Chương 400: 24th Birthday. Future and Immediate plans.

Future and Immediate plans.

"Happy 24th birthday, Liu Shu!" Liu Shu observed the group gathered below her canopy with a gentle look. Her branches swayed softly, a pleasant rustling sound reaching everyone. Then, her voice echoed in the surroundings, a tone soft and tender like the melody of nature itself.

"Thank you. I wouldn't be here without all of you, hehe. I have prepared delicious fruits from all my Big Sisters for today, so eat happily." The location for the gathering was an open camp near Liu Shu's trunk. There were a few temporary tables created from Liu Shu's roots, and dozens of plates with abundant fruit were on them. Hua Edharen, being in such an event for the first time, curiously approached and took one of the fruits.

'I wonder why people are so excited about these fruits.' The lion knight had been living in the Golden Sap City for a long time already, and during this time, he had earned the trust of the people. He was now part of the high-level commanders in the army and had led a few successful expeditions into the <Terragore> nest. He also took part in the Dungeon and got abundant rewards, like his current sword. A Level 60 C Rank treasure that increased his <Physique> by 3, 200; his <Phoer> by 2.

6 <Cores>; his <Physique Refinement> by 10%. A sword worthy of being called a high-ranked treasure. After picking the fruit, he analyzed it out of curiosity, and his eyes widened. <Cerulean Bloodfruit (D+ Rank)>: Increases Aether Resonance, Phoer Refinement, Energy Affinity, and Mind Palace by 5%. Gives those who eat it immunity to poisons below the rank of the fruit. Liu Shu had not increased the level of <Nature's Gift> beyond D+ Rank yet. The reason to hold back was the <Sylvan Quest>'s final reward.

[Reward 7: Gain one chance at combining Skills below <C- Tier> to create a more powerful skill. The result will be decided according to the potential of the chosen skills.] Once Liu Shu completed it, she was sure that she would receive more than one chance to use the benefit. Therefore, she wanted to combine <Nature's Gift> with another skill and see the results.

After all, while the fruits she produced were extremely influential below Level 50, they didn't give that much improvement after becoming a <Third Energy Cycle> being. Still, to call them useless would be a lie. After all, every small push was detrimental in a battle between experts. Many had the same reaction as Edharen. After all, the ones gathered here were somewhat new to Liu Shu. They formed part of an alliance between the new powers Liu Shu had been conquering.

Flor flew up, capturing the attention of all the people gathered. There was no one who didn't know this small but incredibly influential being. The <Flower Fairy> was renowned throughout the entire domain, labeled with many titles. Among all those titles, the one that made everyone lower their heads was being one of Tianlian Liu Shu's three mothers. The general public knew about Flor and Tree; there were even images of them roaming the place created by artists all around the domain.

Even then, the general public was still unaware of the third and, according to the majority, most influential mother of the three: Ant Queen Ignatia.

"Lords and Ladies gathered here today, I want to go to the main motive for this gathering." Hearing the voice of the Flower Fairy, everyone became silent and looked at her. Flor was not flustered in the slightest, her bearing similar to that of a Queen, filled with elegance and poise.

"Today, you all come from very far away to celebrate Tianlian Liu Shu's birthday. However, what you all don't know is that there are two major threats about to knock on our doorsteps." Flor's words were quite abrupt, making the leaders look on with confusion. Flor spoke with a calm demeanor.

"In this continent, our major threat is, and always will be, the <Abyssal Void Nexus> and its many branches. After a long time, they have finally defeated all the World Trees from the <Verdant Sanctity Covenant>. This means that the <Celestial Lotus Empire> territory and the <Azure Rose Confederation> territory beyond the Wall Forest are about to fall as well." Everyone's faces turned serious.

Flor glanced at the group of people, and then her gaze landed on Galia and the other people from the <Celestial Lotus Empire> that attended. After so many years, Galia and the rest of the delegation members have managed to convince many high-ranking members of the <Celestial Lotus Empire> to invest and support them. Liu Shu's accomplishments were already large enough to be unable to be discarded as either lucky events or non-influential, even when taking the whole <Ceperet World> into account.

"Tianlian Liu Shu and everything she represents are naturally allied with the <Celestial Lotus Empire>. If they are at risk, we will answer the call for help. This will remain true as long as the <Celestial Lotus Empire> treats us equally." Some people frowned, hearing the connotation in those words. Flor was basically saying that the second the other side didn't treat them fairly, their relationship was over. It was a bold statement that not many subordinate powers dared to make.

Flor continued, her gaze sweeping over everyone.

"Tianlian Liu Shu is a World Tree that usually doesn't interfere in worldly matters. As long as she is left alone and you don't mess up her plans, Liu Shu will close one eye and ignore a few misdemeanors. Naturally, only misdemeanors. Many leaders have already been punished by her for abusing their power. Many of you, who are their substitutes, should already know about it." The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Some people's faces became tense.

Flor ignored it, though.

"Now, the Nexus has entered a moment of preparation. They won't attack everything that looks suspicious and could be considered to be on the defensive until they stabilize their power in the <Verdant Sanctity Covenant> territory." Flor stopped for a second, allowing her words to be digested, before she continued with her main objective.

"In the meantime, we need to get rid of the second major threat in the <Wild Continent>. Does anyone know who or what this threat is?" A man with elegant clothes spoke rather confidently.

"Is it the Wall Forest, Lady Flor? The <Savage Lands> south are currently separated by the <Blooming Aether Swamp>, so that's the only threat left for Lady World Tree!" Flor glanced at that man, and a Sylvan with snow-white hair suddenly spoke.

"I didn't expect to have received that nickname after a long time of inactivity." Everyone looked over and noticed a particularly eye-catching group. Most of the Sylvans in that group had extremely light-colored hair and eye colors, ranging from pure white to a mellow blonde color. The Sylvan who spoke looked at Flor, and seeing her nod, she stood up.

"Let me present myself. I am Selene, a <Nivalis Veneflora Sylvan>. I wield snow and poison at command, and my current Level is Level 74. I have been chosen by the…" Selene paused and smiled.

"Savage Lands to be sent here as a representative to discuss things with Lady Flor." Flor nodded and looked at everyone's stunned expression. Even Galia and the others were unaware. The only ones who knew about it were Flor, Ignatia, the World Trees, the Life Trees, and the four Sylvans.

"While we were creating the rules in this land and stabilizing our growth, Tianlian Liu Shu ventured alone to the south and made contact with our neighbors far south. After a few talks with the World Trees in that location, they've all decided to send them and see whether we enter into an alliance or start a war." Hearing her blunt words, many people were tense.

'Is this the second major threat that Flor was speaking about?' Flor spoke with a smile.

"Of course, if we have their help, dealing with this second threat will be much easier." Most people began sweating coldly.

'They are not the second threat!?' Flor didn't keep them guessing anymore.

"Our alliance with the <Snow Lands>, also known as <Savage Lands>, will allow us to deal with the <Terragore Empire> below our feet." A human woman with luxurious clothes jumped in fear.

"L-Lady Flor, did you say Terragore Empire!?" Terragores were not as known as ants, but they were a potential catastrophe as threatening as them. The thing was that, unlike Ants, their reproducing speed was rather normal. So, if they were located rather early, dealing with them was not that complicated. However, Flor added <Empire> to their name, meaning that this nest was already developed beyond normal bounds.

"Indeed. We've sent scouts to map the area of the <Terragore Empire Nest>, and we've come to the conclusion that their nest extends for around a third of the entire continent. The middle of the nest is deep underground below the <Blooming Aether Swamp>. Since no one dared explore that area for several centuries, the <Terragore> could build up their strength there for a long time. It wasn't until recently, when Liu Shu's roots extended far underground in that direction, that we noticed its existence."

Galia spoke, her face serious.

"How developed is it?" Flor didn't beat around the bush.

"The <Terragore Queen> and <Terragore King> are probably <Fourth Energy Cycle> creatures. Their strong life signal caused even Liu Shu to feel a strong threat. Therefore, when we attack them for real, we should expect to fight hordes of hundreds of thousands <Second Energy Cycles> and several thousand <Third Energy Cycle> creatures. There should also be elite guards around them, and we can also suppose that the King and Queen have ways to enhance the Terragore strength when fighting in their own nest."

Everyone was silent, their faces incredibly serious and full of fear. Even Selene was surprised by the news.

"Lady Flor, I didn't expect such a speech during Lady Liu Shu's birthday party." Liu Shu chuckled and answered.

"It was me who asked her to use my birthday as an excuse~. Usually, I celebrate my birthday with just my family." She muttered.

"I didn't even want to make my birthday public because it may cause some people to create a worshiping day or something…" The people who were about to do that froze slightly. A man asked, his tone careful.

"Um. Wouldn't you like to have people revere Lady World Tree's sacred body and existence? I personally think it is a great idea."

"No!" Liu Shu harrumphed.

"What's so good about being worshiped? I bear with it because it makes people happy, but if I could, I would… I would…" Liu Shu stopped speaking. She could see the confused expressions on everyone's faces. She struggled for a second before sighing.

"Never mind. Continue, Flor."

'If I could, I would love everyone to treat me like a friend, not a target of worship…' She wanted to say that, but she didn't for the sake of the political harmony created with her as a core.

'Well.' Liu Shu smiled somewhat sadly.

'It was an impossible wish since the very beginning… I am the Sacred World Tree, even more exalted due to my ability to ensnare other World Trees in my domain… How could such a creature be treated as a friendly being?' Liu Shu's female-shaped tree trunk gently swayed, her face at the top of the trunk looking toward the horizon with a somewhat lonely gaze.

'At least… My family won't treat me like that… right?' Speaking of her tree trunk, Liu Shu had long given up on finding larger Serpents to cover herself. They just couldn't keep up with her increase in size. By then, she would need three serpents, one for each breast and a third one for her lower section. Instead, she manipulated some of her long branches to cover the most important parts, creating a very seductive leaf dress for herself. The vines barely covered anything, though.

Still, it was enough not to consider her attire as being naked. After Liu Shu's words, Flor was slightly worried about her little darling's mood change. However, she needed to finish her speech. Therefore, she glanced at the four Sylvans and motioned for them to leave with her chin. Her eyes were basically ordering.

'You better take care of her or I'll skin you alive later!' The four Sylvans quickly scurried away and went toward Liu Shu's <Core Room>. Meanwhile, Flor continued speaking about her future plans and how everyone would need to take part in it. To summarize, the general idea was to use the ants and their tunneling capabilities to slowly shrink the size of the Terragore Nest and control where they moved through.

While they were an extremely strong and somewhat intelligent underground force, compared to ants, they lacked that terrifying edge called "wisdom" that the Ant Queen represented. If it weren't for the super-intelligent being labeled as the <Humanoid Ant Queen>, ants would not be considered World-level threats.