Chapter 698 – Dreamweaver World 36

Forest Isle was a sea of lush green, with towering ancient trees visible everywhere, but Moonshadow Isle was the exact opposite.

Stone forests jutted skyward like blades, and wind-eroded honeycomb caves pocked the landscape. Only in certain shaded crevices between rocks did a few stubborn thorn-grasses occasionally peek out, bearing the faintest hint of green.

But the charm of Moonshadow Isle had never been on the surface — it was Underground.

Mo Lan flew past a natural stone arch in the southern part of the isle and landed before a slab stele of gloomglow stone that lay tilted on its back behind the arch.

Gloomglow stone was pitch-black through and through, but in darkness it could emit scattered points of blue, purple, and green luminescence. The glow was too faint for actual illumination, yet in dark environments, it was remarkably beautiful to behold.

Gloomglow stone was extremely common in Moonshadow Isle’s underground, though a piece this large was still quite rare.

Mo Lan raised her head and gazed at the weathered characters reading “Shadow Village” on the stele. Only after confirming she hadn’t come to the wrong place did she slowly release her Transfiguration.

However, the moment she returned to human form, she couldn’t help but furrow her brows.

Air laced with violent elemental force of wind struck her face — dry and sharp, like countless tiny blades scraping across her skin.

She instinctively covered her nose and mouth, her throat tightening. Every breath carried a faint stinging sensation.

The Dryad naturally had an affinity for the forces of nature, but on Moonshadow Isle, the forces of nature were pitifully thin. In their place was restless wind elemental energy that made her entire body uncomfortable.

She reached out and parted the maidenhair ferns hanging over the cave entrance beside the stele. The instant she stepped into the cavern, the howling wind outside vanished abruptly, as though severed by some invisible force. In its place came a deep, profound silence.

Yet Mo Lan did not feel at ease. Dense dark elemental force flowed through the air like some viscous mist, not only blurring her vision but also leaving a dull tightness in her chest.

Her dark vision failed to activate as it normally would.

“So not all abilities from the real world can be brought in here!”

Right now, her body was entirely that of a Dryad — she lacked the dark vision and enhanced physical capabilities she possessed in the real world.

As a Dryad, with their natural affinity for the forces of nature, she was far better suited to moving through forests rich with natural energy.

Fortunately, she was already prepared to change her race.

The cave wound downward, the surrounding darkness growing ever thicker. Only the scattered gloomglow stones embedded in the cave walls emitted their feeble glow, like fireflies drifting through the night.

Mo Lan stared at those mineral deposits and couldn’t help but chuckle softly. Now she finally understood why people on the forums always said “gloomglow stone is beautiful and nothing else.”

In the darkness, they were indeed dreamlike in their beauty, yet that faint light couldn’t even illuminate the path at her feet, let alone serve as a magical material.

Even trying to polish gloomglow stone into decorative pieces was nearly impossible — once the glowing portions were polished, they permanently lost their luster and became ordinary rock.

The exposed mineral deposits on the cave walls flickered with an alluring glow, as if silently inviting her to pry one loose and take it with her.

Her Book of Cards happened to still be missing a {Material Card — Gloomglow Stone}.

Mo Lan recalled the warning on the stele at the entrance — “Mining or removing any luminous minerals from the village is strictly prohibited” — and suppressed her itching desire, though she still couldn’t help but linger on the gloomglow stone’s radiance.

With a resigned sigh, she opened her adventurer panel and, under cover of her backpack, retrieved a pumpkin-shaped Magical lamp from her Spatial Card.

The warm glow dispelled some of the darkness, and only then could she control herself enough to stop fixating on the gloomglow stones.

After traversing the lengthy cave, the space suddenly opened up, and an enormous underground cavern appeared before her eyes.

The vaulted ceiling hung high overhead like an inverted bowl. The rock walls were riddled with naturally formed fissures and openings through which daylight seeped in, carving tilted pillars of light across the dim space. Dust motes drifted lazily through the beams, like fragments of a galaxy stirred by an invisible hand. Gloomglow stones on the cave walls, along with unknown species of fluorescent moss, dotted the darkness with pinpoints of faint light.

These glimmers intertwined with the daylight, casting ever-shifting, dappled shadows across the ground.

The entire village was built according to the terrain. Most of the houses were embedded in the rock walls or fashioned from natural stone pillars and caves.

Some structures were even suspended directly from stalactites hanging down from the vaulted ceiling, secured by vines and iron chains. From a distance, they looked like some enormous hive.

Suspended iron chain bridges connected the ground-level and aerial structures.

Magical lamps hung at cave entrances, under eaves, and at street corners. While they weren’t enough to illuminate the entire cavern as bright as day, they were sufficient for anyone without dark vision to clearly see the layout.

At the center of the village stood the race-change altar, its ground paved with polished black stone slabs that reflected the daylight, resembling a still, dark lake.

Occasionally, wind funneled in through the openings high above, producing a low, mournful wail — like a sigh echoing from the depths of the earth.

“Finally here…”

Mo Lan murmured under her breath. The scenery before her was beautiful, but the Dryad body’s rejection of dark elemental force prevented her from appreciating it in peace.

Her gaze swept quickly across Shadow Village’s layout. In her mind, she overlaid the scene before her with the map of Shadow Village she’d studied on the forums, and rapidly pinpointed her target: the stone grotto half-hidden in shadow beside the altar — the residence of Village Chief Matina.

The adventurers on the forums had reviews of Village Chief Matina that were hardly any better than those for Old Groot.

“An eccentric old woman — don’t bother her unless you have real business.”

“Last time I just asked a couple of extra questions and she stuffed a ‘Wailing Sprite’ into my shadow. The noise gave me such an earache.”

“She’s only interested in ‘interesting things’ — but nobody knows what she considers interesting.”

Mo Lan let out a slow breath. Fortunately, she had come prepared this time.

Old Groot had thumped his chest and assured her that he and Matina were the closest of friends. A letter of introduction written by him personally would absolutely guarantee her a smooth race change.

The only source of unease was that Old Groot had sealed the envelope tight with tree resin, and Mo Lan had no idea what he’d written inside.

“I hope Old Groot hasn’t set me up…”

Between the Shadow Village settlement guarantee, the race-change ritual materials, and the Shadow Hunter profession invitation letter — settlement, race change, and class change were all legitimate “real business.” Even if Matina was as eccentric as they said, she surely wouldn’t skip the proper procedures and go straight to planting little “surprises” in her shadow, right?

Surely she’d be able to become a member of the Shadow Tribe soon and settle in comfortably at Shadow Village.

Mo Lan set off toward the altar.

The alleyways between the stone grottoes were empty of people, yet she felt an eerie sense of crowding, as though countless unseen presences were spying on her. The weight of their gazes was intense.

And then came the tiny whispers:

“A green-skinned adventurer! She looks so ugly!”

“Hehe! Watch me jump into her shadow and give her a scare!”

…(End of Chapter)