Chapter 501 - Dark Treant

Treants, although their figures are limited by the enlightened plants they originate from and vary greatly, all possess a certain harmony. At least to other humanoid creatures, they don’t seem out of place.However, this was clearly not the case for this group of treants. They were severely discordant, not only were their branches dark, but their appearances were also extremely distorted. Some had multiple arms while others had multiple legs. One of the treants even bore two faces, one of an old treant and the other of a human female. They couldn’t be more fittingly called dark treants.

Altogether, these three types of awakened plants numbered nearly a hundred.

Following behind them was a troop of human knights, armed with swords in one hand and torches in the other.

The cavalier leading them rode not a warhorse, but a razorback boar that was even tougher than a bull. Among humans, this would have been a formidable presence, but it seemed somewhat lackluster compared to the awakened plants.

This was none other than Nola, the top general under Zalanda’s command.

Gaven, riding a half-moon colt, approached from a distance and asked in a low voice, "Have there been any incidents along the way?"

"None," Nola removed her helmet, revealing a beautiful face that didn’t quite match her massive frame, and shook her head, "They’ve all been very cooperative, especially the dark treants. They firmly stand with us, helping to manage the other two types of awakened plants. Not one has strayed; we started with eighty-nine, and now we have ninety-five. Six joined us voluntarily along the way."

The awakened plants Nola escorted were captives from the corrupted army that had followed the Divine Root on its sortie.

Moando’s pet servants were ultimately in the minority; most were tormented by the necrotic plague and were forcibly driven.

Be they stumblers or tentacle demon vines, although a bit unsightly, they were essentially neutral awakened plants, no different from hunters like ferocious tigers or black bears, not inherently evil.

Once the main instigator behind them was slain, they had essentially no will to rebel and were all captured by Zalanda’s forces.

If it weren’t for the plague of decay on them, Zalanda would have surely integrated them into her army as a special kind of troop.

She had now tasted victory, with less than ten enlightened trees having greatly assisted her. If she could have a hundred sizable awakened plants joining her ranks, the number of strategies at her disposal would increase substantially.

For now, what she could do was send them to Gaven, so that the recently reactivated Mesnoel could purify and heal them. Afterward, they could consider how to deploy them.

"It’s normal. If they want to heal the corruption quickly, they have to come to me in good faith," Gaven said as if it were a matter of course.

Among these three types of awakened plants, two possessed intelligence. The dark treants’ intelligence was the highest, far surpassing that of the average human.

The vine fiends were slightly less intelligent, about the same as gnolls, not very bright but capable of understanding most things.

The least intelligent were the tentacle demon vines, which were akin to slightly smarter beast hunters; it was very difficult for humans to communicate with them. With the intelligent dark treants to assist, the task became much simpler. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NovᴇlFirᴇ.ɴet

Before they set off, Gaven had already met with the dark treants and reached a basic agreement, tempting them with the prospect of purification and healing to come willingly.

The cavalry that Nola led was not so much an escort as a watch force; after all, the strength was undeniable. If the nearly hundred awakened plants were to run amok, the combat power they’d unleash could effortlessly destroy an army of tens of thousands, especially in dense forests.

Nola hesitated, then couldn’t help but say, "Ever since we entered Mir Forest, I’ve had the feeling that we’re being followed by a tail. It’s been with us the entire way, until we got close here, and then that sensation vanished."

"Your feeling is correct. It’s the Dwarves Elf outriders who are trying to isolate and blockade Mesnoel. They don’t dare to touch you because you are numerous and strong, but if you were weak, they would have attacked you already," Gaven confirmed that Nola’s feeling was not an illusion.

"I’d heard that Dwarves Elves roamed Mir Forest, but I never thought they’d be bold enough to commit acts of aggression quite so openly here!" Nola’s brow furrowed. The Dwarves Elves were certainly not the best neighbors.

Especially in dense forests, Thacel’s army would have no advantage over the Dwarves Elves.

"When benevolent powers weaken, evil will rise to fill the void, Gaven said helplessly, "Our secret war with them is just beginning—the headaches are yet to come."

Compared to the Dwarves Elves, even the Sambiyan merchants, previously considered to be underhanded, would appear benevolent.

These followers of Velen didn’t confront you head-on; instead, using their prowess in stealth, they circled Mesnoel, waiting for an opportunity to cause destruction.

They were unable to do anything about the Mystlock Locks, so they targeted the inhabitants. Whether it was birds or beasts, those who were alone were likely to be hunted down by them.

Many people who tried to seek refuge in Mesnoel were slain on the last stretch of their journey.

This was done both to deter them from coming to Mesnoel and as an act of vengeance and threat display against Gaven.

If Gaven organized the Golias to counterattack, they would immediately slip into the dark and flee, never engaging directly. This frustrated Gaven, and at the moment, he had no good solution.

"To counter the forest guerrilla tactics, the best way is to form an even more powerful and elite team to engage them in similar tactics," Nola suggested to Gaven.

Forest guerrilla tactics were not the exclusive domain of Dwarves Elves but were common among all natural races, especially Elves.

In open fields, Elves certainly couldn’t stand against human cavalry.

In the forest, however, human cavalry was at a loss against the Elves; to enter rashly would only contribute to the forest’s nourishment.

As for setting the forest on fire, even the most foolish human lord wouldn’t dare to do so—because if he did, he would have to face the wrath of the natural deities.

"How could I not know that, but I lack such elite forces," Gaven said, spreading his hands helplessly.

The natural races under his command were numerous, but none were known for their prowess in battle.

Uh, how could I have forgotten about them?

A light flashed in Gaven’s mind, and he thought of a suitable force—the Yaling Guard of Lord Virginia.

The Dragon Oak Mother Tree was about to undergo an upgrade and seal itself off; he needed to hurry and consult with Lord Virginia to see if he could borrow a Yaling guerrilla unit to assist in countering the Dwarves Elf in Mir Forest.

"Respected Lord, we have come as agreed, please fulfill your promise to remove the evil presence from me. Afterwards, I will stand guard for you forever," said a Dark Treant, approaching Gaven.

This Dark Treant was the least twisted among all the Dark Treants, the most unique, and also the most powerful.

He possessed two pairs of arms.

One pair was the normal Treant arms, and the other pair were human female arms.

If seen separately, both pairs of arms were beautiful, especially the human female arms which were sleek and lustrous—an innate beauty not merely maintained through care. However, the unsettling incongruity became obvious when these two different sets of arms were combined on the body of a Treant.

Besides the extra pair of arms, there was also the face of a woman on his trunk, equally radiant, especially the sparkling amber eyes which seemed to reflect one’s own image.

But in such a case, the more beautiful they appeared, the more jarring the discordance felt.

When Gaven’s gaze fell on the female face embedded in the trunk, the face immediately started to struggle in agony, and the pair of human female arms began to move uncontrollably, "Save me... save me... please save me... I don’t want to die..."

As she spoke, her eyes uncontrollably emitted a magic aura.

The Dark Treant quickly raised its broad Treant hand to cover the female face.

Because that was a precursor to casting the Charm Human spell.

"Agreed," Gaven answered promptly. "The unique circumstances of your situation need no further discussion from me. After a thorough examination, I will try my best to separate you two, but the success rate is really hard to say. If it fails, you must face a choice—that only one of the two consciousnesses can be preserved. Which one do you wish to keep?"

This Dark Treant was special because, before being transformed into a Treant, it was not an ordinary oak but one that coexisted with a Tree Spirit.

An oak tree inhabited by a Tree Spirit is normally impossible to awaken; this is a law of nature, similar to how Magic Beasts can’t be enlightened. At least Druids below Legendary status don’t have the power to do so, and Felen has never had a precedent of an oak tree inhabited by a Tree Spirit being awakened.

But the Decay Fallen God Moando, an entity that breaks natural norms, used its Corruption Power to forcefully awaken an oak tree inhabited by a Tree Spirit.

This abnormal awakening merged flesh and wood together, sacrificing the Tree Spirit’s freedom and soul consciousness.

However, the problem was that this fusion wasn’t complete; the oak tree itself awoke to consciousness, but the Tree Spirit’s consciousness was not entirely erased, resulting in a body with two relatively independent consciousnesses, much like a patient with a split personality, occasionally self-conflicting and descending into chaos.

And this was precisely what the Decay Fallen God Moando enjoyed seeing most, anticipating the Dark Treant slowly succumbing to despair and thereby falling into corruption.

"If it really comes to that, please save Lola," the Dark Treant said without hesitation.

Though she had only been awakened recently, the bond with the cohabitant Tree Spirit had already spanned centuries.

She never moved, but she could share in every joy, sorrow, and pain of Lola’s days.

Her memories were all concerning Lola, or rather, they were her continuation; if Lola ceased to exist, her own reason to exist would naturally dissipate as well.

"Please save Triss... She has only just been born... she deserves to go out and see more... carrying with her my share too..." The Tree Spirit embedded in the Dark Treant responsed, continuously struggling, her expression turning fierce, but her words were incredibly resolute.

The emotional bond between a Tree Spirit and its corresponding oak tree is something beyond normal comprehension.

Although a Tree Spirit can change its cohabited oak tree through a Magic Ritual, unless necessary or forced, very few Tree Spirits do this, precisely because they cannot give up this bond.

"This question gives you more time to think, this is just the worst-case scenario. The specifics will depend on how things develop," Gaven pointed at the Mystlock Locks of Mesnoel and said, "Starting now, you will take root around the perimeter of the Mystlock Locks. I will treat your condition accordingly. Once we are certain that there are no remnants of Moando Servants within you, I will naturally consider letting you enter Mesnoel."

These Awakened Plants were different from those who had previously sought him out.

All of them had been controlled by a Divine Root or Moando Servants at some point, making the uncertainty too great, and their power too formidable. Without completely purifying them first, rashly letting them into Mesnoel was not a wise choice.

Better to have them rooted outside the Mystlock Locks, as the first line of defense for Mesnoel.

Outside of the Mystlock Locks, there was also a purifying capability, albeit far less effective than within the city.