A Hospital in Another World? Chapter 1057: Garrett's Advance and the Golden Path in the Rainforest

Garrett pushed himself to continue on, practicing his transformation into a leopard, walking, running, climbing, and learning to recognize plants and animals—all the skills needed to survive in the rainforest.

Every day, he would fall dozens of times, roll over three to five times, and crash into things countless times…

It was heartbreaking to witness, bringing tears to the eyes of onlookers. If it weren't for his body becoming more flexible and agile after transforming into a leopard, combined with the unlimited supply of healing magic, Garrett would have been sprawled on the ground, unable to get up.

Even so, every morning when he woke up, he would curl up into a ball, rolling around in his bed, very unwilling to get up.

Traveling was traveling, but why did he, a perfectly fine mage, have to degrade himself to the level of an animal…

He didn't want to get up… didn't want to transform into a leopard… didn't want to practice transformation…

He just wanted to sleep…

“Garrett! Get up!”

In another room of the mage's cabin, Cirilla called out energetically.

“I didn't hear you… I'm asleep… Don't bother me…”

“Get up! Breakfast is ready! If you don't get up, I'll dispel the mage's cabin!”

“Ugh… Cirilla, you've become bad…”

He was just lying in bed a little longer, but now she was threatening to take away the blanket…

Garrett practiced diligently, practiced diligently, practiced diligently.

Bernard and Uncle Hawthorn quietly attended the lessons, working hard to follow along with the courses they could learn.

Lady Jasmine quietly took care of the logistics, occasionally taking the time to comfort Garrett with a few words:

“It’s like this when you first start learning transformation magic…”

“When I started, I also stumbled and wobbled… And I chose a wolf form, which didn’t require jumping or climbing, so it was much easier than your leopard form…”

“Don’t rush, take your time. If you ask Sister Moon Song, she’ll tell you that the elves on Elven Island didn’t start running and jumping right after they learned to transform; it took them ten or eight years of practice.”

Garrett looked up in response, just in time to catch the hint of embarrassment that Aishe Moon Song couldn’t hide on her face.

Of course… it takes time to learn!

For young elves, who had endless lifespans and lived long lives on Elven Island, who had the time to practice hard every day?

They would play instruments, sing songs, collect dew from flowers to brew elven wine, and gather pollen and nectar to make snacks…

They would study magic, plant flowers and trees, and take care of various animals…

There were so many joys in a day, why spend all their time training, fighting, and advancing?

By transforming a few times each day, young elves would turn into little wolves, little bears, little leopards, all cuddling together, playfully wrestling, and naturally, after a year or two, three or five years, they would learn.

But Garrett couldn't afford such time!

From the Eagle God's Kingdom to Bountiful Forest, a ranger like Aishe, transformed into a leopard, could travel at full speed and arrive in a month;

If they were to ride Phantom Steeds or magical beasts at a decent pace, they would arrive in three or four months.

If Garrett still moved like he did now, stumbling with every step, slipping after three steps, and falling flat every five steps…

It would be hard for him to move around in Bountiful Forest!

Where others could leap gracefully, he would have to crawl on all fours, and who knows, he might just end up putting his hand into an ant nest!

Even if he managed to walk, it would be hard to convince other rangers, elves, or natives that this clumsy half-elf cub was a powerful healer—

Would you entrust your life to a half-elf cub you met for the first time, who seemed very clumsy and obviously inexperienced?

“Garrett, hurry up and transform! We won’t be running today—we’re starting with perception practice!”

While Garrett was struggling, far to the south, others were also facing difficulties.

“It’s time to move out! Everyone, make a final check of all the boxes, check the mules, and make sure each one is the healthiest and strongest!”

A tall military officer with short black hair, a pair of black mustaches on his upper lip, pale skin, and a commanding presence was barking orders to the entire team:

“Fill your water bags! Check your food! For the next month, if you don’t want to eat the mud blocks of the natives, keep your food packages intact!”

“And check the purifying beads! Mosquito repellent incense! High-top thick-soled shoes! Check everything! We’ll be trekking through the jungle for a month, and there won’t be any cathedral priests to save your lives if something goes wrong!”

In front of him, the 200-man team of officers and soldiers responded in unison, each checking their armor, swords, and water bags.

As for the laborers tending to the mules, those yellow-brown-skinned, flat-faced people, they were much more silent:

The gold, silver, and gems loaded onto these mules were mined from their homeland, extracted by their fellow countrymen at the cost of blood and lives.

Now, packed in boxes and tied to the mules, they were being carried through the dense forest, across the sea to the other side.

Turned into golden crowns atop kings’ heads, necklaces around noblewomen’s necks, and the glittering gold and silver threads on bishops’ robes…

If those metals and gems had souls attached to them, the anger and hatred tainting those jewels would be enough to drag the wearers to hell!

“Are we ready?”

“Yes!”

“Move out! Rod, you take the first team, John, the second, Clement, the third…”

The black-haired officer continuously gave orders. The team filed out, marching along the narrow mountain path that allowed only one person or mule to pass, stepping deeper into the rainforest.

Soon, the small team was swallowed by the vast forest, disappearing from sight.

This team had set out from the Pelu Governorate, one of the four major governorates, crossing the Vasco Isthmus to reach the Storm Islands. There, they would load these precious gold, silver, and gems onto ships at the port and send them directly back to the homeland—

Decades ago, an expedition team from the Brolin Kingdom and the Radiant Church had conquered the Pelu Kingdom, captured its king, and looted the kingdom's treasures.

In subsequent explorations, they discovered that the Pelu Kingdom had rich gold and silver reserves, worth ruling over, thus establishing the Pelu Governorate. However, transporting the wealth back to the kingdom was no easy task:

To the south of the Pelu Governorate lay an endless mountain range with towering snow peaks. Without taking the land route, relying on shipping would take several months to reach the southern tip of the New World.

And there, strong winds and high waves, along with swirling currents, drove huge ice blocks into a frenzy, colliding with each other. The narrow, treacherous routes left for ships were far from safe.

To the east lay an endless expanse of rainforest. To the elves, it was the Bountiful Forest, the Raging River Forest, the Rain Song Forest… In short, vast expanses of rainforest;

But to the exploiters who had no respect for nature, it was just an endless forest stretching from the western mountains to the eastern coastline, a route that no one had ever fully traversed.

As for the west… The kingdom was to the east, so why would you transport gold and silver westward? Besides, the west was an open ocean, where no ship that sailed had ever returned, except for the legendary elven ships…

So, the only option left was to head north. Northward, unfurling the sails, heading north all the way to the narrowest and thinnest part between the southern and northern halves of the New World.

Then, disembark, cross the Vasco Isthmus, and reach the other ocean on the other side.

Thus, the distance traveled on land, including crossing mountains and winding paths, would only amount to six or seven hundred miles.

And this six or seven hundred-mile journey was almost absolutely safe. To the east was the kingdom’s Storm Islands; to the west, the vast ocean; to the south, the already-controlled Pelu Governorate. As for the north?

Well, the Vasco Isthmus was still part of the Storm Islands Governorate’s territory. Even further north…

Oh, there was a native country called the Eagle God's Kingdom, but it was over a thousand miles from the isthmus. They had never extended their reach so far.

Of course, there had been some recent trouble in the Eagle God's Kingdom, reportedly due to their collusion with some vile heretics. For this reason, the Governor had made some arrangements, just in case.

However, this gold transport team was most concerned about the natives and magical beasts along the route, as well as the unpredictable forces of nature.

“Those detestable humans are coming again.”

In the rainforest, a figure in deep green flashed behind a tree trunk, blending almost seamlessly with the dense foliage. He gazed at the distant team, his brows furrowed, and his pointed ears trembled slightly:

“The destroyers of nature have returned…”

Sisoyin sighed.

Those outsiders, they cleared forests, felled trees. They sent strong warriors to kill powerful magical beasts near the path, and if

they couldn’t kill them, they would drive them far away. Two hundred miles to the south, two hundred miles to the north, they created a man-made corridor;

They enslaved people, using mules to carry sacks of gravel, paving roads through the vast jungle. To this day, the bones of slaves still lie with the piles of gravel, marking the path of this road;

They even dreamed of destroying this forest—he had once followed the team that opened up the road, hearing with his own ears when they said, “One day, with enough manpower, we’ll dig a canal here, so ships can travel directly from one ocean to the other…”

How much forest would be destroyed, how many plants, and how many animals would lose their homes?

Sisoyin tightened the green cloak around him, covering his weathered face. As the ranger of this rainforest, he had been worrying about this for many years. Seeking help from his kin in the Bountiful Forest, Raging River Forest, and Rain Song Forest, they had their own hands full;

Seeking aid from the elves on Elven Island, their lives weren’t exactly peaceful either…

Fortunately, year after year, those who wanted to dig the canal never came. He gazed at the winding convoy on the mountain path, sighing softly:

“Forget it, forget it, there are experts in that team, we can’t win. I’d better hurry ahead to warn the nearby villages to hide, so they won’t be ravaged…”

Sisoyin leaned back against the tree trunk, silently merging into it. Moments later, he reappeared by another tree trunk in the distance. Using the trees in this way, he quickly moved far away.