Leaving Earth to travel and also find out more about the current situation of the known universe, we now found ourselves with our first encounter with those not from the enemy organization encroaching upon us.
Compared to a few weeks ago, before the Earth Energy was restored to its original state, I truly hadn't expected that the scope of things was bigger than the questions I piled up inside my head.
Although most of those questions were already answered with the memories of my past life, those same memories brought forth more questions. Or if not questions, higher concerns.
From defending Mortal Worlds against an Invasive World, the situation quickly evolved to us closing in on an organization that gathered Invasive Worlds under them.
… True, I expected other Invasive Worlds to be involved but for them to be part of one large organization… it would no doubt completely complicates things.
They only needed to send a group of Sage Ranks and the Earth would quickly fall to its knees.
And with the Space Vessels and Transcendents they sent, it's just a matter of time before they raised their alarm for that to happen.
That's why… every second counts for us. The time wasn't on our side this time.
Even though I managed to discover the secret towards the Stage beyond Divinity, if I consider our current strength, that's too far off in the future.
First… one of us has to at least reach the strength of a Rank 5 Transcendent. Through it, I could return and wrest away the control of the Spirit World or Dark World.
I'm close to that but considering how many years Illiana and the other 'Great Ones' sat at that level, it would be wise for me to not be content at just reaching it.
In any case, since it's already registered as Dark World, I guess restoring its original name would have to happen after it returned to our hands.
"… You! Halt your advance! Please!"
An hour later, a distressed young voice rang inside the Kingfisher, taking away my concentration from maintaining Void Concealment.
Likewise, the two girls, who were snuggled close to me, opened their eyes as they got startled by it. And because of that, their concentration somehow wavered, leading to our combined abilities that we're using to completely conceal the Kingfisher to shake.
Thankfully, I was ready for that as I quickly calmed the two down. It's not yet time for us to be detected by the Space Vessel Fleet.
Following that, Sofiel and Yuko's voices rang inside my mind as they informed me of the occurrence. Looking in their direction, they're waiting for what move I would make.
My other Companions as well as the Dragon Couple were also alerted by it as they emerged from the training room where they're preparing themselves for our surfacing at the Mortal World. They took their positions, ready for battle at any moment.
In any case, that's not really needed.
"Everyone, relax. It's the voice of the World's Will of that world. It's projecting its voice to us." I said before instructing Zerina and Dannae to continue what they were doing. The faucet of Source Energy and Void Concealment was still activated, keeping the cloak of our Space Vessel.
Yuko and Sofiel nodded and they followed the voice, halting the movement of the Kingfisher temporarily.
The others also relaxed but they remained from their positions. Just in case an unexpected thing occurs.
Honestly, I expected that the World's Will could detect us despite it. The whole world could be considered its entire body after all. Any foreign elements that would come from this Chaotic Space would be detected by it.
If it's harmful, it would try its best to send it away.
"Speak. World's Will. We're listening."
"R-really?" Noticing uncertainty in that voice, it appears that this World of Tree Spirits was also on its way to evolving. Its World's Will had started to exhibit emotion.
"Yes... Alright, Hikari, please. Show it where we originated."
"I understand." Hikari nodded at me and began gathering her Source Energy in her palm. When it turned into a basketball-sized one, she raised her hand and made the Source Energy burst into a colorful light that dispersed upon hitting the walls.
Upon seeing that, a light gasp echoed in our ears, a sigh of admiration by the World's Will.
Obviously, what Hikari showcased was her assimilated Level 3 Earth Energy. She controlled it like how she would control her Elemental Energy.
Anyone from Earth or someone who assimilated the Earth Energy could also prove it but one of us was enough. It was evident of the reaction shown by the World's Will.
"You're from that world!" The World's Will exclaimed in much zeal. "We're not abandoned yet!"
From the looks of it, this one was on the verge of hopelessness. The Hero from Earth already returned but with new Transcendents landing on the surface – each one was at least a Rank 2 Transcendent – even if it could emulate the same strength through its incarnation, it would already be a miracle if it could fight and defeat one.
"The Helper has returned to our world but he will soon return, rest assured."
I said 'rest assured' but I doubt that Hero's current strength. If he or she didn't join our exploration of Atlantis, his or her strength still ranged below Rank 2 Transcendent even if the Level 3 Earth Energy and the Earth's Mortal Pathway strengthened him or her.
In any case, I left the management of those Heroes to the old fossils, they'll make sure to train them again, sending them to different dangerous worlds or places.
They could stay back on Earth to quickly progress and just absorb the Level 3 Earth Energy. However, without experience, they would just be useless if threats in the form of new Space Vessels or even breached portals appeared.
In any case, being chosen as a Hero, they knew what they had to do along with their inherent heroic qualities.
"However, I doubt the Helper can deal with a crisis such as what you're experiencing at the moment. You can see, right? There's a whole fleet of Rank 2 Transcendents encircling your world. Have you found out what their goal is?" I added.
Since this one took the time to contact us, it's a lot better than going in there blind. This way, I could adjust the plan I hatched when approaching that Rank 3 Transcendent.
"Y-yes! They seemed to be searching for treasure. Treasure that even I, as the World's Will don't know about."
"However, they're terrorizing my denizens. At this point, the heroic Tree Spirits that accompanied the Helper have been defeated one by one under their might. My incarnation can only save their lives. Driving them away is impossible. Even more so now that there's a stronger one who appeared."
The Hero's Companions, huh? Too bad for them, even if they're Transcendents themselves, they would have no chance at winning against a single Rank 2 Transcendent.
But given that they're heroic, they most likely tried to save a village, a city or a country against the terror brought by these Transcendents enlisted by the Prajna World.
I guess they're not as peaceful as I thought they would be.
"I see… So, did that Rank 3 Transcendent try to contact you? If what they're searching is really on your surface, you must at least have a clue where it is."
"He did. Unfortunately, even I have no idea what they're talking about. They're looking for a golden statue of a bald man. They said it should look like a withered rock at the moment. But none of my denizens found it before. It's also not a natural-born treasure."
Golden statue of a bald man. Isn't that a Buddha Statue? There's a lot of those on Earth.
In any case, if it's not a natural-born treasure then the only possibility was it came from a meteor that hit this world's surface.
And if it's a treasure and they could only detect it by its unique signal, it's something more advanced. Perhaps, a Level 3 Sage World's natural-born treasure.
I still couldn't be sure of it… In any case, not only could we gather information from this fleet, but it's also a way to get potential allies. But that's only if they also abhor the Invasive World Organization.
A lot of other possibilities might occur, after all.
"I think I understand the situation now. Will you allow us passage? I will keep this Concealment on. To make it look as though we appeared from a portal."
"Please do so! I'll be relying on you."
"Sure. You're lucky, we passed by. Leave this situation to us."
This might be something that wouldn't reward us but I guess that information that I might get from that Rank 3 Transcendent could be considered as one. Besides, its connection to Earth was enough reason to not let it be exploited or terrorized by any other World. That connection could be used to create a portal, after all.
After the World's Will's presence retreated, Yuko and Sofiel controlled the Kingfisher to continue moving forward and in my case, I went back to strengthening the Void Concealment.
Minutes later, our space vessel cut through the world's atmosphere as it started plummeting down to its surface. Before our eyes, a sea of green occupied our field of vision.
At the same time as that, the familiar notification flashed before my eyes.
[You entered the World of Tree Spirits]
[Received +1 Strength, +2 Endurance as World Bonus]
[Will expire upon leaving the world]
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