Chapter 25: The Enchanted Forest

“Darkness Descends!”

With a mighty shout, Luo Yong raised his longsword as if it were a staff, brandishing it high as though he could stir the very heavens. In its wake, a sudden wind swept forth, carrying the stench of death and decay, much like a harbinger from hell itself.

Crack!

Crack, crack...

One by one, skeletal soldiers clawed their way out from the earth. Around them, gray whirlwinds swirled, and within those tempests, enormous skulls manifested, unleashing furious, wrathful howls.

“Dark... Darkness... Descends...? The necromancer’s ultimate art...”

No...

This is bad!

Just before making his escape, Ivan caught sight of the distant, fat corpse lying prone and motionless on the ground in a posture of utter submission. For some reason, seeing him like that sparked an irresistible urge to walk over and kick him a few times.

Ahem. But there was no time to dwell on such thoughts. Only moments ago, he’d been planning how to slaughter his enemies and conquer the renowned heroines of this land...

Yet how had things changed so swiftly? Dear gods! How had he ended up facing a necromancer capable of invoking such a forbidden art?

No! There had to be some grand conspiracy afoot!

“Darkness will shroud the earth; light shall vanish from the world. Only death is eternal...”

The unremarkable-looking necromancer finished his incantation, wielding his sword-shaped staff, and cast a fleeting glance in Ivan’s direction.

“Damn!”

In that instant, Ivan felt as though he might explode. He didn’t know where the strength came from, but he took off at a speed incomparable even for a level eleven hero. He probably had been hiding his true level all along.

But while he fled, the two minotaurs remained rooted in place. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to run—they simply hadn’t grasped the situation. They hadn’t been particularly loyal to begin with and had tried to flee, but their blades had become stuck, refusing to come loose.

The pair, perhaps not the brightest, strained desperately to free their weapons, locking horns with the skeletal soldiers as their eyes grew bloodshot with frustration.

By now, they’d realized what was happening and wanted to join in the act of surrender—after all, the rule of the underworld was that once you lay flat, you were out of the fight. Just like the pudgy corpse lying prone in the distance.

But... curse it all, their sabers wouldn’t budge, and so they couldn’t kneel.

Meanwhile, endless legions of skeletons—dozens, hundreds, perhaps thousands, as though all the armies of hell had been unleashed—rose from the ground. Skeletons of every kind appeared, forming a scene straight out of the apocalyptic legends of darkness.

And the necromancer, cold and emotionless, strode forward, surrounded by his skeletal host, passing slowly by the two hapless minotaurs.

“Great necromancer, please allow us to follow in your footsteps... uh, to become your subordinates, to serve at your command...”

As one of the minotaurs was petitioning their loyalty, Luo Yong approached from behind and tapped each of them on the back of the head with his longsword.

“Uh... What are you doing?” One minotaur turned around, seemingly unbothered by the blows, and asked in confusion.

Luo Yong opened his mouth, then glanced at his revived companions, hesitated, shook his head, and waved his hand dismissively. “Forget it. Let’s just take them down together!”

So, several figures pounced, raining blows upon the massive skulls of the minotaurs.

Thud! Thud!

The two hulking minotaurs were brought down by the group and quickly knocked unconscious. Only at that moment, as a ripple of magic washed over them, trails of smoke began to rise from everyone’s bodies, Wendy included.

“Sigh. I told you before, carrying those things around isn’t safe—you’re bound to get hurt...” Wendy muttered, pulling out a smoldering object from her pack and tossing it far away.

The others did the same, including the timid-looking fat man.

“Another newcomer in our party... and this one’s even weaker...”

At that moment, a strange thought crossed the barbarian priestess’s mind. Then, as if struck by a sudden realization, her eyes widened.

With those props destroyed, the horrifying scene and menacing environment, along with the endless skeleton army, all vanished, leaving only two solitary skeletons wandering in place.

Huh? Only two...?

The barbarian priestess grabbed Luo Yong by the collar, demanding angrily, “What just happened? What level are you now, and how can you summon two skeleton soldiers?”

“Aman.”

Before Luo Yong could answer, Wendy hurried over. “No time for explanations. We need to grow stronger, or next time we meet Ivan, we’ll be in real trouble!”

“Indeed. The same trick won’t work twice,” the storm sorceress agreed.

“Let’s talk after we enter the secret realm,” Luo Yong said, taking her hand and signaling everyone to follow, not forgetting to give the fat man at the rear a meaningful look.

“Stay close. Don’t lag behind!”

Within the stone circle, Luo Yong summoned the tiny tree in his palm, which began to float and emit a gentle light. The glow resonated with the magic array inscribed on the standing stones, casting the silhouette of a tree onto a central boulder, where a portal slowly appeared.

“So this is the Gate of the Secret Realm?”

Luo Yong glanced at his companions, noticing their expressions of awe and wonder. He chose not to say more. Once the portal stabilized, he stepped through first.

One by one, the group of four, five, six, seven people entered the Forest Secret Realm.

Upon stepping through the portal, Luo Yong’s vision blurred, and a fragrance unlike that of the wilds or plains filled his senses.

It was the scent of the forest, brimming with a magic so dense it seemed almost tangible.

“Will fighting monsters here make leveling up faster?”

But until he solved the bottleneck problem, faster leveling wouldn’t benefit him much. These thoughts lingered as Luo Yong waited for everyone to pass through the portal.

The portal still shimmered behind them.

“Won’t others be able to enter the stone circle and follow us in?” Luo Yong asked.

“The portal can be closed temporarily. We can reopen it when we want to leave,” Wendy replied.

To obtain the key to the secret realm, they had prepared for quite some time, making all necessary arrangements and gathering information.

“That’s a relief,” Luo Yong said as he began to fiddle with—

Ahem.

Certainly not with the barbarian priestess standing next to him.

Rather, he closed his eyes, communing with the little tree and guiding the portal to close. A moment later, the light shrank and vanished. Luo Yong opened his eyes to find everyone watching him expectantly.

“Take us to explore your secret realm, Captain Luo Yong,” Wendy said with a playful smile, making his position official. The others exchanged knowing glances, their gazes at Luo Yong tinged with ambiguity.

Ahem.

After all, he was already spoken for...

If only they’d acted sooner!

Hmph! Luo Yong thought ruefully, fully aware of their intentions.

They meant to cling to him for good.

But in this vast world, if fate had brought them together, so be it. Luo Yong wasn’t a petty man. Exploring a mid-level secret realm alone would take ages. Besides, why limit himself to just one secret realm? It’s far easier to get things done with more people!

“I know little about secret realms or how to explore them. Let’s go together.”

They set off in a chosen direction. Soon, a small river appeared ahead, beyond which lay a valley, and farther still, an endless forest.

“The Forest Secret Realm—there must be forest spirits or something like that here!”

“Spirits?”

“Not the so-called elven race, but living beings who exist in symbiosis with the forest.”

“What use are those?”

“...”

“Wandering aimlessly won’t get us anywhere. Where are the legendary treasures, the gold and jewels, secret techniques, peerless martial skills, divine legacies, holy swords, magic staffs...?”

“Why haven’t we seen a single one?”

“These things take time and careful searching. You won’t stumble upon them so easily!”

“We’ve got Luo Yong, don’t we? Let’s just follow him...”

“...”

Luo Yong thought for a moment, sighed, and said, “For now, let’s stick together. If it seems safe, we can split up and seek our own fortunes. This secret realm is much larger than I imagined. It’ll take a long time to explore. If anyone finds something another needs, bring it back and we’ll trade among ourselves.”

They wandered through the forest for quite a while, but aside from trees—more trees, and still more trees—there was nothing else in sight.

Gurgle...

The barbarian priestess’s stomach protested loudly.

“Let’s eat before we go any farther. We can rest here for a bit,” Wendy said, pulling some food from her pack and offering it to the priestess.

“Go ahead, don’t be shy.”

“Thank you...” the priestess replied, blushing.

“Hmph! Didn’t that Ivan you were chasing ever take you out for a good meal?” Elia grumbled, clearly displeased.

Just thinking of that fellow made her angry—he never treated her like a woman at all!