In the early years of the outbreaks, there was a lot of misunderstanding about what should be prioritised. Mana was a prime example of this confusion. While it was undeniably important, people initially failed to grasp just how crucial it was.
At the time, other commodities like Rift Orbs or Orbs of Domination were considered to be the most valuable assets. And, in a nominal sense, they were.
Rift Orbs came in various shapes and forms and had diverse features—they could reduce reset times, enlarge the rifts, alter or increase their rarity, or even level them up. In essence, Rift Orbs enhanced the profitability of rifts.
However, even when taking into account all the rifts on Earth, Rift Orbs piqued the interest only of a very select group of wealthy individuals and organisations. As a result, their availability remained extremely limited.
Into this void stepped mana. Initially, it seemed cheap and abundant, given that every ascender possessed it. But demand soon outstripped supply, dramatically so.
Almost overnight, the world's priorities shifted, placing mana at the forefront.
***
The guardian returned on the third day, surprised to find that Keynes had not only absorbed the Trait of Nature but had also combined it with the Trait of Spirituality to produce the Trait of Shamanism. As a sort of reward for this rare achievement, the guardian divulged that the trait was not only difficult to obtain due to complex compatibility issues, but also had broader applications than Keynes had initially realised.
"I'm pleased to see you've chosen to absorb your traits. This significantly improves your odds," the guardian said, his upbeat mood serving as an unspoken indicator of how well things were going.
Three days in, Keynes's Tree of Life was generating 166 mana units per hour, while Kora's rate had climbed to 89 units. Her mana production had spiked the previous night, thanks to her successful verbal communication with the dream tree and the subsequent support she'd received.
After examining both Trees of Life, the guardian expounded on their nature. "Trees of Life and dream trees are similar in that they're both considered Primes—essentially the alphas of the plant world. They're territorial, as you've probably observed, and they develop spiritual consciousness as they grow. The character of the tree is shaped during this growth phase. More importantly, their presence draws attention, and that's where the risk comes in. Starting tomorrow, you'll need to be vigilant; your trees will attract more than just peaceful wild spirits."
As they left the backyard, the guardian added, "Good work on the gardens. The natural order seems to be restoring itself."
***
Neither Kora nor Keynes fully understood the guardian’s warning until the next day. Early in the morning, they sensed two weak spiritual spikes. Keynes's tree spiked an hour before Kora's. It didn’t make much sense, as his tree had twice the mana rate of Kora’s, which meant it wasn’t based on the mana rate.
In the end, it didn’t matter. The growth rate of these trees was artificial anyway.
Shortly after each spike, Keynes sensed a very faint spiritual presence.
It's like a baby, Alice noted unexpectedly. Can I play with it?
What? What are you talking about? Keynes asked her.
The tree, of course, Alice replied jovially.
Oh, then, no! You cannot play with it… wait. What do you mean it's like a baby? Can you see the tree’s spirit?
Of course. It’s like a tiny wisp attached to the ground. I won’t harm it.
Don't play with it, Keynes said, then got an idea. But stay nearby and watch its back. The guardian warned us that the tree’s spirit will attract other spiritual entities.
To the vast annoyance of Alice, the first wild spirit didn’t show up until the evening. By that time, the tree’s spirit had gained much strength and presence. The wild spirits were akin to insects, spiritual motes guided by some unknown instinct.
Keynes watched their behaviour and impact on the tree’s spirit. It was a weird experience to observe the Tree of Life both in the spiritual and physical realm in real time. There were proportions, but they were synced, and watching it felt insightful.
Oh, shit, Alice murmured. The tree is eating them.
Eating the wild spirits? Keynes asked, confused. He didn’t notice anything out of place. In fact, to see the wild spirits, he had to focus on his spiritual environment. Kora, on the other hand, wasn't able to sense them at all, which was surprising given his trait and spiritual stage.
Yeah, absorb, sort of.
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Keynes let himself be drawn by the spiritual world, similarly to how he had been enthralled by nature earlier. He closed his eyes and let his spiritual sense wander around the Tree of Life.
At first, nothing was out of the ordinary, but then things started getting hazy. His physical presence of mind faded away, changing into something like a dream. Keynes couldn’t focus on details; actually, he couldn’t focus at all. His thoughts were in disarray, his attention was fleeting and fickle. He just couldn’t hold it in one place.
What's happening to me? he murmured.
Alice’s voice came in, distorted and unintelligible. Keynes didn’t understand a thing, and soon his attention was drawn away from Alice’s voice. The world around Keynes began to change in a weird, twisted way, and then he saw the spiritual landscape…
"Keynes."
"OH," he gasped, feeling like he was being pulled out of water. He blinked several times, trying to decipher what was going on.
"Are you okay?" Kora asked.
"I guess," he nodded. "What happened?"
"You were in a trance and emitted an ungodly amount of weird spiritual energy."
"What do you mean by 'weird spiritual energy'?"
Kora weighed her answer.
"It was unlike a spiritual aura. It felt more raw and unfocused, but there was a richness to this energy. I've never experienced anything like this before, Keynes. What did you do?"
"I’m not sure myself. It has something to do with the trait. It messed up my perception."
It tried to attune your perception with the spiritual world, but your friend stopped you from full attunement, Alice chimed in.
I don’t get it. I can sense the spiritual world through my spiritual aura. What was the attunement meant to achieve?
The spiritual world has more depth than you can imagine, Alice replied. Most of it had been out of reach for me until you combined your traits into the Trait of Shamanism.
The next day came with more surprises as the Trees of Life finally started reacting to their spiritual environment in a more overt way. Even Kora was able to sense some signs. Not all of the changes were positive, and at some point, the mana rate dropped. Alice helped Keynes with the issue by hunting down the harmful wild spirits. He couldn’t share the information with Kora, but she figured it out not much later. Her spiritual companion was less potent than Alice, and she was forced to seek help from the dream tree.
As the deadline crept nearer, Keynes considered the insights he had gained during the time he cultivated the Tree of Life. He ventured into the spiritual realm a few times. Even without interruptions from Kora, the attunement was an ordeal, and Keynes realised that he wasn’t yet ready. It wasn’t simply about learning; it was his perception attuning with the spiritual realm. He didn't believe there was any easy way to speed it up.
A night before the deadline, the guardian returned and commended them on their achievements. Apart from cultivating their Trees of Life, they had worked on the tree house, receiving helpful support from the dream tree. Their backyard had also expanded, now including extra steam vents, new plants, and soil rich in minerals that the trees seemed to love.
As far as Keynes and Kora were concerned, they had done a good job, taking full advantage of every opportunity they could find.
Keynes explained his experience with the spiritual realm.
“This competition isn’t entirely about numbers, as you've come to believe. A part of it is also about the learning and insights you've gained along the road.”
“So the more we learn, the better our score?” Kora asked.
“It matters what you do with the insight.”
***
Keynes woke up tired. He couldn’t sleep because he was stressed about the results. His Tree of Life produced mana at a rate of 372 units per hour, while Kora’s tree was at 282 units. Given the rules of the competition, their mana would be added up and then divided by 2, which resulted in 327 units. Unfortunately, without knowing how their competitors fared, their result was anyone's guess.
“You look terrible,” Kora said when she saw Keynes.
“And I feel as such,” he agreed, then downed several potions that would improve his stamina and mental clarity. Anything to avoid feeling terrible.
They took a hot shower and grabbed a new set of clothes. Because they didn't have a washing machine, Keynes used [Purify] and [Create Water] to clean the clothes. It was a strange but effective method.
On their way to the amphitheatre, Keynes noticed how differently he perceived his surroundings. The trait made him feel a sort of companionship with plants and trees. The Children of the Forest showed curiosity and were keener to approach the two ascenders, though the guardian shooed them away.
By the time they arrived at the amphitheatre, other contenders were already taking their seats. All the guardians remained standing on the rim of the amphitheatre.
Keynes tightly controlled his senses, following the guardian’s advice. With everyone gathered, he understood why. The spiritual energy in the amphitheatre was like a boiling pot. It was obvious that either everyone, or almost everyone, had absorbed the Trait of Nature.
On top of that, the appearance of the Grand Druid was like a spiritual firestorm. Others also acknowledged his formidable presence by keeping their distance from the centre stage.
"Contenders, welcome and congratulations to those of you who were able to gain insight from this task. It will be invaluable to you in the next challenge," the Grand Druid began.
The words caused commotion among the gathered ascenders, but no one voiced any complaints. Keynes got a good look at some of them and noticed that some were worse for wear.
“I’m sure your guardians explained to you the scoring rules. The primary score is based on your total mana output, with additional points being awarded for personal insight. Judgement about the insight comes from the Father and lies outside of my jurisdiction.”
“Why weren’t we allowed to cultivate multiple patches?” the green-haired woman asked, sounding arrogant. “Your rules don’t constrain us to a single patch of soil.”
The Grand Druid turned to her and nodded. “Astute observation, contender, but you would never manage the entire garden. Plants that produce mana are very rare and very particular. Their cultivation is a challenging ordeal, requiring qualities you’re only beginning to scratch. If the Father allowed you to cultivate multiple plants, you’d invite horrors and troubles neither of you can deal with at this stage.”
“The Tree of Life is the least challenging of the mana-producing plants to cultivate,” he continued.
Keynes saw that the green-haired woman was not finished, but then she changed her mind and didn’t continue the topic.
“She’s smart,” Kora noted in a whisper. Keynes agreed. It appeared that she held off to stop the Grand Druid from revealing information that could benefit others. She had to be quite confident about herself.
“Does anyone else have additional questions?” The Grand Druid pivoted slowly, but only silence answered him. “Good. In that case, let’s go over the scores.”
Everyone gathered tensed up. The spiritual energy seemed to freeze, like the calm before a storm.
“In the last position with a score of…”