ALL NOVEL Chapter 31: Green Goodwill
Beneath a canopy, under great power.
Da Huren.
That was their father's name. Yun Chen couldn't help but shed tears of happiness as his father hugged him and his brother Wei Wei, Cui Rong also awkwardly watched… Until the same voice whispered within their minds, a wise voice that brought light into their life: "Ah… I understand now." His voice called to them, whispering and making them want to get closer to that majestic tree. The forest spoke once more: "Ah little ones… His spirit and body were separated, the Demonic Soul within him took over his body, while his mind fought it back… It's impressive he has kept his sanity, impressive indeed." A small root materialized before their eyes, it suddenly began to spew out this light gray thread that began to weave right before their own eyes.
It spinned at an incredible speed, so fast that it almost became a blur, and with a sudden poof of dark gray Qi, there was a light gray robe before them. "Now, put on some clothes, please." Suddenly remembering he was naked, Da Huren quickly put on some clothes, a little ashamed of himself for not noticing it quickly. "I am sorry, children." Now wearing clothes, Da Huren spoke for the first time in many years! His voice was as deep as his projected voice he used to speak when he was a Moose, and his gemstone green eyes peered over Yun Chen and Wei Wei, both who still had their animalistic features.
Maybe… Could this be done to them as well?
"Ancient Immortal Tree, I beg you, can you do the same for my children?" Da Huren turned around, face stoic but voice desperate. Root saw in him the despair a father has for their children when they are in danger and they can do nothing about it- He hopes he never feels that again… Remembering how, one year ago, Fiero was almost taken by those Fire Cultivators… 'Oh yeah, thinking about them, they'll come back again eventually…' Thinking about it, they're sure to come around again! Following that cloud of flames and heat everywhere it went. 'I could do something about that cloud…' He has a few ideas he can take advantage of in the future, but right now, he has received a request from a fellow father.
'My silence must have been taken as denial it seems.' Root realized that when he saw Da Huren's eyes harden as sadness started to overtake his senses for a moment, he feared his children would have to go against their own inner beast huh? Well, Root knows a few things about their condition now! "Ah, child… You see, the soul is a delicate thing, even more so when you absorb a Demonic Soul-" Demonic Soul is what he is going to call the spirits of beasts within the soul space of Demonic Cultivators from now on. From what he gathered, a Demonic Cultivator will use the Demonic Qi alongside the elemental Qi from a Beast Core, and sometimes they can absorb the fragment of the beast's soul left behind in the core- From all the cores he used to create and recreate Lilith's body, there were small shard of souls from those ants, but because he his soul was much stronger, those shards were consumed and turned into part of his own soul, erasing the existence of those ants. "-within your own soul space… To be free from the beast, you need to have a high cultivation level, or a powerful mind… You, Da Huren, was weaker than the beast within you. You only succeeded because of my interference."
Indeed. The inner demon that Da Huren had was stronger than the man, and the only reason his soul wasn't consumed by the inner beast was because of Da Huren's magnificent mental resilience!
"Immortal, I beg of you-" Da Huren tried to be once more, but Root still wasn't done speaking. So, as he tried to speak, a pressure befell his body, making him shut up.
"Silence, child…" Root whispered, searching for the right words in his mind, using even [Root of Knowledge] to look deep for the right terms he wanted to use: "...from what I can tell, you children are weak." It was harsh, but true. The two kids, the snow leopard kid and the goat kid looked almost offended, but they kept their mouths shut because they knew he was saying the truth: "Neither of them would survive fighting their inner beast, for what I can do for them would only be detrimental for their growth as cultivators… I can, however, offer my assistance to them once it is their time to face their inner demons." Quite literally, considering that if they don't, the Demonic Soul will grow stronger and stronger, affecting more and more of their body, and in the end, consuming the original soul and turning the body completely into a Demonic Beast!
It was quite fascinating to see how a change in the soul deeply affected the body! Like how Da Huren now had complete control over his Demonic Soul, making him able to willingly transform parts of his body or his whole body from his Moose form. "Child… Do one thing for me-" An image soon appeared into Da Huren's mind as Root used [Root of Knowledge] to transfer him a basic thing he wanted him to try- And sure enough, the man concentrated for a moment before a pair of large antlers grew out of his head like a crown. "-see?" Root said, a pleased energy emanating from his body: "Now you control your own destiny, child."
Da Huren was completely stunned- This was the first time he was ever able to control his body like this! Not even the ones who are stuck between the beastly form and human body - like his children - don't have a good grasp on their body and how they can use it effectively. Almost as if something was fighting them from the inside, stopping them from learning something they should already know how to do.
"...talking about destiny-" Root this time placed all his attention in the rainbow thread that floated above the head of the half baked girl before his eyes. "You, child… Your destiny seems unpleasant." All of the cultivators there present before the enormous tree body of Root, froze. Their minds slowly seemed to understand his words, only connecting to one thing: Fate Dao.
Known as the most fleeting and hardest Dao to be ever known by cultivators. There are a few stories about the power of the Dao of Fate, how destructive and life saving it was. There was once a massive empire that conquered half of the world, the ruler of this empire was a ruthless and arrogant man who saw all beneath him as lesser than… He was known to be cruel at times, and one such time was when he met a beautiful girl who was married to this weak cultivator without a surname or any backing at all- So, as the emperor, he decided to take the beautiful woman for himself! He threw away the weak man, ordering his guards to kill him as he dragged the woman away to become one of his many concubines.
However, Fate had other choices… The man that had his wife taken from him was a weak cultivator, but with his hatred, he swore to the heavens that he would get his revenge. And Fate itself decided to help the man- The man grew in cultivation day after day, and one day, after breaking through the realm, he was bathed in glory and splendor, understanding the Dao of Fate. From that moment, the man only did one thing: A Decree.
He declared that the empire would fall- Nothing more he did. And sure enough, the entire empire fell. Day after day things would just go wrong, and no matter what the emperor did, everything would just not go right. His children died, being killed by the heavens when they tried to break through their cultivation stage to reach a higher realm, his concubines would get sick or kill each other for better positions under his rule, diseases would spread across his land, beasts would attack his cities, and death made his kingdom its home.
In the end, the Emperor died with nothing, his everything destroyed by the hands of Fate.
Mortals and Cultivators alike see this story with different eyes. While wise Cultivators may see this story as a warning tale to not be arrogant and bully the weak for you never know who you're offending, most cultivators see this tale as a warning to what happens when you are weak. The man was weak and for that he lost his wife, the emperor wasn't strong enough to go against fate itself, and for that his kingdom paid the price. Mortals would see this tale as a warning about the powers Cultivators hold in their hands, making mortals learn to fear the mighty cultivators…
But right now, Fate was not a story. Before them stood a tree capable of seeing it, and in this world, if you can see it… You can change it.
"M-my fate?" Cui Rong couldn't help herself. She stuttered, shocked that something like that was suddenly brought up in a conversation. "You-"
"Yes I can, child… I can see your fate." Root's words immediately had a reaction, seeing as the girl fell to her knees and the other three people there present seemed to almost pale in fear. If there is one thing Cultivators fear is Fate- Why? Because it's one of the certainties in this world. Sure, you can try and fight fate, but not many who try succeed. "And I must tell you, child… Your future looks bleak, but I am willing to help you." Of course Root will help- This girl appeared out of nowhere and her fate is tied in a rainbow thread! Thus literally means that he was part of this girl's fate, and if he doesn't help her, he is risking her coming back stronger than him, razing his whole forest to the ground with her ice and cold techniques. He can feel her Qi, it is almost like his Freeze and Frost, except way weaker and much dirtier…
"Help me?" Cui Rong looked up at the tree, hope began to fill her eyes and mind- But then suspicious came knocking on her mind's door and she opened it, inviting it inside: "Why..?"
"Because you are here." Root explained, voice calm and steady: "Your fate led you to me, therefore I am meant to help you, child." He extended a root from the ground right before her eyes, a paper appearing before her that read: [I, (write your name here), hereby agree to never willingly or unwillingly hurt, betray, or otherwise go against the Heavenly Spirit Forest Sect. By signing this soul binding contract, [REDACTED], the Great Ancestor of the Heavenly Spirit Forest Sect, will do his best to help me achieve my objectives. I will become a member of the Heavenly Spirit Forest Sect and do my best to protect it and will fight for my sect, loyal and true.] Root gave her time to read the contract over and over, he made sure not to put anything that would make the contract seem ridiculous or abusive, all he was asking was for her to become part of his sect and be loyal to it.
It wasn't that hard, was it?
"I…" Cui Rong hesitated, looking at the contract before her eyes.
"Are you still hesitant? Well then, I shall prove my goodwill to you, child." Root decided to give a little push- His roots softly wrapped around the girl's body, and he used his [Natural Healing] technique, pushing his Nature Qi to heal her burnt body.
The whole area by Root's roots began to glow green.
