John was dragging Parr as he ran through the dark forest. Suddenly, he saw a bright light ahead. As the two of them approached, the light grew brighter and brighter.
When the two of them crossed a thick bush of grass, the scene before them suddenly became clear. A large patch of green grass appeared in front of them. A small river was slowly flowing in the middle of the grass, lit by fluorescent light.
"Wow!"
Parr was stunned. He had never seen such beautiful scenery before.
It was a quiet night, and the river was emitting fluorescent light. The grass by the river was illuminated by the light and was full of vitality. It was like a dream. The sound of flowing water could be heard. There was a boundless starry sky above his head, and the breeze was blowing. All of this was intoxicating.
On the other hand, John looked as if he had long expected this. After a slight pause, he rushed towards the fluorescent river.
Bang!
John threw Parr to the ground and plunged his head into the water when he reached the river.
Gulp!
Ahhh!
"I'm alive once again!"
After drinking a mouthful of water, John turned to look at Parr, who was still in a daze.
"Little boy, what are you standing there for? Why aren't you drinking?"
"What is this?"
Parr looked at the fluorescent river and pursed his lips. He didn't dare to drink! At first, he was shocked by the beautiful scenery, but when he came back to his senses, he thought, why was this entire river glowing? Could it be that there is radioactive material in the water?
Thinking back about radiation in his previous life, Parr hurriedly took a few steps back. He couldn't die of thirst, but the consequences would be severe if he drank water with radiation.
"Something's wrong!"
But Parr immediately thought of something. John was a seasoned adventurer. Shouldn't he know if the water is dangerous?
"Uncle John, can we drink this water??"
"Yes! You ignorant fool, this is a fluorescent river. The water tastes very sweet!"
As he said this, John retrieved the small package from Parr's arms and took out an empty kettle from it to store the river water.
Seeing that John didn't look like he was lying, Parr walked to the riverside again and cautiously took a sip of the river water.
"Huh?"
Parr widened his eyes. The water tasted very delicious! It was sweet with a hint of inexplicable fragrance, like the fragrance of flowers. This was the best water he had ever drunk in both his lives.
Parr thought further about this matter. Since John said it was fine, it shouldn't be a problem. This was a different world. Hence radiation probably did not exist? There must be another reason for the river water to glow.
Parr plunged his head into the river.
Gulp!
Tonight, the two camped by the river, and they lit a fire. Parr asked curiously while chewing on his food,
"Uncle John, why is this so-called fluorescent river glowing?"
"..."
John thought for a moment, swallowed the dry bread in his mouth, and said,
"Boy, this small river is only one part of the fluorescent river. The source of the fluorescent river is from the extreme cold mountains in the northern region, flowing from north to south. The entire river runs through the entire western region of our Wind Wolf Kingdom. As for why it is glowing? There are many different opinions on this matter, but the one that is accepted by the world is a legend."
"Legend?"
Parr finished eating the food in his hands and listened attentively. John also finished his food in two or three bites, clapped his hands, and began to narrate.
"It is said that during the late period of the Great Disaster more than a thousand years ago, almost all the water sources on the continent were polluted. Plants withered, and life became extinct. To save this continent, one of the Seven Holy Knights, Pure Water Spirit, sacrificed herself to purify the water sources of the entire continent.
"She sealed the source of the pollution in the extreme cold mountains of the northern region. Her weapons also fell into the mountains of the northern region, forming the fluorescent river that runs through the western region of the Wind Wolf Kingdom."
"The Holy Knight named Pure Water Spirit?"
Parr closed his eyes and flipped through his memories, but he did not find any information about this Holy Knight.
When John could guess that Parr had never heard of this Holy Knight, this was not surprising. Among the seven Holy Knights of Salvation, only five were renowned. They were the five who had survived the Great Disaster. Only a small number of adventurers knew the titles of the other two Holy Knights who had sacrificed themselves.
Parr asked another question.
"Uncle John, how did you know about this legend?"
John was silent for a long time. Finally, he said with a reminiscing look,
"It was my teacher who told me this. He was a very seasoned adventurer. Although he was only at Bronze-level, he used his whole life to travel across the entire continent and learned a lot."
"His whole life?"
Parr realized something. John was indirectly telling him that his teacher had passed away.
After that, John and Parr didn't say anything more. After traveling for a whole day, they were exhausted. After adding a few hardwood pieces to the bonfire, they wrapped themselves in blankets and went to sleep.
"I've already obtained two talents through my black sword. However, my first talent was not obtained through my own efforts."
Parr lay on the grass wrapped in a blanket, looking at the night sky. His eyes slowly closed. Before he fell asleep, he pondered on one question. Was his first talent, Wake Up On Time, something that this body originally had, or was it obtained by killing other creatures with the black sword?
While thinking of this, a memory appeared in Parr's mind. It was a memory when Parr had just learned about the black sword's ability. He had killed all the chickens at home and then set his eyes on the other chickens in the village. At first, he easily killed all the chickens, but eventually he met the strongest chicken in the village. After a fierce battle, Parr managed to kill the chicken too. However, he was caught because of the loud noise of battle.
"No way! Get Up On Time was obtained from killing chickens? Wait! It seems to make sense! Don't chicken crow early in the morning, every day?"
Parr felt that he had guessed the truth, but it was unimportant. The Talent was already his. Now, he had understood its source.
…
"Huh?"
It was not even dawn yet. Parr's brows were tightly knotted, and his head was covered in sweat. He was once again in a nightmare, but he felt something licking his face this time. It was wet and cold, so he was instantly startled awake.
"Phew..."
He sat up in the dream. At first, Parr was a little confused. Before he felt his face being licked, he was still immersed in the nightmare. When he focused his eyes and looked, he was instantly shocked. The terror of the nightmare was immediately forgotten. His body rubbed against the grass, and he kept stepping back.
A young deer with pure white fur tilted its head and looked at Parr. It was the deer that licked Parr's face earlier.
"A white deer?"
Parr came to his senses. What was there to be afraid of? It was just a deer. Although it was pretty, it did not pose a threat to him at the moment. He knew this because his newly acquired Danger Foresight talent was not triggered.
"Seriously, I can't even have a nightmare in peace?"
Patting his dizzy head, Parr turned to look at the horizon. Dawn had just arrived, so he closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. When he opened his eyes again, his fatigue disappeared, and his physical and mental strength returned to full. The Get Up on Time Talent worked like a charm.
The white deer came up again. It stuck out its tongue to lick Parr's face, but Parr pushed it away.
"Go away and play with someone else!"
If it were any other animal, Parr would certainly kill it. However, this was a white deer, and this place is still under Baron White Deer's territory!
There was a rumor that encountering a white deer in the deep forest symbolizes luck. This was something that Old Jack had told Parr before.
Whether the rumor was true or not, Parr did not want to jump to conclusions. In this fantasy world, anything could happen!
However, the little white deer had its eyes fixed on Parr's face, and it unyieldingly came closer.
"You're so stubborn!"
Parr was a little angry. He grabbed the deer's head and lifted it.
"Humph! Annoying!"
Parr felt thirsty. He clapped his hands and walked to the river not far away. He wanted to wash his face and drink more water.
Gulp.
"This water is truly delicious!"
Suddenly, Parr's Danger Foresight Talent was triggered. Then, the deer's cry came from behind.
Parr turned his body sideways and jumped aside. The white deer had intended to push Parr into the water. It could not stop and stumbled into the water instead.
"Hahaha, little deer! You thought you could catch me off guard? Hahaha."
Parr laughed proudly. He was delighted with his Danger Foresight Talent. However, he laughed too soon. Because of his laughter, he reacted a little slower when Danger Foresight has triggered again. The deer in the water bit his clothes and dragged him.
Gulp.
After drinking a few mouthfuls of water, Parr struggled to stand up. The river was not deep, and the water on the shore could not reach his calves. But because Parr fell into the water, his clothes were now wet.
The white deer let out a proud cry. Parr could not stand it anymore. He spat out the water in his mouth and pounced on the deer.
"You're dead, little deer! Do you think I can be bullied? I'll teach you a lesson!"
John heard the commotion going on, but he only took a glance, then turned his head and continued to stare at the white deer on the other side of the river. He could feel the strength emanating from the white deer, and the white deer could feel his too. Both parties did not act rashly.
Suddenly, the white deer let out a long cry and started to emit cold air from its body. The waters in the river instantly formed a thin layer of ice, trapping Parr inside.
The white deer forcefully pushed Parr and looked at him with disdain. It raised its head like a victor, turned around, and crossed the river. It reunited with other white deers, and together they walked into the deep forest.
Parr shivered from the cold and climbed up from the water. After recovering a little, he jumped up and cursed.
"White deer, don't you dare run away from me!"