Looking at the little sprout in front of him, Naoki furrowed his brow, thinking calmly.
Clearly, it was the Grass Energy from Gogoat that caused those three strange seeds to mutate.
Grassy Seed must have contributed as well.
But... why is this thing's growth time so long?!
Is it ten thousand years since Arceus created the world from its inception to now?
What plant would need such a long growth period?
Naoki quickly reviewed the famous plants of this world in his mind.
Revival Herb, Eternal Flower...
No, Eternal Flower is Floette, and shouldn't be classified as a plant.
Apart from these, the only thing left seems to be the Tree of Beginning.
In Naoki's mind appeared the ancient tree depicted in movies, nestled amidst towering mountains, tall and majestic, reaching to the sky.
The tree's massive trunk had a unique internal environment, like a complex labyrinth, nurturing a distinct ecosystem where many Pokemon resided.
No one knew where it was born or how many years it took to grow into its current form; Mew called it home, and Regice, Registeel, and Regirock willingly became its guardians, driving away humans who trespass.
Some believed it wasn't a real tree but was composed of rock layers shaped like a tree; others thought it was the representation of tree boughs petrifying over its long growth.
Naoki's brow twitched; could Gogoat have planted Mew's home?
Good gracious, no wonder there hasn't been any mutated crop in the field for over a month; it's secretly brewing something big for him!
Naoki thought about the appearance of the Tree of Beginning again, then looked down at the seedling in front of him, which was no bigger than his little finger, unable to reconcile the two.
He was eager to know what on earth this plant was.
But clearly, unless special measures were used, he wouldn't see it in his lifetime.
After pondering briefly, Naoki's eyes fell upon the shrine to Calyrex that he had been worshipping.
If anyone had this kind of power, it must be Calyrex, right?
Naoki immediately raced to Calyrex's shrine and offered incense.
Calyrex sama! Your poor little follower needs help! I will bring you endless Green Grass Cakes as offerings!
Far away in the Galar Region, Calyrex: "..."
Another heavy snow fell on The Crown Tundra.
The world was a vast stretch of whiteness, with the snow on the ground piling up deeply.
At this time of year, Calyrex generally spent it in slumber because its body was very frail.
But in the past few months, things have been different.
With the help of that devout little follower, a continuous stream of Power of Faith had surged into Calyrex's body. Though far from its peak period, it was enough for Calyrex to muster some powers.
In response, Calyrex's heart was filled with gratitude.
Calyrex thought, this little follower was truly devout, doing so much for it alone when mankind had forgotten about it.
Not only that, the little follower continued to sing its praises silently, without asking for anything in return.
The surrounding temperature was very cold, yet Calyrex's heart was very warm.
This was the first time the little follower had requested its help.
The sovereign would certainly fulfill it, Calyrex thought.
It gathered its spirits and concentrated its Psychic powers, focusing on the matter over there.
It saw the little follower placing a mountain of Berry before its shrine, nearly to the point of overflow, until some Berries rolled onto the lawn, at which point the little follower quickly picked them up and put them back.
"Do you truly like the sovereign so much?" Calyrex muttered.
If so, let the sovereign do something for you!
Seedling? Want to make the seedling reach maturity?
This was still very simple for Calyrex.
Calyrex gathered its spirits, finally locating the seedling its follower mentioned on a small mound of earth in the pasture.
It saw three sheep Pokemon gathered around the seedling.
Calyrex ignored them, elegantly raising its right hand, using its power to start facilitating the seedling's growth.
At first, Calyrex didn't notice anything amiss.
But soon, as the energy stored in its body drained, and the seedling remained unchanged, Calyrex finally sensed something wrong.
Hmm?
What exactly was this thing? It consumed such... such energy!
A trace of astonishment appeared on Calyrex's stern face.
Meanwhile, Naoki was unaware that Calyrex had responded to his prayers.
After giving offerings to Calyrex's shrine, he wandered back to Gogoat's side.
Incidentally, he looked down at the seedling, and to his surprise, discovered something significant.
The maturation time had shortened! Its name had changed!
[World Tree Seedling: A seedling from a seed that absorbed a significant amount of Power of Grass; due to Gogoat, it mutated during growth, brewing massive Life Force within, ultimately breaking through the soil, and requires 99996 more years to fully mature.]
It suddenly shortened by four years!
Naoki was dumbfounded, blurting out, "Damn, it's really the World Tree!"
Wait a minute! Can a world have two World Trees simultaneously?
However, clever as he was, Naoki still noticed the difference between the two.