Chapter 4: A Gift from Nature

``` "You have used the ability 'Insight'— ... Judging from the size and style, it originally belonged to a woman or a short man; ... The bloodstains on the clothing have already dried; this must be from a few days ago; ... Nearby there is a trail of messy footprints leading deeper into the karst cave, with large sizes, definitely not left by gnolls or that abnormal group of people. The owner of the footprints is more likely to be a human, bear gnome, or half-orc..." ... Record this information. Matthew meticulously put on his gloves and collected the Bloody Robes. Then he prepared to leave this place. The terrain of the undercity karst cave is extremely complex, not something a petty necromancer like him could explore alone. Although the bone dragon was fierce, it was unfortunately not suitable for the size. The passage in front of Matthew could barely accommodate two people passing side by side. Phily definitely couldn't squeeze through. Additionally, as the incident obviously happened several days ago, Matthew thought that handing over the Bloody Robes to the Public Security Bureau was the best choice—the Blood Robes were one of the few noble families that placed great importance on the security of their territory, and this was well-known throughout the human kingdoms. If someone had gone missing recently, the Public Security Bureau would not ignore it. ... Leaving the karst cave, Matthew hurried back to the city. On the way, he noticed that the main quest had changed. ... 'Main Quest: Tree Planting Progress: Achieved beginner target ... Subsequent Quest 1: Press On! Description: Please continue to expand the scale of planting in the oak forest of Rolling Stone Town, with a target of 3000 trees! Rewards: 10 XP/1 successfully grown oak tree ... Subsequent Quest 2: Maintenance is Important! Description: A newly born forest can easily be destroyed by an accident, please protect your forest well Rewards: Each successful defense will yield different rewards' ... 10 experience points for each oak tree? Matthew's eyes brightened. Isn't this more pleasant than fighting and killing? Planting trees carries hardly any risk! As for maintenance, Matthew didn't pay much attention. Ever since the gnolls vanished, the security in Rolling Stone Town had always been good. The Bloody Robes from the karst cave must be an accident, probably related to those restless adventurers. "My oak forest is planted on private land, no one should dare to cut down trees secretly, right?" Matthew thought to himself. ... Apart from the two subsequent quests, Matthew discovered that, unbeknownst to him, a symbol resembling Taijitu had appeared at the bottom of the quest bar. The symbol was divided into left and right, both sides had identical shapes, like cool, transparent, uppercase three-dimensional commas. The difference lay in the color of the swirling light points within— the left side was grey, with only a few accumulating at the very bottom; while the right side was green, with a large amount of light points tumbling inside, already filled halfway. ... What is this? Matthew stared at it for a while. He noticed the green light points were slowly increasing, particularly when he passed by the oak forest, where the rate of increase seemed to speed up a bit! And the grey light points on the left side hardly moved. Although not marked in the quest bar, he guessed that this might have something to do with the two professions, necromancer and Druid, respectively. ... "What happens when the light points fill up?" "Are there many green light points because I've planted many trees?" "If I summon more undead or use negative energy spells, could I increase the grey light points?" ... Along the way, Matthew was engrossed in studying this. However, as he neared the town, the appearance of an unexpected guest interrupted his thoughts. ... "Hihi!" A giggle like that of a little human girl sounded. A faint white light appeared in front of Matthew. He steadied his steps. Out of the white light flitted a thumb-sized sprite with the form of a maiden and wings on her back. Enthusiastically, she circled Matthew three times, then shook her mini basket. A large bunch of fresh fruit then fell into Matthew's arms. Then, with a flash of white light, the other party disappeared without a trace. ... 'Your ability 'Gift of Nature' is in effect— You have received a bunch of raspberries! Raspberries: A sweet, crisp, and nutritious fruit, accompanied by fairies' blessings, eating them slightly boosts energy and has a mild purification effect' ... "Today's luck isn't bad." Upon seeing what was in his arms, Matthew's somewhat tense expression relaxed for the moment. This was an oak tree fairy. They are companions of the oak forest. Ever since the oak forest reached a size of five hundred trees, the fairies appear. To express gratitude and affection for Matthew, they would bring gifts every now and then. The fruits presented by the oak tree fairies were mostly of exceptional quality, but the issue lay in the fairies' mischievous nature, almost an intrinsic part of their being. The last time a fairy delivered a gift to Matthew, he was in the middle of a class. In front of a dozen children, a playful oak tree fairy threw several pieces of women's underwear at him!! This nearly left Matthew with no way to explain himself. He couldn't possibly tell his students that this was a 'Gift of Nature', could he? ... Fortunately, most of the time, the fairies were conscientious. Matthew didn't make much of a fuss about it. Chewing on the sweet raspberries, he quickened his pace. Two blocks away from the Public Security Bureau, at an intersection, he bumped into Blake, who was visibly anxious. This was a burly young man with a full beard. "Matthew, I was just about to look for you!" ``` Blake bumped into Matthew, his face alight with joy. A thought crossed Matthew's mind, "Something happened?" Blake nodded briskly, "Eastern farmers found a merchant who was ambushed on the road, his body has just been brought into town, I need your help." Without a second word, Matthew said, "Let's go." Together, they hurried towards the direction of the Public Security Bureau. ... Blake was the captain of the garrison at the Public Security Bureau. He was also one of the few people in Rolling Stone Town who knew about Matthew's profession. To save money for his great tree-planting initiative, Matthew not only took a job as a history teacher at Seaver Public School but also worked part-time as a dead body consultant for the Public Security Bureau— As everyone knows, "Call of the Dead" is the most basic necromancy spell, capable of summoning the souls of the recently deceased for interrogation and case-solving. With Matthew's strong support, the Bureau saw a dramatic spike in their case-solving rate. Over time, The residents of the territory came to know of Blake's near-divine success rate in solving cases at the Public Security Bureau and thus rarely caused trouble. Clearly, Matthew played an indisputable role in the current security environment of Rolling Stone Town. ... A moment later, In the morgue of the Public Security Bureau, Matthew stood before a ghost with a restrained demeanor and a blank expression. "Who killed you?" Blake asked briskly. The ghost pondered, "It was a man, disheveled, very tall..." Blake frowned, "Why did he want to kill you?" The ghost shook its head, "I don't know, I had been returning from Jiliu City with goods and took a wrong turn because I had a bit to drink. When I came to, I was near the ghost castle. I saw a group of people singing and dancing, and there were many ghosts flying over their heads..." "The sight was truly horrifying, those ghosts!" As he spoke, he began to shiver uncontrollably, So much that even his spirit form seemed unable to maintain its shape. Matthew quickly interjected to remind him, "Don't be scared, you're a ghost now too." The ghost responded woodenly, "Oh..." "Do you remember anything else? Any suspicious information?" Blake took the opportunity to continue his inquiries. The ghost shook its head, "I don't know, that day I came back from Jiliu City with goods..." "The sight was truly horrifying, those ghosts!" Blake and Matthew exchanged a glance, somewhat helpless. This was the nature of ghosts, most could only retain a small amount of their memories from life, typically those with intense emotional attachments. Besides these memories, No matter what question you asked them, they would only repeat snippets of memory, which is a limitation of "Call of the Dead." ... Blake tried asking a few more questions. After confirming there were no more useful details to pry from the ghost, He signaled Matthew with his eyes to dispel the spell. Before Matthew could act, The ghost suddenly looked over, "Wait, am I truly dead?" Blake responded sympathetically, "I'm very sorry." The ghost sighed, "What a pity... I haven't yet purchased a proper burial plot for myself. After I die, my wife will surely take the family fortunes, marry another merchant with the kids, and she probably won't choose a decent resting place for me with care." Blake found himself at a loss for words for a moment. "Could you bury my body in the oak forest to the north of the town? No need for a coffin, just bury me directly. I quite like oaks; the last time I passed by, I thought I heard the chatter of little girls arguing. According to my grandmother's words, I might have stumbled upon a flower fairy..." "That's my only wish." As he spoke, His spirit form began to fade away. Before Blake could speak, Matthew went ahead and said, "It can be done." "Thank you so much!" The ghost disappeared. Blake looked hesitantly at Matthew. Matthew spread his hands, "Master Ronan won't mind." Blake scratched his head, "Alright, fine, have it your way, after all, it's your forest. But we'll have to hold onto the body until tomorrow, there are some inspections and procedures needed tonight." Matthew nodded. Seizing the opportunity, he shared with Blake his discoveries in the Karst cave. After hearing it all, Blake looked extremely grave. "I understand, I'll arrange for people to inquire about it, and you be careful, Matthew, don't go wandering outside of town by yourself anymore, I've been having a disquieting feeling lately." "Oh, and remember to claim your allowance for the month; I've applied for a double payment for you." Matthew's eyes narrowed immediately, "That's what I love to hear." ... ... Tonight's main dish was Pine Mushroom Pilaf. The sides were a cabbage egg soup and a few slices of bacon. Delicious. Matthew licked his bowl clean. At last, He couldn't help but praise, "Peggy, your cooking is truly amazing! Even amongst the living, it would be top-notch! To use a phrase from my hometown, the man who marries you is blessed." The Tauren skeleton blushed with the compliment, "Not at all, I'm just whipping something up randomly." "And besides, I'm already dead, so there's no chance for me to marry." After a while, Seeing Matthew still lost in the taste, She boldly asked, "Matthew, since I've been doing such a great job, are you going to give me a raise?" Matthew gracefully wiped his mouth and stood up, "Definitely next time." His figure quickly vanished into the basement corridor. "That damn necromancer!" The Tauren skeleton roared in frustration. Matthew pretended not to hear. Entering the basement, he didn't start his usual meditation but instead reached into a cabinet in the adjacent room and took out a nearly dusty crystal ball. ... The Bloody Robes in the Karst cave, The waylaid merchant, The abnormal group of people lurking near the ghost castle as described by the ghost. ... Like Blake, Matthew also felt a hint of unease. So tonight, He intended to perform a divination! ...