Bigger Trouble
Despite the great mysteriousness of the forest as its name suggests, there are still maps that point out certain places and things situated there. The map details safe places to rest, hunt and train. While none can lay claim to the forest, you can still live there. Wen learns this when he meets a young woman named Jenni. After journeying for 5 hours, Wen arrives at the Bottomless Lake mentioned on the map. The temperature of the water is perfect and according to the information Wen got; the water is unpollutable. You cannot even make potions or tea with its water.
By the lakeside, there is a wheel that seems to store an incredibly long rope, with one side leading into the water. There is also board numbered 1-12, with various names written on it, along with what looked like their dive score. Of course, everyone on this list are practitioners and cultivators, as no ordinaires can hope to make it. At number one, is Suzanne Coth at 25,000 meters. Wen approached the lake and reaches out to touch the water. He is surprised by a young woman jumping out.
She makes her way to dry land as a man who is clearly a fairy announced, "Jenni Jinghu, retains position 5, adding 11 meters to make new limit 11,211 meters. This is her 15th dive". Wen gets over his shock and enters a state of amazement for Jenni's accomplishments. She didn't seem that much older than himself, but she is able to make such an achievement. Most tournaments use the list of 12 to measure their best and she is able to hold the 5th place and expand it. Jenni runs over to Wen and says, "I hope I did not wet you. You seem new here, so let me explain. This side of the lake is for the diving challenge. Don't stand too close if you don't want to get wet".
"Oh? Please don't worry about it. I am fine. I was just surprised is all. Congratulations on your accomplishment today. You are itching closer to number 4. My name is Wen Chan", he remarked. Jenni laughs and says, "oh well yes. Only 4,238 meters to go to get to number 4. Finn is dead, so it's not like he can increase the limit. Anyway, what brings you into Milan's Forest? It must be fun". "I am on my to help with a zombie problem in Horan", Wen responded. "I was taking a little break. This lake was on the map, so I figured I'd stop by. The Lake House prices are also quite reasonable".
However, he is out of luck. "Oh, the Lake House is fully booked. You need to book a room at least 3 months before the Diving Challenge Season opens", Jenni explains. "How about you stay with my family for the night? We have a guest hut". Wen bows respectfully and says, "I will be honored to. Thank you. But uhm. How can you have a home here? I thought no one can claim land here?" As they head towards her home, Jenni explains, "Well, there are Landlord Fairies that oversee these sorts of things. If you promise to not cause unnecessary harm to the forest and not set up a kingdom, the fairies will allow you live and build a home or even start academies".
She continues, "there are many benefits of living in this forest. Cultivating or practicing magic here is a lot more efficient and beneficial. Energy is more concentrated here. There are parts of the forest that are even better, but it is difficult to navigate those places. However, just like the outside world, there is a darkness to this place. It is only natural that this place has the good, the bad and the ugly. It won't be a true cradle of nature without some kind of balance. Ah... Here we are". Wen looks on as two adults did some cleaning around the yard and stops as they see him approaching.
Their house is quite similar in size to the Hung Family residence, but its building materials are a lot humbler. Jenni's father greets, "hello there, young cultivator. I am Desmond Kinn, Jenni's father. This is her mother, Jian. Pleasure to meet you. Judging by your clothes, Jenni met you at the lake and she got you wet. Come on inside and we'll get you dried up". They enter the house and Desmond asks, "are you familiar with the Cultivator's Confidence Act?" To which Wen respond, "Yes. Yes, I am. I accept this confidential oath".
While he is not certain what information he could possibly need to protect, he decides to trust his instincts and carry on. Desmond takes a deep breath and a wave of heat surrounds Wen, drying his clothes. Wen now knows what needs to be protected. Desmond possesses a Fire Bird spirit. A rare but powerful entity that is highly sought after by Imperial Agencies. People with this spirit are often taken as either personal bodyguards or powerful weapons for militaries. There has been a total of 43 recorded Fire Bird spirits, all hunted down and used as weapon. Everyone hoping they get a Phoenix.
Desmond's eyes glowed a fiery orange as his hair slowing turned red. That is the sign of a Fire Bird. Wen nods and remarks, "I see. No one shall know". Desmond smiles with relief and says, "Thank you kind sir. We moved into the forest to escape being hunted and scouted. I just want a humble life. I don't seek position or riches. Just my family. The fairies offered me that. Thankfully, Jenni did not inherit my spirit, but her mother's". As luck would have it, Wen is just in time for lunch, so Jian invites him to join them and talk about his journey.
Wen shares his experience of the outside world with them, as well as his mission. Jian commented, "zombies has moved down to the yellow rank now? That is an interesting development. When I was young, this kind of thing was a red ranked. This generation is getting better than us. But Horan is not an easy place to travel to. Especially for men. Since this was a posted mission however, you should be fine". As they finished up, Wen asks, "is there place where I can meditate and gather power?" Desmond points to Jenni and she pipes up, "oh? Of course, there is. I will take you there now.
She takes him to a section of the forest located behind their house, populated by pine trees. This part of the forest is also dimly lit, giving it the perfect atmosphere for his cultivation. Pine trees are perfect due to their natural ability to channel the various types of energies. In fact, many practitioners use pine wood for wands, staffs and lining for their training rooms. As for cultivators, the scent of pine stabilizes the mind and eases the flow and gathering of Qi. Pine ash is often used to reveal cloaked things.
Wen sits in the middle of the meditation ring and begins his concentration and absorption. Wen's primordial qi exploded from his body and formed a dome around him. From the pine trees, streams of silver light emerged and flowed towards him. This signaled to Jenni that Wen has a spiritual bond to the various forms of metals. The essence of metal fell upon his dome, fusing with his primordial qi. Wen's rate of absorption is 128 oz of qi a second, with base capacity at 128,000 oz. That already should not be possible for someone his age.
Before they could continue, they heard some commotion coming from the house. They immediately rush to check it out, when they saw some badly injured young women around the yard. Jian was performing the Divine Healing on 20 girls at one time, as their wounds were quite serious. Jenni inquires, "mother, father! What happened here?!" Desmond finished wrapping the wounds of two girls and explains that these girls are from Horan and were attacked by zombies. Fairy Tian arrives and says, "sorry it took me so long. There are dark practitioners causing trouble in the forest of late".
One of the girls falls before Tian's feet and cries, "forgive us, forgive us. We did not know what else to do. Now, we brought zombies into the forest. There was no way for us. Forgive us!". However, Tian comforts, "worry not. Sky Fairy does not blame you. In fact, she wanted to get involved, but due to the agreement with the humans, she could not interfere. Now that the problem has come to the forest, she has a chance now". "Why does Sky Fairy want to get involved with human affairs?", Wen asks. "She believes that there is something more to the zombies and the attack on Horan. Also, Horan is not the only place affected. They are just only ones willing to ask for help", Tian explains.
It would seem that Wen's mission has become more than he expected. According to Tian, his Yellow Ranked mission, is actually a Red Ranked mission. "I will be taking my leave then. My mission is to head to Horan and help expel these creatures. I will do my very best. Thank you for your brief accommodation", Wen remarked. "I will come with you!" -"Me too", Jenni and Tian quipped. Desmond and Jian gave their approval for Jenni and Wen accepts Tian's assistance. They then set off towards Horan after gathering some supplies.