Chapter 311 : The Tree Spirit’s Gift
Chapter 311: The Tree Spirit’s Gift
Willow twigs clustered and glowed with fluorescence.
As Janna accepted the verdant willow leaf handed over by the Human-Faced Willow’s slender branches, she sensed the rich vitality imbued in it. At the same time, an indescribable feeling continued to rise in her heart.
They just gave this to her?
Looking at the vivid green leaf in her hand, as emerald-like as a jade gemstone, Janna still felt as if in a daze.
Not to mention its effect of “bringing the dying back to life”—just the ability to “extend the life of a healthy person by three years” was already outrageous enough.
For those witches from witch families whose lifespans were nearing their end, they would fight desperately even for a single year’s extension. Let alone something that could “bring the dying back to life.”
To extraordinary individuals who frequently ventured into Secret Realms, this was nothing short of gaining an extra life!
And for the Human-Faced Willow to give such a valuable item to Janna as a quest reward—when they barely knew each other, and Janna hadn’t even completed the assigned task yet—was simply too extravagant.
“Thank you for your gift, Tree Spirit. I will do my utmost to complete this mission!”
“Yes. I believe you will.”
Feeling that unconditional trust once more from the Human-Faced Willow, Janna carefully stored away the “Willow Leaf,” her curiosity about the source of such trust growing stronger.
“Could this be a benefit brought by the [Affinity with Nature] talent?”
With that thought, Janna couldn’t help but voice her curiosity, asking the Human-Faced Willow:
“Tree Spirit, may I ask why you trust me so much?”
The wind rustled again, making the leaves on the Human-Faced Willow’s branches sway and whisper.
And upon hearing Janna’s question, the Human-Faced Willow replied with absolute certainty, without a moment’s hesitation:
“Because you carry the aura of Her Grace, so I believe you.”
Was it the magic aura originating from [Euphresia]?
Janna had already guessed something along those lines, but hearing it still left her with mixed emotions.
After chatting a while longer about this topic, the Human-Faced Willow, unaccustomed to nighttime activity, couldn’t help but let out a long yawn before speaking in a weary voice:
“Alright, I’ve already taken up too much of your time. You should head back now—”
“Yes, Tree Spirit.”
The shadows of the trees danced, and the mist gathered.
After speaking this gentle dismissal, the Human-Faced Willow disappeared once again into the mist, leaving no trace behind.
Seeing this, Janna, who had indeed been delayed for quite some time, pulled out the Misty Branch once more and, accompanied by the swishing sound of vines beside her ears, stepped briskly into the vine tunnel.
“Rosen—hmm.”
While passing through the tunnel, Janna couldn’t resist taking out the Oak Seed once more, channeling the power of the [Growth Law Fragment] to infuse it with the force of life.
But no matter how hard she tried, the Oak Seed in her hand remained inert, like a true “dead seed.”
“This mission is so difficult... Why was it rated as a blue-level quest? Could it be that I’m just overthinking it...?”
Caw caw—
As Janna exited the vine tunnel, the familiar caws of the raven echoed in her ears.
“Whatever. What matters most right now is—meditation.”
Seeing that the pocket watch showed the time as 2:00 a.m., Janna quickened her pace toward the dormitory building.
In the days that followed, Janna’s schedule was consumed by classes, work, reading at the library, conducting Mutation Studies experiments in her dormitory, completing [Mainline Quests], and venturing into the Extreme Cold Secret Realm with Vivian to comprehend the [Withering Law].
To avoid wasting any time, Janna had already started skipping classes she had completely mastered (such as Ancient Magical History). She also skipped meals at the dining hall, instead eating odorless food while reading in the library.
She had utilized every possible fragmented moment of her day, yet still felt as if there weren’t enough hours.
This routine continued for over three months.
“I did it!”
At the dormitory’s experiment station, Janna’s face lit up with joy as she observed the plant cells in the culture medium exhibiting “autonomous vitality traits.”
“The next step is embryonic cultivation—if that goes well, the hardest part of my research project will be conquered!”
Janna’s topic for her Mutation Studies assignment was titled “Cultivation of Active Magical Flora.” It was a subject she chose after drawing from the vast experience of her predecessors. Not too easy, not too hard—just suitable for the apprentice stage.
To put it simply, the reason White Coral Academy required all second-year apprentices to present a research project at the end of the term wasn’t to make things difficult. It was simply to cultivate their ability to think and research independently.
Janna’s project was straightforward: using cell transplantation and altering the elemental patterns inside the cell nucleus to transform an ordinary magical plant into one with basic mobility and spellcasting capabilities—an “Active Magical Flora.”
So far, there had been many studies on “Active Magical Flora” within the witching world. The most famous example was the “Devil’s Vine” of Florence.
A fully cultivated artificial plant with power equivalent to a full-fledged witch, and Florence’s ultimate guardian weapon.
“It’s about time to meet up with Vivian at Rose Manor.”
Seeing that the clock on her dormitory wall showed 3:30 p.m., and with their 4:00 p.m. appointment to meet at the gates of Rose Manor, Janna dumped her experimental waste into the nearby bin and quickly changed into the deep green witch robe recently mailed to her by the Necromancy Group.
It was early July, and summer was settling into the wizarding enclave of Duling. The weather was gradually heating up.
To suit the seasonal change, the Necromancy Group had sent Janna the latest summer model of their witch robes ahead of schedule—for her to try out and also to warm up for an upcoming photo shoot for the new catalog.
Creak—creak—
As Janna stepped out of the dormitory, the shrill sound of cicadas echoed through the campus.
The raven, hating the summer heat as always, had taken refuge in the shade beneath a tree, looking completely lifeless.
“Indeed, compared to Duling’s long and frigid winters, I really do prefer the summer.”
Bright sun, clear skies, green trees, and lively birds—unlike the bleakness of winter, summer transformed the Duling wizarding enclave into a verdant paradise.
Even the Misty Forest, usually shrouded in fog, shed its gloom and came alive with the sounds of chirping birds and buzzing insects.