Liu Shu was startled. This was the first time she had seen trees of a similar species to hers. To be honest, Liu Shu had always been questioning her origins.

She was surrounded by trees that were very different from her. All had strong branches and wide canopies, and their trunks were mostly revealed because they lacked drooping branches.

As a tree herself, she never really considered that strange, and she thought that her change was due to her World Tree evolution. But, from the scenery developing in front of her eyes, it seemed that her thoughts were wrong.

By the way, the reason she could see further than the limit of her roots was a benefit of her integration with the forest. 's biggest fault was that beyond the limit of her roots, there was nothing. Meanwhile, she could see slightly further away with her natural vision, but it focused on underground vision. Her forest integration gave her the ability to see further away from her roots with limits.

It was not nearly as clear as or as intuitive as her natural vision, but it was enough for Liu Shu to distinguish shapes and auras.

'I wonder… Will these trees recognize me?'

As a World Tree, her wish for kinship was not something predominant, but it wasn't non-existent. While it wasn't something she would actively search for, it still was something that would make her happy if she discovered it.

Moreover, unlike other trees, the auras from some of these trees felt close. Familiar, in more than a metaphorical sense.

'Hello~? Can anyone here speak?'

Her roots sent pulses of energy, trying to communicate. Her pulses reached the weeping willow trees, and soon, she received a response.

'Welcome…'

'World… Tree…'

'Forest's… Overlord…'

Liu Shu felt happy when they answered. 'Oh~! You can speak! That's great~.' As Liu Shu's branches spread out, more of the small lake entered her detection range. The lake was barely 100 meters across, and the number of willow trees was also very limited, just a few hundred.

'So… Are you going to listen to me? Or are you going to resist?'

Liu Shu felt no resistance, but she asked nonetheless. Feeling her energy and presence seeping through the land, the World Tree got her answer, and she started spreading her roots in that zone quickly.

Suddenly, a strange sensation came to her, and she stopped for a moment to focus on the source of that strange aura. There, a beautiful Willow Tree was standing, its height above all other Willow Trees, and its Level being above all others at Level 14.

Liu Shu was strangely fascinated by that willow tree. It wasn't that tall compared to herself; it was around 30 meters tall. Yet, she couldn't help but reach out and call it. 'Hello!'

A clearer and more aware voice reached her compared to the rest of the Willow Trees; the tone was clearly female and filled with gentleness. 'Welcome, World Tree.'

Liu Shu was stumped, not knowing how to speak but wanting to say something. Eventually, she stated. 'I, um… My name is Liu Shu.'

The Level 14 Willow Tree answered softly. 'Welcome, Liu Shu.'

Liu Shu somehow felt warm and fuzzy when she heard that, and she said. 'I like you! Do you have a name?'

'I don't, Liu Shu. I am just another tree in the forest.'

Liu Shu hummed, feeling annoyed. 'You are clearly smarter!'

'Haha~.' A gentle laugh reached Liu Shu. 'I might be smarter, but I am nothing compared to you. I must say that I am very proud.'

Liu Shu asked, confused. 'Proud? What are you proud about? Oh, are you saying that you are a proud tree!? Hmhm~ I am also very proud of my accomplishments! Although… I messed up a bit.'

The voice of that Willow Tree reached her again, asking. 'Everyone messes up, Liu Shu. You are now doing your best not to repeat that, right?' The soft leaves ruffling with the wind brought Liu Shu peace of mind.

With excitement, Liu Shu said. 'Yes! I am doing my best! Also, also, um… Can I build a bit of defense around here?'

'Defense?'

Liu Shu didn't know her feelings, but she had strong feelings toward this particular and beautiful weeping willow tree. 'I want to protect you!'

'Oh!' The Willow Tree laughed again and agreed. 'You can build whatever you want, Liu Shu. You are this forest's strongest. Also, I am happy to receive protection from you, Liu Shu.'

Liu Shu giggled, feeling her soul excited. 'Okay! I'll build something nice! Hmmmm…'

She had plenty of materials for lower-level defensive structures, so she picked a few and started building. She then transferred the materials to that section of the forest using her root net system.

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The transfer took three days, which Liu Shu used to continue spreading her roots and solidify a way to communicate easily with that particular Willow Tree.

Flor entered the to retrieve a few and saw materials being picked by Liu Shu's roots, making her curious. "Liu Shu, what are you doing?"

Liu Shu answered enthusiastically. "I am building a defensive flower bed, like , to protect someone!"

The Rose Fairy Queen was startled. "Protect someone? You? Who are you protecting?"

The World Tree hummed. "A Willow Tree! I like her a lot, so I am protecting her!"

Flor's eyebrows raised as two possibilities flashed in her mind. 'Either the Sylvan girls will become quite upset when they return, or Liu Shu has found…' Flor smiled. "Liu Shu, can I go see her?"

Liu Shu giggled. "Okay! You need to go in the direction of…" Liu Shu pondered how to guide Flor. Ultimately, she decided on a more straightforward way. "Um… Follow my roots!"

Flor laughed. "Understood. Take your time guiding me."

It took Flor around 2 hours to reach that place. "Oh! This lake."

"Do you know it?" Asked Liu Shu.

Flor answered. "Yes. This was our main water source before you built that well."

"Ohhh! I see."

It didn't take long for Flor to spot the largest and, in Liu Shu's words, most beautiful willow tree. "Oho~."

Flor looked at the 30-meter-tall tree with a growing smile. As a Rose Fairy Queen, one that had become attuned to Liu Shu to a very close degree, she could feel beyond the superficial aura. 'So, the Sylvans have nothing to worry about. It is the second option.'

Flor smiled. "Hello, I am Flor. I've been looking after Liu Shu… Although, well, she has been looking after us as well."

The willow tree was surprised that Flor's voice reached her and was understandable. After a bit of time, she answered. 'Hello, Flor. Thank you.'

Flor laughed, feeling a bit nostalgic. 'She is a bit slow in answering, isn't she? It took around 30 minutes.'

Liu Shu looked at them with interest. Seeing Flor smiling, she asked. "Do you know her? Why does it seem like you two get along?"

Flor lifted an eyebrow as she looked at the flower field slowly appearing around the Willow Tree. "I wonder why?'

'Hm… do I tell her that this tree is probably her mother?' Flor was doubtful, but since the willow tree had not said anything, Flor didn't want to reveal it. 'I'll ask the Willow Tree later. It seems that she knows about it too, but she isn't saying anything, so I won't either.'

Liu Shu humphed cutely. "Keep your secrets, then! I'll continue expanding. I am almost done!"

Flor blinked. "So, how far do your roots reach? This place is more than a kilometer away from you."

Liu Shu answered pridefully. "My roots reach around 1,890 meters in a radius from me!"

Flor asked, stunned. "How much area is that?"

"Well…" The World Tree said, looking at her system. "According to the system, my roots cover 1130 hectares."

The Rose Fairy Queen held her forehead, feeling light-headed. 'Level 12, and she already covers more than 1,000 hectares? This is dizzying. What about level 20? Level 25? Will she actually reach the nearby towns?'

'We really need to come out to the public as fast as possible, but how? Until Verdantia and the rest return, doing so will only be met with opposition.'

"Here you are, Queen Flor!" The voice of a Rose Fairy reached her from behind.

Turning around, she saw a Level 8 Rose Fairy approach. "What's wrong?"

The Rose Fairy spoke with excitement. "We've spotted growing in a nearby place! Not only , there are sources for other E- Rank materials, many more than in the past!"

Flor's eyes flashed with happiness. "Really?"

The Rose Fairy nodded. "We haven't touched it, and we are waiting for your orders!"

Flor turned to look at the massive willow tree and smiled. "See you later. I will come from time to time to speak with you. I am sure you want to know how Liu Shu reached her current heights."

The willow tree sent a wave of energy her way; it was gentle and relatively weak, but Flor could understand the meaning behind it.

As they left, the Rose Fairy asked. "Is that tree special, Queen?"

Flor hummed and smiled. "Yes. She is. Quite special."

The Rose Fairy blinked. "Why? Is it because she is like Liu Shu?"

Flor laughed. "More or less. Don't worry much. So, what happened? Why the sudden discovery of so many sources for these materials?"

The Rose Fairy exclaimed. "I think that Liu Shu is influencing the forest! Everything is becoming stronger quickly! The Level 5 and 6 Rose Fairies can't really go out freely because of how dangerous it has become."

Flor nodded. "I see. Let's raise the minimum Level to be considered mature to 7. We need to adapt as our surroundings evolve with us."

"Understood, Queen!"

Flor's danger senses tingled, and she quickly grabbed the low-level Rose Fairy, flying upwards and hiding in the canopy of the trees.

Right after she hid, a group of 5 humans appeared. "Hm? I thought I could sense the presence of a monster."

"Ha! Are your skills deteriorating? You usually didn't fail once!"

"This place has become much more dangerous. The other day, a friend of mine died in the forest; a carnivorous plant caught him. By the time we arrived to rescue him, the wounds were too much."

"Carnivorous plants have enough strength to eat Level 10s? That's impressive."

"Those who underestimate the will pay dearly. I've seen a few newbie groups leave the Explorer association, only to return with gloomy faces and with fewer people than they left with."

Flor looked down at the five-person group and listened to their conversation while tightly holding the low-level Rose Fairy. 'Level 11, 12, 11, 13, and 14? Quite a powerful group. They are becoming more common.'

She couldn't help but frown. 'Do I kill them?'

Her eyes flashed with a hint of murderous intent, which startled the Level 13 that guided the group here. "Above!"

Several attacks flew upward, slicing a few branches off. However, Flor was too quick, so their attacks hit nothing.

"Tsk, we failed. Let's leave quickly in case the trees start attacking!"

They were about to move when the floor burst with roots that had gorgeous energy veins going through them. The aura emitted by the roots was terrifyingly strong.

Flor's eyes flashed and after leaving the Rose Fairy on a branch, she rushed forward. 'Since Liu Shu has attacked, then I can't continue hiding.'

"What is that!?"

"Careful, from above!"

Flor snorted. "Too late. ."

A terrifying torrent of sharp wind swallowed the five of them, almost instantly killing all of them. Then, Liu Shu's roots coiled around them and swallowed them into the ground.

The battle was over in a moment.

[Congratulations on defeating . You've gained 0 Experience Points.] x 2

[Congratulations on defeating . You've gained 0 Experience Points.]

[Congratulations on defeating . You've gained 6 Experience Points.]

[Congratulations on defeating . You've gained 13 Experience Points.]

Flor blinked. 'Zero, huh? So, these people are already so weak that I won't gain any experience from killing them… Is this the result of E+ Tier strength?'