Bloodline Evolution: I Can Choose Opposing Paths-Chapter 113: The Reverse Waterfall

Aren managed to push himself upright first, brushing the wet sand from his clothes. His pants were completely torn and ripped from the piranha attack, and the small gash on his leg still stung faintly.

Now that he had a moment to properly breathe and look at the island they were at, it felt strangely out of place...

The narrow stretch of beach that they had crashed into quickly gave way to dense greenery. Tall trees with wide leaves stretched upward into a thick canopy, similar to the Mangroves but without all the mud.

Aren frowned slightly. "...A rainforest?"

Daniel glanced over his shoulder.

"Huh?"

Aren gestured toward the thick jungle ahead of them.

"We’re in the middle of a lagoon," he said slowly. "Why is there a rainforest island here?"

Daniel shrugged as he stood up and brushed sand off his jacket.

"Wildlands logic."

"...That’s right."

At this point, Aren had already seen enough strange things in this place that questioning it further felt pointless.

He took a quick glance back at the lagoon. The water was finally calm again, but the occasional fin beneath the surface suggested the piranhas hadn’t gone very far.

"...Let’s move inland," Aren said. "Might get lucky and find the Reverse Waterfall on our first island."

"Works for me," Daniel replied quickly.

The two of them stepped off the beach pushed through the thick undergrowth, finally beginning to survey the land.

Almost immediately, the temperature shifted. Gone was the humid warmth of the lagoon, replaced by something cool, almost calming. It was like stepping into a place untouched by the chaos of the Wildlands outside.

Aren closed his eyes for a brief moment.

Natural energy...it’s everywhere.

The air felt warm against his skin, every breath he took was easier than before.

"...This place is loaded with natural energy," Daniel said, feeling the same as he was.

Aren nodded slightly but kept his gaze forward. "Which means there’ll probably be a lot of others here, stay alert."

Just as soon as he’d spoken, a faint rustle came from the bushes ahead. Daniel instinctively raised his hand, signaling for them to stop.

That was when the bushes parted slowly and a deer stepped out.

Its coat shimmered a faint gold, almost like camouflaging with the sun’s rays. Slender antlers curved upward from its head like polished branches of an ancient tree.

The animal stood there, tilting its head as it calmly observed them.

Daniel blinked.

"...Huh."

Instead of fleeing...it took a few cautious steps forward instead. Aren felt a strange connection to it, almost like he’d seen it before.

"Wait...aren’t you—?" Aren started.

"A Serene Golden Deer," Daniel finished his sentence. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"They’re usually super meek and run on first sight, but this one seems to be friendly towards us."

The Golden Deer walked up to Aren calmly before sniffing his clothes. Then all of a sudden, it started circling him, almost like trying to tell him something.

Aren frowned slightly.

"...That’s strange."

The golden creature brushed past him again before lowering its head gently toward the ground.

Aren stared at it for a moment. Because the moment Daniel said its name, all he could remember was Sun City...

And the Blood Red Wendigo.

Right...The egg.

After the whole incident, he hadn’t seen it since. With everything that happened afterward, Aren never bothered to follow up on what became of it.

He just hoped that Lily was still holding onto it and raising it. His gaze returned to the deer circling him.

"...You look a lot better than the last one I saw."

"You’ve seen another one?" Daniel asked, tilting his head.

"...Something like that," Aren replied slowly.

The senior frowned slightly. "That’s impossible."

"What is?"

"Serene Golden Deer only live in the Wildlands," Daniel said matter-of-factly. "They don’t exist anywhere else."

Aren froze for a second. "...What?"

"Yeah," Daniel shrugged. "They’re basically a protected species out here. Super rare too."

Aren’s brain went into overdrive as the pieces started to click together slowly.

If the original creature was a Serene Golden Deer...and Serene Golden Deers only existed in the Wildlands—

Aren’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Someone’s snooping around..."

Daniel blinked.

"Who are we talking about?"

Aren shook his head lightly, waving away the discussion entirely. "Nevermind, don’t worry about it."

"Suit yourself," Daniel said casually, placing both hands on his head as he started walking forward again.

Aren followed after him, brushing past a low-hanging branch.

"...Alright," he muttered quietly as he glanced back down at the golden deer. "Guess we’ll be going now."

He gave a small wave toward the deer. "Nice meeting you."

The Serene Golden Deer simply stared back at him. Then it started following right behind. Daniel noticed and turned around.

"Hey, I think you made a friend."

"You think?" Aren said sarcastically, but at that point, the deer really was following him.

Aren stopped again and turned around. "Look, you can’t just follow people around, there are some bad people out there—"

Before he could finish, Daniel waved his hand. "Alright, alright. Let me try."

He stepped forward and gently clapped his hands. "Shoo. Go on."

The deer finally reacted.

But instead of running away...it calmly walked past Daniel and stepped directly in front of Aren. Then it turned its head toward the deeper part of the forest.

And began walking in that direction.

Aren frowned. "...What is it doing?"

"Beats me..."

The deer stopped after a few steps before turning its head around to stare at them. Aren glanced at the path Daniel had been heading down.

Then back at the deer.

"...You’re kidding."

Daniel scratched the back of his head.

"...I think it wants you to follow it."

"I guess it can’t hurt?" Aren shrugged before following it right along.

The Serene Golden Deer led them through the thinning forest for a while until the trees suddenly opened up.

Aren stepped into the clearing and paused immediately.

A quiet lake stretched out before them, its clear water reflecting the sunlight. Around the shore, animals had gathered peacefully. Small creatures drank from the shallows while birds perched on the branches above.

"Okay," Daniel muttered. "That’s a little princess-y."

Aren’s gaze drifted past the lake, toward the far side of the clearing and saw it.

At first, his brain automatically filled in the blank. It was a waterfall. But as soon as he squinted...the real detail revealed itself.

The water was rising instead of falling, a massive column of water flowed upward from the lake and spiraled into the sky.

"...That must be it," Aren said quietly.

"The Reverse Waterfall."