“Huang Elf?”
Guan Kelai’s expression instantly shifted upon hearing Yun Ruoxi’s request, revealing a flash of anger. “You want me to contact those Soil Worms? Don’t even think about it! Not a chance!”
Zi Jiu was startled by Guan Kelai’s intense reaction. “Just what kind of grudge do you have against them? You’re clearly almost identical except for your skin color, yet you can’t coexist at all.”
“What grudge?” Guan Kelai raised an eyebrow as if he had heard a joke. “How can a bunch of worms living underground, a bunch of low-blooded worms, coexist with us, the Tree God’s people!”
Beside him, Genbeier nodded repeatedly in full agreement.
[I get it, it’s a matter of faith.]
[Earth God and Tree God, but trees have to be planted in soil, right? I don’t get how they became enemies.]
Seeing Guan Kelai’s reaction was so intense, Zi Jiu was momentarily at a loss, not knowing how to persuade him.
She could only turn her head to look at Yun Ruoxi.
Yun Ruoxi, however, simply took a calm sip of water and asked Guan Kelai: “Just tell me if you have a way or not.”
As a result, Guan Kelai, who had been so reactive just a moment ago, suddenly stiffened. He revealed a fawning smile and nodded.
“I do, I do, I…” He swallowed, seemingly finding it difficult to speak. “I’ve done business with their military department before.”
“See!” Yun Ruoxi shot such a look toward Zi Jiu.
If she didn’t know what kind of character Guan Kelai was, how could she have proposed such a plan? Among the Green Elves, many indeed loathed the Huang Elves, like Genbeier.
But there were also those who, despite their loathing, would establish contact for the sake of profit.
Guan Kelai was exactly that kind of person.
In the original plot, he had contacted the Huang Elf military according to Jiguang’s requirements. The two sides collaborated to attack the King City.
Of course, Guan Kelai back then was acting for his own benefit. In his cooperation with Jiguang, his ambition had been continuously magnified.
He believed that once everything was over, he could become the new royalty of the Green Elves with Jiguang’s support.
But now, he was simply being intimidated by Yun Ruoxi.
So, even though Jiguang had been so easily subjected to Elimination by Yun Ruoxi, in reality, they were only slightly weaker in terms of personal strength. In terms of strategy and manipulating people’s hearts, they were far superior to other Battle Camps.
After gaining control over Guan Kelai and utilizing the strength of the Green Elf military, they had become the strongest faction. Even Mo Yuan would have found it somewhat difficult to contend with them.
However, that was only the plot in the original script. The current plot had already been messily altered by Yun Ruoxi. She hadn’t expected to encounter the two powerful enemies she was supposed to meet much later in the story—Heiguang and Jiguang—and then essentially eliminate them both.
[Why were you so haughty before and so humble now?]
[Guan Kelai’s face-changing skills aren’t inferior to Chameleon Xi’s.]
[Being scared like this really makes me more curious about how Xiao Xi threatened Guan Kelai before.]
“Then it’s settled. Once we reach the King City, you will take us to contact the Huang Elf high-ranking officials.” Zi Jiu instructed solemnly.
Though Guan Kelai was still somewhat reluctant, he nodded obediently.
However, at that moment, Genbeier said with a face full of anger: “You really are a lowly noble!”
“A commoner like you dares to insult me?”
Guan Kelai’s face turned yellow with rage at Genbeier’s words. His right hand pointed at Genbeier, his fingers trembling as he ordered: “Who gave you the nerve? Someone, drag him down and expose him to the sun until he dies!”
But after he finished speaking, he realized that he was no longer the high-and-mighty noble he once was. He withdrew his head dejectedly and fell into a gloomy silence.
Seeing him like this, Genbeier spat on the ground and didn’t bother to insult him further.
“Genbeier, do you not want to cooperate with the Huang Elves?” Yun Ruoxi turned and asked.
Seeing that it was Yun Ruoxi asking him, Genbeier immediately hesitated. After several seconds, he gritted his teeth and nodded. “Miss, the Huang Elves are just a bunch of lowly, untrustworthy worms and rats. I’m truly afraid they will deceive you.”
“Is that so?” Yun Ruoxi nodded, then suddenly asked, “Have you ever met a Huang Elf? According to what you said yourself, you’ve never participated in any hunting operations.”
“No.” Genbeier shook his head.
“Then if you’ve never met them and never interacted with them, how do you know they are lowly and untrustworthy?” Yun Ruoxi asked with a look of confusion.
Genbeier was stunned by Yun Ruoxi’s question. If it were Guan Kelai or any other Green Elf asking him this, he could have come up with ten thousand reasons to answer. Or he would have just started cursing.
But this was Yun Ruoxi, his master, asking him. He was forced to actually think about it.
After a long while, he muttered an uncertain answer: “Since I was a child, everyone said so. The nobles said so, the King said so, and the Tree God guards said so too. One person might be wrong, but it’s impossible for everyone to be wrong, right?”
The more he spoke, the more certain he became, as if he had convinced himself.
Yun Ruoxi nodded noncommittally. “Then when we make contact with the Huang Elves later, you can interact with them and confirm for yourself exactly who was wrong.”
[Stereotypes are deadly.]
[Hearing this, I feel like the hatred between the two races is entirely manufactured.]
[That’s what happens when you’re brainwashed from childhood, no way around it.]
Genbeier hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
Beside them, Guan Kelai heard their conversation and let out a sneer, but after being glared at by Yun Ruoxi, he behaved himself again.
***
After traveling at high speed through the root passages for another ten hours, Yun Ruoxi and the others finally slid out of the tunnel opening.
But this time, they weren’t at a transfer station; they had reached the end of this branch of the root passage.
Tree God City.
This was a city built to commemorate the Tree God, and it was the capital of the Green Elves. The King City, where the King and the ministers resided, was located within this city—a city within a city.
Those who could reside in Tree God City might not have been nobles for three generations, but if you went back ten generations, there would definitely be nobility in their lineage. Therefore, not a single commoner could be seen in the city.
In this situation, Genbeier’s appearance was very eye-catching. As long as he appeared on the streets, he could be seized by guards to check his Tree Citizen Card.
Fortunately, Guan Kelai had a carriage. Genbeier could hide inside it; as long as he didn’t leave the carriage, he didn’t have to worry about being caught.
The waiter respectfully cracked the amber crystals. With the driver’s assistance, the exotic beast was hitched to the carriage frame, and they were soon sent out of the hall.
As soon as they left the underground hall, a bustle unique to a large city reached everyone’s ears.
Unlike other cities, Tree God City did not rely entirely on giant trees to build houses and divide different districts. In fact, a large part of it was on the ground.
Of course, this might also be because Tree God City was so large that it was difficult to find that many giant trees clustered together.