Chapter 37: The Scholars
Recap: The Tree's spirit gave Fang Yuan a connection to every Tree. Now he can feel them across the land. The Council of Clans, instead of sending more troops, is dispatching scholars to study the Trees.
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The scholars came in spring.
Fang Yuan felt them before he saw them—a ripple in his connection, a disturbance in the network of roots and light that now stretched across the land. He was walking through a meadow of wildflowers, heading toward a village that had asked for a Tree, when the sensation hit him.
Someone is touching the Tree at Duskfall. Not a villager. Not a creature. Someone with tools, with instruments, with intent.
He closed his eyes and reached out with his mind. The Tree at Duskfall was healthy, its roots deep, its leaves shimmering. But around it, figures moved—five of them, wearing the grey robes of scholars, carrying devices he did not recognize. They were measuring the Tree's light, sampling its soil, recording its growth.
The Council's observers. They're here to study the Trees. To find their weaknesses.
He opened his eyes and looked south. Duskfall was three days' walk away. He could not be there in time to stop them.
But I don't need to stop them. I need to understand them.
He changed direction and headed toward Duskfall.
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The scholars were still there when he arrived.
They had set up a small camp at the edge of the village, their tents white, their instruments gleaming. The villagers watched them from a distance, uncertain, afraid. The Tree stood at the center of the square, its light undimmed, its branches reaching toward the sky.
Fang Yuan walked into the village, his grey robes dusty, his face calm. The scholars looked up, their eyes widening. They had heard the stories—the demon, the planter, the one who had defeated five battalions without killing a single soldier.
"You're him," the lead scholar said. She was a woman, her hair white, her eyes sharp, her hands steady. "Fang Yuan."
"I am."
"We mean no harm. The Council sent us to study the Trees. To understand them. That's all."
Fang Yuan looked at the Tree. It pulsed with warmth, with life, and he felt its approval—not of the scholars, but of his presence.
"Then study," he said. "But do not harm. The Trees are not weapons. They are not tools. They are living things. Treat them with respect, or I will ask you to leave."
The lead scholar nodded, her expression unreadable. "Agreed."
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He stayed for three days.
He watched the scholars work. They were careful, methodical, respectful. They did not cut the Tree's branches or dig up its roots. They only observed, measured, recorded. They asked the villagers questions about the Tree's effects—the healing water, the fertile soil, the peaceful creatures that gathered beneath its branches.
On the third day, the lead scholar approached him.
"I don't understand," she said. "This Tree—it gives without taking. It heals without demanding. It's unlike any Gu I've ever studied."
Fang Yuan looked at her. "That's because it's not a Gu. It's something older. Something the system tried to contain."
"The system. The badges. The fragments." She shook her head. "I've read the reports, but I don't understand any of it. How did you break the system? How did you defeat the First One?"
Fang Yuan was silent for a long moment. Then he said, "I stopped fighting."
She frowned. "What?"
"I stopped fighting. I stopped trying to destroy my enemies, conquer my rivals, seize power. I started planting. Creating. Growing." He looked at the Tree. "The First One was destruction. The Trees are creation. You can't defeat creation with destruction. You can only join it."
The scholar stared at him. "You're not what I expected."
"What did you expect?"
"A demon. A monster. Someone who would kill us the moment we arrived."
Fang Yuan smiled. "I've been called many things. Demon. Monster. Villain. But I've never been called a gardener. Until now."
He turned and walked toward the edge of the village. "Tell the Council what you've seen. Tell them the Trees are not a threat. Tell them the only threat is their own fear."
He left Duskfall and continued south.
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The next village was called Stillwater.
It was built around a lake, its waters calm, its shores lined with willows. The villagers were fishermen, their boats small, their nets old. They had heard of the Trees but had not asked for one. They were content with what they had.
Fang Yuan walked to the lake's edge and sat on a large stone. The water was clear, and beneath its surface, he could see fish swimming, their scales flashing in the sunlight.
This village doesn't need a Tree. It needs something else.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small Gu—a Water Sprite, Rank 1, its body translucent, its eyes bright. He had captured it months ago and forgotten it. Now, he held it out over the water.
"Go," he said. "Live. Protect this lake. Keep its waters clean and its fish plentiful."
The Water Sprite chirped and dove into the lake. Its light spread through the water, purifying, renewing. The villagers gathered on the shore, watching, their faces filled with wonder.
"What did you do?" an old fisherman asked.
Fang Yuan stood. "I gave you a guardian. Not a Tree. Something smaller. Something that fits this place."
The fisherman knelt. "Thank you, demon."
Fang Yuan shook his head. "Not demon. Gardener."
He walked away.
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He walked for weeks, months. The seasons changed—spring to summer, summer to autumn. The Trees grew. The seeds scattered. The villages healed.
The Council's scholars continued their work, traveling from Tree to Tree, studying, recording, reporting. They found no weaknesses. They found only growth.
General Wei sent word—the Council was divided. Some wanted to attack again. Others wanted to wait. A few wanted to negotiate.
Fang Yuan ignored it all. He was not a politician. He was not a general. He was a planter.
And the land was growing.
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End of Chapter 37