The Stonehearted Knight
Chapter 319: With the Flow

Chapter 319: With the Flow

Hex sat beside Elize, waiting for their turn to board the Flow. The waiting area brimmed with others waiting for their turn.

The Flow.

Hex still had trouble wrapping his head around the concept of it. Such a thing was only possible in Wrixia. No other place in the world could copy their method to cover long distances between different spots.

The Flow referred to the flow of the mixture of water and nutrients inside the tree. The giant tree had an extensive network of channels transferring sustenance to each part of the tree, from its roots to its crown.

Due to several factors such as leaf coverage, the shear size of the tree, the different intensities of light and heat, population, and many more, the pressure varied throughout the day and spread over different parts.

The Druids and Dryads had studied these flows through the Ages and developed a system to make optimal use of these variances to transport people and goods over great distances.

Depending on the destination, a few stops on the journey might be required, making the journey a little longer but it did beat the time and effort needed if one traveled on their own.

"319"

"320"

Hex glanced at the slip in his hand to confirm that it was their turn. He followed Elize to the dock.

"Please stand behind the line."

A beautiful girl clad in a bodytight blue suit requested with a polite smile. Her pale skin, jade hair, and tall legs made her stand out in the crowd but her most prominent feature was her long, tapered ears, slanted toward the back.

A web of intricate engravings adorned her ears. Most people would mistake them for thin, greenish veins, but Hex, with his enhanced vision, knew at once that they were her glyphs. Or was it one connected glyph? Hex wasn’t sure.

"Jade Fae’s," Elize whispered from the side. She had noticed Hex staring at the girl. "Fae to be accurate. They were created when Verdantia, Goddess of Earth and Fertility, fell and her essence entered Wrixia.

The essence was refined and turned into fruits and moss, which attracted a nearby tribe of Druids and Dryads. Nothing happened at first, but as time passed, they started to notice changes in the newborns. The changes became more prominent with each generation, up to the seventh generation.

The Dryads and Druids of that tribe became more beautiful and more in touch with nature itself. Due to their fertile nature, they are one of the largest and strongest tribes in Wrixia. Their enhanced affinity with nature and Wrixia itself enables them to sense the change in flows and velocity. They use this affinity to decide who boards on which vessel and where they can stop."

Hex observed the woman on the dock. She stood with her head half-turned toward the tide of water flowing past them. If not for the wooden walls and ceiling, indicating they were inside a branch, he would think that he stood at the shore of a narrow river.

Suddenly, he noticed the woman’s ears twitch. She turned toward them, beckoning them with a sense of urgency the movement of her hand.

Elize moved and he followed. At the dock, he noticed a small pod, bobbing with the flow. Elize stepped into the pod and gestured to Hex to take the seat beside her. Hex obliged. The unsteadiness of the pod didn’t bother him. Most people, from the Knight stage onward, could easily board such a pod.

As soon as he took his seat, a transparent film appeared, sealing the pod. The next moment, he felt the pod jerk and then float with the flow. They started slow, but the speed picked up as he sensed the water angle downward and then slowed as the angle changed to upward.

The journey was nothing like he experienced before. If he didn’t have a high degree of control over his body, he feared he might have been thrown around inside the pod.

They passed several docking stations on their way to their destination. The speed, even when slowed down, surpassed the speed of what he would be able to do without executing Flex Step or Blink Step.

As they moved, Hex realized he couldn’t tell whether they were still in the same branch or had switched to another branch. He had seen a few points with two or three openings, splitting the flow.

Elize sat at ease as if the tumultuous journey didn’t faze her. She just sat in silence, amused at his reactions to each new experience, whether it was shooting through a sharp bend or slowing to almost stop when ascending the flow.

It took them almost an entire day to reach the first stop. It was apparently a mid-size town. Although they had to wait two hours, Hex didn’t step out. They waited at the dock.

They chatted a little about local trivia. Hex noticed quickly that each time he tried to steer the conversation toward the Witch, she would avoid it. In the end, she just told him that she would answer his questions once they reached the destination.

They had a couple of such stops in their journey. In the end, it took them a few days to reach the last docking area. Hex hadn’t expected the journey to take such a long time.

To put things into perspective, at the speed they traveled over a few days, he would have covered half of Asterella. Here, it just meant they would reach the end of what Wrixians called the outer perimeter.

Wrixians divided their place into three areas: the outer perimeter, the inner perimeter, and the core. Each division depended on certain key differences.

The outer perimeter referred to the area of branches that had sparse land under them, with the sea still reaching into these places. It had the least amount of people living in them. The people living in the outer perimeter lived on fruits, moss, and fish, with occasional birds as food. Because the outer perimeter had all the ports, trade and travelers were the most lucrative business opportunities in this area.

The inner perimeter housed the most Wrixians. The ground beneath was fertile, giving rise to many farms and fields. Most people were either farmers or had occupations related to them. The people inside the inner perimeter lived on farm products. The inner perimeter held also the most educational institutes and research hubs.

And finally, the core. He learned from Elize that the core was the area closest to the main trunk. It housed the greatest and oldest powers and families of Wrixia. Even the oldest library of Wrixia, and perhaps the world, stood there. The core wasn’t big. But as the oldest known piece of land in the world, people from everywhere wished to pay it a visit.

The core wasn’t accessible to everyone. Even Kings and Emperors had to wait and reserve a spot in advance. And even then entry wasn’t guaranteed.

The winners and a select few others who left a good impression on the judges were allowed entrance to the core. They were allowed entry with their teams and a select few elders. This was another reason why many nations and groups had sent their best and most loyal members to participate in the competition.

"That’s our stop."

Hearing Elize, Hex jerked his head and followed the direction she had pointed to. He saw the old, empty docking area get closer and closer.

"How do we stop this?"

Hex realized he didn’t know how Wrixians stopped the pod. Elize only smiled and tapped her finger at the wooden board before her.

The empty, plain-looking board lit up for a brief second. As soon as the light faded, the film covering them snapped open and flew behind them.

Before the loose ends could fly away, another snap sounded and the film attached itself to the back. The billowing air blew it up.

With wide eyes, he watched as the film expanded, and he sensed the pod decelerating. The speed reduction was significant. Even his body nearly slammed into the board before them.

Elize tapped the board again. Another snap sounded and he felt the pod steer toward the dock.

"Strap yourself."

She didn’t mean it literally. As Hex braced himself, he felt his body jerk. The pod was caught in a cluster of ropes and vines floating near the docking yard.

Elize stood up and floated toward the dock.

Flex Step

Hex followed behind her.

"Is this normal?" He asked as soon as his feet touched the ground. He doubted everyone could maintain such flawless control as she and he had.

"Usually, there are others to help. But The City of Changing Colors has no one around to help."

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