Chapter 294 - One Last Score Before Leaving

Outside the ruin in Tree Monarch City, three Legendary figures and Gu Yu stood in stunned silence, staring at the glowing ancient tree. Their lips trembled as if battered by wind and rain. All around them, the sky continued to fill with beastmasters, streaming in from every direction. Even other Legendary figures nearby were alarmed and rushed over to investigate.

“Who is challenging the ruin?”

This question had echoed countless times. At this moment, every onlooker watched the changes in the ancient tree with a mix of awe and disbelief.

Has the Tree Monarch’s legacy been taken?

Many beastmasters turned green with envy. If no one could claim the legacy, that was one thing. But seeing someone actually succeed sent their emotions spiraling into chaos.

As murmurs spread after some time, Lu Ran emerged on one of the outer ancient tree’s branches with a troubled face.

What did the Tree Monarch mean by that last sentence? “We will meet again one day”? Isn’t she already dead?

Lu Ran felt that the Tree Monarch had likely succumbed to some incurable disease, leading to her premature demise. Such cases were common on the Stellar Moon Continent. Many beastmasters with exceptional talent were born with conditions. Some had unique physiques with innate beastmaster skills, much like Lu Ran’s own special ability.

But extraordinary talents often came with risks. Compared to those tormented by nightmares like Lu Ran, others on Blue Planet awakened special abilities only to suffer from constant, crippling headaches. Those were even worse.

Such conditions could be considered strange illnesses. And on the Stellar Moon Continent, there were even more, collectively known as innate illness. It meant that the human body was too fragile to withstand overwhelming talent. Hence, it would often suffer consequences.

The Tree Monarch had been capable of contracting a Time-attribute Overlord and was chosen by a Legendary plant being. Her innate talent must have been extraordinary. Perhaps it was even linked to time itself. Given such ability, it wouldn’t be surprising if she suffered from a severe innate illness.

But if she had been chosen by a Legendary entity, wouldn’t a cure have been possible? Her certainty about meeting again suggests she has found a solution. If that is the case, why claim she was already dead?

Suddenly, a possibility struck Lu Ran.

Reincarnation! Did the Tree Monarch undergo reincarnation through some special means?

“Forget it. Doesn’t matter. Even if she did, it’s not like we’ll meet again. In a few days, I’ll be gone.” Lu Ran muttered to himself.

He suspected that the Tree Monarch had held a grudge. Seeing her low-level projection defeated by Lu Ran, who had the Broken Horn of the Divine Deer, probably left her displeased. She might have wanted to test him again in the future through sheer strength. But too bad he wasn’t giving her that chance.

“

Huh?

”

Snapping out of his thoughts, Lu Ran finally noticed that the sky was packed with beastmasters, all staring at him.

Among them was Qing Lianshan, his bloodshot eyes, wild hair, and trembling voice all reflecting his shock.

“You... you passed the Legacy Trial?”

“Mission accomplished!” Lu Ran replied naturally.

No one was expecting you to pass!

Legendary Qing was falling apart inside. He was unable to accept that this young man had surpassed him.

“

Hahahaha!

”

At that moment, Ye Ying burst into laughter.

She didn’t even know how to express her feelings anymore. As she stared at the composed Lu Ran, she felt that her disciple was just monstrous.

He actually did it.

“Well done, my dear disciple!” Her Legendary aura spread, making the surrounding crowd’s expressions shift dramatically.

Another Legendary?

After hearing City Lord Ye call Lu Ran her disciple, many realized who he was. He was a disciple of a Legendary beastmaster. That alone was enough to deter anyone with greedy thoughts toward the Tree Monarch’s legacy.

Not that it mattered. Even without a powerful mentor, no one would dare act recklessly against someone who had inherited the Tree Monarch’s legacy. Everyone knew that although the Tree Monarch had passed away, her formidable battle familiars were still alive. Those familiars would now be Lu Ran’s guardians. They were far more terrifying than a Legendary mentor’s reputation.

Lu Ran turned to Gu Yu.

“Apologies, Senior Gu. This ruin is no longer accessible for future challenges.”

Gu Yu was taken aback.

“

Haha,

let’s go home!” Laughing heartily, Ye Ying wasted no time in leaving Tree Monarch City with Lu Ran and the others.

Beside them, Legendary Tian said nothing although she was equally shocked. Instead, she released her own Legendary aura, standing in support of Lu Ran. But as they prepared to leave, a stronger aura approached. A figure seated atop a green lotus appeared silently.

When people saw him, their expressions changed dramatically. Although this elder wasn’t as powerful as the Tree Monarch, he was still one of Divine Tree Continent’s few level 8 plantmasters.

“Great-grandfather.”

Legendary Qing wasn’t surprised to see him. The Tree Monarch’s legacy had been claimed. It was inevitable that his great-grandfather would appear. Unlike the others, the elder seemed calm.

He examined Lu Ran with keen interest. “Congratulations on inheriting the Tree Monarch’s legacy. May I ask what happened inside after you passed the trial?”

Lu Ran met his gaze. This was his first time encountering an Epic-Legendary beastmaster. Even City Lord Ye and City Lord Tian looked uneasy. This elder was strong, perhaps even beyond their ability to contend with. Still, he didn’t seem hostile.

“Not much. After passing the trial, I encountered a conscious Tree Monarch phantom. She left me with a few instructions and told me to wait for her battle familiars to seek me out,” Lu Ran replied.

The elder fell into deep thought and said, “As expected, she left behind a unique conscious imprint. Truly impressive.”

He clearly knew a lot. After a brief sigh of admiration, he didn’t press further.

Instead, he turned and said, “Lianshan, since Legendary Ye and the others are in a hurry, escort them back. Our Tree Monarch’s successor likely needs time to absorb his inheritance.”

“Yes, great-grandfather...”

Qing Lianshan’s face twisted as if he had just swallowed something rotten.

He felt like a guy being forced to drive his crush and her new boyfriend home.

***

On the flying vessel, Lu Ran’s group had pulled off the perfect grand exit by showing off before leaving without giving anyone in Tree Monarch City a chance to approach them.

Even after flying for a while, City Lord Ye still hadn’t recovered from her shock. Did they bring Lu Ran here just to broaden his horizons? At this moment, both City Lord Ye and Master Tian felt like they were the ones being enlightened instead.

“My dear disciple...”

Technically speaking, Lu Ran was now also a disciple of the Tree Monarch which left City Lord Ye feeling conflicted. How did she, a mere Legendary, end up sharing a disciple with the Tree Monarch?

“Master Ye, Master Tian, I actually obtained some crucial information in the Tree Monarch’s ruin that I’d like to share with you.”

As Lu Ran was bored on the flight, he decided to relay everything about the Ten-Thousand-Year Agreement, the chosen plantmasters, and other related matters. His words left them in stunned silence.

“So you’re saying... you’ve now been tied to the Divine Plant Spirit’s faction?”

“Your role is to help train for the Divine Plant Spirit, who will one day battle against the Legendary Divine Beasts?”

Neither of them had expected the Tree Monarch’s inheritance to come with such massive responsibilities.

“No, to be precise, all plantmasters are already bound to the Divine Plant Spirit’s faction. When the Ten-Thousand-Year Agreement ends, an all-out war will engulf the continent. Vicious beast species will go against the plant species.

“At that point, the ruling forces of the continent will be redefined. But that war is still a long, long way off. We might not even live to see it. Then again, I have a feeling that even if we die, we might not truly be gone. The Divine Plant Spirit could preserve everything, reviving us in some mysterious way when the time comes, forcing us to join the final battle.

“I suspect that Legendary Qing, just like the Tree Monarch, already knows the full truth of the Ten-Thousand-Year Agreement. After all, all plantmasters are basically helping the Divine Tree to raise soldiers.”

“Forget it... I don’t care what the truth of the world is. That’s too far away. Let’s talk about you instead. Now that you’ve inherited the Tree Monarch’s legacy, what’s your next move?”

Legendary Tian’s question hit the heart of what was on City Lord Ye’s mind. The Ten-Thousand-Year Agreement was too far away to worry about, but Lu Ran’s future? That was urgent. After all, hadn’t he just mentioned that the Tree Monarch’s battle familiars would come looking for him? Did that mean he would be leaving soon?

“For the time being, I’ll stay in Tree World City and continue learning plantmaster knowledge from you. Who knows when the Tree Monarch’s battle familiars will actually arrive? Master, once we return, let’s hold a disciple initiation banquet. The Tree Monarch also intended for me to become a plantmaster. Now, there’s no need to worry about Beastmaster Lodge anymore.”

City Lord Ye was speechless.

Why is Lu Ran so obsessed with this disciple initiation banquet?

She had no idea that Lu Ran was thinking about it again for one very specific reason. It was because he was now the Tree Monarch’s successor!

The guest list for this banquet is about to change drastically. Forget ordinary visitors—now, even Legendary figures might show up bearing gifts just to curry favor with him. If I don’t host the banquet, I’d be losing out big time.

“Fine, as you wish.”

Since Lu Ran had brought it up twice, City Lord Ye no longer refused.

If even he didn’t mind having an ordinary Legendary as his master, she shouldn’t need to hesitate.

“Oh, by the way, Master. Since I’ve obtained the Tree Monarch’s Ruin Space, it needs a large number of vicious plants to complete its ecosystem. Can I transplant some from Death Forest?”

“That’s a small issue.” City Lord Ye waved her hand dismissively. “You can move the entire Death Forest in there if you want.”

What a generous master!

***

The fastest thing in the world was no doubt the speed of news traveling. On the way back, news spread like wildfire. The Tree Monarch’s successor, Lu Ran, was about to formally become the disciple of Tree World City’s city lord!

Before Lu Ran’s group even reached Tree World City, representatives from various factions were already rushing over as they were eager to pay their respects to the new Tree Monarch’s Successor.

Time was of the essence. Lu Ran did some mental calculations and realized there was not much time left. He had to move quickly and capitalize on his new status.

Once he was back in Tree World City, Lu Ran had no time to bother with Yu Rui’s group. Instead, he headed straight for Death Forest and became a hardworking transport worker. The Ruin Space was barren, it definitely needed some landscaping.

Meanwhile, Yu Rui and his companions were still diligently exploring Tree World City, focusing on studying and gathering knowledge. Since they had failed their ascension mission, they had no choice but to make the most of this trip in other ways.

Their goal was to explore the world. If done well, the rewards might not even be inferior to those from completing their original ascension mission. At least, that’s how they comforted themselves.

“Yu Rui, have you noticed that we haven’t seen Lu Ran around lately?” Inside their room, Jiang Ming suddenly looked up from an ancient book.

“No idea. Maybe he’s off exploring, too,” Liu Man answered absentmindedly.

“

Heh.

There’s no way he knows Divine Tree Continent better than us. In this regard, we still have the upper hand. Right, Yu Rui?”

After several days of study, they collected rare resources, and ancient texts, and even uncovered a few significant historical manuals. Both Jiang Ming and Liu Man looked toward Yu Rui, only to see that he was wearing a very odd expression.

“I think the last time I saw him, he asked me about the Tree Monarch’s ruin... You don’t think he actually went to explore the ruin, do you?”

Jiang Ming was stunned. “The Tree Monarch’s ruin? That’s one of the biggest opportunities a trial participant can access on Divine Tree Continent, isn’t it? After all, it’s the inheritance of a Legendary figure. But... Tree World City is so far from the ruin... Even if he’s strong, he shouldn’t be capable of conquering the ruin, right? If he really went there, then he just wasted his time.”

“I don’t know...” Yu Rui shook his head.

Just then, someone knocked on their door.

“Excuse me, esteemed guests! Today’s Tree Report has arrived!” It was the newspaper delivery boy.

For secret realm explorers, staying updated on current affairs was crucial.

Liu Man got up to open the door and took the newspaper. “Thank you.”

“Esteemed guests! Today’s news is absolutely explosive! Take your time reading. I need to go deliver more copies!” The delivery boy hurried off.

“Explosive news?” Liu Man frowned and glanced at the Tree Report.

Then she froze.

Jiang Ming noticed her stiff posture and walked over.

“What is it? What’s the big headline? Let me guess... Did that Qing Lianshan from Tree Monarch City finally advance to Legendary? That guy’s famous for attempting the Tree Monarch’s trial the most times, yet never passing.”

“No... it’s not that...” Liu Man’s voice grew quiet.

Like a wooden puppet, she stiffly placed the Tree Report on the table. Yu Rui and Jiang Ming both looked over.

[The Birth of the Tree Monarch’s Successor! Lu Ran, Disciple of Tree World City’s City Lord Ye Ying, Clears the Tree Monarch’s Legacy Trial in Five Minutes—The Greatest Prodigy in 800 Years!]

Yu Rui, Jiang Ming, and Liu Man were stunned beyond words.