Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage

CH721 The Great Berserk Beast Forest I

**[A.N: Mass Release Chapter: 9/10]**

The term Great Berserk Beast Forest had, in truth, become something of a misnomer.

Historically, the Great Berserk Beast Forest had indeed begun as an actual forest. However, after enduring countless unresolved Berserk Beast Tides over the centuries, the corrupted territory rapidly expanded, swallowing vast stretches of surrounding land until it eventually became an enormous region unto itself.

Now believed to span over fifty million square kilometres—larger than any existing Empire on Verdantis, and even greater than all the forests of Alex’s previous world combined—the Great Berserk Beast Forest occupied an incomprehensibly massive amount of land.

And naturally, such a region consisted of far more than merely dense woodland.

Within its borders existed sprawling plains, deep valleys, towering mountain ranges, marshlands, and countless other terrains.

Unfortunately, this also meant that anyone attempting to subjugate the region would need to contend with an extraordinarily complex environment populated by countless varieties of dangerous beasts.

However, before even worrying about the terrain or the creatures inhabiting it... one first had to survive the very air itself.

Over the centuries of its existence, the Great Berserk Beast Forest had likely hosted an immeasurable number of Berserk Beast nests.

Many of those nests had eventually collapsed or erupted, releasing not only hordes of Berserk Beasts, but also enormous concentrations of corrupted Berserk Energy into the surrounding environment.

As a result, the Berserk Energy and Berserk Property saturating the atmosphere had grown so dense over time that it almost became visible to the naked eye.

In certain areas, the corrupted energy had become so concentrated that it formed dangerous miasma zones capable of corrupting any unprotected individual into a Berserk Entity within mere minutes.

Arguably, this was the single most terrifying aspect of the Great Berserk Beast Forest—and the primary reason why every bordering nation had ultimately failed to conquer it, despite numerous attempts made over the centuries by some of the world’s greatest powers... including the various Temples.

Interestingly, the Great Berserk Beast Forest was one of the very few matters upon which the Temples and the Empires consistently saw eye to eye.

Both sides agreed absolutely that the region needed to be subjugated.

As a result, regardless of the political relationship between a Temple and an Empire, cooperation was almost always guaranteed whenever discussions regarding the Great Berserk Beast Forest arose.

The clergy were needed to suppress the dense Berserk Energy saturating the region using Divine Energy, while the Empires provided the enormous military forces necessary to carry out the actual campaigns of subjugation.

Unfortunately, no matter how coordinated these joint efforts became, no nation with their supporting the Temples had ever succeeded in conquering the region.

If anything, their repeated assaults only seemed to provoke the forest further, causing it to expand and swallow even more surrounding territory over time.

And so, the nations and Temples of the continent had ultimately been forced to helplessly watch as this vast region remained firmly under the control of Berserk Beasts, allowing their numbers to continue growing unchecked.

Standing at the edge of the Great Berserk Beast Forest, Alex and the rest of the Forest expedition party quietly observed the land stretching before them.

Ahead lay a vast grassy plain, broken only occasionally by scattered patches of shrubbery spread sparsely across the terrain.

Under ordinary circumstances, such fertile land would have made for exceptional agricultural territory—and in fact, it once had been exactly that.

However, after the potent ambient Berserk Energy spread outward from the Great Berserk Beast Forest and engulfed the region, the land had long since become the roaming grounds of Berserk Beasts instead.

The dense ambient Berserk Energy naturally triggered an instinctive sense of disgust and discomfort within the forest expedition party. And the deeper they travelled into the corrupted territory, the stronger and more oppressive that sensation became.

’The sheer energy density here would have made this place a holy land for cultivation,’ Alex thought inwardly.

’Unfortunately, the energy saturating the environment is Berserk Energy. Absorbing it into one’s body would amount to suicide for any normal being.’

Then another thought crossed his mind.

’But conversely... this also makes the region a paradise for Berserk Beasts. No wonder they rarely bother crossing the outer boundaries unless when the forest expands further outward.’

Fortunately, the forest expedition party had come thoroughly prepared to deal with the hostile environment.

Each member swallowed a pair of small pills roughly the size of sweets.

One pill served to purify the traces of ambient Berserk Energy they would inevitably inhale while travelling through the region, while the other was a Mana Replenishment Pill formulated to restore their mana reserves—since blindly absorbing ambient energy in this place was effectively suicidal.

The Fortuna members of the expedition group, most of whom were entering the Great Berserk Beast Forest for the very first time, stared at the surrounding vegetation with strange expressions.

Given the density and potency of the Berserk Energy saturating the region—and the horrifying effects it had upon the fauna—one would naturally expect the flora to have mutated into equally grotesque forms.

Surprisingly, that was not the case.

The grasses, shrubs, and trees all appeared completely ordinary.

But that was the key word—appeared.

After existing within such an environment for centuries, it was impossible for the plant life to have remained entirely unchanged.

"Do not be deceived by appearances. They are corrupted as well," Dalton warned upon noticing the curiosity within the Fortuna members’ gazes.

He casually walked over to one of the shorter nearby trees before slashing off one of its branches.

"Ugh... that is disgusting," one of the Fury Rune Soldiers muttered while covering his nose.

The other Fortuna members reacted similarly, though their eyes remained fixed on the tree.

Sizzle—

Both the severed branch and the wounded tree began leaking thick sap that resembled pus in both appearance and smell. Worse still, the liquid hissed violently upon contact with the ground, eating into the earth like a potent acid.

"Although the plants still look normal externally, their insides have long since changed," Dalton explained. "The fluids within them have effectively been oversaturated with berserk energy, becoming concentrated Berserk Energy liquids themselves.

"That means everything they produce—their sap, fruit, nectar, and even morning dew—is laced with potent Berserk Energy. So be extremely careful about what you touch."

Naturally, that also meant consuming anything originating from within the forest was entirely out of the question.

Taking advantage of the fact that they were still only skirting the outer fringes of the Great Berserk Beast Forest—and had not yet entered the true depths of the forest proper—the more experienced BattleBane members began teaching the Fortuna members numerous survival precautions regarding the corrupted region.

Most of the information the BattleBanes shared consisted of tiny details that ordinary people would likely overlook. However, within the depths of the Great Berserk Beast Forest, such seemingly insignificant details could easily become the deciding factor between life and death.

Yet while they instructed the Fortuna members about surviving within the forest, the BattleBanes also quietly learned a few things themselves in return.

For instance, Saul repeatedly glanced towards Alex—or more specifically, towards Dread—with a thoughtful expression.

Ordinarily, unless one was riding specially bred and rigorously trained elite warhorses, most horses commonly used throughout the Wildlands would have panicked and fled long before coming this close to the Great Berserk Beast Forest.

Yet under the influence of Dread’s Ruler Aura, every horse within the expedition party remained surprisingly calm and stable.

This was further aided by a technique the Fortuna members taught the BattleBanes—how to circulate their energy through their mounts in a manner resembling a linked state, soothing the horses’ instincts through their riders’ presence.

Between Dread’s suppressive aura and the improvised linked-state technique, the horses gradually ignored their instinctive terror of the region and continued advancing steadily alongside the group.

Eventually, the expedition reached the final natural boundary separating the outer corrupted lands from the true Great Berserk Beast Forest itself.

Only a few more steps forward... and they would officially enter the forest proper.

The BattleBane members did not even need to warn the Fortuna members.

The worsening stench saturating the air already told them everything they needed to know.

"Do not worry," Dalton laughed. "You eventually get used to it... more or less."

Aside from the smell, the ambient concentration of Berserk Energy had also risen dramatically.

The purple mist formed from corrupted energy had become so dense that even the less perceptive members of the expedition could now visibly perceive it drifting through the environment.

The group decided to set up camp at the border for the day, allowing the less experienced Fortuna members additional time to acclimate themselves to the oppressive atmosphere and nauseating stench.

By the following morning, everyone was prepared to begin the true stage of their journey.

Without needing instruction, each member silently consumed another set of prepared pills.

"Is everyone ready?" Saul asked solemnly.

Everyone nodded in response.

"Sinia, lead the way," Saul ordered.

***

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