In the pitch-black void, an elf-like girl sat upon a swing. She had come specifically to Caravan Ribat, observing the sleeping boy through the veil of dreams.
"Squeak?"
Xiaobai, nestled in Lin Feng's arms, opened its eyes and stared directly at the spot in the empty room where she hovered unseen.
"This... is a creature called a Treasure Hoarding Weasel?"
Nahida was curious as the little head turned unerringly toward her.
Blinking once, Xiaobai went right back to snoring.
"Must be a coincidence."
Seeing it asleep again, Nahida tossed a certain un-"wise" suspicion out of her mind and decided to complete her objective—contacting the "culprit" behind the elemental disturbance.
Looking at the young boy before her, Nahida gently raised a small hand, attempting to enter his dream.
"Eh? I can't get in?"
The little Archon let out a soft, helpless cry of dismay.
Lin Feng woke up feeling absurdly good.
It was like he'd downed a cure-all elixir in his sleep.
Curious, he opened his panel:
[Individual Data: @￥%& – Lin Feng]
Level: 32→34 (Conditions unmet) (Can somewhat control elemental force; strength beyond normal.)
Element: Dendro
Traits: [#%*&], Elemental Mastery: Dendro (Conditions unmet, unavailable), ...Dream's Blessing 3 (Conditions unmet)
???
Seeing two free levels and a new trait appear out of thin air, Lin Feng's head filled with question marks.
He clicked for details—
Dream's Blessing 3: A siphoning of a god's dream power. Increases adaptability to dream-based abilities, resistance to dream-based abilities, and Dendro elemental affinity.
Lin Feng's face darkened. Realizing he had accidentally fleeced Lesser Lord Kusanali again, he couldn't muster any excitement.
Fleeced twice in one day. Good thing the Dendro Archon had a temper like a saint. If it were a certain shut-in, a lightning bolt would have already struck him down.
Forget it. I'll ask her later if she wants out of the Sanctuary of Surasthana. Can't just bully an honest person to death.
Lin Feng thought silently.
Even with skin as thick as his, he felt a twinge of shame for exploiting a little loli.
Putting the episode aside, he washed up at top speed and headed for Tinalari's treehouse.
He knocked on the door of the slightly larger hut.
"Coming."
Hearing footsteps approach, Lin Feng looked forward to the day's itinerary.
Creak—
Tinalari pushed open the stiff door and ushered him in.
Seeing the interior was as spartan as his own temporary quarters, Lin Feng gained a deeper appreciation for Tinalari's workaholic nature.
Tinalari pulled up a chair for him, then picked up a green glass orb from the table.
"Before I announce your new powers to the team, I'd like you to take this."
He handed the orb to Lin Feng.
"Is this... a Vision?"
Lin Feng recognized the shape instantly. Seeing it was nearly identical to the one at Tinalari's waist, he understood why the early riser had needed a wake-up call today.
"Correct. A replica I made based on a Vision casing. Wear it, and claim you're a Vision holder."
"Using elements without a Vision is a rare anomaly the Akademiya loves to study. Especially since your output rivals top-tier allogenes." Tinalari explained.
"And the current Akademiya... sigh."
He let out a heavy breath.
Watching Lin Feng clip the "Vision" to his waist, Tinalari shelved his worries and started the workday.
Efficiently gathering the rangers, he briefed them: Lin Feng had been granted a Vision and would now join him in clearing monster camps.
Though Nasrin and the others cast envious glances, the friendly rangers were mostly relieved to have another heavy hitter.
After all, their boss had shouldered all the dangerous work alone. Having someone to share Tinalari's burden was objectively good news.
Briefing over, Tinalari led Lin Feng deep into the rainforest, tracking recent sighting reports to hunt a hilichurl camp.
Along the way, Tinalari gave impromptu lessons on local flora: the misleadingly named Sweetwater Mushroom (inedible, hallucinogenic); the Kalpalata Lotus (a vine, despite the name); and the Nilotpala Lotus (blooms and closes with the moon).
Lin Feng listened with relish, getting that weird satisfaction of watching a nature documentary debrief.
"Stop. We're here."
Tinalari threw out a hand, halting Lin Feng. He pointed to a crude watchtower blending into the trees.
"See that? Hilichurl tower. Usually manned by shooters. A tower means the camp has scale. Leave it, and it might spawn a 'Lawachurl' or other elite threats. Needs clearing."
"Do I demonstrate first, or do you want to engage with me on support?"
Tinalari drew his bow, asking.
"I'll go in. If things go south, please cover me, Senior Tinalari."
Eager, Lin Feng eyed the furry targets with interest.
He had already probed their levels. Most were mid-teens; even the Mitachurls barely cracked level 20. No threat to him now.
Locating the enemy, Lin Feng gathered Dendro energy in his hand, compressed it to the limit, and hurled it at the tower.
BOOM.
A massive explosion rang out. Not just the regular hilichurls—even two axe-wielding Mitachurls were blown out of combat instantly.
"Kundala!!!"
The camp scrambled, screaming "strong enemy" as they searched for the attacker.
Using the distraction, Lin Feng closed the distance. Once spotted, he unleashed the vines.
"Entangle!"
Thick, thorny vines erupted from the earth the moment he spoke. The targeted Mitachurls were instantly engulfed, their bodies visibly deforming under the crushing pressure.
"Tsk... expected it, but his combat style is gorier than I imagined."
Watching from the back, Tinalari—usually unflappable—couldn't help but grimace at the sight of enemies left without intact corpses.