I successfully sent Hikari away from this persistent green madness.
Perhaps in her last moments, she called out my name in a panic and shock, but at this moment, it was nothing more than a trivial matter.
The swirling sea of vines had already encircled us, completely obscuring the sky and the earth, forming a small, cramped enclosure just big enough for two people to huddle back to back. Despite my efforts to expand our space, Miyuki and I gradually found it difficult to continue, and even, due to a moment of carelessness, our hands and feet were locked by vines that had sneaked in from our blind spots.
"This is really bad!"
Looking at my hands, which were tightly bound, I couldn't help but sigh.
With one hand dangling in mid-air and unable to exert any force, Miyuki snorted and glared at me sideways: "Don't tell me you didn't notice just now. Even at this point, you still haven't revealed your hand. Even if I really didn't react, I'm sure you wouldn't make that kind of mistake."
This woman has a really quick mind.
I shrugged, letting the vines lead me toward some unknown place: "At first, I really didn't notice, after all, maintaining my senses outward for so long is quite tiring. But later, during the fight, I noticed that these vines even deliberately concealed their thorns, perhaps their original intention was just to capture us."
"By the way, didn't you notice that these vines all came apart after we were confirmed to have been captured and were no longer capable of resisting?"
Miyuki scoffed, "How do you know this isn't a disguise? Like a predator that presents itself as beautiful, perhaps this is just a facade to lull us into a false sense of security, with the real killing move still hidden behind."
“You should calm down and pay attention to the flow of magic around you,” I said. “What we are seeing before us is not simply a phenomenon of plant activation, but a plant activation dominated by a core entity.”
"Am I right? And what should I call you? Flower fairy?"
As soon as I finished speaking, faint laughter came from all around. A delicate pink flower bloomed in front of me, wrapped in wriggling vines, and was placed in my outstretched palm.
I looked up at Shenxue again, only to see the Iceberg Swordswoman turn her head away with a sullen face, as if to say, "I didn't see anything."
Then I was bombarded with pink flowers blooming all around me.
"This thing is just as annoying as you!"
I decided to ignore this baseless and unfounded accusation, along with her screams.
The sounds of laughter continued intermittently, sometimes seeming very close to my ears, sometimes fading into the distant green backdrop. Intertwined vines formed a straight, forward-pointing arched bridge. Even with the numerous flowers adorning it… the atmosphere felt somewhat strange.
"And the other one?"
Miyuki gave up struggling, like a piece of dried bacon hanging in mid-air, then respectfully brought back to the ground. Her swords and knives were held up by branches in a place she couldn't reach, moving along with us.
Of course, this is just the surface; we know the truth in our hearts.
Trying to probe the other party's intentions when they haven't yet revealed their true purpose but have shown some sincerity might be seen as arrogance. However, we are all confident we possess enough leverage to turn the tables, so we don't mind temporary humiliation, waiting for the slightest opening to strike a decisive blow.
Moreover, just as we discussed before, no matter what the true nature of the flower demon is, breaking through its core or killing the manipulator behind it is the only way to break this situation.
"In this situation where we're clearly facing an elite boss or a story boss raid, we obviously can't let that idiot become a hindrance," I said. "So I just sent her back to a safe place."
Shen Xue looked at me blankly for a long time, then nodded: "As long as everyone is alright, that's fine."
It seems she didn't understand the first part of my sentence. Well, that's not surprising.
Her expression darkened, she fell silent, and then sighed, "I really am still not capable enough."
“This isn’t your problem,” I said. “You’ve done enough.”
"He boasted that he could simply cut down any danger that might arise, yet he still became someone else's prey. If my swordsmanship had been more refined, perhaps I wouldn't have had to surrender."
No, have you ever seen a dying fish still have the ability to jump up and attack people, or even injure them?
"But you also engaged in two days of non-stop assault, which greatly depleted your stamina and mana. It's normal that you're not in as good condition as before..."
“That’s not a reason,” Miyuki interrupted me stubbornly. “Just as there is only life and death on the battlefield, there is only victory and defeat for swords.”
"And now I have lost, even if it was only by force, that is an undeniable fact."
Can't we just have a proper conversation today?!
A lump of anger welled up in my throat, unable to rise or fall. Seeing a light in the distance, I shook off [Frost Sword], who was caught in self-blame and reflection, and, after confirming that there were no danger warnings, quickly stepped out of the flower-lined arcade.
Instead of the expected groves of trees or wildly blooming vines, the bright sunlight spilled across the boundless lawn, and a gentle breeze carried the earthy scent of damp soil. Patches of flowers bloomed, not haphazardly, but in an orderly fashion, spreading a rich, sweet, and gentle fragrance through the air.
Not far from the flower field, roughly in the center, small and exquisite tables and chairs stood on a light gray round stone slab, while stone steps of the same style stretched straight to the front of the flower corridor, right where I stepped.
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