Chapter 54: The Power of Spirits

"Tell me, Kanan, Nala. Do you know how long the warrior was infected for?" Solan asked.

Both of them shook their head.

"The only thing that I can say," Nala said. "Is that he was infected today. As for how many hours he was infected for, I do not know."

"So this means that it takes at least a day to not only get infected, but also die from said infection."

Elder Hal and Nala looked down in shame. They wanted to completely ignore something that could kill them in the span of a day. Compared to the Angler Poison that could take days or weeks to set in, this threat was much worse.

"Kanan, if you were to study this, do you think Lord Nemean would help you?"

"No." He wasn’t going to beat around the bush or lie to any of them. "However, I do think that the power he gave me can help in finding a cure, or at least a way to halt the infection."

"And how would you be able to find a cure?"

"I don’t know. There is something on my mind, though. The monster that gave the warrior the infection went through the same life-draining process, but there was one difference between the two."

Everyone leaned forward in their chairs as they waited for Kanan to reveal what he had learned.

"The monster’s plant was dead. Look at this warrior; he’s dead, yet the plant is alive. This means that the plant cannot properly absorb the monster’s nutrients; therefore, it dies soon after it sprouts."

Solan smiled. "And you wish to test this theory?"

"I do. The plant, even now, is able to pollinate other living creatures. But keep in mind that the monster that attacked the warrior died AFTER pollinating him."

"I see. You wish to test if monster blood can negate the effects of the infection." Solan nodded.

Kanan was pretty surprised that Solan caught on to what he wanted to do. He assumed that people of this era were pretty primitive in their ways when it came to phenomena they didn’t understand.

’Lord Nemean must have given a lot of knowledge to our ancestors for the current generation to think like this. It’s my fault for assuming the people of this era were incompetent. Besides, this isn’t even Earth, and apparently, we aren’t even human.’

Kanan learned a bit ago that their species was called Yurations, and the system told him that they live on the planet called Yuratia. That would explain why some people had pointier ears than others after getting their blessing.

"Yes. I wish to test it on monster blood and work my way from there. Using my spirit abilities, I think I would be able to amplify the effect of the monster blood as well. But I’ll have to test it out to see if I’m correct."

Solan nodded. He was happy to see Kanan stepping into his role and taking it seriously. "I’ll allow it. But you will be closely monitored, and if things go wrong, you will have to bear the consequences. Lastly, your tests cannot take place in the village."

"I understand."

"Good. Elder Nala, please take the body back to the mountain past the river; that is where the testing will be done."

"Yes, Chief."

"This meeting is adjourned. Kanan, follow me."

---

The chief didn’t speak as he led Kanan out of the village. Without even asking, he began to float into the air, lifting Kanan with him.

His belly hitched, and he could feel butterflies in his stomach. Kanan had tried to fly multiple times, but he couldn’t get the hang of it.

Theoretically, he could, but he was kind of scared of heights, so he didn’t do more than leap very far, and even that was pushing it.

"Scared of heights?"

"Technically, no. I’m afraid of what could happen to me at this height."

"Fair enough. Take a look over there." Solan pointed to the west, past the river and beyond the trees. There was a green cloud in the sky, something no one would notice at first unless they looked closely.

"What’s that?" Kanan wondered

"Spirit Energy, but not like our own."

"What do you mean?"

Solan cleared his throat before he began to speak. "Kanan, I’m sure you’re aware that we aren’t the only tribe that can use spirit energy, right?"

"Yes. I’ve come across one of the Typhon Tribesmen, and they used some green energy."

"That’s correct. We use our spirit energy via a blessing from Lord Nemean. They give us a role and a power to accompany it. The other tribes are different. The Typhon Tribe uses something called Nature Spirits to fuel their power."

"Nature Spirits? Like the land?"

"In a way. They can channel the life energy of the world to empower themselves. This gives their abilities a green and sometimes blue hue to them. Their tattoos also help with their spells."

"I see. So that cloud is the Typhon Tribe’s doing."

"Correct. I’ve seen it before, when I was young. It’s a signal for war, at least that’s what we classify it as. By channeling the spirits of nature, the Typhon Tribe grows stronger."

"Then are they channeling the power of the air at the moment?" That was the only thing that made sense in Kanan’s head.

"I assume so. We never got close enough to learn what their abilities can fully do. But we know enough through war."

Kanan hoped the Typhon Tribe would at least back down for a while, focus on surviving the winter, and keep a low profile. But seeing how adamant they were about going to war, the wall currently being built only reinforced that he had made the right call. Not that he had ever doubted it.

"Are we preparing as well?" He asked the chief.

"We are. And thanks to you, our weapons have been better than ever. The wall is nearly complete and will be done by the time winter is over. All of the warriors, hunters, and guards are prepared, and we’ve stocked up on food for the time being. Once they attack, we’ll be ready."

"I’ll do my best to help in any way that I can. I don’t wish to repeat what happened those years ago."

"Hahaha! If that’s the case, make sure to get some more women pregnant before we go to war."

"Y-Yes, sir!"