"Damn it... Another sudden sneak attack, I wasn't ready at all."
The Black Dragon was both shocked and furious. The Dragon Pearl within its body continuously surged with waves of Senjutsu Chakra, but no matter how much power it unleashed, it simply couldn't break free from the Rinnegan's immobilizing restraint.
Even though Ryun currently possessed only one Six Tomoe Rinnegan, the terrifying ocular power contained within it was enough to restrain the Ten Tails. Dealing with Old Black was completely effortless.
"Stop being naughty... Otherwise, I might just have to make a dragon scale armor..." Ryun patted its head and said with a light laugh.
"Uh... Okay... You win..." The Black Dragon promptly chose to back down. It really didn't want to experience the pain of having its scales stripped.
Ryun released the immobilization technique, then invited the other to take a seat.
"Dragon Ryuchi Cave, Mount Myoboku, Shikkotsu Forest. The three great holy lands have graced us with their presence... May I ask what business brings you here?" Ryun feigned ignorance as he inquired. In truth, he knew exactly why these guys had come.
"Lord Ryun... The roots of the demon tree have already spread to Shikkotsu Forest... Could you possibly retract them?" The slug from Shikkotsu Forest straightforwardly asked.
"Mount Myoboku is the same... We also hope Lord Ryun will be magnanimous..." Fukasaku forced a stiff smile onto his face.
Upon hearing this, Ryun instinctively glanced at the Black Dragon. He clearly hadn't extended his reach to Ryuchi Cave...
"Why are you looking at me? Can't a brother come visit you for a chat?" The Black Dragon shot him a sidelong glance and retorted irritably.
"Of course, if possible, you should still retract the demon tree roots. Those things are too sinister, and their destructive power on the environment is immense. The fragile natural ecosystem of the holy lands could easily collapse because of them..."
As soon as the Black Dragon said this, Ryun couldn't help but give it a sidelong look.
Since when did Old Black from Ryuchi Cave start meddling in other people's business? Ryun didn't need to think to know that this beast had definitely received benefits from the other two factions. Otherwise, why would it be so kind as to take the lead in coming here to act as a mediator.
Ryun remained silent for a moment, which made the Black Dragon look increasingly guilty under his gaze...
After a long silence, Ryun finally spoke.
"It's not impossible for me to help retract the Divine Tree roots. Mount Myoboku and Shikkotsu Forest must sign a master servant contract with me, becoming my summoning beasts and submitting to my commands..."
As soon as these words were spoken, the toad and the slug couldn't help but exchange a glance.
The main reason Ryun proposed this condition was to learn the Sage Arts of the other two great holy lands. He wanted to create Sage Arts suitable for humanity itself, and it was best to first study the cultivation methods of the various holy lands.
After a brief consideration, the slug was the first to state its position. "I can agree, but you must also promise to protect the Shikkotsu Forest holy land forever."
As a summoning beast clan, becoming Ryun's summoning beast servant was not an unacceptable thing. Moreover, from a long term perspective, this might not necessarily be a bad thing.
"Agreed."
Ryun readily gave his answer.
"We of Mount Myoboku also agree. The condition is the same as Shikkotsu Forest's. The toad clan will serve you, and in return, you must also protect our toad clan..." Fukasaku hurriedly made the same declaration.
"No problem."
"I will create the summoning beast contracts. In a few days, I will personally visit Mount Myoboku and Shikkotsu Forest."
"Good."
The agreement was smoothly reached. Not long after, Fukasaku and the slug transformed into white smoke and returned to the summoning realm. The Black Dragon, however, chose to stay behind on its own initiative.
"Speak. How many benefits did you receive from Mount Myoboku and Shikkotsu Forest?" Ryun looked at the Black Dragon with a scrutinizing gaze.
"Ahem... Not that many. Just ten liters of Mount Myoboku's spirit spring water and one spirit flower from Shikkotsu Forest..." The Black Dragon answered very straightforwardly.
"Are such rare treasures abundant in the holy lands?" Ryun couldn't help but ask.
"Not anymore. According to what my mother said, two thousand years ago, rare treasures weren't that uncommon. Ever since that demon tree descended upon this world, the spiritual mountains and blessed lands have been ruined beyond recognition..." The Black Dragon gazed towards the location of the Divine Tree and couldn't help but let out a sigh.
"Tell me everything you know..." Ryun, full of curiosity, continued to ask.
As a transmigrator who had also accessed Kaguya Otsutsuki's memories, he knew that this Divine Tree was not originally brought by Kaguya Otsutsuki. Instead, it suddenly descended from the sky one day and subsequently took root in this world for a long time.
"I don't know much either. It's all things I heard from my mother. I only know that this demon tree is evil and greedy. Back then, the holy land predecessors and even your human race's immortal masters cut it down twice but were unable to completely eradicate it..."
Once the Divine Tree landed, it quickly took root and spread. No matter how many times it was cut down, it could recover by absorbing the earth's energy. It was like cutting weeds without removing the roots.
There were too many roots, and they were buried too deep. With the power of those local sages of that era, they could chop it down, but they couldn't completely eradicate it.
Chopping the tree would only stimulate those roots, making them desperately absorb energy. It didn't solve the problem.
"Even sealing was useless. This evil thing is most adept at devouring spirits and consuming techniques. Seals primarily constructed based on Sage Arts mostly couldn't confine it for too long, and they also had difficulty affecting its roots. After not too long, it would break free again..."
"Those sages of that time studied the demon tree for a hundred years and tried countless methods but couldn't eradicate it. Ultimately, they discovered that the more they tampered with the demon tree, the more frantically it would absorb energy to protect itself. If left alone, although for this planet it was still equivalent to a slow suicide, it actually wasn't completely unacceptable..."
A fully mature Divine Tree's daily consumption of natural energy wasn't that excessive. At least, the entire living planet could bear the burden. So, the immortals of that time chose to leave it be.
"Of course, this was under the premise that it didn't bloom and bear fruit. You probably know about that vile woman Kaguya, right..."
The Black Dragon's words made Ryun visibly freeze for a moment, but the next instant he hurriedly nodded. "I know. She is a member of the Otsutsuki clan, and also someone capable of communicating with and controlling the Divine Tree."
The Black Dragon knew he had become the new master of the demon tree, so communication between them wasn't difficult. Many things were easily understood once mentioned.
"Right. That vile woman used some method to make the Divine Tree bloom and bear fruit. Doing that undoubtedly caused immense harm to this world. Many ancient sages and immortal masters perished trying to stop the Divine Tree's rampage. It was a catastrophe, and the human race bore the brunt of it..."
The Otsutsuki clan could control the Divine Tree, transforming it into the terrifying Ten Tails form capable of destroying heaven and earth. Relying on its massive body, immortal characteristics, and shocking combat power, the group of local sages over a thousand years ago were simply no match for the Ten Tails.
"So, is this the reason why immortal legacies in this world were severed? Our human race did have Sage Arts legacies, but they were hunted to extinction by the outer realm demons (the Otsutsuki clan) cooperating with the demon tree?" Ryun proactively used a terminology that fit the Black Dragon's understanding.
Kaguya Otsutsuki's mental state was very poor, and her resistance was extremely fierce. When Ryun used the Human Path ability to probe her memories, they were fragmented and intermittent.
He only knew that this woman indeed waged a world shaking great war against the local human race. However, based on memories from watching the anime in his previous life, coupled with the Sage of Six Paths' narrative of 'my mother was originally kind hearted,' he naively believed that this woman ate the Chakra Fruit to quell the war...
So the war was actually instigated by Kaguya Otsutsuki herself. As a descendant of tainted blood, Hagoromo Otsutsuki would naturally whitewash the atrocities committed by his mother. The originally ferocious demon was thus transformed into the so called Rabbit Goddess.
History is written by the victors. The humans of this world have already forgotten those human cultivators who fought for all living beings back then...
The originally budding local cultivation system of this world was quietly replaced by the chakra system.
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