Chapter Thirty-One: International Attention
With an indescribable sense of melancholy, the beasts dispersed. Though their retreat was disorderly, not a single creature attacked another; within little more than ten minutes, the entire horde of magical beasts had vanished without a trace.
Katherine stood in silent contemplation, staring blankly at the enormous pit left by the World Tree. Only after a long while did she finally ask, “Master, is this the World Tree?”
“I've told you, it's just a branch of the World Tree.”
“Why did it evolve like this? Its growth rate was astonishing! And what was that final fruit? I felt a powerful wave of energy sweep across, but I have no idea what effect it had. What happened?”
She rattled off a slew of questions, her eyes brimming with hope as she looked to Ling Mo for answers. But he only shrugged, utterly unconcerned. “How should I know? I'm just a brute—I throw punches, I don’t do research.”
Katherine wasn’t sure whether Ling Mo truly didn’t know or simply didn’t want to tell her. She stopped seeking answers from him and instead appealed to the viewers in her livestream: “I’ve got almost eight hundred thousand followers now—surely at least forty or fifty thousand are active? O omnipotent viewers, tell me—is this really a World Tree, or is that theory unreliable?”
“My manhood might be large enough to wrap around my waist, but this time, I truly have no clue.”
“I can’t say if it's the World Tree, but it’s definitely the most miraculous tree we’ve ever discovered!”
“Are we even sure this thing is a tree? How could it grow so fast?”
“Exactly! It shot up hundreds of meters in the blink of an eye—like watching a movie at ten times speed!”
“More like a hundred times speed, maybe?”
Viewer ‘Seventeen and Eighteen-Two’ gifted the streamer a Meteor Fire Rain and commented: “All those blossoms opening and fading just now—it was so beautiful! If I had that scene at my wedding, I could die happy!”
“Yes! Absolutely stunning! After seeing that, no other sight feels romantic anymore!”
“I feel the same! But the streamer’s magical eye sprite has such low resolution, it’s barely clear! What a waste of a good thing!”
“She’s already bought the best magical eye sprite she could afford before—don’t be unreasonable!”
“That’s right! She wasn’t rich until these last few days!”
Viewer ‘Romance Is the Higher Pursuit’ gifted ten Meteor Fire Rains, commenting: “These funds should let the streamer buy the top-tier magical eye sprite—is that enough?”
“Ten would be more than enough! Kneel before the tycoon!”
“Tycoon, you’re awesome!”
“Is the brother who promised to eat dung getting nervous now?”
“I’ve taken screenshots! Sixteen IDs said they’d eat dung—none of you will escape!”
“This tree is amazing, but it’s not confirmed to be the World Tree, right?”
“Too soon to talk dung—I’m not nervous at all!”
“It’s ‘Virtue Persuades with Reason’ always stirring things up in the stream—he was first to promise to eat dung! Just wait!”
“A botany graduate responsibly tells you, bro, you really might have to eat…”
“I’m a magical beast researcher, full professor, and this is highly likely. The scene just reminded me of the mural rubbings I saw in the Ivy League university’s underground library!”
“Yes, yes! I’ve seen those rubbings too! A crowd of humans, demi-humans, elves, beastfolk, centaurs—all kneeling in a circle before a cylindrical segment! Very similar to this scene!”
“The cave murals unearthed in the Nut River Valley, right? Research suggests at least seventy thousand years old!”
“And…”
A flood of scholarly discussion filled the livestream, clearly indicating that many professionals who'd received word were arriving. The format of the barrage changed—long, floating windows of text, the mood turning solemn, leaving casual viewers quietly awestruck.
Katherine watched for a while before losing patience. It had become a full-blown academic debate, with references and citations flying; at her level, not only could she not join the conversation, she could barely understand it. She strolled over to the edge of the giant pit, gazing down. The pit was over thirty meters across, unfathomably deep; the churned earth revealed nothing of what lay below. She stretched and said, “I doubt we’ll reach any conclusions soon. Non-professionals, just take this as a sight for the ages—one you’d never see in everyday life! I’m going to descend and see if I find any clues!”
Just as she was about to jump down, all discussion in her left-eye display abruptly ceased, replaced by a bold blood-red message: “DON’T!!!!”
Huge blocks of “DON’T!” flooded her vision, turning her interface crimson. Some viewers, fearing she’d miss it, used high-tier gifts to create flashy effects—all saying the same: “DON’T!!”
“Streamer, don’t be reckless! Don’t jump!”
“This is an incredibly precious specimen! Only the most professional researchers should explore it. If you go down so roughly, you’ll destroy any clues!”
“You aren’t a specialist—don’t touch anything in that pit! There might be real discoveries to be made. You’ll get your share of credit!”
“Please be patient! Your situation has already been reported to the Mage Council—they’ll issue guidelines soon!”
Is it really that serious?
Katherine was startled, sheepishly retracting her foot from the edge. She was about to speak when her magical eye sprite emitted a piercing buzz. At the same time, all barrages vanished from her vision, and the exclusive management interface of the SharkFight platform popped up:
“SharkFight Official Channel: Dean Kells of Ivy League University’s Magical Beast Academy requests a video call. Accept? (Note: The other party will cover the data costs, and your stream will be temporarily suspended.)”
Katherine nervously rubbed her hands, rummaged through her spatial pouch for a small mirror and comb, and quickly tidied her hair before accepting. Though she was an academic underachiever, she had always revered Ivy League University—the premier institution of the Noah Magic Continent. Receiving a video request from its dean was an honor.
The magical eye sprite projected a seven-inch square light screen, stars flickering across it. After a moment, the image stabilized, revealing a stern, white-haired elderly man. He skipped any pleasantries and went straight to the point: “Hello, Miss Katherine. I am Kells, currently in the ‘Discovery’ conference room at Ivy League University. In fact, within the past ten minutes, fourteen of our thirty full professors have arrived; the rest have been notified and are on their way.”
He swept the camera across the room, showing the environment and the faces of several professors. These were all giants in the field; Katherine recognized at least three of them from her research on magical beasts—authors of “A Concise Guide to Magical Beasts, 3rd Edition,” “True Dragon Classification Index,” and “On the Social Relations of Herbivorous Magical Beasts.”
“I trust the footage just now is proof enough of our identity,” Kells said, the camera returning to him as he went straight to business: “Miss Katherine, your livestream footage, according to our data comparison, has an 83.2% likelihood of being related to the World Tree and is of immense research value. Please share your coordinates with us immediately. We will organize a research expedition to your location. No matter what discoveries are made, your authorship rights will be preserved.”
His words were crisp, offering both meaning, benefit, and honor. Katherine glanced at Ling Mo, who nodded. She agreed without hesitation: “Esteemed Dean, I’ll share my coordinates right away—through SharkFight’s official backend?”
“Yes, thank you for your cooperation.” Dean Kells stood, bowing lightly. He checked the coordinates Katherine sent and frowned: “Your progress is faster than I expected. You’re now in a Level Three Mana Suppression Zone—this location…”
He turned to a burly, bald man in a military uniform beside him—clearly a combat specialist—who thought for a moment and replied, “It’ll take twenty-six hours.”
Kells faced the camera again. “Our expedition needs twenty-six hours to reach your current position. To prevent precious data from being destroyed by unknown magical beasts, may I ask you to remain there and guard the site for twenty-six hours? We will provide generous compensation!”
Katherine was about to agree when Ling Mo’s abrupt voice cut in: “No.”
Kells turned to him, trying to explain: “Sir, perhaps you don’t realize—this pit’s research value is immense—”
“I know,” Ling Mo interrupted. “In seventeen years, I’ve witnessed this scene twenty-one times. The World Tree is far more active than you realize. When you come, your escort should be strong—based on my experience, Level Six magical beasts will arrive here after nightfall. Asking my apprentice to guard this place is pure fantasy. And you’d best hurry—after twenty-four hours, the research value here will drop to zero. I guarantee it.”
Kells’ expression changed. He asked urgently, “Do you know something? Can you tell us?”
“No comment.”
“I understand. Then, could you keep this conversation confidential during your stream? And Mr. Ling—”
“Confidentiality is no problem. Let’s leave it at that.” Without waiting for more, Ling Mo ended the call.
(P.S.: Dear readers, I humbly beg you—if you have votes, please recommend. If you don’t, or if you feel the writing isn’t worthy, at least click to bookmark. In the early days of a new novel, every bit of support is precious; a few dozen new bookmarks will make the author beam for a whole day, giving endless motivation to write! Thank you all!)