Chapter 573: Surviving in the World Tree
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 573: Surviving in the World Tree
Capturing a powerful individual is far more difficult than killing them. A master of Qi Arts can channel a minuscule amount of Qi into ropes or handcuffs to break them, and if necessary, they can dislocate their own joints or compress their body to escape.
For this reason, the handling of prisoners has always been a thorny issue. Unless a warrior of equal strength is constantly watching them, keeping them captive is no different from leaving them in a cheap inn. One might think it would be better to simply shatter both their arms, but a master who has reached the level of Gam Qi Art can control their body with Qi, even healing themselves. Even that is not a perfect solution.
But what if you were to tear off both arms entirely? No matter how skilled the warrior, they could not resist without their arms. In a way, it could be called a rational approach…
But if you take a warrior’s arms, how is that any different from killing them?
Because her arms had been ripped out by sheer force, the Regressor was in a ghastly state. Even a peerless Qi Art like Heavenly Counter Domain was insufficient to manage this amount of blood loss.
I managed to retrieve the Regressor’s two arms, which were twitching, having lost their owner. I used the power of the Divine to circulate blood through the severed limbs to prevent necrosis.
As long as the arms remained, they could be reattached. It wouldn't be exactly the same as before, but for a master of Qi Arts, with enough rest and proper treatment, recovery was possible.
“We shall arrive shortly. Your humble servant has also come unannounced, so preparations to receive my liege may be lacking. I pray for your understanding.”
…Though I doubted Nevida would give us that kind of time.
A flower bud bloomed from the ground, enveloping the Regressor and me. Nevida had set off without any signal. I nearly dropped the arms, but I managed to steady myself while supporting the Regressor.
This unique method of travel, creating a passage called a ‘flower corridor’ with the power of a druid and moving through it, was unbelievably fast. It felt as if we were swimming through this dense sea of trees.
But even in this moment, the Regressor’s life was hanging by a thread. For several hours, I suppressed my anxiety and focused on circulating blood through her arms.
Suddenly, my body was thrown about. The flower bud tightened, squeezing through a narrow gap and beginning to shoot upward. As I clung to the wall just to maintain my balance, the bud, which had been rapidly sucked somewhere, bloomed without any warning.
My ears went numb. My body was the first to feel the change in altitude. I squinted against the light filtering in and stepped outside.
We were in the knothole of a giant tree. I could see an interior carved out of the tree’s flesh. Leaves, vines, and a staircase made of raw wood filled the space. This must be what it’s like from the perspective of a fairy who makes their home in a tree.
I turned my head and looked out of the knothole.
“This is the World Tree. A tree that this humble servant dared to create by grafting a sapling of the World Tree.”
Before my eyes was a sea of leaves stretching to infinity, and a colossal branch that began beyond my field of vision and pushed its way inward.
Its sheer size was so immense it distorted my sense of distance. A staircase was carved into the thick branch, and I could see people walking along it. The trunk was vaster than any road or building. This massive branch soon split into dozens of smaller ones, each extending outward, bearing different kinds of leaves.
There were thousands of branches visible before me, and there were likely countless more below, out of sight. Though it wasn't an animal, I could feel a powerful, pulsating life force.
“Welcome to the World Tree, O, Lord of All Creation.”
This was the World Tree, the Tree of Genesis. And among its boughs, this was the highest level, where Nevida resided.
The Primate's Floor.
Perhaps because the Primate's Floor wasn't a residential area for humans, I didn't hear many thoughts. As always, I quickly began to read them. About twenty people. All engrossed in something.
At that moment, I heard an alien resonance. As I tried to use my mind-reading, I felt a wave of dizziness and staggered.
“Huh? What’s this?”
Wait. Something’s wrong.
Until now, my mind-reading had been absolute. It might have its limits, but the ability itself had always shown me the human mind honestly and accurately. That shouldn't have changed.
‘Is this Nevida’s wish? She’s already nearly achieved it with her own hands. The irony is that I’m the final piece. It feels like I’m just piggybacking on her success.’
However, the echo I was feeling now was different. It wasn't like reading a person's mind. A hollow voice was echoing in an empty consciousness. The thought I was hearing now felt alien.
‘Still, Nevida’s method itself is correct. There’s no problem with me filling in that final piece. It’s purely Nevida’s achievement. In that case, the other matter isn’t important. For now, the arms first….’
“Wait. What is this?”
Seeing my confusion, Nevida looked pleased, as if everything was going according to plan.
“My liege. I am loath to say this, but I pray you forgive the rudeness of these words…”
“You’ve been plenty rude already, so what’s one more thing? And it’s not like you were planning on not being rude in the first place! Hurry up and tell me. What is this?”
“As you may have sensed, my liege, your humble servant serves a liege. Not the liege before me now, but the liege of the past, who was betrayed and wounded.”
They say humans are the lords of all creation. And the top of the Tree of Genesis is the Primate's Floor. However, this place was not for humans… but for the King of Humans.
The top of the Tree of Corruption. There lay the remains of the past King of Humans whom Nevida had served. The very corpse of the girl I had read about in the Sacrificial Vessel’s memories.
“My liege. You are currently in a state where your power has been torn from your flesh. The minions of that vile harlot, the Five Sovereigns, stole your ‘power’ and dared to usurp the title of King. It was a sacrilegious rebellion… The harlot made the title of King commonplace, thereby succeeding in insulting you.”
Nevida raised her head, thinking of that which she enshrined at the very peak of the World Tree, where none could dare look down upon it.
“As a loyal subject, I could not stand by and watch. For the sake of my liege, who would one day return, I have been protecting your royal person.”
This was the reason the Regressor was hostile toward Nevida, and the reason the King of Sins who appeared in the past had the form of a woman. With the corpse of the King of Humans in her possession, Nevida was no different from a high priestess who could summon the King of Sins.
And that must be why Nevida brought me here.
“Then the reason you dragged me here must be even higher up than this.”
“I believe my liege also has an interest in the matter.”
“Yes, I am interested. But before that.”
I pointed to the Regressor, who was barely clinging to her fading consciousness, and the two severed arms lying beside her.
“Could you please heal Shei? She’s going to die at this rate.”
You said you’d save her. You should at least treat her wounds. Nevida seemed uninterested in whether the Regressor lived or died, but remembering her promise to keep her alive, she raised a hand.
The Tree of Genesis altered its structure according to the will of the Divine. A wooden wall rolled up on its own, and stairs grew from both sides of the wall. Someone walked down the hastily made staircase. It was a middle-aged woman in loose-fitting clothes, holding a wide broom, and wearing a pointed hat that was folded in half.
The woman showed no fear or terror upon seeing Nevida. It wasn't simply because she was used to her.
She, too, was a being who had touched the Arcane of this land.
Because she was a witch.
“Great Druid. You called?”
“Walpurgis. Heal her. Just keep her alive.”
The witch, Walpurgis, merely seemed a little annoyed at the sight of the torn-off arms. Of course, that was only in her thoughts; it didn't show in her expression or gestures. Walpurgis moved her broom with a deadpan expression. As if alive on its own, the broom slid under the Regressor and lifted her up.
Walpurgis looked at the two severed arms and asked.
“Should I reattach the arms as well?”
Oh. Looks like they have the skill to reattach limbs here, too. Witches are amazing. I quickly nodded my head.
“Yes, if it’s possible, please do…”
“She is better off without arms.”
“Wow. No mercy. You can always take them off again, so you might as well reattach them. If too much time passes, you won’t be able to!”
“She will be easier to handle without arms. My liege. Do not trouble yourself.”
It was a little infuriating how she used honorifics while having no intention of listening. Is she kidding me?
‘There is a conflict of opinion from the clients. Even if I don’t reattach the arms, I should at least take them.’
The witch pondered whose opinion to follow, mine or Nevida’s, before ultimately deciding to consider both. A wise choice.
The witch gave a slight curtsy and took the Regressor’s arms as well. Nevida didn’t even glance in their direction, instead flicking a small branch.
“Now then, I shall guide you to your chambers, my liege.”
“When you say ‘my liege,’ are you talking about where I’ll be sleeping, or someone else?”
“…It is the chambers of the liege your humble servant once served.”
A money tree with large leaves sprouted from the ground, and with Nevida and me on its leaves, it began to grow.
Even a World Tree this colossal had a peak. The trunk, once as wide as a building, gradually thinned, and after a certain point, only the blue sky remained as a backdrop.
The sky and the World Tree. Between them was a single flower bud. Nevida grew the money tree until it reached the top of the bud. As we got closer, an unknown noise began to fill my mind-reading.
‘The King of Humans meeting the King of Humans. When a wish reaches its zenith, such ironies are born. This is why wishes are necessary. No matter what kind they are.’
The flower bud, which resembled a lotus, was large enough for a person to enter. I gently placed my hand on a lotus petal. The overlapping petals were dense and hard; it seemed impossible to peel them away with force.
“Step back.”
Nevida raised her hand and made a circular motion. The tightly closed lotus petals swayed gently, obeying Nevida’s will. The barrier of petals peeled away, layer by layer. It slowly unfurled, revealing ‘that’ which it had been preciously cradling inside.
Nevida knelt toward the inside and bowed her head.
“Your humble servant, Nevida, shall enter for a moment.”
Inside the flower was the form of a ‘girl,’ looking slightly more mature than when I had seen her in the Sacrificial Vessel’s dream. She was curled up like a child, with vines like umbilical cords attached to her mouth and nose, supplying her with nutrients. Her heart was not beating, and her breathing had stopped. If asked whether she was alive or dead, I am certain she was closer to the latter.
But thanks to Nevida’s care, the King of Humans had existed across an immense span of time.
‘The King of Humans that Nevida cherishes, the one she served in the distant past. She’s obsessed with that King of Humans, not me, whose face and memories are unfamiliar to her. Nevida’s true wish is probably not for me, but….’
The voice coming from my mind-reading grew louder. The thoughts I was reading were indeed alien. My head throbbed as if I were listening to a song composed of disharmony.
Without realizing it, I followed an instinctual pull.