Chapter 152: Forget It, Let It Be
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 152: Forget It, Let It Be
As she spoke, Yu Yunsheng stole a glance at Elania to gauge her reaction.
Good.
Elania hadn't reacted poorly to her praise of Xie Bai.
Relieved, Yu Yunsheng tried to introduce Xie Bai to her.
"Um... this is a senior from our Wheel of Fate. Why don't you say hello?"
The moment the words left her mouth, Elania suddenly bolted behind Yu Yunsheng. Much like Aisarakus had done when meeting Brandon, she peeked out with only half her face, staring warily at Xie Bai.
A trace of indescribable tension flickered within those pale gold eyes.
Seeing this, Yu Yunsheng gave an awkward smile.
"I’m so sorry. Elania is a bit shy around strangers."
Xie Bai didn't seem bothered in the slightest.
"It’s fine. It’s only natural for a child to be afraid of strangers. I understand."
She paused, her gaze lingering on Elania for a moment as a faint smile played across her lips.
"Since she’s a bit shy, I won’t disturb her."
With that, Xie Bai turned and walked over to Maomao, gently lifting Aisarakus out of Maomao’s arms.
Seeing that nothing had gone wrong, Yu Yunsheng breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness she didn't take offense...
Yu Yunsheng turned slightly and gently stroked Elania’s head.
"There, there, Elania. You don't need to be so scared. You still have me, right?"
Faced with Yu Yunsheng’s comfort, Elania’s eyes darted away before she gave a small, soft nod.
The tiny hands clutching Yu Yunsheng’s hem loosened just a fraction.
Seeing this, Yu Yunsheng turned back to Taro Ball.
"Bro, tell me the truth. Is it really necessary to bring Bai into this?"
Her tone carried a hint of worry.
"If the other players find out that Bai is secretly following us, they might all band together to start a crusade against us..."
Taro Ball shook his head at her concerns.
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."
Hearing his reassurance, Yu Yunsheng’s heart finally settled.
"If you say so, Bro, then I’ll stop worrying."
In her memory, as long as her brother was certain about something, it almost always went according to plan.
Xie Bai’s appearance now was surely part of his calculations.
Just then, the group felt a sudden ripple in the air.
They turned to look.
Two figures slowly materialized.
Thanatos.
And Roland.
The moment Thanatos appeared, Taro Ball finally let out a breath of relief.
He had assumed that upon seeing Xie Bai’s sudden arrival, Thanatos would instinctively blurt out "Master" and help shoulder some of the pressure.
Instead, Thanatos spoke first.
"Master Roland, this is Bai."
His tone was calm and natural.
"She is the manager of one of our Wheel of Fate branches. She just received orders from the Master to provide support here, and she will be heading into the heart of the World Tree with us."
Taro Ball: "?"
Crap.
He had forgotten that Xie Bai and Thanatos could communicate through shadows at any time.
In the brief moments before his grand entrance, Xie Bai had already coordinated with Thanatos to set up her cover identity for the players.
Now, he was forced to play along with these two.
Hearing Thanatos’s explanation, Roland’s brow furrowed slightly.
He looked at Xie Bai’s harmless smile and gently stroked his beard.
This wasn't the first time Roland had witnessed Xie Bai’s power.
Back during the Insect Race Calamity, he had seen the spectacular sight of her sweeping away the swarming insects with a single blow.
Roland could never forget a powerhouse who treated the Insect Race like fireworks.
Furthermore, he had watched the entire battle against Sacred Light from aboard the Sword of Expedition.
Facing Xie Bai directly for the first time—especially given how her appearance completely belied her strength—Roland’s tone carried a hint of reverence.
"So, she is a branch manager? No wonder she possesses such formidable strength."
He nodded slightly.
"Impressive. Truly impressive."
He didn't even mention the obvious question of why a branch manager was clearly stronger than the headquarters' personnel.
Taro Ball’s lip twitched.
Old man Roland certainly knew how to read the room.
Though, one could technically explain it away by saying a powerhouse simply preferred living in the field rather than at headquarters.
A moment later, Roland asked a more critical question.
"However, as far as I know, the heart of the World Tree isn't particularly dangerous."
He paused.
"As long as no one cuts its branches, the World Tree has always been very gentle. We could easily have done this during its dormant period."
Thanatos shook his head immediately.
"No. According to my information, someone recently severed a branch of the World Tree."
His tone was exceptionally grave.
"The World Tree is currently in a berserk state and is highly unstable. We need this lady to safeguard our journey."
Roland’s brow furrowed even deeper.
"Someone actually severed a branch? Where did this person come from?"
Faced with Roland’s question, Thanatos’s gaze subtly flickered toward Xie Bai.
After a moment of thought, he said with a straight face:
"It was the Cult Leader of Chaos."
"Cough..."
Taro Ball suddenly broke into a coughing fit.
As everyone’s eyes shifted toward him, he waved his hand nonchalantly.
"It’s nothing. I just swallowed wrong. Carry on."
With that, Taro Ball hurried to a corner, positioning himself so he didn't have to look at Xie Bai.
Ignoring Taro Ball’s odd behavior, Roland nodded.
"That would explain why the power of Chaos appeared within the Holy Church."
As he spoke, Roland pulled out a verdant green staff.
"It seems their plan has succeeded. Mr. Thanatos, we must be cautious from here on out."
Roland moved past the crowd to an open space.
He raised the emerald staff high.
A second later, an alchemy matrix covered in complex patterns slowly emerged and expanded across the ground.
"This staff in my hand is a branch of the World Tree. It’s one from the very tip, so it doesn't contain the power of Rules. However..."
He gave the staff a light flick.
"It’s more than enough to establish a spatial gate to the World Tree."
An ancient-looking stone door rose from the ground.
[Branch of World's Extension Lv.100]
[Difficulty: Disaster]
[Entry Requirement: Special Mission Only]
[Legend has it that the World transformed Rules into living branches, allowing them to grow freely. However, redundant branches inevitably sprout for various reasons; at such times, someone is needed to prune them.]
A dungeon interface appeared before Taro Ball and the others.
"Let’s go."
After a brief call to action, Thanatos was the first to step through the door.
Maomao finally snapped out of it after hearing Thanatos’s explanation.
"Eh? Wait... so Senior Bai was already planning to join us? Then earlier, I..."
The thought made Maomao feel a bit dejected.
But then she realized—how could someone of Xie Bai’s caliber agree to come along just because of a brief request from her?
Had she just misunderstood the situation?
At that moment, Xie Bai walked over and gently placed a hand over Maomao’s mouth.
Her fingers were slender and cool, bringing with them an inexplicable sense of peace.
"There now. Even without them, I still would have said yes to you," she said softly, her voice carrying a hint of a smile.
"If you’re worried, why don't you just stay close to me? I’ll make sure you’re protected."
"R-Really?"
Faced with Xie Bai’s personal promise, Maomao’s guard was instantly shattered.
Seeing this, Taro Ball couldn't help but facepalm again.
He glanced at Yu Yunsheng, who seemed to have a... subtle curve at the corner of her mouth.
"Forget it," Taro Ball sighed.
"Let it be."