AN: If you like what you are reading, you can help by giving my novel Rating.
As we got closer to the mountain that was O'zet's shell, the sound waves got stronger. When we got within just under a kilometer or two, I had to conjure a barrier of air instinctively mana around Spot and myself to create a buffer against the sound waves that were hammering against me and rattling my bones and organs.
When we eventually closed in close enough to see where the mountain ends and O'zet's shell begins, I found out why I could not see his mighty head and legs tower above the sea of trees. They were neatly tucked into the sides of his shell, and his head retracted to the point where only his gigantic beak-like mouth was exposed.
Being this close to O'zet, the airwaves that his snores generated were powerful enough to disrupt Professor Sageira's flying, forcing her to break off and circle around to his rear and land on the tail end of his shell.
As I looked up at the mountain that had accumulated on its back over what I am told is a couple of millennia, the only thing that came to mind was that it was a lot bigger up close when observing it from the sky. From where I was standing on O'zet's actual shell and looking to the mountain's peak, I estimate the height of the mountain to be somewhere in the ballpark of four to five hundred meters tall.
But the perceived height was not the only thing that exceeded my assumption. The mana density was so thick that I felt it tingling on my skin. It was like standing in the presence of all the wyrm elders all over again. The only difference was the lack of intent, which makes sense because the titan of a tortoise was asleep and did not know we were here.
If I did not know where I was, I would have assumed that I was in an enchanted forest that I had only read about in fairy tales.
Professor Sageira shapeshifted back into her human form and stood at my side. She then looked at the nearest tree and walked toward it. After putting her hand on the tree and concentrating for a few seconds, she waved me over and gestured for me to do the same.
"Inject your mana into the tree and tell me what you feel." she said, and I did as she asked.
I have injected my mana into many things in my pursuit of finding crafting materials, even trees. Sure, I have found a few different species that have excellent mana conductivity. The feedback I got from injecting my mana into the tree caught me off guard, and I instinctively flinched my hand back.
Usually, when I inject my mana into a material to test its mana conductivity, I will always feel some level of resistance or impedance to my mana flowing into the material. But this time, I felt my mana was pulled and almost sucked into the tree, making me think it was some sort of draining attack, and I flinched back.
But seeing Professor Sageira giving me a mischievous smile, I readied myself and put my hand back on the tree. Now that I was expecting it, I let my mana flow freely and observed with my mana as it effortlessly flowed through the whole tree… wait… the way my mana is flowing… it looks like mana channels… I have injected mana into many trees, and they do not have mana channels.
When I turned to Professor Sageira with what I assumed was an astonished and questioning look on my face, she just tittered and said. "This is what happens when a tree or plant evolves. Trees like this are almost non-existent outside mana-rich places like this, and magical weapons made of wood like you are touching now are what kingdoms deem national treasures. A magical want or staff made from a tree like this is the kind of thing wars are fought over. If crafted well, it can turn a powerful mage into a weapon of mass destruction on the battlefield."
Hearing her words, I stood there, dumbfounded for a moment before looking around at where we were and back at her. "We are just at the edge of the shell and have not even entered the mountain… are all the trees like this?"
She gave me a cheeky smile and said, "Just the old growth. O'zet's mountain is a biome of its own, and like any active biome, the old die and the new grow, but in O'zet's mountain's case, whatever grows on it is saturated in mana and naturally lives a lot longer than normal, and is also a lot stronger than its ordinary counterparts. Go ahead, take a swing at it with enough strength to knock down a tree this size."
Wanting to test out the toughness of the tree for myself, I flared my mana and performed a roundhouse kick that was strong enough to chop down trees.
When my shin collided with the tree, the only thing that happened was the impact, making a loud noise, the layer of tree bark where I kicked chipping off, and leaving my shin in pain. "Good gods! Wood has no business being this tough. But on the other hand, this would make excellent crafting material. Can you help me cut down one of these trees before we go home?" I asked while rubbing my shin.
"I could, but I would not. Everything on this shell belongs to O'zet's, and we are his guests here. It would be rude to cut down any of the trees here, especially because grooming the forest on his back is one of his hobbies, and it is a hobby his children share when they get big enough to grow things on their back, so if you run into other World Tortoises, be mindful of what you do on their back." she lectured me.
Seeing the disappointed look on my face, she added, "But that does not mean that you cannot pick up any deadfall. O'zet does not mind it as it creates space for new growth. There is sure to be enough around for you to craft a lot. Now, come on, O'zet may care a lot about his trees, but he does not care about the smaller magical plants that grow here, as long as we do not overharvest, we should be good."
She started walking forward, and I followed her to explore the mountain.