Elemental Magnetic Star

Chapter 139 Terra Grove and Ocean Grove

When WeeStick awoke, it found itself in an unfamiliar room, but the comforting presence of Raina Grace nearby was reassuring. "Where is this, Raina?"

"You're awake? This is Flame Wave's home," Raina looked down at it. "I'm sorry for bringing you here without your consent."

WeeStick slowly flew around, exploring: "It's okay, I no longer wanted to stay in the Azure-White Forest. This place is nice."

"You didn't like the Azure-White Forest anymore?" Raina remembered Azure Phoenix mentioning that WeeStick felt close to the Azure-White Forest. "Now, it seems Azure Phoenix can't leave there. Nothing I say seems to work."

"What? You tried to convince Azure Phoenix to leave the Azure-White Forest?" WeeStick seemed genuinely alarmed. "Please don't!"

"What's wrong?" Raina was puzzled. "Of course, Azure Phoenix is still in the Azure-White Forest. But why can't it leave?"

"I... because..." WeeStick struggled to find the words. "Just that Azure Phoenix must stay in the Azure-White Forest."

Raina had long sensed the Azure-White Forest's effect on WeeStick and Azure Phoenix. She wondered whether something had happened to them in the forest or if there was something wrong with the place itself. The Azure-White Forest remained a mystery to Raina, especially after the day she nearly got dragged into an unknown realm by a mysterious force and saw that eerie, soul-capturing Fade Jade Tree.

WeeStick and Azure Phoenix seemed to know something but either deliberately hid it or couldn't speak of it. Raina had hoped that after the scare, WeeStick would confide in her. However, apart from the initial incoherent sentences, it had remained silent.

"WeeStick, is there something you need to tell me, about the Azure-White Forest and Azure Phoenix?" Raina decided to press it directly. "I want to know. Don't forget our original purpose in coming to the Celestial Domain."

"We went to the Sky Domain and then to the Celestial Domain, wasn't it partly because of me? You only remember Azure Phoenix," WeeStick sulked.

"Of course, it's also because of you. I haven't forgotten our promise to the Ancestral Tree." The Terra Grove species had placed all their hopes on WeeStick; perhaps it also felt the heavy burden of responsibility?

"No, no, I didn't mean that." WeeStick seemed startled, panicking and retreating far back before flopping down on a chair. "Stop thinking about those so-called promises, Raina. It's not worth it."

"How come?" Raina felt WeeStick was behaving even more strangely. "Isn't this what the Terra Grove species has always sought?"

"Why should a tree long for freedom?" WeeStick questioned. "Isn't it good to just be a tree?"

"Huh? You're not ordinary trees; you were trees that could walk, right?" Raina felt as if the roles had reversed, with her now arguing in defense of freedom.

"Yes, we were trees that could roam around. But because we were discontent and wanted to fly, we were punished to never move again," WeeStick said with a tone of loss.

Suddenly, Raina remembered the scenes she saw in the Illusory Splendor of the Gold-Silver Sea: groups of graceful and elegant Ocean Groves, drifting slowly in the depths of the endless sea...

"Are Terra Groves actually descendants of the Ocean Grove species?" she suddenly asked.

"Is... it?" WeeStick's initially affirmative 'is' ended in a questioning 'it?', and then it peeked out from behind the chair to look at Raina.

Ignoring it, Raina's mind was in turmoil, and her headache began to intensify, as if something was trying to break through but couldn't find a way out, causing chaos in her mind.

"Raina, what's wrong?" Noticing Raina clutching her head in pain, WeeStick flew to her side in concern.

"My head hurts..." Raina moaned in agony.

"Headache..." WeeStick didn't understand what a headache was like and could only anxiously circle around. "What should we do?"

"I don't know..." Raina, who had never experienced headaches before, had no remedy and could only bump her head against the bedpost. The bed shook slightly from the impact, but this physical reaction obviously couldn't alleviate the turmoil in her mind. WeeStick flew anxiously around Raina, unable to comprehend her pain but unwilling to just watch her suffer.

As Raina's pain became almost unbearable, she tried closing her eyes, but the chaos in her mind only intensified. She felt as if she were caught in an endless dark vortex, unable to escape. The headache made it nearly impossible for her to think or concentrate.

At that moment, a pair of warm hands gently touched Raina's forehead, followed by a soft energy flowing from the palms into her body. Raina's body trembled slightly, feeling the energy moving through her, seemingly repairing something.

Gradually, Raina felt the headache lessen significantly, and the chaos and pain began to fade. She opened her eyes to see Flame Wave standing beside her, hand still on her forehead, eyes full of concern and worry.

Seeing Raina feeling better, Flame Wave smiled gently, removing her hand from Raina's forehead, leaving a lingering warmth. "It seems something in your mind was trying to break free, causing the headache. I just used some energy to help stabilize you."

Raina nodded, half-understanding, absorbed in the surprise of Flame Wave's return: "Thank you, Flame Wave, you've pulled me back once again."

"What Flame Wave?" WeeStick flew in front of Raina's eyes. "Your headache is gone? But why are you talking nonsense now?"

"Talking nonsense?" Raina was confused, looking around the empty room where there was no sign of Flame Wave. "Flame Wave didn't come back?"

"Flame Wave came back?" WeeStick was also confused. "Where? I didn't see."

Raina realized she had experienced a hallucination. But she distinctly felt her headache was healed by a gentle force; was that also an illusion? She felt deeply disappointed.

Unable to understand, she decided to put it aside for now. Her mind felt empty again, with only fragments of Ocean Grove and the endless sea remaining. She tried to grasp something from them before they disappeared completely. "You know about the Ocean Grove species, right? Tell me." Raina insisted, determined that together they could make some discoveries.

"I only know a little bit." WeeStick no longer wanted to hide. "Just like you said, we Terra Groves are actually a branch of the Ocean Grove species that came ashore. But once ashore, we were immobilized, which is why we've always longed to return to freedom."

"Why come ashore only to be trapped?" Raina pressed further. "Were you deceived or tempted?"

WeeStick didn't expect Raina to hit the nail on the head so precisely: "You're right, someone told us that from then on, we could move freely between heaven and earth, become omnipotent. Sadly, it was all a disaster."