The weight of history
Franca grasped the "Judgement" sign and whispered in Hermetic, "Please Judgement!"
The seemingly ordinary Tarot Cards remained Change, but just a few seconds later, the Golden Rooster Inn began to shake noticeably.
The brown -Green Trees and lush Vines covering the building's surface had receded considerably, as if in fear of something.
This suddenly broadened Franca's view of the scenery outside the window, allowing her to see the sky merging with the blurred Canopy, where the clouds seemed to be caught in Hurricane, being blown in the same direction.
As the wind Change, countless white clouds formed a massive Whirlpool, cascading down towards the ground and stretching into a giant sword of air that pierced through the heavens and earth.
The giant sword fell, Daoist stood steadily in the middle of the Messy Street.
It was a Women with blonde hair that reached her shoulders, wearing a rather traditional Gray-White knight's training uniform.
She was over 1.5 meters tall, with delicate features and gentle eyes, yet she possessed an inherent dignity that commanded respect and obedience.
The Messy Street where she stood was no longer what it used to be. The surrounding buildings, the not-so-wide roads, and the vendors and pedestrians collectively caught up in various desires were separated into sections, scattered throughout the strange Wilderness, and mixed with other streets.
Between them are numerous gnarled tree roots that have emerged from the Underground, distributed in layers outwards from the center of that giant brown-green Giant Tree, becoming denser the closer to the center.
It was precisely because of the existence of that strange Wilderness that the streets occupied by the Giant Tree remained undetected by outsiders!
Franca visibly breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the short but imposing blonde Lady arrive.
Holding the cards "Judgement" and "Two of Cups," she exclaimed sincerely, "Praise the Fool!"
Praise be to the ' Judgement ' Lady!
The Lady known as "The Judgement" looked towards the side of the giant brown-green Giant Tree as soon as That One landed. There, a cradle-shaped, dark red open carriage had been parked, pulled by two tall, Devil creatures with ram horns, jet -Pitch-Black, and Burning dark flames.
Inside the carriage sat a Women wearing a light-colored veil and a loose white Robe. Her belly was slightly protruding, and she radiated a tangible maternal glow.
"Lady Moon"!
The Weird Wilderness is her "Otherworld"!
"Lady Moon... You really did crawl out of the Rat hole..." The blonde Lady named "Judgement" Eyes blurry instantly, as if they had been dyed golden.
Through this, she saw the extraordinary forces intertwined with That One Women in the carriage, existing in different colors and states.
"Deprivation!" A solemn voice rang out from the "Judgement" Lady.
That's an Ancient Hermetic Vocabulary.
With a simple movement of her right hand, "Lady Moon" temporarily Deprivation different sexes and species of the ability to reproduce and give birth.
Immediately afterwards, the "Judgement" Lady leaned forward, extended her palm, and proclaimed again in Ancient Hermetic: "Banishment!"
A howling sound, an invisible yet immense force, swirled into a terrifying Hurricane, howling as it swept towards "Lady Moon".
They disregarded distance and seemed to originate right where the carriage was.
The Lady Moon's rosy lips, barely visible beneath her veil, suddenly parted, and she took a deep breath.
The exaggerated Hurricane, which seemed capable of uprooting an entire building, finally found an outlet in a sealed container and rushed into "Lady Moon's" mouth and body.
In a mere second, the Hurricane vanished without a trace, swallowed entirely by "Lady Moon".
With a strong maternal glow, she reached out her right hand and gently touched her protruding belly in a Soothing manner.
In that world where the Blue Sky and White Clouds are like Oil Painting, and the ground is covered with gnarled tree roots.
Lumian spotted Suzanne Matisse in the Canopy, exchanged a glance with her, and immediately conjured up semi-illusory crimson Fire Raven around him once more.
The Fire Raven circled and flew high into the sky, but they could never reach the ethereal Canopy; they could only approach but never make contact.
They fell onto the brownish-green trunk, scorching patches of blackened marks.
Seeing this, Lumian quickly changed his target.
He had previously discovered that Flames could cause some damage to this strange entity known as the "Shadow Tree"!
One after another, crimson Fireball coalesced and blasted towards the branches of the Giant Tree, but they only scorched them and failed to achieve any more significant effect.
Lumian temporarily stopped what he was doing. While Suzanne Matisse was busy with something and Charlotte Calvino was still recovering from her burns, seemingly hiding in some illusory scene, he made the crimson Flames in his palm condense layer by layer, eventually turning into a fist-sized Blazing White sphere.
Boom!
The explosion from the Blazing White Fireball was several times more intense than before; however, not a single bark of the "Shadow Tree" was torn off. Only a larger area of charred blackening and a slight inward curl of a pale giant flower proved that the Blazing White flames were not an illusion.
Lumian's expression was solemn. After a moment, he conjured a spear Entanglement Blazing White Flame in his palm.
He hurled his spear at the giant brown-green Giant Tree, watching it pierce pinholes in the charred bark before disintegrating into streams of flame that scattered across different parts of the tree.
Seeing this, Lumian's heart tightened, recalling a phrase her Older Sister Aurora often used to describe someone who overestimated their abilities and thus made unrealistic decisions:
"It's like an ant trying to shake a big tree."
Lumian's anxiety, restlessness, and fear made him raise his fists.
His fists were covered in crimson Flames.
With each strike he delivered to the giant brown-green Giant Tree, a wisp of fire seeped into it.
"Fire Infusion!"
Lumian wanted to avoid the Shadow Tree's tough outer bark and directly damage its core.
Clap clap clap!
Lumian's fiery fists rained down on the trunk of the brown-green Giant Tree, as if he wanted to pour all the Flames accumulated within his body into it.
With a series of frenzied attacks, he withdrew his fists and took a step back.
Rumble!
A muffled explosion came from inside the tree trunk, and the already charred bark, still glowing with fire, finally peeled off.
It suddenly blurred and became hazy, as if a beautiful dream from the Past had been illuminated by a match.
Lumian was momentarily dazed, as if he had become the man in his dream, engaged in a fierce physical struggle with a beautiful Lady in a gorgeous Long Dress, the hem of which was completely intact.
The unfamiliar feeling was so clear, almost tangible, that Lumian felt as if he had experienced it firsthand.
Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his ankle, instantly waking him up. He saw that a large number of branches and Vines had somehow extended Entanglement him, some of which had already wrapped around his feet. After a series of persistent attempts, the sharp thorns finally pierced through his Blood-Colored Robe, penetrated his skin, and began to draw blood.
Lumian snorted, and bursts of Flame Cloak over his Flesh Robe.
With a crackling sound, all the branches and Vines were lit up, Burning fiercely, and quickly turned into withered branches and ashes.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Lumian jumped to the side and turned his gaze to the wound he had just created.
What met his eyes was still the brownish-green bark, only it was slightly more concave than the surrounding area.
Beneath the bark is still bark!
Lumian's pupils dilated sharply, and he made a rough guess about the current situation:
The "Shadow Tree" has been nourished by countless abnormal desires in Trier over the past one or two thousand years. Each piece of its bark may correspond to certain human activities at a certain time. They are layered on top of each other, carrying both the weight of history and the subtleties of Humanity.
Simply put, if Lumian wants to destroy this "Shadow Tree," he needs to confront countless desires accumulated over the past one or two thousand years, and he just used all his strength to kill one of them—one in hundreds of millions, billions, or even tens of billions.
How can we fight like this!
Only then did Lumian realize the abnormality of his behavior:
Instead of looking for a way to escape, he kept attacking the "Shadow Tree".
After exchanging a glance with Suzanne Matisse, he was overwhelmed by fear, anxiety, and impatience!
No wonder Suzanne Matisse let me do as I pleased, no wonder Charlotte Calvino didn't come out to stop me despite her injuries... Although Lumian was constantly on guard against the "Fallen Dryad" and the "Actor" stirring up his desires and emotions, he was still unknowingly affected.
He looked up again, gazing upwards, and saw Suzanne Matisse, enveloped in long, turquoise hair, constantly shifting positions within the blurred Canopy, chanting strange Incantation. Charlotte Calvino, meanwhile, resumed her previous actions, strolling from one illusory scene to another, her clothes, hairstyle, and makeup constantly changing according to different historical periods—this seemed to be more than just a performance.
As Lumian raced, he suddenly felt dizzy and his strength was rapidly draining away.
He had never had this experience before, but he had let several people experience it.
A date rape drug, the kind used by the Bliss Society!
Lumian, adept at observing his surroundings, quickly took out his Mysticism Smelling Salts while focusing his gaze on the numerous pale-colored giant flowers on the brown-green Giant Tree.
He suspects that the gases causing unconsciousness are released by them!
Achoo!
With a sneeze, Lumian turned around, intending to distance himself from the "Shadow Tree".
Mr. K still hadn't appeared.
The next second, tree roots burst forth from the Underground, forming a wooden fence over ten meters high around the giant brown-green Giant Tree, blocking Lumian's escape route.
Lumian stopped and turned around. He saw countless cracks on the trunk, branches, and many roots of the "Shadow Tree." Some of them had sprouted wet, pale Flowers, while others resembled Gloom, deep, viscous maws that were rapidly extending toward him.
After staring at him for a second, Lumian, with nowhere to escape, curled the corners of his lips into a smile.
He suddenly stretched out his right hand and pressed it against his left chest, saying in a mocking tone, "Termiboros, they really look down on you, actually wanting to use you as Sacrifice."