Chapter Ninety-One: White Oak of Orsay

The commander asked, “Should we send over some of our soldiers who have been tainted by the Violet Moon first?”

“Even if we cannot have Ling Xiao heal them at once, sending them there early would at least ensure they are treated first once the time comes,” another officer said.

He tried hard to keep his impatience in check.

After all, during the clearing of the warped creatures corrupted by the Violet Moon, more than ten of the soldiers under his command had suffered injuries of one kind or another.

“Not in such a hurry,” Xue Zhengde said.

“Tonight, the Violet Moon appeared so quickly and lasted so long that the Spinewater Mountains are certain to birth many more warped lifeforms. Let Ling Xiao deal first with the creatures that have appeared near him.”

Xue Zhengde was not the sort to act blindly. Decades in the army had given him a steadiness far beyond that of ordinary men.

“That makes sense.”

The officer nodded and fell silent.

“Commander, what strategy should we take with Ling Xiao from here on?” another officer asked.

The giant value of the little deer had already been demonstrated, and the policy toward him in the future would surely become even more lenient.

That much was certain, which was why the officer asked.

“Keep things as they are.”

Xue Zhengde’s expression remained composed. Turning his head, he added, “Also, I plan to establish a new department next.”

“Recruit some people from the military working dog unit first. They should be the most suitable for communicating with Ling Xiao.”

“The military working dog unit?”

The officers present were stunned, then quickly understood.

“Should we bring the dogs along too?”

“The dogs? Do you want to take them there to hunt down the deer herd?”

“Uh.”

The officer was left speechless.

“All right! Things here are almost settled. Everyone, come with me to the military council hall. If you have questions, bring them up there.”

With that, Xue Zhengde rose to his feet and walked out of the command room.

The officers present followed at once.

——

The roe deer’s status unfolded.

Excellent

Life rank: 2

Vitality: 99.99

Body length: 55.23

Extreme breakthrough, unique growth

Shoulder height: 29.99

Age: 3 years

Special trait 1: Broken

Special trait 2: Visual pollution, medium

Special trait 3: Life grafting, high

Special trait 4: Species prophet, medium

Special trait 5: Flower of the dead, medium

In the dormitory, Ji Yu stared at the little deer’s data panel, his expression thoughtful.

“The breakthrough in body length is related to Violet Moon energy, but vitality cannot be linked to it. That is a little intriguing.”

“Perhaps the little deer’s growth has truly reached a major bottleneck.”

That was all Ji Yu could think.

Without a qualitative breakthrough, merely growing larger was obviously of little benefit.

After all, the bigger the body, the more cumbersome movement became.

Still, things were fine for now, because the Violet Moon energy within the little deer had already reached a limit it could contain.

For the moment, maintaining this state was enough; there was no need to make any further useless attempts.

Once he understood this, Ji Yu’s mood immediately relaxed.

“Mushroom Head, Little Spirit, Divine Deer, heh. The forest corridor really is becoming more and more fantastical.”

As he mused, Ji Yu felt rather like he was playing a farming game.

Fantastical, poetic, picturesque.

If only all strife could be removed.

Yet thinking of the forest corridor becoming a domain, Ji Yu felt a headache coming on.

This time, the Violet Moon domain had formed and a succubus had appeared. What about the next time?

Was it still worth staying there?

Ji Yu became somewhat troubled.

After all, beneath the Violet Moon, the forest turning into a illusory backdrop was only one possible change.

If next time the forest became physical, then the ensuing battle would obviously engulf the little deer’s beautiful home.

So, after weighing everything carefully, Ji Yu still decided to build a new, larger, and better forest corridor.

This time, he intended to draw inspiration from fantasy films and create a more comprehensive and enchanting fantasy forest.

Once he thought of it, he acted at once.

He had nothing else to do anyway, so Ji Yu immediately went to the computer desk and turned on the computer.

This time, he did not plan to personally help the little deer build its new forest habitat. Instead, he would pass the idea to the little deer and let it create according to its own wishes.

The details could be left loose; the overall direction just had to remain the same.

The rest of his time, Ji Yu still intended to devote to the oak tree.

Because the oak tree now very much needed his help with meditation.

The third month was nearly here now, with only twelve days left.

During these next twelve days, Ji Yu would do his best to help the oak tree grow. As for after that, he could look forward to the third incarnation.

——

Time passed like water.

A week swiftly slipped by once more.

In Sutrilan, in the remote little town of Orsay, a large number of outsiders were now gathered.

A little over a month ago, Orsay had merely been a remote town with a population of fewer than a thousand.

People here made their living from farms and livestock. They lacked neither food nor clothing, and it had been a peaceful little town well suited to retirement.

But after the news of the mysterious tree spread widely across Westyue a month earlier, it instantly turned into a bustling town of tourism and pilgrim worship.

There were many oaks in the world, but Orsay possessed one of only three of the oldest oaks in existence.

The White Oak of Orsay was about three thousand years old and was one of the oaks singled out and protected by the Nature Conservation Association.

Before, only two members of the association were stationed here to care for the oak, spending their days in leisure.

But ever since the matter of the mysterious tree was exposed, and the White Oak of Orsay was discovered by all the fervent believers after growing at an astonishing pace day by day, the place naturally became the most vibrant town in Sutrilan.

After a month of human traffic and online ferment, Orsay had long since been transformed.

Countless merchants gathered here and opened shops in large numbers, while wealthy developers kept applying to buy land, planning to build new residential complexes.

Thus, by now, the town’s transient population had already reached an astonishing figure of more than two hundred thousand.

People departed every day, and people arrived every day.

Because there was not enough lodging, many nearby towns were also filled with travelers as a result.

The White Oak of Orsay stood in a small park.

The park was less than twenty acres, yet this small stretch of land was now packed with people.

“Sigh, who knows when this kind of life will ever end? Just one oak tree, and it has to be like this? I can’t even enjoy my retirement in peace. It really does not make one happy.”

One of the park managers stood on a rooftop, looking at the sea of people below with some helplessness.

Gazing at the oak tree not far away, already nearly eighty meters tall, Wensher Haydon felt none of the fervor of the crowd. On the contrary, he appeared quite indifferent.

“Growing a bit faster is enough to make it like this? I still don’t see anything divine about it. I really don’t understand.”

For someone who was not a believer in the druids, Wensher Haydon was entirely unmoved by the oak tree’s abnormal growth.

The oak tree kept growing, yet there were no special effects; it always looked like an ordinary oak. Truth be told, if not for the news about the mysterious oak, Wensher Haydon would never have spared it a second glance.

Receiving the association’s salary every day and slowly spending his old age in peace was what he wanted most.

And yet.

Well, looking at the present bustle of White Oak Park, this was hardly something pleasant for the elderly Wensher Haydon.

“If you truly have some divine quality, then show it to me. I’ve been taking care of you for more than ten years, old friend.”

Muttering to himself, the white-haired Wensher Haydon shook his head and turned to go back for a rest.

However, just as he turned around, the sudden, feverish cries from the crowd below made him stop in his tracks.

Damn it, what were these people up to now?

Wensher Haydon frowned and looked back.