Chapter 420: Revelation of the Rune and the Omni-Link Main Network Tree
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 420: Revelation of the Rune and the Omni-Link Main Network Tree
A dull roar echoed from deep underground, and the very earth trembled in response.
Following the violent explosion, the subterranean Ley Energy root network was instantly severed. Facilities in the vicinity that relied on a continuous supply of Ley Energy began to grind to a halt.
Beneath the Omni-Link Main Network Tree lay a massive, perpetual underground engineering project: a Ley Energy conversion site that powered the tree.
This was a colossal, self-operating Ley Energy stabilization and supply station that required only routine annual maintenance. For years, it had served as the exclusive power source for the Omni-Link Main Network Tree, producing just enough converted Ley Energy to sustain the tree’s normal operations.
With the advancement of technology and the constant iteration of Ley Energy conversion techniques, the output of this facility had become more than enough to power the Omni-Link Main Network Tree. The surplus energy was diverted to Lanas University’s educational programs and the surrounding public infrastructure.
Thus, when the muffled explosion rumbled through the earth, the streets—once bathed in bright light—plunged into total darkness. Even though there weren't many people out at that hour, accidents began to spike in the pitch-black night.
The destruction of the Ley Energy supply network also caused widespread access anomalies across the Plant Network. This unexpected disaster dealt a severe blow to the Omni-Link Main Network Tree.
As the mother tree was affected, other Omni-Link Main Network Trees across the world—all cultivated from this primary source—felt the ripples. While the damage wasn't enough to completely dismantle the global Plant Network, it triggered a cascade of issues, including instantaneous lag and massive data loss.
Naturally, those most panicked were the Plant Network maintenance workers stationed on the front lines within the Omni-Link Main Network Tree.
They scrambled to check their equipment, but it was clear that this disturbance was far beyond their ability to repair. Their only priority now was to ensure that the Omni-Link Main Network Tree didn't suffer irreversible damage due to the power failure, while simultaneously activating emergency backup protocols.
At the same time, they prayed that no further accidents would occur and that the repair crews would resolve the issue quickly. Beyond that, they were powerless.
After all, they were maintenance personnel for the Omni-Link Main Network Tree, not technicians for Ley Energy conversion. Furthermore, they had never been trained on what to do if the Omni-Link Main Network Tree itself was attacked. Who would even dare to attempt such a thing?
Even the Secret Diggers wouldn't go that far. Though they had grown bolder over the past few days, their actions had been nothing more than minor skirmishes that didn't require the maintenance staff to intervene.
The temporary repair squad on-site was also incapable of venturing deep underground to fix a major Ley Energy root. They were merely an emergency team meant to handle small-scale ruptures; they weren't miracle workers.
It could be said that this accident had instantly exposed the hidden vulnerabilities born of their long-standing complacency, leaving them with no way to salvage the situation.
For now, they could only listen to the blaring alarms outside, paralyzed by anxiety.
News of the attack on the mother tree of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree quickly reached the high-ranking officials of every nation in this small world. Regardless of what they were doing—whether in meetings, asleep, or otherwise—this matter demanded their absolute attention.
After all, this tree was the source of their entire civilization's Plant Network development. They couldn't simply stand by and do nothing.
* * *
"Dammit, just because my section's functions aren't 'critical,' they just give up on me? Are they going to write my reports for me too...?"
A middle-aged woman in an Omni-Link Main Network Tree maintenance uniform grumbled loudly. Despite her complaints, her hands moved with lightning speed.
A screen made of condensed Ley Energy hovered over the structure of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree, displaying various concise windows and data streams.
Suddenly, a figure appeared in the room as if manifesting out of thin air.
As the figure appeared, the voice of the automated security system rang out.
"Stranger detected. Commencing facial recognition..."
"Who's there?" Hearing the voice, the woman spun around. There shouldn't have been anyone else there. She found herself face-to-face with a smiling young girl. Before she could even react, two spells instantly subdued her.
"Silence. Binding."
I flicked my wrist, casting the two spells in quick succession. Immediately after, I cast a minor Mirror Spell to shroud the area around me. If I had access to a proper invisibility spell, I wouldn't have to go through all this trouble.
However, a simple mirror-based concealment was just enough to bypass the local system's recognition.
Once I deactivated the Mirror Spell, my form shifted completely, transforming into the likeness of the woman now slumped on the floor.
"Facial recognition successful. Ms. Han Hui..."
The real Ms. Han Hui lay bound by the Binding Spell, her limbs frozen. Her mouth hung open, but the Silence Spell prevented even the slightest sound from escaping.
She stared in shock at the person standing before her—someone who looked exactly like her twin. Her eyes were wide with disbelief, which quickly gave way to sheer terror.
I didn't care what she was thinking. I stripped off her maintenance uniform and put it on. It was a bit large on me, but it would do.
"Thanks. I'll be borrowing your identity for a bit." I gave her a small smile using her own face, then checked her for anything else useful, like access permissions.
Ms. Han Hui’s eyes were filled with despair. She had no idea who this person was or how they had gotten in, but she was certain of one thing: this was no maintenance worker.
Now having assumed the lady's identity, I stepped up to the control screen. I wasn't familiar with the interface, but after a bit of experimentation, I managed to get the hang of it.
After observing and using it for a while, I realized that the equipment here was far superior to the "computer" I had cobbled together back then. This was because the interface was an inherent part of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree itself.
The entire Omni-Link Main Network Tree was essentially a hollow, massive treehouse with an incredibly complex internal structure. It had only grown this way due to significant human intervention.
The woman had clearly been in the middle of some operation, but I didn't bother trying to understand it.
Now... I was inside the heart of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree. The moment I entered, I felt a colossal flow of information surging through the tree. Its data-processing capacity far exceeded my expectations. Perhaps the tree had always possessed this potential, but witnessing it firsthand was truly awe-inspiring—and terrifying.
After a moment of wonder, the rune manifested in my hand once more. As I condensed it, I felt a powerful "resonance" with my surroundings. It was as if the rune no longer needed the superfluous "spell" structure I had previously built around it.
Suddenly, a flash of enlightenment told me exactly what I needed to do. I approached a nearby "wall"—though everything here was technically part of the tree. Maintaining my connection to the rune, I merged it into the Omni-Link Main Network Tree.
Instantly, countless golden veins—identical to the ones I had seen before—erupted from the point of contact, spreading across the surface.
In this moment, it was no longer just a tree made of veins; it was using the Omni-Link Main Network Tree as a host to derive its own network of meridians!
Without hesitation, I began converting my mana into elemental energy to feed it. Although the rune was no longer a spell, I could feel its insatiable hunger for Transcendent power. The tree’s remaining Ley Energy supply was instantly sucked dry. I was now its sole source of power. It looked like I had officially become a "power generator girl."
* * *
Meanwhile, the maintenance personnel still inside the Omni-Link Main Network Tree had no idea what was happening. The tree had completely slipped from their control.
They watched in horror as golden veins crawled across the floors, walls, and ceilings. Every artificial internal structure seemed to trigger a violent rejection response as the tree began to revert to its natural state. If these workers could see the tree from the outside, they would see that this tree—which had been static for years—was actually stretching!
The protective facilities grafted onto it were being torn apart. The branches of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree pierced through the roof like a seedling bursting through its seed coat. How could it be restrained by the very things grafted onto it?
It happened so fast that many people couldn't react in time. The internal structure of the tree was "healing" itself. Under the force of "natural growth," any man-made object or structure became meaningless.
In this moment, the Omni-Link Main Network Tree followed only its instinct to correct its internal errors. It was like a living creature. Golden veins now covered its exterior, their winding paths forming the most natural of runes...
The maintenance workers were either "expelled" from the tree's body or trapped forever within the trunk, becoming nothing more than a trace of nourishment.
This bizarre transformation terrified the emergency personnel outside. No one understood why the Omni-Link Main Network Tree was undergoing such a violent metamorphosis.
The eerie golden veins followed the tree's roots, extending into the global root network that covered the entire world, spreading with incredible speed.
Every region reached by these veins experienced massive lag in the Plant Network before access was cut off entirely.
This wave of disruption spread from the night hemisphere to the day hemisphere. On the other side of the world, where it was daytime, nations were in the middle of peak network usage. They soon found that the Plant Network—something woven into the very fabric of their daily lives—was suddenly inaccessible.
All of this... was a storm triggered by a single rune. It was like a pebble tossed into the lake of the Plant Network, and the ripples it created were racing across the globe.
This world had never developed satellite technology. The global coverage of the Plant Network allowed them to do almost everything through it. Now, the paralysis of the network had instantly stripped them of their ability to communicate online.
They couldn't imagine that such a thing could ever happen!
Even if the mother tree were completely destroyed, their long-term planning and the combined operation of other Omni-Link Main Network Trees worldwide should have only caused a bit of lag. That was a price they could afford. They never imagined a global disaster like this could unfold right before their eyes.
No one should have been able to destroy so many Omni-Link Main Network Trees simultaneously under their watch.
Furthermore, to be safe, the number of hidden Omni-Link Main Network Trees was far greater than the number publicly disclosed. Even the world war sparked by the Secret Diggers hadn't been enough to threaten the network.
At this moment, high-ranking officials across the globe recalled the attack on the mother tree on Lanas Island. At the time, their reaction had been lukewarm—they put on a show of concern, but that was it.
Yes, the mother tree on Lanas Island was important, but as society developed, Lanas Island had drifted away from the center of the world, becoming marginalized. The nation of Lanas Island was merely coasting on its ancestors' legacy. If it weren't for their unique educational system—which even they didn't fully understand—Lanas Island would have long since lost its international standing.
* * *
Inside the Omni-Link Main Network Tree.
"Yes... yes! That's it... so that's how it works!" I struggled to suppress my excitement, but even so, my words were slightly incoherent.
My emotions were threatening to get the better of me.
"Whew... calm down. I almost let my emotions take over again. My self-control is still a bit lacking. But... this is truly incredible..."
I took a few deep breaths and quickly regained my composure. I couldn't be blamed for being this excited; the feat I had just accomplished was terrifyingly grand!
And all of this happened without the Academy Dean’s direct intervention; I had reached this point on my own.
Of course... I also had to thank the people of this small world. It was their brilliant minds and centuries of technological accumulation that had saved me a massive amount of work.
This Omni-Link Main Network Tree was the greatest gift they could have given me!
Unlike the maintenance workers who were expelled, I—as the one strongly linked to the rune—now had total control over the Omni-Link Main Network Tree!
The rune had shed the ritual I had used to complete it. Now, it used the veins of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree to form "natural runes." Through these runes, it automatically constructed a massive, self-contained spell system.
It was just like my experience in the Fool's Village Secret Realm, with one key difference: back then, the meditation technique was constructed by the Academy Dean. This time, the Omni-Link Main Network Tree was constructed by the people of this world.
But they were missing the most vital component, and I had just provided it.
I was now in the central hollow of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree. If I wished, I could command the tree to transport me anywhere within its structure.
But that was pointless. My role here was to act as the power supply. The Ley Energy was already insufficient, so I had to provide the energy myself.
Furthermore... I was using the "Artificial Intelligence" within the tree to understand its functions.
Yes, an auxiliary AI.
The maintenance workers had developed this AI to help them monitor the tree's condition and receive data feedback. To perform maintenance, they first needed the tree to report its errors.
After the tree purged the human traces, I had deliberately preserved this function. The various permissions and restrictions were now meaningless to me, as I had total control.
The AI was no longer just a "programmed setting"; it had truly become a part of the tree, governing the torrent of data and processing power within.
But... was total control over this tree my greatest harvest?
I didn't think so. While this gave me my hand on the pulse of the world, I had no interest in worldly power.
My true harvest... was the spell model formed by the combination of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree and the rune I had gained through revelation—a model now inextricably linked to [Transcendent Knowledge]!
The "natural runes" formed by the extension of the veins were the perfect interpretation of the rune I controlled.
At this moment, the first stage of the spell derivation was halfway complete.
What remained would require a long time of study and refinement to see what else I could gain.
Perhaps... I should visit the Omni-Link Main Network Trees in other locations. I would likely find significant gains there as well. That might be the key to perfectly completing this spell!
It might even give me the chance to touch that sliver of possibility regarding [Transcendent Knowledge]!