Chapter 20 Wilderness Mission (3) Now it's up to you...
"Wilderness Mission #70: [Golden Apple Sanctuary] has officially begun."
As the notification sound rang in her ears, Xia Ying suddenly opened her eyes and found herself teleported high in the sky, once again facing the crisis of freefall.
Xia Ying quickly retrieved the [Abyss Dangerous Creatures Compendium], intending to exchange it for a flight skill, but found that the fourth skill slot was not yet unlocked, and the fastest of the three existing skills would take two or three days to re-equip.
Then there's only one way.
Xia Ying took a deep breath and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Fafnir!! Help me!!!"
The whirlwind whipped up by the enormous membrane wings instantly brought Fafnir to Xia Ying's side. She reached out her hand to him expectantly, but received no response.
Not only that, even though they were already extremely close, the dragon looked down at her with its golden eyes and mocked, "You're not expecting me to save you, are you?"
At this moment, Xia Ying displayed amazing explosive power, hugging Fafnir tightly with both hands and feet like a koala.
"You have to save them today, whether you like it or not!"
The dragon reached out and pressed down on her back, chuckled, and deliberately accelerated towards the ground.
Xia Ying pressed her forehead against the dragon's neck and felt as if she were on a hellish drop tower, her brain being shaken so violently that it felt like her brains were being shaken to pieces.
Only when Fafnir slowed down slightly was she able to tentatively lift her face. Before she could even catch her breath, Fafnir had ruthlessly ripped her off his body and tossed her down.
Just as Xia Ying was about to scream, she unexpectedly fell into a clump of tree branches. Scattered leaves were splashed up, but the bent branches also supported her body.
Xia Ying looked up at Fafnir, who was leisurely flapping his membranous wings above her, and angrily raised her middle finger: "So what if you have wings?"
The large tree that caught her rustled gently, and magical particles emerged from behind the leaves, softly caressing her cheeks. At that moment, Xia Ying suddenly felt a strange sense of control she had never experienced before.
She raised one hand and tried to summon wind-attribute magic. As she followed her heart, a gentle breeze indeed passed through her fingers.
Indeed, like Xia Ying
"You only just realized it now?" Fafnir landed lazily, transforming from human form into dragon form, and lay down comfortably on the green grass. "Alright, now it's up to you."
"Beep! Wilderness Quest #70: [Golden Apple Sanctuary]: As the guardian of the Golden Apple Sanctuary, please protect the three golden apples from the intruder Hercules."
"..." Xia Ying glanced at the mission details, then looked at the motionless dragon, and calmly said, "Never mind, it's not like I didn't expect it to turn out like this."
She ignored the ineffective instructor and let the wind lift her up... Perhaps it was the principles she learned in the basic courses that came into play, as Xia Ying quickly mastered how to control magic elements.
Now she can fly without growing wings.
As Xia Ying experienced the feeling of flying for the first time, she continued to rise until she could take in the entire land.
Just like the mission name "Golden Apple Sanctuary," this is a vast mountain forest full of fruit trees, but only the thickest and most lush apple tree bears golden apples. It is located in the deepest part of the orchard, heavily protected and surrounded by dense forest and forest creatures.
Xia Ying quickly realized that she didn't actually need to fly up high to observe the Golden Apple Orchard. As the guardian, she naturally possessed the perception and control over the orchard.
With just a thought, all the details here appeared in Xia Ying's mind:
She knew exactly which soil the tree spirit took root in, which fruit tree the wood spirit parasitized, which stream the spring water nymphs lived in, and even where there were traps set by bloodthirsty vines, and where there were precarious loose rocks and poisonous swamps... Xia Ying knew everything about the orchard.
Perhaps it was the familiarity that fostered a sense of closeness, and a sense of responsibility to protect the orchard arose spontaneously in Xia Ying's heart. At the same time, she also developed a clear idea for a defense plan to protect the golden apples from the invaders.
"Warning! The intruder Hercules is one-eighth of a mark away from reaching the Golden Apple Garden! Garden guards, prepare for defense!"
Xia Ying seized the time to rearrange the layout of the Golden Apple Garden.
Starting from the entrance, she first cleared a canyon path riddled with traps. Once an intruder steps into it, the vampire vines will launch the first round of resistance, binding the enemy while boulders roll down from both sides, dealing heavy blows to the intruder.
Of course, the invaders are unlikely to be easily defeated by these attacks. But that's alright, after passing through the path, a maze composed of tree spirits and wood elves awaits them.
Tree spirits have an appearance and properties very similar to trees. They have almost no sense of pain, and their wooden limbs can regenerate in a very short time even if broken, making them excellent berserkers.
Wood Spirits excel at confusing enemies in the forest, causing them to lose their way, fall into fear, confusion, and other negative states. When used in conjunction with Tree Spirits, they can achieve remarkable results.
Next, the wounded invader will arrive at the spring where nymphs dwell. While the beautiful nymphs and the spring water have healing properties, the illusions they weave are equally deadly. These illusions will lure him into the poisonous swamp adjacent to the spring, where he will meet his demise.
Xia Ying couldn't help but applaud her own troop deployment: "Absolutely perfect! Hey Fafnir, did you see my genius strategy...?"
She turned her head and saw the dragon with its eyes closed, breathing out its breath rhythmically; it seemed to have been asleep for a while.
...tasteless thing.
Xia Ying turned her face away indignantly, just then a new task notification sounded.
"Warning! The intruder Hercules is about to enter the Golden Apple Sanctuary!"
Her attention was immediately drawn to the entrance of the apple orchard, where she waited intently for the intruder to appear.
A short while later, she heard the sound of the earth shaking.
The deep, loud, and continuous sound proceeded slowly and rhythmically, and then Xia Ying saw a bronze giant appear in her field of vision.
The bronze giant's muscles bulged exaggeratedly, and he held a spear and a thick shield in each hand. More weapons and bloody spoils draped over his half-naked body, making him look like a slowly moving, bloody iron tower.
This is Hercules, the invader.
Wait a minute, doesn't this dungeon boss seem a bit unbalanced?
Before Xia Ying could react, Hercules had already stepped onto the canyon path, and a vampire vine immediately shot out from the ground, fiercely stabbing towards his foot...
It was deflected by Hercules's indestructible skin, and the giant, oblivious to its presence, trampled the blood vine mercilessly with a "smack."
"..." Xia Ying immediately changed her strategy, "Don't try to break through his armor! Everyone move in and entangle his feet! Push the boulder down!"
All the vines instantly climbed up to Hercules, tightly binding his calves and ankles. Hercules finally noticed the movement beneath his feet.
He frowned, strained, and lifted his right foot. Instantly, cracks appeared in the ground, and a large clump of vampire vines that had been binding him was uprooted. Just then, the boulder rolled down and struck the giant's head.
Hercules paused, and the orchard, which had been trembling with excitement at his arrival, fell silent for a moment.
Xia Ying stared intently at his movements, not daring to breathe.
After a long while, Hercules moved.
"Warning! The intruder Hercules has been enraged! His stats will be doubled!"
His eyes turned bloodshot, he smashed a boulder with his fist, and roared furiously at the sky.
What could be more troublesome than an overpowered boss with high attack and high defense?
Xia Ying: Hello, yes, there is, an overpowered BOSS that is unharmed but enters the second phase of berserk mode.
Enraged, Hercules brandished his spear and ran through the canyon. Before the boulders could even tumble down, his steel spear had already cleaved off the mountain walls on both sides, and rocks and clods of earth were smashed into pieces as they approached him.
Before this embodiment of brute force, the collapse of a canyon was like a handful of dust, unable to cause him any harm.
Hercules leveled the canyon and then charged into the dense forest of dryads and wood spirits. Amid the wood spirits' screams, the dryads surged toward him like a tide. The giant swept his spear across them, slicing them in half. The dryads quickly regenerated their limbs and returned to fight. Hercules simply fought with his fists, knocking the dryads one by one into the sky.
The Wood Spirit's mental attacks had almost no effect on the enraged invader. The increasingly sparse forest could no longer hinder Hercules's progress. He quickly found his way forward, exhaling sulfurous, scorching breaths from his mouth and nose, and ran forward with all his might.
The shockwaves in the Golden Apple Garden felt like the sky was falling. Could Xia Ying's last line of defense, which she was so proud of, withstand this terrifying and unstoppable force?
"Of course not!!!" Xia Ying shouted at the delicate spring water nymphs, "Get out of the way!"
The nymphs looked terrified and quickly hid in the water. However, without their prompting, the irrational invaders waded through the spring and rushed into the poisonous swamp behind them.
The enormous, incredibly heavy giant indeed got stuck in the swamp, gradually becoming unable to move in the thick, dark purple venom. But having learned from the previous experience, Xia Ying swallowed hard, not daring to relax her guard for a moment.
This trap seemed to have struck a nerve with Hercules, and he was slowly swallowed up by the swamp, with gurgling bubbles rising to the surface.
After a while, even the bubbles disappeared.
Xia Ying continued to wait cautiously.
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
"Warning! The intruder Hercules has been resurrected! His stats will be increased fivefold!"
Xia Ying cried out in despair, "I knew it!!!"
Nothing could stop Hercules, whose power had increased fivefold. He broke free of the poisonous swamp and advanced in a straight line toward the golden apple tree in the center of the orchard, destroying everything in his path.
Mission No. 70 is on the verge of failure, and Xia Ying can no longer stand by and watch.
As Hercules raised his weapon, she flew at full speed towards the golden apple tree, whereupon the giant cleaved the tree with his spear, breaking its branches and causing the golden apples hanging from the treetop to tumble to the ground.
Another hand swiftly reached out from behind the tree trunk and picked up the golden apple before he could.
The next second, a gale and the roar of a giant suddenly arose. Xia Ying dared not look back and fled for her life.
Compared to the giant's astonishing speed, even flying was no longer an advantage. Xia Ying tried to take the golden apple and ascend into the sky, but as soon as she left the bushes, Hercules took the powerful bow hanging on his body and shot an extremely terrifying arrow at her.
That arrow carried an overwhelming pressure, almost tearing space apart. Just being touched by the air currents it stirred up rendered Xia Ying unable to move due to fear.
The special effect of the "Unyielding One" title has been triggered. Remaining cooldown: 10/10 days.
With reason returning, Xia Ying suddenly turned in the air and plummeted straight into the forest, weaving through the trees.
Hercules' arrows, though relentlessly pursuing, were not adept at dodging obstacles. After piercing several trees, they finally became stuck in an exceptionally thick trunk.
Xia Ying didn't get any respite because the giant on the ground was already catching up.
Thanks to the mental immunity effect of the title "Unyielding One," Xia Ying, standing in the Golden Apple Sacred Garden that had been destroyed beyond recognition, began to think.
In fact, there is a simple and intuitive answer to this question.
Xia Ying did not hide herself before picking up the golden apple, but Hercules completely ignored her presence.
Just as Xia Ying's role in the mission is that of a guardian, Hercules, as an intruder, has only one logic for action: to obtain the three golden apples. Even when he loses his mind, his actions do not deviate from this goal.
Therefore, what he was chasing was not the guard, but the golden apple.
In other words, he attacked Xia Ying because he believed it was a necessary condition for obtaining the Golden Apple.
This is simply because Xia Ying is holding the Golden Apple.
At this moment, the last patch of bushes that had been covering Xia Ying was also swept down by the spear, and the intruder revealed his enormous and terrifying body from the mess.
Xia Ying suddenly raised her head and ran straight in a certain direction.
Hercules naturally caught up, and his speed was constantly increasing, but Xia Ying only wanted to buy a little bit of time... She found Fafnir resting among the branches and leaves, then raised the golden apple high and threw it at the dragon with all her might.
The dragon, which could sleep peacefully even amidst the massive tremors, was awakened by a tiny, precisely targeted attack. Before opening its eyes, it instinctively spewed dragonfire toward the source of the strange object.
The golden apple was enveloped and engulfed by brilliant flames, and quickly vanished into nothingness.
Hercules witnessed the destruction of the golden apple and unconsciously stopped chasing after Xia Ying.
The dragon watched as the golden ashes slowly fell, then stood up, swatting Xia Ying, who was flying towards it, to the ground with a single claw, and asked from its height, "What have you done?"
Trapped under the dragon's claws, Xia Ying's shoulders twitched slightly, and she soon burst into uncontrollable laughter, laughing until she could hardly breathe and her whole body trembled.
On the other side, Hercules raised his spear, his body radiating astonishing rage and energy, his gaze fixed on the dragon's location.
Xia Ying wiped away the tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes: "It seems you have no choice but to save me now."
"Warning! The destruction of the Golden Apple has caused the Intruder Hercules to enter his final state! His stats will increase tenfold!"
"Alright, Fafnir, keep it up."
The girl looked up, and with a comforting smile, patted the fingers that were pressing against her.
"The rest is up to you."
A note from the author:
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Xia Ying, AKA The Despicable Stranger, also known as the Idea King Cocytus, has a quality that the author finds very charming and adorable: she gets even more ingenious when faced with dire circumstances.
Also, I have to announce that this novel is going to be a paid chapter!! The next update will be a long chapter of 10,000 words, released at midnight on Friday!!! The author is currently in a nervous newbie phase (?) and is a little uneasy about going paid, but I really, really hope to get everyone's encouragement and support!!! If you like this novel, please remember to support it! (kneels down with a thud), thank you so much!!!
Also, please check out the author's upcoming works! [Hugs]
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