Although Origin Force Plants are rooted in the earth and cannot move, they possess an almost unlimited lifespan, something the Insect Clan Warriors cannot compare to.
The Night Fragrance Divine-Given Seed is even more unique—it was planted by the Zhidun Guoluo Tribe on the lakeside, thriving on its own strength. Not only could it communicate with the tribe's warriors, but it also traded with Flame Spider Roving Merchants and bargained with warriors from other tribes.
Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid speculated that the Night Fragrance Divine-Given Seed must be a tree brimming with vast knowledge.
All the effort spent to revive it was, besides the natural kindness of ants and mantises, also in hope of obtaining some valuable information.
As expected, there was!
All it took was one question, and the answers came—very detailed, too.
The Cloud Trace Continent's entry into the Origin Force Silent Period did not happen abruptly; Origin Force dwindled year by year, this decline lasting over forty years until the land reached total Origin Force vacuum.
During those forty years, all Insect Clan Warriors frantically searched for and mined Source Stones, using them at any cost for survival and development, and desperately trying to evolve to King-Level.
The southeastern coastal environment was extremely harsh, lacking fresh water and food, with Source Stone mines scattered only in bits and pieces, making it nearly impossible to find them all; there were likely oversights.
"Night Fragrance, how much do you know about Huagi Mountain?"
Dragon Cypress raised the second question.
Night Fragrance fell silent for a while, then countered, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, Ink Orchid, have you been to Huagi Mountain? What's it like now? Did you find their treasury? You two seem to know a lot, so you must have visited the Knowledge Hall, right? Did you see the Huagi Divine Tree? It must still be alive, right?"
"Did you get a detailed map of Cloud Trace Continent from the Knowledge Hall and then find Night Fragrance Mountain and me? What other tribe territories have you visited? What's their situation now?"
Upon awakening, Night Fragrance's doubts about this wildly changed world were no less than Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid's. Thɪs chapter is updated by 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮•𝘯𝘦𝘵
Dragon Cypress was organizing his thoughts, about to answer, when Ink Orchid asked, "Night Fragrance, did you not know about the Land of Origin Force before you went into slumber?"
Night Fragrance: "I did not. When Natural Primordial Force became too scarce to survive, I transformed my form into Tree Heart and buried myself with Source Stones."
Night Fragrance quickly realized and asked in surprise, "Don't tell me, Huagi Mountain became the Land of Origin Force? Does it still have Origin Force to this day?"
Ink Orchid: "Yes. And their Shield Grasshopper Warriors have barely had any break in succession, passing the lineage generation after generation till now."
Night Fragrance transmitted a lengthy mental wave filled with shock, envy, sentiment, and all kinds of complicated emotions, and sighed:
"Shield Grasshopper Warriors are not powerful, but they're always just so lucky."
Dragon Cypress knew their counterpart desperately wanted an update on the current state of the continent, so he spoke slowly:
"The Origin Force Point distribution shows no pattern. We've also visited Xinghu Lake, Chuisi Lake, and Xiaoyang Mountain; regrettably, none of them had Huagi Mountain's luck. We've seen the continent map from the Huagi Knowledge Hall. We'll visit more tribe territories whenever we have time."
Dragon Cypress paused and said, "The current Shield Grasshopper Warrior of Huagi Mountain is called Yellow Stem. Ink Orchid and I talked with him twice and learned a lot. We can confirm the Huagi Divine Tree is still alive, though we didn't see it in person. Ink Orchid and I are both very curious about just what sort of being it is."
Night Fragrance: "It's simple. The Huagi Divine Tree obtained three artifacts from Outworld Civilization. The two Divine God-Given Seeds at Quandong and Linnan have them too. They're incredibly powerful, able to resist Natural Laws, transcend King-Level, and keep evolving."
"I was rooted at Night Fragrance Mountain and frequently sensed intense Origin Force Fluctuations coming from Huagi Mountain—every few years, there would be a huge commotion."
Dragon Cypress pressed, "What exactly are those three artifacts from Outworld Civilization like?"
Night Fragrance: "Egg-shaped, metallic, extremely light, almost weightless, named 'Glinting Gold.'"
Ink Orchid's eyes sparkled. Turning, she pulled out a Spider Silk Bag and opened it to reveal the egg-shaped Outworld Civilization Artifact they had just dug up at the Xiaoyang Mountain ruins for Night Fragrance to see.
Night Fragrance fell silent for a long time, then said, "Yes! Well, not exactly."
Night Fragrance: "Back then, we found quite a few such egg-shaped metal artifacts, all called 'Glinting Gold.' They varied in size and color and had differing functions. The most powerful were the three at Huagi Mountain; others had their uses, all to aid Divine-Given Seeds in growth, evolution, or bearing fruit. As far as I know, the Blue Beetle Tribe at Xiaoyang Mountain also happened to have one..."
Dragon Cypress: "That's right. We picked it up from the Blue Beetle Tribe's treasury."
Ink Orchid nudged Dragon Cypress and asked anxiously, "How does it work? What's it do?"
Night Fragrance tried hard to disguise it, but couldn't conceal the excitement in his tone, "It's simple. A Divine-Given Seed activates it by touching it with spiritual power. If this came from Xiaoyang Mountain, it should assist with evolution breakthroughs and fruiting, and is called the 'Second Heart.'"
Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid's tentacles stood up straight.
Night Fragrance probed, "Want me to demonstrate?"
Ink Orchid quickly closed the bag and said, "Thank you. No need to demonstrate. Just tell us; we'll understand."
Night Fragrance: "…Fine."
Night Fragrance: "It's simple—fuse it into the trunk, like a Tree Heart. Under normal conditions, it stores excess Origin Force, nutrients, and energy inside. When needed, especially during breakthroughs, it releases them all at once."
Dragon Cypress: "Great item!"
Ink Orchid: "A treasure!"
Ink Orchid turned to glare at Dragon Cypress: Who was it who just now so elaborately analyzed a bunch of things about how the item was useless?
Dragon Cypress: "..."
Night Fragrance: "I really need this Glinting Gold."
Dragon Cypress feigned ignorance, "You're already a King-Level Divine-Given Seed. What do you need it for?"
Night Fragrance: "I regenerated through Tree Heart form—fast growth and recovery consumed masses of Origin Force. I'm very worried White Lotus Lake won't be big enough; as my trunk keeps expanding, there's a risk of insufficient Origin Force supply... If it gets bad, I might..."
Night Fragrance: "Right now I have surplus strength. I can store Origin Force in the 'Glinting Gold,' then tap into it later when it's running short."
Dragon Cypress asked, "Night Fragrance, can't you control your own growth?"
Night Fragrance: "No. Not only can't I, but I must recover to a certain scale as soon as possible. Otherwise, my trunk won't be able to bear my rapidly recovering King-Level soul and strength—I could be severely damaged, even die."
Night Fragrance: "Dragon Cypress Ant King, Ink Orchid, we can trade."
So it really is a self-reliant Divine-Given Seed?
Dragon Cypress: "If I'm not mistaken, you don't have anything right now, do you?"
Night Fragrance: "Information is wealth too. As your reward for healing me, I've already given you the Source Stone mine information."
Dragon Cypress: "..."
Night Fragrance: "A crucial piece of information can bring immense wealth or lifelong benefits. And as it happens, I possess just such a thing."
Night Fragrance: "Lend me the Glinting Gold, help me recover and grow…"
Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid sensed the doubt in Night Fragrance Divine-Given Seed's phrasing.
"Wait!" Dragon Cypress raised a claw to interrupt.
"Lend?" Ink Orchid asked, "Lend it? Not give it to you? Didn't you say you'd fuse it into your trunk? Can you return it after you're done?"
Night Fragrance was also puzzled, "Glinting Golds were crafted by Outworld Civilization specifically to assist Divine-Given Seeds in evolving and growth. After use, of course, they can be returned."
Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid were overjoyed.
This meant the Glinting Gold could be used by multiple Divine-Given Seeds! That was simply priceless!