Chapter 217 - 155: Wind Erosion Tribe, Eternal Life Block (2)
Bu Long didn’t say anything more after hearing that.
Although they had accidentally killed the NPC in the Corpse Bone Tree—all because that brute, Brother Mangzi, didn’t know his own strength.
’But hey, at least we triggered a hidden boss. Maybe this is a blessing in disguise?’
"I will replace your flesh and blood with living Hosted Worms, and you will remain here for eternity!"
"Hahahahaha!"
The Hosted Bone and Blood Giant Statue let out a terrifying laugh.
"F*** you! You’re going down today! I’ll use your skull to wash away this disgrace!"
"Die!"
Facing the Hosted Bone and Blood Giant Statue, Brother Mangzi roared, his muscles knotting as he activated Blood of Madness.
The next moment, he swung his Great Axe in a wide arc and hurled it, unleashing a terrifyingly powerful Vortex Blade that raged with Warfire.
SQUELCH SQUELCH!
The Great Axe, wreathed in Warfire, circled through the tide of Parasites like it was mowing grass, spraying black blood everywhere, before landing directly on the ankle of the Hosted Bone and Blood Giant Statue.
With a loud CRASH, the Hosted Bone and Blood Giant Statue’s body collapsed.
Brother Mangzi retrieved his Great Axe, the excitement in his eyes burning even brighter.
"What a feisty worm you are, hahahaha..."
The Hosted Bone and Blood Giant Statue seemed just as excited. It loved energetic creatures like this.
Hearing its response.
Bu Long suddenly felt that something was a little off.
’Wait... this boss...’
"Bu Long! Don’t just stand there! Help me! I have to get the first kill!"
After popping a Recovery Wax Block, Battle Bliss roared and charged forward again, his blood boiling with excitement.
He hadn’t noticed at all that there was something off about this boss compared to the ones he had encountered before.
’What?’
’Aren’t all monsters the same?’
’You see a monster, you kill it!’
Seeing this, Bu Long—who had been on the verge of a realization—was snapped out of it. He could only cast his doubts aside and dive into the fight.
...If only they had used the Spirit Candle’s Teleportation function to take a peek at the world chat, perhaps they wouldn’t be fighting with such glee.
...
Meanwhile, on Guagua and Skyrim’s side.
After following the girl for a good while,
the scenery before them began to change.
The Corpse Bone Trees on the ground had disappeared.
A stone monument engraved with words appeared before them.
[Wind Erosion Tribe]
Although it was named the Wind Erosion Tribe, the stone monument was covered in "tree roots."
Moreover, as they approached, a swollen growth at the monument’s base exploded with a BANG, and Parasite sacs screeched as they attacked.
SWISH! SWISH SWISH!
Skyrim’s brow furrowed slightly. With a flash of his Dagger and blade, he dispatched all the Parasites in less than the span of two breaths.
Having dealt with Parasite sacs many times, his experience had grown rapidly.
After he withdrew his hand, the blade vanished.
"Wow, Skyrim, that was so cool!" Guagua’s eyes lit up as she watched from the side.
She wasn’t exaggerating. What Skyrim did was genuinely impressive.
Skyrim was stunned for a moment. He really hadn’t been trying to show off.
"Thank you for the compliment."
After that one reply, he said no more. Because of their previous experiences, hearing Guagua’s sweet voice now only sent a chill down his spine.
’Mom was right, the more beautiful a woman is, the more deceitful she’ll be!’
The two continued on, entering the territory of the Wind Erosion Tribe.
There were indeed traces that people had once lived here.
The "tree roots" on the ground, formed from bone and blood, had not disappeared; they could be seen every few dozen steps.
In place of Corpse Bone Trees were simple earthen mounds, also covered with fine, vine-like, blood-red roots.
’Why did it become like this?’
Just as the two were wondering, a satisfied murmur came from a house they were passing.
"Eternal Life Block, so delicious..."
A translucent Soul that had not yet dissipated was cupping something imaginary in its hands, sighing with satisfaction.
And this was not an isolated case.
As they continued along the path, the two saw many more of these translucent Souls.
"Oh, Shaman... I think I’ve truly seen the eternal life you spoke of..."
"After eating the Eternal Life Block, my Spirit feels better..."
"Our Wind Erosion Tribe will become a paradise of eternal life..."
"If only we had discovered this sooner..."
Aside from these strange Souls,
the large numbers of Parasites and Parasite sacs from the outskirts were now nowhere to be seen.
"What is an Eternal Life Block?"
Guagua was a little puzzled. All these Souls seemed to be mentioning it; it was undoubtedly something very important.
Skyrim shook his head.
They hadn’t seen any Eternal Life Blocks around those Souls either.
RUSTLE...
At that moment, the girl named "Yina" who was leading them suddenly stopped.
Seeing this, the two immediately became alert.
Skyrim scanned his surroundings. They were now encircled by the buildings of the Wind Erosion Tribe. The bone-and-blood roots spread even more thickly here, and many dark corners lay in Shadow. It was clearly not a good place.
Directly ahead of them stood a noticeably taller building, though its original form was also unrecognizable due to the encroaching roots.
"Yina..."
"My poor daughter..."
"AHH!!!"
Suddenly, a roar like a clap of thunder on a clear day erupted from the building, muffled and terrifying.
"Wind Erosion... will march toward the eternal life pointed to by Tasolomo..."
"I have obtained eternal life..."
At the same time, pained muttering also began to rise.
From the darkness, countless twisted figures emerged, finally allowing their forms to be seen clearly.
Their skin was coarse, their eyeballs grayish-white, and they wore similar styles of clothing. They were clearly the original inhabitants of this tribe.
But beneath their seemingly ordinary skin, there were bulges, and something could be seen churning underneath, as if it would burst out at any moment!
And as it turned out, that was exactly the case.
"Ahh..."
"It hurts..."
As waves of agonized, low howls rose and fell, the bodies of the Wind Erosion Tribe members began to swell violently in various places.
Their faces contorted in pain as their bodies twisted bizarrely with the changes.
The information from the Spirit Candle revealed that
each and every one of them was an Embers monster called [Hosted People].
DRIP.
Black blood dripped. A twisted claw gripped the doorframe, and with the sound of scraping flesh, a monster that was only human from the waist down slowly stepped out of the darkness.
From the neck of a lifeless head, massive, fleshy Worm heads emerged one by one, carefully sniffing the air.
And that dead head was the source of the voice from before.
[Host’s Head]
[Tier: Molten Slag]
𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦
[Level: 28]
[Warfire: Hosted Body]
[Talent: Screams of the Possessed]
[Skills: Sharp Sound, Struggle of the Possessed, Insect Erosion, Tasolomo Wind Erosion]
[Explanation: The leader of the Wind Erosion Tribe and apparently Yina’s father. But why would the head of a tribe fall to such a state...?]
"Tasolomo..."
The low echo reached the ears of every member of the Wind Erosion Tribe.
"Eternal life!"
As if answering a summons, the members of the Wind Erosion Tribe raised their hands. Each one was holding something that looked like a bloody, fleshy tumor.
The next moment, they unhesitatingly shoved them into their mouths and began chewing frantically, juices splattering everywhere.
SQUISH! SQUISH! SQUISH!
As those things were swallowed, the entities hosted within the bodies of the Wind Erosion Tribe members seemed to be stimulated as well.
Their skin and flesh were violently torn open, revealing the gory visage of the hosted creatures beneath, which let out sharp screeches.
The things hosted in their bodies, though also bug-like, were far more terrifying than the previous Parasites!
Some of them resembled the Worms on the Host’s Head.
Others burst through the flesh of their hosts’ backs, growing blood-red, membranous wings, and rose into the air with a rapid flutter.
Some went even further, forming huge, dark gular sacs on their chests, which sloshed with an unknown liquid—clearly nothing good.
"..."
Looking at Yina, who stood silently before them.
And then at the monsters swarming in from all directions, Skyrim sighed softly.
"So it was a trap after all..."
"So gross..." Guagua said, her skin crawling as she looked at the horrifying forms of the Hosted People surrounding them.