Chapter 548: Elven King

Chapter 548: The Elven King

They rested for the night within the Yellowstone Territory.

The next morning, Li Wei and Laiya rose early, preparing to journey toward the Elven Court.

Their early start was mainly driven by their desire to reach the Elven Court before the day's end.

Li Wei had no mind to admire the scenery of the Elven Forest.

All he wanted now was to obtain the second token.

Last night, Li Wei spent the entire evening with Saint Xi, examining the first token.

It was an unremarkable stone.

After a full night of study, Li Wei concluded that it was simply a stone.

An incredibly sturdy one.

No external force seemed capable of destroying it.

He said "seemed" because he had yet to test his most powerful technique on it.

Still, Li Wei doubted even his Great Solar Explosion Art could shatter this stone.

This familiar sensation reminded him of something.

The Tears of the Goddess.

Formed from divine power, the Tears were impervious to all external forces.

Only strength comparable to that of a deity could destroy them.

When the Tears shattered during Saint Xi’s resurrection, it wasn’t due to outside destruction.

Rather, the divine energy contained within had been exhausted, causing them to naturally break apart.

Thus, Li Wei suspected this stone might also be a creation of divine power.

Perhaps these so-called tokens truly had connections to deities.

This aligned with what he currently knew.

According to the information at hand, the gods behind the elves, beastmen, and sacred dragons likely shared some connection.

These tokens may well have come from their hands.

The deeper they delved, the more suspicious details emerged.

Li Wei speculated that the tokens might originate from divine beings.

However, the gods who once stood behind the elves and beastmen had long since vanished.

Then who left these tokens behind?

Li Wei believed the answer would only reveal itself after acquiring the second token.

As the Beast King had mentioned, obtaining the second token wouldn't be easy.

The Elven King might not willingly hand it over.

But Li Wei didn’t dwell too much on such matters—he'd deal with the Elven King when he got there.

Tina accompanied Li Wei and Laiya to the gates of the city in Yellowstone Territory.

"I’ll see you off here," she said.

"Farewell."

She waved goodbye.

The two set out along the path leading to the next elven territory.

Once they left Yellowstone Territory, the surrounding vegetation gradually thinned.

Yet ahead, the terrain grew rugged—nothing but mountain paths remained.

Compared to the perilous cliffside trails of the great canyon in Yellowstone Territory, this route was certainly better.

Laiya remarked, “Beyond here, I’ve never ventured further.”

“It seems like we’re approaching Oakgrove Territory. That place has the densest concentration of treant guardians, as well as rare plant spirits like Ancient War Trees and Wise Oaks.”

Li Wei nodded slightly. “Mm.”

A few steps deeper into the mountainside forest, Li Wei sensed numerous life forces emerging around them.

Many of those emanated from nearby trees.

Ordinary plants wouldn’t radiate such vibrant vitality.

With a glance at a motionless giant tree beside him, Li Wei guessed it might actually be a treant.

Thanks to Laiya’s presence, they entered the forest without provoking attacks from the treant guards.

However, everything changed the moment they stepped into a valley.

Just as they entered, several large trees near the valley entrance suddenly uprooted themselves, transforming into towering treants.

Plants throughout the valley began shifting, revealing countless treants encircling the pair.

A chill ran through Li Wei’s heart—he thought they were under attack by Drow elves.

Just as he prepared to fight—

In the next instant, two green-haired, pointed-eared elves clad in green appeared before them.

Emerging from among the treants, the green-haired elf looked at Li Wei and Laiya and shouted, “Human! Why are you here?”

“Forest Elf! Why are you traveling with a human?”

Another green-haired elf directed his question sharply at Laiya.

Quickly, Laiya produced her lord’s token to explain their purpose.

Seeing the token in her hand and learning that the Elven King himself summoned Li Wei,

both elves couldn’t help but show envy.

They too wished to visit the Elven Court and meet the Elven King.

Though Oakgrove Territory lay quite close to the court,

they were tasked with guarding the inner sanctum of the Elven Forest and thus forbidden to wander freely.

The green-haired elves ordered the treant guards to return to their posts.

One by one, the massive treants sat down, re-rooting themselves into the earth until they resembled ordinary, inconspicuous trees again.

Handing back the lord’s token to Laiya, the green-haired elf said, “Since you're heading to the Elven Court, please follow us.”

“There is a cave passage here that leads directly to the court.”

Laiya finally understood—no wonder the defenses here were so strict.

It turned out that they had stumbled upon a shortcut by sheer accident.

Had it not been for this cave, they would have had to traverse two elven territories before reaching the Elven Royal Court.

Leya carefully put away the token and nodded. “Thank you. We’re in your debt.”

“No need for thanks. It is our duty,” the green-haired elf replied.

The green-haired elf led Levi and Leya into the cave.

At the entrance, Levi sensed many powerful presences lurking nearby.

As they ventured deeper into the cave, he felt even more formidable auras surrounding them.

If anyone were to trespass here uninvited, they would likely face over ten sixth-tier guardians.

After walking for a while, the green-haired elf stopped.

He pointed ahead and said, “Just follow this passage forward. The exit lies not far from the Elven Royal Court.”

“Once you leave the cave, you’ll see it right away.”

“Understood. Thank you again.”

Leya expressed her gratitude once more.

The two continued along the tunnel. Strange luminescent plants grew within the cavern walls, casting an ethereal glow throughout the space—far from dark, instead filled with a dreamlike beauty.

These glowing flora came in countless hues, painting the underground path like a rainbow.

Walking through the cave, Levi felt as though he had stepped into another world—a realm of fantasy rather than reality.

Every so often, he caught faint yet unmistakable traces of immense power hidden somewhere in the shadows.

Besides the entrance, there were numerous concealed protectors stationed inside the cave itself.

More than once, Levi detected the aura belonging to legendary-level beings.

They walked for quite some time. Though the cave shimmered with vibrant colors, its enclosed atmosphere began to feel stifling.

Eventually, a sliver of white light appeared in the distance—it was the exit.

As they quickened their pace, the light expanded until it revealed a towering opening over five meters high.

There were no guards outside the exit.

Levi found himself slightly surprised.

But then again, if those mighty guardians within couldn’t stop an enemy, what good would defenses outside be?

Better to concentrate all strength on protecting the heart of the Elven Royal Court.

The cave sat halfway up the mountainside. Standing at its mouth, both Levi and Leya could clearly see the Elven Royal Court just beyond.

Levi gazed toward the court, eyes wide with awe.

“What an enormous tree!”

“Could this be the World Tree?”

The Elven Royal Court stood atop the roots of a colossal tree.

This tree was unfathomably vast; its canopy blotted out the sky, stretching endlessly across miles.

Its roots were thick and sprawling, resembling entire mountain ranges.

Countless buildings rested upon these roots: treehouses grown naturally from living wood, stone dwellings carved from rock, and ornate structures reminiscent of human architecture.

Above everything else rose the palace of the Elven King—an immense spired castle woven from emerald and gold.

Yet even that magnificent structure only occupied part of the visible root system.

Leya stared at the titanic tree for a long moment before shaking her head slowly.

“This isn’t the World Tree.”

Levi looked shocked. “A tree this massive isn’t the real one?”

She explained, “I’ve heard that this tree sprouted from a single branch of the true World Tree—but it’s not the actual World Tree itself.”

“The real one is even larger. Legend says that each leaf of the World Tree holds an entire world.”

Levi’s gaze sharpened slightly.

How much truth lay behind such legends?

If the World Tree truly possessed such terrifying scale, wouldn’t the god who ruled it—the Elven deity—be the most powerful divine being of all?

Then why had He vanished without a trace?

Levi glanced back at the great tree.

Even knowing now that it wasn’t the original, understanding that it had once been merely a branch, he still struggled to grasp how immense the true World Tree must be.

A mere offshoot could grow to such proportions?

“Come on, the Elven Royal Court awaits ahead,” Levi said, beginning his descent down the slope.

They passed through the cave and emerged into the forest outside the royal grounds.

On their way toward the court, Levi saw not a single sign of magical beasts.

“An orchard?”

His attention drifted to a lush grove of fruit trees beside the path.

Each tree hung heavy with green fruits.

Rustling sounds echoed softly among the branches—and suddenly several figures slipped out from within the orchard. Upon spotting Levi, they all wore expressions of surprise.

“A human?”

“What’s a human doing here?”

Though startled, none panicked.

After all, this was the Elven Royal Court. Even should a human appear here, harming any elf would be unthinkable.

Instead, they simply watched curiously from nearby.

Leya approached one of them and asked how much farther it was to the royal court.

The elves present answered her politely, though they too asked questions in return.

One of them tilted her head curiously.

“How come you’re traveling with a human?”

All along the way, Laya had lost count of how many times people had asked her this question.

She offered a brief explanation and continued forward.

The elves of the Elven Royal Court were, after all, well-traveled and knowledgeable.

When they heard that Levi wished to see the Elven King, their expressions shifted slightly—but not with surprise.

As they proceeded, more and more elves appeared along the path.

The atmosphere gradually grew livelier.

“We’re finally here.”

Levi and Laya stood beneath the towering walls of the Elven Royal Court, gazing upward at the imposing structure before them, murmuring in awe.

Passersby among the elves would glance at Levi from time to time.

They were curious about the human who had appeared here, though such sights no longer startled them.

Few humans came to the Elven Royal Court, but there were some.

Having seen them often enough, curiosity naturally faded.

At the city gate, others passed freely in and out, while Levi and Laya were halted just outside.

An elf guard clad in golden armor stepped forward, spear in hand, blocking their path.

“Please stop,” he said. “Unless you have the Elven King’s permission, humans are forbidden from entering the Elven Royal Court.”

Laya paused for a moment, stunned—she hadn’t known about this rule.

Nor did she possess any proof of the king’s approval.

Until now, she had always used the lord's token to verify her identity.

But here, that token held no weight.

After thinking it through, Laya could only produce the lord’s token once again and hand it over to the guard for inspection.

“He has already received the Elven King’s permission. This is the token of the Lord of Greenleaf Territory—it proves his identity.”

The guard glanced briefly at the token in her hand.

“My apologies, but I must see the Elven King’s written consent.”

He didn’t even bother to examine the token closely.

Even if it were genuine, without the official permit from the king himself, he couldn’t allow entry.

Laya felt awkward. She took back the token and turned to look at Levi.

For a moment, she was at a loss.

They had come all this way to the gates of the Elven Royal Court—how absurd it would be if they couldn’t get in.

Brute force was clearly not an option.

Levi thought for a moment, then silently called out to Saint Shea: *“Give me the token.”*

Buzz!

A swirling vortex of magic materialized beside him.

He reached his right hand into the vortex and withdrew the stone token from within the magical cottage.

If the Elven King had agreed to meet him because of the Beast King,

then surely he would recognize the significance of this token.

No sooner had Levi pulled his hand from the vortex than the stone appeared in midair.

Deep within the royal palace, the Elven King immediately sensed something unusual.

He lifted his head slightly, eyes fixed on the distance.

His gaze seemed to pierce through walls, locking onto Levi.

The Elven King lowered his head and spoke softly to the guards nearby:

“Go to the city gate. Welcome our honored guest.”

“At once.”

After retrieving the stone token, Levi remained still.

He waited a moment, then looked down at what he held, wondering whether the Elven King could sense its presence.

He certainly couldn’t detect anything special about the stone himself.

But since Saint Shea could perceive the token’s power, the Elven King should be able to as well—he too possessed one of the artifacts.

Clatter-clatter-clatter!

Urgent hoofbeats echoed from within the Elven Royal Court.

A luxurious carriage emerged at the city gate.

The surrounding elves, upon seeing it, immediately stopped and bowed deeply.

This was the carriage used by the Elven King when traveling.

The guards at the gate exchanged surprised glances before quickly putting away their weapons and bowing low.

The royal guards rode alongside the carriage, arriving shortly thereafter.

As the galloping steed came to an abrupt halt, the rider dismounted gracefully.

Looking outward toward the city gate, he spotted the human.

He strode forward briskly, placing his right hand over his chest in formal salute.

“Honored guest,” he said respectfully, “the Elven King invites you to the palace.”

Upon hearing those words, the expression hidden behind the guard’s mask visibly changed—

a mixture of shock and unease.

Being granted permission to enter the Elven Royal Court and being invited directly to the palace to meet the Elven King were two very different matters.

Suddenly uncertain, the guards worried they might offend someone important.

Levi and Laya boarded the carriage, which carried them straight to the royal palace where the Elven King resided.

Once the carriage departed, the guards rose and looked at each other, relief evident in their eyes.

Throughout the encounter, Levi had never mentioned them personally.

It seemed everything would be fine.

Still, a lingering anxiety remained in their hearts.

The carriage brought Levi directly to the palace.

The Elven King dismissed his attendants and waited alone within the grand hall for Levi’s arrival.

As they approached the entrance to the palace, Levi glanced at Laya and said,

“You wait here. I’ll go in first.”

What followed next was not something suitable for her to witness.

Unable to meet with the Elven King, Laya felt a pang of regret in her heart.

She nodded and said, "Mm."

Li Wei stepped into the palace, and the guards closed the heavy doors tightly from outside.

Bang!

Without turning back, he walked forward.

The wooden floor was covered with the rings of trees from years gone by.

He looked up to see the golden-haired, blue-eyed Elven King seated upon the throne.

(End of Chapter)