Ryan followed the path forward and was soon drawn to an unusually massive tree at the center of the village.

  It was a tree of unknown age, with a trunk so wide that it would take five people to encircle it. Its green branches and leaves spread out like a giant umbrella.

  Most striking was the green magical aura coiling around the trunk, each leaf radiating faint life magic fluctuations.

  Ryan could even sense the magical elements in the air slowly flowing around the tree.

  "Does this tree actually have magical consciousness?" Ryan wondered in surprise. He quietly activated his magical perception, and immediately an information tag appeared for the tree:

  【Tree of Life】

  【Identity: Athena's Magical Consciousness Residue】

  【Magic Tier: Ninth-tier Adept Mage】

  【Magical Weapon: Branches (capable of binding and healing nature magic)】

  Athena's magical consciousness residue? Ryan searched his mind for a long time but could not recall any famous mage on Esoth Continent by that name.

  For a consciousness residue to attach to a tree and survive, the Tree of Life must be truly formidable.

  As he pondered, the Tree of Life suddenly swayed gently, and a branch with fresh sprouts slowly lowered, landing behind Ryan.

  Ryan did not dodge. From the branch, he could sense gentle life magic, completely free of malice.

  He simply sat down on the branch, and as soon as he settled, the branch curled lightly around him, lifting him onto a sturdy fork of the tree.

  At the same time, a green magical barrier enveloped him, and a continuous flow of life magic seeped into his body through the barrier.

  "Is this a gift of nature magic?" Ryan felt a surge of joy and immediately activated Chaosforge Arcana.

  Previously stalled at Third-tier Magic Apprentice, he now began rapidly absorbing the surrounding magical elements under the nourishment of life magic.

  His muscle fibers strengthened continuously in the magical energy, impurities in his bone gaps were gradually removed, and even his weak elemental perception ability slowly improved.

  "Third-tier Magic Apprentice… Fourth-tier… Fifth-tier…"

  He continued until reaching Ninth-tier Magic Apprentice, then stopped.

  Ryan opened his eyes, clenched his fists, and could clearly feel the power surging inside him, at least ten times stronger than before.

  For someone who had mastered Chaosforge Arcana, such a top-level arcane secret, as long as enough magical energy was available, a breakthrough was not difficult.

  He lightly patted the nearby tree branch and said,"Thank you for your gift. I assume you would not help me without reason. Is there anything you need me to do?"

  The Tree of Life swayed slightly, and several branches drooped to the ground, forming a line of words in the soil:

  "I hope you can help the villagers find some edible magical plants or magical beast meat. They are running out of food."

  Reading the words, Ryan understood. The Tree of Life was indeed the guardian of the village.

  "I promise you," he replied decisively.

  "You really are here!" A familiar voice came from beneath the tree. Ryan looked down and saw Barret running over, panting heavily, followed by two villagers in linen clothes.

  "The magical fluctuations of the Tree of Life suddenly grew stronger just now. Did it tell you something?"

  "It used nature magic to help me advance my magical tier," Ryan jumped down from the branch.

  "In return, I will help you find some food. Once that is done, I will leave the village and continue searching for a way out of the forest."

  Hearing this, tears streamed down Barret's face. He trembled as he approached the Tree of Life, knelt on both knees, and bowed deeply to the trunk.

  "You have always protected us, but you cannot move." He choked back his words as he bowed.

  Ryan finally understood. The villagers did not want to leave because they could not bear to part with the Tree of Life, which had protected them for generations.

  After bowing, Barret stood up and wiped his tears."Our village originally had a hunting team. The captain was the only one in the village with first-tier elemental perception, able to use simple magic. But he has not returned for several days, probably attacked by undead creatures."

  "The remaining team members are also missing. Only one member managed to escape, but he was severely corrupted by undead magic and is still unconscious. Even the village's herbal medicine cannot cure him."

  This explained why most of the villagers were so emaciated.

  Without the magical beast meat and enchanted berries brought by the hunting team, the meager ordinary grains that grew sporadically in the fields could not fill their stomachs, let alone provide the energy needed to sustain magical study.

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  The Tree of Life gently swayed its branches, and a tender leaf slowly fell onto Barret's head, as if to comfort him.

  In its residual consciousness, decades ago, this old man had also knelt under the tree in the same way, only back then he had been a child, his face beaming with the excitement of receiving candy, not burdened by today's sorrow.

  "Come with me." Barret wiped his tears and grabbed Ryan's wrist, leading him toward the wooden houses at the edge of the village.

  The branches of the Tree of Life swayed gently behind them. In the empty central square of the village, only its lonely silhouette remained, looking somewhat desolate in the darkening sky.

  After walking about a hundred meters, out of the Tree of Life's magical perception range, Barret stopped, turned, and looked at Ryan seriously:

  "You do not have to follow the Tree of Life's instructions to help us find food. The undead creatures in the forest are too dangerous. Do not risk your life."

  He paused, his voice tinged with a plea:"Tomorrow at dawn, try following the eastern path to find an exit. Go as far as you can. We villagers have long been used to these days; it is not worth your risk."

  After speaking, Barret waved his hand. His hunched figure slowly disappeared into the shadows of the wooden houses. The silhouette stretched long in the twilight, radiating a resigned sadness.

  "Are all the villagers this kind-hearted?" Ryan stood in place, watching the direction Barret had gone, feeling a warmth in his chest.

  He had originally only agreed to find food to repay the Tree of Life's gift, but now he quietly made a decision.

  He would not only find food, but find enough food for the villagers.

  Ryan turned back toward the Tree of Life, leaped up, and landed on the branch he had rested on before. He leaned against the trunk, planning to rest by the tree for the night.

  As the sun sank completely below the horizon, a green aura suddenly lit up around the village. A semi-transparent magical barrier spread from the roots of the Tree of Life, enclosing the entire village.

  It was a natural protective barrier released by the Tree of Life, temporarily blocking the aura of the undead outside, the villagers' only guarantee of safety at night.

  "Tree of Life～Tree of Life～"

  Just as Ryan was about to close his eyes, a voice came from beneath the tree. It was soft and childlike, with a hint of cautious timidity, as if afraid of disturbing something.

  Ryan quietly peeked down and saw a little girl in a faded linen dress, tiptoeing and gently stroking the trunk of the Tree of Life.

  She was about five or six years old, her hair simply tied with a grass string, and unlike the other villagers, her face did not appear sallow but had a healthy pink glow.

  "Tree of Life～Can you let me sit on the branch a little longer? Just a little while." The girl's voice was even softer, her small hands clutching the edge of her dress as if afraid of being refused.

  The Tree of Life swayed lightly, and a living branch with new sprouts slowly lowered, gently wrapping around the girl's waist.

  The girl immediately smiled brightly."Thank you, Tree of Life!"

  The branch gently lifted her into the air, swaying slowly, as if carefully guarding a fragile treasure.

  Ryan sat on the branch, watching this warm scene, filled with curiosity: why were most villagers so frail, yet this little girl looked so healthy?

  He did not make a sound, just watched quietly. The little girl did not notice him in the branch, only laughing as she played, her clear laughter especially pleasant in the quiet night.

  After about fifteen minutes, the little girl suddenly tensed and whispered,"Tree of Life～I should go now, or my mother will worry."

  The branch gently set her back on the ground. She tiptoed and lightly touched the trunk, as if saying goodbye:"Goodnight, Tree of Life～"

  The branch swayed as if in response. Only after the girl's figure disappeared behind the wooden houses did Ryan lean back against the trunk and close his eyes to rest.

  The next morning, when the first rays of sunlight filtered through the branches of the Tree of Life into the village, Ryan woke up.

  He jumped down from the branch and saw the villagers already beginning their daily work. Some carried wooden buckets to the stream at the village edge, while others tended to the sparse crops.

  Most surprising to him, several children in linen clothes were playing with a pile of small stones in the open area at the village entrance.

  Their movements were cautious. Each stone thrown was soft and careful, as if afraid of disturbing something, yet their faces still revealed the curiosity and joy of childhood.

  Ryan jumped down from the Tree of Life and walked toward the children playing at the village entrance. He squatted down and asked softly,"Why are you playing so cautiously?"

  The children instinctively shrank back when they saw the unfamiliar Ryan, their eyes full of caution.

  But when they saw he meant no harm, a little boy with short brown hair and a runny nose spoke first:"The more we play, the hungrier we get."

  Ryan immediately understood. He instinctively patted himself, realizing he had nothing, not even a single berry to give them.

  "I'll go into the forest today to find food. Tonight, you'll get to eat real, delicious roasted magical beast meat. How about that?"

  The children's eyes instantly lit up. There was not the slightest doubt about the truth of his words.

  "Really?" a little girl asked timidly,"Can Mom and Dad eat first? They haven't had meat in a long time."

  "Of course," Ryan said, gently ruffling the girl's hair, smiling warmly."I promise everyone will get enough to eat."

  He chatted with the children for a while longer. From their fragmented words, he could feel the village's hardships even more vividly.

  They had not seen meat for almost a month, surviving on wild vegetables and a few grains. Even the village's only well had recently started yielding slightly bitter water.

  Just then, a commotion arose not far away:"Someone has fainted!"

  Amid the noise, cries of"Mom! Mom, wake up!" could be heard.

  Ryan stood up and looked toward the source of the commotion, shaking his head slightly.

  Survival at the bottom of the magical world was even harder than he had imagined. Without hesitation, he turned and walked toward the outskirts of the village.

  As soon as he left, Ryan began leaving markers. He carved a magical rune into a stone at the village entrance, a return marker.

  Even if someone got lost in the forest, they could follow the rune's magical fluctuation to find their way back to the village.

  Finding food was far more difficult than he imagined. Magical beasts seemed especially scarce in the Mist Forest. After nearly two hours, he had only caught a few small beasts.

  He wondered: why didn't the villagers come out to find food themselves? Even if the hunting team had been in trouble, surely someone could leave the village.

  What he did not know was that, except for First-tier Magic Apprentice Barret, the other villagers were either bedridden from overexertion of magical energy or too weak even to walk, completely unable to enter the dangerous forest.

  The midday sun scorched the land, and the mist in the forest gradually dissipated.

  Ryan's robe was soaked with sweat, and a large patch on his back was torn. He tore off the damaged cloth, tied the magical beasts together, and slung them over his shoulder.

  Just as he was about to return, a blinding blue glow suddenly appeared in the open space ahead. Countless magical runes spun rapidly on the ground, gradually forming a circular teleportation array about two meters in diameter.

  The light at the center of the array flickered, and the runes appeared chaotic. Clearly, the teleportation array was malfunctioning.

  Ryan immediately stopped, holding his breath, and hid behind a large tree, his eyes cautiously fixed on the sudden array.

  In the magical world, a malfunctioning teleportation array often carried immense risk. It could transport someone to a dangerous location.