[Tree] Chapter 666: Celestial Realm (Patreon)

Clangs rang out through Ashlock's Inner World, sending waves crashing into the black sand beaches as a battle raged over the ocean. It was between Ashlock's perfectly crafted General of War, Ares, and a Princess having a little too much fun.

Ashlock was inhabiting Ares personally, causing his deep red eyes to blaze with divine gold. Usually, he could only speak through his Generals and mentally command them to perform actions, but Ares was different. He was as much a Soul Weapon as he was a General, meaning Ashlock could wield Ares like he had the Sword of New Beginnings. An ethereal root plugged into the back of Ares, allowing Ashlock to puppet the General's body and Soul Weapon like an extension of himself.

It also let Ashlock use and practice his Sword Dao. Ares also possessed Water and Shadow Qi on top of the Blood affinity the Soul Weapon had before absorbing Uldrenneth. This was perfect for Ashlock, as it gave him a chance to use and deepen his comprehension of Water and Shadow Law.

"Take this," Ashlock yelled, and Ares slashed at Stella with its massive Bloodiron sword, shrouded in a haze of desolation to cut through the aether rifts Stella kept leaving. A loud clang rang out as Stella wildly parried the massive sword and went in for her own attack. She teleported behind and went for a stab, but one of Ares's back arms lashed out like a coiled snake and forced her back. She spun and slashed at the tentacle, but her sword got lodged halfway through as, despite their appearance, the tentacles were made from hardened wood.

"So tough," Stella complained and teleported away. "It's like trying to chip through stone."

Ashlock chuckled as he infused the blood running through Ares with Harmony Dao to quickly repair the wound.

"You're never going to defeat Ares with little cuts like that!" Ashlock jeered, maybe getting a little too absorbed in the fight.

"Neither are you," Stella replied as she appeared high above Ares with a grin on her face. "You've yet to land a single hit on me, so I'd say we are even."

It was true. Against any other Sovereign, Ashlock felt Ares would be a nightmare to face. But for all his tankiness and versatility, Ares had no hope against Stella. Her domain was countered by speed, such as Light Qi, but Ares relied on heavy attacks that carried the weight of Ashlock's Inner World. Water and Shadow Qi enabled wide-scale destruction, and with Shadow Step, the towering General could move surprisingly quickly between shadows. But compared to Stella's mobility, Ares was a heavily armored snail.

"Have you decided what Ares' domain should be yet?" Stella asked, "Or shall we keep fighting?"

That was why they were dueling—the system had asked Ashlock to author Ares' domain, and he wasn't sure. But after a good thirty minutes of fighting, Ashlock had some ideas.

"No, I think this is enough," Ashlock said.

"Aww," Stella pouted. "I was having fun."

"I was too, but there are many things I need to attend to, and I bet our antics are disturbing the Fluffgrubs."

Stella's eyes widened. "I totally forgot about them! I should pay them a visit now that I'm home." She glanced into the distance, where the hive towered into the sky like a mountain, then back at Ares. "But I'm curious what ideas you have for Ares's domain."

"Well, it has to tie into water, shadows, and blood. My biggest struggle against you has been the speed of my attacks and my mobility, but trying to close that gap with those affinities is impossible," Ashlock said.

Stella nodded. "My thoughts too. Ares feels more like a front-line fighter or a warlord than an assassin like me."

"Agreed. So his domain should help him stand his ground and keep fighting," Ashlock said. After all, his biggest advantage over other cultivators was his immense Qi pool. So long as Ares didn't fall, he could keep the General sustained far longer than any other Sovereign was willing to fight. "I'll let you or others in the sect handle chasing down those who run."

Stella chuckled. "I think they all will. You've created a real monster here."

"You could still cut him in half if you activated your domain," Ashlock countered.

"Well, yeah," Stella shrugged, "but aren't your Generals basically immortal? Besides, it costs me a lot of Qi to do what I did to Uldrenneth, and ideally I have someone like Yun to push them into the aetherial cuts in reality I made."

"That's true..." Ashlock muttered and turned to his system. He began describing what he wanted Ares's domain to be like, and let the system fill in the details.

[Domain authored: {Domain of the Endless Battlefield}]

[Within this domain, the land around Ares becomes his battlefield. While standing his ground, he can create armor and regenerate rapidly by drawing in surrounding water and spilled blood. As the battle goes on, a darkness settles on the battlefield, allowing greater mobility and obscuring Ares from his enemies]

"That's perfect," Ashlock praised his system and, through Ares, raised his sword. "Domain of the Endless Battlefield!"

A wave of power rippled out of Ares as he established his battlefield. Streams of water twisted out of the ocean, the black sand beaches, and the flora lining the coast. They spiraled toward Ares, forming armor from condensed water.

"Reminds me of Uldrenneth," Stella commented from above. "Amazing at eating the impacts of blunt attacks and Qi techniques like firestorms and whatnot. Terrible against hair-thin rifts and lightning."

"Ares's tough body and regeneration can handle those," Ashlock said as he noticed a blanket of darkness settling over the area. "Stella, do you think I could have won against Uldrenneth with Ares?"

Stella tilted her head as she pondered. "It would take forever, but you would win in the end. Your desolation would eat away at his water armor, and with every slash into his flesh, the sword would grow stronger from the blood."

"I see."

Ashlock canceled out the domain and used Harmony Dao to restore the coastline flora. He was satisfied with how everything turned out and was glad to have a General he could participate in battles with.

"That was fun, but on to business," Ashlock said, and Stella grew more serious. "How did things go in the Eternal Realm with the Tessellate Family and their Patriarch?"

"Good. After reaching the Sovereign of Realities Realm, I left the Tessellate Citadel on the 6th Layer to visit pocket realms under the Tessellate family's control on the 5th and 4th Layers, delivering seeds—though I couldn't hang around long on the 4th Layer pocket realm. The spiritual pressure up there is crazy." She glanced up at the sky. "They should be planting those seeds now as we speak."

"Excellent, and what of the Patriarch? Is he still willing to part with his Divine Fragment in exchange for me connecting his family between the layers?"

"Yes, at least that's what he claims," Stella shrugged. "They think I'm a Princess from a 1st Layer family, so I doubt they will cross us carelessly. But he did emphasize that he cannot part with the Divine Fragment until he switches vessels, which, judging by how old his body looks, should have been yesterday. I doubt he will hold out on us for long."

Ashlock hummed in thought. "As heaven-defying as connecting layers of creation is, I doubt a cultivator like that will part with a Divine Fragment so willingly, and if they discover we aren't as strong as we claim, they will never pay us."

Stella frowned. "Can't you just close the tunnels then?"

"I could, but they would burn the trees in response, and the amount of Qi I will be able to siphon from those realms will be immense. I want the trees and the routes open as much as they do, but I also need that Divine Fragment."

Stella slowly nodded. "Speaking of which, is it time we go after the Heavenly King of Dream Peak in the Azure Clan for the 8th Layer's Divine Fragment?"

"Indeed. Now that the Jade Emperor's Consortium has been destroyed and the Sunken Crown Isles are under my control, it's time I raised my Sanctuary and began our true conquest of the 8th Layer." Ashlock paused. "Get some rest for now while I set things up and learn what I can about the Heavenly King of Dream Peak from Yun Zhilan. Once you're ready, we should take a trip to the mainland and seek out that Elder... what was his name?"

"Elder Vortexian?" Stella guessed.

"If it's the Spatial Peak Elder who lost his arms because of you and turned his hatred on the Azure Clan, then yes."

Stella chuckled. "Yeah, that's him. I'll reach out once we are ready."

"Good, you should go now," Ashlock said. "Enjoy some rest."

"Thank you, Father. I'll check on the Fluffgrubs and then see what Jasmine's been up to while her dear Master was gone." She blinked into the aether and was gone.

Alone for a moment, Ashlock turned his attention to his system.

Idletree Daily Sign-In System

Day: 3994

Daily Credit: 6

Sacrifice Credit: 11,989

[Sign in?]

"That is a nice amount of credits. Mhm, it's enough for an SS-to-SSS grade skill upgrade, multiple smaller skill upgrades, or a ridiculous random draw. I have an idea of what I need to upgrade, but System, can you show me my full status? It's been a while since I checked it."

A long list rippled into view before him, carved into the air as golden letters.

[Demonic Demi-Divine Tree (Age: 10)]

[Monarch Realm: 5th Stage]

[Soul Type: Nine Moons (Desolation)]

[Domain: Eye of Horus]

[Mutations…]

{Crown of the Withered Sovereign [S]}

{Cursed Blood of the Demon Tree [S]}

{Evil Eye [A]}

[Summons…]

{Netherwood Wraith: Nyxalia [Mythical]}

{Harbinger of the Eternal Ash: Larry [SS]}

{Celestial Ink Dragon: Kaida [SS]}

[Soul Weapons…]

{The Sword of New Beginnings [SSS]}

[Skills…]

{Worldborne Sanctuary [Mythical]}

{Necroflora Empire [Mythical]}

{Heavenly Cycle of Creation and Ruin [SSS]}

{Eternal Realm [SS]} 

{Hellroot Abyss [SS]} 

{Heaven-Defying Orchard [SS]}

{Progeny Dominion [S]}

{Dimensional Overlap [S]}

{Nocturnal Genesis [S]}

{Ethereal Roots [S]}

{Voidstorm Aegis [S]}

{Abyssal Maw [S]}

{Soul Forest [S]}

{Gaze of the Tree God [S]}

{Mycelium Network [S]}

{Abyssal Whispers [A]}

{Language of the Eldertree [A]}

{Fire Qi Barrier [A]}

{Blooming Root Flower Production [B]}

{Superior Poison Resistance [C]}

"For possibly the first time, I don't feel a desperate need to upgrade my attack skills like Abyssal Maw or Hellroot Abyss." Ashlock glanced down at Ares, who stood on the ocean's surface. "Likely because I have Stella at the Sovereign of Realities Realm and Ares now to deal with the threats we face in the future, and because there isn't an enemy that needs dealing with right now."

Ideally, the Azure Clan would only know he exists once he wants them to, and by then it would be too late.  

He looked over the list again and felt only one SS-grade skill needed upgrading during this brief peace.

"I should upgrade the Eternal Realm to SSS grade," Ashlock mused. "Even with the 30x time dilation, it still took Stella a long time to reach the Sovereign of Realities Realm, and she has her bloodline supporting her. It will likely take people like Douglas or even Diana far longer, and at this rate, they will all fall behind. I need to raise the strength of those closest to me, and I especially need Kaida to get stronger so his contracts can work on Sovereigns like Yun. System, do it."

[Sign-in successful, 8,912 credits consumed…]

[Upgraded {Eternal Realm [SS]} → {Celestial Realm [SSS]}]

[{Celestial Realm [SSS]} Time is no longer divided among those who enter. Every occupant of the Celestial Realm experiences time thirty times faster than the world outside, regardless of how many others share the realm. You must still grant permission to enter, and you may forcefully pull anyone out.

Furthermore, your nine moons have joined the Celestial Realm as spirit realms. Dreamlike places between the physical and spiritual, perfect for cultivation. Your moons can support one cultivator each, and will attune themselves to their occupant, assuming you know the relevant Law. Once attuned, the occupant's cultivation speed and comprehension of that Law's Dao increase, depending on the depth of your own comprehension.

Should a moon be sacrificed or destroyed, the occupant will be cast back into the fog.

Upon exiting, a portion of the Qi cultivated and any Dao insights gained by occupants will be mirrored to you. Should anyone upon your moons come to understand a Law more deeply than you, that insight will be mirrored back to you in full]

Ashlock stared at the description and then glanced up at his moons. They looked the same, but they were now incorporated into the Eternal—no, the Celestial Realm?

"That's wild," he muttered, reading it again. "It seems my moons are only useful for cultivators whose affinities match one of my Laws. What Laws do I have again? I believe I know Desolation, Primordial Ice, Shadow, Nature, Light, Earth, Water, Cosmic, Azure Flame, Wind, and finally, I will soon inherit Aether Law once I sleep." He paused. "That's an exhaustive list, but it doesn't cover everything. I'll have to devour more Monarchs to assimilate their Laws, but what do I do for things like Demonic Mist Law for Diana?"

The answer was that he couldn't do much unless there was a Demonic Mist Monarch out there to devour.

"I should test this out quickly," Ashlock mused, pondering who would be best, considering the Laws he knew. "Wait, I got it."

He left his Inner World in search of Douglas.

[Author Note]

Any ideas what he should do with his remaining 3k ish points? :)