Chapter 992 — Miracle

"Sorin?" An Luo repeated the word in a low voice, somewhat puzzled—she was not very familiar with these place names of Cecil, but this one left a vague impression. After a moment of recollection, she finally found the corresponding information among certain reports and documents. "Ah, I have heard this name... It seems to be on the Holy Spirit Plains..."

"Strictly speaking, it lies on the border between the Holy Spirit Plains and the Eastern March—though by administrative division it is part of the Holy Spirit Plains," said Sister Marian with a smile. "It is a place full of miracles."

"Miracles... I remember that the Holy Spirit Plains were reduced to wasteland during Ansu's civil war, and Fort Sorin was the most devastated area. It..." An Luo could not help saying softly, but her words were quickly interrupted by the new scenery appearing outside the carriage window, and her attention was wholly drawn to the wilderness beyond.

She saw an enormous tower rise in the distance, built of metal and artificial stone, more imposing than the communications tower of Winterwolf Keep. Magical radiance crawled across its surface, and atop it a huge crystal device rotated slowly, held aloft by some mechanical structure. Around the tower stood a series of supporting facilities, like a small fortress.

Farther off she saw clusters of buildings that resembled a town, rows of brand-new houses whose roofs glittered in the brilliant sunlight. Leveled ground spread around the town like a vast brown carpet, and among the fields she could see straight, broad roads and street lamps arranged neatly along both sides.

The train raced across the winter wilderness, and the winter wilderness welcomed its visitors with the bearing of a land reborn.

An Luo stared with her one remaining eye, astonished at everything beyond the window, and these scenes differed greatly from what she had seen in reports and pictured in her mind.

"Are we really heading for Fort Sorin?" she finally asked. "Is this the war zone once polluted by the Divine Calamity?"

Sister Marian smiled. "Yes, without a doubt—in fact, we have already passed the last checkpoint of the Eastern March. What you see now is already the land of the Holy Spirit Plains. Fort Sorin is just ahead; you will see it at the end of the next mountain pass—and by then you will be even more surprised."

"...I thought I would see more ruins and wreckage here," An Luo murmured as if to herself. "This is not what I imagined..."

"We rebuilt this place—General Margarita and the construction corps she led, the Joint Reconstruction Corps under the Minister of Agriculture, and the reconstruction volunteers who returned to the Holy Spirit Plains from all over. Hundreds of thousands of people rebuilt everything you see, and built many other things as well. For example, that tower we passed and the buildings around it—that is the Sorin Secondary Node, part of the magic net of the Holy Spirit Plains. It has a high-power transceiver that can connect directly to the Sorin Master Hub," Sister Marian said with pride. "Also, the railway we are traveling on was part of last year's construction project."

"Of course, the ruins you mentioned still exist—after all, the Holy Spirit Plains are vast, and we could not possibly rebuild everything in such a short time. There are still large areas around Boulder City and the Fertile Woods awaiting revival. Every month the Supreme Governing Council sends more engineering teams and more resources to those regions, and about half of them have now resumed production. But those places are far from here; we certainly will not see them on this journey."

An Luo listened in astonishment, picturing in her mind many scenes she had never imagined. She seemed about to ask something more, but suddenly a whistle sounded from ahead, interrupting her.

The train blew a shrill, high whistle that echoed among the hills and plains. An Luo felt the carriage sway a few times, and then the train emerged from a relatively gentle mountain pass—the small hill that had blocked their view was quickly left behind, and the vast plains spread out before An Luo's eyes.

A stretch of green that should not have existed in winter immediately caught her gaze and filled her vision.

It was a canopy that blotted out the sky and sun, a city of greenery that seemed to float above the plains, a plant, a... miracle that challenged mortal imagination.

"What is that?!" For a moment An Luo even forgot the pain in her upper body. She instinctively raised her arm and pointed outside, her face full of astonishment.

"That is where we are going," said Sister Marian. "Fort Sorin—what you see is the 'Great Tree of Sorin.' It covers the entire Sorin region, and the original castle now lies beneath her canopy, occupying only a small area to the east. Our train will run directly into the outer edge of the canopy; the newly built station is right beside the old castle."

"The Great Tree of Sorin..." An Luo murmured in astonishment. Then the thoughts surging in her mind finally calmed a little, and certain records from memory surfaced. "I have heard this name, in some documents... and in your Cecil newspapers and magazines. I knew there was a 'tree' that had sprung from the ground, huge as a castle... but I always thought that was an exaggeration..."

"That is a euphemism—in fact, half a year ago she was already larger than any castle," Sister Marian shook her head. "But her growth has now slowed to the point of stagnation. Theoretically, she will not expand any further; otherwise we really would have to worry about the entire plains being covered by her canopy... Though to me that would be quite magnificent, the people in the Ministry of Agriculture do not think so."

An Luo watched the scenery outside the window drawing nearer with the mindset of witnessing a miracle, listening to the sister's account. Suddenly she noticed a detail in the other's wording: "'She'? You said that tree..."

"Oh, the reports you saw did not refer to the Great Tree of Sorin as 'she'?" Sister Marian raised an eyebrow. "Well, that is understandable. After all, not everyone knows about Lady Beyla's situation... including those reporters and writers who have filled countless articles about the Great Tree of Sorin."

An Luo was still bewildered: "...?"

This place called Cecil... there were simply too many things impossible to understand.

...

At the crown of the great tree, a cluster of vibrant flowering vines grew out from the branches and leaves. Amid the blossoms and vines, the figure of a young woman gradually took shape.

Beyla guided her human-form mimicry to the edge of the canopy's flat area. On this highest lookout platform of the Holy Spirit Plains, she gazed into the distance toward the border between the mountains and the plains.

In truth, her gazing was meaningless: ever since she had become a plant, her perception had long ceased to be human. She sensed the world through her vast root system and the branches spreading toward the sky, and the human form she had mimicked for herself had no sight at all. Yet on many occasions Beyla still habitually performed this kind of "gazing"—it gave her a sense of fullness.

The artificial brain hidden deep within the canopy's secret chamber was operating vigorously, and the simulated neural signals maintained the stability of Beyla's personality. She drew a deep breath with her mimicked body—the vigorous photosynthesis of the entire canopy lifted her mood.

She "saw" a magic-powered train approaching from the east, already entering the outer edge of the canopy's coverage. The vines set near the station had received the signal and were transmitting the images from there.

Footsteps approached from behind her mimicked body, shoes striking the hard surface of leaves with a sound like steps on concrete. Beyla did not turn around; she knew who stood behind her.