Wizard: I brought the wrong system.

Chapter 469 The Sacred Solitude

Yaro noticed the difference in focus between Heri and Bard.

What Heri cared about was whether Yaro was injured.

But Bard was concerned about whether the Wind Dragon Armor would malfunction.

Yaro knew that Bard's actions were actually understandable, as the Wind Dragon Armor was related to his future. Moreover, when Yaro was at a disadvantage, Bard also rushed out to support him. Although he was stopped by Yaro, it did not mean that he had not fulfilled his duty.

But this slight difference ultimately left a mark on Yaro's heart.

He pondered to himself, "I'm training Bard for immediate combat power. If the Witcher is willing to join, could we postpone training immediate combat power and focus on training those who are loyal to us?"

Of course, this was just a preliminary idea. Since he had already agreed to Bard's request, Yaro was not going to go back on his word.

Moreover, helping Bard master 'Blood Frenzy' would not only enhance his personal strength, but also set an example for others to aspire to and emulate, so it's not without its benefits.

After resting for a day in Lan'er Village, he left some manuscripts on pure mathematics and structure that he had obtained from Ian Boone as teaching materials for Heri, and also gave Bard some pointers on some problems he encountered during his training.

The next morning, Yaro left Lan'er Village and ventured deep into the Tree Spirit Forest, where he once again found the towering oak tree spirit.

"Good morning, Grandma Oak." Yaro bowed respectfully.

Grandma Oak smiled kindly and said, "Good morning, little wizard Yarrow. I hadn't heard from you in so long, I thought you didn't need that bat cave anymore."

Grandma Oak promised five days, but ten days have passed, so there's a reason she said that.

"I'm so sorry, Granny Oak, I've been held up by some things lately. I'm very sorry for breaking our promise for so long."

"It's not really breaking my promise, it's only five days. I can just take a nap."

Grandma Oak added, "By the way, try this cup of tea. I specifically had the deer test the temperature this time, so the same mistake as last time won't happen again."

Before he finished speaking, the small tree next to him trembled slightly and bloomed a large jasmine flower once again.

Yaro accepted the enormous flower and said gratefully, "Thank you very much. Um... Also, I have prepared a gift especially for you. I hope you can forgive my rudeness."

“A gift? That’s wonderful! This is the first gift I’ve received since becoming an oak tree, and I’m really looking forward to seeing it,” Granny Oak said with a smile.

"It's nothing valuable, I hope you won't be disappointed after seeing it."

As he spoke, Yaro took out a beautifully wrapped gift box from his pocket and handed it to a drooping branch.

"How could I be disappointed? Even if you sent an empty box, the act of giving a gift itself is enough to make me happy."

As Grandma Oak spoke, she deftly opened the gift box with her branches.

When the gift box was opened, she couldn't help but be slightly taken aback.

Inside the gift box was a magnificent painting, more than three meters wide, woven from intertwined grass stems and moss. The plants were still thriving and exuding a fresh fragrance.

And in the painting.

A huge and sacred oak tree stands in the center of the vast forest.

The oak tree has a thick and strong trunk, with branches that stretch out in all directions like huge arms, broad and powerful. Its foliage is as dense as clouds, forming a huge green canopy. Sunlight filters through the gaps in the leaves, creating dappled patterns that illuminate the green lawn beneath the tree.

The whole picture is full of mystery and solemnity, seemingly depicting a sacred and benevolent forest god.

Grandma Oak was awestruck by the magnificence and majesty of the oak tree in the painting, and her large, millstone-sized eyes widened in shock.

She shook the withered branches and muttered in disbelief, "Is this... a painting of me?"

It's not that they don't look alike; they do resemble her by about 60%, and as for more... their spirit is quite similar too.

That's normal. Drawing is about expressing your thoughts, feelings, and opinions by manually drawing and constructing images, using elements such as color, lines, and shapes.

If it's exactly the same, that's called a replica, so how can it be called a work of art?

How could it possibly evoke different feelings and associations in the viewer?
Grandma Oak gazes at the oak tree in the painting, as if she sees her own shadow cast on that majestic trunk.

Her thoughts drifted back to the years after she became an oak tree.

When an old fairy died, her skin gradually became rough and hardened, her fingers gradually extended and forked into branches, and her hair transformed into slender tree branches.

Squirrels often leaped and played on her branches, rabbits used to nap on her roots, and some birds often sang on her branches, their melodious songs once her favorite tunes.

Unfortunately, as she grew larger, the magic power accumulating within her also grew stronger. The ordinary animals gradually dared not approach her anymore. However, she was unwilling to use her magic to force those spirits of nature, so she could only separate her branches, transform them into new trees, and repeat the process.

However, as time went on, the area covered by her magic grew larger and larger, and the number of ordinary animals around her gradually decreased, replaced by the lurking presence of some demons.

Feeling conflicted and helpless, she decided to give up further expansion, shrink her territory, and use only a few weak branches to perceive the outside world, thus merging into the cycle of nature.

"Sacred...should be solitude," Granny Oak murmured to herself.

Yaro didn't know why Granny Oak could see the charm of loneliness in her "beautified" painting.

But he also understood that "there are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand readers' eyes," and what Granny Oak was looking at was not that "beautiful" painting.

She was looking at herself.

"Is holiness inherently lonely?" Yaro murmured.

"Oh?" Granny Oak turned her head and looked at her. "Why do you say that?"

I just said it offhand, what do you mean by saying this or that?

But this didn't stump Yarrow.

For reading comprehension, if you don't know the answer, you have to make up a few sentences. Making up sentences might get you some points, but if you don't, you get nothing.

“Because holiness represents purity and unattainability. Purity also means there is no external interference, a pure and unadulterated existence. And unattainability means that no one can interfere with it even if they want to,” Yaro analyzed earnestly.

"With your eloquence and charm, you're sure to captivate many young human girls," Granny Oak joked.

She greatly admired Aro's wisdom and understanding.

Given her life experiences, how could she not know that even when telling the truth, there can be different ways of expressing it?

Yaro shrugged, unconcerned.

"What's the name of this painting?" Granny Oak asked curiously.

"The name of the painting?"

Yaro paused for a moment, then explained, “Grandma Oak, you should be able to tell, right? This painting is entirely composed of various tiny plants. Even with careful cultivation, it’s difficult to preserve for long. That’s why I didn’t think of giving it a name in the first place.” Different plants have different lifespans, but if all the plants wither, the overall color of the painting will change drastically.

This was never a painting that could be preserved for long.

"Was it created using wood-based magic?" Granny Oak suddenly asked.

“You’ve figured it out,” Yaro said with a smile. “But don’t misunderstand, this painting was indeed created by me using wood-type magic, but the content of the painting is a work that I have carefully conceived.”

Whether it's oil painting, murals, or watercolor, isn't painting simply about using different materials and methods to express personal ideas?

“Little wizard, don’t worry, I’m not criticizing you. On the contrary, I really love this kind of painting. It shows the beauty of nature and is full of vitality. Both the material and the content exude a unique charm.”

Grandma Oak paused, sighed softly, and continued, "Isn't it a great pity that such a beautiful work has no name and can't even be mentioned in its own right in the future? Perhaps we should give it a special name to highlight its uniqueness and charm?"

"Since your mother-in-law likes it, then let her name it. This was originally a gift for you."

"In this case……"

Grandma Oak pondered for a moment, then looked back at the painting: "How about calling it 'The Lonely Oak'?"

Yaro was somewhat surprised: "A solitary oak? Shouldn't it be a sacred oak?"

You see, to make the painting look more sacred, he spent a lot of time last night pulling his hair out, recalling fragmented memories from his past life.

Grandma Oak sighed softly and smiled calmly, "But what you just said is also very true, 'True holiness is solitude.' Conversely, holiness that mingles in the dust is not true holiness; at most, it is just an evil god."

Actually, this oak tree can't even be called 'lonely'; it's only because your drawing skills are so exquisite that it barely qualifies for the word 'lonely'.

Evil gods have never had a good reputation among wizards.

Granny Oak compared this painting... or rather, herself, to an 'evil god'.

This shows how much influence the painting had on Granny Oak.

Yaro, however, did not consider such a profound point and simply replied, "You flatter me. I merely expressed my feelings upon first meeting you through painting."

“That’s a lie,” Granny Oak said with a smile.

amount……

Almost forgot!

“At most, only a tiny bit was added…” Yaro gestured slightly, ““Artistic embellishment!”

“Very well, this great artist…” Granny Oak teased, “I can sense a very clear residual wood-elemental magic in this painting. I’m certain it was created in no more than a day. So, this great artist, could you teach me the techniques used to create this painting?”

Then, Granny Oak added seriously, "Don't misunderstand, I just want to learn how to preserve this painting for a longer time, such as by touching up the colors or by directly copying it. I don't want to pry into any of your secrets. If it's inconvenient for you, you can refuse to answer."

Yaro's choice of this gift was intended to demonstrate that he had mastered the wood-type void magic, and to show that he was indeed learning "Summoning Treant Guardians" step by step, as promised.

He truly hadn't expected that Granny Oak would not only have no reaction to his mastery of wood-based void magic, but would instead value this ordinary botanical painting so highly.

what is this?
Buying the casket and returning the pearl?

"Of course, but if we're talking about teaching... I really don't know how to teach. I'll demonstrate for you and you'll understand."

Grandma Oak became interested. "Do you want to paint a picture now? Do you need me to prepare anything for you?"

"No need to bother."

As Yaro spoke, he closed his eyes and briefly recalled the feeling of painting last night.

Then put your hands together.

Snapped!
Yaro opened his eyes.

"All right!"

Grandma Oak: What happened?
“Look at my palm,” Yaro reminded him.

The old oak tree viewed humans much like humans view kittens. After hearing Yaro's reminder, the old oak tree narrowed her eyes into slits and intently observed Yaro's outstretched palm.

After examining it carefully for a while, Granny Oak finally spoke with some hesitation: "When did a picture of a tree appear on your palm? Was it prepared in advance?"

"of course not."

Yaro shook his head, tore off the vines stuck to his palm, and then grasped the back of his left hand with his right hand. He then closed his eyes and said, "Look carefully at my palm."

In just a moment, a gentle magical power enveloped her exposed left hand. Granny Oak saw it clearly and muttered in confusion, "Growth spell? Didn't you practice it properly? Why is it so intermittent?"

Then, in that moment of distraction, Yaro's palm transformed into a shape she couldn't comprehend.

—A delicate vine of three colors intertwined and grew along the intermittent magical power of the propagation technique, and in the blink of an eye, the technique transformed into a brand new tree painting.

"How can this be?"

Grandma Oak blinked repeatedly, her millstone-sized face even bringing a cool breeze, yet the scene before her remained unchanged.

She couldn't help but ask, "How did you do that?"

Yaro looked completely innocent: "After I mastered how to manipulate wood-type void magic, I discovered that I could do this kind of thing. Then I tried it out, and it really worked."

Why do birds fly?
Isn't it enough to just spread your wings?
Why do fish swim?
Isn't it enough to just jump into the water?

How can I get a perfect score on an exam?

Just write the correct answers on the test paper.

Don't ask, it's common sense.

Moreover, what Yarrow said was all true.

Because he truly learned how to draw with his palms once he mastered how to activate 'wood-type void magic'.

—Having mastered '遁甲' (遁甲, a type of martial arts technique), one naturally also gains the ability to manipulate '木系虚空魔力' (wood-type void magic) and '手掌作画' (painting with the palm).

"Grandma Oak, you see, I don't know how to teach you either. How about... you practice more?"

Yaro suggested in a low voice.

(End of this chapter)