Qin An had rarely seen pain on a tree's face.
But this tree not only had a human face with distinct features, those features were twisted together.
Its expression of pain was even more vivid than a human's.
Qin An frowned and turned to Reincarnation. "What does this mean? Isn't it the guardian of the Nine-Story Tower? Why does it look so pained?"
Reincarnation shook her head slightly, then gazed up at the giant tree.
Beyond the depth in her eyes, there was a trace of helplessness and sympathy.
Qin An caught the change in her expression. He sensed there was more to this, but did not interrupt. He waited quietly for her to continue.
Only after studying the giant tree for a while longer did Reincarnation look back at Qin An. "Do you know how the Five Elements generate and restrain one another?"
Qin An frowned.
He knew a fair amount about the Five Elements. Before his Mind Method had evolved into Colorless Void Essence, it had possessed nine attributes.
He was hardly unfamiliar with the different attributes.
But when Reincarnation brought up the Five Elements Mutual Generation and Restraint, he felt as though he had caught a glimmer of insight—just not enough to clear the fog before him.
Reincarnation's tone softened. "In the Five Elements' cycle of restraint, metal restrains wood, wood restrains earth, earth restrains water, water restrains fire, and fire restrains metal. This giant tree is a victim of that cycle."
As she spoke, her gaze toward the tree grew more complicated, and the pity in her eyes deepened.
She paused briefly before continuing.
"Metal restrains wood, and the Metal Source represents the very pinnacle of the Metal Attribute. This giant tree, on the other hand, is made entirely of wood. It grew here despite being