Chapter 14: The Destruction of the Ancient Forest Part 1 The Ancient Forest became silent. Not because the battle had ended. But because the entire forest was afraid. The countless ancient spirits that had ruled this land for centuries... Were gone. The Bloodwood Ancient Spirit. The Thousand Branch Phantom Spirit. The Withered Bone Tree Spirit. The Storm Ancient Spirit. All of them had fallen. Their enormous bodies collapsed into the earth. Their ancient energy scattered. For the first time in thousands of years... The forest had experienced defeat. Adrian stood in the middle of the battlefield. His clothes were damaged. His breathing remained calm. The Eternal Void Sword floated beside him. But his eyes were focused on one existence. The Tree Spirit King. The oldest tree. The source of everything. The remaining roots slowly moved. The fallen ancient spirits were absorbed into the ground. The entire forest trembled. The Tree Spirit King was taking back everything. The energy. The memories. The power. The voice of the Tree Spirit King echoed. "You destroyed my children." Adrian looked at the massive ancient tree. "They consumed countless humans." "They chose their path." Silence. Then... The Tree Spirit King laughed. A deep sound that shook the sky. "You humans..." "You always believe your choices are correct." The giant tree began changing. The ancient bark cracked. The roots beneath the ground expanded. The entire forest started moving toward one point. The Tree Spirit King was no longer controlling the forest. It was becoming the forest. The sky turned dark. Clouds formed above the ancient trees. The ground rose. Mountains of roots surrounded Adrian. A massive face appeared on the trunk. "I have lived for thousands of years." "I have absorbed countless lives." "I have experienced the memories of generations." "You are only a young human." "How can you understand existence?" Adrian looked at it. "Age does not decide the truth." The Tree Spirit King became silent. Then... The battle began. A root larger than a building descended from the sky. Adrian disappeared. "Void Traverse Art." Boom! The ground exploded. A crater hundreds of meters wide appeared. But before Adrian could counterattack... The roots changed direction. They followed him. The Tree Spirit King had merged with the entire forest. There was no blind spot. No weakness. Adrian raised his sword. "Originless Frost Lotus Domain." The battlefield froze. Thousands of frost lotus flowers bloomed. The roots approaching him slowed. Ice covered their surfaces. Adrian moved. "Nine Dragons Origin Tide Sword." Nine dragons of energy rushed forward. The first dragon shattered the roots. The second dragon pierced through the ancient bark. The third dragon burned the corrupted energy. The fifth dragon released thunder. The attack reached the Tree Spirit King's body. Boom! The ancient tree shook. But it did not fall. Instead... The damaged area regenerated. The Tree Spirit King absorbed energy from the entire forest. "You still don't understand." "As long as this forest exists..." "I cannot die." Adrian looked around. The entire forest was connected. The roots. The soil. The trees. Everything. The Tree Spirit King was correct. Destroying its body was meaningless. The only way... Was to destroy the foundation. But before Adrian could act... The Tree Spirit King released its strongest ability. "Ancient Memory Domain." The world changed. The forest disappeared. Adrian found himself standing in another place. A different time. He saw humans entering the forest. He saw fear. Hatred. Violence. He saw the ancient tree being damaged by humans. The Tree Spirit King's voice echoed. "See." "This is why we hate humans." "Your kind destroys everything." The illusion continued. Thousands of memories attacked Adrian's mind. Pain. Anger. Regret. The emotions of countless lives. The Tree Spirit King was not simply attacking his body. It was attacking his understanding. But Adrian stood silently. The memories surrounded him. Yet his eyes remained clear. "Your memories..." "Are only your perspective." The illusion trembled. The Tree Spirit King was surprised. A human resisting thousands of years of accumulated emotions? Impossible. Adrian raised his sword. "My path is my own." The Originless Immortal Core circulated. The illusion began breaking apart. The Tree Spirit King finally understood. This human was not fighting with only power. He was fighting with his own will. The Ancient Forest shook. The final battle had reached its true beginning.