World Tree (1)

Lee Dojin headed to the Academy Director’s office. In the Academy Director’s office sat Jin Un, one of the Four Superhumans and the Director, also known as the Immortal.

“So you really became first in the first year. Or did you expect it?”

Lee Dojin sat down next to Jin Un at his gesture to sit.

“I did expect it.”

He had expected to be first.

Lee Dojin spoke very honestly.

“Right, at that level you deserve to be first.”

And Jin Un didn’t consider that arrogant either.

“I should keep my promise.”

Jin Un stood up.

“We need to go to the <Library>.”

“The library?”

“That’s where the World Tree branch is.”

Jin Un and Lee Dojin headed to the parking lot. Next to the limousine in the parking lot were attendants dressed in black suits.

Jin Un got into the back seat of the limousine as guided by an attendant. The limousine moved far away from the academy, heading to the outskirts. And a gray building where even windows weren’t visible from the outside.

The limousine stopped there. Jin Un and Lee Dojin entered the gray building. Lee Dojin looked outside. While windows weren’t visible from the outside, it was a state-of-the-art structure where the exterior was clearly visible from the inside.

“Is this the library?”

“Yes.”

One person attached as a security guard, Jin Un, and Lee Dojin got on the elevator.

The elevator stopped at the top floor. The door opened. In the center was a transparent tube with a single branch placed inside.

A blue-green halo of light was slowly flowing out from the branch.

“I used to touch it briefly to check, but since that light appeared, I couldn’t do even that. Since there was a change, I couldn’t easily touch it.”

“I see.”

Jin Un stretched out his wrinkled hand towards the storage container.

Click-

And the door opened. Jin Un took out the World Tree from the container and held it out to Lee Dojin.

Lee Dojin grasped the World Tree branch. As he held the branch, the green energy began to emit an even more intense light.

It was resonance. Jin Un was watching that brilliant sight with a stern face.

[This Ego, Mistilteinn. Attempting to communicate with the other Ego.]

[Ego-Gaia recognizes user ‘Lee Dojin’ as its master.]

As soon as the voice of Ego Advice Mistilteinn ended, the green light enveloping the World Tree disappeared without a trace.

Although the light disappeared, the resonance intensified. Vibrations were felt in his right arm and throughout Lee Dojin’s entire body.

“What… is happening?”

Jin Un opened his mouth with a stern face. Lee Dojin explained to Jin Un exactly as he had heard the voice.

“It seems I’ve been recognized as the master of the World Tree.”

“Is that so?”

[You must absorb the World Tree.]

[The absorption procedure is the same as with this Ego, Mistilteinn.]

Lee Dojin knew very well what that meant. It probably meant that it would be transplanted by piercing the heart area, just like Mistilteinn.

He had confirmed from Sword Empress Yoo Seol-ah a few days ago that Jin Un, the Academy Director and one of the Four Superhumans known as the ‘Immortal’, was a trustworthy person. She said he was a righteous hunter who, like Sword Demon Jung Yong-ha, had great aspirations for conquering the Tower.

But even so, there wasn’t enough trust built between them to trust those words and transplant the World Tree branch here.

“Thank you.”

“Do you know how to use it?”

Jin Un asked with a tense expression that didn’t match his usual demeanor. Lee Dojin responded nonchalantly, ignoring the resonance occurring throughout his body.

“Well, I’ll have to see. Even if I try to use it, I’ll need to create the optimal environment first.”

It was a plausible explanation. Jin Un was most curious about how that ‘use’ would be done, but decided not to pry further.

“I see, giving you that was what I promised. You may go back now, how about storing the branch in this?”

Jin Un held out a brown wooden box. It was just the right size for the branch to fit in.

Lee Dojin obediently received the wooden box and placed the branch inside.

“Thank you.”

After expressing gratitude for keeping the promise, he left the gray building.

---

The place Lee Dojin headed to was Sword Empress Yoo Seol-ah’s villa. Thanks to calling in advance, Yoo Seol-ah was also at the villa.

The red-haired swordswoman. Yoo Seol-ah came into Lee Dojin’s view. Someday when Baek Hwayeon fully blooms her plum blossoms, will her hair turn red like Yoo Seol-ah’s? Such a silly thought flashed through his mind.

“I have something to tell you.”

“Please speak, Student Lee Dojin.”

Yoo Seol-ah, who only spoke informally to her disciple Baek Hwayeon, spoke with her usual faint smile.

And he gave the same explanation he had given to Baek Hwayeon two days ago. As Lee Dojin had expected, Baek Hwayeon had not told Yoo Seol-ah about the ‘mana inability’ story that Lee Dojin had told her.

“And this is the World Tree branch.”

“…Student Dojin, you always manage to surprise people.”

Mana inability. And the fact that he could draw out sword energy when holding a wooden sword due to the branch that had entered his body.

He also informed her that if he absorbed the World Tree branch he was now holding in his hand, the possibility of becoming even stronger would open up.

“So, you’re saying you’re going to consume that World Tree branch now, so please protect me while I do it!”

Yoo Seol-ah smiled brightly. Lee Dojin nodded at those words.

“Alright. I have many things I want to ask, but it seems you want to quickly absorb that branch you obtained after even having a match with Director Jin Un.”

Lee Dojin sat down in a cross-legged position.

Lee Dojin opened the wooden box and without hesitation brought the World Tree branch into contact with his heart area.

Seureuruk-

Just like Mistilteinn had done, the World Tree branch seeped into Lee Dojin’s chest. Like Mistilteinn, it was on the side where the heart was.

Blue-green radiance burst out from his entire body.

Jjek-

He felt a huge crack starting from his toes.

A feeling of something burning rose up from his cervical spine.

Lee Dojin’s consciousness was sucked into somewhere.

---

A wilderness.

And a tree standing tall in the center of that wilderness. The tree was enormous.

Next to the enormous tree stood a mysterious tower.

To say ‘next to’ is an understatement, there was a vast civilization, a world, between the two.

People prayed in front of the enormous tree that looked like the World Tree. And they began to climb the tower holding cold weapons.

And not all of them came back down from the tower. Not a single one.

Primitive.

Medieval.

Murim.

Modern.

And future.

The world raced along with the flow of time. The level of civilization’s development and the scenery kept changing, but the existence of the World Tree and the tower remained unchanged.

And that was a very ominous thing in Lee Dojin’s view. It meant that the tower had never been conquered even once among all those many worlds.

(The world is the universe, child.)

The scenery changed to space.

A youthful voice was heard. Lee Dojin instinctively realized that this was the voice of the World Tree.

The feminine youthful voice resonated heavily throughout the universe.

(There are various world lines in the universe. And for those worlds, the shadow called apostles will inevitably fall someday. It’s just a difference of being a little late or a little early.)

Lee Dojin listened to that story silently.

(In this world, you have obtained me.)

With those words, Lee Dojin felt the sensation of someone embracing him from behind.

When he turned around slightly, he saw a female figure made of blue-green light embracing him.

(You have become the master of this Gaia, so you must save this world.)

Lee Dojin tilted his head at the pressure suddenly weighing down on him.

He slowly opened his mouth. He confirmed that he could open his mouth here too.

“This is too sudden.”

To save this world.

(I’ve read all your thoughts, child.)

Gaia was still embracing Lee Dojin from behind. The youthful voice rose along his ear.

(You desire me and long for me. But the reason is less for the growth of your power and more because you want that poor child seated in your heart to come out into this world.)

Lee Dojin’s head ached at Gaia’s words, which seemed to completely look into his mind.

(The fragile branch that killed a god by external force took that divine power. And thus it was born.)

He realized that Gaia was talking about Mistilteinn.

(Of course it was suppressed. Because a branch that didn’t even breathe dared to kill a god. As punishment, the branch had to be buried in unimaginably deep ground.)

(But now, that child who met you seems happy.)

“…That’s good.”

That was fortunate.

(How cute.)

Gaia’s sweet laughter was heard.

(First, I’ll tell you what’s being implemented right now. I will open up your potential. I will break the growth limit that you must face as a human.)

He seemed to understand what that meant. Sword Emperor Dan Cheonwoo had said that the Heaven Defying Inner Power that could be endured with a human body was up to 7 stars.

He had once murmured that beyond that, the human body couldn’t withstand it.

It probably meant breaking such limits of possibility.

(Great nature will protect you, and great nature will follow you.)

This time it was an ambiguous explanation.

(And the rest of the abilities will be fully liberated when I am completely digested into your body through Mistilteinn.)

“Can I bring down the tower?”

Laughter was heard again.

(Do as you have done until now. Don’t try to rely on the abilities given to you. Keep being reborn, as you have been doing.)

The universe turned off.

Lee Dojin felt something dropping into his mind at the same time.

The muscles throughout his body twisted. No, they started to balance. He slowly opened his eyes.

“Hoo…”

He took a deep breath.

His head was clear. Excessively so. His body was light too. Again, excessively so.

[The World Tree has taken root in your heart. Germination stage: 0.01%…]

[You can recognize and handle ‘Nature’s Energy (自然之氣)’.]

[Your body begins to form a ‘Transcendent Body (超越之體)’.]