Volume 4, Chapter 92 – The Elf God

With [Flight] and [Flowing Wind’s Blessing] working in tandem, Fia crossed the Abyss and arrived at the base of the Holy Tree in a very short time.

Just as she had seen from the sky above the Royal Castle, the cracked Holy Tree was still uprooting itself. The upper roots that had been exposed on the surface were now several hundred meters in the air. The pyramid-like root system was slowly being revealed to the people, and the snow-covered flowerbeds below were as if they had been plowed by a giant rake, a chaotic mess of overturned soil, stones, black, white, and green.

The earth trembled violently due to the tree’s unusual movement, and the wall at the back gate of the Royal Castle had completely collapsed under the immense change in the terrain. The sounds of screams and roars from the city filled the air, and even the sky was covered with ominous, high-altitude dark clouds. Although Yelido was leading a group of magic-casters above, using gravity magic in conjunction with natural magic to press the tree back down, their combined mass was clearly no match for it. The gravity magic could only slightly slow its ascent, and the giant vines created by the natural magic were snapped by the tree, unable to even slow it down.

If the being under the Holy Tree was really that ‘Elf God,’ then she had to admit its power was truly off the charts. Even she, using [Strength Boost I], [II], and [III] simultaneously, couldn’t uproot such a massive tree. She would probably have to learn IV and V to even have a chance to try.

Yelido and the mages from the Elf Towers would be fine for a short while. She should go and do what only she could.

Using [Cloud Moon of the Illusory Sea] to hide her figure, Fia passed through the giant vine net created by the mages and pressed her palm against the exposed golden root.

I hope I can still teleport in.

With this prayer in her heart, Fia commanded the tree in the usual way.

To her surprise, the unique trance and floating sensation of teleportation enveloped her entire body, which meant she had successfully activated it.

Even though I killed the Holy Tree’s maiden, it can still acknowledge me?

As this question arose, Fia found that she had already entered the tree. In just a moment, her vision changed from the sacred yet destructive outside world to a pitch-black world filled with a sacred aura.

This was and was not the dim altar.

It sounded mysterious, but it was the truth. Fia did not feel her feet on the ground. If she had to describe it, it was like being in the weightlessness of space, her body floating in a pitch-black, endless void. There were shattered stone blocks all around. From the ancient, faint green elf script engraved on them, one could tell that they were originally the walls and ceiling of the dim altar. But they had been shattered by something, and were now, like her, floating in this dark and chaotic space.

It was like the end of the world.

If an ordinary person were here, their heart would be filled with terror and a sense of loss. But as usual, no negative emotions arose in Fia. She observed her surroundings with an inhumanly calm gaze, an [Illuminate] rising in her hand, the glow of [See Through] shining in her ruby-like eyes.

The pitch-black space was instantly lit up by an incandescent sun, but the scenery before her did not change.

She could use magic. The space was not an illusion.

Fia frowned. Even when she looked as far as she could, she still couldn’t see anything like an end. If she were trapped here, she would have to bombard the place with magic. The Holy Tree was large, but not without its limits. As long as she was still inside, she wouldn’t have to worry about not being able to get out.

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Just as Fia was thinking this, the entire space suddenly changed. The pitch-black world gradually brightened, and soon it was as white as daylight. There were even things like clouds floating around, as if she were in the clouds, in heaven.

Fia had a hint of familiarity with this environment.

When she had seen that giant seaweed in her dream, the world had also been a vast expanse of white like this. It was just that the scene at that time had been more dreamlike and unsteady, not as clear as it was now. But one thing had not changed, and that was the feeling the world itself gave her. Although it was dazzlingly bright, as if she had arrived in heaven, the impression it gave was only one of strangeness.

The rapidly whitening environment made Fia subconsciously close her eyes.

And then.

Click, clack, click, clack, click—

The bizarre sound of gears meshing. This sound was not heavy, but like the sound of a combination lock turning. As it was coming from directly in front of her, Fia subconsciously opened her eyes. And then, her brow rose slightly.

A behemoth had appeared before her.

A giant eyeball, as if it could fill the entire space.

Its diameter was at least as long as that of the main trunk of the Holy Tree. Around it were four nested, overlapping rings. These rings slowly rotated on their own in different directions. What was disgusting was that these giant rings, which were like satellite orbits, were the color of human skin, and on them were countless smaller, bloodshot eyes. A rough look showed that there were at least a hundred of them. They seemed to have a will of their own, blinking slowly at different speeds, all of them staring at her.

If it were another occasion, Fia would have surely thought that this thing covered in bloodshot eyes was a monster and would have tested the waters with a thunder spear. But at this moment, the eyes were emitting a vast, sacred aura. In the back of her mind, Fia had already guessed what this thing was—this was probably the Elf God.

Although it exuded a sense of holiness, its appearance was so horrifying, somewhat like the Thrones in the Old Testament. If it were a person with megalophobia or trypophobia, they would probably have already screamed and fainted.

“Do not be afraid, child.”

Abruptly, a calm female voice sounded in her mind. She subconsciously looked around, but besides herself and this giant eyeball, there was no third life form here. She soon realized that this voice was like [Message], an existence that communicated directly through the will. And she had heard this voice many times before; it was the woman from her dreams.

She looked up and stared directly at the giant eyeball, which was several times larger than her.

“Are you the Elf God?”

“That is correct. I am what the world calls the Elf God, and also your mother.”

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Oh.

Trying to be my mother right off the bat.

Although having a god as a mother should be something to wake up laughing from, she wouldn’t just casually call anyone “mother.” Besides, she was more concerned with how much power a god possessed. To be sealed by a Saint meant that it was not an omniscient and omnipotent being. Its strength might be far less than what outsiders praised it to be.

The Elf God’s calm voice continued.

“Although I still have many things to do, you have freed me from my seal. I must first grant your wish as promised. Speak. What do you desire? Money, power, or strength, I can grant it all to you.”

The Elf God’s voice was incomparably calm. If one didn’t look at its appearance, the voice alone could calm a person down. Coupled with the surrounding environment, which was like heaven, full of clouds, it did indeed have the air of a god. If it had a human appearance, or simply took on the form of a young woman, it would surely be full of affinity.

With these thoughts, Fia asked with an expressionless face.

“Before I make my wish, I have a few questions.”

“Speak. You have freed me from my cage. This is the reward you deserve.”

“How were you sealed here?”

Click, clack, click, clack, click—

The moment her words fell, the four rings rotating around the giant eyeball suddenly accelerated, and it took several seconds for them to gradually slow down. Fia couldn’t help but think that this either represented a great psychological fluctuation in the Elf God, or that it was thinking.

A long while later, Fia felt a stream of information pour into her mind. The Elf God had directly transmitted the events of the past to her. At the same time, it explained in a calm tone, accompanied by the images.

“After the final battle between the gods and the Darkborn ended, the disaster known as chaos swept across the entire world. Both we and the Darkborn were weakened by the final battle and were powerless to resist it. Out of desperation, we had no choice but to move all living things to this continent of exile, to rest and recuperate here.”

“We gods, who have existed since the beginning of the world, have a fundamentally different structure from you. Once we overuse our power, we need thousands of years to recover. At that time, the elf race under my protection was already on the verge of collapse, its civilization wiped out, only able to survive in the form of tribes. To change this situation, I learned from the other gods and created a Saint, hoping that he could change the status of the elf race and make them strong again.”

“That Saint did indeed act according to my hopes. After he established the Elf Kingdom, he proposed to me, who was in a deep sleep, that if a part of my power and Divinity were given to the elf race, they would soon grow and prosper. This way, I could also fall into a deeper sleep with peace of mind and accelerate the recovery of my strength.”

“To achieve this goal requires an unprecedented medium. For this, that Saint created a magic barrier that formed the Holy Tree. The barrier would draw a part of my power and turn it into the tree, which in turn would nourish all living things on the land through its blessings and roots. And if the elf race were to encounter a disaster that was irreversible by human power, they could awaken me through a pre-arranged back door—a ritual. Such astonishing wisdom and talent, even I had to marvel at it. I agreed to his method. As long as I could fall into a deeper sleep, the part of my power I paid was nothing to me.”

“Five thousand years. Although I was constantly awakened by the maidens in between, I often only needed to give them some advice, and they would be able to turn the tide. And I, in my deep sleep, recovered a part of my strength. As I had not seen the outside world for a long time, and could not communicate with the other gods, I wanted to see their situation. However, when I tried to leave this void, I found that no matter how much power I invested, I could not leave.”

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“The Saint had betrayed me. He had taken advantage of my deep sleep to add a sealing barrier here. This dark altar is the sinful product of using my own power to seal me, to turn me into the nutrients of the Holy Tree forever. The mana I invested would all be converted into the power of the tree. And I had not yet recovered to my full strength, which made it impossible for me to break the seal on my own. In this way, my power would be sent to the golden altar above without my consent, nourishing the tree that the Saint had created.”

“The Black-Flamed Monsters you saw are the by-products of the seal converting my power. When I awoke and told the maiden of the Saint’s blasphemous act, the Alexia family not only killed the maiden who tried to make the truth public, but also used the seal even more aggressively, drawing my power. The decrease in my mana is the reason for the gradual withering of the Holy Tree. And now, my child, you have not only weakened the power of the seal for me, but have also contacted me with the Holy Tree Dance. How should I thank you? Even if you are a member of the Alexia family, I will not repay kindness with enmity.”

After the Elf God finished speaking, Fia’s eyes also gradually cleared.

The truth was not as simple as Helian had said. This kind of thing really couldn’t be judged by one side of the story.

The Elf God had summoned the Saint to help the elves, and had cooperated with his idea to nourish them with her own power. However, the Saint had betrayed her and had sealed her in her weakened state. Although from a certain point of view, he was indeed completing the task she had given him, to restore the elf race, she would surely not be willing to do it in this form.

It felt a bit like an AI turning against its human creators.

However, just as she couldn’t completely believe Helian, it was dangerous to completely trust one side of the story. Perhaps the Elf God had also hidden some things. It was better not to think of this as the official history.

“Do you have any other questions?”

Although the Elf God’s tone was still as calm as at the beginning, from the way the four rings surrounding her were rotating rapidly, her heart might not have been so.

“I want to know who the other gods are. Are they all like you?”

“I can no longer contact them. I don’t know if they are still alive. The forms of us gods are varied. There are also gods like the Goddess of White Night and the Goddess of Life, who choose to communicate with you in your form. My time is short, child. Hurry and tell me your wish.”

“Time is short…” Fia vaguely felt a sense of unease. She continued to ask, “I have one last question. After you get out, how will you treat the current elf race and the Alexia family?”

“The elf race was born of me. They have betrayed me and have no right to continue to exist. But you are an exception. I will make you the Elf Queen, the ruler of this land.”

The giant eyeball of the Elf God stared at Fia. Vaguely, she could feel a sense of appreciation.

But she frowned. If it were to have the elf race worship this god again, she could allow it. After all, she had indeed nourished them and should be respected. However, to have no right to continue to exist meant to wipe out the elf race and the Alexia family. She could not allow such a thing to happen.

“Hey, the object of your revenge should be the Saint and the king who killed the maiden back then. It has nothing to do with the elf race and the Alexia family. They are not the main culprits, and they are completely unaware of the past.”

“The elves are not worthy of pity. It is time to say your wish, child.”

The moment the Elf God’s words fell, Fia felt the surrounding air become tense. She seemed unwilling to say more.

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Fia had no choice but to place her hand on the two swords Claire had given her, maintaining a posture where she could act at any moment.

“What if my wish is for you to let go of the elf race and the Alexia family?”

“Even a wish should have its limits. I will not agree to such a wish.”

As expected.

“Then what if I want you to help me lift a curse? Since you could sense that I was helping you break the seal, you should also be able to feel that there is another person by my side who is also helping you.”

“I will not help an outsider. She does not belong to this world. Her very existence will destroy the rules of the world’s operation. After I have dealt with the elves, I will go and deal with her.”

“Oh…”

Not only could she not solve Claire’s curse, but she also wanted to lay a hand on her. For two wishes not to be granted, this god was a bit too useless.

No, it should be said that to be sealed by a great magic barrier that could be created by a person, this god had already fallen from its pedestal. The reason a god was called a god was because it was full of the unknown and infinite possibilities. Once it truly appeared before a person and showed its limits, it was just a more powerful life form. Just as when the tech tree surpassed a certain level, in the eyes of a backward civilization, it was like magic. A god was just a title people gave to the strong.

The scruples in her heart gradually dissipated. Fia asked with a smile.

“You won’t take back these two decisions, no matter what?”

“A god will not take back their will.”

“Then there is only one choice left between us.”

“What do you mean?”

“You have your revenge to take, and I have what I must protect. The two are in conflict. There can only be one winner.”

As she spoke, a series of blue-purple lightning flashes appeared in her hand. At the same time, a large expanse of gold and a fiery red that illuminated the clouds appeared behind her.

“Let’s see who is stronger, a so-called god, or me!”