Chapter 776: The Stygian Giant and the Stygian Iron Tree!

The Stygian River surged with great waves, countless consciousness bodies roiling within it, a single drop of that river's water containing countless consciousnesses.

And yet in this main section of the Stygian River, an iron tree apparently existed.

Who had planted it here?

Locke looked at that iron tree and fell into puzzlement.

The Stygian River was a place of profound mystery, a dangerous forbidden zone where even Second Circle wizards could not linger long. Yet who had planted such a magical plant here?

And what was this magical plant meant to do?

Locke saw that at the base of the magical plant, countless virtual roots had appeared, those roots spreading toward the Stygian River's bed and taking hold within it, seeming to extend into the Stygian River's virtual sea.

That was the Stygian River's realm of possibility.

These virtual roots were entirely unlike any virtual roots Locke had ever seen before. They appeared far more complete and far more developed. They resembled an enormous pale-white neural network of the brain.

The surface of these virtual roots was densely covered in root hairs, and on each individual root hair there was a bead of spirituality.

At this moment, freed from the suppression of the Stygian River's water, these spirituality beads began to burst open one after another, and streams of spiritual radiance steamed upward, transforming into spirit clouds. The spirit clouds gathered together, and before long something resembling a phantom Root Field-like ethereal spirit domain began to gradually take shape.

Watching this scene, Locke immediately took on an expression of deep contemplation.

No matter how astonished he was, he had to acknowledge that the special domain formed by the convergence of spirituality after those beads of spirituality shattered appeared to be precisely a Root Field.

The two were far too similar.

"Many spell models are in fact formed by referencing the structure of a magical plant's body itself, or the structure of the natural magical force components within the magical plant, or their mechanisms of action."

Locke's expression settled into quiet contemplation.

"Previously, Witch Victoria also said that only Third Circle wizards could condense the Root Fields, gathering the magical force of Second Circle and First Circle wizards to form the Root Fields, with the primary power sustaining the Root Fields being the Grand Magics of Second Circle wizards."

"Perhaps at that time she did not tell me that the prototype of the Root Fields was a special domain generated in imitation of advanced virtual roots. Or perhaps the Root Fields are simply the fruit harvested from advanced virtual roots."

"Of course, it is also possible that this is not a Root Field at all."

Locke looked at the magical plant within the Stygian River and reflected, "The water of the Stygian River weighs more than a thousand mountains. A Second Circle wizard has absolutely no way to move it even a fraction, at least not within the limits of my current understanding."

"If it were not for the Crimson Deep Court's floods pouring into the Stygian River, I estimate I would not have had this opportunity to discover the iron tree's true nature. Looking at things this way, the branch of this iron tree that protrudes above the water's surface is used to provide the reduction in learning difficulty and activation conditions for the Ghost Sacred Order's ghost studies magic."

"The rest of the iron tree may very well be used for other purposes. But what purposes exactly?"

Locke fell into deep thought. "I must make good use of this opportunity."

"This undoubtedly conceals an enormous secret. This could serve as the foundation for a major project."

Locke's eyes burned with intensity. If he could seize this opportunity, this discovery might well become the research subject for his special grant project application.

He would have a clear direction for his application.

Moreover, if the Ghost Sacred Order's people could make use of this magical plant, turning it into a central server for their ghost studies magic, then surely he, as a breeder and botanical wizard, could also make use of this magical plant.

Locke reflected, "In all probability, this magical plant was planted here first, and only then did the founding wizard of the Ghost Sacred Order come here. That wizard then used the portion of this magical plant protruding above the waterline, carved inscriptions into it, and created a public server."

A sense of profound wonder rose within Locke's heart.

Who could have planted a magical plant within such a terrifying river as the Stygian River?

Locke first tried to collect the embryonic form of the special domain on those virtual roots. If it was a kind of fruit, a fruit borne of virtual roots, then that fruit could be harvested.

He used psychokinesis to draw the special domain toward him, intending to place it into his astral ring, but his psychokinesis passed straight through that special domain and out the other side, unable to accomplish any collection at all. His astral ring likewise could not take that special domain into itself.

Locke furrowed his brow, took out a Second Circle Climbing Fern, and had it cloaked in the Lone Tree Cannot Form a Forest spell model, transforming it into a fern lance that he shot toward that special domain. But for some inexplicable reason, even the powerful Second Circle botanical magic passed directly through the special domain without being able to collect it.

One after another, Locke tried three more methods, but nothing he tried could touch that special domain.

Locke said, "This is like being able to see the fruit clearly, yet having no suitable sickle with which to harvest it."

"This thing very likely lies entirely beyond my current ability to collect."

Locke's expression was displeased, for a treasure stood right before his eyes and yet he had no way to take it.

"Wait."

Locke thought of something.

"This place has already been visited by other wizards before. If that special domain were so easily collected, the wizard who made use of that one branch of the Stygian iron tree would already have collected it ahead of me."

"There would be nothing left for me."

"After all, this virtual root fruit appears extraordinarily difficult to nurture, seemingly requiring a very long time to accumulate, something that cannot be produced in a single day and night."

Locke then used the Moon of Evolution's moonlight to try stimulating the growth of this magical plant, testing whether he could draw it into his Moon of Evolution. But his moonlight falling upon the magical plant was like rain falling into a desert, the boundless rain swallowed by the boundless sand.

No matter how much rain fell, how much moonlight was scattered, it produced absolutely no effect whatsoever.

Worse, Locke discovered to his displeasure that the moon essence he directed toward this magical plant was being consumed by it, with no way for him to reclaim it.

And yet the magical plant itself showed no change of any kind.

Locke furrowed his brow. "As expected. The fact that this magical plant can grow and exist within the Stygian River means that either it can coexist harmoniously with the Stygian River, or its constant defensive power exceeds the erosive force it is subjected to at every moment of existing within the Stygian River."

"Either way, this demonstrates the exceptional nature of this magical plant. It resists easy exploitation."

Locke flew swiftly toward the magical plant, took out an ordinary grafting knife, and intended to carve botanical runes into the magical plant's surface, some powerful tree inscriptions that might serve as a breakthrough point for understanding and utilizing this magical plant's power.

But in the next instant, the moment the grafting knife made contact with the iron tree, it shattered abruptly.

Locke furrowed his brow. "Not even the bark can be damaged in the slightest?"

"Then how did the Ghost Sacred Order's founding wizard leave markings on this magical plant?"

Locke took out the Second Circle magical artifact grafting knife, the Spiritual Vein Suturer, gifted to him by his third senior sister Witch Fiona. The moment the Spiritual Vein Suturer merely touched the surface of the iron tree's bark, it produced a series of spell sparks from the friction.

Locke felt that if he applied even a little more force, this Second Circle magical artifact would very likely give out entirely, so he dared not press harder.

"This... does this magical plant's constant defensive power actually exceed my offensive magic?"

"Should I truly try using offensive magic to carve my magical runes into its bark? No, that would be meaningless. The damage created by offensive magic cannot be precisely controlled, and the art of engraving magical runes has always demanded precision and delicacy."

Locke deployed Lone Tree Cannot Form a Forest, rode the Magical Dragon Rose up to a higher vantage, and looked at the eight characters on the topmost branch. He ran his fingers along those eight runes, using his archaeology magic to collect the negative energy particle field information from the runes and determine their age.

'Approximately five hundred years old.'

'This wizard was in all probability the founding wizard of the Ghost Sacred Order. There is severe magic pressure interference, so it is impossible to determine whether the founding wizard was a moon ring wizard or a sun ring wizard, but the magic pressure remains within the Second Circle. The magic deployed at the time should have been an exceptionally powerful form of undead magic.'

Locke's palm suddenly made a grasping motion through empty air.

"Got it."

He pulled sharply backward, then cast what he had seized beside himself, and then deployed the History Reenactment spell. A phantom historical projection appeared beside him.

A wizard whose face could not be made out clearly, wearing a wizard's robe covered in complex decorative patterns with a skeletal hand emblem on the back, stood before this iron tree, raising his right hand flat before him. At this moment, his necromancy magic was being lifted by a peculiar and formidable Root Field.

His Grand Magic was elevated very high.

At the fingertip of his right hand a black netherflame appeared, and then he extended his finger and began writing in the air, point by point, stroke by stroke. The writing assembled itself automatically into a document floating in midair.

That document resembled silk yet was not silk, resembled silk cloth yet was not silk cloth.

He said, "Request the Seal Minister to affix his seal. Request the Audit Court to affix its seal. Request the Central Minister to affix his seal. Request the Court Duke to affix his seal. Request His Majesty's seal and imperial edict. Request the Censorate to affix its seal."

"Request the Grand Sovereign's decree!"

In the next instant, six virtual seals descended simultaneously.

A cold and merciless voice appeared. "In the name of the Pale Grand Sovereign, approved."

Immediately after, that document flew directly toward the iron tree's branch, producing an enormous magical conflict.

When the burst of magical radiance subsided and stilled, four phrases appeared upon the iron tree's branch.

The vision shattered and the History Reenactment spell model ended.

Because the magic pressure involved was too vast and of too high a quality, Locke could only use this negative energy particle field information once. The information disintegrated and could no longer be reproduced through History Reenactment.

But at this moment, having watched the full projection, Locke confirmed two things.

First, the founding wizard of the Ghost Sacred Order from five hundred years ago was approximately a moon ring or sun ring wizard, but had possessed in hand a special magic capable of receiving the Pale Grand Sovereign's seal, which appeared to be a special form of undead magic unique to the Pale Pilgrimage system. Like a grand sovereign's imperial decree, this was what had allowed him to move this iron tree and leave four magical rune phrases upon it, creating five hundred years of Ghost Sacred Order ghost studies history and prosperity.

Second, through this archaeological evidence, Locke confirmed his earlier conjecture.

It was indeed the tree that had come first.

The people of the Pale Pilgrimage had merely made use of the tree.

Locke fell into deep thought. The question now was how he himself could make use of this magical plant.

'This magical plant exists within the Stygian River, and the Stygian River already has the function of gathering vast numbers of consciousnesses. And this magical plant is situated within the Stygian River. If I could graft a suitable magical plant onto this one...'

A thought stirred within Locke.

"Then I might have a chance to realize my vision of a virtual root server."

Though this was still only an embryonic idea, as long as this step could be accomplished, the idea that had previously existed only in his mind would become a concrete embryonic reality.

At this moment, by a rare stroke of fortune, with the water level of portions of the Stygian River having dropped, he absolutely had to seize what might be the only opportunity he would have in the near future and complete the graft.

As long as the graft could be completed, he would essentially have left an interface on this Stygian iron tree. Even if the Stygian River's water level recovered and the iron tree was submerged again, he could use the grafted plant, which belonged to his own ecological community, to indirectly make use of the iron tree and continue exploring it.

But the problem now was that he could not even break through its defenses. How was he to complete the graft?

He did not have a Grand Sovereign's imperial decree in his hands.

Locke furrowed his brow, and as if misfortune never came alone, he raised his head to see that at some unknown point a giant had appeared in the sky above the Stygian River, a giant so tall and so vast that it seemed to stand at the far edge of heaven, beyond the sky itself.

As a result, Locke could not make out its appearance at all.

The giant seemed to be looking down at this place, its voice thunderously loud.

'Addison, Kruger. The seventh thousand two hundred and sixty-fifth section of the Stygian River falls under the responsibility of you two river supervisors. Why has this section of the Stygian River now suffered a rise in water level that has even flooded the surrounding areas?'

'Never mind. Allow me to calm the water here.'

The giant extended its enormous palm toward this place.

At this moment, Locke sensed that in the giant's eyes, whether himself or the Crimson Deep Court, both likely appeared as nothing more than a wisp of consciousness drifting in the Stygian River's course.

No different from any other.

That enormous palm descended from within the grey misty clouds. A terrifying magic pressure blanketed everything above him, even pressing down on the Moon of Evolution so that it sank continuously. This immense pressure suppressed the Stygian River's relentless rushing currents as well, and also separated the Crimson Deep Court from the Stygian River.

Locke felt the tremendous pressure and understood that if he did not act now, the water here would be suppressed and the water level would recover. In the short term he would never again have such a good opportunity to study this Stygian iron tree.

Locke clenched his teeth.

Wait. The Ghost Sacred Order's founding wizard had a Grand Sovereign's imperial decree, but he had the Beast Panel.

At this moment, a savage light burned in Locke's eyes, and primordial runes appeared within the tiger's eye on his forehead.

The Beast Panel bolstered Locke's Grand Magic, raising the magic pressure of his Moon of Evolution from 16,000 to 19,000 in a single instant.

The Beast Panel could increase his magic pressure by 3,000 points out of nothing.

And by deploying his Grand Magic, he could stack his avatar's magic pressure on top, though this would mean his main body could no longer directly deploy the Grand Magic at the same time.

After all, he only had one Grand Magic, and at any given moment, only one primary host could deploy it.

Unless he had two Grand Magics.

In that same instant, Locke did one more thing: he recited the incantation for a ritual magic and took out two oak leaves as offerings.

He then borrowed power from the Jade Dream.

The power of the Jade Dream required completing tasks to exchange for, but within certain limits it could also be drawn upon in advance, to be repaid afterward by entering the Jade Slumber.

And so Locke drew upon and exhausted every last credit the Jade Dream could offer him.

He applied the magical force thus obtained, along with the magnification mechanism of the magical plant, to his Second Circle fern lance.

Locke took hold of this fern lance. He intended to use it as a grafting knife to forcibly cut a V-shaped incision into the iron tree, and then plant his Time Shadow Fern into it.

The Time Shadow Fern was the core of his Moon of Evolution's ecological community, bearing a large number of mature virtual roots, unlike the Second Circle magical plants he had cultivated, which only possessed a single virtual root.

Of the magical plants he currently had on hand suitable for grafting, there were only four in total: the Magical Dragon Rose, the Time Shadow Fern, the Golden Peach Tree, and the Pinellia.

The Golden Peach Tree required the Peach Bow Thorn Arrow to function with, the Magical Dragon Rose was deeply tied to his Demon Dragon bloodline, and the Pinellia was bound up with the Alternation of Generations. Of these, only the Time Shadow Fern was most suited for grafting onto the branch of that Stygian iron tree.