Chapter 330
Volume 34 Chapter 7
7) Desert of Tranquillity
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Weed felt dizzy as he walked through the gate . He felt like a duvet inside a washing machine!
“Don’t tell me it failed because I went through an incomplete gate?”
It was the same feeling that he got after not winning the lottery! Weed hugged Seo-yoon tighter to make sure he didn’t lose her .
The practical reason was so he could continue the quest but he also wanted to hug her since she had suffered so much .
It was also a mystery why she hadn’t woken up yet despite the quest being finished .
‘It was prepared… . ’
The situation was so urgent that he couldn’t even send a whisper . Seo-yoon had yet to wake up . But Weed put her on his back and sped off . That’s why he felt a sense of urgency during the battle .
‘I wish we could relax the whole time… . ’
He was going to exit through the gate somewhere . And a cry of distress emerged from Weed’s mouth .
“Aaaack!”
His limbs were struggling but it didn’t hit anything . They were in the air! In other words, it was the sky .
“I’m never lucky!”
Weed muttered with resentment as he crashed into the ground . He was in a state of low health so if he fell now then he could die .
‘Will I live if I quickly hit the ground?’
He thought as he fell through the sky for 1 second!
‘Well, this is a little dangerous . The situation might be better once I can look down at the ground . ’
And another 1~2 seconds passed .
‘It is quite far away…if this continues then my body won’t survive . Looking at the ground will only cause despair . ’
Now he prepared his mind for it .
‘I’m going to die in this way . ’
An attitude that already gave up on life after only 4 seconds! Weed’s body finally reached the ground . However, it wasn’t solid ground but a pile of sand .
He slid down the slope of a hill formed from sand piled up . He slid approximately 10 metres before stopping safely .
“Ah!”
His joy was short-lived . Weed became frustrated again as he climbed the dunes and looked around . The only thing visible in the vicinity was red sand . The wind didn’t contain any moisture and the sunlight was very hot .
“I’ve heard of this place before . Desert of Tranquillity!”
One of the continent’s 10 Forbidden Zones . They arrived at a hot, desert land without any preparations .
Lafaye and the leaders of the Hermes Guild sat in the Haven Empire’s Imperial Palace to discuss strategies .
“The siege weapons aren’t sufficient to destroy the fortress in the Chepen area . ”
“Are there any resources nearby?”
“They are either being used or repaired . The terrain is also difficult to move them . ”
“Then dispatch the magic army corps from the capital . They need to quickly take control of the Aberdeen area . ”
“The enemy has retreated as soon as the Mosulli walls were captured . ”
“Instruct the cavalry not to chase them over the hills . The 14th Cavalry Division will pursue from there . ”
They commanded multiple battles that were taking place simultaneously across the continent . The Haven Empire’s territory was expanding so the leaders had to work hard to efficiently command the military .
‘The resistance is too weak . ’
In the early days of the conquest war, the enemies gave them and cities and retreated . Lion Hunting plan .
It was a conspiracy with the Haven Empire as the target!
The details were complicated but it was basically using NPC soldiers for intense attacks to cut them off in a specific area .
‘No matter how good the plan is, it is useless if you are unable to execute it . War isn’t something just fought with your head . ’
The guilds had joined together in an alliance but they were still susceptible to their own interests . There was heavy resistance . If the Haven Empire fell then they would pick up the maximum profit so they didn’t care about the amount of NPC soldiers consumed .
Lafaye immediately used this chance to get a profit .
The enemies weren’t taking an active stand so the Hermes Guild’s leaders boldly marched to obtain as much territory as possible and used their strong power to counterattack . They assaulted the Black Sword Mercenaries on both sides and dealt devastating damage .
“If the Allied Forces combine then they can deal major damage to us . ”
“Where should we start?”
“They will probably make Bardray the primary target . If he isn’t defeated first then they can’t reach the Imperial Palace . ”
Bardray, the Royal Guards and their army gathered at the Gradian Kingdom . They were the strongest forces of the Haven Empire .
The Allied Forces couldn’t resist the temptation to attack Bardray .
‘They will do so even if other plans are made . ’
Lafaye moved troops across the continent according to the situation . He adjusted the amount of military forces, considered the terrain and the scope of the occupied area .
The Allied Forces had a chance to take over some strong fortress with the element of surprise but didn’t . Bardray was bound to be their goal .
‘Those fellows will be prepared within a week . This will be a decisive battlefield . ’
Lafaye gave an order as the guild master .
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“Secretly dispatch the rangers and magicians to the Rubidom Mountains . And give instructions to all knights in the area to be prepared to move . ”
“I understand . ”
“Bardray-nim’s troops will need to be at the Rubidom Mountains after 6 days so send a request for passage to the annexed Norton Kingdom . ”
“Rubidom Mountains? There are too many tress so it isn’t a good terrain for the army to move through . It is a route that will take a lot of time . ”
“This is the reason why it is favourable to fight in the Rubidom Mountains . And then we can quickly occupy the Central Continent . ”
“What happened?”
“I’ve received contact from Palma . The work is progressing faster than planned . ”
Palma!
He was the secret weapon of the Hermes Guild . The Hermes Guild was an organization originally formed to unify the Versailles Continent . They were a group of top users unified under a single flag .
From the beginning they had an enormous potential to conquer Royal Road .
‘Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands enjoy this game . Millions of people will definitely play this game . ’
It was the first virtual reality game so there were plenty of advantages . But the stormy popularity of Royal Road was larger than even they expected .
The Hermes Guild intentionally scattered according to the continent conquest plan . The Haven Kingdom was ruled by their guild and used to get rid of competitors . They took control of the Haven Kingdom to camouflage some of the other work their guild did .
Palma and the shadow troops were given missions in various parts of the continent .
-Numerous guilds will grow on the continent . And will develop their kingdoms . Work to disrupt them .
As recorded in the history books, there were numerous risk factors on the continent . The early stages when Royal Road just opened!
Evil magicians and creatures attacked and destroyed cities and castles . The biggest achievement of the shadow troops was causing the rise of the Embinyu Church quicker than expected .
“Embinyu Church . When looking at the history of the continent, it was a great threat to peace . ”
“Is that so? Then find a method to use them . ”
Palma and a number of other users formally signed up to the Embinyu Church . They did related quests, found necessary items and raised new followers for the Embinyu Church .
“The Embinyu Church is much more enormous than I imagined . ”
“It is like that? Make sure they encroach on the other kingdoms except for the Haven Kingdom . ”
Expanding the forces of the Embinyu Church! They used the Embinyu Church to weaken their competitors and the confusion allowed the Hermes Guild to grow stably . The Embinyu Church played a significant role in allowing the Haven Empire to not be impeded by their rivals .
But recently the growth of the Embinyu Church was terrible .
Once the Central Continent was in chaos due to the war, the Embinyu Church propagated in every direction . Palma couldn’t stop the influence of the priests reaching the Haven Empire .
‘Embinyu . The Embinyu Church is far too dangerous!’
Palma was appalled just looking at the activities of the Embinyu Church . The Embinyu Church spread an evil aura in lands that were raising crops .
The soil was polluted and new demons born from bodies . The residents became increasingly fanatic and those whose souls were seized became Dark Knights . The monsters were brainwashed by the Embinyu Church and emerged from their habitats and dungeons .
The territory of the Embinyu Church broadened at a colossal speed due to their evil aura and the surrounding areas destroyed .
The rivers flowing spread the pollution and plants became dyed with the evil aura . The branches and roots of trees in dense forests started attacking people . The trees full of the evil power were driven towards fortresses and were used in siege warfare .
‘The Embinyu Church is growing too fast in a short period of time . ’
Palma roamed through the areas occupied by the Embinyu Church . There was no end to the army mobilized by the Embinyu Church .
The battles became wider as the fanatics conducted frenzied assaults . And now they were advancing towards the Haven Empire .
“It is too hard for me to handle it anymore . I need to tell these facts to the guild . ”
In the original plan to conquer the Hermes Guild, the Embinyu Church had to survive until the end . They would then reunify the continent and restore peace under the guise of getting rid of the Embinyu Church .
No one would be able to stand against their power and a new age of Haven Empire rule would be ushered in .
Seo-yoon woke up while Weed was waiting for his subordinates .
“Those guys haven’t come . ”
Iron-1 and Iron-5 . The sculptural lifeform soldiers hadn’t appeared .
“Surely they didn’t miss the opportunity to go through?”
Zahab who came before them also wasn’t visible .
“Maybe they ended up going to a different place . ”
“Those are my thoughts too . As expected, the gate wasn’t working properly . ”
While completing the final secret sculpting technique quest, he learned that his ominous feeling was always right . He also became entangled with Nodulle’s messy fate!
Ddiring!
-Walk through the Desert of TranquillityThis is a place with hit sand and a blazing sun .A place where water is life . Survival is the only goal .
Cross the desert while overcoming the lack of supplies in order to arrive at the Brukan Tribe’s oasis .
Level of Difficulty: Final Secret Sculpting Technique Quest
Quest Restrictions: If your colleague receives a great injury in the desert then the devil will wake up in her body .
The heat of the Desert of Tranquillity burns away all mana so skills can’t be used . -The quest has been given . You can’t refuse .
“Hrmm . ”
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It felt like seeing another mountain after crossing a mountain . Weed felt great respect towards the mountain climbers .
“It is like crossing Mt . Seorak only to see Mt . Everest . The Antarctic or Artic will probably appear after I cross that . ”
This wasn’t like the Jigolaths .
The Desert of Tranquillity was literally a quiet desert . It was a place where human like lifeforms couldn’t live . It was a region where sand continued endlessly for most of the southern continent .
In the early days of Royal Road, many people headed to the south of the Versailles Continent to adventure . Those who advanced down from the Central Continent only found a huge desert . There was no end to the land as they walked . Desert tribes lived in the vicinity of the oases but everywhere else was just sand dunes .
Desert of Tranquillity! Those walking would become tired and die after being unable to quench their thirst .
It was rare to find people leaving the Desert of Tranquillity . Weed and Seo-yoon were currently on the continent in the past so there was no possibility of meeting other travellers .
“Skills can’t be used in the Desert of Tranquillity . ”
“You received a quest?”
“Yes, it is a quest where we need to survive . ”
Seo-yoon who followed him was given the same quest .
“We don’t have a lot of food . ”
Weed sighed as he looked in his backpack . He received the request to rescue Seo-yoon so he wanted the burden to be as light as possible .
Currently his backpack only contained a day’s worth of food and water and the rest was filled with his spoils .
“This is why people shouldn’t be greedy . Anyway, let’s try to reach the Brukan Tribe’s oasis . ”
“Yes, but which way?”
Weed looked at the sand ridges present in every direction . No matter where he looked, sand was the only thing visible . It was a hot and desolate atmosphere .
“This way . ”
“Really?”
“Well, we can’t be sure until it is night time . The desert night will be full of stars . We can use that to determine if we are going in the wrong direction . ”
Weed recalled reading about experiences of through the desert in Africa . When travelling abroad, they stayed in guesthouses as well as camped in the desert . He never expected that those experiences would be useful now .
“I should abolish the practice of picking up empty bottles and collecting scrap metal . ”
“Huh?”
“It is nothing . ”
Weed and Seo-yoon walked endlessly . It was difficult due to the sands blown by the wind . They also didn’t know the distance to their destination . Fortunately the two of them had the basic clothing for this trip .
Weed wore the novice clothing obtained from Serabourg Castle, Baran village and Lavias . The old cloak was easily torn but he could use it to hide his face from the sand .
“Not throwing these things away is useful in a time like this . ”
“The smell is reaching here . ”
“It is normal . I haven’t washed it even once . ”
Then it went back to silence! They didn’t meet any monsters so they just walked forward .
‘There are 2 canteens full of water . Even if we drink it sparingly, it will only last for 1 day . After that it will be hard to find water . ’
Then a desperate situation will arise . And now it was night . Fortunately he could see the stars but it was more painful moving through the freezing night than it was the hot sun .
“Cold . ”
“Night in the desert is originally cold . ”
Weed and Seo-yoon sat close together under a sand hill . There was quite a distance to go so they would need to experience quite a few cold nights . . Therefore they took this moment to recover their vitality before walking .
“I remember the fun days in the past when I walked through the ice in the north . At that time we were with Alveron and Bingryong . ”
“That was really cold . You also caught a severe cold . ”
“Back then you were covered with white frost while on Bingryong’s back . I really needed to refrain from laughing when seeing your appearance at that time . ”
It was one incident involved in causing Seo-yoon’s closed off heart to melt . She thought warmly of the adventure against the Bone Dragon in the north .
Ironically, this adventured planted warmth in Seo-yoon’s heart .
“Will this also become a memory later?”
“Perhaps . ”
“I hope there are more good memories . ”
“If those are your precious memories then it might be better to have amnesia . ”
Weed and Seo-yoon tightened the cloaks around their shoulders and maintained their body temperature . And they started marching through the desert again at dawn!
-You are thirsty . Due to the severe heat, your vitality has weakened and you have become thirsty .That message window popped up once his moisture intake lessened . He was thirsty but he needed to conserve water .
Weed felt like his mouth and throat was filled with sand .
“That blade of grass looks like it comes from a tropical area . ”
“How can there be a tropical region in the desert?”
“Yes, this is a place where rain hasn’t fallen for 1 year . ”
“We can’t expect such good fortune . ”
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There was a long way to go so they needed to preserve their vitality . He didn’t know what would happen if they collapsed from weariness .
“Go well my children . We will meet again in a good place . ”
In order to lighten his burden, Weed threw away the loot he acquired from Portu’s Royal Castle . It wasn’t an easy decision for him to make . The pain was like tearing healthy flesh from himself!
“Eat this salt . ”
“You eat first . ”
“Luckily there is plenty of salt . That is the only good news . ”
“Then I’ll eat . ”
Salt intake was very important in the desert . The salinity in his body was continuously falling so if he didn’t eat salt then he would get sunstroke . His advanced cooking skill meant that he could eat beef jerky covered with abundant salt .
“Let’s go again . We should move as far as possible before our food supply falls . ”
Weed sluggishly moved his heavy feet . Walking was painful but he feared collapsing on the sand in the desert . It was hard but he couldn’t show it in front of Seo-yoon .
And time passed endlessly . He felt like he had been walking under the scorching, hot sun for a long time .
Weed shared the water canteens with Seo-yoon . She had been held as a captive of war so she didn’t have any water .
“Thirsty? Go ahead and drink . ”
“Yes . ”
Seo-yoon returned the canteen after drinking the water . Weed lightly shook the canteen after receiving it .
Challang challang .
The weight of the canteen hadn’t decreased . They cherished each other so they drank as little as possible . Therefore the amount of water didn’t decrease . His heart became warmer when he thought about it .
‘Nodulle and Hilderun also went through this pain . Well, I’m really glad I wasn’t born in the desert . ’
And they kept travelling through the middle of the desert until it became night . After taking a short break, the continued marching the next day .
They needed to get as far as possible before the water ran out . They couldn’t afford more than one sip of water . And the water in the canteen decreased little by little .
‘Hot, so hot… . ’
Weed and Seo-yoon no longer conversed with each other . It took all their power just walking . The blazing sun and hot sand in the desert!
Then a mysterious white city appeared in front of him .
“A city is visible . ”
“Really? Use a little power . There might be water over there . ”
Weed and Seo-yoon were filled with joy as they drank heartily from the canteen and walked quickly .
“Only a part of the city is visible but it looks strange . I think it is a mirage . ”
“It can’t be . ”
Weed continued heading towards the city but couldn’t approach it . It faded away the moment he approached .
Ddiring!
-A desert mirage has been seen . Perseverance has increased by 1 .“It is making fun of us… . ”
Weed hung his head as he walked . And Seo-yoon’s voice was heard after a while!
“This time there is a lake . ”
“Well, it is like that . ”
He might be fooled once but he wouldn’t be fooled twice . It was impossible for a lake to form in the middle of the desert .
Not surprisingly, the lake slowly disappeared .
Ddiring!
-A desert mirage has been seen . Affinity to Nature has increased by 2 .“Whew… . ”
His throat was dry and he was tired so he felt like dying after seeing the mirages . They kept moving forward but there was only an endless sandy desert .
Weed and Seo-yoon’s pace slowed as they became tired .
“Should we just go?”
“It is a little difficult . ”
“It seems like we’ll be walking tomorrow . ”
“How much water is left?”
“If we continue to save water then it will last until tomorrow morning . ”
The next day .
Weed and Seo-yoon once again started walking at dawn . There remained one sip in the canteen so they persisted in not drinking for as long as possible .
And they shared the water once they couldn’t stand it anymore . Once there was no drops remaining, Weed placed the empty canteen into his backpack .
“Now there is no water . ”
“We will continue . ”
Seo-yoon was becoming more haggard after becoming tired . The sight of her sad beauty made him want to hug her .
‘She encountered trouble after meeting the wrong man . It would be good if I remember these features to make a sculpture . ’
His foolish hope of walking towards the north disappeared . He was surrounded on all sides by the desert so he couldn’t have any positive thoughts .
Weed and Seo-yoon walked on small sand particles . The wind blew the sand grains towards them . There was no hope for finding a tropical area in the middle of the desert .
Weed’s lips were completely dry and cracked .
“I’m sorry . ”
“Why?”
“I brought you here to help me with a quest . ”
“It is okay . Do not give up and continue walking . If we continue then there might be an end . ”
“But now it’s over . ”
Ddiring!
-You are suffering from a high fever due to serious thirst . You are seeing hallucinations and vitality isn’t recovering .Health is reduced .
Health will keep decreasing unless body temperature is lowered .
“I never expected to die in a desert due to a lack of water . ”
Weed was so weak that he could barely even take one step . Seo-yoon was using all her effort to walk so she couldn’t even help him . She had a little more to drink so she had more strength .
‘Surely the success or failure of this quest doesn’t depend on how much water was brought?’
It was understandable that he thought that . He didn’t worry about the amount of water while rescuing Seo-yoon .
Weed really couldn’t walk anymore . He was suffering from severe hallucinations and his legs couldn’t walk straight . And they climbed over another sand ridge . The sand reached his ankle, making it harder to walk .
“There is a tree . ”
“Again…a mirage”
“It is a real tree!”
Weed lifted his head as he heard Seo-yoon’s cry . There were real trees . This was a sandy desert but there were occasional tress growing with leaves dripping with moisture .
“There are really trees?”
“It seems so . ”
Right now he had reached his limit . Weed and Seo-yoon painfully arrived near the trees .
Ddiring!
-You have escaped from the Desert of Tranquillity . The title ‘Desert Traveller’ has been acquired .The amount of vitality consumed when travelling through the desert will be reduced .
Perseverance has increased by 45 .
“We finally arrived!”
Weed lay down next to the trees . He then pulled out his Sculpting Knife . Then he cut the trees . The theme was a simple rainbow and rain . And then he used a skill .
“Cloud Sculpting!”
A skill that summoned clouds in the sky! He could create a sculpture now that he escaped from the Desert of Tranquillity .
“Cloud Sculpting, Cloud Sculpting, Cloud Sculpting, rain fall from the clouds . ”
Dark clouds gathered like a miracle over the desert area .
Swaaaaaang!
And rain fell over the desert! Weed and Seo-yoon watched the sky and lay down with their mouths open as they drank the rainwater .
-Your thirst has been relieved .Now his mind was cleared due to the rain .
Ddiring!
-Natural sculpting has changed the continent .Yoo Byung-jin admired the rain falling over the desert .
“Great patience . ”
They walked tirelessly through the desert without losing hope . This couldn’t be done by just anyone .
People couldn’t underestimate the despair and negativity in situations like this .
Weed and Seo-yoon shouldered the responsibility of conserving water while constantly moving across the Desert of Tranquillity .
The starting point for this quest depending on the amount of water they originally had .
Weed and Seo-yoon didn’t waste time quarrelling over water or blaming each other . They just walked until they finally arrived at the destination . Their patience meant they achieved it despite the low vitality .
“And the desert will be changed now that the quest is successful . ”
Yoo Byung-jin glanced at another monitor . The monitor was showing the Versailles Continent in the present .
The rain didn’t seem like much as it soaked into the ground . But the Desert of Tranquillity in the south was vast and black rain clouds quickly spread through the area . And the heavy rain that fell! The rain soaked into the desert causing trees, grass and oases to grow .
New rivers were created and swept into surrounding lands, making it fertile . Weed’s rain brought tremendous changes to the Versailles Continent in the current time .
The flowing river eroded the weak desert land . And canyons started to form! The erosion created colourful canyons where a vast river dozens of metres wide flowing through it .
A long time was needed for these scenes to occur . Weed made a wonderful sculpture that manifested over time .
There were minimal users active in the desert . The environment was far too hot and painful with few monsters so only some people came to the desert to complete quests .
But now that Weed created a flowing river and there was a mysterious gorge, many users started coming .
Just like in the north, Weed changed the southern desert . Yoo Byung-jin looked at the monitor where Weed and Seo-yoon were resting in the rain .
The scorching sunlight shone through the dark clouds . A desert rainbow surrounded the two people lying down .