Ascension of the Sylvan Cosmos.
Chapter 468. Tianlian Liu Shu’s Overwhelming Strength.

When an army was flanked, they would always be fearful because they had their weak side, and the chances of being defeated were quite high in a situation where both sides had similar strength. Now, when that flank was done not by cavalry or an ambush but by a mountain-sized Willow Tree, the feeling was not one of tension or nervousness.  

It was terror and despair. 

When the being that appeared in front of your army was large enough to create a shadow on almost everyone, adding the fear that she had been slowly nurturing in their hearts, everything collapsed. Rules, discipline, everything became useless when facing the situation they had fallen into.

Thalric’s heart also sped up with fear, but he maintained a relatively clear mind. He knew what was about to happen, so he shouted. “Tighten the ranks! Don’t let her pick us all off! If you rank by yourself, you’ll be easily destroyed!”

Liu Shu didn’t give him a chance to speak more, though. Her <Soulseed>’s energy surged, and her branches all began moving. Then, thousands of phantom branches appeared and started swinging down. A willow tree’s branches were slim, but when the willow tree was 2,000 meters tall, each branch was thicker than a building. 

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The ground trembled, the land shrieked, and the intelligent beings wailed. Attacking a high-level World Tree was done from a distance for a reason. Even if their stats were similar, a World Tree was just too big. So, in close-quarters combat, nothing could even come close to their brute strength. 

You might have 40,000 <Physique>, but when a branch as thick as a building came crashing down with similar <Physique> as yours, the result was hopeless. Liu Shu’s <Soulseed> didn’t have “only” 40,000, though. At 70% of her strength, Liu Shu’s <Soulseed> had around 64,000 <Physique Points> and over 80% resistances. 

To put this into perspective, a Level 65 C-Tiered human with an average Energy Cycle Completion would have 20,000 <Physique> and around 400 Phoer Body Cores. So, when her branches stretched through transparent limbs and smashed against the ground, the numbers that jumped would make people faint. 

BOOM!

[-45,700,900]!

BOOM!

[-38,600,900]!

BOOM!

[-51,980,900]!

[Congratulations on defeating <Ceperet Human Level 45 (C- Rank)>. You've gained 2 Experience Points.] x586

[Congratulations on defeating <Ceperet Human Level 56 (C- Rank)>. You've gained 660 Experience Points.] x17

[Congratulations on defeating <Ceperet Human Level 61 (C+ Rank)>. You've gained 2,571 Experience Points.] x11

[Congratulations on defeating <Ceperet Human Level 69 (C Rank)>. You've gained 3,203 Experience Points.] x7

[Congratulations on defeating <Ceperet Human Level 65 (B- Rank)>. You've gained 5,285 Experience Points.] x2

…

An army meant nothing in front of a high-tiered and high-leveled World Tree. They were just a group of weak bugs, which made it easier to stomp on. 

Seeing the chaos, Thalric was not resigned, and neither were his elites. “Attack the World Tree!”

A group of nearly 1,000 <Third Energy Cycle> beings rushed through the chaotic battlefield and attacked Liu Shu’s <Soulseed>. Myriad spells streaked through the sky, scorching the air in their way. 

Liu Shu moved her cold and indifferent gaze toward those attacks and controlled her thousands of branches, creating a solid wall between the attacks and her. 

The colliding attacks echoed like rumbling thunder on a tempestuous night. Thalric shouted, his voice amplified with ternary essences. “See that!? We can fight! Don’t lose hope yet!”

“You can’t.” Liu Shu answered lightly, and a powerful gale created by her fast-moving branches blew the smoke away. Behind the smoke curtain, Liu Shu’s main body remained mostly unscathed, while only a few branches received enough damage to be visible. 

The man was stunned. ‘How can a C Tier World Tree be this durable…?’ Then, he decided to look at the damage numbers his attack created. 

[-11,800]! [-6,800]! [-7,800]!

Thalric’s eyes widened in stupefaction, and he analyzed Liu Shu’s <Soulseed> Phoer Body Shards. 

***

Phoer Body Cores (Shards): 2,273 / 2,485 (227,300,000 / 248,500,000)

Physique: 68,900

***

‘What…?’ Thalric wasn’t the only one who realized, and some strangled shouts of fear spread around the camp. “W-Why does she have Phoer reserves similar to a <Fourth Energy Cycle>? 70,000 <Physique> as well? How is this possible?” He looked up with anger and shouted. “Evangeline lied to us!? That traitor!”

It was the only conclusion that made sense. What else could explain it? The World Tree, a being that should’ve had less than half those stats, had surged to such impossible heights in just a few short years. Other than being deceived, he couldn’t come up with anything else. 

When those numbers were revealed, everyone finally lost their calm. They knew that the number of attacks she had received until now was in the tens of thousands. Yet, the damage that she had received was nothing but a scratch. The World Tree would be able to continue fighting them for more than an hour at this pace. But could their army last an hour of an onslaught caused by this giant being? 

BOOM!

Another explosion came from behind them, and suddenly, they remembered a very important detail. They weren’t just fighting this monstrously strong World Tree. Behind them, there was an army!

Liu Shu’s voice fell on them as if it had weight. “Where are you looking? Am I that easy to ignore? <Weeping Willow’s Aether Barrage>.”

Thousands of Aether projectiles manifested around her. They resembled 20-meter-long thorns enveloped in elemental attributes. Then, these thorns sped toward the ground and exploded everything within the attack area, creating even more chaos.  

Thalric looked beside him with trembling eyes. The giant spectral thorn had smashed a few of his close confidants to a paste. ‘This is not a battle.’ He realized. ‘This is a massacre.’

Tianlian Liu Shu finally showed her power in front of people again, and the results were catastrophic. Trying to run? Good luck, since Liu Shu’s attacks had a range of over five kilometers. Her roots could stretch through Aether Mana phantom limbs, and her thorns could aim at anyone within 8 kilometers with perfect accuracy. Moreover, their stealth methods mean nothing because she could see through her World Tree body. It was not sensing through roots, but actual vision derived from light reception similar to humans and other creatures. 

Verdantia, Tempestria, and the others arrived at the battlefield together with their armies. Although they didn’t dare go too deep into the enemy army. Each time one of Liu Shu’s roots struck the ground, everyone felt their hearts jump. Those roots that moved too fast for their size were terrifying and made the onlookers feel powerless. 

Harmonixia transformed into her Sylvan form, amplifying all her music. “Lady World Tree fights! Must we be cowardly and let her fight by herself!? Lady World Tree protects us! Must we not answer her call to battle and eliminate our enemies!? Fight! Fight! Fight! Follow our Lady to victory! The Heavenly Willow will be our path to victory! FIGHT!”

With a war melody, Harmonixia pushed everyone’s morale and made their blood boil. Her words rang true through their own army, and everyone’s heart changed. Tianlian Liu Shu didn’t appear fearsome but valiant, like an undefeatable goddess of war. She was the one who would carry them to victory! She was the one who protected their land! 

“FIGHT!”

“FOR LADY LIU SHU!”

“KILL THOSE WHO DON’T FOLLOW THE WORLD TREE!”

“KILL!”

“KILL!”

“KILL!”

“KILL!”

The Arboreal Winged Serpents arrived from the sky, weaving through Liu Shu’s branches easily as they attacked and bombarded everyone. Ophion also dove down with the melee ones, causing chaos and tanking everything thrown his way. Tempestria kept a distance in the sky and maneuvered the flying army to pick up those who tried to escape. 

Thalric was surrounded by Death. There was nothing that came to mind to reverse this situation. So, with clenched teeth, he shouted. “Retreat! Flee to the Wall Forest!”

When Liu Shu heard those words, her eyes flashed with cold mirth. However, she didn’t stop her attacks. When a large enemy group scattered and tried to flee, her roots would surface as she used <Speed Root>, <Explosive Root>, <Root Light Burst>, and <Root Strike> to kill indiscriminately. 

Meanwhile, in the largest bulk, her main branches and projectiles bombarded the shields that the armies tried to deploy, breaking them like fragile glass. Her presence was no less powerful than what a real <Fourth Energy Cycle> powerhouse could cause.  

Thalric’s group went from nearly 1,000 <Third Energy Cycle> elites to a few dozen. Still, he managed to reach the outer range of Liu Shu’s barrages. The World Tree glanced at his retreating back with a cold smile. With her ability to pinpoint an attack, how could she be unable to take that man’s life? 

The reason she didn’t do it was that she overheard his mutterings. 

Thalric took the tablet and started writing furiously as he fled. “Evangeline has betrayed us! The enemy World Tree is not a C Rank World Tree! Her stats are over 70,000 <Physique> and 2,400 Phoer Body Cores! She also has the ability to—”

BOOM!

He couldn’t type anything else as the floor below his feet exploded, sending him and the communication tool flying into the air. One of Liu Shu’s branches flew quickly, catching the tool before it fell to the ground. Reading the contents, she smiled to herself, satisfied. Then, her root poked a few runes, and the message was sent. ‘Great~. Let’s see what you’ll do now, Evangeline. You are my biggest headache, but you are also not very loved by your people, are you? Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been hearing people hating on you in all armies, including yours.’

The last days provided Liu Shu with a great deal of information about the enemy. The enemies thought she couldn’t listen, and that made them spill several secrets and tactics. Liu Shu was a World Tree born and nourished through war itself, so she knew how important it was to use every single tool at her disposal. Even the smallest advantage could cause a hopeless situation to be reversed into an overwhelming victory. 

Evangeline was still struggling to deal with Liu Shu’s corruption containment when someone entered the tent in a rushed manner. “Lady Evangeline! Bad news!”

Evangeline frowned and looked over. “What’s wrong?”

“Look at this message!”

Evangeline looked, and her face went through myriad emotions. “That stupid man! What’s wrong with him!? Send the scouts to check on his army’s situation; he might be venting anger… Still.”

Reading the few sentences, a terrifying premonition struck her heart. She knew that since the message was seemingly cut, something terrible must’ve happened.