Chapter 198. Uncomfortable Waking.

Chapter 198. Uncomfortable Waking.

Liu Shu felt a bit dazed. Looking around the town, she saw that the once very recognizable town had now changed to an almost unrecognizable level. It was not because of the growing number of buildings or the larger walls and trees. Those things were part of her, so they didn't feel out of place.

For someone like Liu Shu, the people were the thing that made her feel alienated.

Lately, Liu Shu has been highly focused on getting stronger and completing her quest. It was to the point that she placed almost everything else aside to do that. When she completed it, she started Leveling Up from Level 14 to Level 20, taking her several months. Even before completing the quest, she had another big Level Up spree from Level 8 or 9 to Level 11 or 12, which similarly took a lot of time.

Each time she Leveled Up and opened her <World Tree Eye> again, the surroundings had evolved far beyond what she expected. What was a simple place not long ago could barely be called a town now. The streets were filled with people she had never seen, far outnumbering those she found familiar.

Her fast growth in size signified a boost in the size of her tree buildings, the distance her walls were from her main body, and the number of people that she could house. The numbers were now quite ridiculous, with her wall, for example, having reached 30 meters in height.

These shifts in the town's structure hadn't gone unnoticed by the population. They were too radical to miss. Before reaching Level 20, Liu Shu's growth was fast but very gradual, so the changes were small enough for the human eye to fail to notice if they were not paying attention.

Most people would naturally not be looking at the walls and see if they were getting further away, so it went unnoticed for the first half a year of the town or so.

However, that changed when Liu Shu reached Level 20. Her growth rate increased several times over, eventually reaching almost double her height. With such a significant shift, people realized that the town was expanding in size; it wasn't just the buildings; everything was growing as if it were a single organism.

More impressively, the tree buildings barely covered any area of the outer part of the place, which was divided by an extensive flower field dubbed the forbidden flower ring by the inhabitants. This indicated that the town's potential for growth was ridiculously high.

At first, while it was considered a small paradise, people took the "small" in that title very seriously. Some estimated that 5,000 people would be the absolute maximum population in the future.

Those people were mocked quite heavily after Liu Shu's quick growth and the effects that it carried with her. Meanwhile, the miraculous nature of the <Golden Sap Town> spread far and wide.

All of this made the popularity of the town soar beyond what they expected, leading to the current situation where almost 4,000 people roamed the town at all times.

'This...' Liu Shu observed the numerous creatures roaming around her with a foreign gaze. She looked around with her <World Tree Eye>, forgetting to hide her presence completely and scaring some people with the pressure of her gaze.

Inside of her, conflicting feelings bubbled. 'I feel happy that there are so many... people. Hm? Do I?' The World Tree noticed something. 'Huh? When did I stop calling those living around me "little friends"?'

Liu Shu focused her mind on her senses and sent a powerful pulse out, making everyone feel a strange tightness in their heart for a second. Of course, most people just ignored it and continued with their lives.

Meanwhile, the entire forest appeared in Liu Shu's "vision." She could feel everything going around her, and the ridiculous amounts of information made her freeze for a few seconds as her powerful soul tried to analyze and digest the absurd stream of information.

There was so much going on at the same time that she was hearing mostly noise if she tried to pay attention around her. It wasn't just her city which was starting to become densely populated. The number of Explorers and creatures in the surroundings kept increasing thanks to Wert's expert management of natural resources. 'I... can't hear nature?'

Liu Shu suddenly felt constricted even though her senses were wider and stronger than ever before. She focused more, ignoring anything going on around her.

'Listen deeply. Listen to your surroundings.' She told herself, trying to focus even more. 'Forget about the noise. Connect with nature. Connect with the forest.'

Of course, that was far from enough to deter everybody. Some people overestimated themselves or underestimated the town's defenses, thinking that they would be able to fool a literal living city.

Wert knew that some intelligent races forgot to portray the word "intelligence" and sent a few Explorers to guard the wall's surroundings and report casualties caused by the guardian trees. 'This is the fortieth this month... Are they stupid? No, well, I know they are, but who continues trying after a total of...' Wert asked aloud. "How many kills do the guardian trees have since we started documenting it?"

The man looked at the reports and coughed. "Two hundred and thirty-three."

"More than two hundred..." Wert sighed. "Well, Liu Shu is doing the world a favor by increasing the average intelligence of the population."

The explorer behind couldn't help but laugh. "To be honest, Lord Wert, I have zero sympathy for these people."

Wert shrugged. "Me either. So, is our big girl awake again?"

The man smiled. "Lady Liu Shu has awakened. She has been acting slightly strangely, sending pulses of energy periodically as if trying to find something. These pulses are powerful enough that some commoners in the city are feeling slightly suffocated."

Wert thought and said. "Send a notice. Communicate to the people that the hasty growth has forced the Life Tree to accumulate a lot of energy, and she is expelling it now because it would be harmful otherwise. Some people will feel honored to be hurt by these waves as they think they will be helping Liu Shu bear the burden with them."

"Understood."

Wert nodded and then spoke aloud. "Liu Shu, can you hear me? Liu Shu!"

Liu Shu's voice spread inside his room. "Hm? Wert? What do you want?"

The Association Head felt surprised when he heard Liu Shu's voice. The tone was much more mature than before, as all the childishness had disappeared without traces. Now, what remained was a gentle, soothing, and deep voice that reached the heart with a touch of cuteness. Even that single sentence felt like nature surrounding and hugging his body. 'Wow... She has such a gorgeous voice, even for a World Tree.'

Wert smiled softly, feeling comfortable. "Good morning, sleepy girl. How are you feeling?"

Liu Shu's voice reached him, sounding a bit frustrated. "I feel slightly suffocated... Too many people, too many thoughts, too much information... Even though I can feel further than usual, I feel like the World around me is closing..."

Wert's smile disappeared, and his brows locked together. He tried to remember everything he knew about World Trees, and he commented. "Liu Shu, you've grown a lot. Have your roots extended as well?"

Liu Shu exclaimed. "Ah... They haven't spread much, no. They are only 3,000 meters outward... I should be able to extend much further."

'Three thousand... only?' Wert wanted to say a lot about that sentence, but he focused on helping Liu Shu instead. "Try that, and if you still feel the same after that, I will meet with Flor and the rest so that we can find a solution."

"Thank you, Wert." Liu Shu spoke softly.

Wert smiled, looking at Liu Shu's giant figure through the window. "No problem, Liu Shu. Take care and remember to inform those you care about of how you are feeling."

"I will!"