Chapter 680 – Dreamweaver World 18

Mo Lan took the leaf key and examined it curiously.

It appeared to be a leaf from the hollow tree, but for some reason it was rigid and smooth to the touch, like a piece of jade carved in the shape of a leaf.

She carried the key up the spiraling tree staircase, the wooden steps beneath her feet creaking softly with each stride.

At the third fork, a rustic wooden door came into view. On its surface, the outline of a leaf had been traced in luminescent sap, its shape a perfect match for the key in her hand.

Mo Lan gently pressed the leaf key into the groove on the door. The veins on the leaf suddenly lit up with an emerald glow.

With a soft click, the lock opened.

The leaf key slowly melted into the door panel, merging seamlessly with the leaf-shaped pattern that was already there.

From inside, a wave of warm air washed over her, carrying the scent of fresh wood and sunshine.

Mo Lan sniffed the air and stepped into the room.

The room was far more spacious than she had imagined. The cylindrical space had clearly been built following the ancient tree’s natural hollow, and the grain of the wood was plainly visible on the walls.

The ceiling arched upward into a dome, crisscrossed by several thick wooden beams from which hung lanterns made of glowing mushrooms, casting a soft, warm light.

Near the entrance was a small living room. The floor was covered with a dark green carpet woven from some unknown plant, dotted with faintly glowing star-like patterns. As she walked closer, the glowing dots actually moved out of the way of her footsteps.

To the left of the living room hung a curtain woven from fine, dense tendrils. Parting the curtain revealed a half-moon-shaped study.

Natural layered cavities inside the trunk had been fashioned into bookshelves, with tiny sprouts still growing along their edges.

There were even a few bark-bound books inside—whether left by a previous guest or placed there by the innkeeper, she couldn’t tell.

Mo Lan took them down and flipped through them briefly. They were all poetry collections and story anthologies—nothing that interested her. She shoved them into a corner and took out all the skill books she had bought today, arranging them on the shelves instead.

To the right of the living room was a natural recess that had been converted into a washroom.

A hollow vine hung down from the ceiling, its end branching into several offshoots, each tipped with a large blue flower bud.

Mo Lan had seen this kind of plant on the forums before. It was called a mountain spring flower.

Supposedly, during its growth, the bud stored a volume of mountain spring water far exceeding the bud’s own size. A gentle touch would release the water, and it would stop flowing the moment contact ceased.

Many places in the dream realm used mountain spring flowers as portable water sources.

Mo Lan poked one of the buds, and crisp, clear spring water immediately gushed out. The moment she released her finger, the flow stopped.

She stepped out of the washroom. Further inside was the bedroom.

Against the window sat a bed of unusual design, covered with a thick mattress of moss.

Mo Lan pressed her hand against it and found that the seemingly soft moss was surprisingly springy.

At the head of the bed grew a small luminous flower. As she drew near, its petals parted slightly, emitting a brighter glow.

On the other side of the room was a small balcony.

She pushed open the leaf-shaped shutters to find a semicircular wooden platform outside, its railing entwined with flowering vines.

Standing here, she could take in the entire vista of Greenwood Village. In the distance, other floating islands appeared and disappeared beneath the dream realm’s pink sky.

The view from this balcony alone made Mo Lan feel the room fee was well worth it. She stood there for quite a while before reluctantly tearing herself away and returning to the study, her mind still on those skill books.

First, she fed the 《Beast Speaker Class Invitation》 and all the skill books into the Book of Cards as materials, creating corresponding cards. Only after completing the backup did Mo Lan feel at ease enough to take the freshly made 《Beast Speaker Class Invitation》 card and sit down at the desk by the window.

She pressed it gently to her forehead, and immediately felt a warm current flow into her mental sea.

The Gate of Dreams extended its pink energy tendrils once more, enveloping the class invitation.

At the same time, a panel notification popped up:

【Used 《Beast Speaker Class Invitation》. Successfully changed class to Beast Speaker. Reward: Skill Point ×1】

Only then did Mo Lan notice several previously overlooked unread messages on her panel:

【Acquired Dryad racial talents: Natural Shapeshifting, Natural Affinity】

【Racial skill awakening in progress】

【Awakening successful】

【Acquired Dryad racial skills: Trailing Orchid Transformation, Shadow Cat Transformation】

It was only now that Mo Lan realized she had already gained two shapeshifting abilities.

A stream of information flowed from the Dryad racial core within her mental sea. It turned out that in addition to the Natural Shapeshifting and Natural Affinity talents, Dryad members also awakened two special transformation skills.

These special transformation skills were different for every Dryad individual. Dream citizens of the Dryad race awakened them at birth, while adventurers awakened them upon adopting the race.

Unlike the transformation skills learned after a class change, these two race-exclusive special skills required no skill points to learn, and consumed no energy to use.

Even without the magical energy gained from a class change, the transformations could still be performed.

Special transformation skills typically consisted of one plant form and one animal form. The forms were generally not very large, and the resulting shapes were ordinary small flora and fauna found in the dream realm—nothing with any special abilities.

However, Mo Lan had never heard of the “Trailing Orchid” or “Shadow Cat” mentioned in her panel notifications.

Mo Lan retrieved a spare clay flowerpot from her Spatial Card, filled it with loose humus soil, and set it on the desk.

Then she took a deep breath and silently chanted: “Transform—Trailing Orchid!”

For adventurers, casting simply meant calling out the skill name.

Within her mental sea, the green crystal representing the Dryad racial core suddenly blazed with light.

Her field of vision warped and expanded in an instant. What had been normal binocular sight suddenly became a full 360-degree panoramic perception.

She could simultaneously see the wall behind her, the ceiling above, and even the surface of the desk beneath her.

The changes to her body were even more extraordinary.

Her torso contracted and elongated, becoming a slender emerald-green stem. Her head lifted gracefully, blooming at the tip into a deep purple orchid. Her hair cascaded and extended, transforming into six ribbon-like petals with pearl-lustrous tips. Her arms became two delicate, soft green leaves, swaying unconsciously. Her legs divided into dozens of milk-white fine roots.

“How… strange this feels.” Mo Lan tried to speak, only to discover she couldn’t produce any sound.

Moreover, her entire “body” existed in a peculiar state of emptiness. The ordinary clay flowerpot beside her was overwhelmingly tempting.

The fine roots squirmed of their own accord toward the pot, and the moment they touched the soil, they plunged in eagerly.