World Tree Seed

For the most part, Viola's soul had not changed much, but there was something more than yesterday.

A hazy, intangible flame enveloped her soul. It seemed to have ignited deep within her soul, burning from the inside out, and eventually gathered above it into a flame-like shape, drawing out faint, illusory threads that pierced the void and extended somewhere unknown.

Rayne's heart stirred, and then he realized what was happening.

It was not that Viola's soul had undergone a mutation, but rather that the enhanced Soul Eye allowed him to see more things.

He secretly observed the flame with some curiosity and sensed a kind of majesty and vastness that made his entire body tremble.

It was as if the illusory threads above her soul were connected to some great being!

Rayne hurriedly severed the connection.

"Is this the Divine Fire formed from faith, which is then offered to a deity?"

Rayne's thoughts raced. Viola was certainly not a deity; she was merely a mortal. Yet through faith, she maintained a connection with a deity, and that mass of Divine Fire condensed from faith protected her soul.

However, Viola's Flame of Faith seemed less than pure.

Her Flame of Faith was divided into two parts, and there were two illusory threads above her head, each leading to a different part of the void.

Rayne secretly guessed that Viola might worship two deities at the same time.

As a Wizard who had grown up in the Aurelian Empire, Viola's faith surely included the Goddess of Magic.

The Goddess of Magic was an extremely tolerant deity. She allowed her followers to worship other deities who were not opposed to her, so many citizens of the Empire worshiped multiple deities.

Rayne was somewhat curious about who the other deity Viola worshiped was.

Judging from the Flame of Faith, she actually contributed less faith to the Goddess of Magic, only one-third.

This portion of the Flame of Faith was like the light of a rainbow, its colors slowly shifting and changing constantly. It was filled with a sense of mystery and grandeur, and Rayne could easily tell that it was an expression of the Goddess of Magic's divine power, carrying the same aura as the Goddess of Magic Church.

The other two-thirds of the Flame of Faith were primarily pure white and incomparably pristine. They gave Rayne a feeling of lightness, cheerfulness, and beauty, reminding him of all the wonderful things in the world.

Rayne did not know which deity this was, but he could be certain it was not an evil deity.

He had no intention of investigating further. Faith was a very private matter, especially faith in a deity who was not commonly worshiped. Sometimes, it could not be exposed to the light of day.

But being able to see divine power was fantastic news for Rayne.

It meant he could identify Loxi's Cultists. With a single glance, he could lock onto enemies hiding among those around him and would no longer have to fear being ambushed.

He took the tea Viola had brewed and sipped it, tasting a faint sweetness in his mouth.

It was probably an expensive variety of tea. Unfortunately, he did not recognize it and had no idea how to judge it. After holding it in for several seconds, he could only say, "Good tea."

Viola chuckled softly without exposing him and asked, "Rayne, have you decided which School of Wizardry you want to join?"

"Yes. I'm going to become a Combat Wizard." Rayne set down his teacup and answered casually.

Viola froze. Rayne's choice was far beyond her expectations.

Just yesterday, Rayne had firmly refused the World Tree Seed, looking as if he would rather die than buy it. Why had he suddenly changed his mind today?

Viola's brows furrowed slightly. If Rayne had said yesterday that he wanted to become a Combat Wizard, she would have been delighted. The World Tree Seed that had been stuck in her hands for several years could finally be sold.

But after witnessing Rayne's Soul Transformation Ritual, she felt that this might not be suitable after all.

She knew very well how unpredictable Combat Wizards were. Their strength fluctuated wildly, and even if Rayne achieved a perfect Soul Transformation, there was still no guarantee that merging with a Demon Soul would not fail.

The safest choices were the Spell Seal and Soul Control School. With Rayne's talent, he would certainly become a powerful Wizard far stronger than others of the same rank.

Viola also intended to befriend a Wizard with such limitless potential.

Of course, becoming a Combat Wizard would not necessarily bury Rayne's talent. It was simply filled with too many variables.

She had no intention of persuading Rayne to change his mind, nor did she ask why. She merely called over a maid and had her bring up the World Tree Seed.

Soon, an exquisite wooden box was placed in front of Rayne.

Runes were carved across the surface of the wooden box. Clearly, it was an Alchemical Item, probably designed specifically to preserve precious objects.

Viola extended her slender finger and pressed it against the runes on the box, softly reciting the opening incantation.

The lid opened, revealing a golden seed.

"This is the seed of the World Tree. It has already been made into a Soul Merging Seed. Rayne, take a careful look," Viola introduced.

"All right."

Rayne studied it seriously. The seed looked much like an almond, golden all over as if cast from gold. Its surface was covered in faint patterns, and it was semi-translucent, radiating a soft glow. Looking at it gave him a mysterious feeling. It contained a tremendous amount of information inside, as if it might melt at any moment.

Rayne had never seen a Soul Merging Seed, but he assumed Viola had no reason to deceive him.

He withdrew his gaze, considered for a moment, and said, "Viola, I really need this Soul Merging Seed, but I don't have enough money right now. You said earlier that I could pay part of it first. How much do I need to pay?"

"How much do you have?" Viola asked in return.

"At most, two hundred and fifty Gold Shields." Rayne had obtained a whole box of banknotes from Esberg's estate, exchanging them for a total of three hundred and sixty Gold Shields. The Soul Transformation Ritual had cost him sixty-three, and he had spent another fourteen yesterday buying the Gold-Eating Ant, leaving him with two hundred and eighty-seven Gold Shields.

He still needed to keep some as capital and could not spend it all, so he could only pay this much for now.

As for how he would make money in the future, Rayne already had several vague ideas.

What he was worried about now was Viola refusing. The Soul Merging Seed cost one thousand five hundred Gold Shields, and he was short by quite a lot.

"You're somewhat wealthier than I expected." Viola leaned back against the sofa, looking relaxed and not at all like she was negotiating a business deal. After barely any consideration, she nodded and said, "Two hundred and fifty Gold Shields is enough."

Rayne was extremely surprised. He had not expected Viola to agree so easily.

Before he could ask anything, Viola continued, "You must pay the rest within three years, Rayne. We'll sign a transaction contract, and this Soul Merging Seed will be yours."

"You're not afraid I'll default?" Rayne found it even harder to believe.

The transaction contract Viola mentioned was generally signed in the name of the God of Wealth and Trade. Such contracts had legal force, but the Empire was enormous. If Rayne decided to flee and Viola could not find him, the contract would be useless.

A confident smile appeared on Viola's face. "Don't underestimate the strength of the Violet House, Rayne, student from Eagle Marsh Town."

Hearing the last part, Rayne immediately understood.

Sure enough, Viola had learned that he was a student of the academy from the remark he had accidentally let slip yesterday. She had already sent people to investigate, and their efficiency was astonishing—they had found his hometown in a single day.

"They found Eagle Marsh Town in just one day. The forces behind the Violet House are formidable!"

"No wonder she isn't afraid I'll default."

Rayne shook his head helplessly and agreed at once.

In fact, he knew very well that he was the one benefiting from this deal. The more than one thousand remaining Gold Shields amounted to a loan from Viola, and she was not charging any interest. Clearly, she was very optimistic about his future.

He also began to speculate about Viola's background. Did it come from her Elven family, or was it connected to her faith?

At the same time, Viola quickly drafted the transaction contract.

After confirming that everything was in order, Rayne signed his name, took a heavy pouch from inside his coat, and handed Viola two hundred and fifty Gold Shields.

Viola pushed over the box containing the Soul Merging Seed.

Rayne did not waste any time and asked Viola to prepare a room for him.

He sat alone in the room for more than ten minutes. Once his emotions had completely settled, he used a small knife to cut a shallow wound between his brows, drawing blood.

Then he picked up the golden Soul Merging Seed, stained it with blood, and pressed it against his forehead.

The almond-shaped seed seemed to have been stimulated. It rapidly melted, turning into a stream of energy that burrowed through the wound. The next instant, a tremendous amount of information surfaced in Rayne's mind.

Rayne shut his eyes tightly and concentrated on receiving the information.

This was a Meditation Method. Viola had already introduced it to him. It was the World Tree Meditation Method created specifically for Combat Wizards, capable of strengthening a Wizard's Soul Power, merging with Demon Souls, and casting spells.

Deep within Rayne's soul, his Mutated Cellphone had long since taken root. As soon as the Soul Merging Seed entered, the cellphone reacted, actively drawing the seed toward itself. It fell into the center of the flower formed from eight petals, then vanished without a trace.

Rayne was shocked and had no idea what was happening.

A few seconds later, a burst of light flashed. From the flower's core emerged a lush, verdant sapling. Like time-lapse photography, it rapidly rose and grew at a speed visible to the naked eye. Soon, it had grown into a small tree, its roots firmly embedded in the red flower, leaving only a solitary trunk.

Looking at the little tree, Rayne sensed an infinite vitality and understood that this was the embryonic form of a World Tree, representing his Soul Power.

As he continued meditating and increased his Soul Power, this World Tree formed from Soul Power would grow along with it!

But if he wanted the World Tree to grow branches and leaves, he had to merge with a Demon Soul.

Rayne took out the Soul Stone he had prepared long ago, pressed it against his forehead, and activated the Demon Soul merging ability in his cellphone without hesitation.

A force of suction appeared. In the next instant, the Gold-Eating Ant's Demon Soul was drawn out and sucked into his mind.

Rayne clearly saw the not particularly powerful Demon Soul merge into his soul. Since this was his first time merging with a Demon Soul, it did not produce a violent reaction or any conflict. It smoothly fused with his soul, becoming indistinguishable from it.

"An extremely high fusion rate, nearly perfect!"

Rayne could hardly suppress his joy. The Gold-Eating Ant's Demon Soul had suffered almost no weakening and had merged into him as naturally as water flowing into a channel.

Nourished by the Demon Soul, the World Tree in his soul rapidly grew taller.

At the same time, the trunk sprouted its first branch.

The branch extended and grew horizontally, producing three pale golden leaves. Each leaf bore a clear Element Rune: "Strength," "Body of Steel," and "Metal Touch," all originating from the Gold-Eating Ant.

The moment the fusion was complete, Rayne immediately sensed his body undergoing a mutation!