Chapter 196 The Great Swamp Route Error, Fluorescent Plants, Wild...

The road to the Elf Kingdom was much smoother than expected, even better than the dirt roads they had traveled before, which greatly increased the speed of the carriage.

After walking for four days, Lai and his group finally reached the swamp marked on the map.

It was afternoon that day.

The light in the forest was already dim, and before they even reached the swamp, Seya could feel the dampness.

Small puddles gradually appeared on the once flat grassland, and the further they went, the more Seya sensed something was wrong. Finally, he stopped the carriage and woke up Lai.

"What's wrong?"

Ray's voice was a little hoarse; he had just fallen asleep.

Seyia told him about the unusual situation she had discovered.

The map and route the elder gave him were designed to avoid that large swamp. For some reason, even though he followed the map precisely, he still encountered the swamp head-on.

Ray opened the car door to check, and sure enough, the road ahead of them was blocked by puddles and mud.

Amidst the uneven grass were patches of muddy puddles, the water on the surface of which had been drained, leaving behind broken branches and tree trunks snapped in half.

Even the grasslands that look passable are barely maintained by the thick root systems of the trees.

Looking further into the distance, there is a vast expanse of ocean.

The water surface was covered with patches of tender green duckweed, and various kinds of green moss spread from the stones by the water to the roots of the trees, eventually covering the lower trunks and branches of the trees.

The dark and damp environment provides excellent living conditions for these shade-loving plants; the entire swamp is their breeding ground.

"We can't get through here anymore."

"That's what Lei said after seeing this situation."

"That's strange, I clearly followed the map. Do we have to go back the way we came and go around it?"

Seya asked Lei Yi for his opinion.

"Let me take a look at the map."

Seyia handed the map to Lai and pointed to one of the routes.

"This is the path I took, the route that other elves had taken after going around it. Logically, the swamp should be on the left side of the path, but I didn't expect that this path would also be flooded now."

After a brief discussion, the two decided to turn back a short distance before continuing to the right until they found a boundary that would allow them to bypass the swamp.

Beneath the seemingly calm surface of a swamp lies silt accumulated over many years.

The carriage was very heavy, and once you stepped in, it was difficult to get out. Who knows how many animals have been buried here? Looking at the bubbling bubbles in the mud pit in the distance, you know there are countless.

The terrain that Ray and his team encountered was probably newly formed, which is why it wasn't marked on the map.

Logically, the water shouldn't be very deep in this situation, but with only two horses, they dared not take any risks and decided it was better to carefully go around them.

Sayya dismounted from the carriage and took control of the horses by pulling on the reins to turn them around.

Fortunately, he stopped in time. If he had gone any further, it would have taken a lot of effort for the carriage to turn around, and they would have inevitably stepped into the mud.

Saiya continued to travel according to the plan they had just discussed.

Their next route followed the edge of the swamp, which, while taking some time, ensured everyone's safety.

The towering trees in the forest occupy all the space near the sky, and the various creatures living in the forest can only absorb the meager sunlight through the gaps between the leaves.

Only about ten days had passed since that spring rain, but the interior of the forest was already completely covered in green.

The temperature here seems to be much higher than outside in Rosen town.

After entering, Lai and Sai changed out of their heavy clothes and into lighter summer clothes.

To prevent being bitten by various insects in the forest, they put on long-sleeved shirts and coats.

The further you go, the taller and denser the trees in the forest become, with towering trees that take several people to encircle them everywhere.

Standing close to these trees and looking up, you can't see the end of them at all.

As darkness fell and visibility decreased, it meant that it wouldn't be long before the forest was completely dark.

Lai and his companions needed to find a place to stop and rest, and the warm yellow lamp on the carriage was lit up again.

Finally, the lights stopped flickering, and the carriage came to a stop.

Lai got out of the car to help unload the truck and gather firewood, and finally, wisps of smoke rose from the once-deserted forest again.

There were many rocks nearby. After using a shovel to clear a space of about two square meters, Lai used the rocks to make a circle around the campfire to prevent the flames from spreading throughout the forest.

He laid large pieces of wood at the bottom of the stone circle, and then used some thinner pieces of firewood to build a small house with one side open.

The outermost part of the "house" was covered with dry branches and thicker pieces of wood, while the inside was stuffed with a lot of easily combustible dry moss and thin branches.

They lit dry leaves on the outside and stuffed them into the inside of the small house; the fire soon burst into flames.

Soon, the entire "house" collapsed, and the campfire was completely ignited.

He figured out this little trick when he was a child, while helping his grandmother tend the fire.

Winters in the north are cold, and every household uses heated brick beds (kang).

Just outside the wall separating the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed) is a large iron pot. When vegetables are being stir-fried on one side, the heated kang on the other side heats up.

The warmest part of the kang (heated brick bed) is the side closest to the stove, which is the head of the kang.

Back then, Grandma would let him sleep there, but it was so hot that he would sweat profusely in the middle of the night, kicking off the blankets countless times throughout the night, which made Grandma cover him up again and again.

When he was a child, he would build a "small house" under the stove using dried corn cobs, fill it with corn leaves, and then light it.

Once the corn cob turns bright red, you can bake corn, potatoes, and glass noodles inside.

That was a rare source of joy in his impoverished life.

His grandparents always spoiled him and often cooked him a large amount of vermicelli.

It's crispy and has a smoky, burnt smell.

For dinner, Tata wanted stewed meat, so Lai added potatoes, carrots, and fresh mushrooms to make a big pot of stew.

To preserve the original aroma of the meat, he only added basic seasonings when blanching and stewing it.

A rich and flavorful meat broth paired with steamed buns seasoned with salted garlic and scallions makes for a wonderful meal.

Seya wanted some vegetables, so Lai used magic to make some romaine lettuce and spinach grow. After washing them, he threw them directly into the meat broth to blanch them. They tasted delicious, with both the aroma of vegetables and meat.

After dinner, only Lai and the flickering campfire remained outside the carriage.

Aside from the crackling sound of flames licking the firewood, there was only the strange cry of nightingales in the woods.

Tiny flying insects danced around the glass lamp and above the flames as Ray sat listlessly by the campfire, staring at his worn-out notebook.

He has already learned all the wood-based magic in this book, both the beginner and intermediate levels.

The Mage Guild had initially predicted that he would not achieve much in magic.

But now, he can use intermediate-level magic circles with complete ease. It's obvious without even thinking that this is closely related to Ryan.

We just don't know what level of magic he has now.

In the dead of night, a thin mist rose in the woods, and all around was quiet.

The campfire illuminated a small patch of land, standing out starkly in the otherwise pitch-black forest.

A rustling sound came from the grass.

The small animals have started to move around again.

As Lai thought to himself, he inexplicably felt like something was watching him from behind.

He looked back and found nothing, so he assumed it was just his imagination.

But soon after he turned around, the feeling of being spied on returned to him.

This time he acted as if he hadn't noticed anything, only glancing at it out of the corner of his eye, and then he saw some blurry halos.

Ray turned around abruptly, and those little halos, unable to dodge in time, were completely spotted by him.

He stared in astonishment at the tiny creatures before him, the same little sprites he had encountered before, beside the large ginkgo tree in the woods behind the small mountain village.

Realizing they had been discovered, they stopped hiding.

Little heads popped out one after another from among the branches, in the grass, on the moss-covered rocks, and in the clear puddles.

The dense forest surrounding the carriage instantly came to life; it was a truly breathtaking scene.

Whether they walk or sit, any moss or other plants they come into contact with will fluoresce in blue, green, pink, or purple.

Lai sat by the campfire, gently touching the moss and some plants to his right with his bone knife. He realized that this wasn't a scene created by the fairies, but rather the natural state of the forest's plants.

Water droplets accumulate on the large leaves of wild grass until they slide from the tips of the leaves into puddles, creating blue ripples.

At that moment, the forest seemed to be awakened to all its vitality.

The fluorescent plants seemed to have fully awakened, replacing the daytime green and taking over the entire swamp.

Colorful little fish swayed their flowing tails in the puddles between the tree roots, like ribbons left behind by a goddess on the mainland.

A beautiful, large bird I'd never seen before stood nearby, waiting for its chance to strike and hunt.

Perhaps due to consuming too many of these small fish, the feathers around their eyes also exhibit a fluorescent orange hue.

Apart from that, all you can see is its tall silhouette and a pair of long legs.

Lei felt that its appearance resembled that of the egrets commonly seen along the rivers in the south.

Under the cover of night, colorful spherical fungi growing on the edge of the puddle quickly broke through the soil, their mature predecessors resembling tiny cannonballs.

Gathering all its strength, it inflated itself into a small ball, and then with a "poof," fluorescent spore powder was scattered all over the ground around it, creating a miniature rain.

Ray was stunned by everything that was happening before his eyes; he had never seen anything like it before.

The curious little sprites drew closer and closer to the carriage. Knowing that these creatures were harmless and posed no danger, Lai didn't immediately chase them away.

Dozens of little sprites had already flown onto the horses' backs, frolicking among their manes and tails, but they did not startle the two horses.

There were also some curious little elves around the campfire and glass lamps, who, like Laiyi, sat in a circle around the fire.

Most of their wings are light gold in color, with only a very few wings having a green and blue halo.

Ray waved his hand, trying to shoo away the overly lively little ones.

They left, but soon they surrounded them again.

More and more sprites appeared around them, staring at Lei and the carriage as if they were looking at something new and interesting.

"roll."

Lian floated out of the carriage, leaving a trail of starlight beneath his feet, exuding an indescribable divinity.

He stood on Ray's left shoulder in a superior posture.

The little elves around the carriage scattered as if they had seen something terrifying.

For a moment, all that could be seen in Lei's eyes were their beautiful little wings.

The elves dared not approach the carriage any further, scrambling to sit on the branches and grass closest to Lai and the others.

He looked aggrieved.

"Why did you come out?"

Ryan glanced at Lai and thought that this human was really giving him a lot of trouble.

"Stay away from them."

"good."

Ray accepted Ryan's domineering statement well.

They wouldn't stay in the Great Forest of Eton for long; he didn't want to have any further interaction or karmic connection with these small creatures.

The little creature from the old ginkgo tree had left an indelible mark on his heart.

Are they all guardians of this forest?

"Ray asked."

"They can hardly be considered guardians."

Ryan looked around and was so startled that the little elf he saw darted into the tree trunk.

"It can be generated anywhere the elemental power is abundant."

"So that's how it is."

This is a little different from what's written in the book, Ray thought. But he still trusted Ryan, the elementalist, more.

"May I go to the edge of the swamp to take a look?"

"Go."

Lai got up and added a few logs to the campfire, then took a portable glass lamp from his pendant space.

Ryan remained standing on his shoulder without moving.

The closer he got to the swamp on the left, the more the little elves retreated, as if facing some kind of ferocious beast. Laiyi experienced the feeling of being a fox borrowing the tiger's power.

He just wanted to see what those fluorescent plants originally looked like.

Ray turned on the glass lamp and shone it on the area with the densest colors. There, clusters of all sorts of plants he had never seen before, some with broad leaves and others with narrow leaves, were growing.

Under the light, aside from the blue or green fluorescent colors, it looks no different from other plants during the day.

They grow on the edges, and no one would notice them as they walk by; they look like ordinary weeds.

There are so many plant species in this forest that it would be very difficult to distinguish them unless one is a professional scholar who has devoted himself to studying them.

Ray used the tip of his knife to lift the plant leaves, discovering on the back of several plants a completely different color from the front. There were also some purple flower buds hidden directly beneath each leaf.

Are they poisonous?

"No, but be careful over there."

Ryan gestured for Lai to look into the swamp, at the large flowers blooming on the water's surface.

Their flowers were truly enormous; Lei estimated they were as big as washbasins.

A wild bird approached, wanting to peck at the nectar on the flower. Suddenly, the bird was tightly wrapped by the petals of the large flower and was dragged to the bottom of the water before it could struggle.

After the flower disappeared from the water's surface, various colors of fluorescence appeared around it.

Ray felt a chill run down his spine. Was this the legendary man-eating flower?

"Carnivorous plants also have a digestive sac beneath the silt. The scavengers around it are its companion plants."

Ryan explained.

"Those fluorescent substances?"

"Um."

"Will it eat people?"

"......"

Lai accidentally blurted out what was on his mind, and felt a little embarrassed.

"No, you're too big for that."

"oh."

Silence is Eton tonight.

Lai casually picked up a small pebble and threw it into the water. It bounced and left five splashes on the surface, eventually creating ripples that spread out in circles, creating beautiful blue waves on the water's surface.

Lei speculated that, like the bioluminescent seas that were popular many years ago, these waters must also contain algae that can emit light.

Ryan was startled by Ray's sudden action and floated lightly beside him. He was somewhat at a loss for words regarding Ray's unexpected childish behavior.

"I never imagined I would see such a scene."

Ryan listened quietly to the humans talking. The situation was indeed perfect for them to express their true feelings, but Ray didn't continue, which puzzled Ryan.

Human emotions are always so changeable.

He followed Lai's gaze and saw many small white rabbit-shaped flowers blooming on a small patch of moss.

A little elf with light blue wings and a green wing are putting white flowers in each other's hair.

The little elves, already adorned with flowers, stomped their feet happily, then held hands and lay down on the fluffy moss, rolling around in a ball.

Who taught them all?!

Ryan frowned slightly.

These little guys only develop their own sense of action by imitating others.

As for those that had learned the wrong way, Lian accurately spotted the ones hanging upside down on the branches, the ones lying on the ground trying to eat grass, and the ones squatting upright with their hands on the ground, looking up and howling at the moonlight.

It's shameful, utterly shameful.

Ryan did not want to acknowledge that He and they were born in the same process.

"Ray, isn't it time to change shifts?"

Seyah's voice came, waking Lai and Ryan who were still observing.

The two turned around at the same time. Saiya rubbed his eyes, somewhat doubting what he was seeing.

"Ray, why did you raise a little elf?"

Has it been discovered?

Ray looked at Seyia, then at Ryan, who had somehow ended up sitting on his shoulders.

"If you're going to raise a pet, why did you have to raise a cripple?"

Lei: "..."

Li, the Elementalist, the Crippled Little Elf, An: "..."

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Author's Note: My father will arrive in the next chapter; I only regret that I couldn't fully describe all the scenes of the Great Swamp.