Chapter 173: Out of City

Chapter 173

Out of City

It wasn’t just the Nocturnal Rabbit that was affected. Ellie tried calling upon the Blue Apple of Disaster, the Purple Mushroom, the Rake, and even the Orb, which was still confused as to why its power level had suddenly increased.

After summoning all the beings linked to her spirit, it became apparent that the plants in both bonds received different boosts in power. First was the Blue Apple of Disaster. This little creature not only had round bomb sacs, but now it could also spit out bomb from its mouth once more. This truly was a special trump card. This meant her little Blue Apple could now explode enemies up to 4 times, instead of 3!!

Meanwhile, her Purple Mushroom gained the ability to float, which meant its spores could now drift in the air. Was this special? Absolutely, it was extremely special!!

Previously, she had blind spots in her vision from the air, and she had been attacked from above without being able to do anything. But this would no longer be the case. When encountering airborne enemies, Ellie could command the spores to disperse and float, as if weightlessly, into the sky directly.

Even though its disadvantage remained—being unable to move by itself—much like spores on the ground, if it couldn’t move, then it just needed to increase its numbers enough to cover the entire sky...

Ah...that was all just imagination. To cover both the ground and the sky, Ellie anticipated that she would need to be at the late stages of Level 4 or Level 5. Otherwise, her head would surely explode...

As for the rake and the orb, being merely magical tools, they didn’t receive much power. They only got an attack boost. This meant that if they could injure a level 4 beast before, now they could inflict more severe injuries. If that large man were struck again by the Microbial Orb’s botanic whip, he wouldn’t just cough up blood; he likely wouldn’t have the chance to cough up blood at all!

It seemed she had uncovered another mystery beyond the original plot. She didn’t understand anything about those ancient runes, only knowing that there were runes being used to stamp equipment or something else. If it weren’t for her accidentally discovering the botanic power hidden in the rusty ring, the secret of the ancient runes might have remained a secret forever.

Ellie let out a breath. The excitement of gaining this power was truly wonderful. As the beasts, plants, and tools linked to her spirit advanced, how could she not advance as well?

Looking at the ancient rune engraved on the inside of her arm, she still didn’t know what it could do, only feeling that her body had become much lighter. She tried moving her arms and found no resistance at all, as if the weight of her arms had decreased. Because of this, her movements had also become faster.

Whoosh!!

Ellie swung the Empress’s Thread behind her, discovering that her speed had increased by about 10%. This technique made it easier for her to handle enemies. Combined with the Soft Jade technique given by Professor Regan, she no longer had to fear enemies predicting her attack direction.

"Alright...today, I am more prepared than ever," a mysterious smile appeared at the corner of her mouth. Originally, she wanted to ask Metis’s commander to accompany her for protection. After all, this was a 4th-floor city, even 1st-floor cities were challenging. So, for safety, it made sense to bring guards, right?

However...after training hard, her power had now reached the late stage of level 3 and was close to advancing to level 4. She also had the little Apple, the little Rabbit, the Microbial Orb, and other techniques. Therefore, her worries had dissipated. If she encountered dangers beyond her control, she could simply use a signal flare to call for help.

Thus, the original plan to ask everyone to help protect her changed. Ellie decided to head out of the city alone!

Commander Metis opened his eyes and watched his mistress walk outside. The city’s residents were equally surprised. Even their former king never had such courage. This little human girl walked out of the city without taking a single soldier with her. However, the soldiers had no reason to object. Though they were forced to be loyal and obey commands, they did not truly think that way deep down.

If Ellie didn’t command them, they had no need to act. If she went out and died, their slave contracts would be void, and they would be freed by default. It was quite a favorable condition, wasn’t it? So, why should they volunteer to help!?

Of course, Ellie didn’t know their thoughts, or even if she did, she wouldn’t care much. Their duty was to protect the city, and as long as they lived their lives normally, that was enough. Assigning them to defend the city was already a significant contribution.

If other humans knew about this method, they would scramble to buy slave contracts because it meant they wouldn’t have to worry about forces to defend their cities anymore. Nowadays, they had to send their family members to patrol and ensure that beasts didn’t enter in large numbers, fearing that one day they would gather enough to declare an attack and reclaim the city.

Having natives as slaves would reduce the burden of defending their cities, allowing them to seize more territories. This would effectively lower the limitations on city conquests. Ellie believed that Eldest Young Lord Owen wasn’t a fool; he knew how much to leverage this remarkable tool, unless he wanted to completely upend the hunting culture.

While lost in thought, Ellie found herself at the forest to the right of the city gate, located between the cities of the giant apes, goblins, and the triangular-shaped beasts.

This area was where beasts typically didn’t group together much. On the left side of the city gate, the beasts would gather in groups. Until Ellie had more plants bonded to her, she preferred to avoid fighting group beasts, even though they were weaker than solitary ones. Group battles wouldn’t be good practice and would be riskier.

Now, Ellie put away the Purple Mushroom, letting it transform into tiny spores to scatter around, ready to assist in case of an unexpected situation. She also decided not to summon the rake. The orb would be kept as a trump card. This meant she would completely disguise herself as Luke. Up front, she had the Blue Apple of Disaster, still at Level 0, which she intended to level up first.

Moreover, its extraordinary ability was to stretch or shrink its body, along with the skill to launch 3 explosive attacks from its back, plus 1 additional attack from the ancient rune. This made it her best tank. At the same time, the little Nocturnal Rabbit could assist by using "Moonlight Bomb." Though it wouldn’t injure enemies, its power would disrupt their continuous attacks, and in that moment...Ellie would use Luke’s bow and chain knife to strike and end the fight.

Though this coordination plan seemed perfect, in reality, it might not be as flawless as she thought. The 3 had never fought together before. Ellie herself had to examine carefully and remained vigilant, regardless of the many hidden cards she had at her disposal...

Her first target was a nearby beast. It was a mere level 1 beast, but the fact that it roamed the forest alone suggested it had special abilities. Thus, Ellie decided to let her spores inspect the information about it first.

- Versekal, Level 1: Attributes - A beast resembles a common lizard but is larger in size. It has the ability to attack from a distance. Its venom is located in its tongue, and if struck by it, the victim will feel numb all over. When faced with a strong enemy, it can turn translucent to hide. If not carefully examined, it could attack while camouflaged.

Action Plan

Option One: Use the rooting of the purple mushroom spores to mark the location.

Option Two: Use the rooting of the purple mushroom spores to decompose internal organs.

Option Three: Use the rooting of the purple mushrooms for decomposition. -

If the Level 1 Versekal wasn’t detected by the spores, it might have turned translucent by the time Ellie approached. Such a special ability explained why many creatures ended up as their prey.

If gamers saw this ability, they might think that once it attacks while camouflaged, it would become visible. Unfortunately, that’s not the case with them. The Versekal didn’t blend in with nature but used its power to become transparent. This meant it remained unseen even when it attacked.

However, this seemingly cheating beast would just be prey to a hunter who didn’t rely on color vision. To those who saw only in red, white, and black, any living creature’s body would always had red energy. Snakes or rodents, for instance, would see the Versekal clearly, as would those who relied on their sense of smell.

It’s no wonder these creatures spread between the three cities to the right and couldn’t survive on the left side of the city. Otherwise, they would end up as food for the silver-furred wolves.

"A battle with a long-range attacker, huh?" Just the thought of the upcoming fight made Ellie feel quite excited. Who would have guessed she now had a moving target for practice!? With their abilities, as soon as they saw Ellie, they would surely turn translucent. And at that moment...Ellie would use her bow to finish them off first.

Their bodies weren’t very valuable, but they could still be sold for medicinal purposes. Some medicines required parts from Versekal, which were common in 4th floor areas, meaning their price would be higher compared to beasts like wild boars. In the future, she would need to take on missions to hunt Versekal from the Hunters’ Association, at least earning more points than hunting wild boars.

"Alright...let’s go," Ellie commanded. The little Blue Apple quickly hopped forward. Its body was only about the size of a fist, so its movement wasn’t too conspicuous. However, Ellie felt that her little Blue Apple had a rather somber personality, similar to Wint in its loyalty and obedience but with the quiet demeanor of Young Lord Owen.

Perhaps it was because it used poison, giving it a different feeling from the cute Purple Mushroom who wanted her warmth. But...since Ellie was surrounded by many peculiar humans, she quickly adapted to the little Apple’s nature.

The Nocturnal Rabbit had just leveled up, full of enthusiasm. Its eyes scanned the surroundings cautiously, unaware that Ellie’s spores were already proficient in surveillance. Even if it knew, it would still remain vigilant. It shouldn’t be forgotten that the Lunar Wolf pack attack its family. So, it’s no wonder it was paranoid about surprise attacks.

A small human and a single beast, along with a bonded plant resembling a frog, moved slowly forward. Meanwhile, the red eyes of hideous creatures watched them intently.

"Ki, Kee, Ki, Kack Kack."

"Kack Kack, Slurp, Slurp, Kack Kack, Kee."

"Kee, kee, kee."

The green-skinned creatures conversed in their tribe language. Some stuck out their tongues disgustingly upon seeing the female human, while others laughed maliciously. These characters were part of the author’s unique imagination that had been added to the story.

They could be none other than the native inhabitants nearby. Naturally, upon seeing a female, their objective was to satisfy their lust, unaware that they were messing with the wrong target!!

Not only did Ellie not see them as worthy opponents, but they should also consider asking the girl’s protector how he felt about his future wife being subjected to their vile gazes!

Not only would their heads be gone, but the shadow of their city would be obliterated as well!!