On the way to the Black Bone camp, Qimeng confirmed through the natural spirit marks that the two were not lying. Only then did she truly put her mind at ease and officially welcome them into the Tree Court.
During their conversation, Gaia also shared his past.
He was not a native demon of this continent; rather, Elise had summoned him from the Demon Realm.
The so-called Demon Realm was located beyond the cliff barrier of this continent, a wild and desolate land where humans had never set foot.
The environment there was harsh. To survive, the demons had torn through the barrier and rushed onto the continent hundreds of thousands of years ago, occupying land and multiplying ever since.
As for the ambitious Demon King, he naturally talked about conquering the continent all day long.
But Gaia, by nature, had no such ambitions.
His parents had died on the continental front lines in his early years. Hating war, he chose to remain in the perilous Demon Realm, fighting fierce beasts day in and day out, which was how he had forged his powerful combat strength.
He never expected that Elise's heretical summon would become a ray of light in his lonely demonic life.
To Qimeng's pleasant surprise, Gaia's strength at his peak had actually reached the Dominator Rank.
That was a high-tier combat power that surpassed the Extraordinary Rank.
Once his injuries healed, the Tree Court would gain a super-powered enforcer out of thin air.
For the Tree Court, which currently lacked high-tier combat power, this was undoubtedly spectacular news.
“Speaking of which, Elise,” Qimeng said. “Why don't you teach me your family's summoning technique while we're at it?”
Elise's heart tightened, and she replied shyly, “That? The summoning technique? Actually, our family's orthodox summoning ritual requires preparing mana stones and blood contract arrays beforehand to summon obedient contract familiars...”
Qimeng waved her hand dismissively, her face full of disdain. “Stop, stop, stop! Who wants to learn that kind of gentle magic used to summon small animals for chores? I want to learn the kind you used to summon Gaia—that heretical forbidden spell that lets you summon things way above your rank! What normal person learns orthodox summoning anyway?”
“Eh???” Elise's head practically began to steam from panic, leaving her completely at a loss. “T-That dangerous, chaotic summoning array?!”
“According to Gaia, the harsh environment of the Demon Realm has bred incredibly powerful magical beasts. I want to see if I can bypass ranks and snag a powerful vassal too!” Qimeng said with great enthusiasm.
“But... do you really want to do that? It's extremely dangerous!” Elise pleaded in a small voice, her cheeks flushing. “Actually... that magic circle was just a dark history of mine that I randomly threw together...”
“You randomly threw it together and managed to summon a Dominator Rank?!” Qimeng placed her small hands on Elise's shoulders, her eyes filled with absolute determination. She was absolutely going to learn this forbidden summoning spell!
Hearing their conversation, Baikui vigilantly scanned their surroundings.
Meanwhile, Gaia, who had recovered a bit of his strength, kept Elise half-shielded behind him, his expression extremely tense.
The scene looked inexplicably comical.
“It really, really is extremely dangerous!” Elise stamped her feet in anxiety. “Because it's an out-of-control magic circle, there's absolutely no telling what might respond to it! It could be an ancient evil thought lurking in the shadows, or a catastrophic magical beast that could devour the summoner!”
Gaia also added with a solemn expression, “Indeed, Master. There are all kinds of freaks beyond the cliffs of the Demon Realm. For instance, fleshless liches that have slept for tens of thousands of years, bone dragons that spit cold flames, or even evil spirits that sustain their physical forms by devouring souls... All of them are troublesome creatures that cannot be reasoned with.”
Qimeng didn't take it seriously at all. In fact, she grew more and more interested.
“Doesn't that sound even more exciting? If we don't try, how will we know if we can strike gold?”
Facing their master's look of absolute determination, a drop of cold sweat rolled down everyone's temples, and they silently prepared themselves to draw their blades and fight for their lives at any moment.
“Since Master has made up her mind...” Gaia gritted his teeth and bowed. “Then please wait a few days! Once my injuries heal and I return to my peak, I will guard you!”
“Yes, yes!” Elise nodded like a chicken pecking at grain. “I was incredibly lucky to meet Gaia. This move really is super dangerous!”
“Fine, fine, I'll listen to you two.”
Hearing this, Elise finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Knowing she couldn't sway her new master, she picked up a sharp stone and carved a magic circle onto a massive tree trunk.
Following the array patterns in her memory, she drew the modified forbidden summoning spell in its entirety and carefully repeated its key principles.
Seeing this, Gaia also offered the black-red blood fiend technique he mastered.
It was a destructive spell suitable for large-scale area clearing.
“Alright, take these. You guys look terrible right now.” Qimeng tossed advanced mana stones to the three of them.
They hurriedly caught them.
Looking at Gaia, whose severed arm had not yet fully regrown, Elise, who was exhausted and injured, and Baikui, whose parasitic body was half-destroyed, Qimeng frowned.
“You're all wounded soldiers! Forget it, absorbing mana stones is too slow. Just use these instead.”
She stopped the three who were about to absorb the mana stones. With a clench of her palm, three 【Life Fruit】s materialized out of thin air.
Although this would consume the Tree Court's life reserves, she could easily replenish them by slaughtering more magical beasts and absorbing their nutrients. She didn't mind the cost at all.
Receiving the magic fruits overflowing with rich life force, the three were moved to tears. After bowing respectfully to express their gratitude, they swallowed the fruits.
An emerald light of life enveloped them.
The sound of squirming and reconnecting bones and muscles echoed from within.
Gaia's severed arm reattached itself within the green light, and a billowing demonic energy erupted from his body.
The pressure of a Dominator Rank expert had returned!
Baikui and Elise also returned to their peak states in an instant.
A moment later.
Below a breathtakingly beautiful waterfall.
The cascading water crashed down like a white silk ribbon, kicking up a dense mist.
Working in perfect harmony, Elise and Gaia used advanced mana stones to set up an extra-large summoning array on a damp boulder for Qimeng.
“Now, it's time to reveal the grand prize!”
Qimeng sliced her finger.
A drop of blood containing astonishing natural magic dripped into the eye of the array.
In an instant, a pillar of pitch-black chaotic light shot straight into the sky!
Even the curtain of water was forcibly sliced in half!
In the void, hair-raising anomalies descended over the land.
The withered bones of ancient liches from tens of thousands of years ago flickered, dark bone dragons that blotted out the sun roared, and blue-skinned, fanged great demons of the Demon Realm howled!
These ancient monsters, capable of destroying kingdoms, were actually fighting tooth and nail in the sky, turning everything upside down just to seize the right to respond to this summon from beyond their realm!
“W-What is this?!”
“They're fighting! They're fighting among themselves!”
Terrified out of her wits, Elise grabbed Gaia's arm.
“When I summoned before, at most I saw a few fierce beasts from the Demon Realm... Why are these all ancient monsters from tens of thousands of years ago?!”
“Master's magic pressure... is simply terrifying,” Gaia muttered, swallowing hard as cold sweat poured down.
Suddenly, Elise came to her senses, her beautiful eyes turning to Qimeng.
“As expected of Master! To think you could make so many ancient monsters fight and scramble just for a chance to become your subordinate... Come to think of it, Gaia and I being able to secure spots as Master's subordinates was truly a stroke of miraculous luck!”
Rate on N.U.
