Chapter 13
In the secret chamber of the Dark Root Council, a heavy vine curtain slowly fell.
Supervisor Changgen raised his hand, signaling his attendants to bring out the long-sealed "black bone box".
The bone box cracked open, and an eerie aura spread out.
Inside lay a twisted root—as if scorched by fire, yet still wriggling.
It has no branches or leaves, no roots, yet it radiates a heart-stirring "pulse of the soul" in its silence.
Inspector Changgen spoke in a cold, low voice:
"Any enemy that can conceal their roots and breath cannot escape the detection of the Soul-Digging Root."
It directly probes the soul wave; disguises, illusions, and reflections—none of them can hide.
With the activation of the ancient runes, the Soul-Digging Root was thrown into the main waterway of the continent, spreading rapidly like a drop of ink falling into a clear spring.
Almost at the same moment, a suppressed "heartbeat" suddenly came from the sky above the light domain.
The buds held their heads in their hands, as if they could hear a deep heartbeat rumbling in the soil.
Sprout 12 looked grave.
"This is not an ordinary probe... they have begun to touch the soul wave layer."
If this continues, the core of your mother tree will be exposed.
Seed 237 also felt that intrusive feeling, as if a cold hand was tracing the root of its consciousness underground.
Just as the soul was almost touched, the mother tree's potential awakened once more.
Unlike the virtual pseudo-root, this time, a new ability has emerged in the core of 237—the "Mind Domain Barrier".
An invisible light curtain spread out, unifying and harmonizing the soul fluctuations within the light domain, transforming them into a resonance of the same frequency.
The incoming detection signals were scattered and folded, causing a loss of direction.
However, this defense comes at a huge cost; all plants within the light zone are slowed down, as if forced into a deep sleep.
Bean Sprout 12 looked at his almost frozen ally and said in a low voice:
"You blocked the first impact, but if it goes on for a long time, you will wither away."
In the monitoring hall hundreds of miles away, the Dark Root priest frowned:
“Strange…the signal suddenly disappeared in one area, as if it was covered by the same frequency.”
Chief Inspector Changgen's eyes were gloomy:
"A being capable of confronting the Soul-Digging Root must not be an ordinary race."
Continue to apply pressure—unleash the 'heart chasers'.
I want to see what kind of 'people' are hiding on this continent.
The earth's groan had not yet completely dissipated, but the pursuit by the Dark Root forces had not ceased.
Deep underground, in the root channels, a phantom woven from black roots gradually solidified.
It has no real roots or stems, but its skeleton is made of the threads of the soul, like a plant phantom that walks between the spiritual and the real.
It is—the one who pursues their dreams.
As the seeker stepped into the realm of light, the air across the entire plain suddenly tightened.
The unseen pressure was like the rumble of thunder before a storm; all the buds huddled in the soil, their heartbeats and root breaths forced to slow down.
Sprout 12's expression was more serious than ever before:
"This is a weapon specifically designed by the Dark Root to hunt soul waves. It is not a living entity, but a 'stripped-away will'..."
Once it captures your heart, you will be completely exposed to the Dark Root Council.
Seed 237 can sense the other party's lock-on.
That gaze doesn't rely on the eyes, but resonates directly in the depths of consciousness:
"An anomaly... has appeared."
Suddenly, the boundaries of the light domain distorted in my perception.
The soil, roots, and light blurred and disappeared in an instant, replaced by an endless "spiritual wasteland".
There is no physical entity here, only countless points of light floating in the void.
Each point of light represents the heart of a plant within the light domain, while seed 237 itself resembles a towering seedling, radiating a bluish-white pulsation.
The pursuers of the heart transformed into a vortex of pitch-black roots, opening like a giant maw, attempting to devour these specks of light.
In a critical moment, the potential of the mother tree in seed 237 was triggered again.
Its roots extend into the spiritual wasteland, condensing into a massive projection of the heart root, stretching between the cluster of light spots and the vortex of darkness.
This root is as firm as a spine, and with each pulse it revitalizes the surrounding light spots, preventing them from being swallowed up.
Sprout 12 also appeared in the Mind Battlefield. His free nature allowed him to quickly move between the light spots, leaving behind layers of green light and disrupting the Mind Chaser's capture trajectory.
Sprout12 chuckled softly, “I’ll hold it back from its pursuit, you support Heartroot!”
If the mother tree truly deserves it, let it bloom its first flower here!
The Heart Chaser emitted a sharp mental wave, and dark roots suddenly rolled up, fiercely striking the projection of the Heart Root.
The violent tremors nearly caused Seed 237 to crack open; had it not been for Sprout 12 dispersing the pressure, the entire source of light in the entire light domain would have already collapsed.
However, amidst the pain, Seed 237 sensed a certain power emanating from the depths of its heart—
It was the will of an ancient mother tree, whispered into its consciousness:
"With hearts as flowers and territory as soil, let the seeds of resistance bloom."
At the heart of the spiritual wasteland, at the very end of the root of the heart, a flower of light slowly blooms.
This flower is not a physical entity, but rather a "flower of collective will" formed by countless points of light from the heart.
Its radiance suppressed the dark vortex of the Heart Chaser, causing its roots to wither and retreat inch by inch.
The Heart Chaser let out a shriek, its figure suddenly disintegrating and disappearing into the edge of the wasteland.
The light field returned to normal, and the bud spirits slowly awoke.
Sprout 12 wiped the phantom dew from his forehead and grinned:
"Haha, seed, you've blossomed. Though not a real flower, it is the first mark of the mother tree's future."
Seed237 remained silent for a long time before responding in a low voice:
"If I can even conquer the Soul Battlefield, then I will no longer be just a guardian of the Light Domain."
The mother tree's path truly begins today.
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