Chapter 382: The Light of the Three

"Yes, may I ask, is it possible for a mortal to become a god?"

Xia De, his thoughts laid bare, did not deny it. As he asked, he raised his head to face the god of the past directly. The golden cracks on his body were like the glowing embers of a bonfire, so similar to the bright gold of the god's hair.

Miss Feilian seemed to understand something at this moment.

The god was still smiling, and He gave the outsider an answer:

"It is not possible. At least in this era and your era, it is absolutely impossible."

Xia De nodded:

"Then I..."

"That belongs to the category of unanswerable questions."

"Then you..."

"In the very distant past, I once incarnated as a saint, walking the material world alongside that Great One, the Father of Trees. At that time, my identity was Princess Tavier of the Elf royalty. From how mortals addressed me, you should understand that I was merely a god of space. 'The Tree's Kiss' describes the story of the past. The ancient god who has already departed—the Father of Infinite Trees—bestowed a portion of His power upon me, granting me the divine offices of time and nature."

His voice was like an ethereal tone singing, like the most peaceful lullaby in a silent night, and even more like old book pages reciting stories of the past to themselves in a silent, empty library.

The Moon Witch had already closed her eyes, lowered her head, and covered her ears to the side. Miss Feilian closed her eyes and tilted her head. The golden cracks on Xia De's body appeared completely, yet he still wanted to probe further:

"You were originally a god. Ancient gods are deities that existed at the birth of the world, so what exactly are the Old Gods..."

"This also belongs to the category of unanswerable questions."

The god said. Xia De knew he was being a bit too greedy, so he nodded gently:

"Thank you for your answer. Praise be to you, the Door of Radiance of the past."

He still had many questions, and he would encounter more Old Gods to answer those questions about the truth of the world. This was likely also a path of sublimation, representing Xia De's approach to the essence of the world.

The god spoke no more, and Xia De looked toward Miss Feilian:

"May I ask if you have any other questions? If not, let us complete this ritual."

"No, please wait a moment."

The witch said unexpectedly. She opened her dark golden eyes and looked at Xia De:

"I didn't expect that in the end, it would be you who helped us. But I think, after the ritual is completed, you will be leaving, right?"

This question also made the young Moon Witch look at Xia De. Xia De wanted to show a smile on his face, but he couldn't manage it:

"Yes, I think my mission is already complete."

He didn't know what to say, while Miss Feilian pulled a book, or rather a notebook, from her robe:

"This is a gift for you."

She handed the notebook to Xia De and blinked. Although helpless, Xia De was truly going to leave:

"Since you address me as teacher, I naturally must teach you some knowledge. It is just that your power system is completely different from ours, and the distant ages have also caused the names of alchemical ingredients and potion materials to change too much. This contains some knowledge I believe might be useful to you, as well as some of my own observations. I think this will be useful."

"Did you prepare this in advance?"

Xia De took the notebook, somewhat surprised that he actually had the honor of receiving an item from the founder of the Academy.

"It is something we prepared together."

She looked at her student... that true student. The Moon Witch smiled at Xia De, the lonely expression on her face intensifying:

"Then farewell, man of the future."

Miss Feilian nodded, and the "four" by the bonfire stood up together.

The Moon Witch almost fell when she stood up, and Xia De reached out to steady her. Afterward, Miss Feilian and the Moon Witch stood behind Xia De, because as the god stood up, that oppressive feeling that almost crushed everything had already made them unable to stand.

"But where is the door?"

The witches asked in a low voice.

Xia De thought for a moment, pulled out a card, and flicked it gently. The card flew toward the canopy, cut off three leaves, and flew back into Xia De's hand.

He put the card away and opened his palm to catch the leaves.

Xia De distributed the leaves to the witches, and the three of them placed the leaves before their eyes together. The leaves blocked their vision, but also allowed them to see a door frame with a golden halo on the thick trunk of the ancient tree.

"So it is like this."

Xia De stepped forward, wanting to use the 【Key of the Door】 to open the door, but the power of the spell had no effect on this door. If opening Mr. Jude's safe in Lengshuigang was like pushing a large rock, then now it was like pushing the entire world.

He summoned his life ring and used the 【Space】 spirit rune to illuminate the door frame, but there was still no reaction.

"What else did you prepare at that time?"

Xia De turned to ask the witches again. They leaned together and shook their heads gently; clearly, they had forgotten as well.

The information provided by the Guiding Light Society did not contain this step either. Xia De carefully recalled that fairy tale, searching his memory for the different versions of the ending that Dorothy had told him.

"In the firelight, the princess and the tree move toward their end..."

This was the content of this Saturday's evening class, and Xia De remembered it very clearly. Thinking of this, Xia De looked at that cluster of reddish-gold flames:

"Is this flame something you summoned using the witch's ability? I remember you saying that this flame protects you from being swallowed by the darkness of the Forest of a Thousand Trees."

Xia De pointed to the bonfire, and Miss Feilian gave the answer:

"The flame was brought in inside a small jar. I only remember that it can drive away the darkness."

"In other words, it is possible that it has other uses."

Xia De concluded, looking at the god standing silently to the side, who was smiling at him.

So, he picked a longer branch from the woodpile, lit it with the bonfire, and Xia De walked under the tree with the branch, looking up at the giant tree.

He lowered his head, holding a leaf before his eyes with one hand and reaching out with the branch to touch the trunk with the other. But after thinking for a moment, he stopped, and somewhat regretfully said to the nervous witches behind him:

"I am very happy to have met you, Teacher Mana Feilian. I wish you can always continue along your own path."

After finishing, he looked at the Moon Witch, only then realizing that he didn't know her real name at all.

"My name is Blaney Olanode. This is an elven surname; I have one-eighth elven blood."

The young witch said in a low voice.

"Miss Olanode, I also wish you can always accompany Miss Feilian."

Xia De said softly, hesitating for a moment, not knowing if he should speak. The god saw his intention:

"After they leave this forest, apart from the knowledge they sought from me regarding the establishment of a large-scale independent space, most of their memories during this period will be lost. The Forest of a Thousand Trees will not allow mortals to take away memories."

"My name is Xia De Su Lun Hamilton."

He finally said his name, and Miss Feilian and the Moon Witch both nodded. Even if they might forget, at least at this moment, they wanted to remember him.

Listening to the rustling sound above his head, Xia De seemed to have suddenly thought of something, and said to the Moon Witch again:

"Miss Olanode, may I make a request? If you become a librarian in the future, please set a small rule: for the position of librarian, try to find those favored by the moon to inherit it. Because the Old God—the Silver Moon Sage—also possesses the power of knowledge."

Xia De's request was not considered breaking history, because Miss Danister had indeed said that Saint Byrons had such a rule. Xia De's approach was actually to seek benefits for himself; known to be, apart from the current librarian, Xia De was the purest moon in Saint Byrons.

"No problem."

Xia De took a deep breath, took one last look at the witches behind him, and only then brought the reddish-gold flame burning on the branch close to the golden door frame on the trunk. The flame ignited the door frame, and then all the flames in the bonfire burning behind the group actually flew over.

The rushing stream of fire illuminated the four people under the giant tree until all the flames converged, causing a reddish-gold door visible to the naked eye to appear on the trunk.

The bonfire had already extinguished, and there were no other light sources under the trunk. In the dim and oppressive darkness under the tree, the witches and Xia De bowed slightly to the god together.

He nodded in response, then walked toward the door. With a gentle push, the door on the trunk was pushed open, and the god walked into it.

That door closed automatically, and the swirling reddish-gold flames gradually extinguished as well. Without the protection of that strange flame, the eerie and oppressive darkness of the Forest of a Thousand Trees surrounded them, whispers appeared in their ears, and opened eyes floated in the air. It seemed that even the area of the clearing was shrinking; the forest was eroding this place.

Xia De stood together with the witches. The god's temporary departure made the golden spots on Xia De's body disappear, and also made them feel a bit more spirited:

"Xia De, are you afraid now?"

Miss Feilian asked, and Xia De shook his head:

"Actually, I have the ability to glow in a completely dark environment."

Although Luweiya looked down on this special ability, Xia De still needed to emphasize it.

"That is good. This means you will never be swallowed by the darkness."

The Moon Witch said softly.

The canopy above was descending, and the surrounding branches were like strange tentacles, reaching toward the three in the darkness.

"Xia De, now I want to teach you one last lesson. No matter what kind of darkness you face in the future, you must believe in your own light. That is the purest power we possess as humans who are not ordinary."

Miss Feilian shouted loudly in the darkness:

"Get ready, my students, I will count—

One, two, three!"

The darkness finally wrapped around them completely, and the strange light on Xia De's body illuminated their movements.

The three of them raised their right hands at the same time:

"Silver Moon!"

"Clear Yellow Moon!"

"Feilian's Witch Light!"

The three on the ground leaned together, and dazzling light erupted from the tips of their three fingers simultaneously. Dark gold, orange-yellow, holy silver—that ultimate light illuminated the dense branches around them, illuminated the tree vines intertwined like monsters, and illuminated the boundless darkness.

The shadows of the three overlapped and spread toward the surroundings, and the light also illuminated everyone's face. ===== CHAPTER 383 =====