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"System!" Ashlock shouted into the void, but it remained unresponsive. It was strange for something that had always occupied his headspace and answered him to suddenly vanish—it only made the silence louder.

Had he died in the Dao Storm? Was this the afterlife, where he would spend eternity as a soul destined to wander the eternal darkness alone?

Despite the severity of the situation, his mind felt numb and cold at the thought of his death. Ashlock simply felt it was unfortunate to have died so soon.

Life as a tree had been surprisingly pleasant now that he reflected.

Although his human mind and tree body never fully merged, he had felt more comfortable in his bark than he ever had in human skin. Sure, there were numerous drawbacks to life as a tree, but the many positives in his new existence had compensated for them.

But perhaps the most unfortunate aspect of his premature death, assuming this was indeed the afterlife, was those he would leave behind. He had been so concerned about keeping his loved ones with him for eternity...

"Who would have thought I would leave first?" Ashlock sighed, "I hope Stella can forgive me for leaving her so soon. She must be devastated and feeling lost right now."

Time passed.

Naturally, with nothing else to do, Ashlock reviewed his life in his mind.

Had he made a wrong decision at some point, which led to this premature death? What if he had saved his credits instead of spending them on low-grade items, or if he hadn't become so greedy and aimed for that S-grade summon so early on? Should he have been more ruthless and consumed all the villagers and citizens of Darklight City for credits? Had his softness caused his demise? Or, conversely, had he been too eager to grow quickly? Had accepting that divine fragment from Senior Lee attracted the Dao Storm? Or was it just bad luck, with the Dao Storm targeting him because he had the most Qi in the area? Should he have delayed his cultivation in that case?

"These thoughts are pointless," Ashlock mused, floating in the endless void as his thoughts spiraled. He had entered this world without any information, able to see only a few meters around him and knowing no one. He had been nothing but a lone sapling on a mountaintop.

Yet, in just a single decade, he had ascended to the Star Core realm, acquired many high-grade skills, and formed relationships with those around him despite being unable to even talk with them.

"Bleh," Ashlock felt disgusted with himself for prioritizing his cultivation realm above everything else in his list of life accomplishments. "Advancing my cultivation had been my primary focus the entire time, and now it seems so... meaningless. Would a wealthy person care for their vast fortune as they lay lifeless in a coffin with no one to send them off?"

He had felt so powerful on his throne at Red Vine Peak, ruling over the local populace after slaughtering the Evergreens and Winterwraths and then manipulating the new family.

He had been responsible for the deaths of hundreds, if not thousands, of lives—both cultivators with hopes and dreams of their own and irrational monsters. Yet, it wasn't this vast power he had amassed that accompanied him into this void—all he had were memories.

Helping that terrified girl kill the servants when her back was against his bark, gifting her the earrings that allowed her to survive those tournaments when no one else could guide her. Dropping fruit on her head when she talked too much but still listening to her ramblings about life. Watching her grow up through the changing seasons and leave with Maple to the wilderness for a year without him.

Then Diana entered his life, filling the silence Stella had left. Initially, he resisted her presence, but the gloomy woman grew on him over time. He then observed as Stella returned and overcame her past by making her first human friend out of an enemy. He then spent many warm summer days watching them train and grow together as individuals.

Ironically, they had left him for an entire year to learn the ancient language to communicate with him, making him feel lonelier than ever. But even being alone like that was better than floating here in this void, without even the birds to pester him.

"Darn, I miss the outside world already..."

Even that rascal Maple, who never helped, or Larry the oversized spider, had provided him with plenty of laughter as he sat in the same courtyard, watching the sun rise and set day after day, season after season. While everything changed around him, he remained still.

All Ashlock could hope for was that they wouldn't forget him as his soul moved on. Just as they lived in his memory, he hoped they would cherish the fun times they shared, despite the chaos of their situation that led to some dark times he was sure Stella kept bottled up in the back of her mind.

Considering how difficult her life had been, it was a miracle she wasn't completely unhinged. "Well, she does talk to a tree. Maybe she is a bit insane," Ashlock sadly chuckled to himself, trying to fill the silence.

As more time passed, Ashlock's dulled emotions eroded away, and his dismissive stance on his death morphed into one of unacceptance. The more he thought about it, the more he loathed the idea of leaving so soon.

Not just for Stella or the others he was leaving behind, but there was a whole world out there and hundreds of years of memories to be made, yet they had been ripped from his smoldering branches by some freak event of nature.

In a way, it was rather absurd for him to condemn the world as unfair for his sudden demise. Just as the Dao Storm had appeared out of nowhere and killed him, he had sent Larry to slaughter people, mortals included, without a second thought. He had even killed cultivators solely for their affiliation with a specific family, even though they could be wonderful people like Diana.

He didn't regret his decisions now that he thought about it more. A person was the sum of their past choices, and he was content with his life.

The deaths of others had been necessary for him to grow and protect those around him from harm. It had been a brutal world out there, and only the strongest survived... it's just now Ashlock had gotten a taste of what it felt like to die such an unfortunate death to something far stronger.

He felt bitter, as if a bad aftertaste lingered in his mouth. He had spent so much time complaining about his life as a tree, and it was only now, as he floated in the void, that he realized just how incredible his new life had been.

"I'm sorry," Ashlock spoke into the darkness. He didn't know exactly who or what he was apologizing to, but it felt right. He didn't know the origins of the system or why he had ended up as a tree, but whoever was responsible, he felt he had let them down.

Another long, drawn-out silence passed, and just as Ashlock felt his mind becoming heavy, as if he was on the verge of entering a deep slumber he might never awaken from, he heard something.

A voice. It was quiet as a whisper, almost easy to miss, but as he looked toward the voice, Ashlock saw two handprints outlined with purple flame floating in the void. He drifted closer, and the voice grew louder...

"Tree, don't you dare leave me. I will get you anything you want! I can slaughter the entire city for your sake. Just tell me! Here... have some food, eat up like you always do!" It was Stella, without a doubt. He rarely heard her swear, and he could hear her voice trembling as if she was crying. She also spoke of food... but he couldn't even see anything, let alone use his {Devour} skill, since his system was offline.

"Don't cry, Stella," Ashlock replied, but she still couldn't hear him. He was sad. Even in his final moments, he couldn't share a single word with the one person he considered family. "Stella, don't be sad... please."

His mind felt sluggish, and Stella's voice became harder to hear; drowsiness consumed his thoughts, and he felt himself drifting off to sleep like he had on those cold winter nights when he was nothing but a young sapling.

"Tree, you said we were family," Stella cried, and Ashlock sensed her hands striking the void with splashes of spatial Qi, "First, my parents died, and now you? I refuse. I don't accept it."

"Stella, we are family, but sometimes those you love must move on."

So sleepy. Despite his words, Ashlock didn't want to leave, but he felt it was time. The darkness felt comfortable, like an inviting bed on a cold winter night.

"I can feel the flickering of your soul," Stella said through her sniffles, ceasing her pounding on his trunk. She leaned against the void, and he saw the outline of her back. "Can you hear me, Ash? The tree I knew wouldn't die from something so pathetic, so please... come back."

It was pathetic, wasn't it? If only he had been stronger, this wouldn't have happened. "I should have fucking murdered everyone." Ashlock cursed to himself over Stella's sobs.

"Remember when we were both small? You were only the size of a person, and a dagger was the size of my arm?" Stella murmured, "You would sleep through the winters, leaving me all alone. It's one of the many reasons I hate and fear winter. Don't you think that's a silly reason?"

"That's... not... silly... Stella," Ashlock managed to say, struggling to stay awake. "I... hate... winter... too."

"Hey, Ash. If you leave. Will it always be winter? Will I never experience the joy of summer again?" The purple outline of Stella's head leaned against the void as if she were looking up at the sky, "It's a lovely warm day now that the storm has passed. You should come enjoy the sunshine with me. Just one more time..."

Ashlock yearned to feel the sunshine again, the warmth on his rustling leaves during a summer breeze while birds sang their songs and nature blossomed all around.

Stella stayed leaning against the void, and her quiet sobs kept Ashlock from falling asleep due to the guilt that plagued his mind. This was fucked up, and he hated it.

As Stella breathed in and out, tiny pulses of spatial Qi drifted into the void. At first, Ashlock hadn't paid much attention, as it seemed like nothing more than fog drifting with him in the void. That was until he noticed the fog moving downward toward a specific point.

Despite the sleepiness gnawing at his mind, attempting to drag him into an eternal slumber, he resisted and followed the fog with curiosity. He was astonished by what he found. It had been impossible to see before, but with the purple Qi bringing a tiny bit of light to the darkness, he saw it.

His Star Core.

What had once been a radiant ball of fire with enough power to flood the entire mountain in spatial Qi and launch an assault on a Dao Storm was now a tiny black dwarf, so dim it was easy to overlook.

But the purple Qi from Stella was drawn to it and slowly gathered around the dimmed star.

"Tree, if you must go. I will search the nine realms for your soul. I promise." Stella's voice echoed through the void, and Ashlock looked up and saw the purple outline vanish. Stella had stepped away. Was that her final farewell?

He then saw the purple outline of Stella's forehead and her two hands. It appeared she had shifted and was now hugging his trunk. Her silhouette flared up with power as Stella wailed.

Ashlock found her cries and constant cursing hard to focus on, he knew his time was nearly up, but the immense amount of Qi fog flowing into the void provided a glimmer of hope.

He wanted to live.

The streams of purple Qi flowed past him toward the fading star. He feared it might be too late, but as the coldness of death enveloped him, he saw the dim star flicker.

And then there was a ding followed by a message he couldn't have been happier to see floating in the void.

[??? System Rebooting]

The system he had thrown so much shade at for its unreliability... he had never been so glad to see its warming presence.

[Identified {Human} Ego and {Demonic Tree} Body]

[Human ego wishes to be free and reborn? Yes/No]

"Wait, what?" Despite his groggy mind, he was startled by the notification. Was he being offered a chance to escape this tree body? If he had been asked a few years ago, he would have said yes without hesitation.

But now?

"Fuck no."

In fact, being called a human ego felt insulting. He wasn't a human. He was a tree through and through.

[Human Ego and Demonic Tree body compatibility: 98%]

[There is a 2% chance of failure and permanent death. Also, elements of the {Human Ego} will be eroded away with time due to {Demonic Tree} body]

[Does the user still wish to be merged?]

Was this even a question? Before, he had been a human mind trapped in a tree body, but this way, he would become fully tree. He also felt confident in his ability to retain that little bit that made him human, even with his new biology.

[Acknowledged]

[Qi Reserves below the minimum threshold for the merge]

[User is too damaged to receive full system manifestation]

[Damage calculated at 91%]

[Stored energy insufficient for repairs]

Ashlock thought 91% damage sounded quite serious. Was there even a piece of his trunk remaining?

[Activating {Hibernation} until the minimum threshold is reached and merge can be completed]

Ashlock didn't resist the sleepiness this time as he felt safe in the system's capable hands.

He just hoped his sleep wouldn't be for too long...

"Stella, I will see you soon," Aslock murmured as he blacked out.

***

Stella's eyes burned from the tears, and her throat felt raw from shouting. She didn't even feel like moving when she felt a hand clasp her shoulder.

"Hey, you look ugly when you cry," Diana said in her monotone voice as she patted her back. "And you're covering the Patriarch in your snot and tears."

Stella sniffled and took her forehead away from the charred bark. "Diana, you're terrible at consoling people."

"I know, but watching you howl and hug Ashlock's charred remains so tightly can't be good for his regrowth." Diana leaned over and wiped a smudge of ash from her forehead with her thumb. "Give the tree some breathing room, okay?"

Stella reluctantly took her hands off and stood up. The small bit of Tree that remained was only about as high as her head and just wide enough for her to wrap her hands around. Compared to the towering tree that had symbolized stability in her life, seeing Ash reduced to such a small and helpless state filled her with grief.

"I should have stayed by his side." Tears blurred her vision as she stood there with drooping shoulders. She was Tree's greatest believer, but even she doubted Ash could recover from this. She closed her eyes and let her head hang in misery.

A while passed, and Stella felt a chilled breeze pick up.

"See, what did I tell you?" Diana's flat voice reached her ears, "The Patriarch will always rise from the ashes."

Stella had no idea what Diana was talking about, but as she raised her head and opened her eyes, she could see a faint light through the tears. "Huh?" Bringing up her sleeve, she wiped away the tears and feasted her eyes on Ashlock's Star Core that had emerged from his body once more.

Then Stella saw the most dazzling display as the turbulent Qi left over from the monstrous Dao Storm funneled toward the dim Star Core, which pulsed with power.

But the sudden tug she felt on her own Soul Core warmed her heart. She was sure that Ash's Star Core was asking for her assistance. "You should have just asked earlier, Tree. We are family, after all."

Raising her hand, she put her all into transferring her Qi to the floating Star Core, which only glowed brighter and brighter.

Meanwhile, Diana watched from the side with a smile as the charred bark encasing Ashlock cracked and fell to the side, and a single branch began to grow rapidly from the stump toward the heavens. Within seconds, the tree had grown twice its size and kept going.

Stella cried tears of joy as a single stem sprouted from the tip of the new branch, with a red leaf that basked in the glorious sunlight.

"It seems we both returned from death after facing the lightning," Stella said with a smile as her Soul Core hummed happily in her chest. "Now, I hope you grow taller than ever before. You have a lot of children to care for now."

Through the tears, Stella looked into the distance. Her view of the surroundings wasn't blocked by walls, as the storm destroyed the pavilion. Not even the rubble remained—just a lone stump on a mountain. Surrounding her on all sides was a mountain covered in beautiful red-leaved trees as far as the eye could see, bathed in the warm light of the setting sun.