Isaac stared out into the vast forest before him before jumping down from the cliffside he was perched upon; he needed to reach the river before sundown if he wanted to make it to the temple in time. Isaac knew about the beasts that came out at night, and he knew it is best to not encounter such beasts. As Isaac traversed through the forest, he took note of the strange flora and fauna all around him. Such plants were both exotic in their color and shape, with dozens of different varieties of flowers giving off their own unique smells. Isaac avoided such strange flowers carefully, knowing better than to come in contact with such alien things.
The questboard warned of multiple varieties of these flowers that could end an adventurer's career should they come to close to them. The questboard also warned against being caught out at night. Luckily for Isaac, being a high paladin he had a wide variety of survival and protection essentials for this adventure. All Isaac needed to find an open area near the river and he could inscribe a warding mark in the ground, protecting him from any outside evil for the night. Isaac's spirit was pure, which translated into his almost supernatural glow given off by both him and his radiant armor. Isaac was confident in his ability and his powers, making him the perfect candidate to explore Calmach's crypt. Calmach was an ancient warlock who was believed to unleashed the Corrupted upon the world. Rumors had it that Calmach's crypt contained a tome which detailed the Corrupted and potentially would provide insight to ending this terror. The Corrupted started as strange black sludge fiends, but their ability to corrupt and convert other life to their likeness was the most disheartening thing to witness. Towns were now protected all day and night. Even though The Corrupted fear the light, corrupted humans and animals could resist the light long enough to enter a town and hide away in houses or stables. This forest is a known hotspot for the Corrupted to hide in during the night, and the shade provided by the trees could mean that anything Isaac encounters could very well be a Corrupted.
Isaac took a drink of his water satchel, noting that it was almost empty. He would need to reach the river soon. Luckily Isaac could hear running water in the distance so he knew he was close. Isaac was not concerned about the condition of the water, as he was trained to be able to purify any source of water he finds. Isaac's skills were quite great, but Isaac was still cautious - Calmach was an almighty being and the Corrupted were mostly unstudied as a race, meaning noone truly knew how strong the Corrupted could be. What people did know about The Corrupted was that corrupted beings cannot be purified and the onset of the Corruption in people and animals could only be slowed. The only way Corrupted people could be cured would require them finding advanced holy magic before they were fully Corrupted. Such holy magic is impossible to be found in normal humans and requires a group of Paladins or Clerics to magnify their powers at a place of holy power. If Isaac were to be exposed to the Corruption, he would need to return to the town as fast as possible as even a master paladin like Isaac could not stop the onset alone.
As Isaac made his way to the water, his path split into two distinct paths. Both paths led to the water, but both paths were radically different from eachother. Isaac found it odd that the forest could be to different like this.