" A Ya! It's time to plant Star Dew Grass!" A Mu called out to those behind him. A Ya immediately picked up the Star Dew Grass and followed A Shu, a child of the Forest Dwellers, into the soil around the Fallen Star Crater. A Shu skillfully used a wooden shovel to dig shallow holes at the base of the Starleaf Tree and sprinkled some ground Starleaf Tree into them. "The old chieftain said that Starleaf Tree can help Star Dew Grass adapt to the forest faster, and its roots can intertwine with the roots of the Starleaf Tree to absorb Evil Energy together." A Ya then followed the " Symbiotic Planting Method " taught by Liya, scattering Stardew Grass seeds on the shavings and watering them with diluted Soul-Purifying Water. As soon as the seeds touched the water, tiny green shoots sprouted, and the roots quickly burrowed into the soil, soon intertwining with the roots of the Starleaf Tree. When the leaves unfolded, they even shimmered with a silvery light similar to that of the Starleaf Tree.
A Shi squatted beside the Starleaf Tree, his notebook filled with rapid notes. "At 2:45 AM, the Elemental Resonance Technique was activated, and the gray spots on the Starleaf Tree faded by 20%; at 4:40 AM, the symbiotic zone of Star Dew Grass and Starleaf Tree took shape, and the rate of Evil Energy seepage slowed down; at 1:15 PM, the silver light on the Starleaf Tree leaves recovered by 30%!" He also asked A Shu to help measure the flow rate of the Starleaf Tree's sap and drew a distribution map of the Fallen Star Crater and Starleaf Tree on the notebook, marking " The Evil Energy of the meteorite fragments on the northwest side is the strongest, and it needs to be purified more thoroughly"—that was what A Shu said, because the gray spots on the Starleaf Tree on the northwest side were the most severe after each rain.
Just as A Mu was purifying the edge of the Fallen Star Crater, the largest meteorite fragment suddenly emitted a blinding purple-blue light. The Evil Energy spread rapidly along the soil, and the Starleaf Tree leaves, which had just regained their silver light, turned pale gray again. A Mu gripped the hilt of his sword in a hurry, and suddenly remembered the " Tree Speech " spoken by the Forest Dwellers. He immediately adjusted his state and used his mind to strengthen the resonance with the surrounding Starleaf Tree, allowing the power of many trees to gather together and form a pale green " Tree Power Barrier," temporarily blocking the spread of Evil Energy.
"Use the purple light of the meteorite fragment as a 'guiding light'!" The old patriarch of the Forest Dwellers walked over, leaning on his wooden cane, and lightly touched the meteorite fragment with his fingertips. "Although the meteorite's Evil Energy is special, it flows with its own purple light. If you transform your ice and fire power into fluctuations at the same frequency as the purple light, you can follow the purple light to penetrate deep into the fragment and purify the Evil Energy hidden inside."
A Mu immediately adjusted the frequency of his ice and fire powers, causing the fire power to glow with a faint purple light and the ice mist power to glow with a faint blue light. The two powers intertwined to form a light stream of the same origin as the meteorite fragment, which was slowly injected into the fragment. The purple and blue light of the fragment instantly softened, and the Evil Energy seemed to be drawn by the light stream, slowly seeping out along the patterns on the surface of the fragment. The newly planted Star Dew Grass immediately stretched out its leaves, firmly absorbing the Evil Energy. The silver light of the leaves became brighter, and even fed back to the Starleaf Tree, causing the branches of the tree to glow with a faint green light.
"Look at the center of the fragment!" A Shu suddenly pointed to the core of the meteorite fragment. Everyone looked down and saw a crystal core with a silvery-blue light embedded in the crack in the center of the fragment—half of the crystal core was buried in the fragment, and its surface was wrapped with very faint black threads; it was indeed a " Fallen Star Crystal "! The light of the crystal core echoed the purple-blue light of the meteorite fragment, clearly indicating that it was the life core of the forest, but it was bound by Evil Energy, which was why it could not play its role in stabilizing the energy of the forest.
"This is the ' Heart of the Star Vein ' of the woodland!" Loran crouched down, his fingertips glowing with a purifying light. "Activating it will completely stabilize the meteorite's Evil Energy and restore the Starleaf Tree to its former silver luster— A Mu, are you willing to give it a try?"
A Mu nodded, gently placing the New Sprout Sword on the meteorite fragment. Instead of immediately injecting power, he first strengthened the resonance with the surrounding Starleaf Tree, allowing the power of the trees to merge with his own ice and fire power. Then, he slowly injected the light stream mixed with the tree power into the Fallen Star Crystal. The silver-blue light of the crystal core instantly surged, and the black threads on the surface, like ice and snow melted by starlight, quickly receded. The silver-blue light spread along the meteorite fragment, covering the entire Fallen Star Woodland.
"The silver light of the Starleaf Tree is back!" the Forest Dwellers suddenly cheered. Everyone looked up and saw that the Starleaf Tree leaves, which were originally grayish-brown, were now covered with silver light again. When the wind blew, the forest seemed to be sprinkled with stars; the Star Dew Grass around the Fallen Star Crater shimmered with a silvery-green light, intertwining with the light of the Starleaf Tree to form a magical band of light; even the air was filled with the sweet fragrance of Starleaf Tree sap.
The Forest Dwellers emerged from their treehouses, carrying snacks made from Starleaf Tree and drinks made from its sap. The old chieftain handed the boys a bowl of warm "star dew drink," smiling as he said, "This is made with the sap of Star Dew Grass and Starleaf Tree. Thank you for bringing the forest back to life!"
A Ya took out her paintbrush and knelt down beside the meteorite fragment to sketch—she deliberately included the silvery light of the Starleaf Tree, the green shoots of the Star Dew Grass, and the scene of the Forest Dwellers cheering in the treehouse in her drawing. She also marked next to the Fallen Star Crystal, "The life core of the Fallen Star Woodland, requires monthly monitoring of the star-leaf luster and the meteorite crystal's radiance." The Icefield Wolf came over and gently touched the Fallen Star Crystal with its paw. The silvery-blue light of the crystal core condensed into a small star-leaf-shaped light pattern in its paw, making A Shu and the boys laugh.
As the sun sets, the silvery light of the Fallen Star Woodland reflects the evening glow, creating a scene of breathtaking beauty. The leaves of the Starleaf Tree sway in the wind, and the light bands of Star Dew Grass encircle the Fallen Star Crater. The aroma of food wafts from the treehouses of the Forest Dwellers. A Shu is teaching A Shi how to judge the health of the Starleaf Tree using " Tree Speech "—if you can hear a clear "whisper" when you put your ear to the trunk, it is a healthy tree.
A Mu compiled today's patrol records into a "Forest Guardian Log," with a symbiotic diagram of Fallen Star Crystal and Starleaf Tree drawn on the title page; A Shi, on the other hand, summarized the Starleaf Tree recovery data and meteorite Evil Energy index into a table, saying he would take it back to the Holy Land to compare with the ecological data of the swamp and study the dissipation patterns of different elemental Evil Energy.
On the return journey, the Fallen Star Crystal suddenly emitted a silver-blue light, extending towards the " Aurora Icefield " on the north side of the woodland. Loran touched the crystal core and smiled, saying to the boys, "It seems it sensed the life fluctuations of the ice field. Next time we patrol, we can go and check out the Aurora Icefield."
A Mu gripped the New Sprout Sword tightly, the Ice-Fire Entwining Pattern on the scabbard echoing the silver-blue light of the crystal core. "Whether it's the Ice Plains or somewhere else, we can work with the local residents to protect life in a suitable way!" The boys' laughter echoed in the forest, and the golden figure of the Icefield Wolf ran through the Starleaf Tree, a silvery star leaf dangling from its mouth, as if collecting a souvenir for the next journey of protection.
As night deepened, A Mu placed the Woodland Logs into the "Guardian Bookshelf"—the shelf was already filled with eight logs, from the water veins of the Clear Creek River and the flowers and plants on the edge of the abyss, to the Ironleaf Flower of the mines and the Fluorescent Butterfly of the Elven Woods, to the wind Windwhisper Stone of the grasslands, the Tidal Crystal Core of the bays, the Marshheart Crystal of the marshes, and the Fallen Star Crystal of the woodlands, each one filled with the growth and protection of the young people. Moonlight shone through the gaps in the tent onto the logs, reflecting the ice and fire warning crystals and star leaf specimens beside the bookshelf, as if telling a story: the path of protection has no end, those small beauties hidden in the woodlands, wetlands, and grasslands, those warmths built together with different groups in their own unique ways, will eventually nurture a more diverse and vibrant landscape of the continent over time.
The story of " The Qilin of Falling Maple " continues to grow amidst the stars in the forest, the light of the crystal core, and the laughter of the young boy. There are no thrilling battles, only Star Dew Grass planted by hands, Tree Speech records written with pen, and elemental resonance transmitted through the star-leaf forest—these ordinary acts of protection, like the silver light of the Fallen Star Woodland, are gentle yet brilliant, slowly converging into a protective river that illuminates the continent, flowing gently towards the more distant Aurora Icefield and more fantastical ecological lands.