Chapter 461: The Tree of Great Knowledge?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 461: The Tree of Great Knowledge?
"Uh... am I not allowed to be here?" I looked around at the void surrounding me before turning to face the figure that looked exactly like myself.
Even if I only thought about it for a second, I could probably guess what was happening.
My consciousness had lost control over my physical body, but I hadn't blacked out. The Tree of Knowledge derived spellbook was currently the final sanctuary for my mental awareness.
After all, the Tree of Knowledge carried my memories and knowledge. As it continued to evolve, it had vaguely become a part of me. I didn't know why this particular spellbook was so special; perhaps this was the ultimate form of coexistence between a spellbook and its holder.
Teacher Ji Niang had emphasized to me many times that since I hadn't yet reached the Transcendent level, I had never truly "owned" my spellbooks.
But the Tree of Knowledge felt like a part of me—a genuine extension of my power on the magical and Transcendent planes.
"No, what kind of nonsense are you daydreaming about now?" At that moment, my Illusion Subconscious Clone suddenly spoke up, interrupting my train of thought.
"I'm not even allowed to think? Are you here to welcome me?"
"You sure think highly of yourself. Have you ever seen someone 'welcome' themselves? Don't ask me why I'm here, I don't know either..."
"You really don't know?" I asked tentatively.
"I am you... were you expecting me to be some kind of 'old grandpa' mentor living in your head?"
"Aren't you?"
"Do you want me to start acting like a split personality just to show you?"
"Never mind then," I said, waving a hand.
Just as I was about to say something else, a sudden disturbance shattered the silence of the void. Countless rune rituals emerged from the nothingness.
This phenomenon drew my gaze upward, and I looked once more at the massive Tree of Knowledge and the [Transcendent Knowledge] falling from the void.
The Tree of Knowledge stood tall in the emptiness, its lush foliage stretching toward the heavens. Its massive trunk shimmered with the radiance of knowledge, and the memories flowing within were clearly visible. An intricate network of veins formed the structure of this colossal tree.
Using the plane beneath my feet as a boundary, its roots extended downward, plunging deep into the void. From a distance, the entire Tree of Knowledge looked like rootless duckweed... drifting in the nothingness.
"What's happening?"
"You're asking the obvious. It's an intrusion of [Transcendent Knowledge]. You already knew that, didn't you?"
"Fair enough..." I shrugged, feeling a bit helpless at being so ruthlessly exposed by myself.
"Enough with the 'fair enough.' Do you plan on just standing there and watching this keep happening?" My clone turned around, shifting from facing me to facing the unfolding phenomenon.
"What... what else can I do?"
"Are you still going to play dumb? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You keep making excuses, telling yourself this [Transcendent Knowledge] isn't yours just so you won't feel as bad when you eventually lose it. But now, it's being served to you on a silver platter!" At this moment, the clone seemed to possess real emotion, acting as the most honest version of my inner self, lamenting my lack of ambition. Her voice and tone rose until she was practically shouting the last few words.
"Don't make me slap you! Don't you want to glimpse the truth of a Great Spellbook? Look! The Tree of Knowledge is missing its most vital component. We don't know exactly what it is, but we know that without it, the Tree of Knowledge is nothing but rootless duckweed!"
"..." This was the first time I had seen myself get angry. Although her words were somewhat restrained, they struck right at the heart of my desires.
"Go! Install that [Transcendent Knowledge] into the Tree of Knowledge!" The clone's features blurred, and in the next heartbeat, she had taken on a new face.
"Xiao Han, hurry up. If you don't go now, I'm going to spank you."
"You! Don't use Sister Bai's appearance to scare me!" I blurted out.
"Xiao Han, don't blame me. This just proves you're harder on yourself than anyone else. You wouldn't want Sister Bai to be disappointed in you, would you?" The illusion clone, wearing Sister Bai's face and using her voice, continued to provoke me.
"I won't let Sister Bai down. But... the risk is huge, isn't it?" I was still hesitating.
The person in front of me was myself; she knew exactly what I was thinking. What the clone proposed was my own inner desire, but I had never dared to voice it.
When the Tree of Knowledge spellbook hit a bottleneck, how could I not have thought about using its source—the [Transcendent Knowledge]—to break the deadlock?
I had thought about it. I had thought about it obsessively. But I had instinctively suppressed those thoughts because a voice in my head kept echoing that it didn't belong to me. Yet, I had also responded to that voice: it could belong to me, and... quite easily at that.
However, reality had crushed both of those voices. This small world belonged to the Main World; it didn't just belong to the Witch Academy, or the Academy Dean, and it certainly didn't belong to me.
But now, Dean Bev Alanna had handed me the opportunity to obtain it.
This was one of the fundamental reasons why the subconscious "me" kept repeating this thought.
Whether this gift was charity, an investment, a sign of favor, or just a casual whim, the opportunity had landed in my hands.
In fact, there had been many hints earlier telling me that this [Transcendent Knowledge] would eventually be mine, but being extremely conservative at heart, I had ignored them all.
Now, it seemed like my subconscious was forcing me to make a choice, telling me not to hesitate. In reality, I was just looking for a way to justify it to myself.
And then there were the concerns about the danger.
By incorporating [Transcendent Knowledge] into my body and the framework of the Tree of Knowledge, I couldn't predict the consequences. Perhaps everything would go smoothly, and the [Transcendent Knowledge] would become part of the tree as I envisioned. Or perhaps everything was wrong—just my own wishful thinking—and I would lose everything.
"What are you afraid of? If you lose everything, will you just give up? Don't forget how little time it took you to get this far. With your experience, would it really be harder to reach this level again? If people look down on you during a temporary setback, are you going to look down on yourself too? You know perfectly well that you will rise again!" The clone's words were incredibly stirring. Even though I hadn't said a word, she could pierce right through to my core.
"Break those pointless inhibitions! Drop the hypocritical mask and stop caring about what others think! Isn't that what you've always done? Or was that all just an act to comfort yourself?"
"Shut up. You're incredibly noisy." I let out a long sigh and reached out, pressing my hand against the side of the clone's face. Without further hesitation, I shoved her away. Her form dissolved into shattered memories, vanishing into the void.
In the final moment before she disappeared, a smile remained on her lips—a smile of satisfaction and relief.
Because she knew I had made my choice.
"So, what should I do now?" I sighed softly, seemingly asking myself, or perhaps searching for a method.
Regardless, I had to get to that Tree of Knowledge first.
I stepped forward slowly. With every step, ripples spread beneath my feet, shimmering with my past memories. As I moved, knowledge collided, sparking flashes of inspiration that brushed past me.
The [Transcendent Knowledge] had turned into a sky full of stars, each point of light shining with the brilliance of runes. It was different from the Transcendent Knowledge I had seen before; it was more fragmented, as if it had been turned into fertilizer to be cast into this space. It fell beneath my feet, where the roots of the Tree of Knowledge absorbed it like nutrients.
The Tree of Knowledge was evolving on its own, bit by bit, as if it would thrive even without my intervention.
Before I knew it, I had reached the base of the tree. Looking up, the canopy blocked out everything else. A powerful sense of déjà vu made me instinctively reach out until my palm pressed against the trunk that symbolized the Tree of Knowledge...
In that instant, my consciousness seemed to melt into an ocean woven from memory and knowledge. An indescribable connection formed between my mind and the tree. I felt as if I were drifting down a stream where memories and knowledge converged.
"What are you still thinking about? It's just as you thought—the Tree of Knowledge is already different from any other spellbook. It's even more integrated than the Spellbook Shelf spellbook we mastered through special means. Use your head! How should those fragments of [Transcendent Knowledge] be used to fill its deficiencies? What do you need the Tree of Knowledge to become most?"
"I..."
I looked at the suddenly reappearing subconscious and snapped out of it. I realized that my main consciousness was being submerged by the flood of memories and knowledge, while my subconscious remained firm in its purpose, appearing again to correct my descent. "I... need the Tree of Knowledge to... grow infinitely!" As I roared the words, the clone flashed a satisfied smile.
"Yes! Siphon that [Transcendent Knowledge]! Guide the Tree of Knowledge to absorb it! Let it merge completely... We don't have any knowledge or experience regarding the construction of a Great Spellbook, so we have to use this clumsy method to retain the [Transcendent Knowledge]... You know that if we don't hold onto it now, it'll be gone forever, right? Just do it! Anything is better than nothing."
Right... anything is better than doing nothing!
At that moment, the roots of the Tree of Knowledge spread even wider under my will, solely to capture all the [Transcendent Knowledge].
The tree seemed to grow larger than ever before, yet it continued to expand. The absorbed [Transcendent Knowledge] surged through the roots into the trunk. Those terrifying, incomprehensible rune rituals began to violently batter the existing framework of the Tree of Knowledge.
In a sudden flash of realization, I found myself staring directly at the Transcendent Knowledge and rituals that had previously appeared as nothing but a pixelated blur...
My Spirit Vision... has it improved again?
The Tree of Knowledge became my most solid support as I desperately squeezed every ounce of power from it.
My memories and the knowledge I possessed began to frantically deconstruct those unknown runes that had once been out of my reach.
At this moment, I was more driven than ever. I was slowly devouring the fragmented [Transcendent Knowledge]. Every time I deconstructed a piece, it turned into the most fundamental nourishment for the tree, becoming the power I wielded to counter the violent onslaught of the remaining [Transcendent Knowledge].
I felt terrifyingly strong—not just in terms of raw power, but in my ability to deconstruct Transcendent things.
My mind and thoughts had never been this clear or transparent. My calculations had never been this effortless. My reserves had never been this abundant. The knowledge I had once recorded and tucked away in the corners of the Tree of Knowledge suddenly became active.
It could be said that from this moment on, the barrier between "the Tree of Knowledge and me" had been completely shattered.
With that solid barrier gone, my cognition and consciousness felt as if they had ascended. The Tree of Knowledge was no longer just a spellbook; it had become a part of me.
Just as I had said before, that casual guess had turned into a prophecy, foretelling this very moment.
Although the "invasion" of [Transcendent Knowledge] was far from over, I knew that this was no longer something I needed to worry about.
At some point, a sudden realization dawned on me. I didn't need to rack my brain wondering how to do it; I just needed to carry out my own philosophy... I could do it... because power adapts to the strong, not the other way around.
From the moment I understood that I needed power, the distance between me and that power was only as far as I could reach.
Because being "strong" doesn't just refer to those who possess great power, but to those who can reach out and seize power in any situation.
Only inner strength can match the greatness of power. Otherwise, no matter how terrifying a person's strength is, they are nothing more than a slave to it. You would find that it's not that the power can't leave the person, but that the person can't leave the power. How could such a clear relationship of subservience ever belong to a truly strong person?
My mindset shifted along with this realization. If I had previously faced [Transcendent Knowledge] with a lack of confidence and fear, unsure of what to do, I was now confident, curious, and eager to try. Even if I didn't know exactly how to proceed, I dared to experiment boldly.
"The Tree of Knowledge can't take much more of this battering from the [Transcendent Knowledge]. It looks like I need a different way to keep it, rather than just stuffing it all into the tree," I murmured to myself easily, as if the situation that had been a disaster moments ago was now trivial.
"The Tree of Knowledge is like rootless duckweed. I think since it's a tree, it should be rooted in soil, not floating in this void of consciousness."
"Good idea~" I glanced at the clone. As expected, my mind worked fast. The clone was me, so her being smart meant I was smart too.
I turned to look at the Tree of Knowledge, which had been battered into a state of ruin by the [Transcendent Knowledge]. Memories were shattered and knowledge was withered, but they fell to the ground like dead leaves, only to be reabsorbed by the tree and converted back into nutrients, causing new buds to sprout on the branches.
Destruction also meant rebirth. The [Transcendent Knowledge] had broken the tree's original framework, but it was now being reconstructed upon that very knowledge.
I casually caught a falling leaf. Knowledge and memory formed the two sides of the leaf, interwoven to become the most basic unit of the Tree of Knowledge.
Next, I needed to capture and settle the [Transcendent Knowledge] that the tree couldn't "digest." It would become the soil for the Tree of Knowledge, giving the roots a place to anchor and allowing the roots to stabilize the soil in return. This would give the tree a steady source of "nutrients."
This absorption process might take a long time, but it was a more sustainable way to develop than the previous violent method.
Perhaps when the Tree of Knowledge completely finished absorbing the [Transcendent Knowledge], it might truly become a Great Spellbook?
Then again, who could say for sure?
Besides, a Great Spellbook wasn't the only possible destination for [Transcendent Knowledge].
Compared to pushing the [Transcendent Knowledge] to its absolute limit, I was more inclined to fully develop and perfect the Tree of Knowledge itself.
This order of priority was what I needed to focus on.
It wasn't that the [Transcendent Knowledge] was more important than the Tree of Knowledge; rather, for the sake of the tree's growth, I was willing to turn the [Transcendent Knowledge] into the nourishment that fed it.
Because of this clear understanding, the Tree of Knowledge had become a part of my life, and even the [Transcendent Knowledge] was merely fuel for its growth.
Though I knew the tree's development was largely derived from this [Transcendent Knowledge], I recognized that the Tree of Knowledge was not a simple manifestation of it.
Now, the Tree of Knowledge had become the vessel for that [Transcendent Knowledge].
Everything was now proceeding according to my plan.
As the shockwaves from the [Transcendent Knowledge] finally settled into a calm, I felt the sensations of my physical body slowly returning.
I felt no lingering attachment to this place, because I knew that after experiencing this, I had mastered the trick of how to return. Perhaps next time I wouldn't need to be unconscious to come here.
When physical sensation fades into nothingness, consciousness manifests in this sea of awareness that the Tree of Knowledge carved out for me.
It was just a pity that this sea of consciousness—or sea of spirit—was still too empty, save for this single Tree of Knowledge.
I took one last look at the lone tree in the void and the land formed by the [Transcendent Knowledge] before turning without hesitation to embrace reality...