Reborn as a Demonic Tree

"Soit has come to this, huh?" Diana leaned forward, interlacing her fingers below her chin with a serious expression. "An all-out war between regional titans. The land isn't big enough for two rulers, a fact Vincent Nightrose has known all too well. Hence, he made efforts to curb any possibilities of resistance."

"I actually don't mind if other powers are nearby," Ashlock corrected her.

As his roots expanded in all directions, there was a possible future where his roots covered the entire realm. If he couldn't stand sharing his land with others, would he turn into the next Vincent Nightrose and slaughter anyone who got too close to his cultivation stage? That seemed tiresome.

"This is personal. Vincent Nightrose wants Stella dead, so he has to die. It's as simple as that."

Not to mention the credits and control he would get for killing such a foe. Vincent was now less of a threat and more of an opportunity to further his personal growth and political influence in the region. All the while removing a threat to Stella and the weaker ones in the sect.

"Still, it is amazing to think that the tyrant who has ruled the Blood Lotus Sect with an iron fist since before my father's time could actually die. To a tree, no less," Diana leaned back in her chair and smirked, "All because he happened to pick on Stella. I wonder if he will curse his luck in the afterlife."

"Afterlife? Such scum doesn't deserve to venture to such a place," Ashlock would devour his soul and turn him into thousands of sacrificial credits. Nothing would be left to even reincarnate as a mere blade of grass in his next life, let alone curse him in death. Vincent Nightrose would be reduced to nothing but a memory in the minds of those who knew and feared him. Such was the fate of a cultivator who believed he was invincible and above everyone else.

Stella jumped up, suddenly full of energy. "I'm all for this plan! Let's kill him right now. He has been a shadow looming over me and this sect for too long, like a reaper. We can't move forward with confidence until he is gone and Ashfallen takes over the Blood Lotus Sect."

"Well said," Ashlock agreed, "Any objections?"

"Do we know Vincent's cultivation stage for sure?" Elaine asked the room. "My father was always vague regarding Vincent. Maybe your family knew more than we did?"

"You think we would have known more than the Voidmind family? Nobody knows Vincent's true cultivation as far as I know. It's a well-guarded secret." Diana said. "Estimates range from the middle of the Nascent Soul Realm to the first step into the Monarch Realm."

"Has nobody seen him fight?" Stella asked.

Diana shrugged, "The Disciplinary Committee disposed of anyone who stepped into the Nascent Soul Realm, such as my father. Also, the well-designed laws of the sect prevented any one family from gaining enough influence by having any winnings from wars shared with the Nightrose family. Since no family rose above the rest, the Nightrose family could use other families to deal with infighting."

"Yeah, it's as Diana said," Elaine nodded. "He has so many layers of people below him that he rarely has to intervene directly. The few times he's had to fight, his enemies have been crushed one-sidedly—or so the stories go.

"Those stories have some legitimacy behind them, with Vincent Nightrose having the highest bounty in the Eternal Pursuit Pavilion at 100,000 and his ability to single-handedly defend the Blood Lotus Sect all this time from other demonic sects," Ashlock pointed out.

"Phew, this is a lot to take in," Douglas jokingly pulled at the collar of his beige suit. "Forget the Nightrose family; when I was a rogue struggling in Darklight City, you noble families seemed like untouchable gods. Now, you tell me the collective strength of all these noble families put together couldn't stand up to this one guy? And we are going to be the ones to put an end to his rule?"

"Don't worry. I won't take action until I have verified Vincent Nightrose's strength by analyzing his soul with my eye in a few days," Ashlock reassured Douglas. He understood that many lives depended on him and his leadership to survive. If he decided to poke the hornet's nest, it wouldn't just be him who had to deal with it. Everyone under the Ashfallen banner would suffer if he tried and failed to punch above his weight.

"It would be like the fight with the Lunarshade Grand Elder but on a far larger scale," Ashlock mused. He knew he had a chance of victory, especially if he could bait Vincent Nightrose to fight near Red Vine Peak. The problem is that it brought the fight toward vulnerable cities like Darklight and Ashfallen City.

"That's a relief," Douglas let out a sigh, "I only just reached the Star Core Realm at the end of the Mystic Realm and haven't had time to get used to my new strength. So heading straight into a war wouldn't have been ideal."

"That's a good point, and I should congratulate you and Elaine on your successful ascensions. Now, all of Ashfallen's Grand Elders are in the Star Core Realm, which is much more fitting."

When Ashlock first discovered the Redclaw family, only the Grand Elder was in the Star Core Realm. Elder Brent, Margret, and Mo were stuck in the Soul Fire Realm due to heart demons creating bottlenecks. So it hadn't been weird to have Douglas and Elaine as Elders despite being in the Soul Fire Realm, but now that the Ashfallen Sect rivaled the top-tier families like the Silverspires who had Star Core Realm butlers for their scions, it had been a little embarrassing.

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Elaine and Douglas gave a bow of appreciation at his words.

"Now, Douglas..."

Douglas straightened up, and a worrisome expression bloomed on his face. "Yes, boss?"

"While we wait to see if Vincent Nightrose is defeatable, don't you agree we hold the tournament here in my Inner World so as not to repeat the alchemy tournament incident?"

"Right..." Douglas nodded slowly. His worsening expression clearly indicated that the conversation was heading in an unfavorable direction.

"Unfortunately, we lack a suitable venue for such an event here," Ashlock said. "Could you build a floating arena surrounded by a town to host our events for the foreseeable future? My Inner World has expanded in size, so there should be plenty of room."

"It would be my pleasure," Douglas said with a strained smile, "How long do I have?"

"Would a week be long enough?" Ashlock suggested. The tournament had been scheduled to occur straight after the Mystic Realm, but sometimes plans had to be changed.

Douglas's eye twitched, "A week?"

"Yeah."

The tournament aimed to welcome cultivators into the white stone palace and elevate the prestige of the Ashfallen Sect. News of it had already spread throughout Darklight City and all the mortals who had gained the ability to cultivate due to the welcome packages provided for joining the cult of the All-Seeing Eye. If they were to delay the tournament for long, it would reflect poorly on them and give the Ashfallen Sect a bad name.

"It can't be helped," Douglas sighed as he stood up, "An arena in a week? It should be possible, and I needed the practice anyway."

"Um, Douglas..." Stella mumbled. "Could you build me a new alchemy lab and study, too? This house is nice, but it doesn't have enough room, and I have to stay here until Vincent dies."

"How could I say no to an earnest request from the princess?" Douglas said as sarcastically as possible, "I'll go get the Mudcloaks."

***

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Magnus Redclaw stood in the White Stone Palace's courtyard flanked by his family's Elders. His arms rested behind his back as he stared down at three members of the younger generation. He usually looked upon these youths with fondness, as they were the future of the family, but today, there was only coldness in his gaze.

A total of 60 members from the younger generation, aged between 12 and 40, had entered the Mystic Realm, yet only 48 returned safely home. The pocket realms were dangerous, so Magnus had steeled his heart with the knowledge that someone may not return alive, but this was far too many casualties.

All three of the singled-out youths were in a line before him, kneeling with one leg raised and their gazes fixated on the floor. Before entering the Mystic Realm, everyone had been assigned groups. These three had emerged and could not provide a coherent reason for the deaths of the others in their pocket realms. Hence, they were lined up to face judgment.

It was midday, yet the sky was overcast, and a cold winter breeze accompanied the solemn occasion. In all his years as family head, he had never had to punish his own family. Every cultivator was to be cherished in a family as small and tight as the Redclaws, especially with how abundant cultivation resources were now.

All I can hope is Elder Margret found no wrongdoings during the last few hours of interrogation. Either way, I need to give an example so we do not repeat this tragedy again. Magnus thought as he took a calming breath before addressing the crowd of Redclaws that had gathered around the edges of the White Stone Palace.

"Everyone, look around. Who stands beside you? Who stands before you? That's right, it's a fellow Redclaw—your family. We have survived and stood together through thick and thin under one proud name. In the past, we were war heroes, and in the present, we thrive under the canopy of a god as his flaming swords."

Magnus paused as his gaze swept the crowd.

"Ashfallen rewarded our loyalty by granting us access to the Mystic Realm, a passageway into pocket realms from past and present Monarch Realm cultivators. An opportunity I'm sure you can all understand is an unprecedented privilege that even the Nightrose family couldn't grant us. However! With opportunity comes danger. While some pocket realms contain inheritances or treasures beyond what can be found on our layer of creation, others are filled with unthinkable monsters and threats. In the face of such danger, we should band together to support one another—" Magnus glared down at the three kneeling before him, "—not turn on our own blood due to greed."

Whispers broke out among the Redclaws gathered. Many looked at the kneeling group with disgust, others with worry. The boys' and girls' parents, siblings, and friends were in the crowd. Everyone was emotionally invested in this, so it was no simple affair and had to be handled correctly.

"Silence," Magnus said calmly, and the courtyard went deathly still. Magnus glanced over his shoulder, "Elder Margret, please announce the interrogation results and pass your judgment."

Elder Margret nodded and stepped forward with a clipboard in hand.

"Terrance, Isabella, and Nathan, you three were part of a larger group that included twelve others, all of whom are unaccounted for. In light of this oddity and the suspiciously high number of casualties, you were separated, asked to give testimonies, and we inspected your spatial rings. While we may never know the whole truth of what occurred in the Mystic Realm, I believe I have drawn a reasonable conclusion based on the evidence." Elder Margret paused as she switched the parchment on the clipboard. "First of all, inspecting your spatial rings revealed a bundle of potent undocumented flowers, likely originating from the pocket realm. I believe these flowers were a source of conflict."

"Elder Margret, we didn't do anything!" Isabella, a usually quiet and studious girl, looked up from the ground and shouted. "Right, guys? Some flowers don't mean anything."

Magnus flared a fraction of his peak Star Core presence, forcing Iseballa's head down and silencing her. He hated having to do this to his own family. It tore his heart in two, but if putting on a show of strength would prevent a tragedy like this from occurring in the future, then he had to suck it up and do it. This was his role as a leader.

"Really, Isabella? Then how do you care to explain the abundant amount of spirit stones in your spatial ring?" Elder Margret said.

"Spirit stones? How does that show anything? I have been saving up for a long time!"

Elder Margret raised a brow. "What about the pendant known to have been worn by Harris, who never made it out alive?"

"That's..." Isabella froze up for a moment. "It was a gift from him!"

"Bullshit, Harris always hated you. I know you killed my boy!" A curly, red-haired woman who Magnus knew was the mother of Harris pushed through the crowd and pointed an accusing finger at Isabella, "Because of you, my boy is dead!"

"Samatha, please hold on. Let me seek justice for your boy," Elder Margret said softly. Magnus knew the two were good friends, so Elder Margret shared Samatha's pain. Harris had been a good kid and had only just turned twelve; hence, they had sent him with the largest group.

Magnus's gaze fell to the floor. When they decided on the groups, he promised Samatha it would be the safest group for her boy, but it turned out to be the worst option. He couldn't foresee the future, but he still felt he was partially to blame.

Elder Margret coughed to refocus everyone's attention on the matter at hand. "Isabella, you say this was a gift from Harris? If so, when did he give it to you?"

"As I told you, toward the end of the month. While we were all busy harvesting those flowers, a Fire Drake appeared and killed everyone!" Isabella had tears trailing down the side of her cheeks. "We didn't stand a chance! I tried to help those I could, but in the end, only Terrance, Nathan, and I survived. Right guys?"

Neither of the boys answered her. They kept their gazes firmly on the ground.

"I separated you three and compared your recollection of events," Elder Margret tapped the clipboard, "Your story does not match Nathan and Terrances, Isabella."

Her eyes widened, and she looked between the two in panic. "W-What? How did they differ?"

"Almost every detail matches; however, it's said that Harris died earlier due to unforeseen circumstances, but in your report, you say he was alive until the Fire Drake attacked." Elder Margret's gaze hardened. "Nathan and Terrance were very vague about how Harris died, even though the death of a family member would have been a very polarizing and notable event. The only thing they both agreed on was that Harris died at the end of the first week."

Isabella's shock turned to anger, "You two!"

"Silence." Elder Margret snapped, "The appearance of the Fire Drake is also strange. You all described the location with the high-elevation flowers and that after a few days, a single Fire Drake egg was discovered in a hole. This is odd since Fire Drakes prefer to lay their eggs in low-elevation areas and always in groups of three. This means someone put the egg there to bait the Fire Drake to attack."

Elder Margret stepped toward Isabella, "You were the only one out of the three able to mention details about the egg. So, in conclusion, I have reason to suspect after killing Harris, for whatever reason, you wanted to wipe out the witnesses by baiting a Fire Drake to attack. Is that correct?"

"No—"

"Yes, Elder Margret," Terrance stood up. He was an older boy in his twenties with messy red hair that fell over his face. "It was also partially mine and Nathan's fault that Harris died. The three of us and Harris went exploring and—"

"Terrance, shut up." Isabella hit him in the shoulder, sending him staggering to the side. "You're just sprouting lies."

"Samatha deserves to know the truth," Terrance retorted, "Despite being stronger, we used him as a scout! He died because we were too cowardly to go first."

Magnus closed his eyes as he imagined the terrible scene and heard a thump followed by a howl as Samatha dropped to her knees. Somehow, the story was even more horrific than he had imagined it. To use the youngest and weakest in the group as a scout? They were a family of war heroes, not savages. The thought of doing such a thing made him almost spit out with disgust.

Nathan stood up last and looked at his father, a usually cheerful, round-faced man with a bushy red beard, in the crowd with shame. His father returned a wrathful glare.

"It's as Terrance says." Nathan looked between the two youths, "When we returned, the others said they would tell the Elders about what we had done. When the Fire Drake attacked and killed everyone, we all agreed to keep how Harris died a secret... but now I see the Fire Drake attack wasn't by chance."

Magnus opened his eyes, and his voice carried a fiery rage he had long kept restrained. "You three had committed an unforgivable sin by leading a fellow Redclaw to their untimely demise. However, Isabella took it further by committing an act reminiscent of a cold-hearted demon. You slaughtered your family and planned to hide it. You even looted the dead in hopes it would fuel your own selfish growth."

Isabella stepped back, her lip quivering as she looked between the Elders facing her down. "No... how did it turn out like this!"

A sudden pressure descended on White Stone Peak, and divine energy crackled through the air. The immortal had arrived to witness the judgment on those who had defiled the Mystic Realm.

Magnus slowly raised his hand to give judgment while under the immortal's gaze, "For these crimes, Nathan and Terrance will have their cultivation stripped, and they will be reduced to cripples. Meanwhile, Isabella, you will be sentenced to death—"

"Hold on, Grand Elder."

Magnus glanced to the side and was surprised to see Elder Brent, of all people, gripping his arm.

"I have a more fitting punishment for these evildoers."

Magnus raised a brow, "What is it?"

"These three took talented youths and loved ones from us with their actions. Crippling them and executing another just creates more death and suffering."

"Are you suggesting we spare them?" Magnus couldn't understand his brother's line of thinking.

Elder Brent shook his head, "I suggest we have the immortal turn them into trees right here in the courtyard so they may benefit our family forever by bathing the courtyard in their Qi while serving as a constant reminder to the others."

Magnus looked at Elder Mo and saw his old war buddy nodding profoundly at the suggestion. Elder Margret also seemed to agree. Magnus lowered his arm and looked up at the sky. "Immortal, would such a punishment be acceptable?"

The immortal answered his question through action. The ground below split open, and three-person thick, ethereal black roots covered in thorns and ending in spikes emerged like coiling snakes and wrapped around the youths. They howled in pain as their flesh was torn to shreds and their bones crushed.

Everyone watched on with mixed expressions. It was gruesome and brutal but also deserved.

After a while, the three crushed and bloodied bodies were thrown to the floor a few meters from one another. Immediately, their unconscious bodies began to twist upwards as if they were trying to stand and solidify into black wood. After a while, they took on the general shape of a tree, and blood-red leaves sprouted from their branches that resembled arms ending in gnarled fingers.

Most stayed deathly silent during the transformation, though sobbing could be heard from the crowd. Today was a dark day for the Redclaw family, but also the start of a new beginning, Magnus thought as he saw the three trees rise in the courtyard.