The night deepened, and the mist enshrouded the forest like spider silk.

Before Mazak left, he left a sum of travel expenses, a rare Starlight Peridot—according to Tianlan's estimation, it was worth at least tens of thousands of Lycel.

In addition, he also gave Fang Hong a separate small gift—a silver amulet in the shape of an owl, its scientific name being the Insight Amulet, one of the masterpieces of Forging masters. In Eteliria, owls symbolized birds of calm and wisdom, and this amulet possessed similar abilities to help its wearer clear their mind and enhance computational ability.

It was almost a superior substitute to the Clarity Amulet commonly seen on the market.

But it was much rarer—

After Fang Hong put it on, he indeed felt his mind clear as his drowsiness faded away like the tide. Looking around, he suddenly asked, "By the way, where's Hudi?"

"Mr. Hudi said he was going back to the inn when we parted earlier," Gita replied softly.

Fang Hong nodded.

He thought to himself that although the inn wasn't safe, Hudi wouldn't recklessly barge in. There had been a lot of commotion at the Traveler's Rest, with many escaping, including a number of Colin Commercial League staff. If Hudi had met up with those people, his safety should be assured.

So, he didn't inquire further.

The glow from the fire in the wind stove gradually dimmed as the gathered twigs and branches nearly burnt out, and everyone's clothes dried. Tianlan suddenly stood up, patted the loose dirt off her body, and took the initiative to suggest, "It's about time we move on. Let's take Brother Ade to see our secret base."

Fang Hong was startled. "Isn't this your secret base?" He had thought this island, surrounded by a labyrinth-like mangrove forest in the midst of the swamp, was their secret base.

Tianlan shook her head at his words, "Of course not," she mysteriously answered, "Our secret base is way cooler than this place. It lies even deeper, right Sister Atira?"

Atira nodded and stood up, picking up her spear.

The elf girl obviously played a leading role as the others began to pack up. Luo Yu extinguished the campfire, stomped it down, and poured water over it to ensure the ashes were completely cooled. Tianlan, standing by, took out a torch and ignited it with a flint.

After the firelight dimmed, the Papalarians finally came to their senses, still looking around in confusion, and asked, "What's happening? Is the dragon coming back, or is it time to eat? Can we finish our midnight snack before it arrives?"

"There's no midnight snack left, Mr. Parker," Gita replied.

"Huh?" Parker's eyes widened, and he tried to open them even wider, but they remained as small as two black beans. He made a starfish shape on the ground, stretching out his short arms and legs and bellowed, "Then let that dragon eat me instead."

Without a midnight snack, Papalarians became the midnight snack.

Tianlan laughed so hard she doubled over.

Atira shook her head and took the torch from her hand, proceeding forward.

Fang Hong followed the elf girl, and the group made their way through a dense mangrove forest. The small island was overgrown with vegetation, and the light from the torches seemed to only illuminate a palm-sized area among the reeds.

Some peculiar creatures lived among the reeds, such as wading birds with curly and fancy feathers, somewhat resembling egrets, but clearly, there were no such majestic members of the Ciconiiformes on Earth. There were also scaled Tarun otters and shrews.

One needed to be careful of snakes, the highly venomous aquatic ring snakes, and chain snakes—but the elf girl had a knack for survival in the wild, and that was almost part of a hunter's job. Not to mention, she was a believer of Ameya, a Druid, always able to detect danger ahead of time.

The path stretched deeper inland, past some strange dead trees, and the scenery grew a bit dull. Under the glow of the torchlight the stars seemed dim, and the pervasive fog blew into shapes resembling ghosts.

Gita, seeming a bit scared, hunched over her Giant Book following closely behind the group. Walking right behind Fang Hong, she stumbled forward due to a vine and nearly fell—if it were not for Miss Fairy flying by and holding up her collar.

Thinking Fang Hong had saved her, Gita adjusted her large glasses, blushed, and whispered her thanks to him.

Tianlan murmured on the side, asking Fang Hong if he had given this fairy to him as a maid. Fang Hong also felt puzzled inside, as Fairy Constructs were not cheap, and even wanting to buy one was difficult.

The conversation between the Papalar and Luo Yu came intermittently from behind, "Seriously," Parker said, "I'm starting to miss life on Giant Tree Hill. No wonder real Papalarians never leave home."

"But weren't you chased out?" Luo Yu looked at him with some confusion.

"No, no, that's not it. I just thought the Mountain Lord's hat was ridiculous..."

"And you accidentally said it out loud?" Tianlan turned back, asking with a mischievous smile.

Infuriated, the Papalar scooped up some mud and threw it at her.

The little girl shrieked and started a playful scuffle with him.

"Are you out on a picnic?" Luo Yu asked with irritation.

Fang Hong wholeheartedly agreed—

The group hadn't walked much further when Atira suddenly stopped. Tianlan seemed to sense something, stopped fooling around, and dashed toward Atira—almost tripping Gita, who glared at her annoyed.

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