Volume 2: Life and Death at Speed in the North Realm - The Spirit Vein and the World Crystal Tree

"Ladies and gentlemen! The race, which was temporarily suspended due to a major accident, has now resumed! While we are deeply disappointed by the withdrawal of many strong teams, the two most popular teams in this competition, Vino Lions Team and Ferruggio Silver Wolf Team, have both announced that they can continue the race!"

Countless spectators outside the stadium and on screens immediately erupted in deafening cheers, especially the supporters of the two teams, who were almost in a frenzy. Too much perfection is itself a kind of imperfection, and flaws often enhance the value of things. So after the great disaster of the Blood Tree Swarm, the momentum of the Northern Realm Rally did not diminish but increased, and even many people who were not originally interested in racing participated.

This has brought the popularity of the two teams vying for the final showdown to its peak. Whether it's Vino, already widely recognized as the world's strongest team overall, or Vino Lions, Ferruggio has made a dark horse comeback after seven years of dormancy, their supporters are growing exponentially. Betting on who will be the ultimate champion is incredibly heated. The very few lucky few who bet on Ferruggio at the start of the race are now on tenterhooks; if they win, it will be a huge windfall, but if they lose, all their efforts will be for naught.

The camera pans to the stadium--

At the edge of the Engai Forest, two cars stood side by side, one an elegant silver-grey, the other a dazzling gold. Both cars had multiple scratches on their exteriors and noticeable dents in their hoods, but there was no doubt they could last until the end of the race.

"Are you all ready?"

Ally sat upright in the driver's seat, a confident smile on her face.

"Everything's okay." I gave a thumbs up.

"Let's just wait to set off." Givinia was also ready.

"The new parts are all very compatible!" Ailin had already finished her inspection.

"Okay, then--"

Ally looked out the window, her gaze falling on the handsome man sitting in the gold car.

"How are you, Kilga?"

"Wow, it's rare for little Ally to show concern for me. What's wrong? Have you finally fallen for me?" Kilga's tone remained flippant, but it contained a hint of anticipation for the upcoming match.

"My sister would never be interested in you!"

Before Ally could reply, Ailin stuck her head out of the car window and called out, her little face full of jealousy.

"Don't talk about that, Ailin... I haven't thought about it yet..."

Ally blushed immediately. Now that she had calmed down, she realized that her sister's feelings for her were indeed a bit... well. How should she face her sister in the future? How should they get along? Should they still be good sisters? There were so many things to consider.

Thinking this, Ally shook her head vigorously, banishing the distracting thoughts. This was the final battle; matters of the heart could wait.

"Gulp (swallows saliva), um, Ailin..." Ally calmed herself down and turned to look at Ailin.

"Yes, sister!"

"That..."

After a moment's hesitation, Ally made up her mind and met Ailin's gaze.

"I will definitely give you an answer after the match is over."

"Sister..." Ailin's eyes lit up instantly.

"Okay! You have to give me a proper answer, okay? It's a promise!"

For a moment, the atmosphere in the car became somewhat ambiguous. I felt a little uncomfortable with this cloying atmosphere, while Givinia's eyes were sparkling, and she was even drooling... Hey, hey, hey, mind your image as a beautiful woman!

"What are you whispering about... Never mind, let me tell you, little Ally, show me your Secret Technique techniques and your jet spray, or you're sure to lose!"

"Ah, no, I don't intend to use the jet."

"Ha?"

Kilga thought he had misheard.

"I can't use the spray anymore. Although the Blood Tree swarm has stopped moving, this strange 'suppression ability' phenomenon hasn't stopped; in fact, it's getting stronger..."

Indeed, our powers are still being suppressed. It seems that what's suppressing our powers isn't the Blood Tree Swarm, but something else entirely.

It might—no, it definitely has something to do with Crystal Realm Fruit.

Soon, we'll see the legendary Crystal Realm Fruit...

"Look, you can't use your ability to make objects you touch fly right now. I can't create new Jet Point, but I can still use the old Jet Point I built before entering the forest—doesn't that seem unfair to you? So I've decided: no Jet Point, we'll decide the winner entirely by driving skills!"

"You..." Kilga was stunned for a moment, but then he revealed a provocative smile.

"A pure driving skills contest... Heh, that's interesting. I'm becoming even more obsessed with you!"

"Watch your mouth, you hentai!"

There are currently twenty-eight caravans still in the Engai Forest.

Of the 3,012 teams that traveled 18,200 kilometers, less than one percent remained at the top of the pack.

The one at the very front is--

Boom--Boom boom!!!

The two weathered steel beasts roared with their engines, their combined roars sounding like the howls of wolves and the bellows of lions. The lion and the silver wolf, two magnificent beasts who had won in the end, finally stood on the stage of the final.

The organizers even set up a cordon 200 meters around the car, and countless reporters crowded outside the cordon to take pictures. The sound of shutters was constant, and reporters from different channels almost got into a fight over the best live broadcast positions. Behind the reporters were thousands of loyal car fans. Almost all of them were aristocrats and the super-rich who had used various means to obtain the privilege of watching the game live and had traveled overnight by airship.

"Buzz--Buzz----"

A strange buzzing sound came from several airships overhead; it was the static from large loudspeakers. After a few seconds of adjustment, the referee's voice echoed throughout the forest.

"All players, to your positions—"

Rumble—boom boom boom boom!

The engine's low growl turned into a roar, and both cars began to tremble, like a predator gathering its strength to pounce on its prey.

"Preparation----"

Ally had completely entered a state of mind free of distractions; her eyes were fixed straight ahead, her expression utterly peaceful, as was Kilga's on the other side.

Then, that moment finally arrived.

"--start!!!!!"

Boom!!!!!!!!!

The audience erupted in thunderous cheers, and under the watchful eyes of the world, the golden and silver shadows exploded with a deafening roar, kicking up clouds of dust as they shot out at the same time!

"The moment has finally arrived..."

Amidst the cheering crowd, Luo Huan watched the two cars speed away, lost in thought.

"Yes... who would have thought they'd be the ones to win the championship in the end?"

Tani Hana Mei also looked on with emotion.

"Tch! If it weren't for the unlucky Earthwalker being destroyed by the Blood Tree of Souls, I'd be the one vying for first place now!" Lewis seemed a little resentful.

"No, you're wrong," Emilia suddenly said.

"I was wrong?"

"Yes, it's not just a matter of luck... It's precisely because it's Ally that she was able to do it."

Lewis silently watched Emilia's gaze; her expression was calm, and she held absolute hope for Ally.

"... Heh, that's true. If she still can't win the championship after accepting our parts... I'll definitely spank her when she gets back."

Lewis smiled slightly, feeling as if he had returned to his childhood, to the little boy who watched the racing competition on the screen with longing and anticipation, eagerly guessing the final result.

Before the Blood Trees awakened, this stage was challenging, but there were still three to four meters of space between the trees for the cars to pass through. However, after the Blood Trees wreaked havoc, countless rocks and broken logs were scattered throughout the forest. The remains of those Blood Trees were extremely large, sturdy, and flexible; running over them risked overturning the car. It could be said that the difficulty had increased several times compared to the beginning!

However--

Turn, shift gears, accelerate!

Sirius's speed never slowed down from the start; Ally maintained an ultra-high speed, speeding through the forest littered with blood tree corpses. Her dynamic vision was pushed to its limits, allowing her to clearly see the position of every obstacle even at high speed, and instinctively calculate multiple feasible routes simultaneously. The coordination between her hands, eyes, and feet was seamless, with every movement extremely precise. With minimal adjustments to the car, she dodged countless sections of dead wood by the slightest margin, maximizing efficiency while ensuring safety.

That was fantastic!

Having gone through so much rally racing, I, who was originally a novice, can now see quite a bit of the intricacies involved.

Ally's performance at this moment was absolutely invincible.

Despite this--

Buzz!!!

A golden car suddenly appeared on the side, leaving a long golden trail, like a golden lion running through the forest!

The wolf could not escape the lion's pursuit.

The two cars were locked in a tight race, never managing to pull more than five meters apart. Although Ally occasionally managed to gain a slight advantage, she was generally under pressure.

"Don't be... hasty!"

Ally muttered to herself, but her movements suddenly quickened; she pressed the accelerator pedal, and the car's speed increased again.

"Ally!" "Sister!"

"Tsk--!"

Just before crashing into the tree, Ally jerked the steering wheel, narrowly avoiding the giant tree. However, the rearview mirror was still knocked off, leaving a trail of shattered glass as it flew backward!

"Don't rush, Ally! We must prioritize stability!" Givinia scolded.

No—I'm not in a hurry, but—

"It's okay, sister."

"Ailin ..."

"Sister, just do your best. Winning or losing is one thing, enjoying the game is another. Didn't Dad say, 'Those who know how to enjoy the game are the ones who can win'?"

"Ha... that's true, I acted impulsively just now."

"Ally isn't mature enough yet."

"Shut up! Watch how I torture them!"

Crystal Island, Underground Cave--

In the vast, shimmering space, a cluster of purplish-blue light shone exceptionally brightly.

The Sick Spider and the Stone Strike stood on either side, silently watching the cluster of light.

It was a tiny sapling.

It was only as tall as a person's knee, small and frail, as if it would shatter at the slightest touch.

Who would have guessed that this is the legendary guardian deity of the northern peoples— the World Crystal Tree?

The tiny sapling is quite different from the legendary towering tree.

But it's okay.

This is because it is the place where the spiritual veins of the entire North Realm Continent converge.

Those torrents of spiritual energy hidden deep underground, originating from the depths of the earth's crust, are truly inexhaustible resources. Throughout the history of the entire Spirit Star, every ancient civilization's birthplace has been traversed by spiritual veins.

A single spiritual vein is enough to nurture a civilization.

This is where several spiritual veins converge.

Only in this way can a divine Divine Item like the World Crystal Tree grow.

The method by which our ancestors hid the World Crystal Tree, though elaborate, was based on a very simple principle.

That is the sealing of the spiritual veins.

These spiritual veins have maintained a delicate balance for hundreds of millions of years. Once one of them is sealed, the balance is broken, and the spiritual energy becomes chaotic. It will take at least several thousand years for a new balance to be formed. During these several thousand years, the World Crystal Tree will have to go into hibernation because it cannot receive enough nourishment from the spiritual veins.

What kind of seal should be used?

The answer is the 'descendants' of the World Crystal Tree — the Crystal Tree, the King Crystal Tree, and the Crystal Emperor Tree.

As descendants of the World Crystal Tree, other Crystal Tree also need the nourishment of spiritual veins to grow. This makes things simple: transplant the Crystal Tree that originally grew on the Crystal Island to a key node of a spiritual vein. In this way, the spiritual vein will weaken due to the endless demands of the Crystal Tree, thus achieving the effect of being sealed.

The sealed spiritual vein—needless to say—is the land that the Northern Realm Rally passed through.

Now, the Crystal Tree on that spiritual vein has been almost completely destroyed. The spiritual vein has lost its restraint and will soon return to its former level. The balance of the several spiritual veins will also be restored to its optimal state. The World Crystal Tree, which has been dormant for thousands of years, is like a hungry ghost crawling out of hell, desperately devouring the torrent of spiritual energy brought by the spiritual vein, and is rapidly recovering to its peak state.

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Well, I knew the Monthly Votes wouldn't reach 30 so quickly.

Although posting photos is embarrassing, I still don't want to fall out of the top ten in Monthly Votes!