Chapter 1051: Chapter 20: Hunting Humanity
"Alchemy trial?"
Shortly after, Merchant Anthony brought back Professor Chris’s reply: [Swamp "Hunting"]
Lu Li hadn’t arranged anything with her, it seemed like Professor Chris sent the message to the wrong person.
Lu Li closed the book he had only opened to the title page, put on his cloak, and left the dorm.
Passing through the mixed area and the still-open library, the Gaunt Doorman guarding the staircase blocked Lu Li’s way.
"Leaving so late is not what a good student should do."
Lu Li showed the badge given by Professor Chris, seemingly reluctant under the gaze, ascending the stairs.
Tree trunk level.
Second visit to the Alchemy Office. Lu Li paused briefly in the corridor, sensing possible gazes around him, then opened the door to enter.
The bubbling cauldron was nowhere to be seen, Professor Chris sat by the fire. She wore a robe, with her flowing long hair cascading down, her smooth legs glowing like mutton fat. She held a thick tome of the perfect size for her in her hands, with oversized silver-framed glasses perched on her high nose like a witch.
"What does swamp hunting mean." Lu Li ignored the somewhat romantic atmosphere permeating the office.
"Do you remember your ’underlings’, dear." Professor Chris closed the tome and placed it aside, taking off her glasses: "They brought gifts, hoping for corresponding returns."
Other Cursed Title Masters.
"Wait for me for a moment, dear." Professor Chris stood up, the creased robe recovering its smoothness, yet still unable to conceal her voluptuousness.
Professor Chris walked to the wardrobe, the robe began to slip off, Lu Li exited the office at this point, waiting outside.
Soon, Professor Chris emerged from the office in a loose robe covering her body, her hair tied up, and she led Lu Li towards the forbidden zone.
"I heard about your participation in the mysticology trial." Professor Chris seemed to have forgotten Lu Li’s previous lack of sentiment, complaining flirtatiously: "Why not alchemy?"
"The mysticology level required for releasing title powers is higher."
Compared to the small giant-like Professor Chris, Lu Li next to her seemed like a child.
"Try alchemy, you’ll immerse yourself in it... A marvelous and splendid combination of knowledge, like a maiden’s delicate body, or the plump figure of a beautiful woman, maybe even the weirdness you want..."
"What did Sterling leave in the notes?" The whispers by his ear didn’t sway Lu Li’s resolve.
"The craftsmanship to make the Spirit-Calling Gun, insights on human nature theory." Professor Chris didn’t mind her failure. "They are placed on the shelves. The knowledge pollution isn’t severe, just that Sterling’s Sanity Value was too low. We all overlooked his Sanity Value due to his relatively normal performance..."
The cost of negligence might be the disappearance of the last scientist in the endless long night.
With a sigh, Professor Chris and Lu Li stepped onto the elevator, descending steadily.
"You can peruse those notes but don’t take them with you. The Gatekeeper doesn’t allow them in the cradle-like tree canopy level."
It’s somewhat troublesome, as Lu Li must complete human nature theory on the tree trunk level.
The surface tree hole came into view, as the descending elevator slowly passed by, plunging into the deeper layers enveloped by darkness.
Professor Chris handed Lu Li two vials of potion. Besides the potion consumed last time on the surface, there was another with fluorescent glowing atop.
"What is this."
Fluorite’s gleam appeared at the edge of the tree hole, as Lu Li saw faint outlines surrounding the elevator, buildings formed by hollowed rock layers.
Figures moved within, with rooms separated by iron bars.
More like a prison than the lower academy, a bottomless prison.
"Repellent potion, there are many annoying bugs in the swamp. Drinking it will stop them from crawling on you and leaving with you."
Lu Li drank the repellent potion, tasting like rotten oranges this time.
The elevator had already passed the lower academy, plunging into the long, endless rock depths.
As Lu Li judged they were nearing the old sewer, the sudden brightness accompanied by Professor Chris’s voice sounded.
"We’re here."
A subterranean world stretched endlessly before them.
Because the boundary was unseen, it was vaster than the underground rock layers Lu Li had experienced. The ugly and obscure swamp extended afar, everything enlarged, with spectacularly beautiful stalactite pillars connecting to the dome.
Gnarled and robust tree roots lay exposed on the dome’s rock wall, simultaneously anchoring them.
This caused the inner swamp not reinforced by tree roots to be unstable, with occasional fragments falling from the dome into the swamp below, sparse with trees, rising grey mist after a long wait, and faint sounds after a longer wait.
From the high altitude of the underground world, Lu Li gazed into the distant, hazy, humid blurriness.
For this underground world, along an elevator dropping roots and the small black dots atop as tiny as dust.
"Are the Seepage Sewer and Mysterious Dense Forest here too?" Lu Li asked.
"They are elsewhere."
Clearly, Lu Li misjudged the scale of the forbidden zone.
"Are they that vast as well?"
"It’s different. The Seepage Sewer is labyrinthine, the Mysterious Dense Forest has a visible end but can’t be reached."
A few minutes later, the elevator landed at the swamp’s bottom.
The surrounding soil raised the landing zone above the swamp.
Waiting there, Cain crouched his skeletal-like body: "Master, please follow me."
Cain led the way, guiding them to the edge of the landing zone on the left.
A row of cages holding dying eerie creatures was stored there, covered with cloth isolating pollution, awaiting Lu Li’s personal resolution.
This feeding-like experience reminded Lu Li of something, his eyes slightly lowered.
Lu Li didn’t use sequence 2. Lacking humanity protection, using the Spirit-Calling Gun which consumes Sanity Value wasn’t sensible.
Professor Chris lent Lu Li a vial of potion, to be evenly sprinkled around the eerie bodies in the cages.
Following instructions, Lu Li sprinkled the potion into the cage from the cloth’s seams. Its damage was insignificant, but enough for the dying eerie creatures barely able to scream.
The only proof they were still alive was the faintly trembling cages.
Humanity started to slowly increase.
The captured eerie creatures had limited weird powers, at least not as much as the vengeful spirit in the birdcage Professor Chris brought, but not entirely barren either.
Sixteen "prey" cumulatively increased Lu Li’s humanity by 2.5 units, a significant gain.
Additionally, one "prey" had died from severe injuries long ago due to prolonged placement, not contributing to Lu Li’s humanity.
"Master, a week later they and masters from farther areas will arrive with prey again, needing your help then."
Lu Li supplemented the missing humanity for Cain, who whispered reverently.
Another good news for Lu Li: other masters weren’t as humble as Cain.
Because they hadn’t yet touched the despair-like darkness.
Regarding Lu Li’s growing humanity, Professor Chris, sniffing Lu Li’s scent, described the change as: from cold bread to warm soft bread.