CHAPTER 158
158. Finally Found It
The first to sense the anomaly was Jinwoo.
Even while sleeping soundly and resting his body, his senses were awake. Those senses caught a black energy.
It wasn't a flame. But a black, deep...
'A Seed!'
It wasn't Larna. She was sleeping by his side. The Seed Jinwoo's senses caught was outside the cave, in the middle of the lake.
By the time Jinwoo jumped up and drew his sword, Terham also noticed the disturbing presence. Since the lake was his territory, it was that much easier to sense the anomaly. Even so, being half a beat slower than Jinwoo was because Terham's senses didn't detect souls.
"This is..."
"It's chaos out there."
Next to Terham, who looked dumbfounded at the lake, Jinwoo dipped his hand slightly into the lake.
The fairytale-like lake that reflected sunlight and shone in rainbow colors was gone. Rotten flesh, blood, and unidentified filth were mixed together; the lake had become extremely dirty.
Originally, just a handful of dirt dropped in clear water makes it cloudy muddy water. The lake had become turbid to the point it was hard to call it a lake anymore. Thick filth piled up, and the sticky liquid was like a swamp.
A Giant standing tall in the center. Every time it took a step, the water splashed and waves raged. Kung kung, thumping footsteps. It was a noisy bastard to the point it was unbelievable it appeared without a sound.
"Th-that is...! That body is...!"
"Why. What is it?"
Terham was engulfed in shock. His eyes opened wide as if he saw something unbelievable, and the surrounding mana fluctuated at his shock.
"It is my body..."
Terham's wrinkles deepened twofold. His white beard looked like gently glowing white hair yesterday, but now it just felt like a frizzy skein of thread.
To him, who lost most of his body, his mind and soul occupied a massive proportion. The mana following that was a bonus.
His mana was fluctuating from mental shock, shaking even his soul. Was encountering the lost body right before his eyes that much of a shock?
"To a Giant... the body is..."
The pride of the Giant race that was once abandoned. But even if abandoned, it wasn't forgotten. While dismissing it as past glory, the pride remained deep in his heart somewhere.
That was being insulted to the maximum. The Giant's body controlled by the Seed was dirtying the lake and killing all the creatures living in the lake with poison. The Fairies who lived only in the clean lake were surely not safe either.
"Why? You said the World Tree took your Seed and body?"
"It is not a lie. He really took them. Thanks to that, I was liberated..."
"Then it's one of two things. Either the World Tree betrayed you, or some problem occurred on that side."
"There is no way He would do that!"
Terham forgot honorifics and shouted strongly. An appearance of believing in the innocence of the World Tree who saved him. Jinwoo also didn't really believe the former possibility given his interactions with the World Tree so far.
"Then the probability of the latter is high."
"A problem with Him..."
At that moment, the Giant spotted them. The guy who acted like he would rush in at any moment bent his waist and put both hands into the lake.
Then, he pulled out a boulder the size of a house from somewhere and threw it with all his might. Terham was horrified at the flying rock and fled, and Jinwoo also dodged.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwang!
The cave collapsed upon being hit by the rock. The Fairies inside the cave had already fled, but the food they gathered, the charming furniture crafted stitch by stitch with small hands, and even the toys were all buried in the collapsed cave and disappeared.
"What's going on?"
Only then did Larna wake up and come to Jinwoo's side. Seeing Jinwoo holding a sword, she sweated and backed off slightly, but still didn't go very far.
"It's an enemy. Seems to be Terham's original body."
"Terham's body? Terham is over there."
Larna pointed at Terham as if she didn't understand. Terham with the body of a small Fairy.
"Didn't you hear the story yesterday? Terham was originally a Giant and the Seed eroded his body..."
"Another one is flying over!"
While they were talking, another rock flew over. Jinwoo kicked off the ground and dodged. Larna, being a nimble one, dodged well on her own.
"Anyway, it's an enemy, right? Umm... eating that looks like it'll give me a stomachache."
Larna drew her sword, but didn't show much enthusiasm. Her fighting spirit depended on her appetite.

In other words, the target she most wanted to devour was the one that ignited her fighting spirit the most.
In that sense, the giant possessing a Seed did not stir her will to fight. She knew instinctively that she could not consume two Seeds.
It was for the same reason that she felt no appetite for Jinwoo. Although she had no problem eating rotten and decaying flesh, she simply could not eat any more Seeds.

"Hmph, you two can go drink the fruit wine I've been fermenting. If you search deep inside the cave, you'll find a wooden barrel."
Terham rolled up his sleeves and stepped in front of Jinwoo and Larna.
"You're quite the gracious host."
"I simply wish to avoid being indebted to you, who abandoned Her."
His tone was polite, but his words were blunt. It was clear he didn't think highly of Jinwoo because of the World Tree. His attitude had been consistent since they first met.

"Haaaaaaahp!"
Terham gathered the surging mana around him. He had been shaken by the shock of seeing the giant at first, but he had now regained his composure.
"I know my own body best."
A corner of his mouth lifted as he prepared a secret art. His opponent was his own former body. He knew all too well where its weaknesses were, where to strike to make it crumble.
Furthermore, while his past self could use secret arts through the harmony of body and mind, his current opponent was nothing but flesh. Though the body was a giant's most important asset, without a mind and soul, it was just an easy target.

"You wreeeetch! Have you come to capture me and reclaim your mind and soul?!"
"Kuoohhhhh!"
Terham flew forward with great momentum and raised his hand. It was a small, dainty hand, but the mana glittering at its tip was immeasurably vast.
The mana forged by the giant's spirit became a single spear and pierced the giant's body. And a moment later…
"Kuoohhh!"
"Gack!"
Terham was sent flying, landing in a heap at Jinwoo's feet. He couldn't get up right away, merely trembling faintly, a sign that he had taken significant damage.
Watching him, Jinwoo toyed with the hilt of his sword.
"I'll count this as one debt."
"Please... I'm counting on you..."
Larna crouched down to watch over Terham, while Jinwoo dove alone into the mud-filled lake.

The lake was already so full of filthy mud that he could stand on it. Jinwoo ran, his feet splashing through the mire. The giant's fist came crashing down from above his head.
'It's huge.'
It was certainly enormous. In terms of size alone, it was far larger than Jerakson.
Seen from below, the fist was large enough to blot out the sky, reminiscent of a falling meteor. It even created the illusion that the air was tearing and space was distorting. Even though it was an act of pure physical force, devoid of mind or soul, it felt like a display of magic.
KWANG!
The fist was faster than he expected, but it wasn't difficult to dodge. He didn't just dodge, either; he gave it a few nicks with his blade. Several cuts appeared on the beast's fist, and blood...
'No blood?'
No blood spurted out. Was it in a state similar to an undead? It might as well be called a giant zombie.
Wooooong—
More vitality flowed into the giant's body. The power of the Seed, which had seeped into every single muscle fiber like thread, elevated the giant's physique to an even higher level. There was no body under the sky that could surpass it.
KWANG!
It stomped with its foot. It swatted like a hand crushing an insect. It threw a punch. Sometimes, it kicked the lakebed, creating a tidal wave of mud that swept over Jinwoo.
Dodging was easy, but attacking was not. To be precise, his attacks had little effect.
'Is my sword too small?'
Compared to the creature's massive frame, Jinwoo's sword was not even a toothpick. No matter how much he scratched with it, he would only manage to tear the skin a little.
'There's no soul to cut.'
That was the reason Jinwoo was struggling more than he’d anticipated. Jinwoo's swordsmanship was honed based on his ability to cut souls. His every move was aimed at severing his opponent's soul, no matter the time or place.
It had been the same with Silbaern, Jerakson, Prycia, and Cain. But his current opponent had no soul. The very foundation of Jinwoo's sword style, his target, was gone.
'It's literally an undead.'
This wasn't his first time facing undead monsters. The skeletons he met on the 2nd Floor also lacked a flame of soul. But they were the lowest of the low-class undead, killable with just a club.
They couldn't compare to this 'body that once belonged to a Monarch.'

'Should I just cut the Seed?'
That's what he had done until now. To be precise, he had cut the Black Flame in which the Seed was embedded. He would sever the flame and then retrieve the Seed that was left behind. That was his method.
But this time, the Seed had burrowed into the flesh itself. There was no shell-like flame surrounding the Seed, so he had to cut the Seed directly.
'The Seed itself can't be cut, though.'
But the body it had burrowed into could be cut. In the end, it led to the same conclusion. He had to cut through this body to reach the Seed.
'The target is the heart.'
The center of the giant's body, where its heart was located. The heart of this undead-like creature no longer beat, but the organ itself still existed. Now little more than a lump of flesh, it was possessed and controlled by the Seed it held within.
KWANG!
Jinwoo dodged the descending fist. This time, he didn't just evade; he jumped on top of it and ran. Having successfully closed the distance to the giant's chest in an instant, Jinwoo's sword stabbed at its heart.
"Kuwarrrrgh!"
"Tch!"
But as expected, it wasn't easy. The Seed's location was too deep to reach with a single thrust.
'I'll have to carve my way in.'
If once wasn't enough, then twice. If twice wasn't enough, then three times, four times. By repeating this process, he would eventually reach the Seed.
Just then.
Kugugugugung—!
The ground rumbled. It was different from the giant's footsteps. The entire landmass undulated, shaking the very ground.
'What is that?'
Did the giant do something?
"Kuoohh!?"
But the giant seemed just as bewildered. Forgetting its fight with Jinwoo, it tried to flee the tremor. But a black root shot out from the ground and caught its ankle.
"This is..."
The root entangled the giant's ankle. It didn't just bind it; it tore through skin and muscle. To rip the muscles of a giant corroded by the power of a Seed, this was no ordinary force.
"The World Tree?"
He had finally found it. The one he had been searching for all this time.