A green snake.
Angel had seen many serpentine creatures in the Tidal World, most of them gigantic, their sheer size enough to be described as world-crushing pythons by novelists. Snakes of normal size were very rare in the Tidal World.
The snake before him was such a rare encounter.
Its size was similar to that of an ordinary snake in the outside world, entirely green, with fine and lustrous scales that gleamed with a jewel-like brightness under the gentle evening glow.
Its eyes were bright yellow, with pure gold vertical pupils, exuding an aura of solemn majesty.
What puzzled Angel the most was that this green snake was surrounded by a faint green light, an extremely intense natural aura. Wherever the green light shone, all plants thrived.
In the current environment, wherever the green snake passed, everything revived, and countless flowers bloomed.
It was like the monarch of all plants, whose arrival would rejuvenate the withered and cause the wilted to bloom again.
Amidst the floral splendor, the green snake elegantly wove through its path, finally arriving before them.
There was no doubt that the visitor was Nami Midori.
Nami Midori was about five or six meters away from Angel at this moment, raising its head to calmly gaze at the person before it.
Under Nami Midori’s gaze, Angel felt no discomfort on his body, yet there was an inescapable illusion that he had been completely seen through.
Moreover, Angel was standing, while Nami Midori only slightly raised its head. Judging by the height difference, Nami Midori’s raised height didn’t even reach Angel’s knee. Normally, Angel should be looking down at Nami Midori, but instead, he felt as though he were confronting a mountain range.
An insurmountable mountain range.
"You are human," Nami Midori finally spoke after examining Angel for about half a minute.
Its voice was pleasant, yet carried a solemn tone.
"Yes."
"You are the prophesied one mentioned by Mr. Feng," Nami Midori continued, with a statement of certainty rather than inquiry, as though the fact was already established.
Angel: "You know who I am?"
Nami Midori’s golden eyes slowly shifted from Angel to the frosty glass on the stone beside him.
Under Nami Midori’s gaze, the glass seemed to be summoned, slowly drifting into the air, and finally, drawn by force, landed before Nami Midori.
Nami Midori lowered its head to quietly observe the glass.
Ripples like water waves suddenly formed around the glass, and after they appeared, the frosty glass vanished, revealing an approximately palm-sized, strangely marked azure ice ring.
Seeing the ice ring, Nami Midori raised its head to look at Angel: "Isel would not casually hand over a token to others, and for you to possess this token, your identity is self-evident."
Being human and possessing a token from Frost Iser, Nami Midori, regardless of its simplicity, could surmise Angel’s origins.
Before Angel could respond, Parry Mountains beside him glared at Angel and pointed a branch at the azure ice ring: "You just told me you wanted a drink, but your true purpose was to use this thing to disturb the master’s seclusion?!"
"I wasn’t disturbing at all, I just presented Frost Iser’s token, nothing more," said Angel, though his tone was clearly conciliatory.
For Parry Mountains had guessed accurately; Angel had been in the Lost Forest’s core area for a long time without seeing Nami Midori and feared it truly might be indifferent to worldly affairs, so he cast an Illusion Technique, disguising the token Frost Isel had given him as a glass of water, and fetched it from his space.
This token had been given to him by Frost Iser upon leaving Malaya Ice Mountain. According to Frost Iser, Nami Midori was known for its obstinate character, with Mr. Feng being the only person it respected, and this token was once left by Feng for Frost Iser. If Angel unwittingly offended Nami Midori, presenting the token would at least make Nami Midori less inclined to bear a grudge.
Seeing that Nami Midori had not appeared for a long time, and unsure whether Nami Midori simply did not want to meet him or truly had no worldly interest, Angel took out the token to draw Nami Midori’s attention.
And indeed, it was very successful.
Parry Mountains naturally dismissed Angel’s explanation, glaring at him with fury but, with Nami Midori present, unable to confront Angel physically. It could only snort angrily, turning to explain to Nami Midori: "I didn’t bring him in intentionally, and I didn’t expect him to attract your attention in this manner."
Nami Midori shook its head, interrupting Parry Mountains: "No harm, since he is the prophesied one, I would have come to meet him regardless."
Seeing Nami Midori unperturbed, Parry Mountains sighed slightly in relief, though its glare at Angel remained unwavering.
Having achieved his goal, Angel ignored Parry Mountains’ glare and bowed to Nami Midori: "Your Excellency Nami Midori, I am here following Mr. Feng’s footsteps. I wish to learn about Mr. Feng and the prophecy you mentioned, would you be willing to tell me?"
Although Frost Isel had told Angel much, including prophecy-related content, many details remained unclear. Since Nami Midori had the closest relationship with Feng, it might know deeper secrets.
Nami Midori gave Angel a deep look but didn’t answer immediately, instead lowering its head to swallow the token, then turning its face slightly toward Angel: "If you wish to know, follow me."
With those words, Nami Midori gracefully glided into the woods.
Soon, Nami Midori’s figure vanished, but the path of blooming flowers on the ground guided Angel’s way forward.
Just as Angel was about to follow the path of flowers, a Blue Lantern Flower emerged from the shadows.
It was Earl Mi sending a warning signal to Angel.
Earl Mi’s message was brief, having assessed Nami Midori’s strength in secret, providing a judgment of "cannot contend," and suggesting for Angel’s safety that it would be best to stay away from Nami Midori.
Even when facing a Second Level True Knowledge Wizard, Earl Mi would likely lose, but it at least had a chance at a fight.
To date, Earl Mi had only given a "cannot contend" judgment regarding one person: Lord Rhein.
Nami Midori received the same judgment as Lord Rhein; while this might not necessarily mean Nami Midori’s strength matched that of Lord Rhein, energy level-wise, Nami Midori had definitely reached Lord Rhein’s heights.
Third-level True Knowledge Wizard energy level!
Only such an energy level would cause Earl Mi to issue a warning, even without any display of malice from the other side, simply standing before Nami Midori was deemed unsafe.
Angel understood Earl Mi’s warning, but he had no plans to retreat.
Nami Midori had shown no hostility, and withdrawing now might instead provoke evil intentions. Besides, when entering the outskirts of the Lost Forest, Angel had already speculated about Nami Midori through an energy measurement, and chose still to venture into the Lost Forest’s depths, thus he wasn’t without reliance.
Fight, definitely can’t win. But with his current foundation, getting a few seconds to escape shouldn’t be a problem.