Chapter 190: Heiser, You Shouldn’t Have Come Here (Part 3)
Above the distant night sky.
A crimson-gold stream of light flashed and rose.
From far to near, it was rapidly approaching the location of the World Tree Fragment.
“Although these are just defective products whose bloodlines are long impure and have lost their function as vessels.”
“From the very beginning, I only used them as pure chess pieces.”
“But seven legendary figures, coupled with the blessing of the Heaven’s Lock I left behind…”
“At the same status, they couldn’t even defeat that pure-blood Golden Elf?”
In the eyes of the Sun God’s incarnation, for the first time since He officially made contact with Shaya, a trace of surprise flickered.
That Great Calamity caused Him to lose over ninety percent of His divinity and authority.
Even the remaining remnants were on the verge of losing control at any moment due to incompatibility issues with His body.
To suppress the tendency towards chaos, and also to delay the collapse and decay of the Elf King’s body, He used the power of a half-section of World Tree branch to seal Himself within the small world formed by the World Tree Fragment.
He was in a long slumber and self-imposed seal, and it was far from the time He was supposed to awaken.
However, because of Shaya, an alien race who suddenly descended upon the Lost Island.
Coupled with the immense abnormality displayed by Shaya, it piqued the interest of the slumbering Sun God.
A wisp of will flowed out from the seal within the World Tree Fragment plane, which was meant to suppress madness, and interfered with the Lost Island outside the World Tree Fragment.
It was precisely because of this self-imposed seal that He could only leak a faint will, and His perception and control over the outside world were limited to the vicinity of the World Tree Fragment, unable to fully cover the entire Lost Island.
Whether in terms of strength or influence on the outside world, compared to the glorious era when He sat on the Throne of Heaven, His majestic radiance illuminating the entire Prime Material Plane, He might not even reach one percent, or even one-thousandth.
If it weren’t for this embarrassing and awkward predicament, with His status, why would He need to borrow the hands of those so-called Council Hall elders and legendary figures of the Elf Race to act for Him?
However, even so—
In the eyes of the Sun God, there were not many things that could exceed His expectations.
Seven legendary-ranked Council Hall elders, the remaining Holy Relics of the Royal Court, plus the preemptive advantage of having a plan while the other was unaware.
In His opinion, capturing that pure-blood Golden Elf, who was also the second backup vessel, would be a sure thing, with no room for accidents.
But, in a mere half a year, which was insignificant compared to a thousand years, the Sun God felt the emotion of surprise, a feeling so long forgotten it was almost unfamiliar, for the second time.
The first time was when He first detected Shaya, a human who had somehow crossed the barrier of the eternal night and descended upon the Lost Island.
No…
To be more precise.
In fact, the essence of both unexpected events was caused by Shaya.
The pure-blood Golden Elf did not use the divinity and authority from the Elf bloodline bestowed by the Sun God.
Instead, it was a mysterious power from the Astral Realm called “Magic.”
“A very interesting technique.”
“Although it is still very nascent, if used with the power of a True God, it could even rival the Solar Authority I possessed in the Glorious Era.”
“I am truly becoming more and more interested in you, and the Magic and Arcana hidden behind you.”
He looked deeply at Shaya, and then the eyes of the legendary Elf figure lost their focus.
After one breath, Shaya keenly sensed that the lofty will had departed from the flesh of the legendary Elf figure before him.
However, as the Sun God’s will departed, the original owner of this body did not wake up as Shaya had expected.
In an instant, Shaya saw the Elf’s emerald-green hair rapidly turn white.
Even the skin, originally smooth and worthy of the title “Elf,” quickly developed wrinkles in a very short period.
It was as if hundreds of years had been imposed on this Elf’s body.
In a flash, it transitioned from the prime of youth to adulthood, middle age, and old age.
The flesh became withered, and the skin became loose.
Then, in an instant, all the flesh rapidly weathered and decayed, turning into scattered dust.
Only a set of stark white bones remained, losing the support of muscles, and scattered on the ground with a crackling sound.
Only the Council Elder’s white robe remained intact, forming a stark contrast with the appearance of its owner.
This was… the consequence of being a vessel, possessed by the will of the Sun God from within the World Tree Fragment?
Shaya’s gaze fixed on the pile of scattered bones.
He naturally felt no emotional fluctuation at the death of this Council Elder who was responsible for escorting him to the World Tree, as their relationship was purely that of enemies.
However, even in the First Era, where Mythical Creatures roamed, it was by no means a state where “Demigods were everywhere and legends were worthless.”
Legends were, at this time, the decision-making stratum in any race or kingdom on the Western Continent.
Moreover, the First Era only had the distinction between Legends and Demigods; there were no other paths besides the Path to Godhood, and thus no concept of “Throne Limit.”
So, strictly speaking, Shaya at this moment was also only a Legend.
He was a Legend who had gone further and accumulated more on the path of a Legend, comparable to Mythical Creatures.
And this legendary figure before him had died so silently.
The reason for this phenomenon was also easy to understand.
As the Sun God’s remnant soul had said earlier, His status was too high, and the bloodlines of these Elves were too impure, having long lost their qualifications to be vessels.
Moreover, involving such a status, the interchange of massive divinity and authority required many preparatory steps.
Without preparation, forcibly descending His will would naturally turn this vessel into a disposable item, and after departure, all bodily functions would collapse in an instant.
“However, at least you are much luckier than your seven colleagues remaining in the Council Hall.”
“Those unlucky fellows were directly exposed to the nuclear explosion magic at the center, I’m afraid even their bones would have been sublimated into ashes, leaving nothing behind.”
“I just don’t know if that Heaven’s Lock and other Holy Relics are still there.”
“If they were also sent away by a nuclear explosion magic, it would be quite a shame.”
“Forget about the others, that Heaven’s Lock is a Holy Relic that specifically targets divinity, it shouldn’t be so fragile and vulnerable, right?”
Shaya sighed, gathered the scattered bones, and made a cross over his chest.
Then, from the pile of bones, he took a few jewelry accessories with extraordinary auras, and a ring-like Holy Relic, emanating wisps of mystery, that seemed to have a spatial storage effect.
Even though they were enemies before, now that he was dead, Shaya decided to give him some respect.
After all, he had dropped quite a bit of gold coins.
Although the Elves on the Lost Island were in a dire situation now, there were still remnants of an entire Elf Royal Court here.
As a Council Elder, the leader of the Elves on the entire Lost Island, this legendary Elf’s possessions were quite substantial, and now they all fell to Shaya.
Although Shaya now had several wealthy patrons, the entire White Tower and the Freista Empire could be considered his support, literally a nation’s wealth.
But the money of one’s wife and one’s own money were still different.
How could a man not have any private savings?
If nothing else, Shaya couldn’t stand the issue of who had the upper hand at night.
He put his spoils of looting into his Spatial Pocket and looked into the distance at the crimson-gold meteor that was getting closer and closer.
In the next moment, Shaya’s gaze shifted.
Because immediately after, he felt from the depths of the World Tree Fragment.
A lofty, profound will was slowly awakening.
It was obvious that the annihilation of the seven Council Hall elders had also exceeded the expectations of the Sun God’s remnant soul slumbering within that World Tree Fragment.
And after meeting Shaya for the first time through the body of the legendary Elf,
His interest in this human who had inexplicably descended upon the Lost Island, especially in the thing called Magic hidden within him,
had increased again.
To the extent that He was now willing to change His original plan of slow revival.
At the risk of losing control, He forcefully awakened more power from His main body sealed by the World Tree Fragment.
Shaya felt ripples of space undulating around him.
In the next moment, the scenery around him changed completely after a distortion of light.
The sky-obscuring World Tree branches disappeared.
In their place was a magnificent black iron hall.
This was the plane contained within the World Tree Fragment.
It was also the place where the Sun God’s remnant soul was sealed and slumbering.
…
Ten minutes ago, the high tower at the center of the Elf Royal Court.
When the scorching white light faded.
The original magnificent Elf tower was now a desolate ruin.
And a river of metal that had melted into liquid under the incomparable light and heat, was now solidifying again.
In the vast ruins, only the single Golden Elf remained.
Apart from the wound left by the arrow that had pierced her earlier and had not yet healed, Heiser was completely unharmed.
This formed a stark contrast with the surrounding Council Hall, destroyed by the incomparable destructive power, and the other Council Hall elders who had turned into ashes in the nuclear explosion, leaving no trace behind.
The “Heaven’s Lock” that was no longer controlled by its master loosened, releasing its restraint on the Golden Elf.
Around her, the distorted spatial rifts slowly dissipated.
This was a defensive magic she had created herself, called “Realm of Void.”
It could distort the space around her, creating a spatial barrier that isolated everything.
Unless the attack also involved the laws of space, any pure physical damage could not cross the distorted space itself, even a nuclear explosion that destroyed everything was no exception.
Relying on this magic she had created, Heiser had managed to turn the “Nuclear Blast,” a forbidden spell with extremely harsh casting conditions and a high risk of mutual destruction if not handled carefully, into a readily usable ultimate move.
According to the vision Shaya had described to her, Wizards were divided into many types.
Arcanist, Battle Mage, Classical Wizard, Foreseeing Sage, Golem Wizard, Alchemist, Necromancer…
Different schools of Wizardry would have different spell tendencies and specializations, focusing on different magical fields.
Just like even within the Elf Race, the elements that Forest Elves and Moon Elves were attuned to and the extraordinary abilities they possessed were different; in Wizardry, it was like the difference between a fire mage and an ice mage.
And according to Shaya, Heiser’s own area of expertise in magic was only one—
Void.
Or rather, “Void Magic.”
And when Heiser truly began to try it according to Shaya’s instructions, she discovered—
Compared to traditional Elemental Magic, and even Metal Magic that she, as a Golden Elf, should have had an extra boost in due to racial talent.
Spatial magic was indeed her true specialty.
Whether it was learning the Arcane Primordium taught by Shaya or creating new spells herself, she was much faster in the field of space, possessing innate talent.
This also made Shaya’s image in Heiser’s heart become much more mysterious.
It was the first time they had met, yet he could see through her area of magical expertise at a glance… Of course, she didn’t know that someone was just repeating what he had learned, how could he be wrong?
However, the moment she thought of Shaya.
The stinging sensation in the Golden Elf’s heart turned into a sharp steel knife, piercing her heart.
The words of the Sun Elf elder earlier, and the haggard figure of the youth in the illusory screen, seemed to be right before her eyes.
“He is, at the World Tree…”
“And that so-called ‘Master’?”
She fiercely pulled off the chain of the Heaven’s Lock.
A melodious chant flowed from the Golden Elf’s mouth like mercury.
A spatial rift appeared before her, and Heiser stepped through it.
The maiden’s figure was swallowed by the spatial rift.
Immediately after, her figure appeared above the Elf Royal Court, outside the ruins of the high tower.
“Heiser. Dimensional Walker.”
At this moment, the entire Elf Royal Court below had descended into chaos.
No Elf knew why such a drastic change had occurred on the sacred and majestic tower, which should have been a symbol of the entire Elf Royal Court, during the Council Hall meeting.
Fortunately, Heiser’s nuclear explosion magic was only used for the first time and was very novice. The Elf tower and the Council Hall, which were blessed with mystery, had withstood the vast majority of the shockwave.
Coupled with the fact that the other seven Council Hall elders had pre-arranged to deal with Heiser, and out of consideration for secrecy and maintaining stability, they did not want the other Elves in the Royal Court to know about this coup—
They had used the excuse of a Council Hall meeting to disperse the other Elves in the Elf Tower in advance.
As a result, apart from those seven unlucky souls, no other Elves were affected.
As the sole remaining elder of the Council Hall.
At this moment, Heiser should have immediately stepped forward to take charge and calm the Elves in the Royal Court who were in a state of panic due to this major change.
However, at this moment, the Golden Elf had not even had the slightest thought of doing so.
She continued to chant the ancient incantation, crimson-gold magic surged from the Astral Realm, carrying her towards the direction of the World Tree.
High in the sky, the piercing gale scattered the Golden Elf’s long hair, flying in the wind, her white robe fluttering.
Crimson-gold magic surged around her, her figure sometimes solid, sometimes illusory.
With each alternation between illusion and reality, her figure would teleport a considerable distance.
The Lost Island was vast.
From the Elf Royal Court to the World Tree in the center of the island was also quite far.
However, before a legendary Wizard who controlled “Void Magic,” it was merely a blink of an eye’s distance.
Soon—
The giant World Tree was within sight.
And Heiser, who had a high sensitivity to spatial rules, also sensed the small world hidden within the branches of this giant World Tree.
She took a step.
In the next moment, the giant World Tree disappeared, replaced by a magnificent hall.
The gray-white stone bricks, whether the surrounding walls or the giant pillars, were all cast from pure black iron.
Wisps of gloomy shadows lingered throughout the grand hall.
There was no starlight or moonlight outside the window.
This was the small world within the World Tree Fragment; the simulated starlight created by Heiser and Shaya could not illuminate this place.
However, a faint light was shed in the hall, making the entire palace appear gloomy and dim.
Heiser saw no trace of living beings in the hall, only ancient doors slowly opening, turning into a deathly silence, leading to the deepest part of the hall.
Those open doors seemed to be waiting for her arrival.
The Golden Elf’s spiritual intuition flashed an unprecedented alarm, almost filling her sea of consciousness.
It was a harbinger of death.
Every wisp of spirituality hinted to her that an unprecedented disaster lurked within this hall.
According to what the Sun Elf had said earlier, perhaps the Creator who had slumbered within was the one here.
It was a great taboo between life and death.
All living beings had the instinct to survive, even unintelligent beasts, at this moment, would definitely turn and flee following their instincts.
Every cell in her body was issuing a warning to the Golden Elf to flee this place.
However, Heiser gritted her teeth and, going against the survival instinct of a living being, walked towards the depths of the gloomy darkness.
She knew Shaya was inside.
The Sun Elf elder had not said what would happen to Shaya after he was brought to the World Tree, or perhaps they were not qualified to know the inside story.
Perhaps Shaya had already been killed during this time.
But Heiser still came.
Whether it was because of the seed of love that had just sprouted in the maiden’s heart,
Or because of the regret that was almost engulfing her sea of consciousness.
Shaya had nothing to do with the Elf Race or the entire Elf Race, nor the entire Lost Island.
But because of her willful request, he had entered the Lost Island and was drawn into that vortex of disaster.
At this moment, the so-called future of the Elf Race was all cast aside by Heiser.
She only knew that she had to come here.
Even if it meant the Golden Elf’s own life.
Drip—
Drip—
The entire palace was silent, only the sound of the Golden Elf’s footsteps could be heard.
After an unknown amount of time, the faint shadow dissipated, revealing layers of illusory stairs.
And at the end of the stairs, a magnificent black iron seat.
On the black iron throne sat a phantom, majestic figure.
His face was of extreme beauty, condensed from elf blood, indistinguishable from male or female. Behind him were layers of illusory black wings, like angelic wings.
On his snow-white robes were golden threads, engraved with textures unique to the ancient Elf Royal Court.
Heiser had seen the figure on the black iron throne before, in a painting left in the Grand Library of the Royal Court—
This was the Elf King who should have perished along with the fall of the Royal Court.
No, considering the words of the Sun Elf elder… then the being before her could be called the Elf King, or the Sun God, or the Creator.
This was a great being worshipped by all beings in the Glorious Era.
Logically speaking, whether from the identity of the King of the Elf Race or from the identity of the Creator, Heiser should have shown respect to the being before her.
However, the Golden Elf maiden’s gaze did not linger on the black iron throne for even a single moment.
Instead, it was fixed on the slender figure beside the black iron throne.
He was a human youth with black hair and black eyes.
His hands were bound by black iron shackles that sealed his extraordinary abilities.
Beneath his messy black hair, those black eyes that had once captivated Heiser, like reflections of the starry sea, were never as dim as they were at this moment.
Teacher Shaya…
He was still alive.
The moment she saw the human youth before her…
The joy in the Golden Elf’s heart dispelled all previous unease, regret, and the fear emanating from her spiritual intuition and primal instincts.
Shaya was still alive.
Then everything could still be salvaged.
As long as she defeated this guy, who was suspected to be the Sun God’s remnant soul, and rescued Shaya…
“Heiser…”
The youth’s words, with a hint of sigh, interrupted the Golden Elf’s thoughts.
“You shouldn’t have come here.”
Heiser looked up blankly, and her gaze met Shaya’s.
In those once deep black eyes, like a starry sea, were now mixed with complex emotions.
He calmly looked at the Golden Elf before him, his eyes filled with both sadness and reluctance… yet also with the same fascination and tenderness that had once captivated the Golden Elf.
And—
That barely discernible trace of determination.
