With only a quarter of his health left, he was about to surrender? Not only the players, but even Ed didn't believe such nonsense.
So instead of ordering a halt, he had Willow prolong the opponent's period of Disorder.
A group of players stepped forward and used their skills to reduce Motley's health to about five percent. During this process, Motley, who was on the verge of a mental breakdown, did not resist at all, or rather, he was unable to resist.
The final wave of Disorder and the resulting random numerical changes seemed to have completely reset his Plant Compatibility to zero, while his Psionic Energy Compatibility, which he was completely unskilled in, reached an unprecedented level.
Lying on the ground, Motley was completely unaware of the existence of his symbiotic plant; his eyes had turned into uncontrollable Psionic Energy vision.
Clusters of fiery Psionic Energy relentlessly attacked him, while the Psionic Energy aggregate above was writhing and devouring the scattered Psionic Energy around him.
He saw the cold, Black Sun descend from the sky, slowly approaching him, trying to devour him.
It wasn't until Ed had Willow relieve her of her Disorder that Motley finally met the puppeteer who had been aloof from the very beginning of the battle.
The Grand Knight Commander, whose vision had returned to normal, lay on his side on the ground, surrounded by a large pool of unidentified liquid mixed with tree sap and blood.
Ed looked at the Grand Knight on the ground:
"I accept your surrender. I can answer three questions for you, and then you will face your own fate."
Motley felt that death was a relief, but the mysteries in his heart were equally immense. He forced back a sliver of reason and asked, haltingly:
"You... are the mastermind behind this? What about Duolin? Where is Duolin?"
Ed nodded:
"It's me. Duolin is just my deputy. Duolin was the one who gave you the password when we arrived."
"Why are there so many people from different factions in White Wax Town...?"
"Alright, that answers to the three questions are complete."
Ed coldly interrupted Motley's question, and what he said shocked Motley even more.
"Wait a minute... how come..."
The players looked puzzled, trying to recall what Motley had asked them earlier. After thinking about it carefully, they realized that it did indeed seem to be three questions...
Ed did indeed answer all of them, and his answers were quite accurate.
[Litang Juehuohu], who has already taken the role of a complainer, said helplessly in a low voice:
"The lord truly keeps his word."
[ Second-Class Biscuit ] simply reached up and rubbed their forehead:
"It's definitely better to describe the problem more clearly..."
Under Motley's resentful gaze, Ed reached out and plucked the last piece of bark armor from his chest, then clutched it in his palm, letting it become part of his own flesh and blood.
Little Green immediately sent a message:
[Genes collected: Resilient Beechwood ]
So that's what it's called?
No wonder it's so durable...
The beech wood of another world already possesses considerable hardness, and now it has gained toughness as well, seemingly making it an all-around tree species similar to ironwood.
The next moment, Ed showed Motley his palm, and the Grand Knight was shocked to find that the piece of armor he had just been holding had disappeared!
In this situation, the other person couldn't possibly just be trying to perform a magic trick for you, so how exactly did they manage to do it?
As this thought popped into his mind, Motley saw a layer of beech bark armor appear on Ed's palm.
The style of the armor was slightly different from the one he Alienation into; the patterns were clearer and seemed more refined.
If it were me undergoing a similar Alienation, I would definitely choose to use a layered structure, but the one-eyed boy in front of me had Alienation into a fine, dense layer, which really shows he wasn't afraid of going through all that trouble.
But how is that possible?
In the span of a single breath, he copied his own abilities?
What then do the skills I've honed in battle over the years amount to?
Why do people like this exist in the world?!
Motley's sanity was about to crumble at this moment, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of someone's amused gaze.
It's Yiden!
It was Yiden, whom he had smashed at least twenty times in the past half hour.
The old acquaintance who had inexplicably launched a sneak attack was now looking at him with an expression that said, "I really want to tell you something, but I really can't."
Motley's mind was in chaos when suddenly something occurred to him—
Yiden's symbiotic plant is [ Parasitic Boston Ivy ]. Although it is not very aggressive, it is very advantageous in confined spaces and can quickly heal wounds.
Although there are some differences, the puppeteer who reached out to him seemed to be manipulating the priests using a similar method.
Could it be that... Yiden's abilities were also copied?!
What kind of person could possibly do something like that?
Cardinal?
No, that's not right.
Although abilities may come from multiple plants, it is almost common knowledge within the Tree Worship Church Tree Worship Church that each member can only enter a deep symbiotic state with one plant at a time.
If you really want to explain it, you can think of it as a symbiotic plant growing wildly once it discovers a competitor within the symbiotic human body, thus disrupting the balance between the human and plant parts within the body.
Even the three cardinals could not break this ironclad rule.
But... it's also common knowledge among members of the Tree Worship Church that there is a plant that can do this.
Every member of the Tree Worship Church is familiar with that plant, but they generally don't refer to it as "a certain plant," or rather... "It."
World Tree... Tree God...
Seeing the expression he wanted in Motley's eyes, Ed gagged Motley with a vine before he could shout the word.
"You! Ugh!"
With a slight increase in pressure, Ed rendered Motley unable to even utter a sound.
He looked down at the high knight commander among the Stained Ones, and announced his verdict with a smile:
" Motley, you proved your... incredible vitality in the battle just now, so let me introduce you."
Ed found the man with the hammer and brought him to Motley:
"This is mechanic Gray Gris, who's been having trouble with some wooden parts lately."
"For a period of time to come, a special plant will grow on your body. You must listen to the mechanic; whatever parts he needs, you must produce for him."
Just as Motley was feeling a bit confused, Ed brought over two more players who were in a state of high excitement:
"They are [ Do Some Farm Work ] and [ Traditional Eccentric Wheel ], and after you complete Gray's task, they will take you... no, using the standard-sized components you crafted for the Second Holy See."
Motley didn't understand any of the terms like "machinery," "parts," or "standard dimensions."
But one key word was firmly imprinted in his mind—
" The Second Holy See!"