Root Maker: Tree Cultivation

Year 11, Day 27

Beneath the Ground, Rage and Fear

Queen was angry. Queen was full of despair. 

Her weak body tried to move, but she couldn't do much as she missed parts of her body and about 90% of her own Qi, so she was in no condition to even move. But she was crawling and screeching angrily at the fact that her child, her Princess, had been taken. "Queen, please-" she did not listen, she did not stop, she did not see. Her emotions clouded her judgment, and all that the ants could do was to hold their Queen and help her get where she wanted to be, but because of her weight, they were slow. 

Her mind, filled with thoughts of revenge, could not even begin to wonder or ponder that maybe she should rest, because her instincts to get her child back were practically overwhelming. 

She would take her child back. 

Amidst the trees, Sunrise.

Year 11, Day 28

Root could feel it approaching from afar, but he couldn't wake his children from their rest now. He channeled the seemingly endless amount of Qi through his roots and used it to tirelessly fill his children with their respective Qi, helping them recover quickly for a final confrontation that is going to come by the sunrise. 'At this speed, she is going to arrive here by midday.' He was referring to the focused amount of Demonic Qi as well as the Golden Thread that was slowly changing into a black coloration, when he touched it he could see the Ant Queen perishing by either being consumed by her injuries, or being killed by his children, either way her fate was becoming a black thread that represented a Death Thread. 

The threads of fate are really confusing, but very easy to understand when you have an understanding of fate. They come in a variety of colors and shapes, the one every being (that Root has seen to this day) has is this Golden thread that represents one's lifetime, or lifespan, which is the amount of time someone has to live. Cultivators, every moment they cultivate, extend this line further and further into the heavens above, making it seem almost endless! But Root can easily see these threads, or at least he can see the threads of his children and other cultivators from his sect. 'They'll live really long lives…' Their golden lines seemed almost endless yet compact. Root could tell they reached into the heavens from how long they were, but he could still see them as if they were small threads on top of their heads. 

That's why he could tell the Ant Queen was going to die, her golden line was being overtaken by the blackness of death, and Root was going to use her corpse to feed his forest. His future, his sect! 

"Children." A single word echoed out as he sent a message to each of their minds, waking them up in a single moment: "It's time." Root floated before his own wooden form, his spirit free momentarily. His eyes casted to the horizon, above the canopy of green leaves, watching the desert from afar. He could see the sun rising, and the Demonic Qi getting closer and closer. He wanted to plant traps to kill as many ants as he possibly could, and what better to use than what his children created? He looked over the part of the desert that had this large deep valley, where crystals of glass stood from an explosion of steam and Qi. That glass could be useful for his plans. "Namis?" Without having to tell her what he wanted, Root sent through their bond what he needed, and her eyes glossed with her own ideas for what that glass could be used for! 

It contained Water Qi and Fire Qi, of course it could be used for very destructive things! 

"Leaf." Next, he spoke to his oldest son, telling him in a single second everything he wanted him to do- His son simply nodded, bowed, and floated away like leaves in the wind, gently fluttering. He turned next to his large mountainous son, his pride and joy, Ahteus. He focused for a moment as images of these small pieces of rock floated in the air and crashed down the earth came to his mind, he shared them with Ahteus who nodded, his body floating slightly when he reversed gravity on himself. 

There was a moment of pride, deep and burning pride that overtook Root's heart, as he watched his son struggle to float like his siblings did. He sighed heavily, fell to the earth, and sank into it like he was swimming, going to do his own thing that Root told him to do. 

"Children." Calling out three of his best troublemakers, Root sent them a single idea- Ice. Chaos, Frost, and Freeze turned to nod to their Father, an idea already burning into their collective consciousness, making sure they knew that what their Father told them to do was going to be done! With Namis, Ahteus, Leaf, Chaos, Frost, and Freeze walking away, Root turned to Fiero, Lily, Lilith, Lumin, and Zylph as he needed to tell them in words what they were meant to do: "Words have power, my children, they guide your soul and will into shaping Qi into what you desire, which is why your task is to shape the Qi of the battlefield. Zylph and Lily, you'll both use your Qi together to bring each other's techniques to the maximum range possible. Fiero, you will also be using your sister's Wind Qi to spread your flames across the battlefield, cooperating with her." The trio nodded at his words, he spoke them out loud and made sure their very soul knew what they had to do, because this was crucial.

He wanted the three of them to enter a Resonant Performance, where their Qi would come together to fulfill a goal. He had to tell them out loud, because that would subconsciously guide them to the mindspace he needed them to have so the triple resonance could happen without any injuries to his children. 

He turned last to Lilith and Lumin, Lumin he didn't want to be there, but his stubborn child would go without his approval. He just wished his child would stay at his canopy, shooting from afar his rays, killing the enemy without putting himself in harm's way. He sent Lilith a single image- Herself, commanding an army of endless ants, fighting against their fellow ants, and being overtaken by her elder sister Lily's undead monsters, making said ants join her ever growing army of dead. 

She simply nodded. 

"Lumin." Turning finally to his glorious and shining child, Root lifted them up with the control over the Qi around them, in an almost Telekinetic way: "I want you to stay above me, shooting down the enemies with your fire and light, do you understand me? Concentrate on shooting them, because that's what you'll be doing." Lumin could only sigh and nod, their father's words were rule and law over all of nature and themselves (and their siblings) included. 

"Prepare yourselves…" Root's words echoed: "For the final countdown." 

Immediately, there were groans from every single child of his as he sent through the bond he shared with them, harmonica noises resembling a song.

Amidst the Sand and Glass

Groaning at her father singing the Final Countdown through their bond (even though she could hear Older Sister Zylph also joining him, only to be followed by Older Brother Ahteus and Older Brother Leaf), Namis could only smile as she also softly hummed the song under her breath. Father's knowledge about many things was vast, so vast it seemed like an ocean, an endless ocean of information and knowledge. 

Ignoring the goofy atmosphere going on ("Leaf, you're singing out of tune!" "Shut up Ahteus." "Boys, please, you're both bad at singing." "Damn, strike them down Zylph!" ""Dad!"" "I will dad!") She just began to collect the glass crystals that were born out of her experiment with her brother Fiero while chuckling. These crystals carried her Water Qi and Fiero's Fire Qi, which made using them for what Father had in mind easier. She began to collect them and spread pieces of them out and about, her flying form passed by the sand dunes as she scattered glitter-like particles of the glass crystals, because Father asked for range, not potency exactly, and covering the entire desert with just a single particle of this crystal gave them "gunpowder" that they could ignite with their Qi, setting off various small explosions that would have enough power to damage an ant, which would help them not waste a lot of Qi dealing with the small ones. 

"Now…" She turned to look at her Father's tree body, picking up one of the intact glass crystals she had and began to think- A dome would be ideal, since the underground would be heavily protected by her older brother Ahteus and his gang of protectors, as Father likes to call it. "I could use crystals made of pure Qi to make a protective array that creates a shield of pure water to protect Father and the forest…" But the amount of Qi it would need is mental! 

(She ignored her Father as he and Fiero sang "We didn't start the fire!" "It was always burning since the world been turning" "No, we didn't light it" "But we tried to fight it!" And the little "Imagine how useful this song was for Captain America after the got unfrozen", whatever that meant) 

"I think I can do this." She most definitely could make an array that protected the forest with enough Qi and determination! As she floated there, her Father's voice crept into her mind: "Hey Namis, wanna sing Under the Sea?" 

"...yes." 

Amidst the trees, leaves in the wind

Leaf softly landed in the wet dirt ground, his hand softly touching another tree as he did what his father asked him to do. What was he doing? Well, the ants wanted to eat these trees, so his father asked him to wake them up! With his lesser siblings help, Leaf pushed them into the trees, making the trees absorb their lesser form, making a small form of primitive consciousness that Tree Spirits had, which was amazingly impressive, if not for the fact that his dad also helped him a lot by using his Qi and children to influence the trees to become Spirit Trees. 

("I'm burning through the sky-" "Literally." "-yeah, 200 degrees that's why they call Mr. Fahrenheit!" "No one calls you that, Lumin." "Shut up, I'm singing Queen!") 

Ignoring his bickering siblings, Leaf began to give his lesser siblings new life. They weren't dying when he fused them to the trees, they were always Nature spirits, they were always part of nature, right now they were just changing from one thing to another, not dying. They were- 

("I'LL BE COMING FOR YOUR LOVE, OKAY!?" "TAKE ON ME, Take me on!!!" "I'LL BE GONE- IN A DAY OR TWO-")

-okay, that definitely was Chaos. "Ah…" Sighing, Leaf smiled. Even when they are about to fight against a large force and army, they can still find within themselves to be goofy and be a family, singing songs and not caring that the enemy comes closer and closer. Why would they care? Father is right there, he is their root, their pillar, their protector. With him there, nothing would ever go wrong. He literally brought his sister Lilith and brother Ahteus back from death, he can do anything he wishes to do, because the heavens themselves are at his Father's control.

And even if it isn't true, then what? 

His Father still is one of the most incredible beings Leaf has ever met, and that is never going to change. 

("Mama~ Just killed a man~ Put a gun against his head~") 

Only if he stopped singing like that, though.