Chapter 168: The Population

Chapter 168

The Population

Owen whispered softly into Ellie’s ear. Who would have thought he had a habit of teasing others like this, considering his rather intimidating image? Initially, Ellie had thought Owen was fierce and domineering. Her first impression of him was the darkness surrounding him. But she didn’t expect that after his recovery, his lively nature would make her blush many times.

“Young Lord Owen seems quite skilled at talking to women, doesn’t he? I haven’t been with you long, and yet you tease me like this.”

“Hmm? Do you think so?” Owen laughed softly. However, his smile lasted only a moment before his serious expression returned as he leaned closer to Ellie.

“But you’re mistaken about that. I’m not very skilled at talking to women. But what you said is true: I do enjoy teasing you.”

“................” Ellie rolled her eyes upon hearing his words, causing the young man next to her to laugh out loud.

“Well, I must let you go now. I have work to handle before I come to pick you up. So, make the most of your time there. I’ve arranged for your accommodation and meals. There’s no need to rush back to the village since the other girl hasn’t been fully checked out yet. You can stay there comfortably, and if you want to stay longer, just send a message through my people,”

Owen said generously. He was always ready to pick Ellie up, whether it was 3 days later or a month from now, as long as she informed him.

However, within the next 3 days, he had work to handle and couldn’t personally take care of her. He thought Ellie might appreciate this since she often seemed to enjoy having her own time. Owen didn’t think Ellie would want to rush back.

“Thank you very much.”

“Mmm, go ahead and use this teleportation device,” Owen said, bidding farewell to the young girl. Ellie didn’t hesitate either.

The young man had brought her to the 4th floor in just under 40 minutes. His strength was truly enviable, and Ellie aimed to become just as strong. She had the image in her mind of Owen using his lightning powers to decimate numerous beasts, swiftly dissipating them. If one day her little Purple Mushroom grew stronger, could they do the same?

They only needed to digest the bodies of the beasts...but their level was still too low. The direction of development also involved speed. Their digestion speed was now taking about 20 minutes for a level 1 beast, down from over 30 minutes initially. It was clear that the purple mushrooms had leveled up significantly. If they only needed to digest internal organs, it would take less than 5 minutes. However, in real combat...5 minutes could mean death.

So, for Ellie to be truly ready for battle and as strong as Young Lord Owen, she needed to make her decomposers as powerful as possible.

Of course, Ellie wasn’t relying solely on her little Purple Mushroom. She also had the "Manchinel Blue Poison or Blue Apple of Disaster." But its path to power was still long; it was currently at level 0. However, Ellie knew its potential. Once it reached the same level as the Purple Mushroom, it would be exponentially stronger, as its name’s “special” designation guaranteed it was no ordinary plant.

Ellie resolved to train with her little Apple as much as possible over the next 3 days, hoping to advance it to level 1 or at least close to it as much as possible.

She received the teleportation device and activated it immediately, leaving Young Lord Owen watching her disappear. As the small figure of the girl vanished, the warmth in his eyes turned cold. His purple lightning flared and crackled continuously, creating a menacing sound. The beasts that were preparing to ambush them retreated in fear of this terrifying display.

Unfortunately, they realized it too late. By the time they decided to move, they regretted their mistaken decision to attack the two humans from behind.

Crack....Boom!!

Owen’s immense power didn’t end there. Soon, the sky was filled with purple lightning over an area exceeding 1 kilometer, causing anyone nearby to feel their hair stand on end and flee in terror.

Some hunters who came exploring nearby were lucky that Owen didn’t command the lightning to strike down. He was merely searching for groups of beasts clustering together, as this indicated the presence of a conquered city.

Ellie wasn’t aware of the havoc that ensued after she teleported to the city entrance, but she did know that all the spores she had released were destroyed by the lightning. This left her feeling a bit saddened by the loss of her little spores. However, it served as a warning not to release spores around someone as powerful as Owen again to avoid such losses.

Before Ellie was a green forest surrounded by numerous vines. This area was quite different from the typical forest of the 4th floor. Where Owen had taken her from the test area was a dense forest, but where Ellie now stood was more like a grove of vine-covered trees with various flowers.

As soon as Ellie appeared, a large man also appeared almost simultaneously. He had been waiting for her and was ready to serve the moment she arrived.

“Welcome to the city, my lady.” Ellie observed the man dressed in a black robe with dark purple patterns, different from the typical attire of the Setter family. This indicated that he was indeed one of Owen’s men, not following the orders of the Setter family. Moreover, a strange dark purple symbol was etched on his forehead, which made Ellie furrow her brows in surprise.

“This is an ancient rune mark, signifying a slave contract. I am a slave of Young Lord Owen. This is to prevent any future mistakes. You can completely trust me and another person who have been waiting for you inside.” Hearing this, Ellie couldn’t help but bite her lip.

It seemed that this eldest young lord was extremely cautious. He chose to employ only those who were willing to become his slaves. This was also beneficial for her, as it meant her secrets would never leak as long as Owen did not want them to.

"I understand," Ellie nodded before following the man into the city. The atmosphere in this city was quite eerie. The silence, devoid of any sound, made every step Ellie took full of caution.

Although this was her city and there were no signs of an attack, Ellie couldn’t feel comfortable in this unfamiliar place.

"In this hall, the slaves with whom you have made contracts are waiting. They will not move until you command them. You can give them tasks or choose one to be your guide and explain things to you," the large man introduced.

The hall he mentioned didn’t look like a typical human hall. It was constructed with large stones stacked together, blending seamlessly with nature. In fact, the city seemed more like a natural creation than a place inhabited by humans or other beings.

It was actually quite beautiful. Everything was arranged to harmonize with nature, surrounded by various plants. Even in this large hall, small plants grew in the crevices of the stones, giving it an enchanting and mystical feel.

The entrance to the hall was truly unlike a human dwelling. It was surrounded by vines. To enter, one had to push through these vines, revealing those waiting inside.

The large man performed this task, not letting Ellie struggle with her small arms. As soon as he lifted the vines, the sight inside made Ellie step back in surprise.

Who would have thought that the original inhabitants of the city were these types of beings? Ellie remembered the feeling of entering the spirit realm with the spirit script, encountering the purple mushrooms or even the little apple. She could see them with arms, legs, and cute faces. The images she saw were different from what others might see. But the beings in front of her were clearly visible as living plants, even to those without botanic elemental powers!

Their bodies resembled trees, with vines wrapped around them from head to toe, giving the impression of ordinary stumps aged by time and entwined with vines. Some had flowers, while others did not, making each one unique.

Each of them was quite large; only a few were around 1-2 meters tall, like her. The rest were about 3-4 meters tall. They had branch-like arms and legs but no fingers like humans. Nevertheless, they could move like any other living beings.

This was the first time she had seen anything like this, and it was a marvel that made her heart race with excitement.

"These are the original inhabitants of this city. Their king was eliminated when we seized the land. They are a new species that humans have not yet studied, so they have no official name," the large man explained.

“Even though they cannot verbally communicate, they understand our language, so they can guide you through gestures.”

"The temporary leader is that one. Its figure is 4.5-meter tall, almost as large as the king of this place. During the city’s conquest, it served as a commander. It’s quite powerful with many skills. However, after defeat, it chose to become a slave rather than die, likely due to family reasons."

Ellie gazed at the towering tree. Its dark brown trunk appeared quite imposing, clearly marking it as a formidable beast. Behind it, 4 smaller beings were trying to hide. Some were about 2 meters tall, while others were just over a meter. It was as the other man had said: this tree, full of honor, had to live in disgrace as a slave. The reason for its submission was undoubtedly the desire to safeguard those it cared about.

- Metis, Level 3: A plant monster with medium intellect. It can blend with nature and extend its body. It can grow its body into various forms of wooden sticks and uses vines to bind opponents. It can summon sharp wooden spikes to finish enemies and use tricks to lure them with its flowers, then bind them instantly.

Action Panel

Option One: Root to mark the location.

Option Two: Root to decompose the target.

Special Option: Due to the slave contract, they can be commanded without resistance. –

Ellie reviewed the power of the city’s inhabitants using her spores once more. The details she received were quite satisfactory. Now she understood why these beings were the city’s owners, despite the surrounding cities being filled with powerful beasts. It was because they were incredibly mysterious creatures, adept at deceiving enemies and possessing both immobilizing and attacking skills. Even strong humans could easily fall prey to them.

After all...their bodies were made of wood. How could anyone distinguish between a tree and a plant monster?

"Could you come here?" Ellie tried issuing a simple command. Her first order was directed at a small plant monster behind the city’s commander. The little one, about a meter tall, was very frightened, but it slowly approached Ellie, while the commander seemed visibly anxious.

After this initial test, it seemed that the slave contract indeed worked. Although the little one was young and reluctant to come to her, it experienced great pain when resisting. There were only 2 choices: suffer a painful death or obey the command. While effective, Ellie also recognized the limitations of the slave contract.

In other words, those bound by this contract knew that they would die if they resisted. For those who feared death, this might be effective. However, for those who did not fear death and were biding their time for revenge, it was a different story. For example, if a master believed that their slaves would obey all commands and never betray them, they might use the slaves as shields against powerful beasts in dangerous situations. This did not necessarily mean that the slaves would willingly comply.

One day, when a slave had had enough of living in disgrace and sought revenge on their despicable master, they could defy the command and choose to die instead. In doing so, they could leave the master in a difficult and life-threatening situation.

In other words...even with a slave contract, one should never trust anyone 100%.What she proved was this: when she called the little one, which was the family of the commander, she sensed that it was ready to betray her immediately if she harmed the family it loved the most. In such a case, it would probably prefer to die along with them. Although she wouldn’t be harmed because the slave contract wouldn’t allow a slave to reach their master, this condition was something that masters should be aware of...