Chương 504: Family Time. Reaching Out.

Reaching Out.

Everyone expressed their disbelief while looking at the World Tree. Only Tree spoke, her tone as peaceful and gentle as ever.

"That's great, Little Seedling. Did everything go alright? How are you feeling?"

"Hehe. I am great, Mom! How are you feeling? Have you gotten accustomed to the changes after you became a Life Tree?" Tree answered gently.

"Of course, love. With your aura and nurturing, I could quickly adapt and develop my special characteristics. Now, I have the ability to manipulate space to a degree within your domain without a problem."

"That's great! Is that how you interrupted Kaelis back then?"

"Yes, Love. That's how I did it." The rest of the family wanted to interrupt and get answers about Liu Shu's changes. However, hearing Tree and Liu Shu speak, they stayed silent and sipped their tea. They didn't want to interrupt the mother and daughter's conversation. After a while, Liu Shu directed a question to Flor.

"Flor, Flor! I can see that you've reached the <Fourth Energy Cycle>. Congratulations! We are now stronger!" Flor tilted her head up and saw the World Tree smiling at her.

'Sigh… Whatever. Even if she is Level 900, as long as there are no detriments, I should not be too shocked. I should be happy for what my baby has accomplished.' A smile appeared on her lips, and she laughed.

"Yes. We are now stronger. However, baby, you seem to have become a true force to reckon with. I fear that you will be the one protecting us in the future, and not the opposite."

"Of course!" Liu Shu exclaimed proudly, her ethereal voice sounding proud and delighted.

"My skills are now much stronger. The only thing I am lacking is a proper defensive skill. Nevertheless, my body is enough to defend against anything. My offense, on the other hand, has made a tremendous leap forward. Now, I can probably raze an entire city in one move!" Melody asked, her tone incredulous.

"How is that possible, Little Lian'er? I don't think even Auzre Rose and those others can raze down an entire city in one attack. They'd usually need a few before they flattened a city." Verena snorted a laugh.

"One or a few, I don't see much difference. <Fourth Energy Cycle> World Trees are truly terrifying." Looking up with a smile, Verena commented.

"Baby Liu Shu, you've become strong. Congratulations."

"Hehehe. Thank you, Aunty Verenaaaa!" Dewna and the other children giggled when they heard their mother's tone. Dewna raised her arms and exclaimed.

"Ma is happy!" Sylvia copied her eldest sister and did the same.

"Ma is happy~." Pyara clapped slowly, her eyes focused on the giant tree's face.

"Mama is so pretty…" Cinderielle looked at Pyara and patted her head. Her fingers sank into Pyara's flaming hair, making the girl squint happily. During the last two years, Pyara has learned to like this second mother of hers.

"Yes, yes, yes. Ma is happy." Liu Shu giggled.

"Oh, speaking of which." Liu Shu exclaimed, and her energy flowed gently. Everyone looked curiously as one branch twisted and pierced into Liu Shu's body. They were baffled for a second before that branch descended from the sky and reached them. Verena asked, curious.

"Oh? She can extend her branches?" Tree commented.

"More than extending, Liu Shu is lowering them. As a Willow Tree, our branches go up before falling down loosely; they are quite long and can easily reach the ground if straightened straight down from the root of the branch." When Liu Shu's branch reached them, everyone looked at the stupefied baby lying there. Cinderielle's eyebrow twitched, and she coughed.

"Is that…"

"Pyara number two!" Liu Shu exclaimed. Cinderielle almost choked.

"For starters, that won't be her name. But, yeah. Give her to my mom." Looking at Pyara between her arms, she noticed her glaring at the new arrival.

'Oh girl, Pyara and her future Sanguine Blaze sisters might not get along too well.' Cinderielle's Mom was usually silent and stayed peacefully among them. She was the lowest-level and most ordinary Sylvan present, without a doubt. Honestly, she didn't really know how she gave birth to such a special child as Cinderielle. After all, she was just a D+ Tier Sylvan, and her husband was similarly a D Tier human. Picking up the baby, the woman smiled faintly.

"My second granddaughter. We need to visit your father later and show him. I bet he will be happy."

"Of course." Cinderielle smiled somewhat sadly. Her human father was almost 80 years old, and he was reaching the end of his lifespan. So, it was not good to move him around. He and Verena's husband were together back with Red, Green, Grey, and Purple. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Another child…" Melody muttered.

"Is it possible to miss? Or does Lian'er always have a child after…"

"Mom!" Harmonixia coughed.

"Children are around." Melody, who was hugging Eluan to the point that the poor boy was asking for help from her mother, snorted twice.

"Do you think I don't know that I have my handsome grandson in my arms? I was going to use a euphemism!" Melody's mother smiled faintly.

"It's good that my granddaughter-in-law is so fertile. In the future, our Songtree family will spread its branches without problems…" She glared at Melody.

"Unlike you and your other four sisters. Only having one or two children each, you should have many more!" Melody smiled wryly.

"Mom, at least I gave birth to Harmonixia." The Sylvan grandmother shook her head.

"Speaking of which. Little Liu Shu, why do I feel as if my vitality is regenerating lately? As days pass, I feel much younger." The other people looked surprised and glanced at the giant World Tree.

"Hm…" Liu Shu checked her system and spoke lightly.

"Ah, it should be because of the combination of <Sprouts Of Chaos> and my new <Talent: Otherworldly Rune And Nature Empire>." Melody looked curious at the buffs.

"Huh? Since when was this Empire thingy buff there?"

"Oh, it's a new skill I got not long ago and deployed just as I've woken up!" Everyone deadpanned simultaneously. They thought they were too numb to be shocked again… Or so they thought until they started reading the new array of buffs from Liu Shu's transformed titles, talents, and passive skills.

"What is this… If we age one-fifth slower, and we have twenty percent more lifespan… Doesn't this mean that a Sylvan born here will live around 40% longer on average than any other Sylvan… just because?"

"Not only Sylvans." Flor frowned.

"This works for all plant beings. Moreover, with the growth enhancement, our food supply has become completely self-reliant. No need to hunt and buy food from other places anymore." Liu Shu asked, confused.

"Why are you frowning? Isn't this good, Flor?"

"Of course it is!" Flor sighed before smiling.

"It's just… the paperwork…" Ignatia commented after gently swallowing the berry inside her mouth.

"Didn't you teach the secretary group already?"

"Yes. But when it comes to important matters, I check them myself. I wouldn't dare leave them in another person's hands. I trust them, don't get me wrong, but I don't want them to have an unknown perception that my trust in them gives them excessive power." Melody smiled.

"Clever. Power can corrupt minds easily. It is a good thing that you keep an eye on them before they take the wrong path. It's a bit more exhausting, but you'll thank yourself in the future for keeping a tight rein that you can pull at any time. Looking at Liu Shu, Flor asked softly.

"Dear, can you give me all the buff messages at once? That way, I'll be able to know how to deal with things better."

"Now?"

"Yes." Liu Shu hummed.

"Sure. There you go!" [Congratulations! You've been affected by <Title: Defender>!] [Congratulations! You've been affected by <Title: Continental World Tree>!] [Congratulations! You've been affected by <Title: Tempest Of Chaos>!] [Congratulations! You've been affected by <Title: Songs Of Chaos>!] [Congratulations! You've been affected by <Title: Sprouts of Chaos>!] [Congratulations! You've been affected by <Title: Embers of Chaos>!] [Congratulations! You've been affected by <Talent: Otherworldly Rune And Nature Empire>!] [Congratulations! You've been affected by <Passive Skill: Soul Enthralling World Tree>!] Liu Shu commented.

"Those are my personal auras. The rest would be the <Temples>, <Runic Fields>, and any <Title> you've gained in the past, like <Gratitude> from the <Sylvan Quests>." Flor nodded.

"Great. Thank you, love." Ignatia smiled and looked at Liu Shu.

"Dear, have you spoken with Warlya yet?"

"Hm…" Liu Shu sounded a bit reluctant.

"I have not…"

"Why not?" Ignatia asked gently, as she had in the past when comforting her big baby.

"Well…" Liu Shu was among family, so she didn't hide her feelings.

"I am a bit scared." Everyone looked at the over 5000-meter-tall World Tree with soft looks.

"When I go and tell her about everything, I fear that Warlya will deny coming under my domain. If she denies, I will have to kill her. So… I have not told her yet." Ignatia smiled.

"You can't put it off forever, right, love?"

"... I can't." Liu Shu whined a bit. Hearing her tone made the Ant Queen chuckle.

"You are so big already and with plenty of babies, yet you still act like this?" Liu Shu harrumphed.

"Hmph. You are my Mommy! Of course I will act like this!" Looking up, they could see that the World Tree was actually pouting adorably. Melody and Verena clutched their hearts.

'My daughter-in-law is too cute! How can she act so spoiled when she is so big!? I need a giantifying potion so that I can hug and squeeze her cheeks!' Ignatia smiled tenderly.

"I know, love. You will be my baby forever. Now, love. You can't delay what needs to be done. So, go ahead. I am sure Warlya is also waiting for you to contact her."

"... Okay." Liu Shu sighed and looked toward the horizon in the direction of the troublesome World Tree. Then, she moved her consciousness over. Once she arrived, she could easily see Warlya's body in the distance. After reaching the <Fourth Energy Cycle>, seeing things beyond her root domain was not impossible. Now, she could see the relatively large World Tree in the distance. Reaching almost 2000 meters in height, Warlya's body was tall and powerful.

The female body was athletic and full of carefully carved lines. The canopy was that of an oak tree, and its bark looked tough and durable. Liu Shu's presence was easy to detect when she wasn't hiding. Warlya's voice reached her before she herself spoke.

"Liu Shu, you are there, right?" The World Tree's voice was peaceful, leaving Liu Shu no way of knowing what she was thinking. After waiting for a bit, Liu Shu sighed and answered back.

"Yes. I am. Let's speak."