Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 481 - 429: The Protocol of the Transcendent

Chapter 481: Chapter 429: The Protocol of the Transcendent

It was the Forest Master that provided the power for the oath. Xu Yang silently sensed it and could still see the eternal oath he had signed with Farosa, Lila, and Pan Ruiyi, prohibiting them from crossing swords with each other.

"We need to discuss this matter carefully," Xu Yang appraised the Forest Master, "about how exactly to attract followers and offerings."

It emitted a hoarse gasping sound, its gaze dim, its form enveloped in a rust-colored Phantom Light as if it had traversed through the depths of history, yet was scarred all over.

"As you wish," the Forest Master said in a low voice.

Strong, mysterious, and solemn, the Forest Master was once the most renowned Ancient Mystic of the Middle Ages. Humans of the Middle Ages were at a loss with the large expanses of woodlands; whenever they treaded the ancient paths of the dense forests, they had to be extremely cautious to not incur the wrath of this ancient spirit.

However, nature faded before human brutality, the dense woods easily turned into timber and fuel, and its hiding places were destroyed again and again. The Forest Master also became a victim of capture and enslavement by corporations until it was finally far from danger.

Xu Yang had heard that Northern Military Industry extracted life force and magic power materials from its body. After such a long time of torment, pain, and hatred should’ve taken deep root in the Forest Master’s heart, but Xu Yang could not discern any of its thoughts. The Forest Master remained silent for a long time, existing as a majestic deer with a wooden-patterned shell, as serene as a sculpture, as majestic and noble as the forest itself.

"Give it this to drink." Mond produced a bottle of shimmering red potion from underneath his scales, and Farosa took the magic potion bottle and examined it carefully.

"High quality, indeed," Farosa smiled, "It can heal very serious injuries."

"Yes, but it is not prepared for you," Mond’s massive claws moved slowly on the ground.

With its colossal size, the slightest movement caused a cascade of vibrations, as if the ground itself might tilt with the shift of its body mass.

Farosa slowly turned around and handed the magic potion to the Forest Master.

It gazed at the bottle of potion and then its brass cap removed itself. The Forest Master absorbed all the essence of power from a distance, drawing it in as a diffusing vapor, and following that, its vitality visibly began to restore.

The most noticeable change was its antlers, which swelled rapidly, sprouting more branches and sharpening at the tips. Lush white fur grew over its body, and its eyes kindled with pale green flames, while its strong limbs supported its immense frame. Only at this moment did some of its supreme dignity appear restored.

"... I need a group of followers; I will strictly limit their number to avoid troubling you," a filament of brilliant light wound between the Forest Master’s huge antlers, merely gazing at this natural divine light made one feel peaceful and comfortable.

"You’re very clear on the rules, aren’t you?" Farosa said with a smile.

"Because I know what kind of people I am dealing with," the Forest Master paced slowly on the grass, its exquisite snow-white fur covering its body, adorned with amber mystical patterns, "You are both greedy and fair, both cruel and generous. You are a larger three-headed beast than I, with each head performing its own role."

It turned its head to look at Xu Yang, Farosa, and Lila in turn, its Burning Eyes seeming to peer right into the depths of one’s heart.

"The first year will be one thousand people," Farosa commanded in a judicious tone, "the second year will be one thousand five hundred. That is the limit to the number of followers you can accommodate."

"It needs more people to perform the ceremonies," Mond struck the ground with his claw, and the invisible shockwaves made Farosa’s Rainbow Cloak flutter, "How dare you treat it like a newly captured prisoner!"

Farosa turned her head to look at Mond, craning her neck to meet the gaze of its huge, thickly scaled dragon head. Her gaze held a sharp edge, and with each breath, she exhaled a slight mist of moon-white dust.

Unyielding.

What would happen if she clashed with Mond? Farosa attempted to project the future in the vast expanse of her thoughts.

The outcome was unfortunate; she would be engulfed by moon-white flames in the first round. "Moonfire" Mond’s own pale dragon breath was sufficient to ravage and devastate, a thousand times more formidable than Wei Shiyue’s meager flames.

This projection was so vivid that the real Farosa felt a twinge of unease.

Mond’s colossal claw reached forward to a delicate distance, one charge from which would be enough to crush Farosa. A true Ancient Dragon King, its mere emanation of dragon’s might could cause mortal life to flee in terror.

So that’s how it is. Farosa thought to herself. She now understood Mond’s stance; it was necessary to maintain the status quo, ensuring a delicate balance between humans, witches, and their kind of ancient beings, never allowing any side to overpower the others.

The humans held the advantage for now, so Mond was investing in both the powerful witch and the weakened Forest Master. If Farosa showed signs of acting unilaterally, it would intervene to achieve balance.

Mond’s bottom line was not to be tested.

Better to give ground for now, Farosa mused. Sooner or later, she would brandish her sword at it again, and the dominion over the world would have to fall into Farosa’s own hands.

She was still pondering how to reach the pinnacle of power when she turned her head and saw Xu Yang sitting on the back of the Forest Master, strolling through the Moonlight Garden. They seemed to be conversing happily.

"How did you get up there?" Farosa was very surprised.

"We have reached some agreements," Xu Yang looked down and felt a great distance from the ground; everything was in balance. The Forest Master’s shoulder height was six meters, more burly than the tallest moose known to date, yet it moved with grace, and sitting on its back was without any jolts.

"What agreements?" Farosa crossed her arms over her chest.

"It will have its own domain, worshipers, but in the deepest part of an ecological forest concealed from public view, only a few passionate about original ecology and environmental protection will join," Xu Yang explained. "It will not only protect the Golden Branches and Golden Trees that Nestor Corporation currently has but will also purify our land and air for free. It’s mutually beneficial."

"But I haven’t proposed my terms yet," Farosa protested.

"Many things can only be proven in practice," Lila took Farosa’s hand, "Let’s see what kind of changes the Forest Master will bring to the world first."

"When I regain my position, nature shall be restored," the Forest Master lowered its body, then raised its head high and let out a resounding roar, "The ancient vegetation shall be reborn."

What a magnificent sight. Xu Yang looked around. Every ancient tree in the Moonlight Garden trembled slightly, the leaves clapping against each other to produce joyful sounds, as if responding in welcome to the Forest Master taking up its rightful place.

"Yes, you will restore this increasingly collapsing, fractured, and corrupted world," Mond raised his dragon head, "This is the value of the Transcendent Alliance. We advance and retreat together, eliminate hatred and displeasure, and push the world toward its glorious, integral, and proper side."

History was once again turning in her own hands. Farosa chuckled to herself. It remained to be seen what significant changes the Forest Master’s return would bring.

On the other side, at the outskirts of the western part of Anjiu City’s garbage dump.

The hunched Scavengers Leader sat on a patched-together tricycle taking a break; the trunk was filled with recyclable waste picked from the Garbage Hill, ready to be sold for a few coins.

As usual, Anjiu City’s large and small waste management companies made three trips a day, transporting massive amounts of residents’ waste from the city. The quad-rotor, large-scale Shuttle Machines approached in formation, opened their cargo bays, and dumped tons of waste down like heavy bombs, continuously increasing the height of the Garbage Hill.

Near his broken abode, Kensaku Fujiki, a member of the Anjiu City council, had arrived, accompanied by research members from several private environmental protection companies of the Taixi Continent.

"The people here are suffering from pollution and radioactive waste," Kensaku Fujiki quickly walked towards the Scavengers Leader, "There’s no need to think anymore, tell your people to put down their guns."

The Scavengers Leader turned his head, with hundreds of silent Scavengers holding homemade rifles, aiming at Kensaku Fujiki and the company members.

Even with guns pointed at them, Kensaku Fujiki and his companions remained calm, knowing that once the Scavengers fired, it would be a severe violation of security regulations, and the entire Scavengers Society would be razed to the ground.

"What if I sign," the Scavengers Leader spoke slowly, "will you push through the environmental tax bill?"

"Yes, we need our people to go in to collect some data, take some photos; with your approval, I am confident I can persuade the other council members to levy an environmental charge on every product sold in Anjiu City," Kensaku Fujiki turned to point at the towering Garbage Hill.

The environment here was a hundred times worse than he’d imagined; he should never have visited in person.

"For your own profit?" the Scavengers Leader said coldly.

"To improve the environment," the environmental company representatives took out many exquisitely packaged boxes, "You see, every household needs a water filter faucet like this one, everyone needs a high-standard air purifying mask, and there are all sorts of antibacterial gloves, no-wash solutions, and anti-radiation tablets."

"And then, the benefits are distributed among your own," the Scavengers Leader muttered.

"You could also become one of us," the company representatives smirked.

"And every factory," Kensaku Fujiki smiled, "will have to switch to environmentally friendly production equipment, or they’ll face hefty fines. Think of the benefits."

"...You treat environmental protection like a business, as long as you keep thinking this way, these problems will never be solved," the Scavengers Leader’s tone was forlorn, his voice increasingly hollow and powerless. "The harmful substances in the air, water, and soil, and all those diseases, cancers, accidents, and noise... none will be resolved."

"Look here," Kensaku Fujiki stepped forward and whispered beside the Scavengers Leader’s ear, "How about this, we can provide you with houses within Anjiu City, as many as you want, as large as you want."

The Scavengers Leader swallowed and felt like he was drinking his own blood as he swallowed.