Chapter 96
Chapter 96
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: The World Tree Takes Root
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The World Tree looked enormous even from several kilometers away.
I scooped up Na-young and raced toward the temporary command post set up near it.
At the guard outpost, I showed my face to the sentry and headed straight into the joint command tent.
“Oh! Hunter Lee Ji-seok, Hunter Bae Na-young, thank you for coming so quickly.”
“I heard you caused a huge stir in Mexico. You’ve been through a lot.”
Bureau Chief Baek Young-shin and Hunter Jeong Min-gi greeted me.
“No need for that. What’s the situation?”
“Not good. Its growth rate on the surface has slowed compared to the start, but that’s not because of our attacks—it seems like it’s already grown big enough. The roots are still spreading rapidly.”
“Those roots are what might make Baekdu Mountain erupt?”
“It could erupt. There are roots the size of dozens of apartment buildings churning up the ground from hundreds of meters to several kilometers underground. The problem is we don’t know if it will erupt, or when. The geologists say there’s no way to know for sure.”
“It’s ambiguous.”
“One thing’s certain. If it does erupt by some chance, this whole area will be buried in volcanic ash, nearby flights will be grounded, and there’s even a slim chance of a major earthquake. We can’t predict how far south the damage might spread.”
“The biggest issue is we don’t even know what it is. It’s not an Earth lifeform, right? It’s a monster? If that tree keeps spreading infinitely, the planet’s ecosystem will be wrecked.”
“Hmm... I’m not certain, but it looks similar to the World Tree we saw on Tellus.”
“Tellus again?”
Hunter Jeong Min-gi sighed.
“I’m not an expert on trees, but it’s stupidly huge just like that one. Let’s try stopping its growth for now.”
“Got any methods? We’ve chopped at it nonstop, but it’s so massive it doesn’t even show. And new growth sprouts up in seconds anyway.”
“It’s a lifeform too, so if we drain its vitality, it’ll die.”
As I left the command tent, the rest of the group had arrived and was receiving orders from the Awakening Bureau.
I approached one of the World Tree’s roots. It was still wriggling, burrowing deeper underground, while branches kept stretching toward the sky.
I placed my hand on the root and began absorbing.
It held slightly more vitality than a normal tree, but its sheer mountain-like size meant the total amount inside was immense.
After catching the dragon and transforming my body into a dragonkin’s, my vitality capacity had more than doubled from before. Plus, with cores in both lungs, I could cycle vitality to store heat and cold. In short, my total absorbable vitality was now at least triple what it had been.
As vitality filled my body, the World Tree’s growth slowed in the area near me. But it was just too damn big. The range I could affect was only a fraction—maybe a sixtieth—of the whole tree.
“This spot’s too peripheral. Better to head to the center.”
“You can’t get close.”
“Why not?”
“There’s black mist under the tree’s canopy. Everyone who approached for scouting came back vomiting blood. Even those in gas masks and hazmat suits got hit. The particles are so fine gas masks don’t work, and it melts clothing.”
“There wasn’t anything like that with Tellus’s World Tree... But I’ll be fine. Poison doesn’t affect me.”
Ignoring Bureau Chief Baek Young-shin’s worried protests, I pushed toward the tree’s center.
Inside, the black mist was thick, just as described.
“Poison?”
It stung a bit where it touched my skin and when I inhaled.
My clothes were melting full of holes, so I tore them off and armored my body except for my face.
I walked beneath the tree where dense branches and leaves blocked all light.
Roots writhed at my feet, devouring the surface soil. It didn’t seem targeted at me, but standing still would get me sucked in. I hopped lightly over them and reached the center.
The center’s roots were already stable—no wriggling ground. The World Tree’s trunk had grown to hundreds of meters in diameter. Bigger than Tellus’s. Up close, it looked less like a tree and more like a round wall.
I placed my hand on the trunk and sucked in vitality. An enormous amount slumbered within, befitting its size—more than even the dragon’s.
“Huuuuaaaah!!!!”
I cycled the overflowing vitality into the cold core in my lung and exhaled the generated chill upward.
As I stole its vitality, the branches and leaves on my side froze, halting growth there.
I kept repeating absorption and cold release.
But the far side was still growing. In the end, it was just buying time.
“Hunter Lee Ji-seok!!!”
“Hm?”
It was quite a distance, but I heard Si-hwan’s voice.
“Come back!”
Hearing Si-hwan, I returned to base camp.
“To think your voice carries this far—impressive.”
“Hahaha, it’s a skill called Target Shouting. It focuses sound in one direction like a beam. You can’t hear it from other directions. Pretty useful, right?”
Si-hwan rubbed his nose proudly.
“Yeah, very useful. Good job.”
The fact that it didn’t leak to other directions was huge. If that volume spread everywhere, it could’ve burst eardrums nearby.
“How’s it inside?”
Bureau Chief Baek Young-shin asked.
“It’s growing endlessly. Even absorbing, I can’t fully suppress it.”
“Hmm...”
“But I can buy time from within. Why’d you call me?”
“Oh, China notified us they’re launching a massive airstrike.”
“It won’t work.”
A World Tree unscathed by a mana core explosion? Normal bombs obviously wouldn’t faze it.
“They’re targeting the parts spreading into Chinese territory, so we don’t have grounds to stop them.”
Sirens blared.
“Everyone retreat! Brace for explosions!”
Dozens of missiles streaked from the sky. Aimed at the World Tree over the border in Chinese territory, it was some distance from us, but we all took cover in trenches just in case.
KABOOM! KABOOM! KABOOM!!!!
Flames erupted, and house-sized branches shattered, flying everywhere.
I didn’t need the trench and watched while tanking the shockwave.
The aftershocks shook the mountain, sending a few canvas tents flying. The soldiers who set those up were in for some scolding.
“Whoa~~ Back during the old break incidents, they smashed monsters like that too.”
Hunter Jeong Min-gi had sidled up beside me.
“As expected, no effect.”
Compared to the explosions, the World Tree’s damage was minor. And it was already regenerating.
“Director, contact Tellus for me.”
“Tellus?”
“Explain the situation and get advice from Eres-nim, the Incarnation of Darkness, through the Incarnation of Light. Eres-nim oversees Tellus’s World Tree—she’ll know what to do.”
“Ah! She would have a way.”
While Bureau Chief Baek Young-shin contacted Korea, China followed with second and third missile barrages. Each wave had more missiles, but it was just stalling—no real impact.
“They’ll shake the ground and trigger more quakes at this rate.”
Bureau Chief Baek Young-shin fretted.
China usually ignored monsters in this region, but they were aggressive now. Makes sense—having an unknown monster tree of unknown potential on their soil was a huge problem. That’s why he’d called me.
“I’ll head back in. Those missiles won’t reach where I’m going anyway.”
The north side of the border was held in check by Chinese missiles and hunters. On the south, I was at the center, draining vitality and freezing to curb growth as much as possible.
“What are you doing, you fool.”
Eres’s voice came from behind, sounding unusually lighthearted.
“Eres-nim, you’ve come...”
I turned to see a little girl with long black hair. Dressed in a black dress with an arrogant expression, she looked like Eres shrunk down.
“Eres-nim?”
“Are your head and eyes both faulty? It hasn’t been that long, and you don’t recognize me.”
“You’ve... shrunk a lot?”
I put my hand to her head. Eres, who’d been nearly 180 cm tall, was now around 120—about six years old in appearance.
“You rude bastard.”
Eres swatted my hand away. It felt light, but my hand flew off powerlessly. Child form or not, she was still Eres.
“It’s hard to take Tellus’s form on Earth. Even this is only possible because this planet’s will accepts me without hostility.”
“Is there an Incarnation like you on Earth? Can’t we talk to it?”
A question I’d had for a while. If we could communicate with Earth’s will that awakens humans, it’d help massively with stopping gates.
“Not every world is made the same. Just because Tellus has Incarnations doesn’t mean Earth does.”
“That’s a shame.”
“Earth’s will is the collective of all its lifeforms’ wills. You’re part of it too. That’s why it doesn’t have a single consciousness like me—it acts on instinct. Earth is still a young planet; maybe it’ll develop Incarnations when it matures.”
“Earth is young?”
“Compared to Tellus, it’s a mere infant.”
“But isn’t the Destruction God destroying Earth because it’s old and time to remake it?”
“You fool. Do young animals not die? Death and becoming fertilizer has no age order. Same here. Earth and Tellus just caught the Destruction God’s eye.”
We just had bad luck.
“The World Tree seems well-rooted.”
While I thought, Eres placed her hand on it.
“Ah, this is a World Tree, right?”
“Indeed.”
“Why is it here?”
“Didn’t you bring it?”
“Me?”
“Didn’t you purify the swamp beneath a World Tree? The seed must’ve entered your body then. And it popped out when it found a good spot.”
“Come to think of it... While searching for missing hunters in North Korea, blood inexplicably burst from my hand.”
Not intentional, but I was the culprit who’d brought a massive lifeform from another world. Better not tell anyone.
“This area overflows with vitality. Even Tellus’s World Tree didn’t grow this fast or big. Plenty of vitality and pollution to absorb.”
“Can’t we stop its growth?”
“I heard you want to, but why stop it? The World Tree purifies all impurities and spreads vitality to the world—a blessing. It’ll aid you against the Destruction God too.”
“But its location sucks. Roots down randomly, about to cause quakes and a volcanic eruption nearby.”
“Then just ask it nicely.”
“I’m asking now?”
“Not me, fool. Talk to the World Tree.”
“I can talk to it? This tree?”
“The World Tree has a spirit. At this size, conversation should be possible.”
Eres reached her hand toward my head.