Chapter 155: Message Tree (1/2)

Chapter 155: Message Tree

Translator: YHEditor: Pranav

Come quickly and take a look?

Ai Hui put the shield down and asked, “You’re done with your training?”

Fatty sluggishly answered, “Is anyone ever done with their training? Come quickly, some of the leaves on your message tree are glowing, someone has sent a message. Wow, this is really advanced, I’m really excited to be able to see something so advanced. Please understand that it’s the first time a country bumpkin like me has seen something like this.”

Message tree?

Ai Hui paused for a moment, suddenly recalling the nonsensical words that had previously appeared on one of its leaves.

“I have no idea who among you are still alive, but I know that no one can stop them. They have already completed the necessary preparations. Everything will change in sixty days. Who will protect the Avalon of Five Elements?”

Ai Hui remembered the message clearly. He had attempted to understand this seemingly nonsensical message several times but to no avail.

He had felt that the other party was abnormal and should totally see a doctor. Until now, he had thought that the message was just a prank and had buried it somewhere in the back of his mind. However, hearing Fatty mention the message tree reminded him of that message, which he now saw clearly in his head.

Everything will change...

Ai Hui inevitably thought of the blood catastrophe. It was most certainly a catastrophe capable of being called an ‘incredible change.’ Hadn’t Central Pine City and the Induction Ground both already changed drastically?

Wait a minute! If the blood catastrophe was what the other party was referring to...

“No one can stop them” seemed to indicate that the blood catastrophe was set in motion by some people. Ai Hui let out an angry hiss. He had also once thought that this might have been the case.

The blood poison needed a period of incubation before it could complete its metamorphosis. The Garden of Life was undoubtedly a good choice. Nobody would notice anything different in a forgotten area flooded with all sorts of strange vegetation. Besides the students that went there for excursions, the Garden of Life was desolate and uninhabited. Moreover, there were no powerful dire beasts out there, only wild beasts. Perhaps the blood poison was extremely weak in its early stages?

The Garden of Life could be said to be an excellent breeding ground for the blood poison, and it had allowed the poison to continuously spread and transform the blood beasts.

It was already too late by the time the blood poison started to break out. What’s worse was that the Induction Ground did not have any stationed troops from the elite Thirteen Divisions at the time, thus causing them to be unable to adapt quickly enough to fend off the sudden outbreak.

The number of coincidences made Ai Hui think that the blood catastrophe was planned, but he promptly dismissed the thought after feeling that he might be too paranoid. Who would deliberately make such a blood poison? What good would it do for them? Ai Hui could not think of a good reason.

But what if the other party really was referring to the blood catastrophe?

Ai Hui hesitated for a moment, juggling the strange message around in his mind.

“I have no idea who among you is still alive” implied that there was a group of people—maybe his friends? It didn’t seem like it though, perhaps it was a group of sorts? “Is still alive” implied that this group of people was either very old or trapped in dire circumstances. Either way, they were people facing death.

Does the “them” in the message then refer to the people who initiated the blood catastrophe?

The thing that didn’t add up was the “60 days” mentioned in the message. Ai Hui had gone on the excursion the next day after receiving the message. The blood poison incident had also come shortly after.

It had been 32 days since Ai Hui had received the strange message, which meant that the blood catastrophe had started 28 days after the message.

The sender must have postulated incorrectly.

Or was he not talking about the blood catastrophe?

“Everything will change” probably meant that the event would create an impact large enough to alter the Avalon of Five Elements. “Who will protect the Avalon of Five Elements?” insinuated that the change wasn’t going to be a good thing, it was more likely a calamity.

It was this last sentence that led Ai Hui to think of the blood catastrophe. He couldn’t think of any other event that had the ability to drastically change the Avalon of Five Elements.

But if it, indeed, referred to the blood catastrophe, the timing was an issue.

“Ai Hui, why are you daydreaming?” Fatty asked as he walked over, deeply concerned. “Are your injuries still not healed? Lan Lan, quickly give Ai Hui a check up.”

“No problem!” Lou Lan replied, his eyes flashing. “Ai Hui is very healthy!”

Ai Hui snapped out of his thoughts, mocking himself for overthinking and being paranoid.

But wait….

Ai Hui pointed at Lou Lan and questioned Fatty, “What did you call him?”

“Lan Lan,” Fatty answered matter-of-factly.

Ai Hui shivered, clearly grossed out. “Lan Lan? Please don’t give me goosebumps. Lou Lan is my sand puppet, you’d better not mangle his name.”

Fatty innocently replied, “What about Lou Lou?”

“Why are you not called Dai Dai, then?” Ai Hui could barely spit out those two words.

“Oh, you know my childhood nickname!” Fatty exclaimed with his eyes opened wide in surprise. “I’ve never told you this before!”

Ai Hui couldn’t be bothered to continue talking. He pointed to the ironwood shield on the floor. “This is for you.”

Fatty looked at the ironwood shield lying on the floor, dazed by its great thickness. “Ai Hui, are you sure about this? I’m supposed to use this? Ai Hui, I haven’t seen you for just a few months, and you’ve already forgotten my light and graceful fighting style?”

“Light and graceful? I think you mean hit and run?” Ai Hui sneered and pressed on without giving Fatty a chance to rebut. “I need someone to wield a shield, and I think you’re the most suitable person to do it. We can’t waste all that flesh, now can we?”

Fatty replied anxiously, “This is all fat…”

Ai Hui swiftly interrupted, “Are you doing it? Return me my money if you aren’t going to do it!”

Fatty slumped his body and pleaded, “Ai Hui, we’ve been brothers for so many years…”

“You still need to return the money!” Ai Hui said bluntly. “If you cannot afford to pay up then you’d better be my shieldman. You’ll be well fed with noodles and meat, and you can even play with Lou Lan.”

Lou Lan morphed into three words—“play with you”—that flitted about.