After hearing the two Stronghold leaders' words, Orion nodded in agreement. "Okay then, I'll trust my safety to you," he responded.
He knew that Stronghold Leaders Seth and Zogar could have easily crossed the barrier on their own, but they also understood his desire to explore; hence, they decided to bring him along.
Stronghold Leader Seth nodded. "You'll stay between the two of us to avoid any dangers. Let's go," he said before leaping into the sky.
Orion and Stronghold Leader Zogar followed suit, jumping into the air and trailing behind him.
They passed through the barrier and landed amidst the 'Heaving ground.'
"Well, this is something," Stronghold Leader Zogar remarked, surveying his surroundings.
He could see hundreds of long twirling Vylkr vines, their sharp razor-like tendrils spinning around with such intensity that even a one-star warrior and a two-star warrior would struggle to evade.
Orion nodded in agreement with Stronghold Leader Zogar's assessment. Though Patriarch Rylan had already briefed them on the situation, witnessing it firsthand was a different experience altogether.
Despite his strength, comparable to that of a two-star warrior, Orion couldn't keep up with the rapid movements of the Vylkr blade vines. If he were ever attacked by one, his only escape would be—
Death.
Nevertheless, with Stronghold Leader Seth and Zogar by his side, Orion felt reassured of his safety and had nothing to worry about.
Stronghold Leader Seth unleashed his gift, causing a pit of molten lava to form around the Vylkr blade vines. The Vylkr blade vines instantly caught fire and sank into the searing molten lava.
As he approached the scene with Orion and Stronghold Leader Zogar beside him, Stronghold Leader Seth abruptly halted as a sense of danger prickled at his senses.
Just as they were about to step forward, five tendrils of spiky two-star-like Vylkr vines materialized in the air, launching towards them, threatening to ensnare them and drain their life force.
Stronghold Leader Seth snorted and unleashed his gift once more. Five blades of molten lava erupted from the ground, slicing the vines apart before they could encroach any further.
He reached out to grasp the severed portion of what he presumed to be the Vylkr wraith vine, but as his palms touched it, the Vylkr wraith vine disintegrated into an inky dark smoke-like mist, blending back into the surrounding haze.
He sighed and continued toward the incinerated Vylkr blade vine, bending down to tear off arm-sized portions. He divided it among himself, Orion, and Stronghold Leader Zogar. He bit into the crunchy, burnt plant-like tissue to taste it.
Orion and Stronghold Leader Zogar also took their bites and swallowed them whole.
As they digested the Vylkr vine, its energy flowed into their muscles, bones, and organs before merging with their Vylkr containers, filling them beyond the capacity of standard one-
star or two-star Vylkr vines.
They could feel the density and purity of the Vylkr vine as it made their muscles squirm and contract with each digestion.
Feeling its effects, they devoured the remaining portions before sharing the surviving parts of the Vylkr blade vines, not stopping until they were full.
"We need to inform the Village Chief and the leaders about the effects of these Vylkr vines. With this kind of effect, those who haven't reached their full potential or advanced to the next stage will have their remaining time cut in half, and it replenishes the Vylkr containers twice as fast as standard Vylkr vines. It's amazing!" Stronghold Leader Seth exclaimed.
Orion and Stronghold Leader Zogar nodded in agreement.
Orion sensed that he needed less than a year to advance to the next stage, which was considerably shorter than others typically required—often one or two years. However, it had been over 10 months since he became a one-star warrior, so the remaining two months would be shortened to one month or even half a month if he continued to use the Vylkr Blade Vines to strengthen his body and form another Vylkr container.
He wasn't certain if his current body, which wasn't as strong as Stronghold Seth's, Zogar's, or even Fifi's, could handle the force of four Vylkr containers. Therefore, he decided not to risk it and advance through the next stage the easy way.
After all, he possessed a six-star potential, so he could strengthen his body to create a Vylkr container six times over. There was nothing for him to worry about.
Nonetheless, despite the casual nature of their conversation, if someone like Patriarch Rylan, Captain Seig, or the other gods' chosen ones were present, they would have found themselves frozen in shock at the words they had just heard.
After all, this was a Vylkr veil phenomenon capable of threatening an entire runaway city and its inhabitants. Yet, all they were thinking about was how to harvest and consume it as if it were nothing.
Fortunately, they weren't here.
Orion was about to speak when he noticed a familiar figure within the inky, dark, smoke-like mist quietly observing them in the distance. "That's..." Orion muttered under his breath, stunned.
"What is it? Did you discover anything strange?" Stronghold Leader Zogar asked Orion, noticing his stunned expression.
Since they passed through the barrier, his senses had been on high alert, as he didn't want any accidents to befall any of them, especially Orion.
Stronghold Leader Seth's expression also hardened as he focused on looking around.
Orion calmly signalled for Stronghold Leader Zogar and Seth to direct their attention in its direction.
Within the inky, dark, smoke-like mist, their eyes immediately landed on the writhing form of a headless, four-legged figure whose entire body was formed of two-star Vylkr vines and appeared to be about two meters long.
They didn't need to be told what they were looking at; they all knew instantly that this was Four-star Vylkr vines, the reason why they had decided to burn the entire dead forest down to the ground. Not only that, but they could also see several other four-star Vylkr vines beside it, their bodies planted on the ground as though they were trying to make themselves invisible from their view.
