Chapter 496 - 494: It Moved

When Yun Xie and the others learned of Jiang Qin’s decision, every single one of them objected.

They all offered to find someone on the outside to help her escape.

But Jiang Qin knew that both the rescuers and the rescued would very likely be killed by the enraged tree.

The only people who would come for them at a time like this would undoubtedly be their most trusted and closest friends and family.

How could she just stand by and watch that happen?

Everyone has friends and family. They were already trapped; why drag others down to their deaths with them?

It was just like the rescue fleet the Federation had summoned.

A sky full of ships had arrived, but only a few survived to leave.

"I won’t go outside the planetary Energy Shield. I’ll just give it a try from within the planet’s protected zone. Maybe... we can communicate with it."

"It hasn’t eaten anyone these past few days, so it probably doesn’t eat people. We can absolutely try to probe it and see what it wants."

If they could satisfy its demands, perhaps it would leave.

After all, a Cosmic Beast with no desire to eat people or Exotic Beast Meat was already one of the better ones.

Some Cosmic Beasts that had lived for many years would awaken from Deep Space when hungry, enter a planet, and devour city after city of people before falling back into slumber once full.

Encountering a Cosmic Beast like that would be far more tragic than their current situation.

"We’ll go with you."

Jiang Qin gave them a deep look. At first, she considered picking two people to go with her and leaving it at that, but then she realized something was wrong with that line of thought.

"You almost led me astray. I’m not going there to die." ’I almost started picking out who would be buried with me.’

"Anyway, we’ll just be inside the Energy Shield. Let’s all go and see."

...

The group was escorted by Federation warriors to the edge of the planet’s atmosphere.

Jiang Qin finally saw the great tree again.

Compared to its initial gentleness, its current enraged state looked exceptionally terrifying.

Sky-blotting vines, like giant pythons, coiled around the planet, constantly writhing. Its leaves were sharper than laser swords.

Up close, its presence was truly staggering.

The equipment had already been prepared on the spaceship and was now placed in front of Jiang Qin.

"Miss Jiang, just treat this like a concert. Don’t be nervous. We will definitely protect you."

"Okay, give it to me." Jiang Qin took the microphone.

The instrumental track was broadcast into space through the equipment.

"If I could ask for a bit of youth for you

I would keep it preserved in my heart

...

The sun sets behind the western hills, the sky a deep twilight

The two of us are about to walk into the dusk..." (Note: "Dusk," by Zhao Shisan.)

A gentle voice, tinged with a faint sorrow, echoed across the sky.

The frenzied tree slowly quieted down, and its writhing vines gradually lowered.

Although they couldn’t see the tree’s face, everyone could feel that it was listening intently.

"The evening wind is filled with my song

Telling of countless old dreams and bygone days

In the night, we see only each other’s eyes..."

The tree’s sharp leaves seemed to stir without any wind. A few of them landed on the Energy Shield before sliding off into Deep Space.

At that moment, in the central control room, the Federation officials monitoring the situation all showed looks of astonishment.

"It’s really working!"

"It’s quieted down..."

"Alright, we can try moving to the other side now."

Jiang Qin didn’t need to worry about the spaceship’s course; she just had to keep singing quietly.

She had no idea what kind of songs a tree would like, so she just improvised.

Soon, the spaceship flew from the southern hemisphere to the northern hemisphere.

To lure the tree over, they deliberately lowered the volume of the broadcast.

On everyone’s monitoring screens, the tree didn’t move, remaining quietly in its original spot.

The chief was a little disappointed. ’So it’s not going to work after all?’

"It’s not following..."

"Is it unwilling to leave?"

"Let’s wait and see. Maybe it moves slowly, so it just can’t be bothered to move yet."

That was just a joke, of course.

These Cosmic Beasts could move far faster than their spaceships and battleships.

Jiang Qin paid it no mind. She was already starting her sixth song. It was a good thing she never slacked on her training; otherwise, an ordinary person wouldn’t have been able to withstand singing for so long.

She began her eighth song, and still, the great tree hadn’t moved.

Just as everyone was growing disappointed and their thoughts began to wander, someone suddenly cried out, "Look, it’s letting go!!"

It was true!

The vines that had been tightly wrapped around the Main Star had actually loosened.

An opening had finally appeared in the dense net trapping the Main Star!

Someone’s mind started turning. "Chief, should we take this chance to evacuate some people?"

"Yes. Prioritize evacuating the High-level females, the scientists, and anyone who has made significant contributions to the Federation."

"Have volunteers man the first ship."

No one knew if the great tree would shoot down the ship, so they couldn’t risk putting people who were vital to the Federation on the first one.

"I’ll see to it at once!"

While they were taking action on one side, the great tree had already shifted, arriving in the northern hemisphere in a single movement.

Listening to the song, which was now clear again, it slowly stretched its branches.

The song Jiang Qin was singing was "Green Light."

It was youthful and a bit lively.

The great tree seemed quite happy as well. Its vines were no longer coiling around the planet but were simply hanging down.

In other sectors, Federation officials were assembling people for evacuation.

First was a spaceship full of volunteers.

"They made it out! The tree didn’t react at all."

"Quick! We don’t know how long Miss Jiang can hold its attention. Get more people out of here, fast."

The tense atmosphere that had persisted for days finally eased, and many high-priority individuals received the order to evacuate.

High-level females, researchers from the major institutes, and the High-level Beastmen recuperating in sanatoriums.

The great tree had actually sensed the activity of those little crawlers, but right now, it couldn’t be bothered to play with bugs.

Let them run. If it wanted to catch them again, it had plenty of ways to do so.

Right now, it just wanted to enter this planet. The little thing it was looking for was inside.

But the little thing making the nice sounds didn’t want to come out and see it. Why?

Was it because it hadn’t offered any benefits?

’She probably doesn’t hate me, right? After all, she’s always willing to coax me with her lovely voice.’

Meanwhile, Jiang Qin, who was engrossed in her singing, was really starting to treat the place like her own private karaoke room.

Perhaps worried she wouldn’t feel the right vibe, they had set up flashing, neon-style lights inside the spaceship’s cabin.

The warriors inside the ship had even produced glow sticks from who-knows-where and were waving them around...

And every one of them had a fervent, sparkling look in their eyes, just like fans at one of her live concerts.

Feeling awkward, her singing faltered for a moment, but she chose to continue.

She couldn’t even be bothered to pick the songs anymore. Whatever instrumental track came on, she sang.