Under the gray, overcast sky, Zhang Cheng walked alone through the lush forest.
After Impart delivered him to the heart of the Elf Kingdom, he had returned to Dragon Isle. Fortunately, before leaving, Impart cast a teleportation spell to send Zhang Cheng right into the center of the Elf Forest.
According to Impart, the elves had an enormous range of perception within their forest. The moment he entered, he was very likely to be detected by the long-eared folk. Having had previous conflicts with the elves, Impart considered that his presence might complicate Cecilia’s healing, so he absolutely refused to intervene any further.
Zhang Cheng knew this was just a convenient excuse Impart came up with, but he wisely didn’t expose it.
Judging by the dragon’s prior arrogance, there was no way they would back down just because they feared trouble. The fact that Impart returned to Dragon Isle now meant he had matters far more important than escorting Lu Qiuchen to attend to.
From Impart’s earlier words, Zhang Cheng deduced that he was currently preparing to ascend to the Star Rank.
But Impart had also mentioned when on Dragon Isle that he was entrusted by Odyn with responsibility for Lu Qiuchen’s treatment outcome. The fact that Impart dared to let go so boldly now indicated he had great confidence in the promise given by that Grand Elf Mage.
Impart’s attitude rubbed off on Zhang Cheng, gradually easing his own nervousness and bolstering his confidence in the success of this mission.
After bidding farewell to Impart, Zhang Cheng used the game map to determine his direction and pressed deeper into the forest.
There lay his destination—the capital of the Elf Kingdom, Baywater.
The elves’ spiritual totem resided within this city.
From the game system’s attached map, the Elf Kingdom’s territory was even larger than the Letaqino Empire of the Southern Continent. In the Eternal World, it ranked only behind the Orc Kingdom in land area, making it the world’s second-largest nation.
Zhang Cheng had previously learned from the game’s background data that the Elf Kingdom was home to four elf tribes: High Elves, Light Elves, Forest Elves, and the Drow, who had long since rebelled and left the kingdom.
Among human scholars familiar with elves, it was known that High Elves were directly born from the sacred tree of the Elf Forest, the elves’ holy land. They were the progenitors of all elves and held the highest status in elven society. All past Elf Queens were chosen from among the High Elves.
However, High Elves had one fatal flaw: they found it very difficult to produce offspring through natural birth. Though their lifespans were longer than other elves, relying solely on the sacred tree to birth them meant their numbers remained very scarce.
The Forest Elves, who diverged from the High Elves, had a relatively higher birth rate and formed the most important component of elven society.
Unlike the majority of High Elves who lived deep within the Elf Forest at the kingdom’s core, the Forest Elves—who made up the vast majority of the population—were usually scattered across the expansive Elf Kingdom territory in clan units.
Forest Elves were generally peaceful and calm by nature, hardworking and diligent. A clan with a few thousand elves could sustain itself entirely on its own. This situation caused clans far from the kingdom’s center to be quite insular, each clan practically functioning as a small state.
As for the last elven race—the Light Elves—information about them in human society was very scarce. Even the most knowledgeable players had uncovered little useful data about them.
Zhang Cheng had always been curious about this mysterious race and had taken the chance just before entering the Elf Forest to ask Impart about them.
“In elven origin legends, the Light Elves appeared relatively late. They were born when the sacred tree was bathed in dazzling sunlight. Bloodline-wise, they are pure elves, but… ahem, this involves another secret. Knowing this won’t help Cecilia’s treatment right now; it might even backfire. When the time is right, you’ll understand.”
Impart wore a mysterious expression that successfully piqued Zhang Cheng’s curiosity but refused to elaborate, which left Zhang Cheng quite frustrated.
“Compared to the very rare High Elves, the Light Elves are even scarcer. As far as my people know, a thousand years ago, there was only one Light Elf clan in the entire Elf Kingdom, and that situation likely hasn’t changed much.”
“This Light Elf clan carries the surname Maya. Though they, like the High Elves, were born from the sacred tree and look basically the same, Light Elves are easy to distinguish from the other two tribes.”
“Excluding the Drow, Light Elves share the basic physical traits of other elves, but they have a pair of thin, translucent wings like cicada wings on their backs. This is their greatest difference. With these wings, Light Elves can soar through the sky without using magic.”
“In the Elf Kingdom, the High Elves oversee governance; Forest Elves excel at connecting with plants and fight alongside treants to defend their homeland; and the Light Elves are better at dealing with animals. Those so-called unicorns of the elves are actually a delicacy… and, like treants, are good companions cared for and raised by the Light Elves.”
Impart’s face showed a hint of nostalgia, but Zhang Cheng suspected he was actually swallowing his saliva.
Uh… Could it be that the rift between the two races arose because dragons liked hunting unicorns, which angered the elves?
Based on Impart’s swallowed saliva and his accidental slip of the tongue, Zhang Cheng silently speculated.
But the sudden sound of something piercing the air interrupted Zhang Cheng’s thoughts. His senses instantly tensed as he twisted and flipped aside, narrowly dodging a high-speed projectile.
When Zhang Cheng stopped and looked sideways, heart pounding, he saw an arrow shaft lodged in the ground right along the path he had been walking. It had recently rained here; the front half of the arrow shaft was tilted, sunk into the soft soil.
A rough glance told Zhang Cheng that the shooter hadn’t intended to kill him—the arrow was more a warning. Otherwise, it would have been fully buried in the mud and not stuck out on the ground ahead of him.
“Guardians of the forest, please forgive my uninvited arrival. I request permission to enter Baywater.”
Zhang Cheng raised both hands where he stood, showing the apparently elven beings hidden in the shadows that he bore no ill will, and spoke in the Elven tongue.
He had long anticipated encountering the elves’ guard squad here—after all, going further would soon bring him to the Elf Kingdom’s capital, Baywater.
After speaking, Zhang Cheng looked around but saw no elves emerge.
“No matter how you arrived here, return immediately! Baywater welcomes no outsiders. If you proceed further, the next arrow will aim for your head!”
Voices, neither clearly male nor female, rang out from all directions, making it impossible for Zhang Cheng to guess their locations. As the harsh elven warning fell, Zhang Cheng felt countless eyes watching him, causing a chill to creep up his spine.
After confirming that his interlocutors were indeed the forest’s guardian elves, Zhang Cheng quickly took out an unknown seed resembling a pea from his game inventory and shouted aloud:
“This is a token bestowed upon me by ‘Archmage’ Victor Wisviva. I have very important business in Baywater.”
No sooner had Zhang Cheng finished speaking than an elven ranger clad in leather armor nimbly leapt down from the treetops ahead and landed just a few steps in front of him, eyes fixed tightly on the pea-like seed in his hand.
Until this ranger revealed himself, even with the game system’s scanning, Zhang Cheng had completely failed to detect the creature hidden there.