Chapter 51

Level Up Heretic Judge – Chapter 51 (51/227)

Chapter 51: Silence and Together (7)

Ancient spirit stone.

As the name suggests, it’s a thing made by special stones absorbing the essence emitted from ancient spirits, and it was a completely different level compared to the regular spirit stones commonly used among users.

Only races with the innate ability to deeply commune with spirits, like elves, could use it, and even fewer races could directly refine soul stones.

This stone, imbued with powerful spirit energy, was essential for the high elves’ rituals and also the true identity of the cargo being transported this time toward the White Forest.

“Ugh… I said you shouldn’t say anything.”

Peren grabbed his ears and shook his head.

It felt a bit guilty tricking these cute little ones so gently, but there was nothing to be done.

The more information you had, the better, especially when it came to requests you were about to undertake.

Rather than sitting still and wasting time, they needed to take active steps.

“So where are the ancient spirit stones being made?”

“I’ll guide you.”

Piko took the lead and guided the way.

Thus, they left the village and headed deep into the forest’s center, fearlessly plunging further into its tangled depths despite the lack of any clear path.

Even in such a complex forest, as long as they were with the Rotum族, there was no worry of getting lost.

“Isn’t there an ancient spirit sleeping beneath the Spirit Forest?”

“Yeah, we absorb the essence from the underground ancient spirit to fill the spirit stones. Ancient spirits are amazing; their energy just flows out naturally while they rest.”

“They might look scary and not speak our language, though.”

Peren interjected with a sly grin.

All over Warode, the scattered ancient spirits had ceased activity and were now asleep.

The Rotum族, who possessed an innate affinity for spirits, tried conversing with the ancient spirit slumbering beneath the forest but to no avail.

Compared to regular spirits, these ancient beings were far too massive, making communication impossible even for them.

They could only gather their energies to create spirit stones.

“There!”

Pointing ahead as they reached their destination, Peren declared.

In the heart of the deep forest, a spacious clearing revealed several altars spread out.

Approaching closer, they could see glowing blue stones resting on simple altars.

“It usually takes half a day to complete all of them, but they’re barely halfway done.”

“Hmm…”

Eil approached the altar to inspect the situation.

True to the story of receiving ancient spirit energy, faint mist-like lights flowed from the ground into the blue stones.

‘Something feels off…’

But strangely, the light rising from the ground seemed to carry a murky aura, catching his eye.

Spirit energy should only reflect the pure light inherent to spirits, yet what he saw here contradicted the common knowledge of Warode that Eil knew.

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Though the difference was incredibly subtle and perhaps not worth worrying much about, Eil, with his sharp instincts, sensed something suspicious.

“Let’s go see the ancient spirit. Can you guide us?”

“Trying to hurry them up? But sleeping ancient spirits can’t hear us.”

“Can Eil talk to ancient spirits?”

“No… It’s not that. I want to check if there’s a problem.”

“Problem?”

“Maybe the spirit isn’t feeling well or something. Maybe the energy is flowing somewhere else.”

“Aa!”

Peren and Piko simultaneously gasped and clapped their hands.

Their shining eyes made Eil feel somewhat embarrassed, seeing how impressed they were by his deduction.

“Good call telling me, Eil! Let’s go quickly!”

* * *

“Why leave this unchecked?”

“That’s absurd! We’ve never heard of anything like this before!”

The previously bright eyes of the two Rotum族 were now clouded with deep shock.

Upon entering the underground cave leading to the heart of the forest, they witnessed a shocking scene.

The sacred heart of the beautiful Spirit Forest.

A place that should have been the most mysterious and holy was now filled only with dimmed spirits and blackened earth.

A putrid stench, the kind you’d expect from dungeons swarming with undead, permeated the air.

The spirits believed to flow from outside were actually born from internal contamination.

Forest souls, abundant within, could easily mutate depending on their environment, turning into monsters without much surprise.

Yet, even Eil, who already knew this fact, hadn’t suspected such an event had occurred earlier.

‘Who did this?’

For thousands of years, the forest and its spirits had maintained nature’s balance perfectly, so it was unlikely they suddenly became contaminated on their own.

In other words, someone had intervened intentionally.

Since the Rotum族 were inherently incapable of such deeds, they were excluded from suspicion, leaving the act likely committed by outsiders.

However, the powerful barrier covering the entire Spirit Forest wasn’t loose but rather seamless, frustrating countless users who attempted to break through.

Not just anyone could barge in casually.

“Kirlrk!”

Blackened spirits devoid of light gathered around them.

Upon spotting them, the spirits immediately assumed hostile postures.

Despite Peren and Piko’s attempts to communicate, it was futile.

These spirits, dripping with murky liquid, clearly weren’t in any state to converse.

Ssswoosh!

Eil slashed through the charging black spirits.

Suddenly, a white-flamed longsword appeared in his hand as he swung it effortlessly.

“I’ll clean this up for now. You two, get out of here quickly.”

“We can’t do that! If the core of the forest is truly contaminated, we must purify it ourselves. If the contamination awakens the ancient spirit…”

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Fearing the potential consequences, Peren couldn’t finish his sentence.

Even Eil, an outsider, understood the catastrophic implications if things escalated.

Based on his knowledge of Warode’s world, this could potentially devastate not just the forest but the entire surrounding area.

The ancient spirits, dormant yet immensely powerful, each had drastically different dispositions, making their behavior unpredictable upon awakening.

However, if the pollution affected their minds due to their sensitivity to the environment, disaster might ensue.

‘Damn, why is this suddenly escalating?’

What started as a routine escort mission had turned into a life-or-death task involving the entire Rotum族.

He’d been uneasy since Alunde, a named NPC, got involved, but he never imagined it would be tied to something as monumental as ancient spirits.

“…Then stay close behind me.”

Eil began forging ahead.

Fortunately, most of the black spirits spawned here were level 26 monsters, occasionally level 28, posing no significant challenge.

He swiftly cut through the monsters blocking their path, heading toward the very heart of the forest where the ancient spirit slept.

Though the cave interior was extremely complex, Peren and Piko continuously guided Eil, preventing them from getting lost.

Even the location of the ancient spirit’s slumber and the source of the contamination were clear to the Rotum族.

“This is the last fork…!”

“Which way is the contaminated area?”

“Left!”

Pointing to the left path, Eil moved forward without hesitation.

Even if visiting the ancient spirit wouldn’t offer solutions, they needed to eliminate the source of contamination before it affected or awakened the spirit.

As they neared the origin of the contamination, the putrid smell intensified, and the earth grew murkier.

They entered the final chamber at the end of the passage.

“This is…”

Upon stepping inside, Eil instinctively frowned at the sight.

The heavily polluted ceiling dripped constantly, and the floor was littered with half-melted spirit corpses.

And standing in the middle was a mysterious figure.

Draped in a dark hood, his face was obscured.

While Peren and Piko were shocked and clueless, Eil instantly recognized the figure as a player, not an NPC.

Although some virtual reality games made it nearly impossible to distinguish between NPCs and players, Warode allowed discernment with a keen eye.

Eil immediately tried to check the status window upon encountering him.

Unfortunately, player information was concealed.

“That guy… That’s the one who took our stuff last time!”

Peren shouted, pointing at the man.

Having been part of the previous transport team, Peren remembered the attacker’s appearance vividly.

‘Ealunde mentioned the attacker… I didn’t think it would be another player…’

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Just seeing a player here hinted at culpability in this matter, but Eil hadn’t expected the previously mentioned attacker to be the same person.

‘Then…’

This meant both Eil and the player before him had been assigned quests that placed them at odds.

Until one of them abandoned their quest and stepped back, conflict was inevitable.

Given the scale of the quest, it was unlikely either would willingly withdraw.

Swish!

The opponent also seemed to recognize him, silently drawing a dagger.

Realizing a fight was unavoidable, Eil raised his sword.

He wasn’t one to avoid fights just because they came his way, always calculating risks thoroughly.

Judging by appearances, their levels and specs seemed similar, and it was a one-on-one situation.

Honestly speaking, they weren’t among the upper-level ranks dominated by monstrous Rankers, so Eil was confident he wouldn’t lose easily.

But then, an unexpected message appeared before Eil.

[‘Light Judge Lu’ is wary of the cloaked figure.]

‘Huh…?’