An ancient tree blooming was something that had never happened since the dawn of time.
The old tree desperately wanted to understand what had happened to it. It examined itself carefully, scanning every inch of its being, and only then — following a faint, almost instinctive pull from that single flower bud — did it sense an extremely distant location.
In that instant, it realized that the mysterious connection it had felt several years ago had not been an illusion after all.
The sensation was still vague, flickering in and out, but it was undeniably real.
Yet why such a connection would form between itself and a place so impossibly far away, the old tree could not fathom.
Something unusual was afoot, and the old tree grew cautious. In the years that followed, it dared not sink into slumber, periodically checking on the condition of the flower bud.
And as time flowed onward, that tiny bud gradually unfurled...
When the bud finally opened in full and its petals drifted away, sure enough, a small World Fruit had formed upon its branches!
The old tree was utterly stunned. For countless ages, every World Fruit that had ever appeared on its body had withered and fallen — never before had a new one been born. What baffled it most was that it had never understood why this was happening in the first place.
The only thing it knew was that the birth of this World Fruit was not harmful to it. As the new fruit took shape, a faint surge of vitality flowed into its ancient, withered trunk.
Decades later, one day — when the World Fruit had grown to the size of a fist and fully taken form — it suddenly felt a faint summoning.
This was something it had experienced many times before. Every time Yang Kai needed to borrow its power, this was exactly how it felt...
Within that Universe World, beneath the sub-tree of the World Tree, Yang Kai's face broke into a look of joy.
He had finally established a connection with the old tree. Though the link seemed somewhat unstable, the result confirmed the theory he had held for so long.
Over the course of decades, the sub-tree had undoubtedly grown considerably, and it had fully merged with the Universe World. After absorbing a vast amount of this world's natural power, the sub-tree had begun giving back to the world in return.
For years, Yang Kai had attempted to link with the World Tree at irregular intervals, only to be met with no progress. It had nearly convinced him that his earlier hypothesis was wrong.
Until this very moment — when he finally reconnected with the World Tree far away in the Taixu Realm.
How could he not be overjoyed?
Within the Taixu Realm, the old tree had also roughly pieced together what had happened. The sub-tree planted so long ago was technically an extension of itself. The reason it had been unclear about the situation earlier was simply that the sub-tree had not yet fully merged with that Universe World. Now, even across the boundless void, it could vaguely perceive certain developments through the sub-tree.
It could not help but marvel... because even it had never known such a thing was possible.
The connection between them was still hazy, but Yang Kai's intent was crystal clear to the old tree. Over so many years, every time Yang Kai reached out to it, it was because he needed to enter the Taixu Realm.
Without hesitation, the old tree channeled its power, and its massive, towering form began to tremble and sway.
An instant later, the ancient, weathered face etched into its trunk shifted dramatically...
Within that Universe World, beneath the sub-tree — the moment the old tree began to act, Yang Kai's figure vanished without warning, as though he had in an instant passed into some inconceivable, indescribable space.
This was something he had experienced many times and had long since grown accustomed to.
However, before long, Yang Kai noticed something was off.
Every previous attempt to link with the World Tree and enter the Taixu Realm through its power had been instantaneous — but this time, it seemed to be dragging on far longer than it should!
He traveled through that strange, formless space for what felt like an eternity without breaking free. The connection to the World Tree was growing even more tenuous.
A flicker of alarm crossed Yang Kai's mind. The reason he could use the World Tree's power to enter the Taixu Realm was that he had once saved and refined over two thousand Universe Worlds, which he had later placed upon the corresponding World Fruits of the old tree. In a sense, those Universe Worlds — and the World Fruits they occupied — all bore his imprint.
It was precisely through these imprints that he had forged an inseparable bond with the old tree, allowing him to use its power to travel from any living Universe World into the Taixu Realm.
A connection meant a bond; a bond meant a mutual awareness.
Now, that awareness was on the verge of being severed entirely — and for Yang Kai, this was nothing short of a nightmare. If the connection truly broke, he had no idea what would become of him.
He could very well become lost somewhere along the path to the Taixu Realm, unable to find his way back — perhaps unable to escape at all.
Fortunately, the connection — so faint it had nearly been cut off — reasserted itself. The old tree had clearly noticed the danger too and was pouring everything it had into maintaining the link.