Chapter 686
Don't Say Chapter
Chapter 686 Don't Speak
Liu Ying paused for a moment, then raised her head again, looking at Gao De's calm and pain-free face.
"Is there any place you particularly want to go, or any thing you particularly want to see?" Gao De asked earnestly.
A light gradually shone in Liu Ying's blue eyes, which had previously dimmed.
Her small nose twitched slightly.
Gao De leaned forward slightly, slowly raised his hand, his elbow naturally bent at a 45-degree angle, his arm parallel to the ground, his palm slightly upturned, and his fingertips bent with an extremely subtle degree.
This is a standard knightly invitation.
“Miss Wang Mian, if you are afraid, then let me show you around the world first.” He kept his gaze level with Liu Ying’s eyes as he extended the invitation.
This is the first time Gaode has referred to Liu Ying as Miss Wang Mian.
Liu Ying did not respond immediately.
Her gaze first traveled upwards along Gao De's palm, finally settling on his arm, which was still charred from the recent scorching.
The burned skin has visibly recovered somewhat compared to before.
The charred lines are slowly fading under the nourishment of some strange power, revealing a few newly formed pale pink skin underneath.
[You have been harmed by pure divine radiant energy. Your body has begun to make extreme adjustments to its survival instincts. Your tolerance to radiant energy is gradually increasing, your resistance to radiant damage is increased by 101.5%, and the rate at which divine energy erodes life is reduced by 101.4%.]
Your body has been burned by divine radiant energy; your body's healing ability has increased by 101.5%.
Just that one touch completely activated both light adaptation and injury recovery adaptation, causing them to improve rapidly.
Indeed, ordinary healing spells are powerless against the damage caused by the divine radiance energy within Liuying's body.
But Gaode is not an ordinary mage; he also has adaptive abilities.
Adaptability allows Gaode to evolve rapidly in extreme environments and damage, adapt to all unknown threats, and even recover against the odds under the burning of divine energy.
Therefore, Liu Ying's constitution was never an unsolvable problem for him.
Especially now, the divine radiance energy within Liu Ying's body has been powerfully suppressed by the reactivated Light-Concealing Robe.
The shimmering white runes flowed ceaselessly across the fabric, firmly locking in that destructive energy, making it less terrifying than when they first returned to the mage plane.
Liu Ying stared blankly at Gao De's hand, her azure eyes shimmering with tears.
As she gazed at him, she slowly extended her hand, gently placing her small, delicate, and slightly warm palm into Gao De's.
Just like it had become a habit in the desolate and barren soul realm.
But compared to the natural state of the desolate and barren Soul Domain, Liu Ying was tense the entire time.
Her eyes were fixed on their clasped hands, her long eyelashes fluttering like startled butterfly wings, like a wary little animal.
She would immediately withdraw her hand at the slightest disturbance.
Now, Liu Ying's hand is much hotter than when they first made intimate contact in the desolate and barren Soul Realm, and the stinging sensation is continuous.
However, it wasn't as terrifying as before, where a single touch was enough to overwhelm Gaode.
Despite the pain, he managed to maintain a calm expression and could even feel the soft warmth of Liu Ying's own palm mixed with the burning sensation.
Therefore, Gao De firmly grasped Liu Ying's hand, interlocking their fingers to prevent her from escaping, and then raised his other hand to gently stroke Liu Ying's hair.
When they returned to the mage plane, the sun was already slowly setting.
At this moment, the sun had set much lower, and the afterglow of the sunset began to bloom.
The world was suddenly dyed a gentle pink by the sunset.
The pink wasn't a gaudy, intense shade, but rather a hazy, translucent one.
The gradient from orange-red at the horizon to light pink at the top of the head is distinct yet seamless, as if the whole world is wrapped in a soft pink veil.
A gentle evening breeze blew by.
The leaves slapped against each other, creating a continuous rustling sound.
It was as if countless people were cheering.
The silhouettes of the two figures were faintly outlined by the sunset in the increasingly dark sky.
The first thing Gao De needs to figure out is where he and Liu Ying have landed, whether they are still in the Golden Flower Dynasty or the Nolan Continent.
Secondly, it's important to understand the current time.
The mage plane is vast, but since they landed on land, there's at least a one-third chance they're on the Nolan continent.
Because among the three continents of the Mage Plane: Midgard, Terra, and Nolan, Nolan is the largest in terms of land area.
And as long as they are on the Nolan continent, there is a high probability that they will fall into the Golden Flower Dynasty.
After all, the territory of the Plantagenet Dynasty was much larger.
Of course, there is an even greater probability that it will fall within the territory of the Holy Empire.
Therefore, both Gaode and Liuying were very cautious.
However, it's not to the point of being overly cautious and paranoid.
After all, one of them is a third-ring mage, and the other is at least a fourth-ring mage.
Their solid strength is their greatest source of confidence.
More importantly, Gaode looked around at the surrounding environment and had already made a preliminary judgment.
Before me stretched an endless, flat plain, with no mountains in sight, only a few winding rivers like silver ribbons weaving through the verdant plain.
This type of river valley and plain terrain is a typical feature of the Plantagenet dynasty.
This suggests that they are currently located somewhere within the Plantagenet dynasty.
Gao De thought for a moment, then raised his hand to cast a spell.
Pale blue magical light condensed at his fingertips, and with a soft chant, the light suddenly exploded, transforming into a delicate and translucent ice butterfly.
【Ice Butterfly [True Ice Spell]】!
"Mithril City," Gao De whispered to the ice butterfly hovering in front of him.
As soon as the words were spoken, the ice butterfly seemed to receive an invisible command. It suddenly increased the frequency of its wing flapping, and the pale blue light around it became brighter and brighter as it flew towards the northwest.
Without hesitation, Gao De followed Bing Die with Liu Ying.
It maintains a distance of 1.5 meters from Gaode Maps, forming a flowing trail of light.
The sun had completely set, and it quickly became completely dark.
Night fell like a giant black velvet curtain, slowly covering the entire sky.
The two hadn't flown for long when a small town with bright lights appeared ahead.
With the night vision and far-sightedness of Mandora's Eyes, the moment Gao De saw the town in the distance, he determined his location: Etherland County.
One of the thirteen counties of the Plantagenet Dynasty, a health resort and pilgrimage site famous for its Coast of Light.
The town is built along the edge of the valley, and most of the houses are white stone structures with soft and smooth lines.
The roof, covered with pale blue glazed tiles, looked exceptionally fresh and elegant under the moonlight and lamplight, perfectly matching the architectural style of Etherland in his memory.
In the distance, several small lighthouses can be faintly seen in the valley, their towers made of white quartz stone, forming the renowned lighthouse network of Etherland.
More importantly, the energy of light and water elements in the air is significantly higher than that of other elements.
This is a small restaurant in the town.
It was dinner time, so the restaurant was quite lively, with two-thirds of the seats occupied.
The sounds of laughter, clinking cutlery, and crackling fire mingled together.
Considering Liu Ying's special circumstances, Gaode specially chose a secluded corner by the window.
Gao De skillfully ordered two of the restaurant's signature dishes from the owner, and then subtly inquired about the current time.
September 21, 9658 in the Nolan calendar.
They entered the Desolate Soul Realm at the end of August. This means they actually stayed there for over three hundred days.
Over three hundred days of continuous interaction have, without exaggeration, transformed Gao De, who had previously had no connection with Liu Ying, into the person she knows best.
Because in Liu Ying's short life, she spent more time with Gao De than with her father and mother combined.
"So beautiful." Liu Ying's voice rang out softly, carrying a hint of barely perceptible amazement, interrupting Gao De's thoughts.
She seemed completely unconcerned about the points that Gaode was concerned about.
Gao De followed her gaze and looked out the window.
The main street of the town is right outside the window.
The bluestone pavement gleamed underfoot, and on both sides stood rows of white stone houses with pale blue glazed tiles on their roofs that shimmered softly in the night.
The main street was bustling with people.
Liu Ying was saying that the town was beautiful.
Pretty?
For Gaode Maps, this is nothing special; it's just an ordinary little town, nothing out of the ordinary.
But in Liu Ying's eyes, it was indeed beautiful.
Because she had never seen such a view before.
Gao De pushed the freshly served seaweed porridge in front of Liu Ying.
The porridge is light green and is made from locally grown oats and dried seaweed. A few small pieces of dried shrimp float on the surface, giving it a light salty and wheaty aroma.
This is the most common drink in the coastal towns of Etherland, with a mild and smooth taste.
Liu Ying obediently picked up the seaweed porridge and sipped it slowly. Her delicate face was incredibly beautiful in the slightly dim light of the restaurant.
Gao De suddenly realized that the girl in front of him was not only the princess of Mithril City and a gifted mage, but also an extremely beautiful girl.
Well-behaved, genius, princess, beautiful. All the wonderful words are concentrated on her, so she must be an excellent person. It would be even better if she weren't so unappealing.
Finally, all the food was served.
The grilled eel has a crispy skin, brushed with a light layer of honey sauce, and exudes an enticing aroma. The fish meat is tender and juicy, with no fishy smell at all.
Stir-fried sea asparagus is vibrant green, with a refreshing sweetness from the sea, and a crisp, tender texture.
These are all the most ordinary local home-style dishes. There are no complicated or exquisite cooking techniques, no elaborate seasonings or fancy plating. The main focus is on highlighting the original flavor of the ingredients, which is very simple and rustic.
"That's wonderful." Liu Ying's gaze swept over every table of diners in the restaurant, her voice as soft as a feather.
At the next table, people were clinking teacups together, their rough laughter making the wooden table tremble slightly.
The woman diagonally across from me was peeling eel meat for the child, patiently blowing on it to cool it down before feeding it to the child.
Every table was bustling with activity.
“It’s great to be able to eat with people. I used to have to eat alone in my room,” she said softly, recounting her experience.
"I have almost never eaten with other people."
Gao De felt as if something had struck his heart. Just as he was about to speak, his gaze suddenly fixed on her wrist.
On Liu Ying's wrist, which was holding the fork, faint golden traces of light-reflecting veins were visible.
"Does it hurt?" He knew this was a sign that the photochemical reaction was getting worse.
"It's okay, I'm happy, so I can keep going."
Gao De looked silently into her eyes.
In those deep blue eyes, there was no pain, no complaint, only joy and a hint of barely perceptible stubbornness.
"To survive, you have to work very, very hard and endure a lot of suffering, let alone be happy. I've known that for a long time." Liu Ying tilted her head, a strand of golden hair falling from her ear.
Some people, you may think they are naive and innocent, but in fact they have long seen through the true nature of the world.
To live, one must keep moving forward and endure unimaginable pain.
The girl's understanding of life is actually better than that of most people in the world, but the price she pays is a bit heavy.
The two quietly finished their two meals, which weren't particularly delicious but were still quite decent.
There was no further conversation, but this silence did not create any awkwardness between the two. Instead, it flowed like a mountain stream, gentle and natural, carrying a sense of inexplicable peace and tranquility.
After finishing their meal, the two left the restaurant.
Night had completely fallen.
Instead of heading in the direction of Mithril City that Ice Butterfly had indicated, they turned in a completely different direction.
Gao De led the way, and after leaving the town, they floated into the air and flew swiftly across the sky.
As the night grew darker, a faint sound reached my ears.
The sound was initially very soft, like a distant whisper, but gradually became clearer.
It is a powerful and rhythmic roar, sometimes deep like a drum, sometimes surging like thunder.
That was the sound of the tide crashing against the shore, carrying the unique vastness and grandeur of the sea, piercing through the night and rushing towards us.
“This is the sound of the tide.” Gao De steadied himself in mid-air and turned to Liu Ying.
"The sea?" Liu Ying's voice and eyes revealed undisguised excitement and anticipation.
"Yes, it's the sea." A gentle smile unconsciously appeared on Gao De's lips.
Yes, the place Liu Ying really wants to go is the seaside, and the thing she really wants to see is the sea.
Mithril City is a highland city built on the Silver Mountains. As far as the eye can see, there are continuous mountain ranges and circling dragons.
To onlookers, it was a spectacular and wondrous sight.
But for Liu Ying, she had been looking at those landscapes through the window of her room for more than ten years.
Confined day and night in that small "cage" enveloped by the light-concealing array, the mountains and dragon birds have long become a monotonous backdrop.
What she longed for most was the sea, which is quite ordinary to many people, including Gaode Maps.
Sometimes calm as a mirror, sometimes turbulent and boundless, encompassing everything—the vast ocean she had only ever seen in books.
The two quickened their pace, the sound of the tide growing closer, and the salty sea breeze, carrying a hint of night chill, swept over them, fluttering their clothes.
This was the first time Liu Ying had heard the sound of the sea.
Finally, they landed beneath a lighthouse that had been abandoned for many years on the beach.
The lighthouse tower is covered with dark green vines, and the lighthouse at the top has long since lost its light. It stands silently on the coast, like an old man who has been guarding it for thousands of years.
But it wasn't completely dark here.
The moonlight tonight is exceptionally bright and clear, like a polished silver plate hanging high in the dark blue night sky.
The moonlight shone down without reservation, covering the entire sea surface.
The dark sea was bathed in white moonlight.
As the tide rises and falls, the light and shadow flow endlessly.
In the distance, the sea meets the night sky, making it impossible to distinguish where the sea ends and the sky begins.
The sea breeze picked up, causing Liu Ying's golden hair to fly wildly, clinging to her cheeks and then being lifted by the wind to reveal her smooth forehead and bright eyes.
She paid no attention to any of that, just staring blankly at the sea without saying a word.
My heart has wandered off to who knows where.
Gao De didn't say anything, just sat quietly to the side, keeping her company, watching the waves under the moonlight wash over the shore again and again, listening to the sound of the tide rising and falling.
(End of this chapter)