Chapter 699 – Dreamweaver World 37

Mo Lan followed the sounds and locked onto the shadows on either side of the alleyway. Though the lighting hadn’t changed at all, those shadows were squirming.

Even though she had studied the Shadow Tribe’s situation and knew these sounds most likely came from Shadow Village dream citizens hiding in the shadows — and that they wouldn’t intentionally harm adventurers, at most pulling some pranks — she still couldn’t help the shiver that crept up the back of her neck.

The main concern was that the Shadow Tribe’s Shadow Hunters could burrow into shadows, influence a shadow’s owner through their shadow, and even draw energy from shadows to raise special “little pets” that specifically targeted other people’s shadows.

This was the first time Mo Lan had ever heard of such abilities. In her understanding, shadows were merely silhouettes cast by a body under light — nothing more. She simply couldn’t imagine how they managed it, and naturally had no idea how to protect her own shadow.

She hadn’t found any relevant methods on the forums either.

The adventurers’ understanding of the dream realm’s Magic system remained superficial at best — there was a serious lack of exploration.

The unknown is the true source of fear.

Just then, she suddenly felt a chill beneath her feet. Looking down, she saw that her shadow had begun rippling like the surface of water.

Her hands hadn’t moved, yet her shadow was dancing wildly. It even sprouted a pair of crimson eyes that stared fixedly at her.

Mo Lan instinctively stepped back half a pace, only to discover that aside from the cold sensation under her feet and her shadow being somewhat disobedient, her body felt no negative effects.

Looking again at the shadow beneath her feet putting so much effort into scaring her, she didn’t feel so frightened anymore. She even found it a little funny: “Pfft…”

She couldn’t help but laugh, and the shadow on the ground — which had been baring its fangs and brandishing its claws — bristled like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

Within moments, the shadow had sprouted four arms and three legs.

Mo Lan still didn’t feel afraid. In fact, she suddenly grew curious — what would happen to the thing hiding in her shadow if her shadow disappeared right now?

Making a shadow disappear wasn’t particularly difficult.

Unable to conveniently use other Magic, Mo Lan let her free left hand hang at her side and, hidden by the cover of her outer robe, produced a smooth, large light orb.

The intense, focused light shone down precisely from directly above her head, and the dark shadow beneath her feet instantly shrank to directly under her soles.

“Pop~”

With a soft sound, a dusty little creature was “squeezed” out of Mo Lan’s shadow. Its round little body tumbled and rolled twice across the ground before coming to a stop.

The little kid scrambled clumsily to his feet, a single comical braid sticking up from the top of his head like an antenna.

He looked around frantically, clearly not having expected his prank to be foiled in this manner.

From the shadows on both sides of the alleyway, a burst of gleeful laughter erupted:

“Hahaha! Caught in the act!”

“Romi, you idiot! Run!”

The little fellow called Romi stomped his feet in panic and turned to dive into the shadows at the edge of the street.

Mo Lan was quicker. She grabbed the sticking-up braid on top of his head in one swift motion: “Trying to run?”

She deliberately put on a stern face, though she carefully controlled her grip so as not to actually hurt him.

Romi dangled like a cat held by the scruff of its neck, his limbs flailing uselessly in the air a couple of times before he drooped in dejection: “Ugh… let me go…”

Only now did Mo Lan get a clear look at him. His grayish-white skin was dotted with a few freckles, and his big round eyes looked like two black grapes, currently blinking pitifully.

“Weren’t you acting tough just a moment ago?” Mo Lan dangled his little braid. “You weren’t scared when you were burrowing into my shadow, were you?”

Romi pouted, mumbling quietly: “I was just curious… green-skinned outsiders are really rare… I didn’t expect you to be so brave, not scared at all!” Hearing the merciless “hahaha” laughter of his companions in the alleyway, Romi hastily added: “Her shadow was really hard to get into! If it were any of you, you wouldn’t have even gotten in! And if that big light orb hadn’t appeared so fast, I definitely would have gotten away!”

Mo Lan watched Romi’s cheeks puff up like a blowfish in indignation, and with an amused smile, she released his braid and gave his head a casual ruffle:

“Alright, alright. I’ll stop teasing you. Go on and play! But stop burrowing into other people’s shadows — even by Shadow Tribe etiquette, that should be considered quite rude, shouldn’t it?”

“Sorry…” little Romi mumbled, then shot into the shadows at the edge of the street like a tiny cannonball.

Mo Lan was about to continue on her way when she heard that patch of shadow suddenly begin to churn violently, like boiling water.

Little bumps swelled up across the shadow’s surface, and from within came a cacophony of bickering voices:

“Hahaha!”

“Stop laughing!”

“Idiot Romi got caught!”

“You’re the idiot!”

As the arguing escalated, the shadow’s undulations grew more and more dramatic.

Suddenly, with a “pop,” one dusty little figure was squeezed out, immediately followed by a second, a third… In the blink of an eye, seven or eight Shadow Tribe children about the same size as Romi burst out of the shadows like popcorn, tumbling and scattering across the ground.

They looked at each other, and every single one was dumbfounded — well, this was just great. They’d all been exposed.

Mo Lan folded her arms and watched the flustered little group with great interest: “It seems your hiding skills all need a bit more practice!”

The children immediately erupted into chaos. Some were so embarrassed they covered their faces outright, some stomped their feet in frustration, and others tried to burrow back into the shadows, only for several little heads to collide with a “thunk,” leaving them wincing in pain.

Apparently feeling they had lost face, the small dark figures leapt between the shadows, and in an instant the shadows along the alleyway returned to normal.

Their little interruption had completely dispelled the eerie atmosphere created by the squirming shadows.

From that point on, whenever Mo Lan encountered oddly-shaped shadows, she couldn’t help but wonder if there were Shadow Tribe children hiding inside, pulling each other’s hair and arguing.

She soon arrived at the stone cave dwelling beside the village altar.

The style of this stone cave dwelling was distinctly different from the other houses in the village.

The low, fan-shaped wooden door was coated in thick black lacquer. As she leaned close to the door, she caught a peculiar herbal fragrance.

It smelled like aged mugwort mixed with some kind of mineral powder — bitter yet carrying a cool, refreshing undertone.

A string of withered black vines hung from the edge of the doorframe, still studded with a few shriveled berries.

The doorbell was hidden among the vines and berries, barely visible. Only a coarse rope woven from the hair of some unknown animal dangled down from it.

Mo Lan tugged the bell rope.

“Ding —”

The ring wasn’t crisp at all; instead, it carried a muffled echo.

Suddenly, her shadow cast upon the wooden door moved on its own, turning a strange gaze toward her:

“Someone from Greenwood Village? You’d better have real business!”

“Mr. Groot sent me! This is a letter of introduction he wrote personally!” Mo Lan hurriedly pulled out the letter.