This was a forest of unknown trees.
Three enormous trees leaned close together, entwined. They looked like a pair of triplets born together without separation.
These three trees formed a remarkably exquisite single-family villa.
Clear signs of human intervention were visible. Huge, sunken tree roots formed the entrance.
Enormous branches stretched out to form the villa's balcony, and windows could be seen within the lush foliage.
Vines entwined the trees, their flowers and fruits shimmering faintly. This seemed to be the source of the nighttime illumination.
The entire forest was filled with similar villas, but the three trees before them were clearly the finest and largest.
Clearly, the integration of these three trees wasn't the result of intervention, but rather a unique formation.
"Dear guests, this is your resting place, the Seat of the Three Trees.
This is the best living area in the Emerald Fortress. I wish you a pleasant evening."
He led everyone inside.
They passed through the gate formed by tree roots. As they entered, the roots slowly shifted, transforming into the gate's door.
In this area, two or three guards could be seen patrolling.
Compared to the vast forest, these two or three guards seemed a bit perfunctory.
But if one considers the time and the dangerous defensive battle they had just experienced, it's understandable why there were only a few.
The single-family villa, twisted and entwined, consisted of two floors.
It had a variety of rooms, large and small.
This was a novelty for everyone who had lived in such a house for the first time.
After all, this was a house formed by the fusion of three trees, and these three trees had grown together perfectly. Julia could clearly sense the trees were incredibly healthy.
Because they were used for living, they were well-maintained, even free of borers.
"If you need anything, you can ask the guards outside for help."
The girl, preparing to leave, addressed the crowd.
Everyone nodded.
They watched the girl depart.
After she left, Alka stepped on the wooden piles beneath his feet.
"Huh... it's still so comfortable to walk on land."
This swamp made Alka somewhat uncomfortable. It wasn't because of any mysterious power.
It was simply a discomfort to his senses.
Because this swamp wasn't as boundless as the ocean, allowing for boats to freely sail through it, nor was it as thick and solid as land, giving a sense of security.
Beneath the surface of the sea lay a layer of footing made of various plants, vines, and rocks, much like a swamp. This feeling of being stuck in the middle of nowhere made Alka extremely uncomfortable, and the swamp was as vast as the ocean.
‐‐ It was even more uncomfortable.
‐‐ In response to Alka's sigh, everyone except the three sea-dwelling races nodded in agreement.
‐‐For the three sea-dwelling races like Pororo, whether it was the swamp or the ocean, they found it much more comfortable than the land on the island.
‐‐ This was the difference brought about by race.
‐‐ However, after finding a relatively safe place to stay,
‐‐Lucelia led her puppet army to select a suitable room.
‐‐"Zero, let everyone rest well. Wu and the others will check and fix everyone's problems."
‐‐ The previous battle was not without losses for the puppet girls.
‐‐ Although there were no casualties, some damage was inevitable.
‐‐ Simple repairs were needed.
They could now handle this simple maintenance perfectly well on their own, without Alka and the others having to worry about it.
Thankfully, the villa was spacious enough.
After watching the chattering puppet girls gather and choose their rooms,
The Crystal Dragon's discontented roar could be heard from a window on the second floor.
Everyone felt somewhat helpless at the sound, and Jason had no choice but to go upstairs and comfort her by the window.
From outside, one could see the Crystal Dragon standing on a thick branch, roaring in discontent.
Next to it was a window leading inside.
From the Crystal Dragon's current size, it was clear that the interior of a building like this was no longer suitable for her.
Thankfully, the building was formed by the intertwining of three massive trees, with a comfortable area of branches above, perfect for the Crystal Dragon to rest.
But for the Crystal Dragon, this was still not a good option.
Let alone here.
Even on board, the Crystal Dragon was no longer able to enter many areas, including the cabin, forecastle, and poop.
She could generally only move about on the deck.
She had also moved her resting area there, occupying a corner of the deck most of the time.
However, this was a necessary challenge as she grew larger and older.
Everyone sat around the hall, chatting casually, resting and recuperating.
Enjoying the tranquility.
"Did you see the gray-black aura surging from the boundary between life and death?" Sofia asked, leaning back on a rattan chair.
At this question, Alka nodded.
"The monsters attacking from the boundary between life and death shouldn't have completely retreated yet, right?"
Simon nodded at this.
"Indeed, when I left just now, I noticed the soldiers were still preparing. They only cheered briefly, no roars of victory."
"That's fine. This will help us gain their trust and hone our attacking skills, so why not?
But remember to protect yourselves. We only need to attack from a safe distance.
After all, we're only here to help, not to die."
Hearing Alka's words, everyone nodded without objection.
Because it was true.
At a time like this, offering assistance during a war like this, is indeed the easiest way to gain trust.
This was also their main purpose for coming here, despite the risks involved.
They were searching for treasure here, and therefore had to rely on the locals' help.
Helping in times of crisis is the easiest way to gain trust and respect.
"Speaking of which, don't you see any buildings like churches? No churches or anything like that?" Juanlu asked, somewhat curiously.
They hadn't seen any church along the way, but they did spot some clergy.
Including the young woman who had led them here, and the powerful old woman.
Judging from their attire, they must be clergy.
"I don't know. We'll find out later," Pororo said nonchalantly.
After chatting for a while, Alka clapped his hands and looked at everyone, saying, "Alright, let's all rest. We've walked so long, it's time for a good night's sleep."
After taking the necessary precautions and checking, everyone chose a room to rest.
Even so, the entire building still had several empty rooms for resting, demonstrating the vastness of this tree villa.
...
About a week had passed.
With the help of the additional personnel who arrived later and Alka and the others,
The island was finally safely defended, and the ensuing battles didn't involve significant loss of life.
The gray-black aura at the end of their sight, not far from them, began to dissipate, signaling the complete failure of this enemy attack.
It also indicated that there would be no new waves of attack, and the next war would have to wait a few years.
For a few years, they could finally enjoy a little peace.
As the enemy's formations and feet retreated, and the aura began to dissipate,
The soldiers, who had fought for so long, finally cheered loudly.
Declaring victory in this war.
The land in front of the island and the swamp beyond, which had been covered with floating debris of plants and undead bodies, began to be cleared.
And so did the bloody remains of limbs dangling from the vine-covered walls.
Fortunately, although these enemies were all undead, they had, after all, mingled with the plants that represented life.
Even the corpses no longer carried the usual stench of decay.
Instead, some of the broken branches and leaves carried a medicinal or refreshing aroma.
These debris would provide the best nutrients for the plants within the fortress and the vine-lined walls.
They returned to the Three Tree Seats, cleaned themselves of any impurities, and rested in the hall.
After a week, they had become familiar with most of the people on the island.
They had also successfully gained the trust of the islanders, not just this island, but also the official forces of the Land of Spirits.
They had already earned their trust, as long as they didn't violate other people's rules.
After a full week of war, assistance was not something to be taken lightly.
Without their help, while it might have been unlikely that the island could have been completely conquered in this week, the damage incurred would have been unacceptable under the current circumstances.
This also gave Alka and the others a clearer understanding of this haunted place.
"So what do we do next?"
Sofia, sitting in a rattan chair, looked at Alka and asked.
Alka sat at a small wooden table, on which was a rough map of the entire Zehai.
Looking at the relatively safe area they were currently staying in.
[Land of the Spirits]
[Treasure Quantity: White - Large, Blue - Large, Orange - Trace.]
[Area Difficulty: Insane]
[Area Description: Battle of the Six Gods, Brilliant Fragrance - The Land of Matilda's Fall.
The god is not completely dead; the Virgin Mary is helping her revive. The area difficulty for members of the Virgin Mary Church will be reduced to Normal.]
The first thing to note is the number of treasures. There are no gold ones. The only noteworthy one is the presence of an orange treasure.
A [Scepter]-level treasure.
But the problem wasn't anything else, but the awkwardness of the map they held.
The map they held wasn't a regional map, but rather a world map.
A world map is composed of several regions, displaying a general overview of an entire ocean area.
While regional maps offer minimal information, they can be very useful in certain situations.
He would directly display hidden treasures on the map using light spots. While this wouldn't reveal any information, the location of the light spots was the most valuable information.
Alka and the others only needed to find the right locations and draw a detailed map. They would then be able to accurately determine the treasures those light spots represented, along with even more detailed information.
Due to the unique structure of the swamp sea,
They had to consider whether the orange treasure they were looking for might not be on the island, but rather within this swampy area, where plants and vines intertwined.
If it was just on the island, their workload would be significantly simpler.
All they had to do was reach every island in the Land of All Spirits and draw a detailed map.
If they weren't on an island, that would be troublesome.
They needed to draw a detailed regional map, which meant they had to have a broad, yet relatively general, understanding of the entire Land of All Spirits.
Only then could the map be recognized and used.
Looking at the map in his hand.
A sudden thought struck Alka, who slapped his forehead.
He looked up at Simon, who was fiddling with something.
"Simon, didn't the exploration materials you looked for earlier say that the Land of All Spirits was the most detailed map ever drawn?
Every area and island is clearly defined, with nothing left out?"
Hearing this, Simon put down his equipment, lifted the visor from his glasses, turned, and nodded.
"If I remember correctly, it's written like this."
Hearing this, Alka pondered for a moment, then came to Sofia's side with the map.
"Are you sure you can create a separate map for the Land of the Spirits? Zoom in a bit, especially the islands."
Sofia looked at the detailed drawing on the map and nodded, but still said, "Sure, it can be separated.
But I must point out that after all, I didn't survey it myself.
The drawn map may not completely correspond to reality; it depends on whether the drawing is accurate."
Alka nodded. "Sure, go ahead and draw it. If it's truly useless, we can measure it ourselves."
"Okay."
For an orange [Scepter]-level treasure.
This little bit of work is completely worth it.
Sofia began to enlarge the drawing based on the existing map.
Alka waited nearby.
Until the sky was obscured by the stars and the darkness of night, Sofia handed the map she had drawn to Alka.
This was much faster than usual; after all, it was simply copying and enlarging the map without much difficulty.
Alka blinked as he looked at the detailed, enlarged map in his hands, then began to examine it carefully.
Amidst Alka's slight nervousness, spots of light began to appear on the map.
The moment they began to appear, he breathed a sigh of relief.
This meant the map was usable.
Spots of light began to appear all over the map, scattered everywhere.
Not only on the islands, but also in the swampy areas covered in intertwined vines, there were also numerous spots of light.
It was just that there were more of them on the islands.
Until that dazzling orange beam of light appeared.
Just as Alka had imagined, the orange beam of light didn't appear on the island.
Instead, it appeared in an area outside the island.
According to the markings on the map,
The largest island in the entire Land of Spirits is the one in the center of the map, and it's also the main gathering place.
The orange beam of light was a long way from the island.
Compared to the border area they were currently standing in, it was on the other side of the map.
It was practically on both sides of the area, and it would take them quite a while to reach it.
Alka looked at the blue and white dots of light scattered around their current area.
There were quite a few of them, and they were quite close to them.
After a moment's thought, Alka stretched out his hand and drew a circle around their area.
After making his decision, he went back to rest.
The next morning, everyone
As everyone gathered in the hall, quietly eating breakfast, Alka spoke.
"Sofia, today we'll explore the island and its surrounding areas. It would be best if we could draw a detailed map."
Sofia nodded, and everyone confirmed that Alka seemed to have a clear goal.
"The rest of you can stay here. You can also go out and gather some intelligence; the more the better."
After dinner, Alka, Sofia, Pororo, and Lucilia formed a group and began to wander the island.
"Is this their planting area?"
Sofia asked as they passed a garden.
The flowers in this garden were large, and within their stamens were white fruits.
These white fruits looked very familiar; they were what they had been eating frequently recently.
Flower fruit, a type of fruit that grows from flowers.
Depending on the type of flower, the fruit's flavor and nutritional value can vary.
There's even something called a spice fruit.
It can almost be called a versatile food plant.
This plant is almost the island's primary food source, with fish being another major source.
However, as Juanlu put it, this flower-bearing fruit may only be able to thrive in this area.
This is because it doesn't look like a natural plant, as if it were artificially manipulated or constructed.
It's likely a gift from the soon-to-be-resurrected deity of this area, bestowed upon its followers.
Because this single plant almost offsets the majority of other plants.
The flowers it produces are dense and lush, each bearing numerous fruits. Even after being harvested, the plant won't wither, but will continue to bear fruit.
This meant the islanders weren't too short of food, not to mention the fish they had available.
Furthermore, they didn't see any church-like structures on the island.
The official authority in the entire area was the church, the so-called religious power of the Flower Fairies.
And there was another important factor to consider.
This area was the burial site of a powerful deity from tens of thousands of years ago.
There was no need to dwell too much on any unusual features.