Find a Troubled Girl after leaving the Guild-Chapter 410 - 227: The Path of Timber Harvesting (Part 2)
With the Material Magic Scripture obtained, Li Ang now found shaping the Flying Wings a piece of cake; with High-tier Magic at his disposal, he no longer needed to construct the Wind Wings as before. Whether it was Arcane Energy or Ether, just a small amount could easily carry him into the air with a gust.
Li Ang could even lie back, resting his head on his arms while crossing his legs, watching the young girls toil away.
The one truly having a hard time was ALulu.
Her petite stature, even though her legs were proportionate for the Horned Race, her situation in chest development exceeded even their standards.
Usually, she ignored the hindrance her body posed during movement thanks to her bodily strength and flexibility, but now she needed to jump up and down, maintain balance, and contend with the added force of descent and swaying, which made things tough for her.
Not to mention she also had to carry a Giant Shield and a Giant Sword. To keep them from hindering her progress, she had to adjust their positions constantly.
Watching Xiaoniu struggle so much, Li Ang felt a tinge of heartache but didn’t step in to help directly, recognizing it as a situation she needed to acclimate to.
ALulu understood this as well, holding her breath as she with a face full of sweat caught up with the other three.
The tree roots almost covered the entire lake surface, making it impassable for ships, while the central ancient tree’s crown housed the most formidable Demon on Mengze Island. The conditions amidst the cloud mist were complex, and the Flying Airship wouldn’t land here.
Since Nebis’ adventurers discovered the high-quality timber of Mengze Island and made timber gathering here a habit, most people came to collect the wood themselves.
Choosing the island center naturally meant facing the toughest challenges for building the best ships. In some places, one could reach by boat, but in this tree-root maze on the surface of Island Heart Lake, it was completely impassable.
Some had attempted to clear paths by cutting the roots, but overnight, they would regrow. Excessive destruction could even provoke retaliation from lake-dwelling demons.
However, possessing the high-quality Shipbuilding Treasure Tree from Mengze Island was a fantasy that could drive a greedy person mad, so eventually, a group of Excellence Realm assembled, intending to clear the demons dwelling by the giant tree. The islanders’ attempts to stop them were in vain.
Yet, they did not expect the resulting attack to summon a sky-covering demon, and the forest by the lake began to grow wildly. In an instant, the entire island awakened, becoming their enemy.
Thereafter, the islanders became even more resolute in their belief considering the spirits of Mengze Island as Divine Spirits.
Until the Sky Knight Guild was established, the events on Mengze Island seemed akin to ancient legends. While some questioned the authenticity of that history, the guild adhered to respecting the islanders and restraining the Sky Knights.
Thus, advancing on the tree roots was inevitable.
People who came to Mengze Island to gather timber sometimes heard the islander’s counsel — treat the trees sincerely, and they will reciprocate, making your ships solid and unsinkable.
This seemed like mysticism, but, for some reason, in the Sky Knights’ circle, the belief persisted that if the Flying Airship’s wood came from the island’s heart, the hull would be more durable and long-lasting. Some criticized this belief as baseless, but those who were strong enough still came once.
After over an hour’s walk, the roots beneath their feet became as thin as a log bridge, making ALulu considerably more at ease as she kept pace with the group.
Zoe, as though finding this too easy, joked, "Is this the test that Li Ang talked about? Not even as hard as climbing a mountain."
"You’ll suffer later," Li Ang replied dismissively.
From his floating height, he could see the distant tree roots, which, at their end, rose like small mountains. Calling it mountain climbing would be an understatement; it was more accurately compared to rock climbing.
And in that exceptionally challenging area, demons of the Transcendent Realm, like those from the Demon Tide, would appear, making the difficulty of becoming proficient in tree felling on Island Heart Lake exponentially higher, with drastic jumps in difficulty after each segment of advancement.
The Star Flower Travel Corps had reached only about one-tenth of the way, barely seeing any animals living among the aquatic tree roots.
They walked only a few dozen meters before the first demon appeared.
Blade Scale Lizard, a Tier Two Demon.
Zoe drew her sword and launched a Wind Blade, effortlessly dispatching the demon.
Another half-hour of easy demon encounters, but the path became progressively tougher.
Once the roots grew beyond the thickness of a log bridge, their rise and fall formed towering walls, making climbing necessary in many places.
By now, demons hiding among the roots launched ambushes that were already in the Transcendent Realm.
When Zoe stepped up the tree roots, a snake-shaped demon suddenly lunged from the shadows. Dodging it, Zoe’s foot got caught in the crevice of the roots, trapping her Long Boot.
The attacker was a Poisonous Flying Serpent, a water-attribute subspecies compared to its close relative encountered in the Flashing Field; this snake-shaped demon was in the Transcendent Realm, able to amplify its venom spray with water elements, giving it a broad attack range.
As Zoe was ensnared, she swiftly crossed her arms, pulling out the Dual Swords, cutting towards the tree root at her feet with one hand while hurling the other sword forward.
The Wind Breath Sword, under Zoe’s Wind Manipulation, served as a Flying Shuttle, directly striking the Poisonous Flying Serpent to stop its venomous assault.
The next moment, the young girl freed herself, switching to a Celestial Maiden Stance. With her Light and Soft body, and aided by the wind, she lightly tapped the root, propelling herself upwards to land on top of the root.
Retracting the Dual Swords, she swiftly executed several slashes that made the serpent retreat. On the side, Andasu’s Blade Claw struck fiercely, coordinating with ALulu’s Heavy Sword, slicing the demon into pieces.
Zoe sheathed her swords, but the carefree grin was gone.
By the time they approached sunset, the first formidable enemy appeared before the young girls.
Here, the roots were already two to three meters thick, making advancement incredibly difficult. They weren’t quite thick enough to treat as genuine mountains, but their thickness made climbing for leverage quite challenging.
And a seemingly amphibious, half-fish demon lay sprawled between two roots.
It resembled a fierce black fish, but its body was much suppler, capable of extensive bending.
Its designation as half-fish stemmed mainly from having only two fin-like forelimbs, which helped it crawl when out of water.
Its surface was coated with slime, rendering its dwelling particularly slick; clearly not an ideal battlefield, yet the humid environment of Mengze Island ensured no shortage of water.
"Be careful," Li Ang cautioned from the side, "Its exterior might seem ill-suited for combat, but its magic power fluctuates at Tier Five. It certainly has some special skills."
Cursed Scale Fish, Li Ang had encountered its menace before. Although he wouldn’t interfere, he shared crucial information with the group.
Seeing outsiders approach, the Cursed Scale Fish swam a loop on the root on which it laid, its scales beginning to emit light.
