Chương 122: Chapter 118: Guardian of Nature

Congratulations, you are dead! Your Talent [He Who Eludes Death] brings you back to life once a day. Number of deaths: 13 Synergy detected with your talent [High Human adaptation] and your Titles [Three-Headed Hydra] and [Veteran]. Your body and spirit are rebuilt and will be more resistant to what killed them: CONST +12 WILL +20 Lvl Up: [Star Iron Body] lvl 19, 20 CONST +6 [Star Iron Body] has reached level 20. As a rare skill, you're entitled to a bonus.

Choose from these three options: [Tough] - Your body toughens up. POT -30 [Elastic] - Your body bends but doesn't break. POT -30 [Temper] - The best metal is one that's been tempered. POT -30 You have selected [Temper]. POT -30 Lvl Up: [Cut Resistance] lvl 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 CONST +6 You've acquired the skill: [Spirit Resistance - Rare]. [Spirit Resistance] - While your soul may be pseudo-immortal, your spirit is not.

Situated between the soul and the body, the spirit is the essence of thought, consciousness, and the life force that animates you. Unlike your soul, it is easier to violate, alter, capture, or destroy. From now on, it won't be so easy. Your spirit densifies and gains a minor regenerative power. WILL +3 Title earned! [Spiritless - Silver] - Losing one's spirit typically spells death. The lone soul shall then reincarnate, ascend to a divine realm, or become a slave to necromantic powers. Yet, here you still stand.

The imprint of your spirit clings to your soul... WILL +10% META(Affinity) +10% [He Who Eludes Death] charge: OFF. Reloaded in 21 hours 44 minutes 1 second. [Tribulation]: Two Tribulations pending. Future Tribulations delayed until: Time: 179 days 22 hours 17 minutes 14 seconds. The moment the wind caressed his body, Priam sprang to life, eyes wide open. Conjuring his mist, he checked for any nearby threats. Was the monster still there? If so, Priam was ready to fight tooth and nail.

If not, he hoped he had managed to divert its attention. If the necromoon wolf had turned back toward Log-a-rhythm... it would be already over. A second after his resurrection, nothing had attacked him yet. His heart rate slowed as he realized he was out of immediate danger. Priam then massaged his right eye, which had been blinded by the use of Hecate's New Moon. As he expected, the resurrection had repaired his body. It feels good to be in a new body, he thought, carefully observing his surroundings.

The surrounding trees were painted red, and the vegetation around them was dead. Priam furrowed his brows, examining the blackened grass beneath dried blood. His perfect memory recalled the scene where the necrowolf had attacked the barrier. The mere presence of the beast had tainted the grass. Instead of killing it, the necromantic aura had transformed it. Here, the grass was dead. Either corrupted vegetation dies without a source of corruption, or someone cleaned the area.

This thought heightened his wariness even further - if that was possible. Stranded and alone in the Elysian forest, with no extra lives left, Priam wasn't taking any chances. His mist continued to spread, depleting his aether reserves. Thankfully, the ambient aether allowed for swift regeneration. After waiting a handful of seconds without sensing anything, Priam headed towards Log-a-rhythm. Internally, he focused on his mist.

It covered a radius of a hundred and twenty meters, but only the first fifty were comprised of thick fog. The rest hovered in the form of a faint water vapor, entirely invisible to the naked eye. If an enemy hoped to trail him just outside the mist, Priam would detect them. Meanwhile, he grimaced under the influx of information. Soon, it wouldn't be the level of [Moon Mist] or his mist concept limiting the size of his zone, but rather his agility. Processing so much information gave him a headache.

This pain was nothing compared to his determination. Crossing the five-hundred Willpower mark seemed to have given him wings. Priam had a goal - to return to his base - and it crushed all mental obstacles. The sensation was both exhilarating - he felt like he could accomplish anything - and strange. His will - something fundamental - had changed. Artificially tempered, Priam now wielded it like a blade. This revelation was especially strange because Priam didn't want to lose his identity.

However, he knew he would have to make concessions. The power he would gain would change him. If I'm not ready for this, I might as well stop now. He didn't. After a few hundred meters, Priam entered the invisible perimeter of the Secret Passage. Log-a-rhythm's first theme allowed its occupants to open a passage to the base from any tree within a hundred-meter radius. Using his powerful Perception, he double-checked his mist one last time. According to his senses, nothing had followed him.

Cautious, Priam preferred to continue on his way rather than use a Secret Passage. The more hidden cards he had, the better. Priam crossed the clearing and laid his hand against Log-a-rhythm's trunk. A passage opened, and he stepped inside. Before his eyes could adjust to the difference in brightness, Priam's Domain detected a projectile about to strike him. Smiling, he opened his arms to receive Sphinx.

"Hey!" he exclaimed.

"Priam!" several voices cried out. Alain approached, tears in his eyes, and Sphinx made way for him. Father and son embraced for a brief moment before Alain pulled back.

"Are you okay?" His father's voice was worried, and his eyes were red. Priam had never seen his father so close to tears.

"Yes. Not a scratch," Priam reassured him.

"Thank god..." Alain said, stepping back slightly. His father needed a little time to recover from his emotions, and Priam let him. It was often easier to be the one taking risks than to wait for news, feeling helpless. Sphinx asked with a smile, "Do you want me to purr to lift your spirits?" Honestly, Priam's spirits were already quite high. No one had died, and he had gained an excellent Title. However, he had no intention of turning down such a great offer.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Could you do that?" he asked, smiling. Sphinx purred before standing on her hind legs, proud of herself. Faced with such adorableness, Priam couldn't help but scratch her head. Blueberry, bent in half, then approached to pat him on the shoulder. As expected from a five-meter-tall bear, there was more force in his gentle pat than in a minor car accident. Another man would have died, but Priam kept his smile. His constitution was no joke.

"Glad to see you're still as stubborn. Did you manage to escape that monster?" the bear asked. Priam hesitated for a moment.

"No, it got me. After my resurrection, it was gone. Honestly, I was completely outmatched," he finally admitted.

"Well, as long as you're okay," Sphinx laughed, bouncing. Blueberry growled.

"I'm sure you'll get your revenge quickly. Now that we're done with the pleasantries, could you raise the room's height? My back is killing me," the bear sighed. A few moments later, Log-a-rhythm had pushed up its ceiling enough to spare the bear from physical therapy sessions. Satisfied, he nodded at Priam before returning to lap up a bowl of sweet sap. How easy it was to be a bear… Priam turned to the three stunned humans watching him.

"Did... Did you really die?" asked Mirscella. Priam nodded.

"It was a Tier 2 beast. It beheaded me in an instant." The most dangerous part was that it had also managed to annihilate his spirit, but Priam preferred to keep some secrets to himself. If humans thought his power was simply infinite bodily regeneration, so be it. His enemies wouldn't think to also annihilate his spirit - leaving him a chance to strike back. This lie had nothing to do with a lack of trust in Mirscella or Louis.

The truth was simple: the fewer people knew that about his weaknesses, the better he would be.

"Mm. Makes sense," declared Louis.

"How so?" asked Mirscella.

"Without this kind of power, how could a young brat like him be stronger than I am?" Louis said arrogantly. A dark look from Mirscella quickly wiped the smile from his face. The old lady turned to Priam.

"Good to see you're alright. Anyway, this confirms that the rules must be followed. We've only been here for two hours, and we've already come dangerously close to death. No one leaves the barrier for now. Everyone in favor?" Except for Kazuki, who certainly didn't understand the situation, everyone nodded. The demonstration of their weakness had shocked them. Satisfied, Mirscella then elbowed Alain.

"I believe you had something to say to your son?" Alain hesitated until a second elbow nudged him into speaking. Shame was written all over his face as he looked at his son.

"I'm sorry. I almost died in an idiotic way," he confessed. Priam smiled.

"It's nothing, Dad. Well, no, it's serious, but... the important thing is that we're alive and won't make the same mistake again, right?" Alain's eyes sparkled.

"You learned that from me, thief," he laughed.

"But you're right. Being stupid once is forgivable. Twice isn't." Priam smiled. Like father, like son.

"By the way, since it's my place, can I give you orders?" he joked. Alain responded with a smile.

"Of course. But if we switch roles, it'll be your turn to do the laundry, cooking, take care of the house by yourself, and kill the spiders when I'm scared at night. Just like I did for you when you were little."

"... Forget it. By the way, I haven't been scared of spiders for ten years."

"It depends on whether they're hairy," his father chuckled.

"You speak about abominations. I—" Log-a-rhythm contacted him. According to the tree, a friendly presence was trying to communicate with him. With me? Log-a-rhythm responded in the negative. The unknown entity was trying to communicate with the tree. What the...

"Stay here for now. No one leaves until I get back." The voices and laughter fell silent.

"I'm coming too," Kazuki said, realizing Priam was planning to leave. Priam nodded, and the two of them exited. Outside, the three suns shone on an empty clearing. Priam surveyed the surroundings without detecting anything.

"Do you see anything?" Kazuki shook his head silently. He held his spear tightly, poised like a spring and ready for battle. Clearly, having to flee from the necro beast had annoyed him.

"Is there anyone?" Priam asked in the direction of the forest. No entity manifested itself. Priam thought for a moment, considering that he might not be the target this time. If someone wanted to contact him, there were less convoluted ways than through his magical tree. However, Priam wanted to know who had located his base. Tell him you want them to speak with me, Priam ordered Log-a-rhythm. The tree complied, and moments later, a gust of wind arose from the forest. The grass in the clearing bent under the gale.

The gust stopped just beneath the last branches of Log-a-rhythm before vanishing. In its place appeared a biped covered with bark-like skin and moss. The Log-a-rhythm barrier hadn't even sensed the intrusion. Instantly, Priam recognized the rival he had glimpsed just after Claire's betrayal. Driven to madness by the poison, he dreamt of the treant now standing before him. In his visions, the Guardian of Nature tirelessly repelled hordes of fire elementals.

"Priam, enchanted," he said, nodding.

"Kazuki. May your battle be glorious and your victory resounding," the hoplite added in his own language. Hearing this, Priam raised an eyebrow. The formula was polite. Too polite. He acknowledges his inferiority. Reassessing the treant-like being, Priam consulted his instinct. The answer came swiftly - he was outclassed. Meeting two beings stronger than me on the very first day... That's two too many. Elysium had a knack for grounding him. As the newcomer scrutinized them, Priam identified him.

[Identification] [Dishnu - Drya - Tier 0] - The Guardian of the Forest. Luckily for you, he's a pacifist - and fascinated by Log-a-rhythm. Priam twitched at the description. The System wasn't betting on his victory. However, the real problem was Dishnu's fascination. Log-a-rhythm was crucial for Priam, but more so for his loved ones. Concepts Archipelago was currently too small to house his team permanently. If he lost his base, everyone would be in mortal danger...' You are taking good care of the tree.

It's one of the most beautiful specimens I've seen thus far,' a soft yet strong voice echoed in Priam's mind. Soft was an understatement for the Dryan language. If asked to describe it, Priam would speak of the sound of pebbles rolling in a river or tree leaves swaying in the wind. The words of the Dryan language were like a budding flower. Full of meaning, they were felt more than understood. In a few words, the Drya language expressed nature.

It was imbued with magic, which was likely why Priam could understand it. Looking up at Log-a-rhythm, Priam took a moment to appreciate his tree's new beauty. The world continued to turn, time flowed, but one must not forget to live.

"The System helped me resurrect a Tal Quercus. I offered it a great treasure that helped it evolve," he explained after a brief silence. Instinctively, he wanted to tell the Drya the truth. It wasn't due to mental manipulation or the Drya's charismatic aura - which focused more on flora than fauna. It was simply his draconic instinct urging him to be honest. He must be able to sense lies...' The tallest trees draw the wrath of the heavens, but you saved this one. I'll think of a present.'

Priam had no doubts about who would be the recipient of the gift. Dishnu's gaze shifted from Priam to Log-a-rhythm. His charismatic aura turned joyful. Drya truly loved trees. I hope it's just a platonic obsession...

'Fortunately, the moon didn't shine on this tree,' he said, turning back to Priam.

'You were also not corrupted by the beast. Truly, the heavens have chosen peculiar individuals...' Priam's breath quickened. Dishnu was talking about the other rivals.

Status: (Average value for a Homo sapiens male before integration: PHY 10 / MEN 10 / META 0) PHYSICAL: Strength 320 Constitution 477 (+26) Agility 309 Vitality 469 Perception 538 MENTAL: Vivacity 294 Dexterity 365 Memory 99 Willpower 557 (+69) Charisma 414 META: Meta-affinity 288 (+16) Meta-focus 213 Meta-endurance 165 Meta-perception 81 Meta-chance 213 Meta-authority 12 Potential: 985 (-18) Tier 0 [He Who Eludes Death] charge: OFF. Reloaded in 21 hours 31 minutes 54 seconds.

[Tribulation]: Two Tribulations pending. Future Tribulations delayed until: Time: 179 days 22 hours 35 minutes 7 seconds.