Reborn as a Demonic Tree

Ashlock paused for a while, trying to think of the best way to explain how Stella was half tree, but the girl in question beat him to it.

"My background is quite the mystery. I've never met my Mother, and I only vaguely remember my Father teaching me a few techniques when I was tiny before he apparently died after failing to reach Star Core. Until recently, I believed both my parents were dead, so to me, Ashlock is the only one I could call family." Stella raised a finger in the air, "But then a cosmic being guarding a library pointed out some inconsistencies. Where is the rest of my family, the Crestfallens? I was told they all died protecting Vincent Nightrose, but why would that man need saving? He's the strongest in the region."

"I always did find that rather odd," The Redclaw Grand Elder admitted as he rubbed his chin. "I met Grand Elder Crestfallen once at a summit for all the peaks. He was the only person representing Red Vine Peak and the Crestfallen family and drew a lot of attention as he was at the measly Soul Fire Realm. He never shared his name and sidestepped any questions. One day, I heard he died and didn't think much more of the matter."

"You have met him?!" Stella sat up straight from the bench and stared at the Grand Elder with wide eyes. "What did he look like?"

"Nothing like you. I honestly fail to see how you could possibly be related that closely." The Grand Elder said thoughtfully as he looked Stella up and down, "He did have similar eyes to you, but that's about it. That's why I never even brought him up or felt like asking about him until now."

Stella fell quiet for a while, and nobody dared say a word. "Grand Elder Valandor told me—"

"Grand Elder Valandor?!" The Redclaw Grand Elder almost fell out of his chair. "The White Reaper of the Blood Lotus Sect? You spoke with him and survived?"

"Yes, he is a friend of my Father. He was searching for new bloodlines for Vincent Nightrose when he found my Father traversing the wilderness and became interested in us. My Father was apparently alone, crossing the wilderness as the survivor of a group from the Celestial Empire. All he had with him was the clothes on his back, some supplies in a spatial ring, and me. A baby girl bundled in cloth. He never disclosed anything about himself to Valandor."

"So Valandor brought you into the sect, but it sounds like he sold you and your Father out to Vincent rather than an act of kindness. That sounds like the White Reaper that I know of."

"Valandor was mind controlled?" the Grand Elder mused. "I always thought that man was oddly loyal, considering Vincent is the one preventing him from reaching the Nascent Soul Realm. But if he was mind-controlled, that makes more sense." He sighed, "Your Father sounded like an interesting man. It's a shame he is dead."

"He is not dead." Stella said bluntly, "He faked his death under the guise of a failed Star Core ascension."

"So he left you all alone here?"

Stella shook her head, "He left a note with Valandor asking him to protect me for five years."

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"Mhm... now that I hear that story again, knowing that he apparently looked nothing like you, maybe he really wasn't your Father," Ashlock said. "Stella, the only thing you share with him is the Crestfallen bloodline—which means you are at least somewhat related, but not necessarily Father and Daughter."

"He's not my Father, then?" Stella looked sullen at the thought.

"The bond between parent and child varies wildly in this world," Sebastian Silverspire said, drawing attention, "But Grand Elder Crestfallen seemed to have gone to great lengths to bring Stella somewhere 'safe' and far away from the Celestial Empire. An act that seems in line with what a Father would do. Which makes him faking his death and leaving you here all alone so strange."

"You're certain that crafty man really faked his death? If he said he would return in five years, he's still alive, right? Where is he now?" The Redclaw Grand Elder asked.

"Yes, he is still alive." Stella confirmed with a nod, "After inquiring at the Eternal Pursuit Pavilion, I know his name is Janus Crestfallen. He is in the Nascent Soul Realm and hiding in the Frozen Star Sect. I did get to speak with him briefly, but all he told me was to run."

"Run? From what?" Elder Mo asked. "The beast tide, perhaps?"

Stella shook her head, "He wasn't specific, but a few days after I got that message, the Celestial Order tried to capture me and bring me back to the Celestial Empire during the first service for the All-Seeing Eye."

Sebastian whistled, recalling the memory, "Oh yeah, I remember that. Ashlock struck them all down in a second with that black lightning after they made their appearance."

"The Celestial Order is after you? Has that got something to do with your Mother being the World Tree?" The Redclaw Grand Elder said.

Stella nodded. "While not confirmed, it's been hinted from a few sources that I'm the result of an experiment with World Tree sap. While unbelievable, there are no other mentions of a potential Mother for me, and I did originate from the Celestial Empire, where the World Tree grows. I've also always had a sort of affinity for trees. I can understand them on a deeper level than others, I think."

The Grand Elder leaned back on his chair and hummed in thought. "You weren't kidding. Your background really is a mysterious mess. It's a shame you can't just ask Janus, as he seems to be desperately running from something as well? The question is, who?"

"I've seen this before. Janus Crestfallen likely faked his death to divert the attention of the Celestial Order away from here." Morrigan, who had been keeping to the shadows as she wasn't really supposed to be here as she hadn't sworn an oath, suggested.

Everyone fell into deep thoughts at her words, while Ashlock wondered if there was a way to get rid of Morrigan but soon gave up. Even if he killed her, she would reincarnate with her memories intact. She was like a void cockroach.

"I think that's quite likely," Diana said as she sat beside Stella on the bench, "Don't worry. Once we have dealt with Vincent and the Beast Tide, we will save the World Tree and get Janus Crestfallen to spill all the answers."

Stella nodded with pain in her eyes. "Mhm. That sounds good." She said, but there wasn't a lot of energy behind her tone. She sounded defeated and tired.

"Every step we take forward feels like two steps backward. To think Janus Crestfallen looks nothing like Stella and is unlikely to be her Father. If so, then does she even have one?" Ashlock felt a headache coming as he muttered to himself, "If she was made from the World Tree sap, does there even need to be a Father? Trees can obviously reproduce without a human's involvement, but then why is Stella clearly human? God, this makes no sense."

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The mood at the party had certainly soured as everyone idly sipped their spirit wine, lost in their own thoughts. A lot had been said today. It gave everyone a lot to think about. In fact, everyone was so lost in their own worlds, including Ashlock, that nobody noticed the flash of white flames not belonging to Stella. Luckily, his system had been paying attention and informed him.

[A known cultivator that is half a step into the Nascent Soul Realm was detected within the Voidstorm Aegis. Do you wish to annihilate them?]

Void lightning crackled across the dome, ready to strike down the person who had just appeared uninvited on the mountain peak. He had a young face—looking no older than twenty-five. Lustrous white hair ran down the length of his back and was lost in the folds of his pristine white robes.

"Relax system. It's just Grand Elder Valandor." Ashlock said, and he felt the defensive technique relax. It was nice to know it wouldn't instantly try to kill anyone uninvited if the system had seen them before and knew they weren't likely to be a threat.

Valandor eyed the dissipating crackling void lightning overhead with a weary expression. "Sorry to appear out of nowhere. I checked on the Redclaws' mountain peak, and a girl called Amber said you might be holding a meeting in Ashfallen City. I checked there too but couldn't find anyone, so I thought I might find you lot here."

Larry dropped down from Ashlock's branches, landing gracefully like a soft cloud between Valandor and the others. His crown began to spin subtly but was clearly a threat as the pressure about Larry slowly escalated. This was an appropriate response. Valandor, while technically an ally, was dangerous and shouldn't be here.

Ashlock shifted his Evil Eye to look at him and invaded his mind with Abyssal Whispers carrying the weight of his Inner World—easily smashing through the man's mental defenses.

"What are you doing here? Speak before I strike you down."

"To think you were once a little spirit tree eating rabbits and growing fruits for Stella." Valandor wiped away a fake tear, "They grow up so fast."

While not as strong as many of the beings before him, Valandor was unfazed by threats—an attitude befitting the White Reaper, the person who was once the right-hand man of Vincent Nightrose.

Stella appeared before Valandor in a flash of white with a wide grin. "Long time no see, Grand Elder Valandor."

The man broke character when he saw the white flames dancing across Stella's shoulders. "You... how?! Since when did you learn aether Qi!?"

Stella sheepishly scratched her cheek, "Just recently. I had hoped to get some training from you on how to use it. I've managed to convert many of my spatial techniques over, but I'm at a loss when it comes to learning other techniques as I have no technique manuals to look at."

"Why didn't you say so earlier?!" Valandor waved his hand, and with a flash of silver, a small book pile appeared floating between them. "I don't have many unfortunately. Manuals for aether Qi can only be found in rifts." Valandor floated them forward, and Stella accepted the pile with open arms, "I know this doesn't make up for the years of neglect despite your Father asking me to watch over you..."

Stella shook her head as she accepted the books, "All is forgiven, Grand Elder. While I don't know the circumstances regarding Janus Crestfallen—" Ashlock noted she avoided using the word Father and called the man by name, "—It wasn't your fault so much happened to me in a few short years. This is more than enough." Stella stowed the books away, "I'll look through these later. But Grand Elder Valandor, what are you doing here?"

The man's cheerful mood vanished, and his expression hardened. "Vincent Nightrose is out of seclusion and has called a summit for tomorrow." His gaze swept across everyone standing behind Larry. "He expects everyone to be in attendance, including the Silverspire, Voidmind, and Redclaw families."

He then looked straight into Stella's eyes, "He also knows you are alive. I have no idea how, but he said something about the threads of fate leading him to you and pointed in this direction. He was adamant that I find you and force your attendance." Valandor's face scrunched up in disgust, "He also said to wear something nice and revealing. He hates it when clothes get in the way of his meals."

"What..." Stella seemed frozen in place as her lip trembled. Vincent Nightrose had been a phantom of death hovering over her since she was young. They thought she had finally escaped his grasp, but fate had other plans.

"She won't be going," Ashlock said, his voice rumbling with emotion. He would not let Stella walk into the lion's den just to be devoured. His roots had spread through nearly every inch of Nightrose City, and he had planted a few trees around so he could use {Progeny Dominion}. But even so, the difference between himself and Vincent Nightrose was too vast. He couldn't protect Stella from him.

There were undoubtedly ways he could hope to win. Larry, Maple, and his Ents were all in the Nascent Soul Realm. If Morrigan offered to help, that would up their chances even more. Killing him wasn't impossible, but preventing him from retaliating was different. If Stella didn't go, Vincent would likely show up at his doorstep, where Ashlock was strongest. But even the Voidstorm Aegis wasn't infallible. It devoured his Qi at an alarming rate even after ascension, and void lightning would do little if Vincent surrounded himself with a constantly replenishing blood shield.

That wasn't even considering that there was nobody but Morrigan to represent the Voidmind family, as everyone at the Elder level was either dead or turned into a tree, and the Redclaw family had undergone too many changes. The sudden rise in cultivation levels would catch Vincent's interest immediately.

Ashlock's brain churned for a solution, arriving at a crazy one. Crazy enough that it might just work.

"Valandor, what is Vincent up to right now? Where is he?"

The man seemed taken aback by the question. "Erm, he should be cultivating. That's all that freak does every spare second he has."

"Where? You said he had left closed-door cultivation." Ashlock had searched Nightrose City for Vincent before but hadn't found the slightest hint of the man.

Valandor nodded, "I saw him heading to his room on the upper floor of the castle to cultivate after giving out his orders. It would be easy to find him by following the dozens of brainwashed Nightrose cultivators guarding him."

Ashlock's vision shifted as he headed westward toward Nightrose City. He felt his anger rising. What had he gone through all this for if he didn't have the power to protect those he held dear? Vincent was a cancer in his life that needed to be culled. Arriving at the vast castle that lorded over Nightrose City, it would be easy to get lost in these endless dark hallways, but Ashlock followed Valandor's advice and followed the trail.

Many white-haired, deathly pale cultivators with glowing blood-red eyes shifted through the hallways. They walked in silence apart from a constant ominous synchronized drumming that closely resembled a loud heartbeat. Ashlock followed the flow of the cultivators, noting a surprising number of them being in the Star Core Realm. His vision ascended the stairs. He couldn't go everywhere as he was forced to follow where he had grown roots under the floorboards, but it seemed he was in luck. Deeming it an important-looking room, he had made sure to have roots near the large bedroom at the top of the castle that was encased in more layers of protective arrays than he thought possible.

Vincent was a very cautious man. At the doors to the room, there were three dulled-eyed members of the Nightrose Family—they were all half a step into the Nascent Soul Realm, making them stronger than Stella.

Taking a deep breath, Ashlock pushed his spiritual sight through the formation. He felt his vision blur and stretch, and there was a slight hissing noise as he phased through the layers of protection. One of the guarding cultivators seemed to notice the noise, but other than a quick once over of the door, they returned to looking forward.

Entering the inner sanctum, Ashlock finally laid eyes on who he assumed was the tyrant. Vincent Nightrose lay in a stone coffin filled to the brim with crimson blood that shimmered with Qi. A team of naked mortal maids tended to him, reminding Ashlock of Valandor's comment about the clothes Stella was expected to wear. There wasn't a hint of emotion on any of their faces as they tirelessly worked like drones.

The man himself was eerie to behold. His skin was nearly translucent and impossibly thin—gripping to his bones like white paint. If Ashlock had to describe the man in one word, he resembled a ghoul. Vaguely human, yet slightly wrong in every way. His arms were too long, ending in clawed nails that looked like they could tear through stone. His cracked lips failed to hide his crooked shark-like teeth. Unlike the half steps guarding the door, Vincent had two notable heartbeats, and Ashlock saw the blood bath's luster glow and dull along with the rhythm.

One of the mindless maids tripped and fell off to the side, spilling a bucket of blood onto the floor and legs of some of the other maids. Vincent didn't even stir at the loud noise; his heartbeats continued, and his eyes remained closed.

The man was cultivating and unfazed about the world around him.

Ashlock withdrew himself from the room and returned to Red Vine Peak. Noticing his return, Stella perked up slightly but still looked pale. "Ash, what should we do?"

"What else is there to do than eliminate the root of the problem?" Ashlock said, his tone full of wrath, "I found Vincent. He has his guard down and is busy cultivating. We have a rare opportunity."

Valandor narrowed his eyes, "Don't tell me."

"We are going to kill him tonight,"Ashlock said with finality. "And you are going to help us, Grand Elder Valandor."