I Am Genie-Chapter 98: Not Strong Enough To Go Deep Into The Ancient Forest

Leo and Michael, ever since they woke up on this continent, had only heard bits and pieces about energy monsters, so it made sense they didn't get it.

Even if Iris found it funny, she was ready to explain so these two 'idiots' could get a little smarter.

"The nature of energy monsters is pretty dangerous. They don't need to eat or drink, but sometimes they really want to fight, and I mean fight to the death.

A smaller number are way more aggressive, they'll actively attack anyone who gets close. I and my subordinates have killed a lot of energy monsters too, so don't hesitate when it comes to killing them."

Even though energy monsters fight and kill each other like crazy, there's still a lot of them now because they're all born from natural energy.

This world always keeps the number of energy monsters at a stable level. Only when the world no longer needs them to exist will they possibly go extinct.

Besides, they can't really be divided into species like normal animals. Dragons themselves, their overall shape looks quite similar to Dragon God, but not completely the same. Iris only calls things like that "dragons" when they have the strength of at least eight stars.

"What kind of messed-up leader are you? If you're supposed to be a king like in human terms, then you must be the type of tyrant who slaughters your own people, huh?"

Saying 'smart' stuff like this, it couldn't be anyone other than Michael. His instinct for 'picking a fight' was still working great with Iris, as always.

Leo, being very smart, dodged to the side and didn't even bother looking. This was a move he'd done countless times over the years, so he was long used to it.

A familiar scene that hadn't changed in years played out again. A dragon holding a spear chasing after some weird-looking six-armed freak with a fierce face.

After fighting for a while, they got bored, and without any signal, they both stopped on their own. Even though Iris liked to fight, besides fighting, she also liked to just lie around and sleep.

"You two done? So, how do we go hunting energy monsters now? From what I know, we're really far away from them."

Leo had done some asking around in recent years and found out that energy monsters never leave the Ancient Forest. They wouldn't even set foot in regular jungles.

As for the reason, he couldn't help but think of Iris. With how arrogant she was, it wouldn't be surprising if other energy monsters also had that arrogance built into their instincts.

Maybe they don't come because they look down on weaklings like regular people and wild animals.

Hearing that, Michael glanced at Iris. He remembered she came out from the Ancient Forest, so she should know the way.

"You came out from there. Show us the way in."

Asked like that, Iris was a bit stunned. It was true she got out, but that didn't mean she could easily go back now.

"Actually... I used a 'one-way ticket' to get out. Going back in now isn't easy either."

She hesitated a little and also felt a bit embarrassed. The mighty lord of the energy monsters and also of the Ancient Forest, but now she was having trouble returning home.

"Pfft, ha ha ha ha..."

The person who dared to laugh straight in her face like that was no one other than Michael.

"I'm dying of laughter here. Dragon God—lord of the energy monsters... yet can't even easily go back home? Ha ha ha..."

Leo was usually serious, but it seemed like laughter could be contagious. At some point, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly, and then he gradually burst into loud laughter.

Iris's face got darker and darker. Now she looked like a pot bottom covered in soot. Her teeth were grinding together as if they were about to spark.

"Shut up!"

"Ha ha ha, you tell me to shut up and I'll just shut up?"

It was that familiar, punch-worthy tone again. Michael, even after all these years, still loved seeing that annoyed look on her face.

"I said it's hard, not that I can't make it. It's just that my current speed isn't very fast, so it would take a lot of time. As for you two, even if you combined your strength, you couldn't go deep into the Ancient Forest."

Iris immediately regained the dignity befitting a Dragon God. So what if going in was hard for her? Leo and Michael were also gods, but currently, they didn't even have the qualifications to enter.

"Hmph, you're lying. Our strength now isn't as far apart as before. Plus, I can teleport, the range is up to a hundred meters now. Why can you go deep into the Ancient Forest but I can't?"

His strength just increased, and Michael's arrogance went up another level. Immediately appearing at a spot a hundred meters away gave him a feeling of superiority twice what it was before.

"Hmph, I'm not interested in explaining things to an idiot. With just that little bit of strength, when you meet someone strong, it's basically not even worth mentioning."

She wasn't exaggerating either. Just a contractor level over twenty or a two-star energy monster would already make it hard for Michael to hurt them.

Raphael at this moment also noticed the commotion and flew over from the mansion. As for why he was there, of course Iris let him.

That shabby 'house' from before didn't look like much, plus she wasn't a stingy person, so she told everyone to come live together.

Of course, no one had to do anything. Except for Michael, who was made by Iris to do all the chores like cooking and cleaning.

Raphael didn't need to hunt anymore either, because the three-person team could now do it themselves. During regular training they had to hold back, but when hunting they could completely go all out and kill their prey.

"She's right. You two don't have the strength to go deep inside. The outskirts are a bit dangerous, but if you're careful, it should be fine."

With Raphael speaking up, Michael didn't argue back stubbornly anymore. He didn't like Iris, but he wasn't brainless.

His guess was that Iris was confident she could go deep inside because of her identity as the lord of the energy monsters. An identity recognized by this world probably didn't disappear even though she no longer had the power of a god.