Chapter 61: The So-Called "Seal"

".Wake up."

".The sun is already high up."

"——It's time to get up."

Nahida: "..."

Is this my imagination? What's with this overly familiar phrasing?

Within the pitch-black space of her consciousness, a slumbering Nahida vaguely felt a familiar presence trying to communicate with her.

Ever since the Sages intensified the isolation of the seal due to external rumors regarding the Dendro Archon, Nahida had not been able to project her consciousness through the barrier as she used to.

Having nothing to do, she had no choice but to temporarily fall into a deep sleep, waiting until her power adapted to the reinforced seal before resuming her previous activities.

Yet today... seemed somewhat different?

Even though Nahida was not dreaming, she still had the illusion that someone was right beside her.

——Is it because I want to see him that much?

Harboring a sliver of unrealistic fantasy, Nahida slowly opened her eyes.

While waiting for Nahida to wake up, the bored Lin Feng had gathered his divine power into a small, green orb of light.

Due to the isolation of the seal, Nahida's reaction to external stimuli was extremely sluggish.

It took Lin Feng a bit of time to wake her up.

However, this so-called "seal" was initially nothing more than a meditation chamber built by Greater Lord Rukkhadevata so she could meditate in solitude.

Five hundred years ago, the Grand Sage modified this device so that it could no longer be controlled from the inside, which was essentially using the legacy of Greater Lord Rukkhadevata to imprison this newborn God of Wisdom.

When he first saw the Grand Sage's miraculous train of thought in the game years ago, Lin Feng was so astounded that he could only exclaim in professional admiration.

——Having just partaken in the benefits left behind by Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, he turned around and locked the young boss in a cage. For this series of actions, Lin Feng had only one word of commentary: "Illegal!"

In the vast majority of cases, this prison could be described as unbreakable.

Yet for Lin Feng, such isolation was obviously completely meaningless—how could the barrier left behind by Greater Lord Rukkhadevata reject the power of the Dendro Archon?

Even Nahida could project her power and consciousness outside the seal; since this thread of Lin Feng's Dendro-aligned divine power was merely transmitting a message, it naturally met no obstruction.

".Mhm? What is this?"

"Are you... Lin Feng?"

Opening her eyes, Nahida looked at the floating green orb of light before her and asked with some confusion.

"It's me."

"I am right outside the gates of the Akademiya down below, and this is a thread of consciousness I separated."

Lin Feng knew this was not a place for reminiscing and succinctly explained the situation.

"I have fulfilled my promise to clear the Withering Zones across this land, and now I've come to fulfill our second promise."

"——To rescue you, as we agreed upon from the very beginning."

"..."

"..."

Nahida's emerald-green eyes seemed to brighten for a split second, but they were soon filled with deep anxiety, and a brief silence fell over the space.

".There is no way. As things stand now, it is impossible for me to get out of here."

Nahida voiced her predicament.

She looked at the orb of light before her and blinked:

"You may have heard that gods derive their power from the faith of their people, but I am not as beloved by everyone as Greater Lord Rukkhadevata."

"The barrier around me is like an eggshell. To a strong bird, it can be easily shattered, but to a weak chick, it is as despairing as the wall of the world."

Nahida did not spell it out directly, instead using a metaphor to explain why she could not break through the barrier.

"If it's just breaking this barrier, perhaps I can manage it."

"But the reason you are unwilling to leave... shouldn't be just that, right?"

Although what Nahida said made sense, and with her current strength she indeed could not puncture the "eggshell" left by Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, Lin Feng, who understood the plot, would not simply believe that the main reason Nahida was unwilling to leave was merely her inability to get out.

——You must know that Nahida could remotely possess others through the Akasha Terminal, a range that could even reach Aaru Village in the desert.

Moreover, even though a lack of faith prevented her Dendro authority from being fully unleashed, a god's power remained far superior to that of ordinary mortals.

In the storyline, even just a tiny shred of power she left behind on the Village Keeper successfully protected the protagonist party when they fell into King Deshret's ruins.

"..."

"Actually, isn't my current situation quite good?"

"There is no danger, and I can observe this world through dreams."

"Besides, I've even gained a friend like you who cares about me. I smile even in my dreams."

"Compared to the past five hundred years, I am already very happy now."

".So, don't try to rescue me... okay?"

Nahida looked at the orb of light in front of her, seeming to want to prove that everything she said came from the bottom of her heart, but ultimately she only managed a somewhat strained smile.

"Mhm, I understand," Lin Feng replied.

"Phew, that's good then. Although the First Sage we talked about earlier isn't very useful, I can help you replace him with..."

"Nahida!"

"Yes!"

Nahida, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, was startled by Lin Feng's sudden, stern tone and instinctively answered the roll call.

"Has no one ever told you that you are utterly incapable of lying?"

"Tell me, what is going on here?"

"What did that group of Sages use to threaten you?"

"Is it the Akasha? Or the citizens of Sumeru City?"

Lin Feng felt inexplicably angry.

"..."

Nahida fell silent for a moment, then said with a helpless sigh:

"Sigh... I really can't hide anything from you. The previous deal already felt extremely unfair to me."

"It's like asking a Shroom-boar to eat a few mushrooms and demanding that it fight a Beidou-beast in the forest."

"Though I'm not sure of the exact circumstances, you clearly possess deity-level strength now, and even surpass me by far in the domain of plants... I no longer have anything of equal value to repay you with."

"I am truly satisfied with my life right now. For hundreds of years, I have never been this happy."

"As my only friend, I don't want to cause you any more trouble."

Nahida blinked and honestly voiced her thoughts.

"As for the deeper reason—"

"——The Grand Sage has tampered with the Akasha, and now the entire citizenry of Sumeru City are his hostages."

"If they find out I am missing, they will definitely harm the residents and force me to show myself voluntarily."

"As the Archon of Sumeru, how can I allow ordinary citizens to bear the cost of my escape?"

Faced with the youth's persistent questioning, Nahida finally revealed the most crucial issue.

——And Lin Feng's response to this was:

"Nahida."

"Mhm?"

"If I were to tell you that I can instantly wipe out all the Akademiya higher-ups in Sumeru City who participated in this conspiracy... would you be willing to leave with me?"