Bear School Astartes

So, in Lann’s comment ’this guy is still constantly expanding his territory,’ the originally leisurely chewing mouth of the unicorn halted suddenly while munching on terrestrial seaweed.

Lann’s lips curved into a smile upon seeing the unicorn’s reaction.

”See, my friend. Ecology is closely connected to us, you can’t just say ’I don’t care’ and think it doesn’t concern you.”

”Sssss~”

A hot breath spouted from the unicorn’s moist nostrils, along with a small burst of blue current that pricked Lann’s cheek.

But the Demon Hunter wasn’t displeased.

This was merely the young unicorn throwing a little tantrum, and most importantly: it promised to help Lann find the target.

Amid the crisp ”clop clop” of hooves, the unicorn, elegant and graceful in form, turned around and gestured for Lann to follow.

”Oh my god...” The Grand Commander still came forward with some fear, reached Lann’s side, and said with his mouth agape, ”You really communicated with the unicorn! What a great discovery!”

”We’ll talk about whether it’s a great discovery later, let’s deal with the Stag Head Spirit first before discussing anything else.”

Lann patted the Grand Commander’s muscular chest with the back of his hand and quickly followed the unicorn leading the way ahead.

With an ancient dragon leading the way, the two humans walked smoothly on the Land Coral Plateau.

The leader of the third Adventurer’s Group said that the Valley of Miasma lies directly below the Land Coral Plateau.

The coral reefs here, after millions, tens of millions of years of growth, have turned into towering layers.

Even experienced Hunters find it difficult to locate viable paths.

But before the unicorn, who can command thunder...

”Boom!”

The obstructing coral reef first glowed faintly blue, an outward manifestation of gathering charges.

Then a fierce bolt of lightning flashed across the sky from the thundercloud!

Following the attraction of the charge, it struck the target!

Next, the instantaneous high temperature of the lightning caused local overheating, and the entire coral reef exploded due to the intense temperature difference.

”I feel like we’re on a picnic now.”

The Grand Commander chuckled happily behind Lann.

Earlier, he noticed the unicorn didn’t seem to resist Lann’s touch, thus his mind became lively too.

He moved forward, attempting to touch the unicorn’s fur and scale armor in a non-combat situation.

But unfortunately, his intentions were not understood by the unicorn.

Without means of communication, the ancient dragon couldn’t determine the human’s intentions in approaching.

Therefore, even though it didn’t attack him, it still released a bit of electricity.

Making the Grand Commander’s spiky blonde hair emit a bit of green smoke.

Afterwards, the Grand Commander only walked behind Lann.

As the unicorn stormed its way through, using thunder to break apart obstructing coral reefs, by the time Lann and others walked out of a blasted gap...

Lann squinted his eyes slightly, gazing at the scene before them.

Dreary, sickening, frightening.

The Valley of Miasma left such an initial impression.

It’s as if the air here contains special elements, causing one to see the sky from below without the gentle warmth of the Land Coral Plateau but rather a gloomy expanse.

Fragments of flesh are scattered everywhere, remnants of creatures from above that have fallen.

Accumulated over time, these flesh remnants not only emit the stench of decay but their appearance transforms from bloody fresh meat to a sticky form, eroded and decomposed by bacteria.

Like the nauseating look after being sun-baked in summer.

Between large patches of black, damp rocks, there’s a ’passageway’ connected by a thick layer of fungal and slime mold mats.

These mats constantly secrete sticky secretions throughout their life activities.

What shocks people the most is the foundation enabling the region’s current landscape—a certain type of creature’s bones.

They belong to a gigantic serpent-like creature.

Though they have turned into skeletons over the eons, their bones still supported the rock structure.

Imagining the size of a creature with such bones during its lifespan is difficult.

The skull of this serpent-like creature appears flat like a small building before humans. Its winding body completely disappears among rocky mountain ranges, blurry and indistinct.

All sorts of carrion-eating insects and animals thrive in this area.

Yes, thrive.

Although from a human perspective, the Valley of Miasma’s environment is horrendous and unacceptable.

But within nature, it’s an undoubtedly thriving and flourishing ecosystem.

In nature, bacteria, fungi, and scavengers are no different from any other creatures. They all play a part in the ecosystem.

”That’s the Ancient Serpent King Dragon,” the Grand Commander said, walking closer from the opening behind Lann.

”The Master of the Wild from the first Adventurer’s Group, an expert in wilderness survival, first came here and conducted preliminary measurements.”

”This place seems like the burial ground of the Ancient Serpent King Dragon’s clan, gathering many Serpent King Dragon remnants. Like this one...”

The Grand Commander pointed towards the highest rock, appearing like a python’s intimidating, flicking skull.

”Even conservatively estimated, its full length is at least two thousand three hundred meters, a behemoth unimaginable today. The modern Serpent King Dragons that appeared in the Thousand Sword Mountain on the old continent a few years ago seem like a mere chopstick compared to it.”

”How about it, astonishing isn’t it? Haha!”

As always, the Grand Commander laughed heartily, as if this frightful yet magnificent scenery was something he erected.

Lann shrugged his shoulders, initially descending from the slimy fungal mats.

”Better follow our ’guide’ for now.”

When Lann descended, the unicorn shook its mane.

It didn’t really like this place, hence its reluctance to come down.

”Very close?”

After confirming with the unicorn again, Lann pumped his fists with excitement.

As long as the Thief Adventurer Group’s cat companions are transported to other regions, then hunting the Stag Head Spirit is approximately a third complete.

And with his invigorated spirit, Lann couldn’t help but take a deep breath, only to be choked by the Valley of Miasma’s taste and special substance in the air.

He started coughing.

”Cough, cough... Is the air here poisonous?!”

Lann was astonished. Though he hadn’t undergone the Multiple Lungs transformation yet, the Demon Hunter’s survival abilities were formidable, and even he was choked.

”It’s not the air that’s poisonous,” the Grand Commander waved his hand, pointing to the dim sky.

”The so-called ’Miasma’ is a flesh-eating microorganism colony bred from decaying meat and bones. They are omnipresent throughout the Valley of Miasma.”

”We’re currently in the upper layer, where you can still breathe and speak freely if you stay cautious. But in the lower layers, where concentration is generally higher... that’s when each breath feels painful.”