Chapter 1: Ah, to be a tree... You think it'd be boring, right?

He didn't know his name. 

He was sleepy, his mind wandered for moments past as he dreamed of another life- A life of endless suffering and pain mixed with bullshit on the side and sprinkled with a bit of 'oh god fuck why' to finish. 

He didn't consider himself a good person, nor did he consider himself a bad person- He was just a person. 

Which is why he was confused and shocked to wake up trapped in a body that he had no control over! He could only sleep and wake up, sleep and wake up, sleep and wake up! Sure, it was fun the first thirty times, but after the thirty-first time it got boring. He forced himself to stay awake for longer, and the longer he stayed awake, the more he felt- The wind blowing against his hair, his feet resting against something soft and damp, and his body being touched- What the fuck!? This is sexual harassment!

Hey, take your hands off of my wood!

[Maker System has been installed]

[Given daily prize… 1 Maker Copper Ticket]

[Would you like to use it?]

Wait a damn minute- He has a system? Is he in some fucking novel or something? "Eh sure, why not?"

[You've received the F Rank Skill <Flower Make>]

"Huh… Does this work- testing, testing… status?"

[Status]

Name: Root

Species: Spirit Tree

Cultivation Root: Nature [Trash Quality]

Age: 100 years

Qi Realm: Foundation Formation (1st Stage)

Skills - 

F RANK: [Flower Make]

"...that's it?" Damn, he has so little to work with here! "Wait, is that-" He focused a little, in case his mind was playing tricks on him: "Oh no." Qi, he had read it right- Qi! Cultivators, ruthless pig young masters, jade beauties, and ancestors of ancestors coming for revenge! "Can I die again?" Also, he's a tree? That explains so much actually. "Okay, okay… what can I do?" Not much, considering he's a tree! Hey, he has a new skill, so why not look at it? 

[Flower Make

Rank: F

Description: You can make flowers using Qi]

…that's it? Oh man, what will he do with this? Throw flowers at people!? 'Well, flowers can smell nice or not, can be used for pollination, and for… I don't know, making paints?' Well, maybe he can attract insects with his flowers? "Don't some flowers grow into fruits or something like that?" He can make flowers using qi, there's no limitations on the types of flowers he can make, right? "Also, where am I?" He felt a touch on his wood a few moments ago, so he must be in a populated area, right? He tried to "see", but he was a tree, so there was a limitation to his sight- Meaning he had none.

Fuck.

He could feel his body at least! "Okay… how do I cultivate?" He could try to drag qi from the world around him into his body, into his daitaing or something like that- His core? His core, let's call it that! He wasn't very into cultivation novels when he was alive. He had eyes yet he couldn't see mount tai! Oh what an arrogant young master he was, or something like that. "I'm a tree…" How do trees cultivate? He focused, trying to feel the energy around him, only to notice that his body automatically absorbed the energy with his roots and leaves! But it was very slow… maybe it was because he is a tree, or maybe because his cultivating root is trash. 

It says right there- See? [Trash Quality]

"What is this system anyway?"

[The Maker System grants the user the ability to make anything! Skills, Techniques, Cultivating Roots, Life, Treasure, and much, much more.]

"Oh, so I basically can become the possible slave of a family that wants cultivating resources! And I can't even escape because I'm a fucking tree… cool." Yeah, Root is a pessimist guy. "Guess I'll… cultivate or something." He focused, trying to actively pull the energy from the outside as his body breathed, a lot of the energy he pulled was lost, only a little was absorbed, but it was still better than the amount his body naturally absorbed from the outside! 

[Technique detected!]

[Would you like to make it?]

"Sure."

[Tree Breathing Technique 

Rank: F

Description: Breathing like a tree, you draw energy from the heavens and the ground into yourself, this is a slow technique because you draw energy from the roots, bark, and leaves at the same time.]

"Huh…" Well, what else can he do? He kept on cultivating. 

Day 2

[Daily Prize Given!]

[1 Copper Ticket]

[Would you like to use it?]

"Oh finally." He was going to go mad from so much cultivating! He was a human mind, trapped inside a tree's body! He just wants to move his fucking body! 

[You received the B-Rank skill Seed Make]

[Seed Make

Rank: B

Description: By using Qi, you can create seeds from your body, said seeds contain qi and can be used as a resource for cultivating. Upon being in the ground for some time, these seeds give birth to small nature spirits under your control. The growth of these spirits can be accelerated by using [Nature] qi.] 

"I can make children?" Wait, that sounds wrong. Why did he think of them as his children anyway? He wanted to try out the skill, so he just called it out in his mind- He felt a small pop from atop his leaves before something fell to his roots. One seed was made. "Huh, it barely uses any energy." Indeed, it used barely anything! He made another small seed, and then another, and another, and soon after another one. At the same time he kept cultivating, the amount of energy it took to make a seed and the energy he got from his cultivation was almost the same, the energy from producing the seed was greater by maybe an ounce if energy was calculated in weight. 

So he kept doing that, so much so that he stopped counting after the 1000th seed he made! "Oh right." He can also make flowers! He tried out the skill and felt his "hair" itchy for a few moments before a sensation of a breeze blew on his leaves and now flowers. Which flowers did he make? Cherry Blossoms! He imagined a cherry blossom tree and used the skill, which consumed a little bit more of qi than the seed. He kept on making the seeds until he was bored out of his mind, so he stopped and had an idea: What if instead of using a little bit of qi to make one of these seeds, why not use a lot of energy? So that's what he did! He used a lot of energy on a single seed, focusing to not let the seed go until he started feeling dizzy- 

He let it go only when he was feeling sleepy. "Damn, I shouldn't have used so much energy…" But in his defense- He was bored. 

Like that, he went to sleep. 

[E Rank Skill: <Hibernation > has been created]

[Initiating Hibernation]

Year 10

"Ah~" Sighing, Root slowly came to consciousness- That was such a good nap! He has never slept so well before in his life. Slowly, he came to full consciousness- he could have woken up any time while in his nap, but it felt so good that he didn't want to wake up at all! He just kept on sleeping. "Ah, father!" He blinked, answering the male voice that just spoke without even thinking about it: "Yes, son?" He has had dreams in which he has a son or daughter, so this isn't that bad right? "You're finally awake!" Huh, awake? He tried to look around him only to see in the endless blackness of his mind several small green dots! One in front of him was larger, larger and more solid than the other ethereal ones floating around. Also, this one had the form of a small human, while the others had forms from cats, birds, dogs, and other small animals. 

"..." 

What the fuck happened?

[Daily Prize Given!]

[+1 Copper Ticket]

[1 Copper Ticket has fused with 6 Copper tickets]

[+1 Silver Ticket]

[1 Copper Ticket has fused with 3 Silver Tickets]

[+1 Gold Ticket]

[1 Gold Ticket has fused with 11 Gold tickets]

[+1 Diamond Ticket]

[1 Diamond Ticket has fused with 9 Diamond Tickets]

[+1 Platinum Ticket]

[Would you like to use it?]

"Rewind a bit- what the fuck?"

[Status]

Name: Root

Species: Spirit Tree

Cultivation Root: Nature [Trash Quality]

Age: 110 years

Qi Realm: Core Formation (1st Stage)

Skills - 

F RANK: [Flower Make]

E RANK: [Hibernation]

B RANK: [Seed Make]

Techniques - 

F RANK: [Tree Breathing Technique]

Sect - Spirit Forest Sect

Great Ancestor: Root [Core Formation (1st Stage)]

Sect Master: Leaf [Qi Gathering (3rd Stage)]

Members: Unnamed Lesser Nature Spirit (×982)

"Since when did I make a sect!?" He was very confused- Oh shit, he slept for 10 years!? "Father, I made the sect in your honor, when your children started dying at the hands of the beasts of the forest, I gathered them to protect them from great harm." Oh, is that why the number of spirits is lesser than he thought he made? That explains some of it. "Also, father, I'm happy to finally meet you!" Leaf (Who names their kid Leaf? Apparently him!) floated in the void and touched his bark, Root felt it instantly, Leaf's qi interacting with his own qi. It was warm, and for a split instant he felt like he was holding the hands of a child- A small toddler. "Leaf… Tell me, what do you see? Are there any other presences around? People?" 

"Father, the humans, they don't dare come to the forest… A lot of them died by the hands of many beasts." Leaf slowly pulled a strand of Root's qi, almost like a child pulling their parent's clothes, and with a snap, Root could see the world around him. 

[Automatic Mode deactivated.]

[Technique Detected- Would you like to make it?]

'Well, yes.' 

[Mycorrhizal Network

Rank: B

Description: By connecting your qi to the qi of the willing nature around you, you can share qi, nutrients, and even senses!]

The world was suddenly alight with this beautiful pale green light, he could see! It only took about 10 years. 'Oh, I'm in a forest. That's good.' Indeed he was! He was the largest tree too, his canopy dwarfed the other trees around him, seeing as they looked a little sick? Their bark was pale, their leaves were brown and withering too. "What happened to the trees, son?" Quickly accepting the fact that he was a father, Root asked: "Ah, father, there has been a… problem, recently… Nature Qi has started to diminish. It happened 5 cycles ago too, most trees perished, but we worked hard to keep you alive father!" There were other spirits now spinning around his large body- He was bigger and thicker than many trees he has seen in his life! "So this is natural?" 

"I think so? It happened again after 5 years." His son was very smart too, how was he so smart? "I've slept beneath your leaves every day since the day I was born, and your wisdom has taken root in my mind, father." Did he somehow share his memories with the tree buddy? His qi reached out, it left his main body for a moment before reaching out to the other trees around, the moment he touched them the technique [Mycorrhizal Network] activated and he made a connection to the tree, instantly sharing his nutrients and qi with them. 'Huh, it's the same amount of energy it took to make a seed- no, even less.' He quickly connected to several trees, all of them practically cried out in desperation as he reached out to them, only to be silenced in gratitude once he fed them his qi and nutrients, keeping them alive. 

"Father is so benevolent." Through Leaf's eyes, Root saw how the broken and thin trees started to suddenly grow, as if watching a time-lapse of a seed growing, their leaves turned green again and soon they became healthy again. 

'Right.' He remembered the tickets. 'What was that about?'

[Tickets can be fused creating greater tickets that grant greater rewards.

7 Copper Tickets = 1 Silver Ticket

1 Copper Ticket = Reward between F to D

4 Silver Ticket = 1 Gold Ticket

1 Silver Ticket = Rewards between C and B

12 Gold Tickets = 1 Diamond Ticket

1 Gold Ticket = Rewards between A and S

10 Diamond Tickets = 1 Platinum Ticket

1 Diamond Ticket = Rewards between S and SSS

1 Platinum Ticket = Guaranteed S Reward + Rewards between S and EX]

'Oh damn! Use that shit.' 

[You've used a Platinum ticket]

[Congratulations, you've received: 

S Rank Skill: Purification 

SSS Rank Recipe:Tea of Heaven]

'Explanation, please!

[Purification

Rank: S

Description: Through the use of qi and spiritual energy, you can forcefully Purify the root of a cultivator's power- their cultivating root! A purer root leads to a faster and better cultivation, but the process is extremely painful. With this skill you can also purify the qi you use for cultivation, it greatly reduces the amount of qi you may have, but the purity of it will be that of the heavens.

This skill can also purify other things.]

[Tea of Heaven - Recipe

Rank: SSS

Description: The recipe itself is said to have been lost to time, the tea itself? Only those of the Grand Heaven may even have the chance to taste it! Made with pure ingredients and an arduous process, it is almost impossible for someone beneath the Nascent Soul realm to even make this tea.

Ingredients: 

Heavenly Pure Peach of Immortality 

Heavenly Pure Emperor Rose

Heavenly Pure Seed of a Heavenly Tree Spirit 

Heavenly Pure Pearl of Yin Energy

Heavenly Pure Pearl of Yang Energy

Heavenly Pure Spring Water of Great Falls

…]

…damn! It takes 34 ingredients to make this tea!? 'Also, this skill… Finally, I can get rid of this trash cultivation root!' He used the skill [Purification] on himself- He did expect pain, but this much pain!? He immediately snapped his connection to his son because he also noticed his pain was affecting him, he didn't want his son to feel his pain! He gritted his spiritual teeth as he felt the pain slowly fade after what felt like hours. 

But in fact, only 5 seconds had passed.

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Trash Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Very Poor Quality]

…

He used it again. Felt the same pain, but this time he managed to deal with it better! And hey, it didn't feel that bad.

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Very Poor Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Poor Quality] 

He used it again.

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Poor Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Average Quality]

And again.

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Average Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Decent Quality]

And again! 

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Decent Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Good Quality]

Fuck it. Again!

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Good Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Very Good Quality]

He didn't stop.

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Very Good Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Excellent Quality] 

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Excellent Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Legendary Quality]

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Legendary Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Pure Quality]

[Cultivation Root: Nature [Pure Quality] > [Cultivation Root: Nature [Heavenly Pure Quality]

[New Skill Developed: 

F Rank: Pain Resistance 

V

E Rank: Pain Resistance 

V

D Rank: Pain Resistance

V

C Rank: Pain Resistance 

V 

B Rank: Pain Resistance 

V 

A Rank: Pain Resistance

V

S Rank: Pain Resistance]

'...It didn't even hurt!' After the third time, the pain got lesser and lesser, until Root could simply ignore it! He felt terribly tired, sure, and his qi felt like it was a fucking piece of shit inside his mouth, but at least he was done with that! Next thing he did, however, was like setting his own body on fire- He purified his own qi. 'Huh, it feels kinda warm.' He didn't feel any pain, he only felt his qi quantity get less and less, until he had much less qi inside his core, a core which was smaller than a pea! 

"Father, are you alright?" His son came quickly to his side- he quickly noticed the difference in his father's cultivation. He felt like a still lake of pure crystalline waters, while he himself felt like a sludge. He couldn't even tarnish his father's qi with his own! Instead, his father reached out with his pure qi, the very fact that it touched him made him feel his own qi slowly but surely change, as if the impurities in his body were being purged away. "I'm alright son." Root said: "I'm just going to cultivate a little." 

The moment he called out the qi from the outside world into him, he felt a rush of energy just get sucked into his roots, leaves, and bark- Energy that felt thick, thick and slow like a sludge. He used his [Purification] on the qi gathered and slowly it turned into the purest qi ever, although a large quantity of it was going to be lost. So to make sure nothing was going to waste, he shared it with his fellow trees.

They all absorbed the impure qi greedily, as if they were starving for it, and he kept the small amount of purified qi he managed to get. 

And that's how a tree started to become a cultivator.

Status

[Status]

Name: Root

Species: Spirit Tree

Cultivation Root: Nature [Heavenly Pure Quality]

Age: 110 years

Qi Realm: Core Formation (1st Stage)

Skills - 

F RANK: [Flower Make]

E RANK: [Hibernation]

B RANK: [Seed Make]

S RANK: [Purification]

S RANK: [Pain Resistance]

Techniques - 

F RANK: [Tree Breathing Technique]

B RANK: [Mycorrhizal Network]

Sect - Spirit Forest Sect

Great Ancestor: Root [Core Formation (1st Stage)]

Sect Master: Leaf [Qi Gathering (3rd Stage)]

Members: Unnamed Lesser Nature Spirit (×982)

Inventory - 

SSS Rank: Tea of Heaven (Recipe)

'Wait- I have an inventory?'

To be continued?

[author] If you guys want more of this mess, please let me know. This is a test chapter only, maybe I'll edit it in the future. But this is basically the idea! Him having a lot of children (spirits) and cultivating, maybe cooking, making things, and maybe being a grandmaster of a sect?[/author]