Chapter 628: Chapter 176 Long Road Ahead_4
Xuan Yue laughed, "Don’t worry, since I’m playing matchmaker for you, I’ll definitely sing your praises. Just keep practicing the magic you love the most and strive to become a wind magician soon. Vila, I feel that your skills seem to have improved significantly in the past year. You must be at the level of a Magus now. Judging by your magic power, you should be almost of the same level as Kino."
Olivia said, "Kino is so busy chasing after Yue Ji that he hardly has time for proper practice. I’ll surpass him soon. It is really difficult to become a Magus; I just hope I can reach that level when I’m in my forties or fifties. I’m just grateful that I have the Staff of Wind God. Otherwise, I would feel embarrassed to go to the Death Mountain Range with you all."
In the relaxed and harmonious atmosphere, the group gradually neared their destination. After five days of arduous travel, they finally arrived at the Elf Forest of the Tian Yuan Clan.
The vegetation once destroyed on the outskirts of the Elf Forest had begun to show signs of recovery through the efforts of the elves. Xing Er, returning to her hometown, immediately became excited and quickly fluttered her wings to fly. Yan Shi and Audi, the great Elf Envoy, walked ahead, and Yan Shi whispered to Audi, "Great Elf Envoy, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you."
Audi was taken aback and replied, "What is it? Go ahead and ask."
Yan Shi asked earnestly, "According to the history of the continent, the Dwarf Clan, the Winged Tribe, and your Elf Clan are all peace-loving races. Although the Dwarves have somewhat volatile tempers, they are upright. How did they end up joining the Dark Forces?"
A fleeting sadness flashed in Audi’s eyes, and he shook his head, "I do not know why things turned out to be like this. Our Elf Clan and the Winged Tribe have long been friends, although we haven’t been in contact much in the past century. To our understanding, the kindhearted Winged Tribe would never willingly join the Dark Forces."
Hearing their words, Ah Dai and Xuan Yue joined the conversation. Xuan Yue suggested, "The Dwarves and the Winged Tribe are two powerful races. They must have had reasons to join the Dark Forces. I guess there could be two possibilities. One, they were coerced by the Dark Forces, for instance, their legitimate heirs were kidnapped and thus they were threatened."
Ah Dai disagreed, "This seems unlikely. Even if their Clan Leaders succumbed to the threats, their clan members would not willingly serve the Dark Forces as it contradicts their nature. There must be other reasons."
Xuan Yue nodded, "I also think that possibility is slim. My other guess is that these two races were corrupted by something similar to Soul Magic by the Dark Forces, causing them to lose their true nature, becoming a part of the Dark alien races. This possibility also applies to the aggressive half-beasts."
Audi shuddered, "What Xuan Yue said makes sense, this would explain why they willingly let the Dark Forces exploit them."
Ah Dai then asked another question, "I have another doubt. Why did the Dark Forces control the Dwarves and the Winged tribe but not the Elves? The power of the Elves is not inferior to the other two races. Even though the Elf City is protected by a barrier, if the Dark Forces attacked with full force, I fear it would not be able to withstand."
Xuan Yue considered this, and then responded, "The fact that they did not control the Elf Clan indicates that the leader of the Dark Forces is very strategic. Don’t forget, it took the Dark Forces a thousand years of recuperation to regain their current strength. Before that, they could only cautiously operate underground to avoid being discovered by us, the Holy See. They would not have taken any actions that could reveal their existence. If I’m not wrong, even the Winged Tribe and the Dwarves were controlled by them only recently. The reason they did not control the Elf Clan is that they were afraid the disturbance in the territory of the Tian Yuan Clan would alert us. The Elf Clan, being at the outermost part of the Tian Yuan Clan, would most likely be the first to convey any news. Should the barrier of the Elf City manage to withstand the attack of the Dark Forces for a while, the Dark Forces’ existence can be easily exposed. It’s a risk they were not willing to take. Now, as Grandfather mentioned, the Dark Forces are probably concentrating all their resources on opening the gateway to the Demon Realm. Their entire strength is focused on accomplishing this supreme mission in the shortest amount of time. That’s why the Elves have been safe."
Hearing Xuan Yue’s words, Ah Dai suddenly realised, "I see. So the Elf Clan is actually very fortunate."
Audi sighed, "Actually, there’s another reason why the Dark Forces might be cautious. Even though the Elves may not be as powerful in attacks as the Dwarves and the Winged tribe, our perseverance is exceptionally strong. With the Elf ancient tree and the Elf King still intact, it is impossible for any Elf to lose their determination. However, should either the Elf ancient tree or the Elf King be destroyed, there would only be one outcome for the Elf Clan - annihilation. If the Dark Forces came for us, one result would be mutual destruction - even if they were victorious, the price they pay would be steep with no benefits to them. That’s why they left us alone. I sincerely hope that we can eliminate the Dark Forces soon, so that our Elf Clan can return to a peaceful life. You all must be tired from the long journey, so let’s rest here for the night. Tomorrow, I will lead you to the Death Mountain Range."
