In the mortal world of the Three-Hole World, Locke guided the treant avatar and spent three years with these two mortals. On the crater rims, only three days had passed.
At that moment, Olian was already eighteen years old.
And his attendant appeared even older. That middle-aged man would secretly pray to the War God every night and hope that when he woke up the next day, the priests of the War God would find them and tell them they had been forgiven for their actions.
That way they could escape this sinister treant and return to the mortal city-state of Terrila.
Three years later, Olian wore clothes made from animal hides tanned from the forest, and with a bow and arrows made from timber gathered in the forest, along with weapons made by grinding toxic plants into paste.
Under Locke's instruction, Olian had mastered the martial skills summarized by the Rangers of both worlds.
On that day, Olian dragged a wolf-bear he had hunted and came before Locke's treant avatar. Locke's treant avatar was crouching on the ground, with hundreds of ogham tree characters moving between its fingers.
In Olian's eyes, what he saw was this treant's branches covered in countless characters glowing with magical radiance, all in motion.
Locke was using the Three-Hole Plane's present world's relatively slow time flow rate to consolidate his past botanical knowledge in his mind.
'So that is it. My construction of Vine Hand was still not perfect before. One more micro-adjustment can be made to the Vine Hand spell model...'
At its core, magical research, even just thought experiments, consumed large amounts of Heart's Light. In the Three-Hole Plane's present world, because there was no magical tide, when thinking about magic one could only consume his own Heart's Light.
But the problem was that what Locke was thinking about was too low-level. Vine Hand was entirely an apprentice-level matter, so he was effectively exploiting a bug in this environment, using this time flow rate to think through his botanical fundamentals for three years.
Of course, because he currently had only one Grand Magic, he could only simultaneously have one clone and one main body. And the treant avatar was essentially his main body falling into sleep while his consciousness transferred to the treant.
So it was his main body operating the treant.
On the Exploration Vanguard, Hussein looked at Locke with some envy.
"Locke, your thinking is quite flexible. Knowing to apply things adaptively, using the special characteristics of the colonial world to re-consolidate your foundations. Well done."
Locke's main body glanced at Hussein and said, "If you want, I can find an opportunity for you to send an avatar into that world's present world too."
Hussein shook his head. "No, there is no need. I differ from you. I was forcibly prevented from advancing for far too long during the apprentice stage, so my foundations are very solid. I do not need this. And in a place like that, doing thought experiments on magic would just drain one's Heart's Light for nothing."
"If I depleted too much Heart's Light and the Pale Pilgrimage came for me at that moment, I would be in very serious danger. Heart's Light is extremely difficult to recover. I am not a potion wizard, so I cannot be as bold as you."
Locke's main body glanced at him. He had only recently discovered that the Zero Potion could replenish his Heart's Light.
Of course, that would permanently consume the Zero Potion.
So once the Zero Potion was converted into someone's Heart's Light, it could no longer be recovered from that person.
The reason he could spend a long time thinking about spell models in the Three-Hole Plane and filling in his foundational gaps was precisely that he had discovered the Zero Potion could restore a certain amount of Heart's Light.
He was simply using the scraps of Zero Potion in hand, which was sufficient to repair the consumption from three years of thinking in the Three-Hole World's present world.
Hussein said, "But three days have already passed. Should you move more quickly, Locke? You have been in contact with them for that long. I can now indirectly curse those two mortals through your blood, then transform them into vampires or werewolves."
"Then as long as they go out and spread the curse, I can quickly create a vampire clan or a werewolf pack."
"As long as enough werewolves or vampires can be obtained, it should be enough to summon our avatars to descend."
Old Pirate Henry's eyes flickered.
"Agreed. I think this idea is very good."
Locke glanced at the two of them, and at the seven First Circle wizards who were analyzing the various information gathered from the Three-Hole Plane. He said, "No. The Three-Hole World runs very deep. Doing this would offend the Three-Hole World's world will."
"Although I have not yet found that world will that has fallen into slumber."
"Second, the Three-Hole World's planar principles naturally neutralize all magic of the Mind School. That means, Hussein, you would have no direct control over the creations you transform through your curse. Then very likely, your creations could be taken over by our opponents instead."
Hussein thought it over briefly and nodded. "All right, I will defer to you."
Hussein was thinking about the speedrun approach: just spread a pile of curses without worrying about anything else, then forcibly descend his saintly avatar and engage the entire giant pantheon in direct combat.
That was why he had wanted to persuade Locke.
But after Locke saw the World Tree Leaf, he immediately changed his strategy. At that moment, the most important thing for him was to find, and even obtain, the second World Tree Leaf.
And the identity of the God-King who had called out to him for help, and that mysterious God Above Gods, were also a matter of great concern to him.
Before things became clear, such a crude approach could very easily make the situation extremely dire.
Old Pirate Henry said, "Still, we need to pay attention to the supply issue. We can remain outside the crystal wall system for at most one month. If we still cannot enter the crystal wall system and obtain energy, we will need to return. Otherwise we risk running out of resources."
"Captain."
Locke said, "Do not worry. If this world did not run so deep, I would already have connected my Moon of Evolution and Forest Sanctuary through the treant avatar and transferred my power into that plane."
"But at this moment, I have indeed completed the positioning. Very soon, I will be able to begin acting and projecting the Forest Sanctuary and Moon of Evolution into that world, without worrying about being blocked by anyone."
"Hussein, my friend, earlier I had you place a curse on that giant and used her blood to create a cursed branch..."
Hussein said, "Yes. I had finished about seventy or eighty percent of it at the time. Over the next three days, I slowly strengthened the curse energy within that branch across the crystal wall system and adjusted the high-level geometric curse formation inside it."
"It should be usable now."
"That is a blood curse I created from the giant's blood. It can kill one giant connected to it. At present, the ones it can kill are the Grass female giant, because this was her blood in the first place, and the Sovereignty Giant, because he used his own power to sustain the Grass female giant's life."
"The moment he performed that act, he connected himself to that giant. This cursed branch was constructed by me with all my power, combined with your strength. I am confident one strike can kill one native giant."
Hussein looked at Locke. "Which giant do you want killed? Killing the Grass Giant would yield higher returns. That would allow you to immediately descend your saintly avatar."
"Though I have noticed the Grass Giant has not been coming down from the crater rim."
Locke gave a slight nod. "I have my own plan."
...
Three-Hole World, within the forest of the mortal world.
Olian had come to bid farewell to Locke, whom he thought of as a treant.
He went down on one knee directly before the treant and said, "Thank you, generous Treant Teacher. The three years I spent under your guidance opened my horizons and built up my body and soul."
"You made me understand that spiritual health and physical strength are equally important. The three years I spent in your company were very happy ones, but I could never let go of the hatred outside the forest."
"I must leave. Treant Teacher."
The middle-aged attendant beside him was extremely agitated, because for these three years, he had been thinking about one question every moment without exception.
Whether accepting the treant's protection and approaching the treant constituted a desecration of the divine.
So every night he would toss and turn unable to sleep. He had become more and more gaunt with worry. And now, the young master who had grown up was finally going to leave this forest, return to the mortal world, and seize the city-state that had rightfully belonged to his family.
Locke stopped his manipulation of the ogham characters, turned, and looked at Olian. "You want to return to Terrila? But my instruction of you is not yet complete."
Olian bowed to Locke once more, respectfully declining.
"Yes, Teacher. During this time, I have felt myself gradually becoming stronger and more capable. Although I still relish your instruction, hatred has driven me to a point where I can no longer suppress the anger in my heart."
"When I think of the enemy who seized my family's city-state and deceived the War God, I cannot contain my fury. I want to return to Terrila, and in front of everyone, kill that enemy."
"The war ritual that Terrila holds once every three years is coming. In that ritual, anyone may challenge the current master of the city-state of Terrila, and the victor can become Terrila's new master and receive the War God's favor."
Olian fell into a daze as he spoke.
"Three years ago, that enemy killed my father in the war ritual through a challenge and became the War God's chosen. But I know that was a despicable trap. My father received the War God's favor and possessed a fighting ability no mortal could match. How could he possibly have lost to such a coward?"
"I saw it. That coward secretly poisoned the fine wine my father drank. And now the war ritual that happens once every three years is about to be held again. I want to kill him in that same ritual, and win back honor for my family once more, restore the glory of the city-state, and regain the War God's favor."
"Treant Teacher, please forgive me for being unable to continue learning with you here. I must leave the forest and return to Terrila."
Locke looked at Olian and said, "But I should remind you. If you leave the forest, it means you must leave all the harmony and beauty of life here. You will have to return to the mortal world. Are you truly willing to do so?"
Olian said without wavering, "I am willing."
Locke said, "Then let me ask you. What gives you the resolve to leave the beauty of the forest and return to the mortal world?"
Olian hesitated for a moment. Three years ago, he would have said without hesitation that it was for the War God's favor.
But now he said, "To avenge my family. To keep Terrila from remaining in the hands of a coward."
Locke placed a blackened, withered tree branch before him.
"Understood. Then take this. This is the weapon I am giving you. It can kill any single enemy, but only once."
"When you face a desperate situation you cannot overcome, you can thrust it toward the enemy you cannot defeat."
"But remember. It can only be used once."
Olian's heart was filled with deep feeling. He had originally assumed that leaving the forest against the stern treant teacher's wishes would incite the teacher's fury and reprimand. And his mind was already made up.
No one could change it.
But the treant teacher had not only refrained from reprimanding him but had even given him such a weapon.
This left Olian feeling a profound sense of guilt.
Olian was just about to rise and leave when Locke suddenly spoke to him again. "Olian, I want to ask you once more, the question from three years ago. Who are you?"
Olian answered without hesitation, "Your student, the true master of Terrila, the one chosen by the War God."
Locke said, "Is that so. Then go."
"Olian, you must become the champion."
A smile spread across Olian's face.
"Teacher, I will become the champion of the war ritual and win back everything that is mine, with the blessing of the most righteous War God in the world."
He left the forest with his attendant.
After Olian departed, Locke organized the information he had gathered about the Three-Hole World.
First, the mortal world of the Three-Hole World was made up of city-states of all sizes. These city-states each worshipped different giant divine beings, and since they all worshipped the God-King on the crater rims, they all belonged to one cultural sphere.
The city-states waged war on one another.
Terrila, as a city-state directly recognized and protected by the War God, was one of the larger ones in the mortal world.
City-states directly protected by a giant divine being numbered only around twenty or so, and each was quite prosperous.
This was the main composition of power on the great land of the Three-Hole World.
And as Locke walked through the forest, he found that the true essence of the Three-Hole World had almost entirely been transferred to the crater rims.
This was probably because of the characteristics of the upper-tier plane atop the crater rims, and also because the giant divine beings were consciously plundering the wealth of the great land and transferring it to the crater rims.
Still, three years in the present world had not been entirely without gains.
Because the Three-Hole World's great land was blanketed in forests, over these three years he had effectively covered the entire great land of the Three-Hole World.
The great land was indeed relatively barren, but Locke still found a Spirit Breath mine deep in the forest.
A Emerald Spirit Breath mine.
The mine was not large. The reserves were not many. But a Emerald Spirit Breath mine had been found nonetheless.
"I knew this world would have a good number of Spirit Breath mines."
Locke looked toward a dark, unassuming cave in the depths of the forest. A faint green vapor was continuously rising from it.
"This Spirit Breath mine is enough for me to complete one Spirit Breath cultivation. Based on my estimated reserves, there may even be enough for two or three Spirit Breath cultivations."
The reason the Spirit Breath cultivation method was so difficult to learn, beyond being complex, was that the resource consumption was simply staggering.
One proper Spirit Breath cultivation required using Spirit Breath to construct a small temporary Spirit Breath space, and the consumption was enormous.
However, after Locke had found a world-creation magical plant in this world, he had guessed that this world-creation magical plant would certainly also have virtual roots.
If it had virtual roots, it would fish spirituality from the imaginary sea, which would very likely produce Spirit Breath.
After a search, sure enough, he had found a Emerald Spirit Breath mine in this world.
Locke suspected that the crater rims should have even more Spirit Breath mines. Not only this basic Emerald Spirit Breath kind, but perhaps other types of Spirit Breath mines as well.
So Locke had very strong interest in having his saintly avatar descend into this world.
At that moment, the Ancient Tree Fruit clone in the wizard world's Cloud Marsh Wetlands' Dune Plane looked at the one-acre magical field in the laboratory. In that magical field grew a golden Great Blood Wave Bromeliad.
That was the Great Blood Wave Bromeliad he had completed through multiple rounds of grafting.
Locke tore open the enchantment scroll he had commissioned an enchanter to create. The golden magic enchantment scroll shattered into a beam of golden light upon being torn and entered the Great Blood Wave Bromeliad.
On the surface leaves of the Great Blood Wave Bromeliad, a golden thread immediately appeared.
Locke looked at the bromeliad and said, "Next, only one more Spirit Breath cultivation needs to be completed to produce the second pair of Second Circle wizard shoes."
"The agreement with Rose can then be fulfilled."
"I imagine Solas Light Foot and Melechi will have no more need to undercut each other."
"Using the Forest Sanctuary and the Moon of Evolution as relay stations, I will transfer this half-finished magical plant to my main body's side. I need to complete one Spirit Breath cultivation in the Three-Hole World. The transfer will take some time, but should not take too long."
"Beyond that, I need to quickly design a Spirit Breath space blueprint for the Spirit Breath cultivation."
Locke looked at Douglas. Douglas had actually been quite capable of getting things done during this period. The paper Locke had asked him to write had begun to take shape and was gradually coming together.
He could even use Douglas to jointly discuss the Spirit Breath cultivation method with the Third Circle wizard behind him.
Although that Third Circle wizard was not a breeder, he possessed many unique perspectives that could greatly help Locke.
Locke looked at Douglas and said, "Douglas, you have been doing very well lately. I have an idea. Perhaps you can explore it with me..."
Douglas was extremely enthusiastic. Every time Locke discussed things with him and indirectly with the Wizard King Laghemaon through him, he felt as if his thinking had been opened up and he had gained a great deal.
Beyond that, Douglas had also developed a kind of admiration for Locke.
In his eyes, the Wizard King was such a powerful ancient wizard. Yet Locke could discuss things with the Wizard King, and even receive the Wizard King's praise.
In his mind, Locke was such a powerful and wise wizard.
...
Half a day later, which was half a year later in the mortal world of the Three-Hole World.
In the Three-Hole World's great land, inside the circular arena of Terrila city-state, marble colonnades stood throughout, with marble seats laid out across the arena's stands.
The arena was filled to capacity with the more than ten thousand citizens of Terrila.
At the center of the circular arena stood a statue of the War Giant.
Though the statue did not even reach one-fifth of his actual height.
Olian, just as the enemy who had seized his family's ruling power and become Terrila's new city master and the War God's new chosen, Theodoroula, was about to hold a celebration and declare his continued three-year rule of Terrila after no one had challenged him, stepped forward directly and announced his intention to challenge Theodoroula in the war ritual.
At that moment, Theodoroula stared at Olian in shock.
"A member of the Olian family is still alive. Heavens, you sinners."
After a brief commotion, Terrila's citizens shouted: "He is a sinner. He has no right to participate in the war ritual."
"Guards, kill him."
"Drive him away from the war ritual."
Theodoroula's gaze fixed directly on Olian. He suddenly thought that this might be an excellent opportunity to demonstrate before everyone that he was the finest ruler of Terrila.
He would publicly torture and kill this last member of the Olian family, who had been abandoned by the War God, before everyone's eyes.
The Olian family had been abandoned by the War God.
They had lost the superhuman strength bestowed upon them by the War God.
But he had received the War God's favor.
Over these three years, the War God had commanded him to indiscriminately attack many human city-states and stir internal strife among the major human city-states, creating slaughter.
Because the God-King believed humans had grown excessively decadent, offending the gods. So the divine beings on the crater rims wanted humanity's numbers to drop drastically.
So war needed to be ignited.
He had carried out the divine command, but his repeated unprovoked invasions of other city-states had led many Terrilans to question him, and to believe that the previous city master from the Olian line had been a man of principle, treating war and battle as a warrior's honor rather than arbitrarily invading weaker city-states.
At this moment, he needed to tell everyone here that he was the War God's chosen.
Theodoroula raised his right hand. All the shouting at Olian immediately ceased.
Theodoroula rose from his throne, walked to a weapon rack, and took two dual blades. "Good. I will give you the chance to participate in the war ritual. With the War God as witness and everyone as witness, I will completely exterminate this bloodline that should not exist."
"Just like your wretched father who died from poisoned wine."
Olian's pupils contracted sharply. "So it was true. My father did not die in combat with you. He died from poisoned wine. You contemptible coward. You violated every rule of the war ritual."
Theodoroula laughed. "Does anyone still care about such things now?"
"Pitiful Olian. You have never seen the world as it truly is."
Theodoroula raised his dual blades and swung them at Olian, intending to use the superhuman physique granted to him by the War God's favor and cut off Olian's right hand directly.
But to his complete surprise, Olian raised a dagger with only his right hand and blocked both blades.
During those three years, he had carried the Sealing Stone with him every day, and Locke had never once asked him to return it. So he had drawn a great deal of magical power from the stone and his body had been tremendously strengthened.
Theodoroula's face went slack with shock. "How is this possible? You have lost divine favor. How can your strength still be so great?"
In an instant, Theodoroula's confidence, which had been built on the assumption that he was stronger than Olian, began to crumble. He started to feel afraid, and even looking at the cold glint of the dagger in Olian's hand, he wanted to immediately back down.
He began to regret. Why had he accepted Olian's challenge?
And Olian pressed forward, forcing Theodoroula to retreat continuously.
"A true warrior grows stronger through constant forging."
At that moment, the audience still assumed Theodoroula had the upper hand, and kept shouting, "Kill the sinner! Theodoroula, gut him open and offer him to the War God! Kill him!"
And Theodoroula, facing the cheers, had troubles he could not voice.
This should not be happening.
He had received the War God's favor. Why was his strength less than Olian's?
At that moment, he was filled with overwhelming fear.
And Olian, before everyone's eyes, suddenly let out a roar of fury. His hand moved. The dagger swept across Theodoroula's throat.
The next moment, Theodoroula's head fell.
The boiling cheers cut off abruptly.
Even the priestly class, who had been indifferent, some of them with contemptuous smiles on their faces, now wore expressions that seemed to crumble.
The high priest's pupils contracted. His eyes showed shock.
Because this was the first time in history that someone without the War God's favor had personally killed someone who did have the War God's favor in the war ritual.
For a moment, the entire arena was silent.
The priests who knew the inner workings all kept looking toward the high priest.
And the high priest at that moment was also at a complete loss.
Impossible.
How could this happen?
At that moment, the sky suddenly filled with dark clouds. The war ritual was a competition held for the War God to observe, and now the dark clouds appearing in the sky seemed to represent the mood of the gods above.
Olian turned to look at the priestly class.
"High Priest, I have won the war ritual. Under the laws and honor of our city-state, I should become the new master of Terrila."
"I should become the new chosen one."
"All citizens of Terrila, under the law, I should now become the War God's new chosen. As the new ruler of Terrila, I want to tell you all a truth. My father did not die in combat. He died because Theodoroula gave him a cup of poisoned wine before the match."
Citizens of the city-state broke into uncertain murmuring.
Olian was just about to continue speaking when a bolt of lightning suddenly descended from the sky, splitting open a stone before him.
The high priest cried out in terror, "Divine fury! The gods' fury has been provoked! Olian, you are utterly sinful!"
Olian's expression on the platform darkened. At that moment, he thought of what the treant teacher had predicted for this journey before he left the forest.
Olian's heart was filled with fury.
Only at this moment did he suddenly realize. Was his true enemy really Theodoroula?
"Why? I clearly won the war ritual. Yet what greets me is not victory and glory, but divine fury?"
Olian raised his head and looked at the vortex at the very center of the dark clouds above.
"A War God who violates the very principles he established. Can he still be called the War God?"
"Are you worthy?"
The Power Leaf: Path of the Sworn Enemy he had worn around his neck as a necklace since always suddenly flashed with a barely perceptible magical radiance.
Originally, the Path of the Sworn Enemy had been specifically aimed at the vampires of the Heidelberg Plane. Even after being raised to 0.5 circle by Locke, this remained the case, because this spell model had initially only been designed against the vampire clans of the Heidelberg Plane.
For this reason, Locke had always been looking for a way to make the Path of the Sworn Enemy applicable in more situations.
And this point was a critical node in the forging of his Grand Magic.