The Witch Hunter System

Chapter 874: Into Darkness



Secret Realm, Garden of Thyia

"Everything sorted, Junior?" the Elder Spirit, Senior Willowthorn, casually inquired after seeing Vaan climb out of the hole.

Vaan nodded before mentioning, "About our previous discussion, I can agree with the revival of the Divine Tree of Life, Senior."

"In fact, Mera has already created the Seed of the Divine Tree. As long as it is planted and cultivated, it will likely recall all of its essence and return to its former state as the Divine Tree of Life."

"However, as we had also discussed previously, danger is present all around us in the outside world. As such, it's not the opportune time to revive the Divine Tree of Life."

"You're right," Elder Willowthorn calmly nodded after some reflection.

"So, if you trust me, let us postpone the revival of the Divine Tree of Life to a later date. I promise that within a hundred years, I will possess the strength to be the protector of the Divine Tree and the Wood Spirit Race," Vaan stated.

Originally, he intended to plant the Seed of the Divine Tree in the Darksea Abyss Territory.

However, he realized that without the dormant essence of the Divine Tree of Life lying in the soil of the subterranean region and the Garden of Thyia, the Seed of the Divine Tree would only germinate into a newborn Divine Tree of Life.

A newborn Divine Tree of Life was incomparable to a mature Divine Tree of Life.

As such, he needed to plant the Seed of the Divine Tree in the Garden of Thyia to revive the original Divine Tree of Life, which had long matured and possessed unfathomable capabilities.

However, such a mature Divine Tree was far too big. It made it difficult to move to the Darksea Abyss Territory.

If it were also left to grow in the Garden of Thyia, it would provoke inevitable changes to the surface of the Purpleflame Territory and attract unwanted attention, as he had previously mentioned to the Elder Spirit.

As such, the only reasonable option was to postpone the planting of the Divine Tree and raise his strength in the meantime.

It wouldn't be too late to revive the Divine Tree of Life after he possessed sufficient strength to move it to the Darksea Abyss Territory.

Furthermore, he still needed to investigate the ocean floor to determine whether it was actually possible for the Divine Tree to survive in such dark depths of toxic water.

Otherwise, it would be pointless to move the Divine Tree of Life to the Darksea Abyss Territory. After all, planting it on the surface would completely expose its existence to endless greed across Chaos.

As such, it could only be planted at the bottom of the ocean, where it was unseen and unexplored due to the threat posed by marine life.

If the planting succeeded, the Divine Tree of Life would also serve as the foundation for building an enclosed city on the ocean floor, offering refuge not only to the Wood Spirit Race but also to his people-should his protection and ability prove to be inadequate.

For that reason, it was also essential to improve his relationship with the Elder Spirit.

Who wouldn't want a Rank 8 Divine Lord as a protector, even if it was only to receive shelter as a last resort?

After Vaan and the Elder Spirit returned to the main wood spirit village near the foot of the dead Divine Tree, the latter noticed the target of Vaan's gaze and felt startled.

"You're still thinking about the inheritance? Don't think about it anymore. It's too dangerous," Senior Willowthorn advised.

However, Vaan calmly shook his head and replied, "Danger is relative, Senior. You have already seen how the Death Eaters avoided my wood spirit, so the so-called danger isn't as great as we originally thought."

"More importantly, I have a strong feeling that Goddess Thyia's inheritance was left for me. I don't think the dangers surrounding the inheritance will apply to me."

"That said, I can't give you a reason for thinking this way; I can only ask that you trust me on this," Vaan said.

Senior Willowthorn looked Vaan in the eyes sternly and saw no hint of doubt in them, only a sort of decisiveness that bordered on confidence and certainty.

After several breaths of silence, Senior Willowthorn softly sighed.

"I hope you are right," Senior Willowthorn said, knowing that nothing he said could change his mind. "Since you are so determined, I won't stop you. I only ask that you come back

safely."

"Don't force yourself," Senior Willowthorn added.

"Thank you, Senior."

Shortly after bidding farewell, Vaan immediately climbed the lifeless divine tree under the concerned gazes of the wood spirits in the village.

The arrival of the Holy Wood Spirit was a joyous and momentous occasion that deserved all their care and attention.

As such, the wood spirits couldn't understand what the Elder Spirit was thinking for letting the Holy Wood Spirit follow Vaan into such a dangerous place. Even so, no one stepped forward to question the Elder Spirit's decision.

"I hope I made the right choice," Senior Willowthorn muttered to himself.

Although he had been referring to Vaan as a junior, he still recognized him as a reincarnated

god.

As such, he had no choice but to respect Vaan's decision.

-

Meanwhile, Vaan ascended the divine tree and shortly disappeared into the veil of darkness covering its upper half.

Almost immediately, countless Death Eaters noticed his intrusion and made their way over. However, the closer they approached, the more uncertain they became of their target.

Eventually, they just flew around Vaan with blank looks and forgot why they moved to this specific spot in the first place.

Evidently, Emerald's warding presence was still very effective.

However, Vaan no longer wore the same casual expression he had prior to entering the region of darkness covering the upper half of the dead Divine Tree.

Surprise had quickly painted his face due to a discovery.

Although he had expected the region of darkness to be filled with deathly energy, it wasn't as concentrated and plentiful as he had imagined. Deathly energy was only scattered to the outer rims of Crown's Nest.

A different type of energy appeared to have taken root in the central region of Crown's Nest. This energy didn't share any traits with life energy, either.

Instead, it possessed a murderous aura that felt suffocating beyond imagination, like being locked on by the killing intent of some slaughter god.

However, Vaan was aware that this murderous aura wasn't targeting him in particular. It was suppressing everything around it indiscriminately.