Chapter 461 Deep in the Forest

The flowers in the garden swayed gently in the afternoon breeze, and the air was filled with a faint floral fragrance. Xie Ling and Furong sat on the ground and enjoyed their lunch among the flowers.

The dry rations provided by the competition authorities were originally just some bland bread and biltong, but Schelling was already accustomed to improving his diet.

He took out some floral dew and honey from the collected materials, dripped them on the bread, and then whispered a spell with a strange tone. Suddenly, the fragrance filled the air, and the dry bread suddenly became full in color, instantly making these originally mediocre foods delicious.

Furong took the bread from Xie Lin and sniffed it gently, revealing a look of surprise. She took a bite, and her mouth was immediately filled with the sweet fragrance of flowers. She couldn't help but praise: "I didn't expect you to have this skill."

Sherin shrugged and ate his portion slowly. "As a wizard, knowing how to use the resources around you is a basic skill."

Furong chuckled, and looking at his relaxed appearance, she couldn't help but feel a little emotional. He seemed calm from beginning to end, whether it was collecting potion materials or treating her wounds, he was not flustered at all. How did Xie Lin develop such calmness?

They took a short break among the flowers. After all, collecting herbs is a job that requires physical strength and patience. When the afternoon sun became a little softer, Xie Lin got up first, patted his clothes, and casually checked his bag to make sure that all the important materials were complete.

Then, he looked up at the sky, his eyes wandering between the angles of the clouds and the sunlight for a moment, then he squinted his eyes slightly and said in a deep voice: "It's already past two in the afternoon, and we have less than four hours left before the collection time ends."

Furong was stunned for a moment when she heard this, then she opened her eyes wide and looked at him: "You can actually judge the time by looking at the celestial phenomena?"

Xie Lin shrugged his shoulders and said calmly, "Isn't this basic knowledge? I learned it in astronomy class."

Furong couldn't help but laugh: "Theory is theory, but there are not many wizards who can actually use it. Even in my previous astronomy exams, I relied on rote memorization to get high scores."

She couldn't help but look at Xie Ling again, with a bit of amazement in her eyes. Many wizards believed that astronomy knowledge was just content in textbooks, and very few people could really use it flexibly, but Xie Ling mastered it easily and naturally, which undoubtedly once again confirmed his extraordinary talent and knowledge.

Xie Lin glanced at her, and the corners of his lips rose slightly: "If I remember correctly, your astronomy grades should be pretty good, right?"

Furong raised her chin and said proudly, "Of course, I have won an excellent award."

"Why don't we give it a try?" Xie Ling pointed to the sky. "How about you judge the exact time now?"

Furong was stunned for a moment, then frowned, trying to recall what she had learned in astronomy class. She looked up and observed for a while, but finally said uncertainly: "About... half past two?"

Xie Lin curled his lips, said nothing, and just looked at her meaningfully, with a hint of teasing in his eyes.

Furong felt a little uncomfortable being stared at by him, and immediately retorted: "Don't look at me like that! Even if it's not accurate, it's only a few minutes off!"

Xie Lin chuckled and stopped teasing her. Instead, he said seriously, "Time is limited. We have to hurry up."

Furong snorted lightly but did not refute. She stretched her muscles and nodded.

Xie Lin took out a few extra ingredients from the bag of herbs he carried with him, sorted them carefully, and handed them to Furong: "These are the extra ones I picked, and you just happen to need them."

Furong took the carefully selected herbs and flower petals, her eyes flickering slightly. She had originally planned to look for them herself, but Xie Lin was obviously one step ahead of her, and the materials he gave her were all of extremely high quality, with almost no flaws. She snorted and carefully put away the potion materials: "You have a conscience."

Xie Lin's lips curled up into a smile, and he said casually: "I'm just worried that you won't have enough materials by then, and you'll come to me to complain again."

Furong wrinkled her nose slightly and was about to retort, but Xie Ling had already turned and walked towards the dense forest. She was stunned for a moment, then quickly followed Xie Ling's steps, but the corners of her mouth unconsciously curved slightly.

……

The next destination is the other end of the garden - deep in the dense forest.

After passing through the flowers, Xie Ling and Furong came to a winding stream. The water was crystal clear, and lush mosses and aquatic plants grew on both sides of the stream.

Xie Ling squatted down and picked up a handful of "crystal moss" growing by the stream. This moss is rich in magic power and is an important raw material for some special potions.

"How are we going to get across?" Furong stood by the stream, looking at the fast-flowing stream and frowned slightly.

If Xie Lin remembered correctly, there was a bridge somewhere in the stream in the original world, but there was a difficult giant monster lurking underneath. Without the ability to use high-destructive magic, they had to make potions on the spot to put it to sleep, which was too troublesome and time-consuming. (Note: They didn't have a crucible, but they had various basic potions provided by the organizer of the competition. They just had to add the collected materials into them.)
He had a better idea.

Xie Ling stood up and scanned the surroundings, quickly locking onto a protruding rock. He stretched out his wand and whispered a spell, and a transparent magic barrier slowly extended above the stream, forming an invisible "floating bridge".

He took the lead and stepped forward, testing the stability, then turned back and extended his hand to Furong: "Come on."

Furong hesitated for a moment, but finally placed her hand in his palm.

Xie Lin's palm was warm and strong, and his fingertips were slightly clenched, steadily guiding her onto the magic floating bridge. Although the "bridge" under her feet was transparent, as if she was standing in the air, Furong did not feel uneasy at all under Xie Lin's guidance.

When they successfully reached the other side, Furong realized that her heartbeat seemed to be faster than usual. She gently shook off Xie Lin's hand and said calmly, "This magic floating bridge is not bad."

Xie Ling glanced at her with a smile, said nothing, and continued to move deeper into the forest.

After crossing the stream, the surrounding scenery gradually changes.

The brightness of the flowers gradually faded, replaced by tall and dense forests. The trees here had thick branches and intertwined canopies, blocking most of the sunlight, making the interior of the forest dark and mysterious. The air was filled with the smell of moist soil, and occasionally the low hum of some magical creature could be heard.

Xie Ling glanced at the potion list. The main targets in the deep forest were several dangerous potion materials, such as Devil's Snare, Killer Toadstool, Poisonous Tentacles and Datura.

"There may be some dangerous magical creatures in the dense forest. We must be careful." Xie Lin whispered, while looking around vigilantly.

Furong nodded slightly, and her expression became more serious. (End of this chapter)