Wizard: Starting from Escape from the Thorn Garden

Chapter 146 Analysis and Decision

The mentor's words raised the seriousness of the matter to another level.

Kate, through a soul connection, secretly engaged in a deeper communication with Ashe. After advancing to the second ring, Ashe's perception abilities far surpassed what they had before.

Ash provided more precise information: "Kate, based on her description—I sensed a—very ancient, polluted aura."

It's similar to the erosion of nothingness I encountered in the fragments of void memory, but not exactly the same.

This "gloom" is more aggressive and—intelligent?

It appears to be able to specifically disrupt the connections between life structures and energy networks.

In my spatial perception, the eroded areas appear "hollow" and "distorted," like holes burned through a smooth cloth. Normal spatial movement would be extremely dangerous near those areas, potentially drawing one directly into unknown turbulence. Moreover—I vaguely sense that the source of this erosive force might be—more than one.

Ash's perception confirmed the complexity and high level of the threat.

Just then, Amber seemed to sense the subtle spiritual connection between Kate and Ash, or perhaps she was drawn to the Heart of Life medal on Kate's chest that glowed faintly due to his emotional fluctuations.

She hesitated for a moment, then stretched out her slender, faintly glowing fingers and gently touched the edge of the medal.

hum!

The Heart of Life Medal suddenly emitted a softer yet clearly visible emerald green light than usual. The light rippled outwards like water, creating a distinct energy resonance with the amber fingertip, even emitting a soft, [unclear sound].

Like the clear sound of a plucked string!

Amber withdrew her hand in surprise, her eyes wide: "Look! The Heart of Nature approves of you!"

The elders said that only those who truly embrace nature and whose souls resonate with the origin of life can trigger the unique energy response of us light spirits!

"You're no ordinary wizard; my confidence in your ability to help us grows even stronger."

This little incident undoubtedly increased Amber's trust in Kate and, to some extent, confirmed the legitimacy of Kate's path.

Kate pressed her advantage, continuing to ask the crucial question: Before or at the same time as Amber appeared in the forest, did anything else happen?

For example, has anyone broken in? Or, has any ancient relic or seal been accidentally opened?

Have any unusual phenomena been observed in the sky?

Amber tilted her head, thought hard for a long time, and then said uncertainly, "Something special—I don't think I've ever heard of any outsiders being able to navigate the maze of the forest to reach its depths."

Ruins — There are many ancient places in the forest, but the elders do not allow us to approach them casually.

Ah! I remember now! Around the time of the full moon before the darkness appeared, I remember the moon that night—its color was a bit strange, not the usual silvery white, but with a very faint dark red edge, like it was sick.

But it recovered quickly, so I didn't think much of it. Does this count?

A dark red halo around the moon?

Kate noted this detail, which might be related to some kind of celestial anomaly or energy fluctuations in a higher plane.

A brief silence fell over the study, broken only by the rustling of leaves in the breeze outside the window.

Kate's gaze swept over the rows of heavy books on Professor Glenn's bookshelf, and a thick-covered ancient book titled "Ecological History and Chronicle of Anomalies in the Eternal Night Forest" caught his attention.

He recalled having read the chapter on "Forest Self-Healing Mechanisms and the Tipping Point of External Intervention".

However, according to Amber's description, the crisis facing the Tranquil Forest has clearly exceeded the scope of natural balance's ability to self-repair, and may even have triggered a vicious cycle.

He quickly weighed the pros and cons in his mind:

Regarding risks: Legendary creatures and even ancient races inhabit the depths of the Evernight Forest, and the dangers are self-evident;

The unknown "dark" erosion has destructive power at the level of rules, and its source may be extremely terrifying;

Deploying alone into an unfamiliar environment, logistical support became difficult.

Opportunities: Direct contact with the Ancient Path of Life and the Amber River of Time to verify the legends;

It is highly likely that they will find the "Core of Dreams" or a similar primordial artifact to resolve their own bottleneck.

Helping the Light Fairy may grant you her friendship and ancient knowledge;

Preventing a potentially far-reaching ecological disaster aligns with the concept of the Hand of Life.

More importantly, the eager feeling emanating from Ashe, and the indescribable, faint throbbing, almost antagonistic feeling that his own reincarnation heart felt towards the description of "darkness," all propelled him to make a decision.

"I need more detailed geographical information, especially the specific topography of the eroded areas and the surrounding ancient trails of life and the River of Time."

Kate finally spoke, her tone calm. She took out a blank parchment map with faint magical energy and a mithril rune pen from her dimensional bag and laid them on the low table beside her. "Amber, could you try to mark the approximate location on the map? Any prominent landmarks, such as distinctive mountain peaks, river bends, ancient stone formations, or giant trees, are very important."

Amber nodded vigorously, focused her mind, and walked to the low table.

She extended her index finger, a soft white light gathering at its tip, and then carefully moved it across the map.

Kate and Glenn, her tutor, watched intently as she drew.

The lines she drew were not precise maps, but rather a kind of symbolic depiction:

The luminous veins represent the ancient path of life, the winding light bands represent the amber river of time, and the large shadow areas represent "gray".

She highlighted a few places: a twisted ancient stone circle, which she called the "Silent Watchers"; a waterfall where water flows backwards, called the Reverse Flow Waterfall; and a flower field that stubbornly maintains its crystal-like luster despite the erosion of grayness, which they named the Unfading Crystal Flower Field.

Just as the map was about to be completed, Amber suddenly swayed slightly, her face turned pale, and the light on the map abruptly dimmed and went out.

"I'm sorry—" she gasped, "Drawing a map of the forest—it consumes a lot of mental energy—"

"Our clan rarely does this."

Kate quickly and gently supported her, feeling that her body temperature was lower than that of a normal living being, and that her body was incredibly light, as if it had no weight.

The fact that drawing maps consumes mental energy reminded him of the "memory weaving" ability of elves or natural spirits mentioned in some ancient books, which may be related to their deep connection with the forest.

Mentor Glenn handed over a small crystal bottle filled with emerald-colored liquid: "This is a potion extracted from moonflower morning dew and the essence of the Garden of Life. It can help restore spiritual depletion."

He looked at Kate and whispered, "The library's underground vault has recently received a batch of high elf documents newly unearthed from the Falling Star Lake ruins. Some of them relate to ancient natural contracts and methods for establishing spatial beacons, which may be of reference value for your upcoming journey."

You can look it up using your markings.

As dusk fell, the setting sun draped the Evergreen Walls in a warm golden cloak.

Kate stood alone in the quiet reading room of the library's underground vault, where only the mithril lamps emitted a steady, soft glow.

Before him lay an ancient scroll written in High Elvish, ancient in age but remarkably well-preserved.

The text above is elegant and mysterious, accompanied by some abstract patterns.

He traced a line of text with his finger and read the translated text aloud in a low voice: "—When the River of Light is stained with gray, the ancient path becomes discontinuous, the balance will be broken, and shadows will arise from within."

Only those who walk with the balance of "holding the lamp of the heart" can traverse the darkness, rediscover the lost melody, restore the amber's clarity, and reopen the ancient path.

This prophetic text is accompanied by a simple diagram:

Beside a turbid river, a field of crystal-clear flowers grows—strikingly similar to the "unfading crystal flower field" described by Amber!

Below the image is a small caption: "The core of the dream lies at the boundary between reality and illusion."

Dream Core! Could it be the "Core of Dreams"?

Kate's heart raced.

This ancient document seems to point directly to the core of the crisis in the Silent Forest, and it also confirms his previous guesses!

As the first star rose in the night sky, Kate returned to her tutor Glenn's study.

Amber was sipping the nectar her mentor had given her, and her complexion looked a little better.

"I've decided to go to the Tranquil Forest," Kate said directly to Amber, her tone calm yet firm. "However, there are a few conditions that need to be clarified beforehand."

Amber immediately put down the nectar, looking at him with a mixture of nervousness and anticipation.

"First, once we enter the forest, I must take the lead in the action plan and adjust it according to the actual situation. You need to provide the necessary assistance and information, but you cannot interfere with my judgment and decision-making."

"Secondly, I need access to all known information about 'Grey' and the forest environment, without any withholding. If I discover later that you have concealed any relevant information, I will choose to leave and abandon the operation."

"Third, if necessary, I may resort to unconventional means to deal with threats, which may even cause some damage. You need to understand and accept this possibility."

Amber listened attentively, and without hesitation, nodded vigorously: "The elders said that if we seek outside help, we must give it our trust. I believe the elders will agree to your conditions, as long as it can save the forest, and you are a human recognized by the Heart of Nature. I believe you should be the one we prophesied to be the one who might help us overcome the crisis."

Kate nodded, her expression softening somewhat.

He turned to his mentor, Glenn: "Mentor, I need some time to prepare, about three days. I need to exchange for some special potions and supplies."

Mentor Glenn nodded: "Okay. I'll issue you a resource allocation order with the highest authority. Also..."

He took out a small, silver amulet carved with leaves of the World Tree and handed it to Kate. "This is a Nature's Protection amulet. It can help you resist certain natural illusions and curses in the forest that target souls and life to some extent, but its effect on that 'dark' aspect is unknown, but it's better than nothing."

Amber also stood up and solemnly took a thin, almost invisible vine thread from her long, emerald-green hair, which emitted a soft, fluorescent glow.

She carefully wrapped the silk thread around Kate's wrist. As soon as the thread touched her skin, it seemed to blend into it, leaving only a faint green line.

"This is a token of the forest," Amber explained. "Wearing it, you will not lose your way on the ancient path of life, and the forest will regard you as a friend rather than an intruder."

And—in a crisis, it might be able to help you contact us.

She added a warning, "Be very careful of the Echo Valley in the forest," where sounds are distorted, amplifying inner fears and distracting thoughts, and even creating incredibly realistic illusions. Many creatures lose themselves there.

Although I will travel with you then, the sounds of Echo Valley vary from person to person. I have seen many innocent and kind elves trapped in illusions because they miss their loved ones and unable to escape. I have also seen many powerful warriors attacking wildly in endless battle illusions. Some went mad, some chose to self-destruct, and nothing was left.

This warning reminded Kate of a description of a sonic illusion monster she had read in an adventure journal, suggesting that the dangers of the Eternal Night Forest were far more than just "darkness".

Kate was unusually busy for the next three days.

He exchanged for a large number of high-grade purification potions, soul-stabilizing elixirs, spatial marker stones, elemental resistance scrolls, and "Mind-Cleansing Amulets" specifically designed to deal with mental attacks and illusions.

He carefully checked Ashe's condition to make sure she was at her best, and optimized and practiced some spatial spells that might be used.

He also went to research more detailed information about the geography, climate, and dangerous creatures of the Eternal Night Forest, especially those species that are adept at mental attacks and stealthy ambushes.

On the night before departure, Kate did a final check of her belongings in the treehouse.

The dimensional bag contains various supplies, neatly organized and categorized.

He also slipped in the book, "Ecological Records of the Eternal Night Forest," on the last page of which was the author's message about a certain crisis: "The forest does not cry, but its pain is transmitted through every withered leaf. And we may be the doctors it summons, or perhaps—one of its last hopes."

Just as he closed the book, far away, in the depths of a tranquil forest, in the center of a crystal flower field eroded by grayness.

Several of the tallest crystal flowers suddenly moved without wind, their crystalline petals turning in unison toward an evergreen wall to the south, as if sensing the movement of something intimately connected to their own destiny.

At that moment, the Heart of Life medal on Kate's chest moved almost imperceptibly.

Kate seemed to sense something, as if the medal resonated mysteriously with the painful heartbeat of the distant forest, which made him even more worried about this trip to the Eternal Night Forest.

"Kate, I have a feeling that this trip to the Eternal Night Forest will help us grow a lot."

As if sensing Kate's thoughts, Aisha spoke softly.

Kate smiled slightly and replied confidently, "Yes, I also think this will be a great opportunity. Let's get ready to go."