Chapter 105: Statue? Ignara, Goddess of Wildfire?
Life Spirit Tree: [ Kingdom Creation: Sylvan Soul Kingdom]
This ability was no small thing—it explained why he had suddenly gained access to all those advanced skills and why his profession had advanced to the Lord quality.
According to the description, Kingdom Creation allowed him to transform his Spiritual Realm into a Virtual Forest, which would become the foundation of the Sylvan Soul Kingdom.
This wasn't just a physical place, but a virtual domain that was capable enough to accommodate real entities like Wood Spirit Realm, exiting across different Void Spaces, rooted in both the material world and the spiritual one.
It made sense now. The Sylvan Soul Tree was the core of an entire kingdom, with Ram at the center as its lord.
Next were the abilities inherited from the Astral Soul Tree, and they were just as remarkable.
The first ability, Soul Tree, seemed to be a lesser version of the full Astral Soul Tree, but it was still incredibly powerful.
It gave him the ability to summon a Soul Tree within his Sylvan Soul Kingdom.
The effect of this tree was unique—it could collect the souls of those who died within or around his territory.
Instead of just passing on, the souls would be nourished by the Soul Tree and can be reborn as Wood Spirits under his control.
The second ability, Soul Tree Seeds, expanded on this concept.
It allowed Ram to create seeds of the Soul Tree, which could be planted outside his territory.
These seeds would continue collecting souls from different areas and send them back to the Soul Tree at the heart of his kingdom.
In other words, it gave him the power to gather more souls from a wider range, even beyond the borders of his domain.
"Awesome, hehe," Ram laughed as he marveled at the extent of these abilities.
Not only could he create and nurture life, but he also had control over souls themselves—an ability that could reshape the balance of life and death in his kingdom.
"I wish I could find this territory token soon," Ram muttered, his eyes still fixed on the display of his new abilities.
"Who knows," he thought aloud, "since I got lucky enough to obtain a Holy Source Seed, I should be able to find the Territory Token, right?" His mind raced with possibilities.
If the seed was this powerful, there had to be a way to unlock its full potential. He just needed to figure out where to start looking.
As Ram pondered what to do next, a loud bang suddenly echoed from behind the stone houses.
His heart skipped a beat—it was the area where his Wood Spirits had been playing while he was busy evolving the cavemen.
Without wasting a second, he dashed toward the sound to check on them. When he arrived, the place was covered in dust and smoke, swirling around chaotically.
Korrin, Nyra, and a few of the Half-Drow cavemen had also rushed over, their faces full of confusion as they tried to make sense of what had just happened.
From the cloud of dust, Ram spotted Groot stumbling out, covered head to toe in mud and debris. Sitting on his shoulder were two of his Wood Spirits—Linger and Thorny.
Yeah, it's Thorny, not long after he started evolving the second batch of cavemen, Thorny broke out of her cocoon.
At first glance, she didn't look much different, but he quickly realized her evolution was far deeper than it appeared.
Her genes had been completely overwritten by the skill '[Environmental Fortification],' granting her strong strength, resilience, and unnatural toughness that now rivaled forged steel.
[ Name: SwordThorn Spire Vine (mutant)]
[ Level: Silver]
[ Quality: Rare]
[ Physique: 16]
[ Spirit: 9]
[ Description: An ordinary plant vine that has undergone a remarkable transformation under the influence of unique vitality. Its thorns and vines have mutated due to the awakening of a special skill, becoming as sharp as swords.]
[ Skill:
[Thorny Armor]: It possesses an enhanced layer of thorny defense made up of sharp thorns, making it difficult for predators to damage or consume it.
[Environmental Fortification]: Grown in a specific, harsh environment, the plant developed exceptional strength, resilience, and unnatural toughness, comparable to forged steel.]
[ Talent:
[Vine Grapple]: Able to extend and retract vines to grasp onto objects or foes, aiding in mobility or immobilizing enemies.]
Her quality didn't change but the vines she controls have all been strengthened, similar to reenforced steel wires.
And her thorns had mutated into sharp spikes, similar to swords. This transformation was thanks to the skill [Environmental Fortification], which had been copied from Linger, a Sword Grass.
The blending of skills led to this unexpected mutation in Thorny.
This was an unexpected gain; he never thought that after infusing Wood Spirits with the skills of other powerful Wood Spirits, they would mutate and exabit various basic characteristics of the Wood Spirits from which the skill was copied.
He shifted his focus back to the three Wood Spirits in front of him.
Linger looked as sharp and composed as always, but Thorny on the other hand seemed to shrink back the moment she saw Ram.
Thorny, clearly the culprit behind the explosion, quickly ducked behind Linger, wearing a nervous and embarrassed expression, clearly fearing the scolding that might come next.
Ram could only sigh as he surveyed the mess in front of him. As the dust settled, Ram noticed an entire stone building had completely collapsed.
Broken bricks and debris lay scattered across the ground, creating a chaotic mess.
Fortunately, no cavemen were inside; otherwise, this accident could have been more unfortunate than fortunate for them.
With a sigh of relief, Ram turned his attention to Linger. He wasn't particularly upset about the ruined stone house—that was of not much use.
What really piqued his curiosity was why the Wood Spirits, especially Thorny, had caused such a scene.
"Linger, what happened here?" Ram asked, his voice calm but firm, hoping for a quick explanation.
Linger shifted slightly, as if unsure of how to respond, before pointing toward Thorny, who was still hiding behind her.
Thorny peeked out, her face flushed with embarrassment, "It was an accident," Linger finally spoke through the Spirit Rune connection they had, her voice soft but steady.
"Thorny was testing her vines after evolving... but I think she underestimated how strong she's become. She tried out her [Vine Grapple] on the building."
Thorny shuffled awkwardly, as she explained herself, "I... I didn't think it would collapse. I just wanted to see how much I could lift," she mumbled, her voice barely audible in his mind.
Thorny, is now able to communicate freely like Linger through the Spirit Rune within Ram's Spiritual Realm—a connection that appeared when he transformed her into a Wood Spirit.
The enhancement of the Spirit attribute and his dedication to teaching her yielded results.
Before educating the Wood Spirits about general concepts such as human language and various details, he exposed them to a range of movies, dramas, battle records, and more.
With their Spirit attribute being significantly stronger than that of ordinary humans, they were able to comprehend these concepts with ease and able to communicate with ease, through the Spirit Runes in his Spiritual Realm.
Despite the mess, he didn't scold her.
Instead, Ram smiled gently and walked over to the collapsed building. Something had caught his eye, something unusual amidst the rubble.
A large half-broken stone statue lay in scattered stone pieces, and it wasn't just any statue—it was of a Half-Drow with wings.
Kneeling next to the shattered remains, he ran his hand across the surface of the stone, feeling its coarse texture. It wasn't part of the building's original structure; it seemed out of place. "What's a statue of a Half-Drow doing here?" he muttered under his breath.
Korrin, noticing Ram's interest, walked over and eyed the shattered statue. "Master, this was the Statue of Ignara, Goddess of Wildfire," he explained, scratching his head. "Under the instructions of the Half Drows, we cavemen have been worshipping her for many generations."
Ram knelt beside the broken statue, examining the complex carvings on its surface, and questioned, "How long has this statue been here?"
"Ah, a long time. Maybe 15 to 16 generations," Korrin replied, his voice thoughtful as he tried hard to recall the details he saw and heard when he was still a caveman. "This statue was here even before our tribe came to this place."
"Interesting, is it similar to the Mechanical Apostle, designed to gather the power of Faith?" Ram pondered, recalling the Mechanical Apostle he had encountered previously, which served the same purpose.
However, when he used his Spiritual Eye to examine the statue, he discovered that it was merely an ordinary statue, which left him perplexed. He then wondered, what could be the purpose of this statue?
As he ran his hand over the rough stone surface, he inquired, "And what did you do with it?"
Korrin continued, "We were instructed by those Half-Drows to bring our dead cavemen's bodies to this shrine." He gestured toward the remnants of the statue with a hint of fear.
"They said Goddess Ignara would lead our souls to the afterlife. Despite our limited understanding of the afterlife, driven by fear, we always brought our dead brothers and left them inside the Shirin."
"That makes sense," Ram nodded, thinking about how dumb these cavemen are, fear of death is the only thing that can make them do things like worshipping. "What else do you remember?"
Korrin furrowed his brow, digging into his memories. "I also remember that every once in a while, some Half-Drows come to our tribe to inspect us and check on this statue," he said, his voice a mix of nostalgia and uncertainty.
"They would tell stories about Ignara, Goddess of Wildfire, and remind us to believe in her to offer sacrifice with the bodies of dead cavemen. That's all I can remember about it."