Spirit Taming

Chapter 554: Too Dry

"Can't say I saw much ahead. The trees are just getting closer together since we are basically in the forest now. But there was a lot of sounds. Like beasts growling, a few birds chirping, and the odd crackle of leaves ahead. I would say that they are getting more active." Jerold knew that this meant more beasts would be around.

"Then that could mean there are more tamers or patrols around Nova City. they would be forcing the beasts further from the city without intending to." This was something that Isa had heard of before.

"When some beasts migrate, they are hunted. It makes them change their migration route. It's good because that will allow merchants to buy from different people in different regions. But it also means that beasts could be forced in to a larger group. Harder to handle."

"That should be fine for us. If there are many beasts ahead, Clark can scare them away." It was natural that Grace would just assume this. They all knew of Clark's strength when it came to using the dragon energies that Crim shared with him.

"Devi, you didn't attack any beasts, did you?" Clark saw that Devi was oddly quiet. Before he could essay anything else, Devi tried to hide and go invisible. "I knew it. You attacked a few beasts because you were hungry. You could have just said so. But don't do it while scouting.

You could have attracted more beasts."

The reprimanding proved that there might have been fewer beasts nearby than what Jerold had heard. But it also proved that things must not have been as dangerous as they could have been. If Devi felt comfortable attacking beasts, they were clearly weaker. They didn't pose a threat to their group. But it still made Jerold feel a bit annoyed.

After Devi got a little bit of a talking to from Clark, he returned to the taming space, Clark hadn't managed to get Shy to return to the taming space yet, but she preferred to remain on his shoulder and watch the world. It was also clear that she was training herself a little.

The small shadow threads that Shy was connecting to the shadows of trees, bushes, and anything else to see if she could control it better was just part of her natural curiosity. There wasn't any way that anyone could tell Clark what to teach Shy. She was the only one of her kind. Therefore, she had to learn her own capabilities herself. It was fairly exciting in a way.

'Dust shroom- uncommon

The dust shroom gets the name dust because of the small spores that it releases in clouds when it is stepped on. They are the driest mushroom that lives in any forest. They do not need water and will only appear to grow during droughts or hitter temperatures.

If it is ever found during a rain storm, then it is evidence that the natural flow of water underneath a forest, such as a natural lake, underground river, or other underground water sources has dried up or is in a drought.

It is not as dangerous as people may assume when they see the cloud like spores when stepping on it. The dust shroom actually has an anti bacterial effect. It will help prevent infections in wounds when used to dust them. This is slightly dangerous though since it is tough to clean the powder unless done by an experienced alchemist.'

"Maria, another material for you. It can be used to make something that prevents infection." Clark saw that the system regarded this as something toward his quest. It might not appear as something that can be made in to a tool, but it was a hint from the system that it could be.

Whether it was made in to something to be used on wounds or not, Clark began thinking about it a little more. The spores were dust like and dry. This thought came from rereading the analysis. But it also struck Clark as a little dangerous. Just a spark and dry condensed dust could be caught on fire.

"It should also be good for a fire starter. We can use the dust to quickly spark up fires if our beasts are too tired." Clark knew that always relying on their beasts for fire and warmth would be foolish. There was always a time and place where beasts might not be able to show themselves or they would need rest.

"But this is better for healing when I don't have other things to help out. If I don't have a salve." Maria thought that it sounded like a better healer's kit item. But then thought about it a little more. "If I hold on to them though, they can do both. I doubt that it can be used up all at once." Her idea was that it most likely was not some one use material that they found.

Regardless, the other items that started to catch Clark's eyes were also natural. He quickly spotted some hanging moss, strangling vines, and a few other small plants that appeared useful. He was quickly beginning to find things that could be used as rope, covering, and even a few pieces of broken branches that had been sun bleached in ways that toughened them more than other branches or trees.

All of these things came as useful survival materials. Specifically, they could be used to attacked other materials together. Ralph also noticed that Clark was working in this way. he was a little annoyed that he wasn't thinking about forging, but noticed that Clark was trying to use one for the rocks he found to cut a branch in to a makeshift spear.

"You know that I can't fix that spear right." Ralph was talking about the black lightning spear. A spear that the system had given Clark. It was an item that Ralph could barely sharpen, let alone repair if it were to break.

"It's not just that. What if your axes break and we can't stop and reforge or repair something. Being able to make an impromptu spear or ax or anything will be better to do." It looked to Clark that Ralph had thought about this and had wanted to make back up weapons. But time had been the issue.

"I will have more ready for when we need it. I will start when we are stopped for the next camp we make." there was a little bit of a glare at the end of those words, but it was Ralph's determination.

Before they could keep moving on, Brad made a surprised sound before calling Maria over. He had stomped on another dust shroom as they pushed forward. However, when the group looked ahead, they noticed that there were many more. Just from what they could see, there were seven more dust shrooms just within easy reach. Plus even more ahead on the old trail.

Some even appear to be growing around tree roots where water should naturally be since the tree's roots kept a lot of water trapped.

'Quest: missing water

Due to the water being redirected by powerful beasts, localized droughts have taken hold of certain areas. This is even more evident within forests that rely on underground water sources.

Requirement: discovered the source of underground water for the forests surrounding Nova City. return the flow of water that has been decreased or stopped by the current drought.

Reward: ten basic gotcha tickets, fifty various metal ingots, unique talent skill gotcha ticket.'

Clark was sure that this was a bad sign. But he also wondered if he should stop the source of the drought. Nova City was full of the most corrupt families. They cause many to suffer. However, his mind quickly kicked that idea to the side. If he were to let this continue, then it would get worse.

Those with power would make many more people suffer since they would start to squeeze the weak for more. They would make sure they lived great lives while the weaker people suffered even more for their survival. Water would be the reason many people died leaving behind only those with the power to steal it by force.

"If there are so many of these dust shrooms, then we should do something. We aren't crossing out of this forest for some time. Harvest what you can while we start scouting for a way to get to the underground water source for the forest." Clark's declaration of a new goal made everyone stop.

"You don't think this is another issue with the cult? Do you?" Reese was still on edge after the last event they faced. But Clark shook his head quickly.

"This is from what they did with the powerful beasts causing a storm. It might have just rained, but it was nowhere near what the forest needs to survive. This is a repercussion of the cult's evil. Not them directly causing it. That's why we should fix it. We need a place to come back to and clean up.

Not a dead city to come back to and fund empty."