Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 679 - 43 Forest’s Anomaly_1

Chapter 679: Chapter 43 Forest’s Anomaly_1

"Slap, slap," Catherine casually patted Vivian few times before letting go and letting her escape her clutches. She turned to Lina and said, "We need to thank Lady Denia for her gifts in advance. Once we return to the Holy City, we must visit her temple together to express our gratitude."

In the world of Yarra, most people of the Third and Fourth Epochs have faith in a deity. For these two epochs, a soul without faith is incomplete, and even after death, such a soul cannot find peace. Hence, everyone chooses a god to believe in, even if one is merely a pan-believer.

For instance, in Nellie’s adventure team, Catherine believes in the god of justice. Even though the original god of justice fell at the end of the Third Epoch, it doesn’t deter some from holding steadfast faith in him. Their belief in a fallen deity is a form of faith as well. Freya and Vivian believe in the god of wisdom, Weston, and, much like most mages and scholars who tend to be pan-believers, they still aspire to be summoned by the deity into their kingdom after death. Pannis’s faith is even more unusual, as he directly worships Lord Yarra, the creator-god - a rarity amongst even the most powerful and egotistical professionals. They believe they will stand at the pinnacle of all living beings, therefore, only bestowing reverence to deities, and offering their faith and worship solely to Lord Yarra. Regardless, such individuals are considered to have faith and can find peace after death. Out of everyone, Ava is the most unique case. She was created directly from Sigein’s blood and theoretically considered Sigein’s child. As Sigein, prior to his divine duty, was a church’s strongest member, Ava, by blood, belongs to the lineage of god’s children. Even without faith, she bears familial imprints. Being eternally alive and a deity, even if Ava dies, her soul does not sleep but directly returns to the Mother God’s Divine Kingdom."

However, since everyone has their faith, though there are no definitive rules, most would not visit other deities’ temples. Even pan-believers who believe in several different deities would not visit temples for deities outside their faith. Doing so would be disrespectful to both the worshipped and their god. There’s one exception: when one receives significant gratitude from a deity or their representative on earth, they must prepare a suitable donation and visit the temple formally, expressing gratitude directly to the deity before the statue representing them. This act won’t be misconstrued as a change in faith or disrespect towards the deities, but this ceremony is usually reserved for genuine endowments. If no response is received for such worship, it results in an awkward situation.

"Alright, I understand. After we return, I will ask High Priest Ankava to preside over the ceremony personally," nodded Lina and continued, "As a member of the adventure team, I’ll also be present; hence, I can’t lead. I hope Uncle Ankava’s health holds up."

"Now that all of you have finished your tasks," Flare interrupted the two ladies conversation with her gentle voice, "if there’s nothing for me, I should get going. While I did inform the Elder Council when I left the King’s Court, they’ll keep grumbling if I stay away for too long. It’s better to return sooner."

"Don’t joke around," Pannis, who was languidly sitting aside quipped, "The surgery wasn’t prolonged, but the heavy psychological pressure has left him as exhausted as if he had undergone a long and tough battle. As expected, Ava transferred from Freya to Pannis’s lap silently, stuffing her long hair in Pannis’s hand without uttering a word. It seemed that to her, even if there was no hairbrush, having her hair stroked a few times was a pleasurable experience. Pannis’s smile, an amalgamation of helplessness and satisfaction, brushed her hair through his open fingers, and said, "Your Majesty, are you planning on walking nearly a thousand kilometres through the Snowfield in these shoes?"

"You don’t need me now, right?" Flare looked at Pannis resentfully, "Even the honorifics have been discarded?"

"Alright, alright, I was wrong, Flare," Pannis raised his hands in surrender with a wry smile, "It was an old habit I haven’t let go of yet. I hope you can forgive me. However, I wouldn’t recommend leaving right now. Crossing nearly a thousand kilometres of Snowfield is not as easy as it seems. Have you forgotten how gruelling it was when we came here together last time?"

"What should I do then?" Flare furrowed her delicate eyebrows in anxiety, "Should I inconvenience Mina to make another trip to send me back? Her energy expenditure for today’s trip has already been quite significant. Another trip would be too taxing."

"I don’t have any issues," Mina’s opening remark sounded like thunder reverberating in the cave, sending all present into a state of daze. Mina, however, was used to this volume. She opened her eyes and continued, "In a few days, I’ll have to take a roundabout route anyways. Taking you along on the way isn’t a problem."

"You’re awake?" Flare kneeled in respect, "My thanks to you, gracious Guardian, for bringing me here without concern for your own exhaustion."

"It is my honor, comrade," replied Mina, a member of the dragon clan not known for their adherence to formalities, yet she answered Flare earnestly, "We have fought alongside each other, destroying countless undead. We have developed an unbreakable bond of friendship during these battles. The small favor I did today hardly necessitates such a grand show of gratitude. I overheard your concerns earlier. Don’t worry, I assure you that I’ll take you back."

"That’s right, we’ve already discussed this with Mina," Pannis explained. "We need to find an automatic treatment device, and she’s provided several possible locations. The plan is for her to carry us overhead to those approximate locations, and then Ava will sense from her back whether there are remnants of a research center below. If there are, she’ll assess if it’s the one we’re looking for. Once everything has been confirmed, she’ll drop us off near the remnants before returning here. If you need to head back, you might as well wait a day or two. Once Mina has rested, she can give you a lift either close to the Elven Forest or in some major city along the way, from where you can quickly get a horse back to the King’s Court."

"That’s not entirely out of the question," Flare thought about it, seeming a bit troubled, but eventually nodded in agreement. "I guess I could stay a few more days. It’s not like I’m missing any important meetings anyway."

"You don’t have to wait that long." Mina disagreed, "I know you decided this out of concern that I might be fatigued from the continuous, long-distance flight. But you underestimate the physical capabilities of the Drakes. Yes, flying full speed for a full day is tiring, but it’s not so bad that I need to take to bed. Actually, if I sleep tonight, we can leave tomorrow morning."

"There’s no need to rush, Mina," Pannis advised. "A slight delay wouldn’t be a big issue. As for Flare, despite her complaints, she’d probably just receive a telling-off from the Elder Council."

"It’s not just about you guys," Mina disagreed. "Don’t forget there’s other business to attend to. After dropping you off, I have to hurry back, ask Waren to call an Elder Council meeting and inform them of everything you told me, then get approval to assist you in your investigation. Of course, I’ll help with the investigation even if we don’t get authorization, but wouldn’t it save a lot of trouble if we did?"

"Investigation?" Flare asked with a puzzled expression. "How did investigation come into play? Where are we investigating?"

"The Forest of Death," replied Pannis. "It’s a bit tricky to explain, I’ll give you the full story in private later. In short, something might be amiss in the Forest of Death."

"You also suspect that something is wrong in the Forest of Death?" Flare was astonished. "That’s a coincidence, we thought so too. The meeting I mentioned returning for is actually to discuss this issue."

"Oh?" Not only Pannis, but several members of the adventure team also became interested. Pannis asked, "Has anything strange happened in the Forest of Death that would raise your suspicions?"

"Do you remember a couple of months ago, when Maya and Tiya asked everybody to help out in the Winged People Mountain Range?" explained Flare. "Since that disturbance caused by the Demigod magical beasts, the backlash has not settled down. Frequently, solitary Demigod magical beasts emerge from the depths of the Forest of Death and cause destruction. These beasts behave as if they’ve gone mad, with no sense of rationality at all. So, we suspect that there’s a problem deep within the forest causing this abnormal behaviour."

"Has it been happening often?" The members of the adventure team exchanged few glances, and somewhat shocked, Pannis asked, "Up till now, how many instances have occurred? Other than their lack of rationality, was there anything else unusual about the beasts?"

"Around seven or eight headed towards us, while there were approximately five instances in the Winged People Mountain Range. To the north is the sea which the beasts can’t cross, to the east is the Perpetual Icefield where the beasts might freeze. So it’s about twelve or thirteen instances in total," remembered Flare. "As for other anomalies, not that we know of. Or perhaps we failed to notice something? But that’s unlikely; we’ve checked everything very carefully."

"I understand," nodded Pannis. "It seems there are some things I have to share with you in advance regarding our suspicions about the interior of the Forest of Death. To be continued. To those who love this novel, feel free to cast your recommendation votes or monthly tickets on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. For mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com."