank Nines, but they didnât attack me. However, after I attacked using the Wind Bladedges to cut the flower, they suddenly attacked me. Thus, I ran away, finally escaping the battle. â
Zhao Hai nodded and turned to Green. âGrandpa Green, how do you see this?â
Green nodded his head, saying, âIt seems like that flower is very mysterious, If I guessed correctly, the seven colored smog that covers the Carrion Swamp should be related to the flower. Otherwise, those magic beasts and undead wouldnât guard the flower. As it is, Buffy wasnât a problem. However, once he attacked the flower, issues arose. Seemingly, this flower is the key.â
âIf this is the case, then it will be troublesome.â Zhao Hai frowned. âWe are separated by 5,000 kilometers, from here to there. That should also be the central area of the Carrion Swamp. If we want to solve the threat of the Carrion Swamp, then we must start with that flower.â
Green nodded and said, âBuffy was not attacked when he explored the swamp, probably because he was quite strong. Those undead and magic beasts were Rank Eight and Nine and their intelligence wasnât any lower than that of humans, so they didnât want to mess with Buffy. However, Buffy attacked the flower which made them anxious. This shows the importance of the flower to them. Buffy, is there anything else to be reported?â
Buffy nodded and said, âThere is another situation, but Iâm just guessing and Iâm not sure if itâs accurate. I find it very strange that inside Flower City, the more I head towards the middle of the city market area, the more robust the flower vines became. The flowers covering the entire city is probably only one flower, and all the other flowers branch out from that main one.â
After Buffy said that, Green was even more stunned. The flowers that covered the entire city was actually one? This argument was truly terrifying. What kind of flower could grow as much as this? Even the legendary Tree City5 of the elves6 wouldnât be this big, right?
Green looked at Buffy and asked, âBuffy, are you really telling us the truth? When you observed the city, the flowers that surrounded it really only branched out from that one flower?â
Buffy nodded and said, âThis is just my hypothesis, but it seemed like it had its own consciousness. If I just touched it gently, there wouldnât be any reaction. However, if I attack using my Wind Bladedge, it acted crazily and even spewed smog from the colored flowers. Then the vine started attacking me. That flower vine is quite fast, although its strength couldnât be compared to a Rank Nine. Also, it seems like it couldnât leave Flower City. Thus, when I left the city, the flowers slowly retreated, but then the magic beasts began attacking me.â
Greenâs face became ugly as he said, âIt seems like the root of everything in the Carrion Swamp really is that flower. What is strange is why those that came out of the Carrion Swamp before didn't explain these things.â
Green knew that there were some experts that had managed to escape from the Carrion Swamp before. They might have even said something about all of this. However, in the recent thousand years, no one dared to enter the Carrion Swamp. As such, these things had been slowly forgotten.
Notes:
- This chapter was MTL'ed. Please leave a comment for constructive criticisms and advice.
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