Chapter 68: Sacred Spring and the Goddess (Part 2)
Faced with an invitation from a legendary powerhouse, neither Verafia nor Ig had any reason to refuse.
Stepping out of the inn, Verafia also saw a small team of departing elf guards. They were likely preparing to apprehend Ig, but they happened to encounter Beltnan, who waved them away.
Verafia guessed that the elder elf had likely finished preparations for the Life Sacred Spring which she had used. This time, he had specifically come out to find them… and now, perhaps, such an elder was reminiscing about his homeland?
Soft, bright sunlight poured through the branches of the sacred tree onto Aerbroal. A gentle, soft breeze caressed the girl’s soft temple hair, with wisps entwined like tree leaves, carrying a fresh breath of life.
Because she stubbornly refused Ig’s idea of carrying her, both the elder elf and Ig deliberately slowed their pace. However, even so, Verafia’s delicate, snow-white face blushed slightly, and her slender, short legs occasionally required her to trot to keep up with the two of them.
As an elder of the Wood Elves and also a priestess of the Goddess, Beltnan, with his lifespan of several thousand years, undoubtedly held a supremely lofty position within the Wood Elf tribe.
Along the way, the elves greeted him with respect. Upon seeing the young man and girl following the elder, they couldn’t help but express surprise and curiosity, speculating about their identities.
“Miss Verafia, most of these children were born after the Great Lunar Tide. They have never left their homeland. Humans like you often attract their curiosity… I’m sorry, I almost forgot, you are supposed to be a phoenix.”
Warm sunlight fell on Beltnan’s aged face. The wrinkled corners of his ancient eyes seemed to relax with a touch of comfort as he looked down at the girl and smiled.
With her large, golden eyes flicking up lightly, Verafia nodded her little head.
She had long grown accustomed to being the subject of the elves’ curiosity… As for the elder elf mistaking her for a human, Verafia certainly didn’t consider it an offense.
After all, before being Verafia, she had indeed been a human.
Even now, as a true little phoenix emerging from an egg, she didn’t possess wings, a dragon tail, or dragon horns like Ophi. In appearance, Verafia was not much different from an ordinary human girl… Moreover, she was very accustomed to being a human girl, which made it even harder to tell that she was a phoenix.
Wait, speaking of which, it seemed Beltnan hadn’t discovered that she was previously Lothel?
A flicker of bright light flashed in Verafia’s large eyes as she thought of something worth being happy about.
A faint sound reached her ears, like rough fingers stroking tree bark. The wind gently blew through the thick divine robes of the elder elf, and his withered fingers smoothed them down.
Beltnan gently stroked the scepter in his hand, looking around, a hint of reminiscence curving his lips. Then, he looked apologetically towards the girl and Ig.
“Miss Verafia, I am very sorry. After so many days, I haven’t had the time to come and see you… This is not how the citizens of the Goddess should be treated.”
“Ainchel visited and played with us every day,” Verafia said, raising her little head and speaking in a childish voice.
“That lass… I can see that your relationship with her is very good. It seems that little one was not unlucky to be stranded outside the Sacred Tree,” the elder elf chuckled, his withered voice filled with affection. “So, that lass should have also taken Miss Verafia on a tour of this small town?”
“Yes, Aerbroal is a place with very beautiful scenery,” Verafia nodded obediently. Ainchel was born in the Sacred Tree, but she had also grown up in Sacred Spring Town; Aerbroal was her hometown too. These past few days, Ainchel had carried her around the entire town.
— Of course, Verafia had not had the opportunity to catch a glimpse of the Life Sacred Spring at the foot of the Sacred Tree beforehand. Seeing it now, she guessed it was likely that Beltnan was inside, which was why the elf soldiers had cordoned it off.
Tilting her head slightly, she blinked her slender eyelashes, thinking to herself.
“The Sacred Spring of Life, Aerbroal, these are all gifts from our Goddess.”
Beltnan laughed and shook his head. His pale beard was rustled, and soft light fell on his withered face, covered in wrinkles. He couldn’t help but mock himself, “The Goddess gives us life and nourishes our civilization, yet at this moment, we still need her protection and disturb her slumber.”
Verafia’s golden pupils lifted slightly, falling upon Beltnan’s face.
Although he didn’t say much, from the words of this great elder of the Wood Elves, Verafia could vaguely discern the general situation.
During the Great Lunar Tide, the Life Goddess Silvethris had not fallen but had entered a deep slumber. For a deity, even if it wasn’t their own will, slumbering through time was a method to repair their divine spark and soul.
However, in the current precarious state of the entire Elf Empire, the Goddess’s appearance was needed… Verafia guessed that Beltnan likely wanted her to use the Sacred Spring to awaken the Life Goddess.
But…
Verafia tilted her face hesitantly. She felt a vague sense of unease. As her golden eyes lifted and fell upon the black-haired boy, Verafia suddenly noticed that he was slightly frowning.
“Hmm, Ig?”
The boy nodded at her, then shifted his gaze slightly to the side.
Following Ig’s gaze, Verafia saw several young elf men and women in the crowd.
They appeared to be ordinary residents, but when they sensed the girl’s gaze, disbelief flashed across their faces.
“Ig, you discovered them?” Beltnan’s voice sounded in her ear, and his hand tapped on his scepter.
Instantly, vines imbued with terrifying power erupted from the ground and engulfed those individuals. Screams echoed pitifully amidst the terrifying magical fluctuations that resembled a volcanic eruption.
The magic of a legendary powerhouse, even when cast casually, still shook the entire sky and earth.
The surrounding area was already cleared by elf guards who had kept the crowd at bay.
The captain of the guards bowed respectfully to the elder elf before ordering his subordinates to carry away the corpses left behind by Beltnan’s magic.
“They are not Dark Elves, but spies from the Dark Elves who infiltrated Aerbroal through a ‘traitor’,” Beltnan’s voice came calmly. Sensing the confusion in the girl’s eyes, the elder elf began to explain:
“It was not my magic that killed them. These individuals had the power of ‘Dark Moon’ buried within their bodies, which would kill them and completely destroy their physical features the moment they were exposed. Even I have never managed to capture even one of them.”
