Chapter 32: As Long as the Mind Remains Steadfast

Luo Yong stood in place for a long time, pondering whether he should make a quick escape.
"I haven't really done anything, so why did the temple collapse so suddenly? If I've somehow angered the Forest Goddess..."
The gods of this other world—he couldn't tell if they were reasonable or not.
Considering the goddess was female, the likelihood of her forgiving him was hard to gauge.
Ahem.
He really shouldn’t have followed Wendy and the others into this secret realm so early!
He knew nothing, wasn’t familiar with anything, and stumbled along without understanding.
They, too, were crossing the river by feeling for stones, lacking any experience in exploring secret realms—making it all too easy to trigger traps or make fatal mistakes.
Getting injured was manageable, but losing one's life by accident would be truly unjust.
The best approach would have been to first accompany experienced explorers in low-level secret realms, learning every nook and cranny thoroughly.
Then, after gaining enough knowledge, he could venture into a new secret realm.
But...
None of that was possible now. Everything was already too late—the temple had collapsed, and the Forest Goddess might already be furious...
The thought that he had inadvertently offended a goddess soured his mood.
Would he ever dare to follow beautiful women into the woods again?
Ahem.
More precisely, to explore together.
Yes, to explore.
He let out a long sigh and glanced at the little emerald tree in his hand. At first, it had been enveloped in light, but now it had transformed into a piece of jade.
And with it, Luo Yong received new information.
Item: Blessing of the Forest Goddess!
Just like that...
The temple had collapsed, yet he received a blessing—if he activated it, he feared it would trigger a thunderbolt, striking down the holder of this item.
Activating it would be like sending the goddess a beacon, allowing her to pinpoint his location...
Luo Yong wasn’t sure if his guess was correct, but after checking his bearings, he decided to head back and regroup with Wendy and the others before making plans.
Starting from the temple’s location, Luo Yong calculated his route home and quickly set off.
On the way, he didn’t dare linger for monsters, hurrying along without incident, and after several cycles of day and night, finally saw the great tree that had become the secret realm’s key.
His teammates were already lying beneath the tree, seemingly preparing to meet their end.
As he drew closer, he realized their condition was poor—their supplies must have been exhausted.
Now, they were just waiting for Luo Yong to return—or for death, whichever came first.
Fortunately, Luo Yong arrived first.
At this moment, Luo Yong saw the giant tree shedding special halos from time to time, enveloping his companions, nourishing their bodies and sustaining their lives, allowing them to survive until now.
Seeing this, Luo Yong shook his head. He didn’t know how other heroes managed, but these people were in a rather pitiful state.
Recalling their earlier predicament, and Wendy’s words...
"Was it their beauty that led to their misfortune?"
If appearance is justice, then their justice seemed poised to lead them into oblivion.
"I think I hear footsteps..."
Just as Luo Yong approached the giant tree, intending to wake the others, a weak voice sounded.
"Shut up, you fat fool! Don’t interfere with our blessing!" Elia retorted sharply.
Perhaps, in this place, an obviously useless, weak, and space-consuming fat man was wrong even for breathing!
As he pondered this, the fat man suddenly smelled chicken drumsticks.
And the aroma was mouthwatering.
"I think I smell..."
"Shut up!!"
This time, several voices joined in unison.
The fat man wanted to speak, but managed to restrain himself.
"..."
Luo Yong opened his mouth, looking at the group sprawled out. The curves of some were quite pleasing, a rare and beautiful sight.
Ahem.
But what troubled him was that his storage space was nearly empty; even if he took out all his remaining food, it wouldn’t be enough for everyone.
"I’m back."
Luo Yong thought for a moment—if nothing else, they’d have to end this exploration for now and try again another time.
"Huh? I think I heard Luo Yong’s voice?"
The barbarian priestess struggled to open her eyes.
She couldn’t tell how long she’d been starving—opening her eyes was exhausting. If not for a sliver of willpower, she would have already succumbed.
"Luo Yong, is it really you?"
"You’re finally back!"
"Why were you gone so long?!"
Everyone perked up, rushing for the food and water Luo Yong produced, fighting over them and grumbling at the same time.
"We almost didn’t make it to see you return!"
The barbarian priestess was emotionally charged, though her hands moved swiftly.
As the newcomer, lowest-level, weakest, and most useless member, the fat man, Geer, was slow by several beats. By the time he shuffled over, nothing was left.
"Gurgle!"
He seemed to have lost weight in the meantime.
Luo Yong wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but the fat man seemed to be out of luck, unwelcome wherever he went.
"No stomach growling! None of us are full, and when your stomach growls, I feel even hungrier!" Elia clutched a finished drumstick, gnawed clean, refusing to let go.
"..."
The fat man silently moved aside.
"Is there any more?" The barbarian priestess pressed closer, looking at Luo Yong with a hint of fragility.
"How did your exploration go? Any gains?" Wendy wiped grease from her mouth, asking anxiously.
"I found this..."
Luo Yong produced the "Blessing of the Forest Goddess," letting everyone see it clearly.
"What’s this?"
"I found it in the Forest Goddess’s temple."
Luo Yong described the situation, emphasizing the scene of the temple’s collapse.
He also explained he was out of supplies.
"At least you found something!"
Wendy picked up the item, examining it closely. Something seemed to cross her mind, a peculiar glint in her eyes.
"The temple collapsing shouldn’t matter—in other secret realms, there are always ruined temples."
"But those were already collapsed; when people explored them, only ruins remained."
"Yet, at first, when those realms were discovered, the temples were intact."
"So, in other words..." Luo Yong looked at the others, testing: "The temple’s collapse actually had nothing to do with me?"
"That’s probably right. Or rather, whenever someone touches this [Blessing of the Forest Goddess], the temple collapses."
At this, Wendy gave Luo Yong a curious look and said lightly, "But you managed to escape immediately—that’s impressive!"
"Huh? My dear brother, are you hurt?" Hearing this, the barbarian priestess began patting Luo Yong all over, not missing any opportunity to scavenge.
But when she touched the Holy Light Angel, she merely examined it for a moment, her face reddening, but did not take it.
"I’m not hurt, but you all can’t hold out any longer. We should leave here quickly and come back when we’re better prepared."
"Well..."
At this, Wendy hesitated. The secret realm had been hard to enter; everyone had waited so long for Luo Yong, nearly dying here.
After paying such a price, and gaining nothing, it was as if the trip was wasted!
That thought made it hard for her to decide.
Then, she looked at her companions.
"We can’t handle the monsters here..." Elia said.
"Our levels are too low..." the Storm Sorceress added.
"We’re out of supplies..." the Wild Hunter said.
"I haven’t found a place suitable for tactical monster farming..." Luo Yong said.
"But we have no way out!" Wendy sighed deeply.
"That Ivan might already be waiting for us at the stone circle. He could have brought people from the Hero Association or the Mage Guild..."
Everyone’s gaze turned to Luo Yong.
"..."
Luo Yong was speechless. How had things come to this?
Damn it...
"Luo Yong, can you remove the +5 level rune gem from your equipment?" The barbarian priestess rummaged through Luo Yong’s belongings, leaving nothing untouched, even snatching the ‘Goddess’s Blessing’ lucky brooch hidden in his cloak and pinning it to her own clothes.
"What are you doing?"
Luo Yong asked, emotionless.
This barbarian priestess really treated him as family—not only taking his brooch without a word, but reaching for the necklace around his neck as well.
"If I combine the necklace and rune gem, I’ll have level 16. Maybe then I can fight those monsters!" she insisted stubbornly.
"Huh?!"
Hearing this, Elia was the first to rush over, trying to snatch Luo Yong’s necklace.
"That actually makes sense!"
"Then we can farm monsters in this secret realm!"
"Give it to me, let me try first!"
As they spoke, the group surged forward, surrounding Luo Yong once again with beautiful women.
Ahem.
"Wait!"
Seeing their wolfish expressions, Luo Yong quickly retreated several steps, slipping out from under the giant tree’s shelter, finally escaping their clutches.