Death... and me

Chapter 3593: The Answer is Simple

It wasn’t any surprise that Royer knew about it. Elsie stayed with the twins for a long time, and they even asked her directly if she knew any source of Starlight Energy. Back then, she said she didn’t know about any of such sources since she didn’t even need them. But it turned out as a good piece of information for Royer to use as a bargain.

’You know about a source?’ Rean asked, curious.

’Yes,’ Royer nodded. ’In fact, it is found right here in the Golden Palace.’

’Isn’t that information pretty much useless?’ Roan had his doubts. ’The Golden Palace changes every single time it opens, so how exactly do you expect us to find this source you mentioned?’

Truth be told, for the twins, a source of Starlight Energy was even more important than the so-called secret to reach the Celestial Realm. They need to reach the Peak Stage of the Divinity Realm first, after all.

’That’s why I can’t guarantee,’ Royer began to explain. ’I found that source back during my first exploration. Back then, I only managed to reach the sixth region. It was also in this sixth region where I found it together with many other experts of that time. Yet, I reached the seventh region during my third time, but the region where that source exists did not appear during that time. Well, let’s start from the beginning. You know what Starlight Energy is, right?’

’Isn’t that obvious?’ Rean and Roan asked in response. ’It’s basically a special type of energy produced by the stars. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a sun. It can be a black hole, a black dwarf, a white dwarf, etc. Even planets and comets produce a tiny, tiny bit of it. It’s just that their energy is almost imperceptible, so no one cares about those.’

Rean and Roan, using the Starlight Body Cultivation Technique, found their personal Stars. Even here in this Universe, they still turned out to be a Black and White Dwarf again.

’Correct,’ Royer confirmed. ’However, as long as we don’t stop moving forward, that region can’t be avoided. Did you know that the palace functions like a bridge?’

’A bridge?’ The twins’ group got confused. ’A bridge between what?’

’Not that,’ Royer shook his head and continued. ’That was a poor example. Think about it as a single road stretching far as hell. But, just like a bridge, you can’t come out of it from the sides. You need to go through the bridge to reach the other side.’

’That’s how the regions of the palace work. Many different routes can be taken, but ultimately, everyone is on the same road and will pass through the same regions. The portal we took in the previous region was just one more way of reaching this ocean of molten metals. All the other groups will end in this place first before moving to the next region. Well, you might be lucky enough to skip a few regions, but such portals are extremely rare, and you would only know once you are already inside the portal and you notice that the transfer into the next region is taking too long.’

’Anyway, as long as we continue forward, we will reach this source of Starlight Energy I mentioned above, but you wouldn’t notice it unless you got very close. Back then, we called it the Astral Tree.’

’Astral Tree?’ Their interest was picked, especially Celis’s. ’Tell us more.’

Royer smiled, seeing that they were considering his offer seriously. ’It’s a towering, semi-transparent tree growing from the palace floor and piercing the ceiling, its roots tangled with fragments of ancient celestial bodies. That’s why I asked you if you knew where Starlight Energy came from since many would only think about the stars they see in the skies. It’s quite a wonder when you see this tree up close. Its leaves shimmer like moving constellations.’

Then, he talked about what really mattered. ’This tree "feeds" on ambient starlight and stores it in fruit-like crystal pods. I’ll tell you, each of these pods stores more Starlight Energy than you could absorb normally for over a decade!’

The twins’ group obviously would love to go see it, however...

’Alright, what’s the catch?’ Roan went straight to the point. ’If you found such a source back then, I don’t see why you would leave those pods behind. They definitely are worth a fortune to any other expert who cultivates with Starlight Energy. You could get many favors in exchange for them as well.’

’Yes, you are correct,’ Royer didn’t deny it. ’The catch is, these pods are anything but easy to acquire. You must climb the tree during a simulated "Starfall" event, where spectral versions of dead stars fall like meteors inside the palace. Only during this moment do the pods ripen, and you are able to get them. Just remembering it makes me feel a chill running through my core... It goes without saying that the climb is dangerous, as the starlight fruit burns with intense energy, not to mention the ghostly creatures that guard it. They are as dangerous as these molten monsters here.’

’It doesn’t seem worth trying it,’ Kentucky warned on the side. ’Royer came during a time when cultivation wasn’t suppressed, and it still seems like he and the others back then didn’t get anything. Now? Now we are stuck in the Transition Realm, so such a place would be a guaranteed death for us.’

’One thing is always true for the Golden Palace,’ Royer added another piece of information. ’Danger is in every corner, deaths happen nonstop, and usually, no more than 30% or so of those who entered the palace come out alive. However, all dangers have a set rule: they usually can be dealt with. Nothing that can be found in the palace is impossible to acquire... just almost. That said, even those ghostly creatures from back then will have their strength reduced to match the cultivation power of all participants who pass by that region.’

’Of course,’ Royer continued. ’Most of the experts will simply ignore the tree since all you can get from it is Starlight Energy. For everyone, what matters here is the Celestial Realm, nothing else. That’s also why you will find no such pods outside the palace. The few who ventured the tree did it because they needed it. I only gave it a try because I wanted to sell those, and I didn’t know about the dangers behind it back then. By the way, I failed miserably to acquire even a single pod. You also won’t find information regarding it since, once again, most of the experts who happen to bump into that tree simply ignore its existence. What matters for everyone is to reach the next region.’

Roan’s mind went back to the conversation he had earlier with his companions. The palace’s challenge level was made to match the experts of this side of the Werdlem Empire, and it has proven to be quite a walk in the park for the twins’ group so far. If the dangers related to that Astral Tree followed the same principles... ’Alright, you got yourself a deal. Make sure to point out to us if we ever get into that region.’

Royer was ecstatic. ’Absolutely! However, don’t forget what I said. The palace always changes, so we might actually never get to pass by that region since the palace only stays open for ten years. Who knows if that region where this tree exists is at the very end?’

’Hmph!’ Roan snorted. ’The answer is simple. We just need to go to the end before the ten years is up. Sooner or later, we will find this damn tree.’

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