Chapter 92.1
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After the excitement, the two took a closer look at the huge golden trees for insurance purposes, and finally Chu Rong determined that these trees were indeed the Yellow Leaf Trees, and not only that, it’s probably about a thousand years old.
“A thousand years old…” Qiao Zhiya was in awe .
All living beings possess a soul. And in this kind of environment, where the magic particles were rich, these millennium-old trees may have cultivated sapience.
Glancing into the depths of the giant tree forest, Chu Rong held Qiao Zhiya in his arms as he involuntarily circled around the trees. He gathered up Qiao Zhiya’s twitching ears and said, “It’s very late now. Time to sleep.”
“Mm, sleeping now.” Qiao Zhiya nodded obediently, but his eyes were still glued to the giant trees. His arms were still hovering as if he wanted to hug it.
Chu Rong frowned and let go.
Qiao Zhiya immediately and decisively broke free from his embrace, darting to the side of a tree with a swish. In no time, he climbed up onto a large and sturdy branch, looking down with a flushed face. “Chu Rong, let’s sleep in the trees tonight. I can ask Qiuqiu to weave us a vine bed.”
Chu Rong watched him clinging tightly to the tree, feeling a strange sourness in his heart. He lowered his head and followed suit, jumping onto the tree. After Qiuqiu finished weaving the bed, Chu Rong lay down with Qiao Zhiya in his arms, feeding him a nutritional supplement to fill his stomach.
Perhaps it was because they had hope of returning home, or perhaps it was because the atmosphere in the giant tree forest was too comfortable, but soon both of them fell asleep. Even Qiuqiu felt a bit tipsy, as if drunk.
The green magical light dots floated leisurely around the group, then suddenly, as if sensing something, they slowly drifted towards Qiao Zhiya in Chu Rong’s arms and gradually merged into his body.
Capital Planet.
Chu Huai turned the galaxy map and rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache forming.
“Still no news?” Gu Yan’an approached, clearly worried. She released her spiritual power to help her husband relax.
Chu Huai turned to her, his expression relaxing a bit. He reached out and held her hand, shaking his head. “Most of the border planets belong to our family. We’ve searched them all, but found no trace of Xiao Rong or the black hole. What I fear most now is that Xiao Rong and Qiao were actually in the Empire’s territory.”
With this mention of the Empire, Gu Yan’an frowned, and asked, “Is the old Emperor really going to die?”
The news of the reappearance of the Zergs a few days ago caused a stir in the Imperial Palace. Physicians and pharmacists rushed to the palace overnight and guarded it all night. As of now, there is still no accurate information coming out. It’s feared that the old Emperor may be in a bad situation.
“It’s possible.” Chu Huai replied, remembering the news from the Imperial High Advisor before, saying, “This time, the old Emperor’s reaction was very strange. It seems that the reappearance of the Zerg really scared him, despite the scale being smaller than last time.”
Gu Yanan suppressed the worry in her heart. She leaned forward, helping Chu Huai to massage his brows, trying to help him relax. “Don’t think about it now. Take a break first, you haven’t taken a good rest for many days.”
Knowing that she was worried, Chu Huai glanced at the messy holographic documents strewn haphazardly about and waved them all away. He obediently got up, shifted the topic while walking with her and asked, “What happened to Xiao Yan?”
“He’s obedient,” Gu Yan’an replied, unable to stop sighing, “A little… too obedient.”
Chu Yan has always been a lively and noisy boy, when did he become so obedient? He eats and sleeps on time every day, trains at the training hall by himself when he’s free, doesn’t go out to play or demand anything, and even takes the initiative to help with household chores. He’s so sensible, it’s heartwarming.
Chu Huai’s eyes were filled with complicated emotions. But after a while, he shook his head and said, “Let him go. He’s just grown up. Don’t worry.”
Gu Yan’an nodded and said nothing more.
Chu Yan’s room, a video call interface was suspended in mid-air. Yuan Xiu, in the holographic picture, quickly said, “It seems like something’s going on with the You family. My dad has been going to the military department to clash with the You family every day these days. When he comes home, he’s angry and sulking. My mom tries to persuade him, but he just says the You family is up to no good. Chu Yan, now that the presidential election has been postponed due to the emergence of the Zerg, your second brother is missing, and your eldest brother is ill, everyone thinks the Chu family is done for. What are you going to do?”
“Don’t believe those rumors, Dage is not sick.” Chu Yan explained with a frown, paused, then added, “Erge and Qiao will come back safely. Absolutely.”
Seeing him like this, Yuan Xiu’s mouth opened and closed, hesitating to bring up the topic again. He changed the subject and said, “Originally, the military academy would arrange a training session for us before school starts, but now it seems it might be canceled. I received news that if the second wave of the Zerg doesn’t appear, then martial law will gradually be lifted, and the military academy will still start classes as usual. You…”
“I will report on time.” Chu Yan said for sure, touched the communicator, said, “Thank you for sending me the message, and I will contact you when I have time.” After speaking, he hung up the call.
On the opposite end of the call, Yuan Xiu looked at the empty space, looking in disbelief. “Oh my god, Chu Yan would actually say thank you…”
In his room, Chu Yan closed his eyes, leaning back on the sofa, while his mind spun with the power dynamics of various families in the Federation, analyzing them bit by bit. Suddenly, a flash of the scene where the black and gold mecha was sucked into the black hole along with the brown mecha crossed his mind. At the same time, a dull pain akin to being pushed by an arrow radiated from his abdomen.
His eyes narrowed as he sat up. He put his hand on his abdomen, then suddenly punched the sofa with a fist.
When an arrow hit a mecha, the pilot wouldn’t feel any pain from it. He knew the pain he felt were all just hallucinations from his guilt.
But he couldn’t escape from it.
‘If only I was a bit stronger, if only I had reacted faster at that moment, if only I had listened to Erge and started familiarizing myself with manual mecha piloting earlier… If only I hadn’t dragged Qiao into this lousy competition…’
His thoughts spiraled increasingly towards the negative. He reached up, grabbing at his hair, then suddenly stood up and strode quickly towards the door.
‘I can’t dwell on this anymore. I can’t let Dage and Dasao worry. If I’m weak, I’ll train. Erge defeated the Zerg Queen at the age of eighteen. Compared to him, I’m far behind.’
Qiao Zhiya found himself standing in a pitch-black space again. After a moment of confusion, he immediately became happy, looking around excitedly and calling out softly, “Dad? Mom? Are you there?”
Every time he dreams of this place, familiar dots of light appear around him. Though he doesn’t know why it happens, he likes this place and the feeling of connecting with his parents’ power.
As he called, the light dots slowly formed a shapeless green shape, surrounding him. As soon as he was about to hug it, he stopped moving in doubt.
This feeling… Although the wood-elemental magic felt very gentle, he was sure that this wasn’t his father.
“Child, can you help me?”
A gentle old voice suddenly sounded in his ear. He froze, his gaze fell on the gently floating light blob, tentatively reached out and asked, “Are you talking to me?”
The light responded to his touch by dimming for a moment and then bouncing back, as if playing with him. Then, a gentle voice spoke again, “Yes, you are the only living being I’ve been able to communicate with through thoughts in these years. Please, come to the center of the forest to find me.”
“The center of the forest?” Qiao Zhiya repeated in confusion. He was about to ask in detail again, but the light suddenly rushed at him, and then the picture flashed in front of him. Finally, his consciousness returned to reality.
The warm light filtered through the golden leaves, casting a gentle glow around him. The space was empty except for the swaying vines of Qiuqiu above, creating a serene atmosphere.
He was momentarily stunned before coming to his senses, quickly sitting up and looking around. The magical points of light that had floated through the forest last night were nowhere to be seen now. Instead, all he could see were the golden leaves of the towering trees swaying gently in the breeze.
“Woke up?”
Chu Rong’s voice came from under the tree. He froze and looked down on the vine bed.
Below, Chu Rong was tending to a small magic stove, cooking something. Beside him on a wooden stool sat a plate of colorful wild fruits. Nearby, the two children of Qiuqiu were rolling around, making the scene very heartwarming.
Qiao Zhiya froze for a moment, and suddenly remembered the scene of being gently awakened by his parents in the morning while still on the Magic Continent, his heart was warm.
“What are you staring at? Come down.” Chu Rong stood up, looking up at him with open arms.
Ears fluttering happily, lips curved into a big smile. Qiao Zhiya flung himself towards Chu Rong’s open arms.
During breakfast, Qiao Zhiya mentioned to Chu Rong the dream he had last night.
“You said someone was asking for help?” Chu Rong frowned, glancing deep into the giant Yellow Leaf Tree forest, his original relaxed posture tightening.
“Don’t be nervous. The other side means no harm, and I can feel that this forest is very safe.” Qiao Zhiya hurried to reassure him, then gestured around and said, “Haven’t you noticed? Here, including the area where we first stopped, there have been no signs of large fierce beasts around.” These are symbols of safety.
Hearing that, Chu Rong’s frown loosened up. He glanced at Qiuqiu’s two children, who were still rolling around. He asked, “You wanted to go to the center of the forest?”
Qiao Zhiya nodded quickly, then looked forward to asking, “Can I go?”
“Yes.” Chu Rong reached out and squeezed his ears, his eyes softened. “I’ll go with you.”
The forest was huge, so Chu Rong once again took out Rong Tian.
As they walked deeper into the forest, the Yellow Leaf Trees grew taller and taller, and the concentration of wood-element magic in the air became denser. Eventually, they even saw a magnificent scene of “a lone tree in the forest”.
“This tree should have been at least five thousand years…” Qiao Zhiya’s eyes widened, his whole body looked like it was stuck on the mecha’s display screen, stars twinkling in his eyes. “This planet must be peaceful, there has never been a serious natural disaster, Otherwise, there will not be such a large area of ancient trees gathering. “
Chu Rong raised his hand to his ears, and agreed with him very much.
This primitive planet was hidden within an asteroid belt, characterized by a stable and uniform environment, suggesting a high probability of being a high-security planet. If not for these asteroid belts, this planet could have become the next target for colonization, as it was particularly habitable, just like the Capital Planet.
After about another half an hour of walking, a faintly discernible golden “wall” blocking half the sky appeared ahead. Qiao Zhiya looked up in awe at this towering “wall” of golden trees, murmuring to himself, “Is this also a Yellow Leaf Tree? At this level, the trees must be at least tens of thousands of years old…”
Chu Rong was also a bit shocked. Although the Yellow Leaf Tree was indeed a very tall tree with a relatively straight trunk, just how old is this tree for its trunk to reach the sky, until he couldn’t see the top?
He had never seen such a massive tree in his life.
After snapping out of his reverie, Qiao Zhiya hurriedly urged Chu Rong to land, his face full of impatience. His magic was also eagerly swaying, eager to communicate with this “old gentleman”.
He was now sure that the “person” who contacted him in a dream last night must be this ancient tree. It was tens of thousands of years old, and even if it didn’t grow in a superior environment like the Magic Continent, this tree should already have reached sapience.
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After the excitement, the two took a closer look at the huge golden trees for insurance purposes, and finally Chu Rong determined that these trees were indeed the Yellow Leaf Trees, and not only that, it’s probably about a thousand years old.
“A thousand years old…” Qiao Zhiya was in awe .
All living beings possess a soul. And in this kind of environment, where the magic particles were rich, these millennium-old trees may have cultivated sapience.
Glancing into the depths of the giant tree forest, Chu Rong held Qiao Zhiya in his arms as he involuntarily circled around the trees. He gathered up Qiao Zhiya’s twitching ears and said, “It’s very late now. Time to sleep.”
“Mm, sleeping now.” Qiao Zhiya nodded obediently, but his eyes were still glued to the giant trees. His arms were still hovering as if he wanted to hug it.
Chu Rong frowned and let go.
Qiao Zhiya immediately and decisively broke free from his embrace, darting to the side of a tree with a swish. In no time, he climbed up onto a large and sturdy branch, looking down with a flushed face. “Chu Rong, let’s sleep in the trees tonight. I can ask Qiuqiu to weave us a vine bed.”
Chu Rong watched him clinging tightly to the tree, feeling a strange sourness in his heart. He lowered his head and followed suit, jumping onto the tree. After Qiuqiu finished weaving the bed, Chu Rong lay down with Qiao Zhiya in his arms, feeding him a nutritional supplement to fill his stomach.
Perhaps it was because they had hope of returning home, or perhaps it was because the atmosphere in the giant tree forest was too comfortable, but soon both of them fell asleep. Even Qiuqiu felt a bit tipsy, as if drunk.
The green magical light dots floated leisurely around the group, then suddenly, as if sensing something, they slowly drifted towards Qiao Zhiya in Chu Rong’s arms and gradually merged into his body.
Capital Planet.
Chu Huai turned the galaxy map and rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache forming.
“Still no news?” Gu Yan’an approached, clearly worried. She released her spiritual power to help her husband relax.
Chu Huai turned to her, his expression relaxing a bit. He reached out and held her hand, shaking his head. “Most of the border planets belong to our family. We’ve searched them all, but found no trace of Xiao Rong or the black hole. What I fear most now is that Xiao Rong and Qiao were actually in the Empire’s territory.”
With this mention of the Empire, Gu Yan’an frowned, and asked, “Is the old Emperor really going to die?”
The news of the reappearance of the Zergs a few days ago caused a stir in the Imperial Palace. Physicians and pharmacists rushed to the palace overnight and guarded it all night. As of now, there is still no accurate information coming out. It’s feared that the old Emperor may be in a bad situation.
“It’s possible.” Chu Huai replied, remembering the news from the Imperial High Advisor before, saying, “This time, the old Emperor’s reaction was very strange. It seems that the reappearance of the Zerg really scared him, despite the scale being smaller than last time.”
Gu Yanan suppressed the worry in her heart. She leaned forward, helping Chu Huai to massage his brows, trying to help him relax. “Don’t think about it now. Take a break first, you haven’t taken a good rest for many days.”
Knowing that she was worried, Chu Huai glanced at the messy holographic documents strewn haphazardly about and waved them all away. He obediently got up, shifted the topic while walking with her and asked, “What happened to Xiao Yan?”
“He’s obedient,” Gu Yan’an replied, unable to stop sighing, “A little… too obedient.”
Chu Yan has always been a lively and noisy boy, when did he become so obedient? He eats and sleeps on time every day, trains at the training hall by himself when he’s free, doesn’t go out to play or demand anything, and even takes the initiative to help with household chores. He’s so sensible, it’s heartwarming.
Chu Huai’s eyes were filled with complicated emotions. But after a while, he shook his head and said, “Let him go. He’s just grown up. Don’t worry.”
Gu Yan’an nodded and said nothing more.
Chu Yan’s room, a video call interface was suspended in mid-air. Yuan Xiu, in the holographic picture, quickly said, “It seems like something’s going on with the You family. My dad has been going to the military department to clash with the You family every day these days. When he comes home, he’s angry and sulking. My mom tries to persuade him, but he just says the You family is up to no good. Chu Yan, now that the presidential election has been postponed due to the emergence of the Zerg, your second brother is missing, and your eldest brother is ill, everyone thinks the Chu family is done for. What are you going to do?”
“Don’t believe those rumors, Dage is not sick.” Chu Yan explained with a frown, paused, then added, “Erge and Qiao will come back safely. Absolutely.”
Seeing him like this, Yuan Xiu’s mouth opened and closed, hesitating to bring up the topic again. He changed the subject and said, “Originally, the military academy would arrange a training session for us before school starts, but now it seems it might be canceled. I received news that if the second wave of the Zerg doesn’t appear, then martial law will gradually be lifted, and the military academy will still start classes as usual. You…”
“I will report on time.” Chu Yan said for sure, touched the communicator, said, “Thank you for sending me the message, and I will contact you when I have time.” After speaking, he hung up the call.
On the opposite end of the call, Yuan Xiu looked at the empty space, looking in disbelief. “Oh my god, Chu Yan would actually say thank you…”
In his room, Chu Yan closed his eyes, leaning back on the sofa, while his mind spun with the power dynamics of various families in the Federation, analyzing them bit by bit. Suddenly, a flash of the scene where the black and gold mecha was sucked into the black hole along with the brown mecha crossed his mind. At the same time, a dull pain akin to being pushed by an arrow radiated from his abdomen.
His eyes narrowed as he sat up. He put his hand on his abdomen, then suddenly punched the sofa with a fist.
When an arrow hit a mecha, the pilot wouldn’t feel any pain from it. He knew the pain he felt were all just hallucinations from his guilt.
But he couldn’t escape from it.
‘If only I was a bit stronger, if only I had reacted faster at that moment, if only I had listened to Erge and started familiarizing myself with manual mecha piloting earlier… If only I hadn’t dragged Qiao into this lousy competition…’
His thoughts spiraled increasingly towards the negative. He reached up, grabbing at his hair, then suddenly stood up and strode quickly towards the door.
‘I can’t dwell on this anymore. I can’t let Dage and Dasao worry. If I’m weak, I’ll train. Erge defeated the Zerg Queen at the age of eighteen. Compared to him, I’m far behind.’
Qiao Zhiya found himself standing in a pitch-black space again. After a moment of confusion, he immediately became happy, looking around excitedly and calling out softly, “Dad? Mom? Are you there?”
Every time he dreams of this place, familiar dots of light appear around him. Though he doesn’t know why it happens, he likes this place and the feeling of connecting with his parents’ power.
As he called, the light dots slowly formed a shapeless green shape, surrounding him. As soon as he was about to hug it, he stopped moving in doubt.
This feeling… Although the wood-elemental magic felt very gentle, he was sure that this wasn’t his father.
“Child, can you help me?”
A gentle old voice suddenly sounded in his ear. He froze, his gaze fell on the gently floating light blob, tentatively reached out and asked, “Are you talking to me?”
The light responded to his touch by dimming for a moment and then bouncing back, as if playing with him. Then, a gentle voice spoke again, “Yes, you are the only living being I’ve been able to communicate with through thoughts in these years. Please, come to the center of the forest to find me.”
“The center of the forest?” Qiao Zhiya repeated in confusion. He was about to ask in detail again, but the light suddenly rushed at him, and then the picture flashed in front of him. Finally, his consciousness returned to reality.
The warm light filtered through the golden leaves, casting a gentle glow around him. The space was empty except for the swaying vines of Qiuqiu above, creating a serene atmosphere.
He was momentarily stunned before coming to his senses, quickly sitting up and looking around. The magical points of light that had floated through the forest last night were nowhere to be seen now. Instead, all he could see were the golden leaves of the towering trees swaying gently in the breeze.
“Woke up?”
Chu Rong’s voice came from under the tree. He froze and looked down on the vine bed.
Below, Chu Rong was tending to a small magic stove, cooking something. Beside him on a wooden stool sat a plate of colorful wild fruits. Nearby, the two children of Qiuqiu were rolling around, making the scene very heartwarming.
Qiao Zhiya froze for a moment, and suddenly remembered the scene of being gently awakened by his parents in the morning while still on the Magic Continent, his heart was warm.
“What are you staring at? Come down.” Chu Rong stood up, looking up at him with open arms.
Ears fluttering happily, lips curved into a big smile. Qiao Zhiya flung himself towards Chu Rong’s open arms.
During breakfast, Qiao Zhiya mentioned to Chu Rong the dream he had last night.
“You said someone was asking for help?” Chu Rong frowned, glancing deep into the giant Yellow Leaf Tree forest, his original relaxed posture tightening.
“Don’t be nervous. The other side means no harm, and I can feel that this forest is very safe.” Qiao Zhiya hurried to reassure him, then gestured around and said, “Haven’t you noticed? Here, including the area where we first stopped, there have been no signs of large fierce beasts around.” These are symbols of safety.
Hearing that, Chu Rong’s frown loosened up. He glanced at Qiuqiu’s two children, who were still rolling around. He asked, “You wanted to go to the center of the forest?”
Qiao Zhiya nodded quickly, then looked forward to asking, “Can I go?”
“Yes.” Chu Rong reached out and squeezed his ears, his eyes softened. “I’ll go with you.”
The forest was huge, so Chu Rong once again took out Rong Tian.
As they walked deeper into the forest, the Yellow Leaf Trees grew taller and taller, and the concentration of wood-element magic in the air became denser. Eventually, they even saw a magnificent scene of “a lone tree in the forest”.
“This tree should have been at least five thousand years…” Qiao Zhiya’s eyes widened, his whole body looked like it was stuck on the mecha’s display screen, stars twinkling in his eyes. “This planet must be peaceful, there has never been a serious natural disaster, Otherwise, there will not be such a large area of ancient trees gathering. “
Chu Rong raised his hand to his ears, and agreed with him very much.
This primitive planet was hidden within an asteroid belt, characterized by a stable and uniform environment, suggesting a high probability of being a high-security planet. If not for these asteroid belts, this planet could have become the next target for colonization, as it was particularly habitable, just like the Capital Planet.
After about another half an hour of walking, a faintly discernible golden “wall” blocking half the sky appeared ahead. Qiao Zhiya looked up in awe at this towering “wall” of golden trees, murmuring to himself, “Is this also a Yellow Leaf Tree? At this level, the trees must be at least tens of thousands of years old…”
Chu Rong was also a bit shocked. Although the Yellow Leaf Tree was indeed a very tall tree with a relatively straight trunk, just how old is this tree for its trunk to reach the sky, until he couldn’t see the top?
He had never seen such a massive tree in his life.
After snapping out of his reverie, Qiao Zhiya hurriedly urged Chu Rong to land, his face full of impatience. His magic was also eagerly swaying, eager to communicate with this “old gentleman”.
He was now sure that the “person” who contacted him in a dream last night must be this ancient tree. It was tens of thousands of years old, and even if it didn’t grow in a superior environment like the Magic Continent, this tree should already have reached sapience.
After the excitement, the two took a closer look at the huge golden trees for insurance purposes, and finally Chu Rong determined that these trees were indeed the Yellow Leaf Trees, and not only that, it's probably about a thousand years old.A thousand years old Qiao Zhiya was in awe .All living beings possess a soul. And in this kind of environment, where the magic particles were rich, these millennium-old trees may have cultivated sapience.Glancing into the depths of the giant tree forest, Chu Rong held Qiao Zhiya in his arms as he involuntarily circled around the trees. He gathered up Qiao Zhiya's twitching ears and said, It's very late now. Time to sleep.Mm, sleeping now. Qiao Zhiya nodded obediently, but his eyes were still glued to the giant trees. His arms were still hovering as if he wanted to hug it.Chu Rong frowned and let go.Qiao Zhiya immediately and decisively broke free from his embrace, darting to the side of a tree with a swish. In no time, he climbed up onto a large and sturdy branch, looking down with a flushed face. Chu Rong, let's sleep in the trees tonight. I can ask Qiuqiu to weave us a vine bed.Chu Rong watched him clinging tightly to the tree, feeling a strange sourness in his heart. He lowered his head and followed suit, jumping onto the tree. After Qiuqiu finished weaving the bed, Chu Rong lay down with Qiao Zhiya in his arms, feeding him a nutritional supplement to fill his stomach.Perhaps it was because they had hope of returning home, or perhaps it was because the atmosphere in the giant tree forest was too comfortable, but soon both of them fell asleep. Even Qiuqiu felt a bit tipsy, as if drunk.The green magical light dots floated leisurely around the group, then suddenly, as if sensing something, they slowly drifted towards Qiao Zhiya in Chu Rong's arms and gradually merged into his body.Capital Planet.Chu Huai turned the galaxy map and rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache forming.Still no news? Gu Yan'an approached, clearly worried. She released her spiritual power to help her husband relax.Chu Huai turned to her, his expression relaxing a bit. He reached out and held her hand, shaking his head. Most of the border planets belong to our family. We've searched them all, but found no trace of Xiao Rong or the black hole. What I fear most now is that Xiao Rong and Qiao were actually in the Empire's territory.With this mention of the Empire, Gu Yan'an frowned, and asked, Is the old Emperor really going to die?The news of the reappearance of the Zergs a few days ago caused a stir in the Imperial Palace. Physicians and pharmacists rushed to the palace overnight and guarded it all night. As of now, there is still no accurate information coming out. It's feared that the old Emperor may be in a bad situation.It's possible. Chu Huai replied, remembering the news from the Imperial High Advisor before, saying, This time, the old Emperor's reaction was very strange. It seems that the reappearance of the Zerg really scared him, despite the scale being smaller than last time.Gu Yanan suppressed the worry in her heart. She leaned forward, helping Chu Huai to massage his brows, trying to help him relax. Don't think about it now. Take a break first, you haven't taken a good rest for many days.Knowing that she was worried, Chu Huai glanced at the messy holographic documents strewn haphazardly about and waved them all away. He obediently got up, shifted the topic while walking with her and asked, What happened to Xiao Yan?He's obedient, Gu Yan'an replied, unable to stop sighing, A little too obedient.Chu Yan has always been a lively and noisy boy, when did he become so obedient? He eats and sleeps on time every day, trains at the training hall by himself when he's free, doesn't go out to play or demand anything, and even takes the initiative to help with household chores. He's so sensible, it's heartwarming.Chu Huai's eyes were filled with complicated emotions. But after a while, he shook his head and said, Let him go. He's just grown up. Don't worry.Gu Yan'an nodded and said nothing more.Chu Yan's room, a video call interface was suspended in mid-air. Yuan Xiu, in the holographic picture, quickly said, It seems like something's going on with the You family. My dad has been going to the military department to clash with the You family every day these days. When he comes home, he's angry and sulking. My mom tries to persuade him, but he just says the You family is up to no good. Chu Yan, now that the presidential election has been postponed due to the emergence of the Zerg, your second brother is missing, and your eldest brother is ill, everyone thinks the Chu family is done for. What are you going to do?Don't believe those rumors, Dage is not sick. Chu Yan explained with a frown, paused, then added, Erge and Qiao will come back safely. Absolutely.Seeing him like this, Yuan Xiu's mouth opened and closed, hesitating to bring up the topic again. He changed the subject and said, Originally, the military academy would arrange a training session for us before school starts, but now it seems it might be canceled. I received news that if the second wave of the Zerg doesn't appear, then martial law will gradually be lifted, and the military academy will still start classes as usual. YouI will report on time. Chu Yan said for sure, touched the communicator, said, Thank you for sending me the message, and I will contact you when I have time. After speaking, he hung up the call.On the opposite end of the call, Yuan Xiu looked at the empty space, looking in disbelief. Oh my god, Chu Yan would actually say thank youIn his room, Chu Yan closed his eyes, leaning back on the sofa, while his mind spun with the power dynamics of various families in the Federation, analyzing them bit by bit. Suddenly, a flash of the scene where the black and gold mecha was sucked into the black hole along with the brown mecha crossed his mind. At the same time, a dull pain akin to being pushed by an arrow radiated from his abdomen.His eyes narrowed as he sat up. He put his hand on his abdomen, then suddenly punched the sofa with a fist.When an arrow hit a mecha, the pilot wouldn't feel any pain from it. He knew the pain he felt were all just hallucinations from his guilt.But he couldn't escape from it.If only I was a bit stronger, if only I had reacted faster at that moment, if only I had listened to Erge and started familiarizing myself with manual mecha piloting earlier If only I hadn't dragged Qiao into this lousy competition'His thoughts spiraled increasingly towards the negative. He reached up, grabbing at his hair, then suddenly stood up and strode quickly towards the door.I can't dwell on this anymore. I can't let Dage and Dasao worry. If I'm weak, I'll train. Erge defeated the Zerg Queen at the age of eighteen. Compared to him, I'm far behind.'Qiao Zhiya found himself standing in a pitch-black space again. After a moment of confusion, he immediately became happy, looking around excitedly and calling out softly, Dad? Mom? Are you there?Every time he dreams of this place, familiar dots of light appear around him. Though he doesn't know why it happens, he likes this place and the feeling of connecting with his parents' power.As he called, the light dots slowly formed a shapeless green shape, surrounding him. As soon as he was about to hug it, he stopped moving in doubt.This feeling Although the wood-elemental magic felt very gentle, he was sure that this wasn't his father.Child, can you help me?A gentle old voice suddenly sounded in his ear. He froze, his gaze fell on the gently floating light blob, tentatively reached out and asked, Are you talking to me?The light responded to his touch by dimming for a moment and then bouncing back, as if playing with him. Then, a gentle voice spoke again, Yes, you are the only living being I've been able to communicate with through thoughts in these years. Please, come to the center of the forest to find me.The center of the forest? Qiao Zhiya repeated in confusion. He was about to ask in detail again, but the light suddenly rushed at him, and then the picture flashed in front of him. Finally, his consciousness returned to reality.The warm light filtered through the golden leaves, casting a gentle glow around him. The space was empty except for the swaying vines of Qiuqiu above, creating a serene atmosphere.He was momentarily stunned before coming to his senses, quickly sitting up and looking around. The magical points of light that had floated through the forest last night were nowhere to be seen now. Instead, all he could see were the golden leaves of the towering trees swaying gently in the breeze.Woke up?Chu Rong's voice came from under the tree. He froze and looked down on the vine bed.Below, Chu Rong was tending to a small magic stove, cooking something. Beside him on a wooden stool sat a plate of colorful wild fruits. Nearby, the two children of Qiuqiu were rolling around, making the scene very heartwarming.Qiao Zhiya froze for a moment, and suddenly remembered the scene of being gently awakened by his parents in the morning while still on the Magic Continent, his heart was warm.What are you staring at? Come down. Chu Rong stood up, looking up at him with open arms.Ears fluttering happily, lips curved into a big smile. Qiao Zhiya flung himself towards Chu Rong's open arms.During breakfast, Qiao Zhiya mentioned to Chu Rong the dream he had last night.You said someone was asking for help? Chu Rong frowned, glancing deep into the giant Yellow Leaf Tree forest, his original relaxed posture tightening.Don't be nervous. The other side means no harm, and I can feel that this forest is very safe. Qiao Zhiya hurried to reassure him, then gestured around and said, Haven't you noticed? Here, including the area where we first stopped, there have been no signs of large fierce beasts around. These are symbols of safety.Hearing that, Chu Rong's frown loosened up. He glanced at Qiuqiu's two children, who were still rolling around. He asked, You wanted to go to the center of the forest?Qiao Zhiya nodded quickly, then looked forward to asking, Can I go?Yes. Chu Rong reached out and squeezed his ears, his eyes softened. I'll go with you.The forest was huge, so Chu Rong once again took out Rong Tian.As they walked deeper into the forest, the Yellow Leaf Trees grew taller and taller, and the concentration of wood-element magic in the air became denser. Eventually, they even saw a magnificent scene of a lone tree in the forest.This tree should have been at least five thousand years Qiao Zhiya's eyes widened, his whole body looked like it was stuck on the mecha's display screen, stars twinkling in his eyes. This planet must be peaceful, there has never been a serious natural disaster, Otherwise, there will not be such a large area of ancient trees gathering. Chu Rong raised his hand to his ears, and agreed with him very much.This primitive planet was hidden within an asteroid belt, characterized by a stable and uniform environment, suggesting a high probability of being a high-security planet. If not for these asteroid belts, this planet could have become the next target for colonization, as it was particularly habitable, just like the Capital Planet.After about another half an hour of walking, a faintly discernible golden wall blocking half the sky appeared ahead. Qiao Zhiya looked up in awe at this towering wall of golden trees, murmuring to himself, Is this also a Yellow Leaf Tree? At this level, the trees must be at least tens of thousands of years oldChu Rong was also a bit shocked. Although the Yellow Leaf Tree was indeed a very tall tree with a relatively straight trunk, just how old is this tree for its trunk to reach the sky, until he couldn't see the top?He had never seen such a massive tree in his life.After snapping out of his reverie, Qiao Zhiya hurriedly urged Chu Rong to land, his face full of impatience. His magic was also eagerly swaying, eager to communicate with this old gentleman.He was now sure that the person who contacted him in a dream last night must be this ancient tree. It was tens of thousands of years old, and even if it didn't grow in a superior environment like the Magic Continent, this tree should already have reached sapience.
