Although the Queldana Family was already the most powerful family in the Elven Kingdom, they would not be far from falling if they lost their ambition. Retrieving the lost sacred relic would undoubtedly strengthen the Queldana Family's position in the Elven Kingdom.
The Dark Blade needed the Queldana Family's help to advance further in the Haiga Mountain Range, while the Queldana Family needed the Dark Blade's intelligence to have a chance to find the lost sacred relic of the Elven Kingdom. Both parties needed each other's support, but their goals were not conflicting. Hence, they hit it off, and secretly agreed on a cooperation agreement.
Borg's gaze landed on Cheyenne, and he couldn't help but smile when he saw the frown on his old rival's face. Although it was not the time to make a move yet, it would be time for the two families to have a decisive battle after they obtained the treasure.
Even without looking, Lin Li could sense that there were many powerhouses around him at this moment. Especially the elves. Be it the oldest elven elder or the high-ranking elves around him, all of them had Legendary-level abilities. However, even then, Lin Li did not have the slightest intention to stop, and the huge Hand of Nothingness tightened its grip.
The onlookers were all thinking about how the elves were going to deal with this matter. However, what surprised them was that the elven elder and the high-ranking elves did not stop Lin Li immediately after they arrived. In fact, they did not even look at him. Instead, they patiently asked the injured elves about the situation.
The elder's gaze swept across the elves. His calm and gentle gaze made the elves feel as if they were bathing in the Spring of Life, and they immediately forgot about the pain on their bodies. Their anger, anxiety, fear, and other negative emotions were also calmed at this moment. They all had the same thought in their minds: What could possibly happen with the elder around!?
At this moment, one of the higher-ups of the Queldana Family beside the elven elder asked the elves in an unhurried tone, "The few of you are in charge of patrolling the campsite today, right? Who can tell me what exactly happened here just now?"
The elves were no longer anxious. Although Jacques was still being controlled, the elders and the higher-ups of the family were present. No matter how courageous that human mage was, he wouldn't dare to kill Jacques in front of the elders.
They first bowed to the elves respectfully before glaring at Lin Li indignantly. One of the elves, who looked like a Druid and was wearing leather armor, said, "It's like this, Sirs. We are in charge of guarding the campsite tonight. When we were patrolling here just now, we found a Vampire trying to sneak into our campsite. As the best archer among us, Jacques attacked immediately and injured the Vampire with the Big Dipper Archery."
A few of the older elves nodded and motioned for him to continue.
"Of course, we didn't kill the Vampire immediately. After Jacques attacked, we suddenly remembered that a group of human guests came to the campsite during the day. Among these human guests, there seemed to be a Vampire companion. To avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, we immediately asked the Vampire to tell us where he came from." The elven Druid's voice was very calm. When he mentioned "killed" and "injured", he didn't even blink his eyes. It was as if he was not talking about a bloody conflict, but a drizzle in the campsite.
Moreover, this Elven Druid obviously knew the art of speaking … or rather, the art of shirking responsibility. What was originally a bloody conflict without any reason was immediately turned into a self-defense counterattack from his mouth.
What was worse was that he kept emphasizing the word "vampire" ….
"Vampire?" As expected, one of the high-level elves couldn't help but frown as he listened, and a look of disgust flashed across his face. "Who brought the Vampires into the camp?"
"It's this Mr Mage." The Druid pointed at the silent Lin Li. "This is actually a misunderstanding. We didn't know that the Vampire we injured was this Mr Mage's companion. However, Mr Mage didn't listen to our explanation, and attacked Jacques directly. He even wanted to kill Jacques …"
"Is that so, Mage Felic?" After hearing the Druid's words, the high-level elves frowned even more. After all, this was the Haiga Mountain Range, the sacred mountain that Goddess Monferra had bestowed upon the elves. It was blasphemy for this human mage to bring a Vampire here. Moreover, he had even attacked and almost killed Jacques.
If not for the fact that they were still working together, and the elves had always been on good terms with the Dark Blade, this would be enough to make this human mage the enemy of all the elves.
"Human, stop immediately. Your behavior is already too much. Don't make an irreversible mistake."
However, Lin Li was unmoved by the words of the higher-ups. Instead, he increased the strength of his magic when he sensed that Jacques was about to lose his strength. Jacques, who was being held tightly by the giant palm, had already lost consciousness. His resistance against the strong grip was only due to his unconscious instincts. He could no longer spit out much blood. Instead, blood foam kept seeping out of his mouth.
Seeing this scene, the higher-ups frowned even more. He could clearly feel the determination of the other party to kill Jacques. This human mage was really incomprehensible to him. Was that filthy Undead creature that important to him? How could he be willing to do something so irrational?
Feeling that Jacques' life force was depleting rapidly, the higher-ups knew that the most important thing now was to save Jacques. If not, they would only be able to collect Jacques' corpse if this dragged on any longer. By that time, no matter how this human mage was punished, it would not be able to save Jacques' life.
"Mage Felic, if you don't agree with what they said just now, you can tell us what you think is the truth. We will naturally make a fair judgment. Before that, why don't you put Jacques down first? Even if that vampire is your companion, this is the Sacred Mountain of the elves, after all. You can forgive Jacques' extreme behavior, right? "The elven higher-ups softened their tone, hoping to persuade the other party to put Jacques down first.
At this time, Lin Li, who had been indifferent to the changes in the surroundings, finally turned his gaze to the higher-ups. He calmly said, "I only know that anyone who dares to hurt my companion, no matter who it is, must pay the price. As for the Sacred Mountain, that's the elves' business. If there really was a Sacred Mountain, you elves wouldn't have left the Emerald Forest back then. "
Lin Li's words were like rubbing salt on the wounds of the elves. Not only the higher-ups, but even the calm elven elder's face darkened after hearing this.
The elves had always claimed that the Haiga Mountain Range was a Sacred Mountain given to them by the Forest Goddess. However, the strange thing was that all Nature Magic would lose its effect in the Haiga Mountain Range. Because of this, the elves could only guard the Emerald Forest on the side of the Haiga Mountain Range, and could not really control the so-called Sacred Mountain.
This was actually a very embarrassing thing for the elves, so much so that they became a joke in the entire Anril. However, until now, not a single person or force had dared to speak of this matter in front of the Elven Race.
Lin Li's words naturally caused the elves present to be furious. However, the higher-ups did not forget that the most important thing now was to save Jacques. Hence, they suppressed the anger in their hearts and opened their mouths to persuade Lin Li again.
However, before the higher-ups could say anything, the elven elder standing in the middle slowly said to Lin Li, "Human mage, it is indeed wrong for Jacques to shoot and injure your companion. However, your companion is not dead yet, so it is a little too much for you to kill Jacques. Since you want them to pay the price, put him down now, and I will give you a satisfactory punishment. "
Lin Li shifted his gaze to the elven elder, but did not put Jacques down immediately. Instead, he waited for the elven elder to continue giving him a satisfactory punishment.
"You attacked Mage Felic's companion without permission, and seriously affected the friendship between the Tower of Dusk and the elves. This misunderstanding was caused by your recklessness. It seems that you are no longer suitable to take up the heavy responsibility of guarding the campsite. Now, as the eighth elder of the elves, I order you to hand over your Heart of Nature for 10 years." After the elven elder finished speaking, everyone, including the higher-ups of the elves, was shocked and could not bear to do so. However, no one dared to step forward to object.
The elves who were punished were even paler now. If not for the fact that they did not dare to lose their composure in front of the elder, they would have fallen to the ground. However, under the authority of the elder, no one dared to retort or beg for mercy. This was because they all knew that it would not change the outcome other than making a fool of themselves.
Taking away the Heart of Nature was a very severe punishment unique to the elves, and it only came into existence after the elves came to the Emerald Forest. The so-called Heart of Nature was actually the seed of the Ancient Tree of War. After every elf was born, they would fuse with a seed of the Ancient Tree of War. Although the seed would not sprout, it would grow together with the elves. To the elves, the seed was like the magical crystal of a magical beast. It was the second source of power for the elves, and thus was called the Heart of Nature.
In the process of growth, the elves would use their own power to nurture the seed. The seed would not only take away power blindly, but would also help the elves gain more power. It could allow the elves to master unique Nature Magic as if they were born with it. It would also give their slender bodies great strength. The reason why the elves could gain a foothold in the Emerald Forest was largely due to this method of greatly increasing their strength.
When an elf died, the seed in his body would turn into pure energy and return to the Ancient Tree of War. While extending the lifespan of the Ancient Tree of War, it would also allow the Ancient Tree of War to bear more seeds. It could be said that this was a mutually beneficial relationship between the elves and the Ancient Tree of War.
However, if the elves were to be deprived of the Heart of Nature before they died, the most direct result would be a huge drop in strength. This was not just a drop or two. It could be said that the elves would lose most of their strength as a result. It was equivalent to being crippled. Hence, for the elves, being deprived of the Heart of Nature for 10 years was definitely one of the harshest punishments.
The elven elder softly chanted two incantations and extended his wrinkled old hand. Immediately, a seed emitting a milky white radiance flew out from each of the elves' bodies. The elves looked dispirited. They could no longer stand after their strength was sucked out of their bodies. They sat on the ground and stared blankly at the seeds flying further and further away from them.
It was only then that Lin Li loosened his grip and put Jacques, whose body had been deformed, down. Lin Li knew about the punishment of being deprived of the Heart of Nature. It was indeed a rather severe punishment. It was almost equivalent to a warrior's Combat Energy being scattered and a mage's mana being sucked dry.
Lin Li was satisfied with this outcome. However, the onlookers, be it the elves or the humans, Cheyenne and Borg, all had complicated expressions on their faces. No one had ever thought that this matter would end up like this.
The elves were naturally indignant about what had happened to their companions. Why would the elder punish them so severely for injuring a filthy Undead creature? Not to mention that Jacques was one of them. Jacques' status in the family went without saying, and his strength was definitely outstanding among the younger generation of elves. It could be said that his future was limitless. But now, just because he shot a filthy Undead creature, he was deprived of the Nature's Heart.
However, this was the elder's decision, and no one dared to question it. Moreover, the punishment had already been meted out, and there was no chance of redeeming it. The elves could only help their companions up and leave the scene quietly with the elder and the higher-ups.
It's over just like that? Cheyenne was stunned for a while. He could only shake his head and smile bitterly. Although the Malfa Family seemed to need the Tower of Dusk as an ally, this outcome was still not what he wanted to see. In his heart, the best outcome would be to turn a big problem into a small one, and a small one into nothing. When the elven elder came out, Lin Li would put Jacques down, and say a few words casually. It would be better for everyone to pretend that nothing had happened.
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