"Taught by the Guardian Totem?" Iruline's eyes lit up. If it were something that the Guardian Totem taught, it definitely wouldn't be something simple.
It might be a powerful weapon that the nymphs could use to protect their family.
"Good kid. You did well, earning the Guardian's guidance" Iruline complimented while rubbing the young nymph's head.
She was curious and wanted to learn what these small sticks could do, but there was not much time.
The tribe soon moved, marching towards the territory of the remnants of the lizardmen. Of course, not all of them are sent to fight.
A mid-level Transcendent, along with three other nymphs, was left behind to protect their Guardian Totem.
Eradicating the lizardmen and making sure that they wouldn't be able to pose threats against the nymphs was important, but the safety of the Guardian Totem was even more important.
Due to the close proximity of the two tribes, it didn't take long before the two sides met. The lizardmen's territory was next to a river, considering their preference for locations with bodies of water.
The nymphs didn't hide their trace, and even before they arrived, the lizardmen already saw them.
"It's the Butterfly Nymphs! Are they the ones that made the Chief and our other thirty tribesmen vanish?" One of the lizardmen cannot help but ask, but he was immediately refuted by another lizardman.
"That's impossible! Look at them; fewer than ten are transcendents. Although our tribe has weakened due to the chief's disappearance, our current strength remained roughly the same as their strength."
"Besides, we are physically stronger compared to these Butterfly Nymphs. We have a high chance of winning."
"Right! I wonder who gave these nymphs the guts to attack us? Do they think we are pushovers?"
The nymph's fighting power at the same rank, except maybe for the likes of Wyden, was actually mediocre at best. Lizardmen have an edge against them most of the time.
Since the cultivators of the two tribes are roughly the same, but lizardmen are generally stronger, what is there to be afraid of?
Besides, this is a chance to finally defeat the nymphs and turn them into slaves!
"Hmm? What are they doing?" Another lizardman asked after noticing that the nymphs stopped just at the entrance of their tribe.
"Are they… are they praying?" Another lizardman asked with a frown.
Praying… isn't that something they only heard being done by tribes that have the protection of a Guardian Totem?
It can't be that the nymphs also have a Guardian Totem, right? After all, what totem will accept such a weak tribe as its worshippers?
The lizardmen were doubtful, but the nymphs continued to pray to Nexus.
With their combined prayers, Nexus finally sensed that the battle against the lizardmen was about to start.
His power was not yet strong enough to determine his worshipper's state, and for Nexus to know that they had already arrived at the enemy territory, the nymphs must collectively pray to him.
Now that Nexus was informed, he immediately made his move. He had the mushroom that had the water stone tied on it release a bit of mana from its [Energy Sac].
As soon as it does that, the water stone is immediately activated, and the mushroom, sitting on top of Wyden's palm, is immediately covered with water particles before it shoots a spray of water against the lizardmen.
Just one attack alone already caused three lizardmen to die when the water penetrated three bodies at once.
Nexus's [Energy Sac] was simple. It can store energy and release the energy when needed. Which was also Nexus's way to actively defend himself if he is alone.
Just imagine hundreds or even thousands of mushrooms shooting energy beams. Wouldn't that make Nexus formidable?
Not to mention, this Morningstar Mushroom even used the water stone, giving its attack water attributes, which further increased its lethality.
A single Morningstar Mushroom can release three energy beams when fully charged, and the water stone-enhanced mushroom released two more energy beams.
This time, though, after the initial shock, the lizardmen managed to react better, and the two beams only managed to kill four more lizardmen.
However, that was more than enough. The lizardmen's number was just roughly the same as the attacking nymphs.
Killing seven of them at once took down almost a third of these lizardmen.
Now that the Morningstar Mushroom used three energy beams, it cannot attack anymore, and Wyden returned it to his pocket.
"Morningstar Tribe, attack!" Wyden issued the order while raising his wooden pole.
As soon as his order was given, the aura of all the nymphs immediately exploded, their strength increasing by a small realm, surprising all the lizardmen.
The mushrooms inside their heart released the energy they stored in their [Energy Sac], causing the blood of the nymphs to boil.
Through [Symbiosis], the mushrooms can stay at the nymphs' hearts indefinitely. When a nymph is not in battle and is healthy, the mushrooms will absorb the blood and vitality of the nymphs, converting it to usable energy that they then store in their [Energy Sac]. When the sac is filled, the energy would then be used by the mushroom to grow itself.
If the nymph, or actually, any other host body, was strong enough or the mushrooms stayed long enough inside the host, the Morningstar Mushroom can even elevate its own realm.
Of course, [Symbiosis] is only possible for the nymphs that don't resist the mushroom. If it were any other creatures that resisted the mushroom, the mushroom would be ineffective.
After all, Nexus's magic is [Symbiosis] and not parasitism. The host must be willing to contain the mushroom for [Symbiosis] to be activated.
The energy that the mushrooms stored in their [Energy Sac] can also be used to enhance the host's strength temporarily, similar to the effects of a normal Blood Boiling Mushroom.
But here is how it differs. If the Morningstar Mushroom uses its energy reserves to activate blood boiling, it will not use the mana and vitality of the host.
Once the duration of the first blood boiling ended, the mushroom, with the host's permission, can then use the host's own energy to enter the same state again.
In short, the nymphs can use blood boiling twice, and the only side effects of the second one were anemia and temporary weakening!
This is what it meant to have a Guardian Totem!
When the nymphs charged at the lizardmen, they ensured that they first released the sleep pollen from their wings.
The effects might not be that good, but it could give them at least a bit of time wherein the lizardmen cannot attack them, or at the very least, not attack them properly.
With Wyden at the forefront of the attack, his high-cycle Transcendent Realm bursts out, and he smashed the head of a lizardman.
The sound of a cracking skull was drowned by the sounds of weapons clashing, and Wyden was about to attack another lizardman when he saw a small wooden stick flying in the air.
The stick landed on a lizardman's shoulder, piercing through its skin, causing some blood to bleed out, but this much damage was negligible. It didn't affect the lizardman at all.
However, while the small wound was negligible, the effects brought by the purple powder smeared on it were not.
Before the lizardman could make a move against a nymph, it unconsciously raised its hand to scratch the wound on its shoulder.
However, scratching it one time proved to be ineffective. The lizardman continues to scratch the area around the wound, but the more it does that, the itchier it gets.
When the lizardman turned to look at his shoulder, he saw large rashes growing at a rate visible to the naked eye.
The lizardman was surprised, and it tried to scratch the rashes to stop the itching, but the rashes just grew even faster than before.
With his mind engulfed by an immense sense of itchiness, he doesn't have the power or energy to care for other things, including the current danger he is facing.
In the end, a nearby nymph noticed his distraction and was successful in using his wooden pole to kill the lizardman.
That situation surprised Wyden, especially after seeing more sharp wooden sticks flying in the air.
Most of those sticks accurately hit the lizardmen, showing the thrower's great skill and accuracy.
Some lizardmen felt sleepy, some grew rashes, and some became paralyzed. With their abnormal state, it has become even easier for the nymphs to wipe them out.
Seeing such a situation caused a frown to appear on Wyden's face while he stared at the young nymph who threw those wooden sticks.
Nymphs have always been kind-hearted. If not for survival, they will not opt to kill. However, such a manner of winning still makes Wyden and the other nymphs uncomfortable.
They felt like the method they used was dishonorable. Although this was a good thing since they prevented casualties, their innate personality were still troubled.
The way his tribesmen looked at him didn't surprise Rezar. His people have always been like this, they prefer to fight directly rather than use underhanded tactics.
In his view though, not doing everything they could to win was a foolish decision.