Sunlight fell over the Great Forest once more, and white smoke rose into the air.
Inside the Forest Walker temple, a flower bud suddenly appeared on one of the tall Beech Ernst's branches. Its petals opened, then withered almost immediately, leaving behind a swelling fruit.
The fruit was green at first, but its fuzzy skin gradually turned reddish brown and dried out. A seed emerged from it, and one of the seeds fell onto several broad leaves in a gentle breeze.
As magic gathered on the leaf, a sprout broke through the seed coat and slowly grew, reaching toward a ray of sunlight.
Landen had just entered the temple when he saw the seed sprouting. From what he'd witnessed, Beech might have been stubborn in word, but in practice, he was quietly testing Gwenna's theories. Smiling, Landen walked beneath the tree.
"So, after watching the process from flower to sprouting seed again, do you think Gwenna might have a point?"
Only then did Ernst realize someone had seen what he'd been doing. His leaves suddenly shivered before he replied, "I never thought she was wrong. But the concepts she talks about can't be integrated into the current system of Life Magic, so I can't see what they mean."
A gust of wind lifted the seed from the leaf and gently set it in Landen's hand.
He didn't want to argue with a big old tree, so he simply continued, "For a seed to grow into a tree, it needs enough matter, energy, and information. What Gwenna is talking about is how information in plants affects matter."
"But..."
Landen ignored Beech and went on. "If another part of a plant could receive not only enough energy and matter, but also new information, could that part become a whole new plant?
"Or