Chapter 1349: Chapter 1349: Tracing the Source
With the Elf King overseeing things, they encountered no obstacles and progressed very smoothly.
A few hours later, the group finally arrived at the edge of the Forest of Death.
Qin Sisi looked up, and a sense of desolate eeriness immediately arose in her heart.
In the forest, which was so vast it seemed endless, each tree had lost its vitality. Just as the three young men had said, all the green leaves had fallen, leaving only the charred black trunks in bizarre postures.
The sunlight seemed to dim as it reached here, casting an aura of gloom and loneliness over the forest, as if it was forever trapped in a bleak twilight.
The ground had dried to the point of cracking, and everywhere was filled with the dead and silent scenery, truly living up to the name of the Forest of Death.
Moreover, the dry land was expanding at a rate visible to the naked eye; the dark brown fertile, moist soil gradually turned parched.
When the dry land extended to a tree and enveloped it, the tree quickly lost its moisture; soon, the green leaves turned yellow and lifelessly fell from the branches, the trunk turned charred black, becoming identical to the trees within the Forest of Death.
The Forest of Death gained a new member; the Dark Forest lost a lush tree.
Qin Sisi watched this terrifying transformation process, stunned to silence, from vibrant life to utter silence, a transition so simple it sent chills to the heart.
She understood why everyone was so tense upon hearing about the accelerated expansion of the Forest of Death; the matter was indeed grave.
If no good solution was found to stop the expansion of the Forest of Death, one day the entire Dark Forest would become the Forest of Death, with no dense green plants left, and the Elf Clan would lose their home.
The mere thought of such a consequence was enough to send chills down one’s spine.
The three young men, seeing the scene before them, were also extremely anxious, surrounding the Elf King and urgently asking, "Bearded Grandpa, what should we do now?"
The Elf King gazed silently at the Forest of Death, which had expanded to an unknown number of times its original size, and sighed helplessly.
Zi Yu also stepped forward and asked with concern, "Bearded Grandpa, do you know the reason for the expansion of the Forest of Death?"
The Elf King cast a deep, contemplative glance at Zi Yu, hesitant to speak.
Jin Bo, standing aside, snorted impatiently at Zi Yu and said, "Isn’t it because of your mother."
Zi Yu’s face turned pale, and he asked even more urgently, "Uncle Jin Bo, why do you say that? What does the Forest of Death have to do with my mother?"
Jin Bo retorted with a cold snort, "It has a lot to do with her."
Zi Yu’s expression was full of confusion, just about to continue asking when the Elf King said to Jin Bo, "You don’t need to be like this; Zi Yu is unaware of this, he is not to blame."
Jin Bo pressed his lips tightly together and turned his face aside.
Zi Yu then pleaded with the Elf King, "Bearded Grandpa, please tell me the truth. Does my mother really have a connection with the Forest of Death?"
The Elf King sighed and replied, "At this point, there’s no need to hide anything. Don’t be anxious, listen as I slowly explain."
Long ago, a thousand years ago, the Dark Witch came to the Dark Forest as a Guardian. At that time, it was still a lush and solitary place with only the lowest form of animals.
After the Dark Witch settled here, influenced by her Divine Clan Spiritual Power, the Elf Clan began to emerge, along with more advanced flora and fauna, creating a complex and stable ecosystem.
For the first few thousand years, everything was harmonious.
The Dark Witch enjoyed staying in her little treehouse, busily concocting various kinds of bizarre herbs; the Elf Clan’s numbers continued to grow, becoming a new force managing the Dark Forest aside from the Dark Witch.
The change occurred several thousand years ago when the Dark Witch suddenly felt lonely and wished for a child.
So, she deeply rooted her being in the center of the Dark Forest and built the Giant Wood Castle above the tree of her essence.
To gather enough energy and Spiritual Power to nurture life, the Dark Witch’s essence absorbed various nutrients from the soil on a massive scale.
Plant growth depends on soil, and the same piece of land can only provide a finite amount of nutrients; it doesn’t increase with the massive absorption by the Dark Witch’s essence tree.
When she absorbed most of the nutrients from the soil, some trees couldn’t get enough nutrients to support their growth.
The Dark Forest stretches across the entire east-west breadth of the Demon Sacred Realm’s south. In the east, it borders the No Delusion Deep Sea, where the climate is warmer and moister, favoring plant growth, so eastern trees are less affected.
However, the western climate is originally drier, with slower plant growth. Their inability to absorb enough nutrients is an additional hardship for them.
When some trees in the western region dried and died from long-term insufficient water and nutrients, the formation of the Forest of Death began.
Its origin was at the very west of the Dark Forest, initially just one or two trees, then gradually more, from dozens to hundreds, then to thousands, boundless and endless.
Thus, a terrifying Forest of Death appeared in the west of the Dark Forest, with dried, cracked lands, dead trees, devoid of vitality, utterly desolate, without a single Plant Elf or advanced flora and fauna Demonic Beasts surviving.
Of course, there is life within the Forest of Death; some insects with strong environmental adaptability have taken over that area.
Previously, everyone despised insects, viewing them as weak and dirty, but now, they exhibit remarkable resilience, surviving in the Forest of Death.
Thus, the current Forest of Death is a dreadful Insect World.
Later, the Dark Witch gave birth to Zi Yu, but the nurturing process was difficult, consuming much of her physical strength and Magic power. She needed to continue absorbing a vast amount of energy and Spiritual Power to maintain her body.
Afterward, as Zi Yu grew, the Dark Witch’s body recovered significantly and her demand for energy and Spiritual Power reduced, slowing down the expansion of the Forest of Death.
This slow expansion was acceptable to the Elf Clan; powerful Elves could use their methods to control the Forest of Death’s expansion, making it extremely slow.
Now that Zi Yu is fully grown and the Dark Witch no longer needs to absorb large amounts of energy and Spiritual Power, they all believed that the Forest of Death would not expand significantly again.
But suddenly, the expansion of the Forest of Death restarted, and the speed of expansion was fast, even surpassing the expansion during the Dark Witch’s nurturing period.
