I'm really not a Sanctuary Warlock.

"Hey, where did this little fledgling come from in this freezing weather?" A burly mercenary with a face full of scars slammed down his wine glass, grinned, and revealed a mouthful of yellow teeth. "Judging by his build, he doesn't look like someone destined to travel all over the country and suffer hardships."

A burst of laughter immediately erupted from the surrounding area.

Several half-drunk mercenaries even stood up and staggered toward Lynn and Alice, their hands already reaching for the daggers at their waists.

Alice shrank back behind Lynn in fright, gripping Lynn's clothes tightly with both hands.

The innkeeper was a chubby, balding middle-aged man. He stood behind the bar, wiping glasses while coldly observing the scene. In a place like this, the law of the jungle prevailed. Anyone without power who dared to flaunt a beautiful woman in public deserved to be devoured alive.

Lynn stopped in her tracks.

He didn't draw his sword, nor did he even take his hand out of his coat pocket.

He merely raised his head slightly, his dark eyes coldly sweeping over the mercenaries blocking his way.

"roll."

The mercenary paused for a moment, then burst into exaggerated laughter as if he'd heard the funniest joke ever: "Kid, do you know who you're talking to? The blood on my blade is more than the water you've drunk..."

His voice stopped abruptly before he could finish speaking.

An extremely terrifying elemental pressure erupted from Lynn's body without warning.

The temperature in the air dropped to freezing point in an instant, and then soared sharply again.

The extreme elements of hot and cold created a distorted aura around Lynn that was visible to the naked eye.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The three wooden tables closest to Lynn shattered instantly, sending wood chips flying everywhere.

Several mercenaries who were nearby didn't even have time to scream before they were thrown away by the pressure, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

The burly man with a face full of scars was the first to be hit.

His eyes widened in horror, and his knees buckled uncontrollably, causing him to kneel on the ground.

The lobby fell silent immediately.

All the mercenaries froze on the spot, not daring to even breathe.

Those eyes that had previously held lewd gazes were now completely replaced by fear.

Master Monk.

Moreover, it is definitely a high-level, ruthless, and terrifying being.

In this world, high-level spellcasters hold a transcendent status.

They could crush an ordinary mercenary as easily as crushing an ant. Even if the city defense forces came, they would never offend a high-level mage for the sake of a few mercenaries.

Lynn looked down at the mercenary kneeling at his feet, his eyes showing no pity whatsoever.

"I'll say it one last time, take your disgusting looks away." Lynn's voice seemed to float out from the deepest hell. "If anyone looks at me again, I'll gouge out their eyes and shove them down their throat."

After saying that, Lynn immediately withdrew his oppressive aura.

"Cough cough cough," the mercenary kneeling on the ground lay there like a dying dog, panting heavily, not daring to look at Lynn again.

Lynn ignored the trash and walked straight to the bar.

The innkeeper didn't react much, but his attitude became noticeably warmer: "Sir... what can I do for you?"

"Two of the best rooms, next to each other." Lynn took out two gold coins from his spatial ring and casually tossed them on the bar. "Also, bring up two servings of your best roast meat and hot soup."

"Remember, I don't like being disturbed."

"Yes! Yes! We'll arrange it for you right away!" The boss rushed out from behind the bar and personally led the way.

"Sir, the two innermost rooms on the second floor are absolutely quiet, and no one will dare to disturb you."

Lynn nodded, turned to look at Alice who was still standing there in a daze, and softened his voice: "Let's go, let's go upstairs and rest."

Alice looked at the mess in the lobby, then at the mercenaries huddled in the corners trembling, and finally her gaze settled on Lynn's tall, straight back.

She quickly followed Lynn's steps and went up the wooden stairs to the second floor.

Only after the two figures completely disappeared around the corner of the stairs did the mercenaries in the lobby slump into their chairs as if they had collapsed, their backs soaked with cold sweat.

At the end of the corridor on the second floor, the owner respectfully pushed open two doors.

"Sir, these are our best rooms. Hot water is ready, and the food will be served shortly." The innkeeper smiled obsequiously, not daring to look at Alice even once.

Lynn walked into one of the rooms and quickly scanned the room.

The room was small but very clean, with a thick wool blanket on the bed and a roaring fire in the fireplace.

“You’ll stay in this room,” Lynn said to Alice, pointing to the room he had already checked.

Then he went into the next room by himself.

The two rooms were separated by only one wall. Lynn had set up several simple warning magic circles in his room, so he would detect anyone approaching the doors or windows immediately.

Dinner was served quickly.

Although the large chunks of roasted monster meat and the rich mushroom soup were crudely prepared, they were an absolute delicacy after a week of eating dry rations.

After eating and drinking his fill, Lynn sat cross-legged on the bed, closed his eyes, and entered a meditative state.

However, he did not fully immerse himself in the perception of the elements, but instead released a portion of his mental energy to keep a close eye on the movements next door.

The experiences along the way made Lynn extremely suspicious of the Marquis Laurent's true intentions.

Is the bloodline of the immortal race truly only for prolonging life? Why did that luminous spirit deer appear at this exact moment? Is all of this really just a coincidence?

Meanwhile, in the next room.

Alice took a hot bath and changed into a clean linen dress.

She sat on the edge of the bed, watching the snowflakes falling outside the window, wide awake.

Her gaze fell on a wooden flowerpot in the corner of the room.

An unidentified plant was growing in the flowerpot. Due to the harsh winter and neglect, the plant had completely withered, its leaves were scorched and curled, leaving only a dry, brittle stem.

Alice's heart started racing for no apparent reason.

She remembered the withered leaf that had come back to life in her hand during the day in the snow.

That feeling of being in control of her life felt both strange and fascinating to her.

She carefully walked to the flowerpot and squatted down.

“Mr. Lynn said it can’t be used casually…” Alice bit her lip, struggling with her inner conflict, but her strong curiosity ultimately overcame her reason. “I’ll just try it, just this little flower. He won’t notice.”

Alice stretched out her fair right hand and hovered it above the withered plant.

She closed her eyes, trying to feel the warm power within her body.

No spells are needed, nor is it necessary to perceive the surrounding elements like a mage.

That power was like a part of her body; she could control it at will with just a thought.

A faint green light shone from her palm once more.

The light, like ripples on water, gently poured over the withered plants.

A miracle occurred once again in the small room.

The withered branches became plump at a visible speed, and the scorched yellow leaves quickly lost their lifelessness and regained their emerald green luster.

Moreover, nourished by the green light, several small flower buds quickly sprouted on the branches at a speed that defied the laws of nature.

"Boom."

With an extremely faint sound, a pale blue flower proudly bloomed on the cold winter night.

"This is amazing..." Alice opened her eyes, looking at the vibrant flower in front of her, her eyes filled with disbelief.

She couldn't resist reaching out her other hand to touch the soft petals.

However, just as her fingers were about to touch the petals, an extremely strong feeling of dizziness suddenly struck her.

"So...so sleepy..."

Alice's body went limp, and after struggling for only a few seconds, she collapsed next to the flowerpot and fell into a deep sleep.

The newly blossoming blue flower swayed gently beside her cheek.

Chapter 182 Life and the Power of Nature

cold.

Bone-chilling cold.

Alice suddenly opened her eyes and instinctively curled up.

There was no warm wool blanket, no crackling sound of firewood burning in the fireplace, and no little blue flower that she had just nurtured.

As far as the eye could see, there was only a thick, impenetrable gray-white mist.

"Mr. Lynn?"

Alice scrambled to her feet in a panic, but received no response.

Apart from her own slightly rapid breathing, there was no other lively sound in this space.

Alice clutched the front of her dress tightly with both hands. Beneath her feet was a hard, cold stone path, devoid of snow or the feel of mud.

She tried to mobilize the warmth she had recently gained within her body, only to find her body empty and devoid of the life force that she could control as if it had been forcibly stripped away.

Alice bit her lip, forcing herself to calm down. In an unknown environment, staying put and waiting to die was the most foolish choice.

She tried to take a step forward.

There was nothing around except for the grayish-white mist.

Without direction, without reference points, even time seems to have lost its meaning here.

Just as Alice's breathing became rapid and she was on the verge of collapse, the thick fog in front of her suddenly churned.

A tall, dark figure loomed in and out of sight in the mist.

Alice stopped abruptly, holding her breath. As she cautiously approached, the outline of the dark figure gradually became clearer.

It was a stone statue.

A huge stone statue, three meters tall, carved from some kind of dark blue-green rock.

The carving depicts a bird about to take flight, its feathers with rough, sharp textures and a long tail trailing on the stone platform.

What is most striking is its head, a proud bird skull with a sharp beak pointing straight into the depths of the mist.

This is a phoenix.

Alice had seen illustrations of this legendary creature in her grandfather's study.

"Is it... giving me directions?"

Alice looked in the direction indicated by the phoenix statue. Over there, the mist seemed to have thinned a little, and the outline of a passage could be vaguely seen.

Without any hesitation, she followed the direction the bird's beak pointed. In such a hopeless situation, any hint was like a lifeline.

After walking about a hundred steps, the fog ahead dissipated again.

Another phoenix statue appeared in the middle of the road.

The same height, the same material, the same posture, even the angle at which the bird's beak points is exactly the same.

Alice breathed a sigh of relief and continued walking forward following the signs.

The third one.

The fifth one.

The tenth seat.

When Alice reached the twentieth identical phoenix statue, she finally stopped.

She turned around, and behind her was an endless fog. She looked ahead, and the bird's beak was still pointing to the road that seemed to have no end.

"You're always like this."

A voice suddenly rang in Alice's ear.

Alice whirled around, looking around in alarm: "Who? Who's speaking!"