Chapter 295 - Return 3!

Transplanting vicious plants was a technical skill. Even though they lacked consciousness and acted purely on hunting instincts, they still created many obstacles for the one transplanting them, just like pitcher plants and Venus flytraps.

Fortunately, Captain Doofus had comprehended the deer-dog form of the Divine Deer’s aura. This aura could suppress even the instinctive behaviors of vicious plants with no consciousness. This greatly improved Lu Ran’s efficiency in moving them.

In just two days, City Lord Ye’s backyard of vicious plants that were cultivated over decades was stripped bare. In its place, within the vast ruin space of the Tree Monarch, an entire area was now planted with vicious plants.

On the desolate land, Lu Ran wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling that he had really put in effort. He looked toward the main city. Over the past two days, various factions had begun arriving in Tree World City to send their tributes to the City Lord’s Mansion.

Lu Ran’s activities had been simple. They consisted of transplanting plants and then collecting gifts. This kind of blissful experience made him feel as if he had returned to his time as the Undead Holy Son. Among all the gifts, the most valuable one came from the Qing Clan of Tree Monarch City.

Although Legendary Qing Lianshan seemed gloomy, under the instructions of his ancestor, he still came bearing a grand tribute. He gifted a seed of a spirit plant that could reach the level of a Low Overlord upon awakening. It was a treasured plant capable of altering the environment and enhancing spirit energy concentration.

Clearly, it was meant to help Lu Ran improve his ruin space. The thoughtfulness was evident. Although Lu Ran lacked the ability to awaken it, simply planting it in the ruin space would still bring great benefits to the legion of familiars residing inside. This was the most valuable gift.

However, the most suitable gift came from the Ji Clan of Ten Thousand Leaves City. Even before Lu Ran had the chance to seek their help in awakening the swordgrass, they delivered a bottle of silver blood, claiming it could help in the plant’s awakening. This unexpected gain caught Lu Ran completely off guard.

At the start, he never imagined he would obtain a swordgrass-awakening resource in such a way.

“Now this is how you’re supposed to clear an ascension realm. But I can’t be satisfied so easily. Isn’t there a more efficient and flawless way to optimize the strategy?”

He calculated the time and felt that this ascension realm was nearing its end. Despite his many gains, there were still regrets. For example, he hadn’t had time to venture into the outer sea to search for the Death Dragon’s kin. Nor did he have time to seek out the Tree Monarch’s familiar to receive the true inheritance.

From Lu Ran’s perspective, the Tree Monarch’s ruin, the Time-Acceleration Beastmaster Skill, and the Leaf of Time that he inherited were merely the surface-level inheritance. The Tree Monarch’s true inheritance lay in her connections. That meant her familiars and the Flower God who had chosen her.

Without a doubt, the Tree Monarch’s familiars had already reached levels 80 to 100, and the Flower God was likely a level 90+ Legendary lifeform. As the Tree Monarch’s successor, Lu Ran was supposed to undergo their training. That was the greatest advantage of inheriting the Tree Monarch’s legacy.

But he simply didn’t have enough time to receive such training. Lu Ran began analyzing the shortcomings of this ascension realm and decided to make up for them once he returned.

“Completing an ascension mission isn’t difficult for me anymore. The real issue is that there isn’t enough time to explore the world’s lore. In practical terms, the problem is that traveling takes too long. Each ascension realm only lasts 30 days. Even with a Legendary figure guiding my journey, traveling to and from the Tree Monarch’s ruins alone took half a month.

“Half of the time was wasted on travel. The Stellar Moon Continent is simply too big. Even a Legendary figure isn’t fast enough. A weak beastmaster traveling alone? That could take years. This won’t do. I need a high-speed travel ability. I can’t always count on having a Legendary figure as my chauffeur.”

Even among Legendary chauffeurs, there was a speed gap. For example, Legendary Tian’s Woodleaf Flying Vessel was not the fastest travel familiar. And, embarrassingly enough, neither Captain Doofus, Sudden Death King, nor Dark Crow could match the flight speed of the Woodleaf Flying Vessel.

“Dark Crow is now level 39. After more than half a month of training, it’s close to reaching level 40. Once it fuses with the Legion Domination Trait, it won’t be able to develop speed-based traits.

“Captain Doofus will awaken Space attributes at level 40, making teleportation a powerful travel method. But Space-type skills come with high energy consumption, and its species isn’t known for endurance. Even the renowned teleportation expert, Manager Ying, would be gasping for breath after every long-distance jump.

“Short-range teleportation is fine, but it’s not ideal for cross-continental travel. Using Captain Doofus’ wind abilities for travel? It’s decent, but still too conventional. It’s nowhere near the limit.

“Sudden Death King? Forget it. Its flight speed is okay, but its traits don’t specialize in speed. Its fourth trait is destined to be support-oriented, not speed-enhancing.

“What I need is a travel familiar that can rival or surpass the level 68 Woodleaf Flying Vessel at level 40. Weather Sprite...”

Lu Ran’s next contract was planned to be Weather Sprite. For its first trait fusion, he intended to give it Nature Manipulation. It was a common but highly compatible trait for its species. As for its second, third, and fourth traits, he hadn’t decided yet.

Using the Weather Sprite as a transport familiar would be comfortable, but the most travel-efficient method he could think of was wind power. Without a unique trait boost, it would be just as conventional as Captain Doofus.

“At the moment, Baby Cloud seems the most promising. Its high adaptability means it still has multiple trait fusion opportunities as it grows to level 40. Moreover, it will undergo an evolution, opening up new possibilities.

“I should train Baby Cloud as both a support familiar and a travel familiar. With its Water attribute, it could even assist in underwater exploration. It will be useful for both land and sea.” Lu Ran stroked his chin.

However, whether Baby Cloud could develop an extreme-speed travel ability ultimately depended on whether he could find the right strong trait. For that, Lu Ran decided to seek Manager Ying’s help once he returned.

As he was deep in thought in Death Forest, numerous Legendary elites suddenly looked up, their gazes locking onto the same direction. A terrifying aura was approaching at high speed. A moment later, even Lu Ran’s expression changed. Nearby, Captain Doofus, who had been resting, sprang to his feet and locked onto the sky in alarm.

“

RAWR!

”

The sky darkened as a massive green figure emerged. Its colossal form was over a thousand meters long, coiling in the clouds. It was a sight beyond imagination.

“What...?” Lu Ran took a deep breath.

[Species: Millennium Dragon]

[Attributes: Grass, Time]

[Species Rank: Quasi-Legendary]

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

[Level: 93]

Lu Ran’s heart trembled. As he gazed at the massive, dragon-shaped plant familiar in the sky that resembled the Azure Dragon, he quickly recognized its identity.

Could this be the evolved form of the Harvest Dragon? One of the Tree Monarch’s familiars?

At that moment, the Millennium Dragon hovered among the clouds. Its enormous gold-and-green eyes locked onto Lu Ran and Captain Doofus below.

Its long, grass-like whiskers swayed in the wind, and its mouth slowly opened. “Are you the one who inherited my master’s legacy?”

The dragon paid no attention to the number of people present and simply asked in an inspecting tone.

“Are you the Tree Monarch’s battle familiar?”

On the other hand, Legendary Ye, who had rushed over, exhaled in relief upon confirming it was not an enemy.

After all, when Lu Ran left the ruins, he had mentioned that the Tree Monarch’s phantom had told him to wait for her battle familiar to find him. Now, Legendary Ye thinks that this Millennium Dragon was undoubtedly that battle familiar.

“Master, your timing is perfect.” Lu Ran reassured Legendary Ye before shifting his gaze toward the Millennium Dragon.

“Dragon, you’re too slow. I’ve waited so long that even the flowers have withered.”

The Millennium Dragon was confused.

“If you ever evolve into a Ten-Millennium Dragon, we’ll meet again then.”

Initially, Lu Ran had felt a surge of excitement upon seeing the Millennium Dragon. But in the next moment, he let out a helpless sigh.

[Ascension realm has ended...]

The sound of Limitless City echoed in his mind. Lu Ran no longer paid attention to the Millennium Dragon. Instead, he turned toward City Lord Ye one last time. A countdown began. The surrounding space blurred especially Lu Ran’s figure.

He looked at Legendary Ye, who stood there confused, and bowed deeply.

“Master, I’m leaving.”

At that moment, City Lord Ye’s expression changed drastically, realizing something. Meanwhile, the Millennium Dragon’s expression was even more shaken. It stared at its own dragon claws, watching them gradually fade.

Its voice rang out in shock.

“A historical projection? What kind of joke is this? Even the Divine Tree couldn’t do something like this! Just who are you...?”

As a quasi-Legendary Time dragon, the Millennium Dragon instantly recognized its own existence. Its pupils contracted. It was unfathomable. It couldn’t comprehend who had fabricated a version of itself with self-awareness just to make it fly over and meet this person. The Millennium Dragon stared at Lu Ran in horror.

Lu Ran simply grinned and looked up. “I’m just the disciple of Tree World City’s city lord—a beastmaster who wants to switch to being a plantmaster. Don’t worry. When I return, I won’t disgrace the name of the Tree Monarch’s successor.”

With that, Lu Ran’s figure faded away, disappearing under the calm yet confused gaze of Legendary Ye. The ascension realm collapsed as time ran out. Back in the inn, three beastmasters who had been waiting anxiously finally let out a sigh of relief.

All of them could return!