“Are you… the will of the forest?” Elsa took a step forward, asking in a tone that bordered on a pilgrimage.
Even though they looked down on those low-level plant-type Demonic Entities from the bottom of their hearts, they still had to show the necessary respect when facing an existence of this caliber.
At the very least… its research value was immeasurable.
“You may call me… Gaia,” the Mother Tree spoke slowly, her voice carrying a perfectly measured sense of detachment.
Gaia? Isn’t Gaia the Mother of the Earth…
At most, you could be considered… the Mother of the Forest…
Fan Zhuo remarked inwardly.
“We are scholars from the Royal Academy of Magic. We have come here to investigate the… recent Energy Anomaly in this area,” Elsa said respectfully. “We mean no ill will.”
It was evident that as a scholar, Elsa harbored a degree of admiration for powerful creatures hailing from ancient times.
“Energy Anomaly?”
Gaia’s voice carried a hint of well-timed “confusion.” “I have not sensed any abnormalities. Not long ago, this lord also came to investigate, did he not?”
“This lord” naturally referred to Lucien.
As she spoke, she also quietly took that surge of Life Energy—which had been stirred up by Fan Zhuo’s arrival—and converted it, disguising it as “vigilance” and “rejection” caused by the intrusion of outsiders.
Before, radiating Life Energy had been an instinct, but now, the Mother Tree’s exquisite energy manipulation convinced Elsa and the others.
“However, the Prison’s monitoring system clearly showed… an extremely violent energy eruption occurred here.”
The young girl wearing goggles, Lily, said unwillingly as she shook the instrument in her hand.
Hearing this, Fan Zhuo’s heart skipped a beat.
Do these people trust the credibility of the information that much? Are there informants from other factions within the Prison? Or have these people already infiltrated the Prison’s systems?
“Perhaps… your instrument is mistaken,” Mother Tree Gaia’s voice remained calm and waveless.
Just as the two sides were at a stalemate, Lucien, who had been silently observing the Mother Tree, suddenly spoke.
His gaze was like two cold blades, locked dead onto the Mother Tree’s body.
“…Is that so?” A cold, mocking sneer curled onto the corner of his mouth. “Then why does your body have an extra scent…”
“A scent that… shouldn’t belong to you… a very complex scent.”
As Lucien spoke, he took a step forward and pressed his right hand against the Holy Emblem at his waist. A visible, pure white Holy Power began to gather around him.
Fan Zhuo’s heart sank abruptly.
Damn it, is this Lucien part dog?
He had been in contact with Alfea, Ye Ying, and Baitu, yet Lucien couldn’t smell anything on them. His contact with the Mother Tree was just a simple… well, it didn’t seem that simple…
But why didn’t he smell anything during the investigations yesterday or the day before, only to catch it today?
Could it be because the Holy Power Lake inside him could resonate better with the Mother Tree… and that’s why a flaw was exposed…
His previous “deep exchange” with the Mother Tree had still left behind an indelible mark.
This gave Fan Zhuo a massive headache.
Although that “polluted” Holy Power could not be accurately identified by Lucien, at this moment, it was acting like a dutiful traitor, frantically waving “hello” from inside the Mother Tree’s body to Lucien, a fellow wielder of the same source!
In Lucien’s eyes, this was no different from “it’s been provoking me the whole time.”
“The Judicator must be joking.” Fan Zhuo still wore a smile of Sanctity on his face, but a stormy sea was raging in his heart.
“Lady Gaia is the incarnation of the forest. The activity of her energy might just be a normal reaction to so many outsiders… As for the ‘scent’ you mentioned… perhaps it is the fragrance of some peculiar plant in this forest? After all, the wonders of nature are far beyond our imagination.”
He seemed to be defending the Mother Tree, but in reality, he was reminding Lucien: Don’t forget, there are outsiders here. Mind your manners and don’t make a scene; it won’t benefit anyone.
“Hmph, whatever it is, she knows it well in her own heart.” Lucien clearly wasn’t buying it.
Being collectively fooled by a “filthy” Demonic Entity and a “Heretic” he suspected right in front of everyone had already touched the bottom line of his dignity as a member of the Valois Family and a Judicator.
Besides, the subject of his judgment was a Demonic Entity, not Fan Zhuo, the Warden Assistant.
People from the Royal Academy of Magic were also here. For the sake of the Inquisition’s face and for his own pride, he had to get a result here today!
“Since words cannot distinguish truth from falsehood, then let the Saint Light judge everything!”
His voice became increasingly cold. “I will conduct a ‘Judgment Purification’ here. If there is truly a Heretic hiding, they will have nowhere to hide!”
Judgment Purification!
The moment those words were uttered, Elsa’s expression changed as well.
This ritual was one of the highest-level investigation methods of the Inquisition. By using a large-scale impact of Saint Light energy, it forcibly detonated all non-Saint Light attribute energy within the area to locate the traces of suspected Heretics.
The process was arrogant and overbearing, and it was extremely destructive to the ecology of the investigated area.
Trees would be corroded, living beings would be severely harmed, and for a long period afterward, this area would not see a gathering of massive life auras.
This was why Lucien had this move but had never used it.
But now, feeling humiliated, he was prepared to use Judgment Purification on the Mother Tree.
“Your Excellency Judicator, please reconsider!” Elsa hurriedly spoke out to stop him. “Lady Gaia is an extremely precious research subject. Your ritual will cause irreversible damage to her!”
“Damage?” Lucien sneered, his eyes filled with disdain for these “scholars.” “For filthy things, purification is salvation. If it is pure itself, the Saint Light naturally will not harm it.”
“But Lady Gaia…”
Lucien gave no one a chance to argue and began to chant complex and ancient holy words.
Elsa desperately wanted to stop him, but with her status, it was completely insufficient to make a stubborn Judicator of the Inquisition stay his hand.
Fan Zhuo’s brain worked at high speed.
He knew very well that with the Holy Power inside the Mother Tree, once it was swept by Lucien’s Judgment Purification, it would definitely produce a violent Energy Anomaly.
At that time, it would be like pouring a basin of cold water into a pot of boiling oil—it would be a miracle if it didn’t explode on the spot!
He had to stop all this, but he couldn’t make it look too intentional.
“Gaia!”
He mobilized the power belonging to the Mother Tree within the Holy Power Lake and called out urgently in his mind. “Listen, when his power sweeps over in a moment, don’t resist it head-on. Directly use that tiny bit of Holy Power I used to nourish you and cater to it!”
“Then, you must… pretend to be burned and show pain, but you must also resist tenaciously. Make him feel that your ‘filth’ as a Demonic Entity is troublesome, but not that of a pure ‘Heretic’! Do you understand?!”
The Mother Tree clearly understood, but what confused Fan Zhuo was that within the other party’s thoughts, there was actually a trace of nervousness and… an inexplicable excitement?
What time do you think it is? What are you getting excited for!
Fan Zhuo didn’t have time to complain; Lucien’s ritual had already reached its climax.
“—In the name of God, wash away the filth. Saint Light, bring down your judgment!”
As his final holy word fell, a dazzling pillar of white light descended from the sky like a sword of Divine Punishment, accurately enveloping the entire Mother Tree.
Within the pillar of light, countless sacred Runes flowed, making sizzling sounds as if they were burning every trace of impurity in the air.
The people from the Academy retreated one after another; that pure Holy Power made them feel extremely uncomfortable.
Only Fan Zhuo did not feel uncomfortable; instead, he felt… a bit of familiarity.
But what surprised him even more was the Mother Tree’s reaction:
“Mmm… Ah..!”
A groan that suppressed pain, yet carried a hint of peculiar, seductive charm, escaped from the Mother Tree’s mouth.
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