Chapter 313: Ch 313 : A Warrior’s Spirit

Tower of Eternity, Floor 70: The Heart of the Forest.

For five grueling hours, Lux had moved through the dense undergrowth like a ghost.

He had bypassed thousands of Demigod-Tier trees, ignoring their movements, focused solely on the flow of mana beneath the earth.

He expected to find a monstrous World Tree at the center. He expected a towering behemoth that pierced the clouds.

But what he found was far more disturbing.

In the middle of a massive clearing, embedded in the earth like a pulsating tumor, was a Wooden Heart.

It was colossal, easily the size of a small house. It was comprised of interwoven roots and vines that throbbed with a sickly green light.

With every beat, a shockwave of mana rippled through the soil, feeding the millions of trees across the continent.

THUMP-THUMP.

The sound was deafening. It wasn’t just a beat; it was a drum of war.

“So this is the source,” Lux whispered, crouching behind a boulder. His eyes narrowed. “No trunk. No leaves. Just a heart.”

“Now, I just need to destroy this heart and complete this hellish floor.”

He took a deep breath, channeling his mana. He activated his speed spell, preparing to blitz the target.

He blurred forward, a streak of violet light aimed straight for the Heart.

WHOOSH.

Just as he crossed the threshold of the clearing, the ground erupted.

Four massive shapes burst from the earth, surrounding the Heart. They weren’t normal Treants. These were Guardian trees.

They stood a hundred meters tall, their bark reinforced with metallic ores absorbed from the deep earth. Their vines were thick as pythons, glowing with defensive runes.

“I would have loved to fight you fairly,” Lux grinned, pushing his speed to the limit. “But I have a schedule to keep!”

He weaved through them, using their massive size against them. He ducked under a swinging branch that could have leveled a building. He slid between the legs of another.

He was fast. But the Guardians were faster than physics allowed for something that large.

SNAP.

A vine shot out with the speed of a whip-crack. It didn’t aim for Lux; it aimed for where he was going to be.

It lassoed his waist, the thorns digging into his skin.

“Caught you,” the guardian seemed to say as it yanked him back.

“Think again!” Lux roared.

The shield around him flared. The vine binding him dissolved. The mana holding it together was sucked dry in a millisecond, turning the wood to dust.

Lux landed on his feet, skidding backward. “That was close. Its speed is faster than my conversion rate. If I get grabbed by many at once… I’m dead.”

He tried to advance again. But every step he took toward the Heart, he was dragged back two steps by the relentless assault of the Guardians.

“This won’t work,” Lux realized, dodging a root spear that grazed his cheek. “I can’t ignore them. I have to kill them.”

He let one of the roots grab his leg intentionally. As he was pulled toward a Guardian, he grinned.

“Thanks for the lift.”

He slashed downward, not at the tree, but at the ground. His mana blade severed the thick, glowing root connecting the Guardian to the Heart.

The Guardian convulsed. Its movements slowed.

“Gotcha…”

SQUELCH.

Lux’s triumph died in his throat.

Before the Guardian could even collapse, the severed root shot out of the ground like a living worm. It reconnected to the Heart instantly.

A surge of green mana flooded the Guardian. Its wounds healed. Its speed returned. It roared silently, slamming a fist down where Lux had been standing a second ago.

“Regeneration?!” Lux shouted, dodging the impact. “Instant regeneration?!”

The situation had gone from difficult to impossible. He was exhausted. His mental fatigue was redlining. And now he was fighting four immortals protected by an infinite battery.

The Throne Room, City of Gods.

Sunny sat on his Throne, a faint smile playing on his lips as he watched the multiple screens floating before him.

“He found the solution,” Sunny murmured, watching Lux’s desperate struggle. “But finding the solution is still easy, the difficult part is to apply that solution.”

He shifted his gaze to another screen.

Floor 79: The Abyssal Ocean.

Thalorax was locked in combat with a Kraken the size of an island.

It was a magnificent battle. The Kraken controlled every drop of water in the ocean.

It could pressurize the sea into blades that cut steel. It could turn the water hard as diamond to trap its prey.

But Thalorax was a monster in his own right. He breathed lightning that boiled the ocean. He tore through the tentacles with brute strength.

“The Kraken is strong,” Sunny analyzed. “But Thalorax….. He won’t be stopped here. Maybe Floor 95 will finally humble him.”

Sunny found it all incredibly amusing.

Just a few years ago, he was a delivery boy worrying about rent.

Now? He was the Emperor of a Multiverse, watching Demigods dance for his entertainment while he prepared to fight Demon Lords.

“Grow, my children,” Sunny whispered. “The Demons are approaching. You need to be ready.”

He glanced back at Floor 70. Lux was slowing down. His movements were ragged.

“Aren’t you lucky,” Sunny chuckled, seeing a golden notification pop up on Lux’s status screen, and the incoming newcomers.

Floor 70: The Heart of the Forest.

Lux was panting. His vision was blurring.

“Damn it,” he gasped. “Just die already!”

He severed a root. It reconnected. He blasted a hole in a Guardian. It healed. It was a loop of futility.

Suddenly, a warmth spread through his chest. It wasn’t mana. It was vitality.

Ding.

[Congratulations! Through extreme physical exertion, your Talent ’Enhanced Stamina’ has evolved.]

[New Rank: SS-Grade.]

[Effect: Fatigue is now a choice, not a limit. Recovery speed increased by 500%.]

“Hah!” Lux let out a hearty laugh.

The exhaustion vanished. His limbs felt light as feathers. His lungs filled with air.

“Finally!”

He moved. This time, he was a blur. He danced through the vines, moving faster than the Guardians could track.

“You guys are slow,” Lux taunted, slipping past a massive fist.

He didn’t bother cutting them anymore. He knew they would regenerate. His target was the Heart.

He junped over the last Guardian, landing directly on top of the pulsating Wooden Heart.

“Game over!”

He turned his hands into blades once again, as he used his devouring slash.

He ripped the Heart open. Energy tore through the core, splitting it in two.

Lux stood there, chest heaving, waiting for the system notification. Waiting for the “Floor Cleared” message.

Silence.

“What is happening?” Lux frowned. “Don’t tell me…”

THUMP.

The two halves of the Heart quivered. Vines shot out from the tear, knitting the wound together in seconds.

THUMP-THUMP.

The Heart beat louder than ever.

The ground shook. The four Guardians stopped attacking. The millions of trees in the forest stopped swaying.

They all turned to look at Lux.

And this time, their aura wasn’t defensive. It was an aura of pure Hatred.

“Oh, come on!” Lux shouted, stepping back as the trees began to advance. “It’s indestructible? How is this fair?!”

The entire forest was collapsing in on the clearing. A tidal wave of wood was about to crush him.

But then… they stopped.

The Heart skipped a beat. It shivered.

The Guardians lowered their arms. The millions of trees trembled, their leaves rustling in a sound that sounded like fear.

They weren’t looking at Lux. They were looking past him.

Lux frowned. He cast an Appraisal Eye spell, turning around to see what could possibly terrify a Demigod Forest.

Standing at the edge of the clearing were two figures.

One was a young girl with a mischievous smile. Laira.

The other was a small Dryad with leaves for hair. Veylara.

The massive Guardian Trees, beings of immense power, slowly bent their trunks until their canopies touched the ground.

They were bowing to the World Tree.

To them, Veylara wasn’t just a climber. She was Royalty. She was the Apex of their species. The Divine Mother of all Wood.

Lux let out a chuckle. He walked over to them, wiping sweat from his brow.

“Lady Veylara,” Lux bowed respectfully. “It’s been a long time. And Laira… you have grown. Last time I saw you on Veridia, you were just a bubbly child chasing butterflies.”

Veylara nodded gracefully, her wooden avatar radiating a calming aura that pacified the entire jungle. Laira grinned and waved.

“Hi Lux! Having trouble with the jungle?” Laira teased.

“Just a bit,” Lux admitted, gesturing to the regenerating Heart. “It won’t die.”

“Lux,” Veylara spoke, her voice like wind in the branches. “Do you wish to form a party with us? With my authority, this floor is… manageable.”

Lux looked at the bowing trees. He looked at the infinite regeneration of the Heart. He knew that with Veylara, he could walk straight to the portal without lifting a finger.

It was tempting. It was easy.

But Lux was a warrior who had just unlocked Enhanced Endurance.

He shook his head slowly.

“I am sorry, My Lady,” Lux said, his voice firm. “I think I will return for now.”

“I cannot defeat this floor today. But if I use your authority to pass… I will never defeat it.”

“I will retreat. I will train. And I will return when I have the strength to burn this entire forest to ash by myself.”

He bowed one last time.

“Good luck on your climb.”

Lux tapped his system interface.

[Exit Tower.]

He vanished in a flash of light, choosing the path of hardship over the path of ease.

Laira watched him go, impressed. “Wow. He’s stubborn.”

Veylara smiled. “He is a warrior. Come, Laira. The trees are waiting to open the path for us.”

The forest parted like the Red Sea, creating a straight path to the portal for the World Tree.

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