"The ceremony was rather mundane—at least in theory. All I had to do was open my mind and allow the Dryad Queen's soul into my body. Easier said than done." Biyu addressed the gathered crowd. "After several mental hurdles, I finally managed to open myself. From there, the Dryad Queen—Ziran—drew on the life energy in my physique and circulated it through my body, repairing the damage that cultivating fire qi had done to me."

Xiao Yi and Xiao Er both raised their hands.

Biyu tilted her head. "Yes? Do you two have a question?"

"How did cultivating fire qi injure you?" Xiao Yi asked.

"Life comes from all the elements. A single element shouldn't be enough to overwhelm it, right?" Xiao Er added.

Biyu met Xiao Yi's gaze first. "Fire qi burned away my excess life energy, using it as kindling to fuel itself. If I had continued, I would have eventually burned from the inside out."

"Oh…"

She turned to Xiao Er. "My life energy is aligned with the wood element, and fire overpowers wood. Life itself is a balance—a wheel. Fire burns wood, water quenches fire, earth absorbs water, and so on."

Xiao Er blushed. "Right… I forgot."

"That's okay. Cultivation is about learning, so it's never wrong to ask questions." Biyu offered the two girls a warm, encouraging smile.

"So? What happened next?" Li Xue asked eagerly.

"Next? The Dryad Queen absorbed the excessive life energy constantly flowing through me—it's what turns my hair and eyes green." Biyu resumed her story. "She had once been at the cusp of immortality, but her life force had drained away and her cultivation had fallen. With my surplus life energy, she not only regained her strength, but also broke through to the legendary realm of immortality."

"A real immortal?!" Li Xue exclaimed. "Where is she now?"

"Gone."

Li Xue blinked. "But… aren't immortals supposed to be, y'know, immortal?"

"Not dead gone." Biyu shook her head, exasperated. "She ascended—to the Immortal World."

"Then what was that whole goddess thing about?"

"Her soul was still inside me when she ascended. And since we were in the middle of a bonding ceremony, she anchored herself through our connection long enough to save everyone. But… that also meant the final step of the bonding ceremony failed. I crossed into the Spirit Realm, yet I never gained a spirit."

"No spirit? Then what will you do?" Tian Li asked. "How can you continue cultivating?"

"That's where she comes in." Biyu motioned to her shoulder, where a small spider perched, fiddling with a metal toothpick. "Bai Wang—if she chooses—will become my new guardian spirit."

"A spirit beast can become someone's spirit?" Jin Shu asked. It was the first time he had ever heard of such a thing—even with Long Jinshu's memories.

"Normally, no." Biyu shook her head. "But Ziran used my life energy to mold her. Bai Wang is a new species of spirit beast, born from my life force. That means she and I share a natural connection. It's similar to what I had with Ziran—who was meant to be my guardian before her ascension."

"I just got freed from enslavement, so I'm not exactly eager to be bound again—even if it's to the host of the goddess who freed me," Bai Wang said. "But… I'll think about it."

"What happens if Bai Wang chooses not to?" someone asked.

"Then we'll both be stuck at the Spirit Realm." Biyu shrugged.

Bai Wang flinched. It was clear she hadn't known that part, though she still didn't seem ready to make a decision.

"Hey, hey, Biyu," Li Xue leaned forward with a mischievous smirk. "When that goddess kissed Jin Shu, what was that about?"

Biyu's brow twitched. "I don't know why she did that. All I know is that she gave him a seed. What that seed is, I couldn't say."

Jin Shu tilted his head, probing his body for the supposed seed.

"It's in here," Shuang said.

With his mind's eye, Jin Shu entered his soul space. There, among his elemental affinities, a tiny green seed glowed softly. It rested between fire and water, with wind at its back. Lightning surged restlessly along the outer edges of his soul space, far from the others.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Not sure." Shuang shrugged. "If I had to guess… wood element?"

"Hmm…"

Reaching out with his mind, Jin Shu brushed against the glow. At once, visions of a flourishing forest filled his head. He understood immediately: it was indeed a seed of the wood element, waiting to germinate in his soul space until it blossomed into a thriving affinity.

"With this, I only need metal and earth to complete the major six," he murmured. "But… aren't elemental affinities supposed to be rare? Why does it feel like I'm picking them up like candy?"

"They are rare. Don't you remember what Jinshu said? With our split souls, we can grasp more insights than a normal human with only one whole soul. But if we push too far, we risk losing our identities."

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"I do remember that, but… can we even trust anything he said? And what does losing our identities even mean?"

"I'm fairly certain we can trust him on this," Shuang said with a shrug.

"Wow… inspiring confidence."

"Whatever. Go." He waved Jin Shu off, shooing him from the soul space.

When Jin Shu opened his eyes, he flinched—turquoise eyes stared back at him from only inches away.

Tian Li pulled back just as quickly, a faint blush dusting her cheeks.

"Did you… need something?" he asked.

"No, I just—" she hesitated, fumbling with her words. "Um… actually… a-about what I said before. Can you forget that?"

"What you said…?" He paused, then it clicked. "Oh! Nope. I don't think I will."

He grinned, teasing. He wasn't about to let her take it back—not when she had finally said, with her own voice, that she loved him.

"You!" She ground her teeth, frustration coloring her face.

His grin only widened. "I told you before we left. We're getting married after our trip south. After today, there's no way I'm changing my mind."

She huffed, her glare softening. "Fine… I said it. I love you. But that doesn't mean I've agreed to marry you… yet."

He stayed smiling, silently confident. She would agree eventually—he had a secret weapon, after all.

She shook her head. "Anyway, come on. The others are gathering with the treants before we head back to the sect."

"Thank you, young ones—no, brave humans." The massive ancient treant bowed, branches creaking. "Through your efforts, our queen not only survived, but ascended."

Jin Shu and the others bowed back.

"We should be the ones thanking you. Without the sacrifices of your people, we never would've survived the demonic wood spiders' assault," Jin Shu said, guilt pressing his words.

"Do not worry. They have returned to the soil once more." The treant shook his great head. "May their roots spread far."

"May their roots spread far," the other treants echoed solemnly.

The ancient treant's gaze lingered on Jin Shu. "Forgive my late introduction. I am Xiang Mu, former guardian of the queen. May I know your name?"

"Me?" Jin Shu pointed at himself.

"Yes."

"Oh. My name is Jin Shu."

"Jin Shu…" Xiang Mu nodded slowly. "And the rest of you?"

One by one, the others introduced themselves.

"May the goddess' blessing be with you, Biyu," Xiang Mu said after she spoke her name, before turning back to Jin Shu.

"Jin Shu—if you don't mind me asking—what were those weapons you used? I have never seen nor heard of such power, save for those forged by master runesmiths. Yet even they pale before the one that felled the broodmothers."

Jin Shu hesitated, weighing how much to reveal. In the end, he decided there was no harm in the truth.

"They're weapons from another world. They go by many names, but most commonly they're referred to as… guns."

"Another world?" Xiang Mu frowned. "They are not from that world, are they?"

"Earth?" Jin Shu asked hopefully.

"Earth? No, I've never heard of it. I meant Hell—the land of demons."

"Hell? Like the place you go when you die?"

Bark creaked as Xiang Mu tilted his head, studying Jin Shu with curiosity. "Why would you go to Hell when you die? No… when you die, your body returns to the soil and you are born again. We, as trees. You humans… I am less certain."

"Sure…" Jin Shu replied, raising a brow. "Anyway, the weapons are from a world called Earth."

"Earth…?" Xiang Mu rumbled. "I don't recall such a place, but perhaps it was one of those worlds." His whisper carried like thunder, loud enough to roll through half the forest.

"You've heard of a world like Earth before?" Jin Shu asked.

Xiang Mu shook his head, leaves and bits of bark tumbling from his ancient crown.

"I am unsure. Many centuries ago—back when I was but a sapling—there was a cultivator, human or otherwise I cannot recall, trapped at the peak of the Sage Realm. Unable to breach the Immortal Realm, he turned to a forbidden technique, one that tore apart the fabric of reality. Tens of thousands of shimmering lights appeared across the skies. I looked into one and saw beings on the other side, staring back at me—likely witnessing the same wonder from their world. Those lights were gateways to other realms. I heard some items slipped through during that calamity. Perhaps your Earth weapons came from then?"

Jin Shu frowned. He knew his weapons hadn't fallen through some ancient rift—he had forged them himself. But the explanation might account for the strange ammunition he'd discovered.

"Thank you for the information," he said. "I'm fairly certain my weapons weren't from that event, since I crafted them myself. But… some of the materials I found could have been."

Xiang Mu nodded, then straightened to his full height. With the sun blazing at his back, his form was a vast, dark silhouette.

"Optimus?" Gold whispered.

"Huh? What was that?" Jin Shu asked.

"Nothing. He just reminded me of something."

Before Jin Shu could press, Xiang Mu's voice boomed once more, shaking the air.

"Brave humans, thank you again. Should you require our aid, you know where to find us. Come visit if you wish. But for now, we must bid you farewell. We must tend to our fallen."

Jin Shu's chest tightened with guilt. Yet he reminded himself they had saved far more lives than were lost. Next time, he vowed, he would save even more.