Volume 8: Super Mission—“Vitality vs. Deathly Intent” Chapter 15: The Small Tent and the Large Tent

The issue at hand was one of finding a detour. Normally, when Li Bin traveled through the northern part of the continent, he would either use Bai Lingyu’s dragon-scale carriage or follow the small paths left behind in the forests. However, this time, on the road toward the City of Withered Wood, Li Bin and his party encountered trouble.

Blocking the path to the City of Withered Wood was a massive forest, so tightly entwined by countless vines that there was simply no road to be found. Even the roots beneath the ground were tangled in such a way that the dragon-scale carriage could not pass. Initially, Li Bin intended to go around it, but a glance at the map made him abandon that idea. The forest was vast, large enough to contain Li Bin’s entire territory, and it was surrounded by several major cities. Li Bin could not guarantee he wouldn’t be attacked if he attempted a detour.

With that in mind, Li Bin made a decisive choice: he would carve a path through the forest directly toward the City of Withered Wood. To hasten their arrival, Li Bin ordered all his low-level skeleton soldiers to clear the way. While there is strength in numbers, their progress remained agonizingly slow. Furthermore, after traveling over a hundred kilometers, they received news that the path they had just cleared behind them had been sealed off.

Instead of being alarmed, Li Bin was secretly delighted. This only reinforced his suspicion that there was something peculiar about this forest; he even began to suspect that it might be the headquarters of the Great Green Leaf Alliance. This speculation filled Li Bin and his men with excitement. They had spent far too long in the forest and were eager to return to more familiar surroundings, rather than staying in a place where one could not see the sky when looking up, and could only see tree roots when looking down.

Thinking that their ultimate goal might be just ahead, no one cared about the City of Withered Wood anymore. They poured all their strength into clearing the path. Finally, the excited group broke through the layers of difficulty and reached the center of the forest. However, what they saw was not the enormous city or the eerie underground lair they had imagined, but two strange tents.

One tent stood eleven meters tall, constructed entirely of green leaves, while the other was quite small, only about a meter high. The sight of the two tents placed together was indescribably bizarre. Outside the tents was a small fire pit, with a few charred pieces of wood still emitting wisps of faint smoke.

Realizing he had come to the wrong place, Li Bin’s enthusiasm faded significantly. He shook his head, having no desire to disturb the inhabitants, and prepared to lead his troops in another direction to exit the forest.

However, they were discovered by those inside the tents. A voice came from the small tent: "Treebeard, didn't you say no one would be able to find this place? What’s going on with them?"

A voice then came from the large tent: "I don't know either. They seem to have just cleared a path straight here."

"Well, what do we do? What if they capture me again?" The voice in the small tent became agitated. "No, we have to fight them!"

Hearing this, Li Bin couldn't help but chuckle. He spoke up loudly: "My friends, please, there is no need for that. We are only passing through; we are not your enemies."

"How do I know if you're good people or bad people?" the voice from the small tent retorted coldly. "Leave here at once, or I’ll make you regret it."

Li Bin had no intention of lingering and was about to lead his troops to the other side of the forest when a voice sounded from the large tent: "Wait a moment. Are you heading to the City of Withered Wood?"

"That’s right. Are you with the Great Green Leaf Alliance?" Li Bin’s expression changed instantly, and he signaled his troops to surround the tents.

"Please wait. We are not with the Great Green Leaf Alliance. In fact, you could say we are their enemies." A five-meter-tall treant stepped out of the large tent.

"A treant? And you say you’re not with the Great Green Leaf Alliance?" Li Bin immediately summoned his troops.

"Please, wait! We really aren't with them." The person from the small tent could no longer stay hidden and hurried out.

Upon seeing them, Li Bin signaled his men to lower their weapons. The person who emerged from the small tent was an undead dwarf with a long, gray beard. However, due to his small, beady eyes and skin that had lost its luster and turned dry from undeath, he looked less like a dwarf and more like a goblin.

Seeing the troops lower their weapons, the two breathed a sigh of relief. Observing them, Li Bin asked, "Hasn't the north of the continent been completely taken over by the Great Green Leaf Alliance? Why are there still undead here? And why have you been hiding in this place?"

"If we tell you, will you hand us over to the Great Green Leaf Alliance?" the undead dwarf asked cautiously.

"Isn't that a waste of breath? Do I look like someone associated with them? I’ll tell you straight—I’m here to destroy the 'Forest Overgrowth' project." Perhaps because there were no outsiders around, Li Bin’s voice grew louder.

"Destroy the 'Forest Overgrowth' project? Are you looking for the Shepherd’s Whip?" The treant was quick to react, identifying Li Bin’s goal immediately.

Li Bin grew anxious and stood up. "How do you know that?"

Seeing the troops behind Li Bin draw their weapons again, the undead dwarf quickly interjected, "No need to rush! Don't be in such a hurry. We can discuss everything slowly."

Li Bin stared coldly at the undead dwarf but did not order his men to sheathe their weapons.

Only then did the treant and the undead dwarf explain why they were there. The treant, named Treebeard, was the former lord of the City of Withered Wood, and he had even overseen some of the initial stages of the "Forest Overgrowth" project. Later, however, his city grew so powerful that it surpassed the headquarters of the Great Green Leaf Alliance. Two elders of the Alliance, coveting his city, plotted to frame him. This conspiracy was discovered by Ironhammer, an undead dwarf architect whom Treebeard had always looked after. Ironhammer warned Treebeard before the plot could unfold.

Treebeard was not one to be bullied, so after a few skirmishes with the forces of the Alliance elders, he fled into this forest with the resources and elite troops from the City of Withered Wood. Knowing the true strength of the Alliance, they had avoided any direct hostility, merely sealing the paths with vines and using informants within the City of Withered Wood to keep track of recent events.