Chapter 239: The Parasitic Tree
An hour passed quickly...
More than forty minutes had already slipped by, but Leon Merlin showed no intention of turning back. He continued to search carefully in the depths of the primeval forest.
"Matthew Merlin, are you looking for something?"
"Something very important..."
Salomon watched his expression and couldn't help but grow more cautious. "Need any help?"
"Sure..." Leon Merlin thought for a moment, then nodded. "Help me keep an eye out for anything that might run. Oh, and it should look like a tree—not too tall, at most about a meter high..."
"A running tree?" Salomon stared, feeling like he was being teased...
"It's called the Parasitic Tree. It only survives in places packed with magical materials. If you really find one, it'll be a huge benefit for you."
"Like I care about your benefits?" Salomon snorted disdainfully, but beneath his bravado, there was a flicker of hope and vulnerability.
"Salomon Magus, you've been stuck at the ninth-rank archmage level for years now, haven't you? Don't you want to become a Title Archmage? Don't you want people to call you 'Your Excellency' when they see you?"
"What a stupid question..." Salomon felt a surge of frustration—only an idiot wouldn't want that!
The problem is, wishing alone doesn't change anything...
The problem is, wanting isn't enough... Years ago, I damaged my mana vortex and shook my foundations. In this lifetime, there's no hope of becoming a Title Archmage. Not just that—even living a few more years is uncertain. You know all this, Matthew Merlin, so why bring up Title Archmage? Are you trying to rub salt in my wounds...
Matthew Merlin isn't that kind of person...
At that thought, Salomon suddenly felt a jolt in his heart.
Right, Matthew Merlin knows all this—so why mention it?
"M-Matthew Merlin, do you have a way?" Salomon's voice trembled as he asked, his hands shaking. Anyone who hadn't lived through this wouldn't understand the storm of emotion raging inside him...
Salomon's life had truly been a series of soaring highs and crushing lows.
In his youth, he was a prodigy—taken as a disciple by Star Sage Joey early on. Back then, Salomon was riding high, becoming an archmage in his twenties. In talent and achievement, he was every bit the equal of Matthew Merlin today. With Joey's personal guidance, his magical prowess soared, and by his thirties, he'd already stepped into the archmage realm, outshining every other genius of his generation.
Compared to those who later made their names—the likes of Soren, Horne, even Suas—they were all left in the dust by Salomon back then. By forty, he stood at the very peak of ninth-rank archmages, just a step away from becoming a Title Archmage.
But it was then...
Salomon, almost as if cursed, made a fateful trip to the Undying Volcano. There, he suffered the greatest setback of his life. He was fighting for a soulbound magical relic—one that could have let him break through to Title Archmage. But just as victory was within reach, a mage from the Ashen Tower appeared. In mere minutes, a spear of flame pierced Salomon's mana vortex, snatching away his chance at ascension forever.
In that moment, Salomon felt as if the sky itself had collapsed...
He spent three whole years in Cloudspire Tower, nursing his wounds before he could finally crawl out from the shadow of defeat.
Afterward, disheartened and ignoring Star Sage Joey's advice, he returned to his hometown of Seaview City and took charge of the Sage Tower. From that day forward, he never made another advance in magic.
Twenty years passed, and the old wounds only worsened. These last couple of years, even the potions brewed by Sop couldn't suppress the relentless coughing anymore.
Salomon knew—he didn't have many years left.
Truth is, for the past year or two, Salomon had been quietly making arrangements for the end—training Soren, befriending Leon Merlin, all to secure the Sage Tower's future. Even sneaking into the Ashen Tower was just a desperate move to build up a little more for Sage Tower before his death, so it wouldn't be wiped out by the Ashen Tower's overwhelming strength once he was gone.
Never in his wildest dreams did Salomon expect that, at this moment, the young archmage would suddenly ask, 'Don't you want to become a Title Archmage?'
Of course I want to!
But is that even possible?
Salomon stood there, stunned, gazing at Leon Merlin with eyes full of hope and fear—hoping for good news, dreading another round of despair...
"If we find the Parasitic Tree, there's an eighty or ninety percent chance."
"Really?" Salomon grabbed Leon Merlin's arm, nearly shedding tears of relief.
"Really..."
"All right, I'll help you search!" With that promise, Salomon seemed to come alive again. Without waiting for Leon Merlin to speak, he sent out seven or eight Wizard's Eyes, each flying to a different corner of the primeval forest...
"Let's hope luck is on our side." Leon Merlin nodded, channeling his full magical power into his array gear, sending out Wizard's Eyes one after another.
The Parasitic Tree was just as important to Leon Merlin...
For Salomon, the Parasitic Tree was as good as a rebirth elixir. For Leon Merlin, it meant two fruits from the Obsidian Bloom—and another chance to enhance his array gear.
One more Obsidian Bloom fruit wasn't a big deal to Leon Merlin anymore. At most, it was another soulbound magical relic. Even without mentioning the Book of Death, Leon Merlin already had a half-finished soulbound relic—Wraithwalker. As soon as Mogg delivered the sixty soul crystals, the Doombringer Staff could be upgraded to soulbound level, and with the upper-tier flame sprite Saeodus, he could unleash power rivaling any soulbound relic...
The trouble was, every one of these—Wraithwalker, Doombringer Staff, Book of Death, Saeodus—demanded mountains of resources. Leon Merlin could barely keep up with Wraithwalker's upkeep alone; to support them all would mean bankrupting himself more times than he could count.
Right now, soulbound relics weren't Leon Merlin's top priority...
But that chance to further strengthen his array gear—Leon Merlin absolutely wouldn't let it slip away...
The Parasitic Tree, also known as the Forest Wraith, usually appears as a sapling, never growing taller than a meter. It looks harmless enough, just a young sprout—but when it hits its growth phase, it transforms into a spirit form. Then, it can infest any plant, devouring its host each time. Every tree it parasitizes withers to dust.
That's how the Parasitic Tree grows...
Each time it parasitizes a plant, it grows stronger—and inherits all the host's traits. For example, if it infests an Obsidian Bloom, once the Bloom dies, the Parasitic Tree becomes lethally toxic and produces two fruits capable of crafting soulbound relics.
That's exactly the devouring power Leon Merlin needed...
If the array gear could gain this devouring ability, it would crack the mysterious runes in the Book of Death at least ten times faster. Only then would Leon Merlin have a shot at simulating every rune before reaching the archmage realm.
Originally, Leon Merlin planned to look for it in Auckland, hoping to detour to the Wild Highlands.
He remembered that somewhere in the Wild Highlands, there was a Parasitic Tree seed—but getting it would be hellishly difficult. The Highland Battlemage stronghold isn't a place you just stroll into...
Who would've thought that sneaking into Vaughn's magical botanical garden, he'd catch a whiff of the Parasitic Tree's presence? No way Leon Merlin was letting an opportunity like that slip by.
"Matthew Merlin!" Just as Leon Merlin was releasing another Wizard's Eye, Salomon suddenly shouted from nearby.
"Something up?" Leon Merlin's heart skipped a beat as he hurried over.
"Three hundred meters ahead—I just saw a flash of red..."
"A red shadow? That's it! After it!" Leon Merlin instantly cast an acceleration spell.
Salomon did the same, casting acceleration. Both pushed their speed to the limit, and in moments, they'd reached the spot where Salomon had seen the red shadow.
"This is the place!" Leon Merlin sniffed the air—there was still a faint trace of the Parasitic Tree's presence, lingering stubbornly. It couldn't be far...
"Wait." Leon Merlin raised a hand, stopping Salomon from searching wildly. His eyes scanned the woods, and when a patch of grass caught his attention, a smile crept across his face...
"Not a bad hiding spot!" Leon Merlin surged forward, channeling mana into the Lava Dominator.
The patch of grass suddenly whipped like it was caught in a gale—a single blade shot out like an arrow, moving even faster than Leon Merlin under acceleration.
But not even that could outrun the flow of mana...
Almost the instant that blade of grass shot out, Leon Merlin activated Lava Sanctuary. In a flash, four walls of fire sprang up, boxing in the grass from every side.
All you could see was the grass flailing around inside the fire walls, bouncing like a headless fly but never breaching the blazing prison. Meanwhile, Leon Merlin began chanting—a chain of flame appeared out of nowhere, looping around the grass and binding it tight.
"Think you can run now?"