006 mentioned a crucial time point, but Mo Yang was unwilling to believe that the Earth had only three months left. Despite the chaos prevailing worldwide, the leadership of various countries had begun to resist. The global population was much higher than the population in the dream world, so how could there be only three months left?
However, Mo Yang knew that 006 wouldn’t lie about this. So, conflicts would inevitably escalate within these three months, and there would probably be more surprises in the dream world.
Thinking this, Mo Yang and Wan Mei re-entered the game world of ‘Skyfire Descends.’ As they entered, Mo Yang felt the scorching air and ashes floating everywhere. Fortunately, the verdant life barrier representing safety was still there, indicating that the Tree Queen was still present.
Mo Yang and Wan Mei appeared at the location where they were attacked by the mother star. Several trees were already burning. Enduring a headache, Mo Yang quickly retreated with Wan Mei back to the life barrier.
“Finally, you’re back! Do you even realize the time? Song’s team, Lao Qi, Long Xiang—they were about to go searching for you two.” As Mo Yang returned, Zhou Api jumped up, delivered a lengthy spiel, and then observed Mo Yang closely.
“What happened to you? You don’t look well,” he said, moving to check Wan Mei, horrifyingly noticing a paler complexion on the Grand Demon King Bai Wan than usual.
“Did you encounter some hidden boss?!”
Mo Yang thought of the sudden appearance of the entirely elusive ‘mother star’ and stared at Zhou. “I never expected you to have the potential for being such a pessimist.”
Then, he called Song Kefeng, Long Xiang, and Qi Hong, briefly recounting the sudden attack he and Wan Mei faced. “We might have been targeted by Emperor Qin and his guide 001. That 001, along with 006 and 009, doesn’t align well. So, we might be a bit affected. It could be related to me kicking Emperor Qin offline. In any case, you all need to be careful. That mother star might suddenly attack. Our mental powers might be higher than yours, but facing that colossal entity, we nearly suffered brain death.”
Zhou Api’s plump face displayed a considerably grim expression, then he muttered various prayers while holding his jade pendant.
Song Kefeng and the others focused on how to deal with the mother star, this colossal entity-like presence.
Mo Yang didn’t tell Zhou Api, Song Kefeng, and the others about 006’s revelation of having only three months left. Even if he did, they couldn’t change it and might only add to their worries and instability. He needed to tell this crucial information to the most vital person.
That night, after consuming a Tree Person’s Fruit, Mo Yang rested. In the game, sleep was almost identical to real life. However, when Mo Yang woke the next day, he suddenly realized that the vague pain in his head had completely vanished. He even felt a sensation of being healed.
Was it because of the life barrier?
While Mo Yang contemplated, Xis had come with people to find him.
“The Queen wants to see you,” Xis said.
It was the fourth day since entering the game, with six days remaining until the end of this game world. However, with Emperor Qin, Qing Nu, Fei Ying already eliminated, besides natural disasters, Mo Yang felt there was nothing else threatening him in this game world. He thought the remaining six days could be spent collecting items and observing players from other countries. But this sudden invitation from the Tree Queen made him feel uneasy.
“How is the Queen’s health?” Mo Yang followed Xis towards the temple. This time, Wan Mei hadn’t received an invitation. Mo Yang had asked him to tone it down a bit before leaving, not to be too morbid. Wan Mei rolled his eyes at this.
“She’s doing fine,” Xis smiled. “Although the Queen hasn’t said it, we can all feel she’s been in a good mood these past few days. I heard from the captain that a large part of it is thanks to you, and you’ve obtained the Emerald Crystal. Xiya is very pleased and hopes that after this disaster, she can invite you to our new home. She makes incredibly delicious fruit juice.”
Mo Yang also smiled, “That’s a most welcomed invitation for me.”
The two chatted and laughed until they reached the temple. Mo Yang and Xis parted ways, and Mo Yang entered the temple alone. Inside, he saw the still incredibly beautiful Tree Queen standing amidst what looked like a withered tree of life, seemingly sensing something.
Mo Yang entered with a smile, but his heart skipped a beat when he saw where the Tree Queen was positioned—it should have been where the heart of the Tree People resided. He took a step forward, “Your Majesty?”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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Suddenly, the Phoenix Ring on Mo Yang’s wrist glowed, unbelievably drawing his attention. He looked down at his wrist, feeling the power emanating from the ring. Then, the Amulet of Wisdom around his neck also glowed. These two top-tier treasures in the game were both pointing towards the Tree Queen.
Mo Yang was being pulled by this power, and the shock in his heart almost made him forget to think.
At that moment, the voice of the Tree Queen echoed, gentle and soothing. “Come, child, you need not fear. We won’t harm you.”
Mo Yang looked up, realizing the Tree Queen used “we” instead of “I.”
They won’t harm me? Who are they? Are there other beings in this vast temple?
Eventually, step by step, Mo Yang walked towards the center of the three withered Trees of Life. He stood beside the Queen, calmly surveying the surroundings without showing any signs of movement but found no other presence.
The next moment, the three supposedly withered Trees of Life suddenly emitted a verdant green light. It wasn’t dazzling but formed a barrier of green light around Mo Yang and the Tree Queen, akin to a miniature life barrier. Then, the Phoenix Ring on Mo Yang’s hand emitted a red light, enclosing another layer within the miniature life barrier. Lastly, the Amulet emitted a glow under the red barrier, encapsulating a faint golden layer.
Mo Yang was stunned.
He stared at the three layers of overlapping barriers, each displaying a different color, leaving him momentarily speechless.
At that moment, the voice of the Tree Queen resounded.
“Child, we need your help.”
Mo Yang turned with such force that he seemed to hear his bones crack. “Who are you?” He struggled to ask calmly. The Tree Queen wasn’t surprised by his question; her beautiful emerald eyes blinked, and she gently spoke, “We are the essence of this world.”
Mo Yang: “…” I might not be fully awake yet.
The Tree Queen almost affectionately rubbed Mo Yang’s head. “Or, you can call us the ‘Planetary Consciousness,’ as we represent the will of all beings in this world.”
“!!!”
Mo Yang’s pupils contracted instantly. His mind went blank for a moment, but he quickly shook his head, trying to calm himself down and steer his emotions and thoughts away from the concept of “Planetary Consciousness.”
He quickly realized that the existence of the “Planetary Consciousness” must be highly sensitive and guarded within the Dream World. Hence, the Tree Queen summoned him to the temple, and the withered Trees of Life, the Phoenix Ring, and the Amulet set up barriers—all precautions against the “Dream World.”
The Tree Queen smiled, “You are truly outstanding and intelligent.” She noticed Mo Yang’s effort to conceal emotions, “But it’s alright; at least within this Tree People’s temple in the game world, we have ten minutes of absolute safety, shielded from the Dream World.”
“So, you need not hide anything. And we can have a conversation about the future.” The Tree Queen looked at Mo Yang, “Of course, after ten minutes, your mind will have the crucial information and plans that the Dream World desires. You must safeguard your thoughts.”
Mo Yang felt like he might go crazy.
He swallowed dryly, never feeling so nervous before.
“Uh, then, what do you want to talk to me about? I’m just an ordinary player… If it’s something particularly important, I may not be able to help entirely. Oh, my boyfriend, Wan Mei, he’s smarter and more capable; should I call him over?”
The Tree Queen shook her head.
“We have been seeking suitable individuals since players entered the Dream World. As long as the Dream World exists, we’ve been searching. However, various unforeseen twists always hindered our plans, leaving our power considerably weakened now. Perhaps this world is the last where we can exist. When the Earth is engulfed and invaded by the Dream World, we’ll become mere nourishment for the mother star. Hence, we must ensure everything is flawless.”
“Wan Mei, although possessing the highest mental power among existing humans, can directly attack the mother star with his mental strength. But this isn’t an individual’s fight; it’s the world’s battle.”
“Moreover, Wan Mei himself doesn’t harbor a strong desire to eliminate the Dream World. We’ve scanned and probed his thoughts numerous times. The final result is, if we choose Wan Mei, it’s highly likely that he would help the Dream World consume us first and then become a part of it, eventually… leading to destruction or assimilating the mother star into a different existence.”
“This doesn’t align with our intent to eradicate the Dream World.”
Mo Yang thought of Wan Mei’s expression, looking at everyone as though they were insects. He wanted to defend the Grand Demon King Bai Wan but ended up unable to articulate anything. In fact, sometimes, even he wondered if the Grand Demon King found life on this world too uninteresting and chose to do something crazily interesting—essentially, researching the end of the world.
Heh heh.
No wonder they didn’t invite Wan Mei.
And, once again, overwhelmed with honor, I’ve sacrificed too much for this world.
“Ahem. So, you’ve chosen me? Am I that impressive?”
The Tree Queen nodded with a smile, her fingers, akin to white jade, pointing at the Phoenix Ring and the Amulet, “To obtain them and use them successfully, gaining recognition from their owners—of course, you’re impressive.”
“The Phoenix Star and the Federation were among the few invasion targets close to failure for the Dream World.”
“The technology on the Phoenix Star isn’t advanced; they rely on human strength in their era. However, their reverence for gods and the power of nature is immensely strong. The most powerful among them are the priests. A formidable High Priest could communicate with nature, and harness its power to balance storms and natural phenomena, making the entire planet flourish.”
“In the past, Feng Zhao was the most outstanding High Priest on the Phoenix Star. Under his leadership, they could have discovered the source of ‘spiritual power’ and progressed towards a civilization of cultivation. However, they encountered the Dream World.
“Even though Feng Zhao was immensely powerful, he couldn’t harm the people he had always protected. Yet, in the end, he angrily sacrificed his life to borrow the power of nature and the entire Phoenix Star, dealing a significant blow to the Dream World. It was then that the game world of the Dream World had ‘fracture rifts,’ which became the hiding place for all residual consciousnesses afterward.”
The Tree Queen sighed, “If it weren’t for the Dream World, Feng Zhao might have reached the highest level humans could achieve.”
Mo Yang thought of the man in red attire and black hair in the Phoenix Village who commanded everyone’s attention by merely standing there. With a faint smile and an aura akin to jade and mountain winds, he said, “I am Feng Zhao.”
“So, he was such an impressive figure.”
The Tree Queen smiled, “Yes, he was the pride of Phoenix Star.”
“As for the Federation, the resistance alliance established by Ouyang Shuo, Feng Xingyu, Wei Shuyu, and others almost destroyed the Dream World’s system. They possessed highly advanced technological power. In the end, Wei Shuyu and Feng Xingyu were on the brink of cracking the Dream World’s mental communication and invasion methods. Unfortunately… they perished in the final frenzy of consumption and explosions.”
“The Federation fell. The Dream World’s manipulation drove the Federation’s people into a mad consumption of all available energy sources. Hundreds of planetary consciousnesses silently mourned.”
“Therefore, don’t let Earth become a sacrifice to the Dream World.”
“Let’s use our remaining power to completely eradicate it.”
Mo Yang locked eyes with the Tree Queen. He suppressed all other emotions; the glint in his eyes was intimidating as he asked, “How do we completely eliminate it?”
The Tree Queen and Mo Yang locked gazes, then she spoke. “We need to kill the mother star within the game world.”
“After this game, the Dream World’s second-stage invasion on Earth will enter a frenzied phase of chaotic consumption. Even if you expose the Dream World’s invasion on Earth early, forcing it into the second stage prematurely, a chaotic consumption by just a hundred million people can turn Earth into an instant hellish catastrophe.”
“The chaotic consumption is when the mother star crazily absorbs energy. The hosts of the guides would start devouring other forms of energy, not just the psychic powers among humans.”
The Tree Queen’s gaze grew intense. “Even a tree, a blade of grass, a cat, a dog, or even gemstones and mineral deposits, if they contain ‘energy,’ the Dream World can absorb them through the players’ consumption. Those chosen as hosts by the guides are merely ‘objects’ that ‘transmit and refine energy.'”
“So, once the chaotic consumption begins, within a maximum of three months, the entire ‘vital energy’ of Earth will be devoured by the Dream World’s mother star. At that point, all you’ll see is a ‘dying Earth’ full of wounds, prematurely drained of life force.”
“Then, the Dream World’s mother star, along with the surviving guides, will rush back into the universe, seeking the next planet to devour.”
“We have no way to kill the mother star in the real world.”
“And it’s too powerful within the Dream World. No one can challenge it.”
“So, the goal is to lure the mother star into the game world, just as it suddenly appeared here yesterday. Once it enters the game world,” the Tree Queen looked at Mo Yang, her resolve unwavering, “we’ll do everything to exterminate it.”
“Your task is to use any means necessary in the next global game to lure the mother star into the game world.”
“The next global game will commence in a month.”
Author’s Note –
Well, I’m wrapping things up seriously.
I love the group effort in this story (instead of one op hero). It feels full and more real.
Thanks for translating! (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ)
too much life lost and sacrifice… makes me want a version of this story in someone else’s POV as a regressor, maybe Feng Zhao
’cause it’s really sad…
nevertheless, this story is really good♡(> ਊ <)♡