Anna's description did not quite match Ashu's observations.
In terms of appearance, it should be the same thing, but when it comes to growth habits, they were entirely different.
As a farmer born and raised in Gorn Village, Ashu wasn't a hunter, but he did go up the mountain from time to time. After all, the barren and monotonous rural life could not satisfy the spiritual needs of a time traveler.
During his last trip to the mountains in search of wild game, he had indeed discovered the Ebony Claw Roots. At that time, there were at least a dozen of them gathered together, and they didn't seem to move, allowing him to play with them for a while.
Could it be that these things were just a subspecies that resembled each other?
Ashu quickly took Anna to the spot from his memory.
It was a small hill among the rolling mountains. From here, one could see both Gorn Village and Creekwater Village, as well as a distant deep valley and higher mountain peaks in the far distance.
On the small flat land of this hill, some vines and roots intertwined, forming a seat.
"This is..."
Anna looked at the seat, which reeked of the wild, and her expression changed slightly. There could be two reasons for this situation.
Either some nearby villagers had created this deformed vine chair by controlling its growth on the mountain.
Or the vines and roots had a form of intelligence, following the instructions of a wise entity, such as a forest spirit.
"Look, there's one right there," Ashu said.
Anna followed Ashu's gesture and, moving past the wooden seat's obstruction, spotted an Ebony Claw Root behind it.
Its claw-shaped roots were quietly connected to the earth, extending upwards to a height of fifty centimeters, completely black and without a trace of impurities.
At first glance, it looked like a piece of wood charred by lightning.
"It really is it," Anna said, subtly manipulating her Magical Essence to form an invisible hand that quietly reached out.
Then, a "pop" sound echoed through the air, and the Ebony Claw Root, originally rooted in the ground, was pulled up in the air.
Anna's face brightened, "I didn't expect to catch the Ebony Claw Root so easily."
However...
As soon as the words left her mouth, several dark shadows suddenly emerged from the soil where the Ebony Claw Root had been pulled out.
These shadows moved incredibly fast, and Ashu only saw a flash before he could focus again. The two of them were already surrounded by a circle of pitch-black plants.
These black plants were all Ebony Claw Roots.
If there had been a materials merchant here, they would have been overjoyed. With so many rare materials, collecting them all could earn a fortune.
But for Anna and Ashu, the situation was not looking good.
Apart from the Ebony Claw Root in Anna's hand, there were a total of twelve Ebony Claw Roots arranged neatly on the ground, forming a circle around the two of them. As potion ingredients, these plants didn't possess high intelligence. This arrangement, however, was clearly not a coincidence but a sign of intelligence.
In other words, there was indeed a forest spirit behind this place.
"Show yourself, Forest Elf. We need to talk," Anna suddenly spoke in a language Ashu didn't understand. After finishing, she casually explained, "That was Elvish."
Ashu didn't understand Elvish. He could only sigh in admiration. Being a witch wasn't easy; she not only had to master all professions but also had to learn the languages of other races. Ordinary people could spend their whole lives mastering one profession and still be considered masters, but someone like her probably spent every day in the Witch's Guild's enclosed space, learning and studying all year round, with only eating as a break.
Seconds after the words left her mouth, a gentle breeze swept across Ashu's face, and he felt that something was about to appear.
The next moment.
A vibrant green figure materialized on the seat formed by the vines and roots.
Her eyes were tightly closed, and several branches, like a crown, pierced through her faintly glowing long hair. Below her chest, her form was made of brown wood, not yet fully taking on a human shape.
[Detected a life form with a rating above 90 in the vicinity. Would you like to bind?]
Feeling the system prompt in his mind, Ashu looked at the Forest Elf on the wooden chair and immediately chose to bind.
At once, a panel quickly unfolded:
[Forest Elf: Leia]
[91 points]
[Description: A Forest Elf from the borderlands of the Atras Empire. Even though she sleeps for centuries at a time, she is considered young among the elven kind. She has no particular plans for her long life, and her only hobby is observing humans. When she encounters interesting humans, she watches them for a long time until she's satisfied.]
"You can detect me, and you can communicate with me?" the Forest Elf asked in fluent Elvish, looking at Anna. "You're not a boring person. Another interesting human. I'm happy."
Ashu couldn't understand her words.
He looked toward Anna.
Anna translated, "She's still interested in us for now, and she doesn't have hostile intentions."
She then spoke to the Forest Elf, "I mean you no harm. I only wish to take one Ebony Claw Root. Of course, if that's not possible, I will return it, and we will leave here."
"Mm..."
The Forest Elf did not directly answer Anna's question but instead turned her gaze toward Ashu. Although she kept her eyes closed, Ashu could feel the weight of her gaze.
"Leave. This one stays." The Forest Elf looked at Ashu and then spoke to Anna.
At these words, Anna's expression changed immediately. How could any witch tolerate such behavior—being detained in broad daylight with her fiancé?
Although she wasn't yet a witch, even if she weren't one, this was something she couldn't accept.
"Hmph... Let's go," Anna said, switching out of Elvish and speaking to Ashu. "If she makes a move, we'll kill her."
Kill her?
Ashu secretly thought to himself, This is bad. I've just bound my second one, and things have already gone this horribly wrong?
Having experienced the joy of the system rewards, how could he possibly give up on double the pleasure?
So, he made his move.
From all the clues, Ashu had drawn a conclusion. The last time he went up the mountain, he had rested here and played with the Ebony Claw Roots. Combining this with the current situation, it was clear that the Forest Elf had been observing him in secret. She hadn't shown any hostility toward him. If she had, the old, ordinary version of him would never have had the chance to escape, even if he ran for his life.
Therefore.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a warm sweet flatbread—this was a farmer's typical snack for mountain trips. Since he and Anna were searching for materials on the mountain, he had brought double portions this time.
"Ashu?" Anna didn't understand Ashu's actions.
But Ashu gave her a look to signal that everything was fine.
Holding the sweet flatbread, he carefully approached. Originally, he was only about ten meters away from the Forest Elf, but those ten meters took nearly half a minute to traverse.
When they were less than half a meter apart, he took a step forward, stretched his hand out from a distance, and gently placed the sweet flatbread in front of the Forest Elf.
Sensing the scent of human food, the Forest Elf tilted her head slightly.
From a general standpoint of rationality, she couldn't understand this man. She hadn't been able to before, and she still couldn't now. But it was precisely because of this that she found this human man so intriguing.
She loved observing humans, and even more so, she loved watching interesting humans. No matter what this one did, he always seemed to have an indescribable difference from other humans.
So, she accepted.
She raised her hand and took the sweet flatbread.
Upon seeing this.
Ashu immediately signaled to Anna that it was time to leave.
One sweet flatbread in exchange for an Ebony Claw Root—it wasn't an equal exchange, but it was still an exchange.
Anna was puzzled. Is this really possible?
Could it be that Ashu had some hidden spiritual affinity?
Otherwise, how could someone with a spiritual perception of zero become a cultivator and even interact with a Forest Elf?
Following Ashu's silent signal, Anna quietly took a few steps back. The circle of Ebony Claw Roots did not resist and allowed her to leave.
Ashu did the same.
As soon as the two of them stepped out of the circle, the twelve Ebony Claw Roots on the ground seemed to come to life. They immediately moved toward the Forest Elf, resembling a group of hungry birds, their eyes fixed eagerly on the sweet flatbread in her hands.
"Is that so..."
Through her observations of humans, the Forest Elf suddenly had an epiphany.
A power unique to the elven race quietly activated within her.
[Forest Elf: Leia – Song of Nature]
[Critical hit return! Host gains: Nature's Absorption Technique!]
Hearing the system prompt, Ashu paused for a moment. He hadn't walked too far, and the Forest Elf hadn't made any movements, but suddenly, she had acquired a new skill.
And, as a result, he had naturally received a reward through the critical hit return.
He carefully examined the information in his mind. This "Nature's Absorption Technique" wasn't a magic spell, but something closer to a monk's Healing Spell.
It was an exchange: it consumed the Magical Essence from the surrounding space and converted it into the user's physical and spiritual strength.