Kara the elf stared at Evan Yang for a long moment, then whispered with the other elves before turning back and saying, "Why should we take you there?"
"Well, how should you take me then?" Evan asked curiously.
"Our Elf Race worships capable people above all. You have to prove you're capable, or how can we trust you?" Kara said.
Evan hadn't expected the Elf Race to be so trusting, but asked curiously, "So how do I prove I'm capable?"
"Follow us. We'll take you somewhere. If you earn its recognition, that'll prove you're capable," Kara said. Evan replied, "Alright."
So Evan followed Kara, strolling along the path they led him down. Since only those who ate the leaves could see them, Evan was moving with a group of invisible beings—no one else could tell.
They didn't encounter anyone along the way, since they took hidden paths—small trails so concealed that Evan had to clear the grass to pass, otherwise his body couldn't fit through.
In this way, Evan followed the group of elves to the other side of a mountain, where many trees grew—especially one towering tree that seemed to reach the sky, or rather, connect with the very space above.
"What's this?" Evan asked curiously.
Kara said proudly, "This is our Divine Tree. Impressive, isn't it?"
"Divine Tree? It really is powerful," Evan said with a smile, sensing the clear and immense energy it emanated.
Kara led Evan over, and he saw many other elf-like beings around. They all eyed Evan suspiciously, and some perched in the trees, bows in hand, as if ready to shoot him at any moment.
Evan didn't underestimate those bows—even though they were only half an arm long, the aura on their arrowheads was intimidating. He wondered how the elves made them.
Soon, Evan arrived beneath the Divine Tree. There, a larger elf—bigger than the others, holding a fully green wooden staff—stood under the tree, staring wide-eyed at Evan.
"Kara, why did you bring him here?" the larger elf asked suspiciously.
"Grand Elder, I don't think he's a bad person, so I brought him in. He also said he wants to prove he's a capable person," Kara explained.
The Grand Elder knew the Elf Race was naturally kind, so faced with this situation, he said, "Alright, if you can earn the Divine Tree's recognition, you may enter."
"The Divine Tree?" Evan hadn't expected the trial to be like this, nor had Kara. But Evan was mentally prepared and smiled, "No problem."
"Come then," the Grand Elder said, bringing Evan beneath the Divine Tree and instructing him to close his eyes.
Evan followed the Grand Elder's instructions and closed his eyes.
As soon as he closed his eyes, Evan's Heaven-Cold Seed began to activate, and memories of his past and how he obtained the seed flashed through his mind.
At first, Evan thought it was just an inner illusion, but soon realized something was off. He wondered, "Strange, what is this feeling?"
Suddenly, a scene appeared: the Heaven-Cold Seed grew incredibly powerful and devoured him, turning him into food for the seed. Shocked, Evan's eyes snapped open.
He saw no one around—just emptiness—but heard a voice laughing, "Not bad, you entered my awareness space in such a short time."
"Are you the Divine Tree?" Evan asked suspiciously.
"Yes, you're quite clever," the Divine Tree replied with a laugh.
"What was that scene just now?" Evan asked curiously.
"That was your future. If nothing changes, that's the path you'll walk," the Divine Tree said. Evan was shocked, "You mean my Heaven-Cold Seed will eventually replace me?"
"That's right. And worse, it could even be used by someone else," the Divine Tree said. Evan asked suspiciously, "Used by someone? What do you mean?"
"In other words, this seed was planted by someone else—someone very powerful. You have no idea of the final result. When the Heaven-Cold Seed devours you, that person can harvest all its power, including everything you possess," the Divine Tree explained.
Evan was utterly shocked. "How could this be?" In his mind, the Heaven-Cold Seed was his source of strength, but now he was told that strength was bestowed by someone else, and he was just a vessel for another's purpose. The thought unsettled him deeply.
For the first time ever, Evan felt truly unsettled. But since the Divine Tree could see through his situation, it must have a solution. Evan asked, "Is there any way to eliminate it completely?"
"If you force it out, it will only harm you. But I do have a way to help—if you promise me one thing," the Divine Tree replied.
Evan asked curiously, "What is it?"
"After I fix your problem, you must retrieve something for me—no matter how difficult, you must get it. Deal?" the Divine Tree said to Evan.
"Of course, I'll help," Evan agreed. He only wanted to eliminate the hidden danger—if the future really played out as shown, it would be disastrous.
The Divine Tree smiled, "See that tunnel ahead? It leads to a pool. Soak there for three days."
Evan walked over curiously, found the tunnel, and descended to discover a pool. Following instructions, he entered the water.
Once in the pool, he immediately felt refreshed and comfortable. The Heaven-Cold Seed began spinning faster than ever before.
Evan saw faint black qi emerge alongside the usual green energy from the Heaven-Cold Seed—his first time noticing it; he'd never realized there was black qi mixed in with the Heaven-Cold energy.
Especially as the black qi came out, Evan sensed its aura—familiar yet unclear. "Who could it be? Is it someone I know? Was it someone who used the Heaven-Cold Seed to plant this in me?"
Evan remembered the Heaven-Cold Seed came from Sovereign Frost, but back then Sovereign Frost was hunted and didn't have that kind of power. According to the Divine Tree, the planter was much stronger than Evan—so it couldn't be Sovereign Frost. Who, then, could it be?
Evan carefully collected the black qi. After three days, it condensed into a bottle. He muttered, "If I ever find you, don't blame me for being merciless. Using the Heaven-Cold Seed to enslave me as your puppet?"
After muttering, Evan emerged from the pool, feeling fundamentally changed. The Heaven-Cold Seed began releasing all the power it had accumulated, flooding his body with energy.
"No wonder the Heaven-Cold Seed absorbed so much energy without changing—it was all suppressed. That guy had a good plan, hoping to harvest it later? Well, today I absorb it myself," Evan said coldly. He started absorbing the power, but could only take part of it before reaching saturation—any more, and he'd explode.
Even though Evan was still at the Immortal Sovereign realm, his aura had changed. Now, if he had to fight a Heavenly-Dao expert, he would do so without hesitation.
Feeling the new power within, Evan left the tunnel and returned to the Divine Tree's awareness space. He asked curiously, "I'm back. What exactly do you want me to retrieve?"
"The Demon Dragon Heart," the Divine Tree said to Evan.
"Demon Dragon Heart? What is that?" Evan had no idea. The Divine Tree smiled, "Let me show you a scene."
A vision appeared before Evan: smoke everywhere, birds and beasts flying, Fire Phoenixes, dragons, and many sacred creatures. Evan was stunned—what kind of place was this?
Finally, Evan saw a dragon—its entire body black, its scales blue, radiating pure terror. After seeing this vision, the Divine Tree laughed, "One day you'll encounter it. When you do, you must take its heart, or else it cannot be killed."
"Why will I meet it?" Evan asked, confused.
"Don't forget, I have foresight—otherwise, how could I predict your Heaven-Cold Seed's future?" the Divine Tree laughed. Evan was shocked, then asked curiously, "Can you tell me when I'll break through to Immortal Sovereign?"
"You? Isn't this good enough? Why insist on breaking through? What would it change?" After saying this, the Divine Tree disappeared, and Evan found himself transported outside.
Green light radiated overhead. The Grand Elder saw it and led the elves in bowing respectfully. "Honored human," he said.
"Honored human?" Evan was baffled, not understanding what they meant.
"You've passed the trial and earned the Divine Tree's recognition. From now on, you're our friend," the Grand Elder said with a smile.
Evan hadn't expected to pass the trial so easily, but was grateful he came—otherwise, he really could have ended up as someone else's puppet, which would have been tragic.
"Can I meet the Crafting God now?" Evan asked curiously.
Kara had already spoken to the Grand Elder, so he smiled, "Of course. Kara will take you there."
Evan nodded, and Kara led him away. On the road, Evan kept thinking about the demon dragon and the strange place—why did the Divine Tree say he'd meet it? It all seemed mysterious. If not for the Divine Tree revealing the Heaven-Cold Seed's secret, Evan wouldn't have believed any of it was real.
Kara led Evan over several mountains, finally reaching one with a platform surrounded by many statues.
The statues were all human-shaped. Evan asked curiously, "Is the Crafting God human?"