Chapter 125 - 103: Blessings of the Gods
"Twenty percent, not bad. With this, a lot of fatal attacks probably won’t be so dangerous anymore. I can even shout, ’Doctor, I can still be saved!’" Shire chuckled, then his gaze became firm again.
"Physical attacks can be blocked by Armor, but there’s still no real defense against Magic Attacks. We’re almost out of Demon-Banning Scrolls from the last battle." He looked up, sizing up the Pyramid Tower before him. ’I bet there are other strange symbols ahead. I should be able to keep making choices and eventually snag all the blessings of the Four Gods for myself.’
"The Blessing of the God of Earth and Life... it’s quite impressive. And now, it’s mine," Shire said with a smile.
In the end, he chose the [Blessing of the God of Earth and Life].
Then, with a shift in his consciousness, he called forth his Domain.
The new area under his control had expanded quite a bit to the west. Although it wasn’t as large as the territory of the two previous Giants, it was about the same size as the Seven Cave Race’s area. Further west, Shire saw a winding river. It was the Darren River.
The southern edge of this Domain bordered the forest near Yangjiao Town, an area frequented by Adventurers. To the north, a vast expanse of mist remained.
Shire also discovered a thin green vine entwined along the border of the area he controlled, as if his territory was being protected by it. ’This must be the blessing of the Earth God.’
He nodded thoughtfully and continued to inspect the newly claimed territory. ’This faint, crossed-swords icon must be the Druid I just took care of. The symbol for the Tree-man Race is a giant tree, which must be the marker for the Mother Tree.’
He focused his thoughts, and ink blots materialized on the parchment-like map of his Domain, revealing the locations of all the various herbs in the area.
"There’s quite a lot. I can send a gathering party here to harvest them." Shire scanned the collection points, a devious smile spreading across his face.
"There’s a question mark over here, too." Finally, his gaze focused on a spot to the west of the Mother Tree’s icon, near the bank of the Darren River. "What could that be?"
’Based on past experience, there might not be a battle, but I can’t be careless. I’ll wait for my subordinates to recover for a few days before checking it out.’
Shire tried his best to recall the "Southern Fortress Defense Map" he had seen before, then reached out and tapped a finger on the map. ’This is probably the underground section of that western watchtower.’
Remembering that the watchtower’s basement had been completely filled with Slimes, his interest in it suddenly waned. ’Oh well, I’ll go check it out anyway. I just hope it’s not another nest of Slimes.’
After making his choice from the Blessings of the Gods, Shire left his Consciousness Space. Before he left, he glanced at the towering Pyramid Tower. The spire was still dark and covered in cracks, but he had a feeling that there were fewer of them now.
’Maybe it’s just my imagination?’ He stroked the tower’s surface, his finger tracing a jagged crack.
...
"Chief, they’s all better now," Red Eyes reported loudly, standing before Shire.
For the past two days, Shire had brought his combatants and the newly recruited goblins into the Tree-men’s territory. The gist of his argument was, ’Mother Tree, since you’re healing anyway, what’s the difference between healing one person and healing a whole group? You might as well heal all of them.’
As a result, the bodies of the new goblins were significantly strengthened. They were no longer as sickly as before, and not long after entering the Mother Tree’s Domain, they spat up more black liquid.
’This detox will probably take a few more days.’ Shire sized up his new subordinates. They were currently following his orders, cleaning vines off the Tree-man Race. It was like cleaning barnacles off sea turtles and whales. The Tree-men would even say "thank you" in their deep, rumbling voices.
Shire really wanted to say, ’No need for thanks. Just bear some more fruit for me.’ Some of the Tree-men still had a few fruits left in the branches on their heads, and Shire ordered his people to pick them all. These fruits had thick skins, were a bit smaller than a soccer ball, and looked a lot like a pomelo. When cut open, they were filled with dense, starchy flesh.
Some of the new goblins told Shire that they had eaten these fruits before. You just had to cut them into small pieces, throw them in a pot, and after a while, they would boil down into a mush.
’As long as it’s edible, that’s all that matters. Paired with some jerky and spices, this could probably be made into a pretty tasty meal.’ Shire smiled, holding a Tree-man Fruit. ’The Earth God’s blessing should affect the Tree-men too. They don’t bear fruit in winter, but come next year, these five hundred-some Tree-men will provide a massive amount of food. That’ll take a lot of pressure off our future food supply.’
’I’ll have to station a team here permanently and build some housing.’
Shire put down the fruit and paced around the Tree-men. ’I wonder how Agatha is doing. I sent Rubus back with a letter, but to build up this area, I’ll need to develop more talented individuals.’
’Buck Teeth could lead this area. The kid’s Common Speech is passable now, and he’s loyal and eager to learn. If I grant him a few Abilities and set him up with a Teleportation Gate, there shouldn’t be any issues.’
The Druid he had killed had given Shire an Ability, [Wind of Nature], which was the same Ability the little goblins used to care for the Red Bull Mushrooms. ’If I have Buck Teeth lead this place, I’ll grant him Wind of Nature, too. It should help him get along with the Tree-men.’
"Successor, did you do something?" The call of the Mother Tree resounded in Shire’s ear.
He was taken aback for a moment, then looked around. The surroundings hadn’t changed at all. "What’s wrong?"
"I feel a power that has enveloped me and my children. Our vitality has grown stronger, which will greatly aid my recovery," the Mother Tree said softly.
"Oh? Good, as long as it helps," Shire said with a casual nod.
Then he saw a green leaf drifting down lazily in front of him. Shire reached out and caught it. The leaf looked a lot like a maple leaf, was a bit larger than an adult’s palm, and had three points.
"Thank you for everything you have done for us. This is a testament to our friendship. You can use this leaf to call upon the Tree-man Race to fight for you three times." The Mother Tree’s voice sounded again. "But please, treasure my children."
’A battle, huh?’ Shire thought, pinching the leaf’s stem and studying it. ’Mobilizing all five hundred Tree-men... that would be an incredible sight. But I can only do it three times. And I’d better not treat them like cannon fodder, or it would ruin my friendship with the Tree-man Race.’
"Okay, thank you," he nodded. "I will be careful with this power."
"By the way, how is that Mushroom cave now?" Shire asked the Mother Tree. He had yet to enter the stone chamber since the Mushroom Tree was burned down, worried that some residual toxins might still be present.
"The evil presence is almost gone. If you wish to go inside and explore, you may prepare to enter, but you must remain cautious," the Mother Tree replied, conveying her sense of the area and offering her advice.
"Okay, thank you," Shire said with a nod. ’I’ll go check it out after we eat.’
’I wonder what could possibly be left after that huge fire,’ he thought as he called over Red Eyes and Nine-finger and ordered them to prepare the food.
’A Druid from the Earth God Church comes all the way to the forest for a "long-term stay," and even links himself to the Mushroom Tree to bypass the three-day time limit... What was he trying to accomplish?’
Shire stroked the bark of the Tree-man in front of him, mulling over what he might find in that stone chamber.
’It’ll probably remain a mystery.’ He shook his head. ’Still, those strange and wonderful Mushrooms he cultivated were pretty interesting.’
’Just cultivating the Red Bull Mushroom was a huge pain for me. I had to search for the original strain, run experiments, and even put my acting skills to the test to trick that fool, Shan Xi Ao.’
He had to admit, he was quite envious of the Druid’s talent for cultivating Mushrooms.
’Such a waste of talent. If he’d just joined me, he could have at least been my Minister of Agriculture or something.’ Shire curled his lip. ’He’s not even as good as Little Claw.’
He made up his mind. He would go check that place out shortly.