Chapter 273: I am Grootroot
Nancilia sincerely introduced, "You are mistaken; I am not the Elven Emperor. I am merely an Elven King from the Chaos Forest, the Giantree tribe, Nancilia. This is His Majesty the Demon King, along with his commander Zhang San and priest Li Si!"
The strength displayed by Zhang San and Li Si greatly shocked and intimidated the ents.
At this moment, the Demon King spoke up, "I would like to meet the leader of the ents here, could you please introduce us?"
Although the Demon King's tone was very polite, but his request was not to be refused. Since the Demon King had come here, he was undoubtedly here to conquer. He preferred to avoid force if possible, but he wouldn't hesitate to take action if necessary.
Half an hour later, the group arrived at the heart of the valley forest, where hundreds, nearly a thousand ents resided. These ents generally possessed Level 6 lord capabilities, with several dozens to hundreds of Level 6 overlord ents as elders. It must be mentioned that this was truly a formidable force, perhaps even stronger than the newly formed True Dragon Legion under the Demon King. Although the Abyssal Dragon Legion already had over a hundred Abyssal Dragons and more than a dozen Dragon Elders, with individual dragons being more powerful, they were outnumbered by the ents.
Without Nancilia, dealing with this group of local powers would have been somewhat challenging for the Demon King.
Among the ents, there stood one that was different from the rest. It was a towering figure, two to three hundred meters tall, with a trunk resembling volcanic rock, yet it appeared as though it had been scorched by fire, with half of its branches withered and charred. Its roots were plunged into a frigid, bone-chilling pond, using the dense ice elements within the water to counteract the heat constantly emanating from its body, which seemed to indicate a dire situation.
[Ent King Grootroot] Level 6 monarch unit
Description: An extremely rare ent monarch possessing strength surpassing that of ent elders, along with the powerful ability to control the entire forest. However, this Ent King has been scorched by the divine phoenix fire, leaving it in a very weakened state.
A Level 6 ent monarch! It was unexpected to find such a powerful being in the southern territories of the empire, in a seemingly inconspicuous ruined site. Upon awakening from his slumber, the Ent King Grootroot's gaze immediately fell upon the young Elven King. Through telepathic communication facilitated by the ents, Grootroot was already informed about what had transpired.
"You are indeed the inheritor of the nature pact, the chosen of the Goddess of Nature!" Grootroot was visibly excited. "I am Grootroot. We have waited here for eons, and finally, you have arrived. It seems the elven race is on the verge of revival!"
Nancilia was somewhat confused by their conversation. "Under the leadership of His Majesty the Demon King, the elven race has been thriving and is not far from revival."
"The Demon King?" Grootroot then turned his attention to the other three individuals.
Zhang Nu did not disguise himself, and with his current Level 6 legendary strength, it was difficult for Grootroot to fully discern his power. However, while he couldn't see through the Demon King, he could ascertain the strength of the two subordinates of the Demon King. Grootroot, being an ancient being older than any other ent present and having emerged during the heyday of the Elven Empire, possessed knowledge vast as a library.
Thus, he recognized that Zhang San and Li Si were no ordinary dragons. One was a Primordial Earth Dragon, and the other a Nine-Headed Dragon, both legendary among the rarest and strongest dragon races, supposedly extinct from this world. Moreover, from these two dragons, Grootroot sensed the aura of the Dragon Emperor, indicating that they could potentially become a Dragon Emperor at any moment. The Dragon Emperor was an existence even rarer and more unique than the Elven Emperor! And now, not just one, but two appeared, both reverently serving the mysterious dragon in their midst as their master.
Grootroot found it hard to fathom the nature of this mysterious dragon who had transformed into a humanoid form. Moreover, he sensed a faint divine aura emanating from the Demon King. Could it be that this being in front of him had broken free from mortal constraints and was evolving towards divinity as a Dragon God? If that were true, the entire landscape of the continent and the world would be drastically altered by this shift.
Nancilia, noticing the abnormal condition of the Ent King, expressed her concern, "Honorable Ent King, what happened to cause your injuries?"
Grootroot replied, "I was wounded by the phoenix in the valley. The remnants of the phoenix's fire within me cause ongoing and irreversible damage. I won't be able to withstand it much longer."
Shocked by this revelation, Nancilia realized the gravity of the situation. The Ent King was nearing his end. For the elven race, ents are the most natural and trustworthy allies. An Ent King would not only be crucial for the ents but also would also hold great significance for the elves.
In the past, the Elven Empire somehow acquired a pair of phoenixes, which were placed here as guardians. The two birds were mates, but due to certain circumstances, the male left and never returned. Over time, the female phoenix became increasingly anxious and aggressive. Decades ago, it went berserk and began attacking everything in its vicinity, seemingly intent on turning the entire area to ashes and escaping.
However, the ents intervened. Led by Grootroot, they managed to stop the divine bird, but the disparity in strength, coupled with the phoenix's power being a natural counter to the ents, led to significant casualties and losses. They barely managed to seal the maddened phoenix deep within the valley, and it was during this battle that the Ent King sustained his injuries.
Over the years, Grootroot's injuries had never healed. His body was continuously smoldering. Any ordinary ent would have been reduced to ashes hundreds of times over, but Grootroot's immense strength had barely kept the flames from spreading rapidly. However, even so, after such prolonged erosion, the Ent King's body had almost been hollowed out, showcasing the formidable nature of divine beasts.
Nancilia eagerly asked, "Your Majesty, can you heal Lord Grootroot?"
Zhang Nu assessed the situation and responded, "It's a bit tricky, but not a major problem. However, I won't act without reason unless the ents are willing to follow me, just like the elves."
Upon hearing this, Nancilia was overjoyed and immediately began persuading the ents. When the ents learned that there was hope for Grootroot's recovery, they were all very surprised. However, Grootroot hesitated at Zhang Nu's request. After all, though the ents and elves had been allies for a long time, their relationship was relatively equal. The ents had a general relationship with the dragon-kind, and for Grootroot to lead his people to pledge allegiance to a Demon King whose background was unknown was a decision he couldn't make lightly.
Nancilia assured, "The Demon King has been a benefactor to the elven race, and the ents could also thrive if they join the Chaos Federation. I swear by the Goddess of Nature, there is not a single lie in my words."
Seeing the pseudo Elven Empress hold the Demon King in such high regard sparked some interest in Grootroot. Given his current condition, he wouldn't have lived for many more years, and without external help, the ents couldn't have left this valley. It seemed that pledging allegiance to the Demon King was the only way out.
"You all have plenty of time to think it over," Zhang Nu then turned to Zhang San, Li Si, and Nancilia. "Let's deal with the phoenix nesting here first." He spoke casually, as if what needed to be dealt with wasn't a divine beast, but rather something as trivial as a cat or dog. The ents were shocked by his statement.
One of the ent elders warned, "That must not be done lightly. The phoenix has completely turned mad and lost its sanity. The power it possesses now is beyond the capacity of any monarch of the same level to contend with. Approaching it rashly is far too dangerous."
Judging from the description provided by the ents and the level of the area, the phoenix's strength should also be at the level of a Level 6 monarch. However, undoubtedly, as an extremely rare divine beast, its power must reach the pinnacle of Level 6, and it might even pose a threat to mythic units. Otherwise, how could the ents have suffered such heavy losses? And how could the Ent King have been so gravely injured?
Although the phoenix might be strong, Zhang Nu didn't take it too seriously. Conquering this area was a must, and the phoenix as the major boss of this region, how could it not be dealt with? Moreover, the phoenix is a divine beast, and being such, it presumably possesses some divinity. Zhang Nu wondered if the phoenix could condense a godhood crystal.
Nancilia confidently assured, "You need not worry. No matter how powerful that divine beast, the phoenix, may be, as long as His Majesty is here, it can definitely be subdued. Just wait here for our good news!"
Zhang Nu left the ent forest, leading his three subordinates deeper into the valley. Due to the expansion of space during the creation of the subspace, this valley appeared much larger than the actual one. After advancing for several miles, the forest and grassland abruptly ended, giving way to a parched land of blackened cracks. Nearby mountains resembled volcanoes, with hot lava flowing down their sides.
True to its nature as a divine beast, it had even altered the surrounding terrain and landscape. Without hesitation, Zhang Nu passed through the sealing barrier set up by the ents and immediately entered the phoenix's territory. At the same time, Zhang San and Li Si transformed into their dragon forms: a terrifying and fierce nine-headed inferno dragon and a majestic primordial earth dragon king. Their formidable presence immediately enveloped the entire area, immediately awakening the slumbering phoenix.
As expected, with a loud cry that pierced the sky, the mountain burst open, and flames shot up into the heavens. From within emerged a gigantic bird with wings spanning a hundred meters. While the bird appeared to have a physical body, its feathers were engulfed in black flames. The intense energy it emitted was so powerful that it seemed to warp the space around it, making the phoenix appear imposing and awe-inspiring.
[Black Phoenix] Level 6 monarch unit
Description: This is the legendary divine beast, the undying phoenix, possessing almost infinite life and eternal, indestructible flames... Note, this phoenix has gone completely insane due to sensing the demise of its mate, devoid of any rationality!
In this world, there exist creatures known as the Undying Phoenix. Generally, the female is referred to as Feng and the male as Huang, but regardless of gender, they can collectively be called phoenix, as they are essentially the same species.
This phoenix has completely succumbed to madness and darkness. The only solution is to eliminate it, allowing it to reincarnate from a phoenix egg. As soon as the Black Phoenix appeared, black phoenix flames spread across the sky. These flames are extremely dangerous, almost impossible to extinguish once contacted, capable of burning everything in the world to ashes."
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