Translator: SumTLMan
Angel lifted his head and looked towards the sky above the Doreen Flower Garden.
To the naked eye, all that was visible was a grey, overcast sky. However, Angel was well aware that at the highest point of this Doreen Flower Garden, there was a glowing dome.
The reason why the Doreen Flower Garden was not dim was because its light source came from the dome.
This dome, like the one in Sleepless City previously, covered this half-plane tightly and completely.
Unless the correct path was found, no one could leave easily.
Although no flying creatures were visible in the sky, to avoid drawing too much attention, Angel still chose to walk on the ground. Moreover, with three little ones following him, flying was even less of an option.
In the direction Angel was walking, the surrounding mushroom forest became denser and denser. Each mushroom was of a different shape, and their caps varied in color, with many being grotesque and brightly colored. However, as of now, these mushrooms seemed harmless and showed no signs of aggression towards Angel.
On this path, which wasn’t completely safe but at least relatively quiet, Angel finally had time to ponder some matters he had previously overlooked.
For instance, what exactly was the invisible creature that attacked him at the exit of the Star Pool ruin passage?
This question flashed through Angel’s mind and was quickly dismissed, as he subconsciously thought that the invisible creature and Mademoiselle Goldilocks were in cahoots. If it weren’t for the attack of the invisible creature, he wouldn’t have hidden by the wall, nor would he have been led by Mademoiselle Goldilocks into the Doreen Flower Garden.
Since they were in cahoots, perhaps he would find the answer upon meeting Mademoiselle Goldilocks.
Apart from this question, there was another matter that Angel was more concerned about. A doubt that had been in his mind since the first time he encountered creatures from the Nightmare Plane.
How do creatures of the Nightmare Plane recognize their own? Or rather, how do they determine that he is indeed Shava?
Initially, Angel thought that he might resemble Shava, and they recognized him by appearance. But later, when he saw Shava, although he did not see Shava’s true face, Shava was a person much taller than him, with long hair. In terms of appearance, the only similarity he might have with Shava was his golden hair.
Moreover, this time, Angel altered his appearance using a shape-shifting spell, even as a middle-aged man with red hair and golden eyes, he was still recognized by the creatures of the Nightmare Plane at first sight. This also proved that the creatures of the Nightmare Plane do not recognize by appearance.
If not by appearance, then what? Projection bloodline? It seems not, because before he had the projection bloodline, his identity could already be determined by Nightmare Plane creatures like the frog chanter and fox harpist.
Since it’s not the overt physical characteristics, could it be that the Nightmare Plane creatures recognize more spiritual aspects? Such as aura, soul origin, or something else?
This question, Angel cannot yet answer definitively, he can only wait to find the answer himself in the future.
However, knowing that the Nightmare Plane creatures do not recognize him by appearance, it means he has more maneuverability using Shava’s identity.
But Angel also understands that having more room for maneuver doesn’t mean he can be reckless. In dealing with creatures of lower intelligence, like the three small Mystlights that appear and disappear at his feet, he can be more relaxed; but when facing higher intelligence beings like Bee Blair, he still needs to be careful not to expose himself.
…
After walking for about a quarter of an hour, Angel saw a new region.
At first glance, it was still a forest of mushrooms stacked upon each other. Angel called it a new region because in his field of vision, everything was a fiery red.
Whether it was the tall mushroom trees, the slender mushroom vines, or the low clusters of small mushrooms, the color of their caps was mostly red, or at worst, black and white. Although they were vibrant, they weren’t as multicolored as before.
The most important thing is that not only are the mushrooms flaming red, but the air itself seems to be emitting a fiery red light.
Angel carefully sensed that the reason the air seemed to glow was simply because of the extremely high content of fire elements in the air. There were numerous incandescent points of fire element convergence in the air, even approaching the level of volcanic eruptions, where the volcanic ash-covered area is highly active with fire elements.
Angel speculated, perhaps this area is a cultivation zone for some kind of fire-attribute mushroom?
Angel wasn’t surprised to find different elemental areas in the Doreen Flower Garden. He was just a bit worried about whether the three little ones following him could enter this high-temperature area.
While Angel was pondering, the scorched earth under his feet moved slightly, and the three little ones showed their heads at the same time.
Angel sensed their emotions, which were still full of favor towards him and showed no complaints about the environment. It seemed that they were also well adapted to the environment here.
Angel then relaxed and continued to move forward.
This “Land of Fire,” although very high in temperature with scorched earth, was actually not barren. Everywhere were flaming red mushrooms, and from the perspective of lushness, there was not much difference compared to the mushroom forest Angel had passed through earlier.
The only difference was that there were many streams of flowing fiery red lava here.
The glowing fiery red lava, the particles of fire elements in the air, and the dense fire-colored mushrooms around made this region not only varied but also possessed an extreme beauty.
If Angel were to write a wizard’s travelogue like Fivenda in the future, this unusually fiery red mushroom forest would surely be recorded in it.
Although this place was full of the illusion of fire’s beauty, Angel was not blinded by the beautiful scenery. He knew very well that the more extreme a place, the more likely it was to be filled with danger.
Moreover, he had a faint premonition that perhaps they were not far from the human controlled by Mystlight.
After arriving at the Doreen Flower Garden, Angel, for the first time, began to extend his mental power outward.
Previously, although he had controlled his mental power to explore around him, he had never ventured beyond his line of sight, fearing that it might disturb some creatures from the Nightmare Plane.
But now, spurred by a sudden premonition, Angel, after much deliberation, decided to extend his mental power deeper.
Knowing that there might be a human wizard trapped here, even if he couldn’t lead the other out, it would be better to meet them than to completely ignore and feel at ease.
As Angel walked, he sensed a multitude of mental tendrils feeding back information from all around.
During this process, Angel’s expression became increasingly peculiar.
The reason for his strange expression wasn’t that he had found the human controlled by Mystlight, but rather he had just realized… the dense array of mushrooms of various sizes around him were actually not “dead.”
The emotional waves they transmitted were surprisingly distinct!
Angel did not find his target, but instead, his mind was filled with a plethora of captured emotional signals.