Vyrella, Tornak, Grumval, Mirelle, and Lunavi gathered together in a large swamp four weeks after Liu Shu descended upon Nualis. The five main species, Star Chart Newts, Ember Salamanders, Cave Titan Frogs, Silt Weaver Mud-Skippers, and Mistveil Fairies, gathered together, even when there were profound enmities and grudges among them.
The reason for this gathering was Vyrella's influence as one of, if not the most talented, Star Chart Newt in recent eras. Having reached Level 70 by age 130, her future was almost guaranteed as one of, if not the, leader.
Aquatic species fell under the same category as beastkin. So, their lifespans were also similar to theirs, reaching around double that of a normal human. Only, their reproductive cycles were able to produce many children at once.
If the general talent were not a limiting factor, their fertility would eclipse even that of humans, who are a highly fertile and fast-developing species among intelligent creatures.
"In front of us, the
Vyrella's voice was loud and clear, spreading to all the armies surrounding her. "How can monsters ever overwhelm us? How can trees even surpass us? We, amphibians who dominate the waters and the earth, are the masters of the world!"
Tens of thousands of creatures cried, their voices filling the surroundings with a cacophony of heated battle cries. By Vyrella's side, the top leaders looked on with unsure expressions.
Honestly, they gathered not because they were confident but because Vyrella convinced them that the prophecy spoke about victory and glory. While the Star Chart Newts were an enemy during race conflicts, they would usually be the "mysterious" and "ancient" race that acted as arbiters on conflicts that didn't include them.
Therefore, their gathered trust was what pushed these hot-headed younger people to gather their family strengths and follow Vyrella's call.
Lunavi, the fairy with an extremely adorable appearance, spoke with a croaky tone. "Vyrella, you are entirely sure, right? Our fairy race descends from a mix of plant-beings and an ancient
Looking at the forest, Lunavi's face was full of worry. "I can feel a strange presence inside the Divine Beast Forest… No. It is not inside. It feels as if the canopy of a gargantuan tree is covering everything. My body, each time I think of facing whatever is inside, starts trembling involuntarily.'
Vyrella's face was stubborn, and her lizardly facial features showed disdain as she snorted at her comments. "That's you being cowardly. I've already done divination, and the result is a clear victory from our side. My race has used this technique for generations to maintain us as one of the top powers."
Tornak, the Ember Salamander, flicked his tongue with annoyance. "What if that technique is wrong this time around? The
Vyrella looked over, glaring at the orange lizard-man with her shining eyes. "I didn't know that the genius of the Ember Salamanders had less guts than a fish on land. We are leading a combined army numbering over 50 thousand. Within those, we have over 2,000
Looking valiant, Vyrella raised her head and spoke. "We, the Star Chart Newts, have dominated the art of nature, reading and incorporating the stars on our bodies. As a chosen race by the cosmos, a simple forest will not stop us!"
The mudskipper's senses were sharp, and it looked down with confusion. "Hm? What type of root is this? I've never seen a root with veins glowing blue."
Everyone blinked and glanced down at their feet. While they spoke, a certain someone's roots had poked out of the ground, wagging in confusion as it looked at them like a snake without a head.
Lunavi, the fairy, felt as if her entire body had been electrocuted. A terrifying urge to scream and run away overcame her whole body, yet the sheer terror of the aura paralyzed her body. Without the support of her flapping wings, Lunavi fell down.
The others were surprised, but before she fell, the root moved and caught Lunavi. Thinking that the root was going to damage Lunavi, Mirelle, the mudskipper, waved her hands.
A mucous liquid spread from her fingers, transforming after contact with the air and becoming something like a sharp, tight thread. Not only that, the mud around also followed her commands, tightening around the root.
CLANG!
A loud metallic sound echoed when Mirelle's attack landed on the root, but it didn't even scratch it. On the other hand, the root ignored its supposed restraints and gently caught Lunavi.
After placing the fairy on the ground softly, the root moved and patted her head. At that moment, Lunavi felt like a little child being gently scolded by their parents for being careless.
"U-Um…" Lunavi, not knowing how to react, instinctively bowed her head reverently. "H-Hello! D-Does this root belong to a World Tree? C-Can you communicate?"
Tornak snorted and pointed a finger at the root. A concentrated beam of red flames shot forward, startling Lunavi. "Don't!"
The flames landed on the root, covering it.
Thinking that it would burn to ashes, Tornak glanced at Mirelle and Lunavi. "Have you gone easy on the root because it was pretty? You should've used all your strength to cut it down. And you, Lunavi, what are you being formal about? World Trees are majestic, I admit, but you don't need to revere them like those tree-hugging Sylvans do."
Lunavi's face went from scared to relaxed when she noticed that the flames were not hurting the root. Then, using her mist, she put out the small fire. "Um… Don't get angry at him. He is just a stupid man."
The root once more patted Lunavi's head, making the fairy blink happily.
Of course, the other four couldn't ignore what happened. Tornak hadn't held back when attacking the root. Yet, it was pristine. Moreover, even more strangely, Lunavi wasn't surprised by the root's nonchalance when receiving attacks.
Mirelle spoke, her voice solemn. "This root is not normal. We should be careful. After all, if there is one, there will be many more under our feet."
Vyrella was puzzled and asked the fairy, who was happily conversing with the root. "Lunavi, stop acting like those weird Sylvans! What plant is this root from? Is it an independent creature?"
Lunavi frowned, her annoyance surging the more these people disrespected the beautiful root. "...Our Mistveil Fairy race won't participate in the attack. The Divine Beast Forest belongs to this root, and we won't disturb it just for selfish gains."
"What!?" Tornak shouted, his face twisting with anger. "You think you can bail out at this moment in time!? Your people are outnumbered one to four, so you'd better participate if you don't want anything bad to happen."
For the first time, Grumval, the Cave Titan Toad, spoke aloud. "Lady Lunavi, we are not participating in children's plays. You can't retreat just because you want to."
The blue-veined root glanced back and forth between them, and strangely, everyone seemed to hear a very faint sigh permeate the air. The sigh was all-encompassing, reaching them from everywhere yet nowhere in particular.
Lunavi got angered and pointed at Vyrella. "Everything is too strange! This woman is telling us that we can do it, so we should trust her? She says that she has used some ancient technique, so her words are truthful!? I wanted to believe it so that our race would prosper even further. However, will you all risk your lives just because she said her words are the truth!?"
Vyrella's face finally changed, showing a venomous look. "Lunavi. Your inferior race, mixed with plant ancestors, might be scared of some flowers and bushes. However, we pure amphibian races are from warrior races! A pretty little root is not enough to scare us!"
Liu Shu glanced at them and was conflicted. 'Do I just speak up? However, will these people react calmly? It is more probable that they will either pee themselves in fear, fall to their knees in reverence, or run hysterically as far as they can from me.'
Four weeks were more than enough for Liu Shu's roots to expand exponentially. She was taking it calmly, but just their passive growth allowed her almost to double the surface area she covered during the first few days.'
Lunavi's plant inheritance was quick to notice Liu Shu's overwhelming aura, and she quickly surrendered and took Liu Shu's side. It was a matter of existence-level or life-rating. A True World Tree that could fight
Liu Shu pondered how to convince these people not to attack the forest. 'Hm… They are motivated by this Star Chart Newt girl, right? If I get rid of her… would the rest of the 50,000 people disperse naturally?'
A single life in exchange for 49,999 other lives. In Liu Shu's books, it was quite a good deal.
Lunavi saw that the others were becoming increasingly aggressive, so she could only place the root behind her and open her arms protectively. "You are all making a mistake! If we go inside, all of us will die! You can't even damage a single root of this being. What will you do when you find the main body!?"
Tornak's face turned dangerous. "I can't damage it? You don't think that my previous attack was a full-strength attack, right?"
Lunavi knew that it wasn't. "Even if it wasn't, your normal attacks were completely useless against this root! The main body will 100% be tougher than this root. So, your attacks will do absolutely nothing to it, even if you try!"
Tornak's pride was hit, and he opened his hands, red flames bursting around him. "Since you say so, I'll just see how durable this plant is. Don't get in my way, useless fairy!
Liu Shu felt somewhat annoyed and quickly grabbed Lunavi and the other four, throwing them out of the explosion's boundary. Then, the wave of red flames struck her root, creating a massive explosion that would've leveled an entire street.
Lunavi's face turned pale, and her anger surged like a torrent. "YOU STUPID LIZARD! I'M…"
Before she could continue, she noticed Tornaks' face was odd. He was showing… bafflement.
Confused, the fairy followed his gaze and glanced at the location of the explosion. Her small mouth opened, while her beady eyes blinked, confused. "It's… Unscathed? How is this possible…?"