The abyssal gap was in the northeast of the Stroop forest, far away from 'Nature's Residence'. Also, due to the space disorder caused by the instability of the gap, Lucien and the rest of them did not take the risk of teleportation but simply flew in midair.
Looking at the deep green forest down below and listening to the incessant chirping of birds, Natasha suddenly asked as a musician, "What is nature?"
It was one thing to learn from the historical documents that elves would turn into trees after they died, but it was another thing to see it with her own eyes. So, she had mixed feelings.
"Yes, what is nature?" When Lucien repeated, he had already looked at Malfurion and Laxle.
What was nature?
Malfurion and the rest of them did not know how to answer the question. Every elf and every druid had their own definition of nature. Whether it was hatred or balance, they all considered themselves the guardians of nature. It was exactly because of their different definitions and opinions about nature that the 'Nature's Heart' that the druids formed was not exactly the same, and the divine powers that they knew were somewhat different too.
"Nature is the world, including plants, animals, human beings, and elves that represent vitality, as well as volcanoes, swamps, and poisonous fog. Then, the series of things form an interconnected balance system that depends on and restricts each other. Once the balance is lost, it will naturally be ruined and destroyed, turning into a lifeless, desolate land." After considering for a moment, Malfurion decided to share his understanding of nature. Balance and life were the core of his understanding.
Laxle had the unique pride of some elves. Although he was not a natural-abhorrer, he did not like discussing the issue with human beings either. He only emphasized one point. "Nature must include life, or a desert of life cannot be called nature."
Atlant smiled with his eyes closed. "The abyssal gap is coming."
The five of them were all legends. Even though they intentionally slowed down in case of danger, it did not take them long to reach the abyssal gap.
At the center of the forest down below, a large area was enshrouded in bloody dust. At the center, a hideous gap that looked like a centipede could be seen. Through the gap, the Scarlet Plain that was full of bumps and hollows was vaguely exposed. The intense smell of blood and slaughter spread out.
In the middle of the dust, a rather prosperous town stood at the edge of the gap.
'Town of the Anonymous'!
…
In the long history of the abyssal gap's stability, the demons whose nature was slaughter and chaos had been attacking the gap, the seals and defenses of the elves, trying to truly descend upon the main material world and turn it into a land of destruction and disorder similar to the abyss.
And to human adventurers, although demons were terrifying, every part of their body was a precious material. Being able to capture demons without entering the Chaos Abyss was a very good choice. And so, adventurers gathered here one after another, and the first small town was formed.
Later, the great Knight and the heavenly knight discovered that it was the best battlefield to polish themselves. Therefore, they often traveled thousands of kilometers to train themselves. For the senior-rank Knights, unless they had the best bloodline and extraordinary talents, they could only look for opportunities to make breakthroughs through battles.
Now that the continent was relatively stable, it was too dangerous to go to the Dark Mountain Range or the Dragon Swamp. They might run into level-nine magic creatures if they were not careful. The gap in the Stroop forest limited the strength of the invading demons, so the senior-rank Knights did not have to worry about running into Demon Lords and dukes. Therefore, the town became more and more prosperous and became one of the places with the highest density of senior-rank experts. It was only second to places like Lance, Allyn, and Renstadt.
However, the battles of the same level were certainly not without dangers. Many heavenly Knights and senior-rank sorcerers were killed here, and the adventurers below the senior rank often suffered casualties. Therefore, the town was named 'Anonymous'.
"Either you leave with a glorious name, or you die here without a name!"
Looking at the wooden sign that had stood for hundreds of years on 'Town of the Anonymous', Mason sighed heavily again and paced back and forth. Looking at the sky where the bloody dust blocked the sun, he mumbled to himself anxiously, "When can we leave?"
The elves who guarded the gap had always been indifferent to the adventurers, but those people's actions had indeed eased their workload. They did not have to worry about the demons that sneaked through the gap anymore. Therefore, they turned a blind eye to the existence of Town of the Anonymous.
The young brown-haired man next to Mason took out a cigar that was a specialty of Brianne. After lighting it, he narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath. Then, he blew out white circles. "Brother, don't fret. The elves will not let us leave until the problem of the uncanny expansion of the gap is resolved."
"I feel that my lungs are filled with sand and blood." Mason took the cigar from his good friend Fred and soothed himself with the tobacco. "You know that I promised my family that I would return in half a year before I left. It's been more than two weeks now. If they come to find me, they will be hurt by this' crazy 'place."
Fred blew out a smoke ring and said with a bitter smile, "I should've left earlier … The elves are afraid that the news of the abyssal gap's upheaval will be leaked to the sea clans. That's why they restrict us from entering but not leaving. Unless they can find a solution, or the sea clans have learned the news from other sources, we can only stay here."
"If the abyssal gap goes out of control again …" As a level-six Knight, Mason could not help but feel scared when he thought of the situation at that time. The army of demons that were as dense as tides and the intimidating Demon Lords and Dukes were a nightmare that he would never forget. Too many adventurers were killed by the demons without causing any ripples. If it were not for Malfurion, the Night Mentor, who was guarding this place at that time, many of his fellow Knights would've been killed!
Hearing Mason's words, Fred couldn't help but shudder. He thought of the Sovereign of Blood with two heads and crimson scales and its golden, cold pupils. "I hope that the elves will ask for reinforcements as soon as possible …"
"Elves are a proud race. They will never ask for reinforcements if they can handle it on their own." Mason had always admired the pride of elves, but at this moment, he hated them more than ever.
Then, he moved his eyes back and looked at the half-burnt cigar in his hand. "Something is not right in the town, either …"
Fred squinted his eyes. "Yes, something is not right …"
… …
Lucien, Natasha, and Malfurion descended and approached the abyssal gap. At this moment, two shadows, one in green and the other in brown, flew close from below and stopped before the five of them.
"Honorable guests, thank you for your help." The brown shadow was a tall, middle-aged human being. He was holding a wooden staff that was engraved with the symbol of balance. He was exactly Lawndale, 'Hand of Balance'.
At this height, the view of the abyss behind the gap was already very clear. It was a plain that was dyed red by blood, but weird-looking white stones were everywhere.
On the plain, except for a few plants that were full of scales, there was nothing but bloody mud and sand. When the wind blew, dust would be raised to the sky.
In the sky, where the dust was blocking, Lucien saw a pale sun. Against the bloody sky, the sun was dyed with a weird red hue.
Everything was so gloomy and bloody that it was full of depressing colors. It seemed to be promoting slaughter and destruction at any moment.
"Great Elder." The green shadow was a pocket-sized lady. She had deep green hair, beautiful facial organs, and a slender body. The tips of her fingers were vaguely green. She had a pair of transparent wings on her back, and she was enshrouded in the intense air of the forest.
She was Selinda, the Guardian of Green, a dryad.
After greeting Malfurion, Selinda did not say anything else. For dryads, the human beings who destroyed the forest were unforgivable villains.
"Selinda, what is nature?" Lankshear suddenly asked.
Selinda looked at Lankshear in dissatisfaction. She did not seem to have a good impression of the elf. "Nature is the green that symbolizes life and enables all creatures to flourish. It is fragile and requires our joint maintenance. Whoever destroys nature is our enemy."
Lankshear smiled. "Evans, what is nature? Do you have an answer to the question that you asked us? "
Lucien looked at him. Although he did not know what the guy was up to, he was certain that the guy definitely had his own agenda. Perhaps, he was trying to achieve a certain purpose by instigating conflicts?
Malfurion seemed to be absent-minded. He did not stop Lankshear from asking. Perhaps, he wanted to know Lucien and Atlant's answers, too.
Lodell opened his mouth and meant to say something, but he fell silent in the end.
Lucien smiled and pointed at the Scarlet Plain. "Isn't this nature? There are lives such as demons, mud, wind, and sun … "
"This is nature that has been polluted and destroyed. It is developing to complete destruction," Selinda replied solemnly.
Lucien shook his head. "Nature in my mind is a cycle."
"As long as the things contained can form a cycle, from life to death, and from death to life, it is nature. So, swamps are nature, volcanoes are nature, abysses are nature, and hell is nature …"
Before Selinda and the rest of them argued, Lucien continued, "Nature is bizarre and contains thousands of things. The nature that we see and touch is different. Therefore, the nature in our mind is a unique nature that combines our experience and knowledge. It is nature that we see from our own perspective. Just like microscopic particles, the results that we see will be different if we choose different methods of observation. As for what it originally looked like, it is meaningless."
"That's why I'm talking about nature from the perspective of us humans. Nature that is suitable for our development and promotes our development is good nature. Our goal in cooperating with the protection of the environment is very clear, and that is to create a better living environment for ourselves, not the other way around. In this aspect, we understand nature from the perspective of ourselves. We are like that, and so are you elves!"
Malfurion and Selinda were about to speak, when roars that were brimming with the air of slaughter and destruction burst out from below. The army of demons surged out like tides and charged at the gap again.
Those demons had black scales and bat-like wings. They had all kinds of appearances, but they had one thing in common, which was that they were particularly hideous.
"The Sovereign of Blood is attacking with his army of demons again …" Seeing that, Lawndale was secretly relieved and hurried to change the topic.
Looking at the gap and calculating the distance, Lucien suddenly extended his right hand and said in a long and weird voice:
"Eternal Blaze!"
Boom!
A scorching sun suddenly rose at the center of the Scarlet Plain. The terrifying heat could be clearly felt even through the space gap!
An unimaginable storm of energy swept out, and the white brilliance drowned everything.
Looking at the rolling weird mushroom cloud and the changing abyssal gap, and sensing the world-destroying power, Lankshear and Selinda were lost for words.
Whatever you are thinking, whatever you want to do with us, you'd better consider your own capabilities first!
Lucien retracted his right hand and put it into the pocket of his double-breasted suit.
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