Chương 682: Tianlian Liu Shu's Presence and Portals.

A few days after Liu Shu's 101st birthday, she finally stirred awake. The second she did so, the entire domain felt it. In the Golden Sap City, the being that looked like a Heavenly Pillar that held up the sky trembled slightly, and only those with extremely good eyesight noticed that far up in the sky, beyond the clouds dripping around the towering creature's body, the World Tree's eyes fluttered open. The second they opened, the arrays and runic fields that contained her aura shattered. BOOM!

Everyone, without a single exception, who lived within Tianlian Liu Shu's domain felt the presence of the World Tree around them. The weight of the creature who had synchronized with her <Shadow> was imperial. It was as if a ruler had manifested, declaring that this space was hers to dominate. Everyone stiffened, the pressure making their breathing pause for three full seconds, before Liu Shu retracted the leaking aura into her <Realm>.

On the Moon, the insectoids that had been living for a bit over a year on the Moon couldn't help but stop everything that they were doing. Xalis, Zerrek, and Rhex, who had slightly made up since that day of conflict, looked in Ceperet's direction with solemn looks. Without a single moment of hesitation, they flew out and rushed toward each other, clearly wanting to discuss what to do next. The aura they felt was unlike anything they had sensed in the past.

It was limitless and profound, tapping into powers they couldn't understand. However, as they rushed toward each other and saw the silhouettes of the others, a presence manifested around them. When it did, it was as if the sky had suddenly opened two massive pairs of eyes to look down on the mortal creatures in its realm.

"... Who are you?" The voice of the World Tree could only be described as boundless — encompassing everything within the cosmos, yet carrying the innate gentleness and calmness of a World Tree. The three became panicky. This time, it was not a matter of whether they could go ahead with their plans or not. It was a matter of whether they could survive this terrifying creature's curiosity. Because they knew it was just that: curiosity.

And were this being to find them unsavory, their end would be nothing less than swift and terrifying. Being under the gaze of such an abhorrent entity, one that should represent nature yet clearly surpassed it, stretched their nerves to the point that a single misstep would likely consume them like fire devours dry wood.

"T-This one is called Zerrek, Lady Heavenly Willow. I am currently the leader of the Moon Army."

"This one is called Rhex, Lady Heavenly Willow. I am currently handling all affairs about the Moon Cities spread across the Moon's surface."

"This one is called Xalis, Lady Heavenly Willow. I am in charge of the largest information and merchant network on the Moon's surface, with connections down in Ceperet as well." Hiding things? Acting arrogant? Gambling on this being's improbable lack of foresight? The three insectoid leaders knew that they had been tricked. They finally connected all the dots on why Ceperet didn't react much, even as they gained influence and control over the Moon's resources.

'The World Tree was asleep, and they were buying time. While we played house here, they were waiting for the true ruler to awaken from her deep slumber and place them in their proper positions.' Rhex and the other three felt a bitter aftertaste in their mouths.

'Played. We've been played.' Meanwhile, the godlike being, our adorable Liu Shu, was staring at the three trembling little insectoids with curious eyes.

'Since when did we have so many Star Lord-level powerhouses? Have they been raised during my absence?' She quickly checked how many years she had been out, her mind splitting into countless threads to absorb, clarify, and comprehend what was happening. The three insectoids stayed still, unwilling to move a single muscle. They felt like powerless insects being stared at by a monstrous bird.

'Exploration… Dungeon… Invasion… Talks… Schemes…' Liu Shu's terrifyingly powerful mind dissected all the important nodes that happened during her nine-year absence, and she was quickly enlightened about the origins of the Moon citizens.

"I see… I understand." Her words echoed, clear yet not deafening.

"All three of you, I'll ask our <Astraelis> to carry you to Ceperet. We can talk there with the others. I don't really want to be talking on two fronts about important matters." This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. With her words, her presence disappeared. Once it did, Zerrek, Rhex, and Xalis dropped to their knees, taking in a deep breath as if they just surfaced from being submerged in the water.

It was only now that they noticed their limbs trembling and sweat forming on their skin.

'Horrifying!' That was the only word they could use to describe the incomprehensible being that felt beyond World Trees, beyond nature itself. Back in Ceperet, Liu Shu went to speak with Tree.

"Mom! I am awake!" Tree didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Did you think your mother was in another plane of existence or something? Whoever didn't feel your awakening is either dead or in a coma! Even then, Tree answered softly while feeling a few of Liu Shu's roots materialize and wind around her trunk.

"I noticed, Little Sapling. How was it? Difficult?"

"It was fun! My numbers were up a whole ton as well! I am now super strong. Hehehe." Tree smiled gently, using her own roots to pat Liu Shu's gently coiling ones.

"I am glad, Little Sapling. Tell me, did you reach out to me because you need something?"

"Yeah! Let's open the portals! I can feel complete control over space within my domain now. Together with your help, portals that cover world-to-world distance should be a piece of cake." Before Tree could answer, her sharp dimension-related senses felt the space being twisted to her daughter's will. Distances folded, space bending like dough in the hands of an excited child. Then, she felt Liu Shu's very roots acting as space channels, connecting reality to the portal through the <Realm> as a medium.

In Tree's eyes, portals that connected all main cities manifested inside a pre-prepared hall. Moreover, under Liu Shu's words, the Lignified House acting as the portal hub transformed the portal stations, creating different floors for different areas and such. Tree became mesmerized under Liu Shu's impossibly sublime spatial control. Even she, a specialized Life Tree that evolved to manipulate dimensions, couldn't say that she could do it any better.

Of course, the responsibility of maintaining these portals would fall on Tree. Even if Liu Shu opened them, it would take too much of her energy to maintain them as well. Liu Shu was confident that Tree could do it, though. Her trust in her mom was as vast as her own canopy! After an hour or so, Liu Shu smiled, satisfied.

"Aaand… Done! You can slowly take over the control from me now, Mom. They are stabilized, so you just need to maintain them. I'll leave a small part of my consciousness in the portal hub. If you need anything at all, stir me awake, and I'll come rushing to help you!" Tree was silent for a moment. She was still mesmerized by the intricate beauty of her daughter's methods. The space channels, at a first glance, look messy. Yet, within their formless bending, Tree noticed an order similar to a tree's roots.

As a tree herself, one with a <Mythical Rank> race related to dimensions, she was quick to the uptake.

"Incredible…" The work Tree thought would take years to complete was completed in a single hour, with precision beyond what she could have planned. Tree's roots moved to tightly hug Liu Shu's.

"It's beautiful, Little Sapling. I am so proud of you." Liu Shu giggled with happiness, feeling shy and sweet from Tree's praise. She explained again, just in case.

"What I did was interconnect Ceperet's 14 main cities, the Moon's 8 main cities, and Nualis's 10 main cities. The capacity for same-planet portal movement is around 100 people at once for perfect stability. In times of need, it can easily support 10, 000 people, but I'd need to be actively controlling the passage." Tree hummed, showing acknowledgment.

"What about the time people take to cross the portals? It would be nice to have a standard." Hearing that question, Liu Shu further explained a few details.

"Same-world portals take between 10 minutes and 1 hour of time. While interplanetary travel can take from 10 hours up to 48 hours. Of course, as we perfect the portals, this time can be easily reduced. Still, for now, those are the current standard rates. Oh, and the number of people that can move between planets at once is slightly lower. Around 30 at once, and up to 10, 000 at once when needed. The max cap doesn't change, hehehe." The quick explanation was easy to understand, and Tree quickly internalized it.

"Alright, I'll keep it in mind. Thank you, Little Sapling. I'll get to work straight away and take all these portals under control. I have a few friends who also have spatial affinity who can help me among the World Trees and Life Trees, so don't worry much."

"Ohh! Very nice!" Liu Shu had no complaints. If Tree trusted them, then she trusted them too! While they spoke together, Liu Shu noticed the Space Beast Manta Ray descending from the sky with around 100 insectoids and 100 humanoids on its back. These people were probably the top brass on the Moon. Liu Shu glanced over, scanning their faces and comparing them to the stored information, then nodded.

'Perfect. Everyone is here. I thought some of them would be too scared to come. After all, they have been doing some sketchy business.' It was not something that could endanger her, but Liu Shu could see that some people had been taking lightly the rule book she created. Especially the section that said, "Individual interpretation of laws won't work as an excuse for breaking them. Please act intelligently and do not try to test bottom lines."

While the <Astraelis> descended, Liu Shu turned her gargantuan head to look at them. Everyone on the back of the manta ray stiffened, and then, they saw the 250, 000-meter-tall World Tree's face gain a faint smirk, her glowing green eyes full of meaning. Many people began trembling, their minds almost collapsing. While living on the Moon, they had never been near the World Tree, and only now did they understand what the words "The Heavenly Willow Holds The Sky In Her Canopy" truly meant. It was not a metaphor.

In the Golden Sap City, these words were nothing but the truth. Looking up, almost everything you could see was the translucent canopy of the World Tree. Zerrek, Rhex, and Xalis also felt their hearts beating. Now that they were close, they saw absolutely no way of hurting, let alone defeating, this titanic creature.

'World Trees of this stature are only those that are about to reach the <Second Ascension> or have reached it already! Didn't the reports say that the Heavenly Willow was still in the early parts of the <First Ascension>!?' While worrying about their immediate future, the <Astraelis> descended and landed in front of the main Town Hall, where the conference would be held.