---

Chapter 243: The Erosion of Madness

…These guys are surprisingly proactive, treating themselves like they belong here.

Miss Vilyric, who had intended to test the enemy’s level herself, temporarily dismissed such thoughts upon seeing the Grim Reaper’s Scythe and others intercepting most of the attacks first.

The reason was simple: while just observing might not make it obvious, actual combat quickly revealed the deadly force of those blood-colored branches.

These things weren’t as strong as imagined; although a bit special, they still fell within the category of “trees.”

Based on the aura and the encounters the Soul and company had with them, even considering her and the Little Dragon Daughter, just the combined effort of the Grim Reaper’s Scythe team could realistically defeat them without much trouble.

As for what the Soul had said earlier—that these were the murderers of the holy kingdom’s people… the Priestess found it even harder to agree with that judgment.

It’s quite simple; without demonstrating any unexpected power, while the dense and elongated trunk of this blood tree had considerable reach and attack potential, its sharp tips suited for piercing vital spots…

But that place was at least several kilometers away in a straight line from this battlefield…

As long as trees can’t grow legs to run around, there’s no way they could attack from that far.

Moreover, the Little Dragon Daughter had mentioned that the scent of the assailants was scattered all over this primitive jungle.

Thus, this was merely a local plant that had undergone a special mutation due to some force, and not the culprit making the atmosphere in the forest so eerie.

“Could it really be the ley lines? But normally, they wouldn’t dig such deep holes…”

Talking to herself, the girl turned her palm upward. Concealed beneath her clothing, in an instant, a miniature tree transformed into a silver dagger and jumped into her hand.

Seemingly oblivious to the countless blood-colored branches raining down from above, blocked by the Grim Reaper’s Scythe team, Vilyric raised the silver dagger above her head, looking around as if searching for something.

The dagger soon emitted an exceptionally bright silver glow.

“Oh! There really is one?”

Exchanging glances with her pet, Miss White Fox tilted her head, observing the Gray-clothed Swordsman who was concentrating on controlling the illusory sword to face the enemy.

“Soul, can you handle this guy outside? It shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“Outside…?”

Slightly distracted by the implications of Miss White Fox’s words, a gap quickly opened in the rain of swords above, allowing several sharp branches to break through the blockade, causing the Soul to panic and dodge hurriedly, too flustered to think, and could only shout back.

“No problem!”

“Alright, with that confidence, I can relax.”

Nodding in satisfaction, Vilyric, guided by the silver dagger, walked forward until she reached the main trunk of the blood tree and waved at Tilysha and Eudora, who seemed a bit confused.

“Swish!”

The sharp blade sliced through the air, creating a rift for passage, swiftly swallowing the figures of the four girls.

……

“Pat.”

When they reappeared, Vilyric and the others were standing on a hard stone floor.

Holding Eudora’s small hand, Miss White Fox turned her head to take a look.

This was a dark and spacious room.

The walls and ceiling were constructed of black-gray bricks, and countless blood-colored branches oozed from the ground or wall crevices, tangling and clinging to them. The only color that differed from this gloomy scene was the faintly glowing silver magic circle beneath the girls’ feet.

Silver is a common hue for space-related magic and items. Based on its patterns, Vilyric could easily discern that here… at the end of the connected passage, there should be a commonly seen short-distance teleportation magic circle.

In other words, this place is not a special space separated from reality; it’s just that some Miss Fox used the power of the Void Trace Dagger to pry open a lock and jumped to an exit on the other side.

“This feeling… Are we underground again? Why are there always strange guys digging holes underground? Are you all disciples of Plakaka…?”

Putting aside the complaints, they were likely right beneath the blood-colored giant tree, in the area where its root system was densest.

The heavy, oppressive feel of being deep underground, along with the somewhat murky air, confirmed this.

But besides that, there was an even denser aura.

“Little Fox Sister…”

“Miss Xī, this place… seems a bit…”

Feeling uncomfortable with the strange aura pervading every corner of the air, Eudora instinctively leaned closer to Miss White Fox and lightly tugged at her priestess robe’s hem.

Beside her, Tilysha also looked a bit pale, her emerald eyes flickering, her chest rising and falling rapidly, as if struggling to breathe.

Seeing their conditions, Vilyric gradually confirmed her suspicions in her mind.

Sure enough, as soon as they entered, there was clear discomfort; the tree’s roots, having soaked in such an environment for a long time, would definitely show some sort of special mutation.

Looks like they found the right place.

“Master, how about letting them go back first? The end of this room hides a substantial amount of blood energy, not something half-baked folks can confront.”

“A substantial amount, huh…”

In fact, Vilyric sensed the conditions described by the Little Dragon Daughter, but since there was still a battle going on outside, Eudora’s true identity was quite sensitive in front of the Grim Reaper’s Scythe, so she felt it would be safer to keep her around.

Just as Miss White Fox was considering what to do next, a certain blue-haired girl suddenly exclaimed, “Huh?” Her body stiffened as if frozen, and her already blue eyes sparkled with an even denser, almost tangible emerald glow.

Then, she instinctively grasped her hand, looked over her body as if examining herself, and suddenly looked up and smiled at Miss White Fox.

“Alright, this should be fine now, right?”

“…?”

Caught off guard by the sudden change in tone, which clearly wasn’t something that silly little girl would emit in a gentle and steady voice, Vilyric quickly realized what was happening.

“Xi Fu Lin? You’re actually able to control Tilysha’s body like this now? Uh, while you are her boss, isn’t this kind of approach… a bit too disrespectful to the person involved?”

The goddess, whose true identity was instantly exposed, could only shake her head helplessly.

“Your focus is still as surprising as ever… Tilysha has absorbed some of my divine power, so naturally, a tighter connection was established. Isn’t that normal?”

“If you’re concerned about the issue of dominance, rest assured, while I can indeed forcibly control her body to some extent, it doesn’t benefit me at all. Just now, I communicated in advance and got Tilysha’s consent and cooperation before doing so.”

“…Would you say that you think I could do something so despicable?”

“Uh, hahaha…”

Seeing the goddess’ expression of ‘Oh dear, this truly makes the goddess sad,’ realizing she misunderstood, Vilyric could only awkwardly scratch her ear and laugh to deflect.

In this critical moment, it was little dragon lady, who had learned to read the atmosphere, that took the initiative to defuse the tension.

“Master’s just making reasonable inquiries, okay? Life Goddess, Tilysha is not just your possession; she is currently protected by the master, got that?”

Seeing the blonde girl’s loyal protective stance, Xi Fu Lin merely smiled and nodded, diving straight into the main topic.

“Xī, you’ve found a place quite connected with me this time; this poor child, and the blood energy that’s invading this land, madness… some of the outsiders now are truly shameless.”

“Oh…? You already know who that guy inside is, Xi Fu Lin?”

“Yeah, let’s talk while we walk. I never expected that after a thousand years, there would be another day to face that maniac. It seems the divine disaster back then didn’t impact them over there after all.”

Saying that, the goddess temporarily borrowing Tilysha’s body waved her hand, and those blood-like, menacing roots parted like obedient soldiers, revealing the hidden only passage behind them.