Dawn never truly arrived in the Forgotten Grove.
Light seeped into the forest like a hesitant breath, thin and silvery, weaving through branches instead of breaking them. Mist drifted low along the soil, curling around Aruin's roots like soft ribbons.
The Spirit Lynx cub was still asleep beside him, its tiny body rising and falling with gentle purrs.
Aruin remained motionless, yet profoundly awake.
His Spirit Sense drifted outward in soft pulses.
Not wide or overreaching—controlled.
Measured.
Disciplined.
80 meters… 100 meters… 120 meters…
He felt everything again: insects tunneling, dew forming, sap circulating in trees.
But this time he wasn't overwhelmed.
He was learning.
Growing.
Becoming.
The system flickered to life.
[Spirit-Sensing Willow — Stage 1]
Spirit Sense Mastery: 17% → 19%
Aruin hummed internally.
Progress came slowly, but progress still came.
And yet… something felt different.
There was a faint thrum beneath his roots.
A vibration so soft he could have mistaken it for his imagination.
Until it grew stronger.
Steadier.
More… alive.
Aruin felt the ground breathe.
"…What is this?"
The pulse echoed like a heartbeat not his own.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
The soil glowed faintly with verdant light.
The lynx cub's ears twitched; it stirred, confused.
Aruin's Spirit Sense honed sharply.
And then—
[Forest Heart Pulse — Incomplete Skill Detected]
Unsealing Possible.
Requirements met:
• First evolution achieved
• Spirit Sense awakened
• Connection to Qi Stream established
• First guardian act completed
Begin unsealing?
• Yes
• No
Aruin's leaves stiffened.
The reward from earlier — Forest's Gentle Pulse — was evolving into something greater.
Something foundational.
Something meant for a future World Tree.
He didn't hesitate.
"Yes."
Unsealing Forest Heart Pulse…
Warning: Life-force backlash will occur.
Warning: Root stabilization required.
Warning: Overload risk: 37%.
Aruin dug his roots deeply into the soil.
The ground thrummed.
Light erupted beneath him—
not blinding, but ancient, steady, resonant.
The pulse grew louder.
THUMP.
His bark cracked slightly.
THUMP.
His sap surged painfully.
THUMP.
Leaves shimmered with emerald glow.
Aruin grit against the pressure, every fiber creaking.
"Hold… steady…"
The light flowed into him, through him, and became him.
[Forest Heart Pulse – Unsealed]
A newborn World Tree's first domain ability.
Effects:
• Sense every heartbeat within your domain for 10 seconds
• Commune with plants, influencing subtle movement
• Temporarily strengthen vitality of nearby lifeforms
• Cooldown: 3 days
The light dimmed.
Aruin sagged inwardly, exhausted—
but alive.
His Spirit Sense expanded again, sharper than ever.
And there, at the edge of perception…
A disruption.
A violent Qi signature moving with purpose.
No—three of them.
Aruin focused, narrowing his awareness.
Figures stepped into the northern edge of the grove: cloaked, masked, wearing cracked wooden insignias of dying trees.
Their presence stank of decay.
Death.
The Withering Ash Sect.
One of the oldest enemies of all World Trees.
And Aruin sensed their thoughts, faint but horrifying:
> "The World Seed is close. We extract its essence before it fully awakens."
Aruin's sap ran cold.
They're here for me.
The lynx cub pressed against his trunk, whimpering.
Aruin activated Forest Heart Pulse.
His perception sharpened:
He felt every ant crossing the soil
Every vine tightening on trees
Every strand of grass vibrating with fear
Every footstep of the approaching cultivators
Every drop of malice dripping from them
The world slowed.
Their movements became sluggish in his awareness.
They were stronger than any beast he had sensed so far.
Not powerful enough to topple a mature spiritual tree—
but more than enough to uproot a young willow like him.
Aruin had no illusions.
If they found him, he would die.
He needed to hide.
To survive.
To protect the cub.
To buy time for Lira—still cocooned somewhere far away.
He whispered through the soil:
"Forest… help me."
Roots trembled in response.
Leaves rustled.
Vines curled tighter.
The grove itself held its breath.
Three masked figures stepped into the grove's heart.
The leader knelt.
Gloved fingers touched the soil.
He frowned.
"…the land is alive. Stronger than expected."
The second man sniffed the air.
"Forest Qi density increased by 34%. A World Seed is definitely nearby."
The third pointed toward Aruin's direction.
"There. Something pulsed earlier. Weak. Young. Vulnerable."
Aruin felt terror grip his heartwood.
He activated Forest Heart Pulse again.
10 seconds. That's all he had.
He pushed everything into the environment:
making grass tilt toward another direction
letting vines curl innocently
making roots pull back into the ground
masking the strange aura his evolution had left behind
But the sect members were perceptive.
Too perceptive.
The leader stood, eyes narrowing.
"Spread out. Search. The Seed is hiding."
Aruin nearly panicked—
but then something unexpected happened.
A soft hum echoed from deep within the grove.
A faint, shimmering thread of ethereal power brushed against his awareness.
Lira.
Her cocoon was pulsing again.
Aruin buckled internally—
not from fear—
But because he sensed something impossible:
She was calling to him.
And her metamorphosis was accelerating.
A streak of violet Qi flickered in the west.
The Withering Ash leader turned sharply.
"What was that?"
Aruin felt cold dread.
If they reached her—
she would die before she even hatched.
His Spirit Sense trembled.
His trunk hardened.
A flicker of determination rose within his sap.
He could not fight them head-on.
But he could mislead them.
He could protect her.
He could defend his grove.
He whispered through every root he possessed:
"Forest… divert them.
Mislead them.
Turn them away."
The grove responded.
Vines rustled.
Branches creaked.
Leaves whispered ominously.
And for the first time—
Aruin felt the forest obey.
Domain Influence: Minor Environmental Manipulation Activated
Wind blew in the wrong direction.
Qi signatures blurred.
Sounds warped across the trees.
The sect members paused.
The leader whispered:
"…the forest is interfering."
Good.
It was working.
But then—
The smallest mistake:
the lynx cub whimpered again.
So soft.
So tiny.
But Spirit Sense cultivators miss nothing.
One of the masked men turned instantly.
"There. Something alive. Hiding."
His steps drew closer.
Aruin felt a spike of terror.
The cub pressed against him, trembling.
Aruin had no time.
He sent a desperate pulse throughout the grove—
"NOW."
Roots burst upward.
Grass stiffened.
Branches swayed.
The forest itself roared with life.
The masked man froze in shock as vines wrapped around his legs.
"What—?!"
The leader's head snapped toward Aruin's direction.
His voice grew low and cold.
"…found you."
Aruin's Spirit Sense quivered.
He had less than a minute before they reached him.
The grove responded in panic and loyalty.
Vines tightened.
Soil shifted.
Roots rose sharpened like spears.
Aruin's heartwood pounded.
I won't die here.
Not before finding Lira.
Not before growing stronger.
Not before becoming the World Tree.
And thus began Aruin's first battle—
not of strength,
but of survival.**