GREED: ALL FOR WHAT?

Hadrick sighed. The sound of his sigh was like the whistling of the wind. Then he said, "A king can still squash you."

Soverick sneered, "I can become a king of law as soon as I reach transcendence. A king is nothing to me."

"If you say so. I must admit that you are very talented. I knew your soul was special, but I didn't think you were this talented. Maybe a little too talented, but it doesn't mean you are strong. Don't let your potential get in your head." Hadrick warned him, but soverick didn't think there was much to worry about. Hadrick didn't know what he was truly capable of. If he makes a huge sacrifice, a king of law will not be able to threaten the current him, not to mention when he becomes transcendent.

Soverick just shook his head. He decided to move on to more productive things. He changed the subject of their conversation.

"I have secured the room, so you should be able to send a part of you over."

Hadrick refused. "Never mind that. It's too risky. If something goes wrong I'll be struck by lightning. I can't do it."

Soverick smirked. "You coward."

"I maintain that it is an admirable quality. Cowards live longer." Hadrick said without shame.

"But you can't move around. You're more like a prisoner here."

The tree sighed. "It is the price to pay for long life."

Elves like trees, they like speaking to them, touching them, and being around them. His former house was in a forest on top of a tree. He was able to be around them as much as he wanted. He would like to replicate that environment by making the tree grow in his room but the ancient tree is too scared of lightning tribulation. There's another thing he wants from the tree that can speed up his growth but the tree will refuse because of his cowardice.

The inner city is built on top of the forest, but the houses and buildings don't come in contact with it. There is a layer of barrier that separates the inner city from the forest. This barrier dips in several places so that tall buildings can be built directly on the ground. It is the second protection put in place in case the secret realm happens to be breached. The tree would have a layer of defense to fend off the tribulation until the secret realm is fixed. The tree has so much protection but it is still timid.

"If I had the bloodline of the Ghastorix ancestor you will do it for me?" Soverick asked

Hadrick snickered. "Too bad you don't."

Soverick shook his head, then he remembered something. "Was the surprise you said was waiting for me at the evaluation room that prank?"

"How was it?"

"It was lame," Soverick said.

"It was my idea." The ancient voice sounded as if it was sulking.

"Then it was fantastic. Truly efficient. I can see why such an idea would work, it is because it comes from an enlightened sage like you."

They both laughed. Soverick could be free and casual with this tree because he respects the tree. In the realm of high heaven, and probably in the entire void universe, only when people have similar strength and influence can they talk as equals. The tree is the only person he has met ever since he was born that could be considered his equal. He respects the tree because of its strength and its ability to transform Origin essence into origin energy. It is a unique ability among trees with very high potential.

The tree usually talks to people with the original bloodline because only them among the battle sage monkeys inherited the ability to communicate with it from their ancestor Ghastorix. But those people have become rarer and rarer because of the influence of other royal bloodlines. His brother, Ghaster, happens to be one of those rare people with the bloodline of the ancestor.

"Does that mean you will help out my brother instead of me?" Soverick asked, seemingly disinterested in the answer.

"Look at the time. It's nighttime already, I have to sleep."

Soverick wasn't surprised by Hadrick's attempt to evade the question. The tree is a coward after all.

"You this shameless tree. I thought old trees are good and honest trees."

"I didn't lie. I just avoided answering the question. It is a completely different thing. Besides, I am an ancient tree, anytime is nighttime for me."

"I didn't think I'll ever envy that boy but I do right now. It is alright anyways, I can make do without your help."

The major reason he wanted the tree to break the barrier is so that the tree would be able to transfer life force to him. Elves can heal trees and can also be healed by trees. The amount of pure life present in an ancient tree of such size and strength as Hadrick is like a huge reservoir. With its help, he wouldn't need to rely on Mihila and Ghoto for their wealth. This is the major help that the original ancestor of the family enjoyed back then, which helped him to reach the transcendent level quickly. Soverick had a difficult path ahead of him which will become easier for him if he had the tree's help, but the tree isn't willing to risk that much for him. Apparently, they aren't as close as he had thought. The tree was only willing to help those with the bloodline of the ancestor.

Hadrick tried to console him. "If you can come to the forest I'll help you."

Soverick shook his head and said. "I doubt that is possible, not with the level of protection you have around you."

He had tried to break through the barrier but he had failed. The barrier has reached the origin grade and it was probably set up by an origin god with a significant level of expertise. The barrier is enough to stump him and there could be more obstacles that will stop him from breaking in. Clearly, the Ghastorix ancestor had put in a lot of effort in preventing something like that from happening.

Their conversation lulled into a brief silence before Hadrick spoke again.

"Speaking of your brother, I tried to reach out to him today but he couldn't understand me."

"I noticed his odd behavior today. I thought you would only reach across to him when he awakens his soul. Why did you change your mind?"

"I was impatient."

Soverick shook his head. "I thought trees are the most patient creatures. He will only be able to communicate with you when he unlocks his divine sense."

Hadrick sighed. "I know. I was just testing the waters."

"Look at you, an ancient tree chasing after the attention of a small boy." Soverick mocked.

"I am just desperate for company." Hadrick tried to defend his dignity.

Soverick didn't let go. "Am I not enough for you? You have lost your self-respect old tree."

"I just miss my friend and his descendants remind me of him."

"If you had broken through your limit, you would have been able to follow him. You would have been able to create a new race with him too. Your descendants will become forest monkeys."

"Maybe, I could have also died."

Soverick stopped messing with him. The tree might not be able to win an argument but it will remain adamant. He had a lot of experience to know that trees can be stubborn more than earth elementals. If the tree had transformed back then, there is a chance that a new race or at least a variety of battle sage monkeys with incredible plant affinity like elves will appear. That's how most elves were created too. Two powerful trees had transformed and produced offsprings known today as wood elves. The high elves have a slightly different origin but all elves have at least one plant ancestor.

"Shouldn't he have a clone around here? It is easy for an origin god to create one." Soverick asked.

"Ghastorix is about to break through to the next realm. He needs his full concentration for that."

"He is about to become a world god? From the little, I know that is pretty fast. He must be highly talented." Soverick said in admiration.

Hadrick snorted. "If you said this last origin cycle, I would have been proud of his achievement too. But now? I can only say he isn't too slow. The realm lord is also about to become a world god."

"What?" This time soverick was appalled. "Isn't that too fast?" He asked

"The realm lord is too talented. It is impossible to catch up to something like that. He just leaves people in his dust and makes people despair." Hadrick lamented. Soverick could only agree and lament too. The realm lord is widely known to be talented in everything he does. No one can compare to him in any aspect.