Reborn as a Demonic Tree

Chapter 442: The Grand Funeral

Ashlock's immense Star Core hummed with power as he wielded his will without restraint. There was nobody present on Red Vine Peak as they were all attending the grand funeral, but if they had been, they might have been crushed by the immense pressure he was radiating.

For him to put on a show worthy of a god, he wasn't holding back.

Reality all around him crumbled as his desolation Qi crawled across the sky and ate away at the relentless storm over his lands. His roots that went down through the mountain pulsed as he greedily drew upon his connection with the World Tree to fuel his extravagant use of power.

But he was sure it would all be worth it.

Idletree Daily Sign-In System

Day: 3671

Daily Credit: 13

Sacrifice Credit: 2352

[Sign in?]

In the past, the only way Ashlock could gain sacrificial credits was from slaughter. But as he grew in strength and his cultivation began to surpass nearly everything around him, the number of credits he could acquire from hunting rapidly declined. Instead, a new path to power opened up to him. That of godhood. The more the people revered him, the stronger he would become.

And today was not merely a funeral. It was an offering. A feast of faith and sorrow. Each tear shed, each prayer whispered, each bowed head—all of it would fuel Ashlock's rise.

"If I pull this off right, this funeral might give me enough sacrificial credits to help me deal with the upcoming beast tide," Ashlock mused as he dismissed his system message. "While I have grown considerably in strength recently, it's still not enough. A monarch realm monster likely lurks in that storm, and I'm in their way. Vincent Nightrose had already been a nightmare to deal with, and he wasn't even at the peak of the Nascent Soul Realm. I can't even begin to imagine the power a Monarch Realm wields."

Ashlock returned his focus to the sea of mortals gathered along the road between Ashfallen and Darklight City. These were his people. They revered him, and his duty as their god was to watch over and protect them.

Moments like this reminded him just how far he had come. Just months ago, he had been quivering beneath the heavens and doing anything to survive. Now, he wielded power beyond most and was seen as a god. His quick rise to power had been equal to luck, his ability to grow from devouring, the system turning those he ate into credits, and perhaps most importantly, the allies he had come to depend on.

No matter how powerful, even the strongest in this world will fall if they try to stand alone. That was the truth he had learned from the visions of the World Tree. Despite being a divine being that could pierce through the realms and reach for the heavens, it always fell in the end—alone.

While Ashlock was taking in the sight of millions of mortals that crowded the once-empty valley road leading between the two cities, it was clear where everyone's attention was drawn. Stella and Elysia stood upon a pillar of mystic Qi in the dead center of the road, their presence commanding everyone's attention.

"Work your magic, Elysia," Ashlock quietly prayed as he watched from above. In a world where the impossible was made possible by Qi, this funeral would only succeed if it accomplished what he promised. The issue was that he didn't have the skills or capabilities to bring back souls from the cycle of reincarnation and stick them into a tree.

The only thing driving him forward was his blind faith in Elysia's ability to deliver with her mystic Qi; the beautiful thing was that was all he needed. The more he believed, the more became possible when she was involved.

Whatever shackles might have been holding Elysia's sanity together had rotted away with her ascension to the Nascent Soul Realm. He didn't need to look through his Evil Eye to recognize the sheer chaotic aura of untapped possibilities surrounding Elysia as she directed the funeral from atop her pillar. Her silver-tinted black hair floated weightlessly behind her as her three eyes glowed a deep purple.

Raising her hand to the skies above, she proclaimed, "With the All-Seeing Eye bearing witness, may the funeral begin!"

Every Mudcloak raised their little shovels in unison, digging small holes and impacting the ground. While they could have used earth Qi to achieve the same effect, it was all about delivering a theatrical performance over efficiency.

And it was working. Ashlock could see motes of divine energy drifting off everyone present, which he greedily absorbed and fed to his Inner World and divine stock market. There was already a large inflow, which would only increase as the funeral reached its crescendo.

Deciding to hone in rather than watch from far above, Ashlock located Jasmine among the millions of people. She was accompanying her parents. They waited patiently as a Mudcloak dug three holes before them.

Once finished, Catherine kneeled beside Jasmine and presented her with a hat.

"Jaz, do you remember Mr. Wilson?"

"Mr. Wilson?" Gears seemed to be turning in Jasmine's head as she connected the name to a face. "Oh! He was our neighbor who used to babysit me when you and Dad were busy, right?" Jasmine asked, her eyes locked onto the hat being held before her. "I recognize this hat..."

"It was his," Catherine sighed. "He left it at our house once, and I intended to give it back to him, but I found out he died during the night of slaughter before I could."

Jasmine frowned. "Mr. Wilson died?! He was so nice, though. I remember he used to bake these terrible muffins," her face twisted. "They tasted so bad, but I ate them as I felt too bad to say anything."

"Yeah," Catherine chuckled. "There's a reason I always declined when he offered to bring food over. But I have to admit it was hard to say no, considering it was his greatest passion, and he was lonely after his wife passed. In fact, he didn't have any family left." She placed the hat in Jasmine's hand. "That's why I want you to bury this hat for me. It's the only thing I had of his."

Jasmine held the hat tightly. "I'd be happy to bury Mr. Wilson, Mother."

Catherine stood up with a smile and ruffled her daughter's hair. "Good girl."

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Ashlock was a little surprised listening in. He didn't realize the people of this world could be so... normal. Despite the fact there were cultivators with reality-defying powers running around, the mortals went about their day doing things he would expect people from Earth to do.

He continued to watch as Catherine and Julian placed items from other people they had cared about who had perished in the night of slaughter, along with one of his seeds, into the hole dug by the Mudcloaks.

The very monsters that had likely devoured the people they were praying for.

As Catherine, Julian, and Jasmine stood in silence, their eyes closed and hands raised in prayer, he saw a thin layer of divine energy crafted from their deep belief in him radiate off them and dissipate into the surroundings to fuel his growth.

Ashlock felt a profound wrongness fester under his bark at the sight. He had conducted this funeral with the purpose of farming his believers for divine energy. While it was done with the good intentions of raising enough sacrificial credits to unlock the upgrades he needed to survive the upcoming beast tide, this still felt wrong.

"System," Ashlock commanded into the expanse of his consciousness, and his ever-present partner responded.

[Yes?]

"Re-route any divine energy received from prayers for the dead back into the seeds the people have planted instead of to me."

[Are you sure? That will greatly reduce the number of sacrificial credits you will gain from this event]

Ashlock looked at the system's words hanging in his consciousness with disgust. The term 'sacrificial credits' for the system's currency had never seemed so sinister to him. He got it; he was an evil man-eating tree. But even he had limits.

"Being a god is a give-and-take relationship. If all I do is take from those who worship me, they will come to resent me instead. While the short-term gain may be less by doing this, good karma has a funny way of being paid back in full."

[Very well. Re-routing divine energy away from you and back into your seeds]

Ashlock saw the number of sacrificial credits in the corner of his eye stop rapidly climbing. His system clawed the swirling divine energy away from nurturing the forest of sacrificial credits. The loose divine energy became a violent storm that roared through his Inner World, clashing like turbulent waves until it burst outward. The mountain beneath him quivered as the surging divinity was forced down into his roots.

The air itself recoiled. The very fabric of reality strained under the presence of such raw power, and Ashlock's grasp on it slipped. Radiance illuminated the mountain peak, bathing it in an otherworldly glow that could be seen for miles.

"System? What is happening?"

[There is far too much divine energy, and my control over it is lessened outside of your soul. The best I can do is bathe the whole mountain range and valley in divine energy and hope your seeds absorb some]

"That's a waste of the faith given to me," Ashlock replied. If the system couldn't do it, he would do it himself. He tried to grasp control of the torrent of divine energy flooding out of him, but most of it continued to slip through his grasp.

He needed a focal point. Somewhere he could funnel all of the divine energy, which could then be redistributed. That's when a particular person came to mind.

He reached for Elysia. Of all those who walked the world below, she alone possessed the strength to bear such a burden—if it was for her god, he was sure she could handle anything.

"Elysia," he said into her mind, "Take in my everything..." He funneled the divine energy toward the purple column of mystic Qi she stood upon, turning it golden, "...and use it to bless the seeds in my name."

***

Jasmine's eyes widened as she watched the immense spectacle of power alongside everyone else. Unlike the promise of ruin crawling through the sky, this divine glow filled her with awe. A landslide of divinity was coming from Red Vine Peak in the distance, illuminating the mountain range as it surged toward them in the valley.

She turned to her father, whose gaze was locked onto the incoming divine energy. Despite her being the cultivator of the two, panic set in, and her childish instincts to rely on her parents flared.

"Dad, are we going to be okay?"

He turned to look at her with surprise before his expression softened, and he ruffled her hair. "I should be asking you that question," he smiled, "But it's nice to know you're still my daughter no matter how fast your Master makes you grow up."

Jasmine pouted, "I don't like you ruffling my hair."

Her father chuckled, "Okay, okay." He took back his hand and returned to looking into the distance. "All we can do is hope and pray. Whatever the sect leader has in mind for us, I'm sure it will be life-changing as usual."

With that, he let his wife lean on him, and they closed their eyes in prayer.

Jasmine left them to their moment, looked toward the pillar of purple smoke, and focused on her Master-Disciple link with Stella. To her relief, her Master didn't seem concerned; if anything, she was excited.

The divine energy, thankfully, didn't flood the valley. Instead, it was drawn toward the purple pillar, turning it a blinding gold. It seemed all of the divine energy was being channeled into Elysia.

Is she going to be alright? Jasmine sighed and shook her head. That woman was never alright to begin with. It's hard to break what is already broken.

Elysia took in the divine energy and threw her head back, her body levitating from the gold-tinted purple pillar ever so slightly. "Everyone, the All-Seeing Eye has decided to bless this funeral with his divine might. Behold, the limitlessness to his vast power!" She raised a hand to the sky, and mystic Qi turned golden erupted from her body in a mass of eyes. They rose up into the sky, filling in the gaps of the branches of desolation coming from Ashlock that had eaten away at the storm.

"Isn't this starting to look like a heavenly tribulation?" Jasmine said under her breath.

The eyes all turned away from glaring at the people below and focused on the branches of desolation snaking between them.

"With the power given to me by the All-Seeing Eye, I will peer past reality and shepherd back the lost souls from the cycle of reincarnation." The eyes began to radiate an immense presence. "However, I'm no god. I can only find your loved ones with your help. Place down the death flowers upon the grave and pray. Recall stories about them, their names and faces, anything that will help me bring them home."

All around Jasmine, mortals collapsed to their knees before the holes that had been dug. The Mudcloaks shoveled the earth, burying the seed and soul-containing items. Along with her parents, she placed the death flower upon the grave and prayed for Mr. Wilson's return.

She recalled the times he had visited, the taste of those terrible muffins, and his kind smile. While Mr. Wilson hadn't been the most important person in her life, she was giving it her all right now because he deserved it. There were stories of the cycle of reincarnation being a cruel place, where the soul was stripped of everything that made it special and returned to a blank slate, ready to give a new existence sentience. She was unsure how much of that was true or simply told as a story to scare cultivators into chasing immortality.

"Either way, I don't want a different Mr. Wilson," Jasmine whispered under her breath, "Even as a tree, Mr. Wilson doesn't deserve such a fate. I will be the one to shepherd him home."

That's when she felt it. A pulse—a cry from the beyond. It was ever so quiet, nothing but a whisper. But she knew what torment sounded like, and this was it.

Mr. Wilson's soul is crying out like he's being burned alive in the flames of reincarnation. Jasmine was utterly horrified by what she was hearing. Was this what awaited her in the afterlife should she die? If so, she had never been so afraid of death, and it seemed like those around her were having a similar experience.

Both her father and mother were as pale as a ghost, and their eyes were as wide with terror.

"All-Seeing Eye!" a woman screamed between sobs. "Save my baby! Bring him back!" She pounded the ground before her, tears streaming down her face. "He's suffering! Screaming out to me! I can't... I can't save him," her head hung low. "Only you can..."

Jasmine clenched her fist and returned to looking up at Elysia high above. She looked utterly possessed as her body floated high above. Divine energy mixed with mystic Qi crackled all around her, and her limbs seemed to twist unnaturally. She then opened her mouth and screamed. However, it was no normal scream. It was as if she were channeling the pain of every soul she could see in the beyond through herself.

"Hang in there, Elysia," Jasmine said through clenched teeth. "If anyone can do the impossible, it's you—"

She swallowed her words as Elysia's chest exploded in a shower of blood, and something rose out of the wound. It was twisted and black, topped with a head of red. Its body split down the middle, and a single golden eye stared down at them all.

It was the demonic tree Elysia had trapped her infant soul inside.

Mytherion, the only demonic tree with access to a strength comparable to the Nascent Soul Realm other than Ashlock and Nox, had made its presence known.