CHAPTER 1007: CHAPTER 200: THE FIRST TWO

Even though the relationship between the Mother of the Marsh and the Twisted Jungle shifted from war to cooperation, the God of the Deep Sea was still rejected by Lu Li from approaching the giant tree.

"Why not let me... come closer."

"Can you restrain your instincts not to seize the remains?" Lu Li asked Him.

The God of the Deep Sea did not answer, He just stopped asking to approach the giant tree.

The giant tree was similarly refused. Lu Li did not accept its plea and returned to the Mother of the Marsh’s cabin to rest for the night.

The next morning, they began to build a breakwater for the North Shadow Swamp and expand eastward and westward.

Traversing the jungle, the further north they went, the swamp underfoot became increasingly muddy, until it was submerged by seawater. The inclination of the jungle canopy also grew more severe, as if the trees wanted to escape this place.

The escort of the jungle allowed them to quickly pass through the shadows of the jungle and glimpse an endless sea at the horizon, hearing the ceaseless sound of waves.

"Giant tree, can you hear me?"

Snake-like tree roots broke through the water, standing upright to sway toward Lu Li as a signal.

Thus, Lu Li instructed the giant tree to lead them around the northern coast once more.

The situation in the North Shadow Swamp was worse than imagined, with a 50-mile long coastline entirely adjoining the swamp, the seawater constantly eroding the life of the trees day and night.

Comparatively, the South Shadow Swamp was much luckier. Though also adjoining, its elevated terrain prevented the seawater from reaching deep, and even when a swamp formed, it was a freshwater swamp, with a river cutting across its depth.

"What do you want... to do?"

This time only Ophelia accompanied him, and the giant tree could be counted as one too. The God of Shadows stayed in the South Swamp, the Mother of the Marsh gathered Her servants, and Puxiu simply wasn’t brought along.

"In front of the sea... kiss me... or... propose?"

Lu Li thought she meant how to build the breakwater.

Ignoring Ophelia’s amorous advances, Lu Li pondered how to construct the breakwater.

Building a 50-mile long embankment is an almost miraculous feat. Even early industrial humans would take years, and clearly, the people from the city could not come here, nor could they stay long.

Lu Li had the giant tree gather tree roots underground, forming a natural breakwater. But the giant tree did not want to do this, it said this would kill the jungle.

"Each tree uses only part of its roots."

Under the instinctual evolution over twenty years, the jungle’s root systems were as lush as the canopies, so the jungle attacked with its roots.

In fact, if branches could move, it would be more effective than roots. However, the giant tree found it hard to overcome the shackles of the trees’ instincts—the roots were the only part the tree could actively control.

And the instinct led the jungle to only evade seawater, not block it.

The sea spilling into the swamp began to stir the sludge, and over time, entangled roots emerged from the water, forming a breakwater prototype as Lu Li requested, 10 centimeters above the water, and 20 centimeters wide.

Lu Li scooped up seawater and poured it on the tree root breakwater, most water sliding off the edges, with a small part merging into the roots.

"A bit denser."

The tangled roots writhed like countless snakes in the mud, making one’s scalp tingle, twisting and entwining, accompanied by the sound of grasping fabric, ultimately presenting as densely packed roots carved like rock.

These roots were enough to form a breakwater, just needing to be wider and deeper.

However, the withered, twisted, lifeless roots from dead, emaciated trees on the edge could hardly piece together the breakwater Lu Li required.

"Can you make the trees here as those giant trees deep inside?" Lu Li asked.

The giant tree replied Lu Li would need time, and the jungle could barely sustain further consumption. The power of the remains was almost eternal but had limits in its use.

"The war is over. The frontline no longer needs those combat roots, nor the canopies of all the trees." Lu Li allocated the resources the giant tree controlled.

The development of the Twisted Jungle was obviously abnormal, the result of following instincts: lacking water sources, they spread roots deep underground. Lacking light, they endlessly grew branches.

The former could indeed be supplemented, but the latter was meaningless.

No sunlight for photosynthesis.

The giant tree trusted its friend and heeded its friend’s words.

...

On the battlefield riddled with ravines, a Shadow Figure glimmered and quietly stopped behind a Banyan Tree, and a Six-legged Monster squatted down as it crawled by.

More and more of the Mother of the Marsh’s servants emerged at the edges, staring eerily across the battlefield, while the lush yet scarred canopies of the trees wilted and fell, as if winter had arrived.

This sight unfolded in every corner of the Twisted Jungle, the web-like canopies vanishing, allowing light to reappear on the decayed earth, with the mists lingering in the jungle quietly dispersing.

As the Twisted Jungle changed, so did the northern coast.

The bare trees stirred ripples, gradually growing at an unobservable pace. At the boundary where it met the sea, the mud simmered like a school of fish swimming, forming an endless, low, thin tree root breakwater.

Every now and then, a newly-grown tender root would emerge from the water, merging into the breakwater like tendrils, layer upon layer thickening it.

As for the seawater in the marsh, it was the God of the Deep Sea’s turn to act: to carry out the seawater from the marsh.

Returning to the Mother of the Marsh’s territory to seek the God of the Deep Sea, only to be refused by her.

"Gods... shouldn’t do such things..." the God of the Deep Sea murmured coldly.

"To retrieve your remains."

...

Torrential water columns poured into the sea on the other side of the breakwater. The no longer dim depths of the swamp stirred ripples.

If one observed carefully, it seemed one could discover the waterline inside the breakwater slightly lower than the sea.

"I... somewhat enjoy doing this."

The God of the Deep Sea fell into a kind of strange tranquility, as if able to continue endlessly.

"This is called a sense of accomplishment!" Puxiu, who insisted on coming along, said while standing on the roots being propped up.

"I... like a sense of accomplishment."

Ignoring the God of the Deep Sea’s mistake, Lu Li gazed at the breakwater extending into the distance.

Building the breakwater or draining the water would take time, but not too long.

While waiting, they could attend to another matter: expanding eastward.

The west was ruled out by Lu Li, after all, it belonged to the Main Affinity Continent. Expanding the territory of allies on the Ailen Peninsula was a good thing for Lu Li.

As for dealing with the underground rocks, Lu Li had more suitable helpers.

...

On the barren yet relatively flat hills, the ground stirred restlessly, gravel trembling, and the dust rising like a thin fog.

More than a dozen worms were crushing the hard, root-impenetrable rocks at the underground rock layer.

The giant tree showed its affection for them, perhaps seeing them as larger earthworms—a misconception. They were merely digging and not feeding as they helped Lu Li. If they began to consume and digest everything they swallowed, the giant tree would feel the terror of a natural enemy.

Anyhow, they were drawing closer to achieving the first two goals.