Once upon a time there was a greedy snake.

Chapter 324 The Ground Beneath Our Feet Is Also an Enemy

When the wolf-headed swordsman Gekala awoke, it was already the next morning.

His memories were fragmented, and he couldn't quite recall what happened yesterday. If he had to think about it now, he could only vaguely recall some fragmented scenes—such as the Adventurers' Guild and Starfall Square. He vaguely remembered that he had come there to turn in a quest.

Hunting monsters and then returning to report back seemed no different from when he was with the God of Courage. The long-awaited task of reporting back even gave him a sense of peace.

Then, everything collapsed.

The mage in the group suddenly betrayed them, the priest was arrested on the spot by the city guards, the assassin disappeared without a trace, and even he was pushed to some unknown place by the crowd of adventurers—followed by the bombardment of the magic tower and the siege of the mage group.

Then came the giant serpent rising from the ground.

"hiss……"

The fragmented images in his mind gradually pieced together, but the wolf-headed swordsman, Gekala, felt his head throbbing more and more, which made him scratch it as if to relieve the pain that went deep into his bones.

But after scratching a few times, Gekala suddenly found that he had several snake-scale-like things in his hand.

The sudden turn of events startled Gekala. He instinctively wanted to find a mirror to see what he looked like—but there was no mirror in the room, so he could only try touching the top of his head with his hands.

The hair on the top of the head was no longer soft skin; what the fingers and palms touched was the distinct feel of scales.

"This……"

Gekalar was immediately terrified.

"Am I being controlled by that strange snake?"

Gekala instinctively wanted to reach out his claws and tear off the scales, even though they had already grown into his skin.

But at that very moment, someone pushed the door open and walked in.

"do not move."

Just as Degkar was about to tear off the scales, the newcomer quickly pressed down on his claws.

“These scales are protecting you. If it weren’t for these scales, you would have died yesterday.”

"You are……"

Gekkar tried hard to recall.

Liu Si Mei Ying was the assassin in his team. Although she was usually not very noticeable, she wasn't so bad that he couldn't remember her.

"I am..."

Feeling that his memories were in complete disarray, Gekala couldn't help but start pounding his head.

"What's wrong with me?"

"You were almost assimilated by the planet itself."

Ryus Enchantress pressed down on Gekkara's hand once again.

"You were just a hair's breadth away from being swallowed up by the planet itself."

"Varied……"

Gekala was still somewhat confused.

"Then how did you..."

"I've been prepared."

Faced with Gekkar's doubts, Ryus Enchantress simply lifted her robe, which made Gekkar blush and even subconsciously raise her hand to cover her eyes.

Contrary to what Gekkar had expected, beneath that assassin's robe was not skin, but a tight-fitting suit that shimmered with a dazzling light. "It's used to counteract planetary influences; it's not usually needed."

Ryus Enchantress put her robe back on and then sat down on Gekkar's bedside.

“I know you’re probably wondering why I would prepare something like this in advance… This goes back a long time.”

With that, Ryus Enchantress began to explain why she had come to this planet.

That was a long time ago. Back then, Ryus Enchantress was just an ordinary believer of the God of Desire, the kind of person who would disappear into a crowd of believers, just like Gekkara. However, unlike Gekkara's extreme loyalty to the God of Courage, Ryus Enchantress had a more important figure in her heart than the God of Desire.

That is, the Shadow of Enchantress, who was once the top general under the God of Desire.

"After all, it was the one that brought me up. It taught me everything... I still remember that it was it that taught me how to perceive those desires and how to use them. It was by looking at its back that I was able to persevere step by step. You could even say that without it, there would be no me."

At this point, Liu Si Mei Ying sighed.

"That's why I understand even less why it would choose to defect."

At that most crucial moment, when the four gods were about to divide the entire planet, the top general under the God of Desire actually chose to rebel.

Ryus Enchantress couldn't understand it at all. She knew very well that her mentor shouldn't be like this. How could that Enchantress betray her at a time like this?

"So for a long time afterward, I was searching for answers. I wanted to know what exactly happened back then, I wanted to know why..."

In her continued search, Ryus Enchantress actually found some clues.

That is, the planet itself.

"This kind of knowledge only circulates among those powerful beings who transcend the planet itself. After all, if you haven't reached that level, this kind of knowledge is of no use... If those beings were to know that they cannot leave the planet they are on simply because the planet does not want them to leave, it would be too cruel for them."

"Does the planet itself not want them to leave?"

Gekala vaguely realized something.

"You mean... the planet is alive?"

"It may not be the way of life you understand it to be, but it certainly can't be considered a completely inanimate thing."

Liu Si Mei Ying nodded.

"Otherwise, where does the spiritual energy field surrounding the planet itself come from?"

"This……"

Gekala thought about it and realized that it made sense.

Then, his back was instantly soaked with cold sweat.

If you follow this line of thought, it seems that's really the case. The planet itself is like a gluttonous beast, constantly absorbing all sorts of things from the starry sea to strengthen itself... Such a beast naturally wouldn't want anyone to take anything away from it.

Once you land on this planet, you've become a part of it.

"At that time, you thought about leaving, right?"

It was at this moment that Ryus Enchantress spoke up.

"You are an outsider, which is already a stimulus to it. You wanted to leave at the time, so you suffered a backlash... The bark on these World Trees is used to protect you. If it weren't for the bark, you would probably have been killed on the spot by the planet's rejection reaction."

"In other words... our enemy is the planet itself beneath our feet."

Gekkar gritted his teeth.

(End of this chapter)