Chapter 41: The apologetic mother tree travels to Lake Saint Zean.

Dixio slept until he was thoroughly refreshed. When he woke, he stretched comfortably and turned to look for his leader. After searching for quite a while, he finally spotted him sleeping at the foot of the bed.

Dixio rubbed his eyes in confusion.

They had clearly been lying together before he fell asleep!

His staring contest with Budno had been interrupted, leaving him furious, and his leader had even patted his back soothingly and coaxed him to sleep!

The bed provided for the Elven cubs was so large that Dixio had to fly low over it to reach the foot.

Shu Li lay curled on his side, clutching a corner of the blanket and sleeping deeply. He had no idea that Redhead was crouching curiously beside him, studying the gold circlet on his head with a puzzled expression.

Dixio touched his own circlet, then looked at his leader's, his mind filling with question marks.

Where had that domineering green flower crown on his leader's head gone?

It had been replaced by a circlet similar to his own.

The pattern and gemstone were different, though!

Dixio curiously extended a finger to touch it, but before he could make contact, his leader woke up.

Shu Li slowly opened his eyes. Seeing Redhead only vaguely through his sleep-blurred vision, he assumed Dixio had gotten himself into yet another bizarre sleeping position and helplessly reached out to push him.

Dixio had been crouching, so the push sent him toppling backward onto the blanket. He lay there staring blankly at the ceiling.

Realizing something was wrong, Shu Li sat bolt upright. Redhead was lying on his back with all four limbs in the air, his ruby-red eyes swiveling toward Shu Li in accusation.

"Uh... Dixio, you're awake?" Pretending not to notice his resentful expression, Shu Li grinned and asked, "Did you sleep well?"

Like a little turtle flipped onto its shell, Dixio struggled two or three times before managing to turn over. He sat cross-legged in front of Shu Li and pouted.

"I slept well."

He had slept soundly and was now brimming with energy.

"That's good." Shu Li nodded.

Considering Dixio's bizarre sleeping habits, rolling all over the bed as though it were an open field, it would have been stranger if he hadn't slept well.

Shu Li, on the other hand, clearly hadn't gotten enough sleep.

He yawned and glanced sideways at Redhead's sturdy limbs.

After returning from the courtyard, he had initially lain down beside Redhead and prepared to drift off to dreamland. Then, out of nowhere, a powerful arm had swung toward him and jolted him awake.

Shu Li had glared at Redhead, who was apparently practicing martial arts in his sleep, and helplessly moved farther away.

Not long afterward, a leg came kicking toward him and nearly struck his shin.

His cheeks puffing with indignation, Shu Li decisively moved elsewhere.

The bed was enormous. Why make himself share one end with Redhead?

He had finally been on the verge of falling asleep when that ethereal voice returned to disturb him.

"Little cub... I'm sorry... I didn't mean to do it..."

Shu Li refused to acknowledge it. Pretending he couldn't hear, he tried his hardest to fall asleep.

The voice, however, kept chattering incessantly.

"Please don't think I'm ugly... I used to be beautiful..."

"I like you so much... Little cub... Will you be my friend?"

"Why are you ignoring me?"

"I didn't want to become ugly..."

"An evil, terrifying villain made me ugly... I want to become beautiful again..."

"You're the only one who can help me..."

"Little cub..."

Unable to endure it any longer, Shu Li roared inwardly, "Shut up!"

The ethereal voice abruptly fell silent.

Shu Li thought it had finally taken the hint, but several seconds later, it began sobbing brokenly.

"Sniff... I'm sorry..."

"I know I was wrong... but I can't control that terrifying power..."

"Please don't hate me..."

"Quiet!" Shu Li snapped angrily. "If you keep disturbing my sleep, I really will hate you!"

"..."

After he waited for quite a while, the voice finally disappeared. Shu Li breathed a long sigh of relief and, unable to resist his exhaustion any longer, fell deeply asleep.

His sleep was far from peaceful. He had a jumble of chaotic dreams in which a terrifying monster seemed to chase him relentlessly. Afraid of being eaten, he ran and ran until he was utterly exhausted. Then he missed his footing and fell into a ditch. After struggling to climb out, he discovered that the dream had changed. He was standing on a meadow, and a lush tree rose before him.

The tree was extraordinarily beautiful. Its foliage was dense, its branches thick and vigorous, and numerous green fruits hung from its boughs. Under the sunlight, every leaf glittered brilliantly.

Shu Li stood at a distance and admired it in silence.

Suddenly, he noticed a tall, slender figure beneath the tree. The figure stood against the light, making his features impossible to see. Shu Li could only tell that he wore magnificent, exquisitely crafted robes and that the wind tossed his waist-length golden hair.

Shu Li involuntarily began walking toward the tree.

He had taken only two steps when the figure suddenly raised a hand and cast a spell. A fierce wind swept across the space ahead, tearing colorful wildflowers from the ground and sending them swirling through the sky.

With his path blocked, Shu Li had no choice but to remain where he was. When the wind stopped, both the tree and the figure had vanished, leaving the entire space blanketed in white.

He dreamed of nothing else after that and sank into a deep sleep.

Now that he was awake, every detail of the dream remained vivid.

Shu Li carefully considered it and concluded that the ethereal voice had most likely come from the ugly, bald tree outside the window.

In other words, it had come from the dying Elven mother tree.

The beautiful fruit-laden tree in his dream was probably what the Elven mother tree had once looked like.

What had the Elven mother tree been trying to tell him through that dream? Had it merely wanted to prove that it used to be beautiful?

As for the figure beneath the tree, Shu Li believed it was the Elven King.

After all, only the Elven King possessed such dazzling golden hair.

That strange wind at the end had expelled Shu Li from the dream.

He sighed.

The Elven mother tree had asked the wrong person for help.

Even the Elven King was helpless. What could a cub who hadn't even mastered Elven possibly do? He might want to help, but he simply lacked the ability!

Returning to his senses, Shu Li prepared to get up. The moment he lifted his eyes, however, he saw Redhead's adorable, round face and paused.

"What is it?"

Dixio poked the top of his head. "The flower crown... is gone."

"Oh, this?" Shu Li touched his circlet and said happily, "This is the flower crown!"

Dixio blinked and shook his head. "Impossible!"

The flower crown was green, while the circlet was gold. They had completely different colors and shapes, so how could they possibly be the same object?

Was his leader still muddled from sleep?

Receiving Redhead's skeptical look, Shu Li decided to prove the truth through action.

Some things couldn't be explained clearly with words alone.

"Wait a moment." He took his notebook from his storage ring, opened it to the page containing the incantation, and silently reviewed it to make sure he remembered it correctly. Then he began to recite.

Dixio propped his chin on his hands and listened.

Halfway through the incantation, Shu Li stumbled. He swiftly lowered his head, checked his notebook twice, and continued.

At last, he finished. The two cubs held their breath and waited.

Nothing happened.

Shu Li gave an awkward, dry laugh. "Just... wait a little longer."

It had to be because he had stumbled earlier. Interrupting the incantation must have rendered it ineffective.

What a hopeless brain he had! The Elven King had taught him over and over, and he had successfully cast it several times. How had one nap been enough to make him get it wrong?

Picking up the notebook, Shu Li studied the incantation carefully. He reviewed it one short section at a time and repeated it silently until the words flowed smoothly. Then he tried again.

"Moon Goddess Moter Lena, bearer of the holiest radiance and divine guardian of weapons and tools, please grant me dexterous hands with which to craft an ornament unique in all the world. Please transform the blessing bestowed by Elven King Freyus Estel into the shape I desire—a silver hair clip."

As the incantation ended, Shu Li pictured the hair clip in his mind. The circlet instantly emitted a faint green glow and transformed into a silver hair clip.

It worked!

Shu Li removed the hair clip and proudly showed it to Dixio.

Dixio stared, dumbfounded. He accepted the hair clip Shu Li offered him and examined it from every angle. After quite a while, he asked incredulously, "Is this... really the flower crown?"

"Of course." Shu Li pointed at the hair clip and recited the restoration incantation.

The hair clip in Dixio's hands instantly transformed into a flower crown set with emeralds.

"Wow!" Dixio returned the flower crown to Shu Li and exclaimed excitedly, "It really is the flower crown! Sperien, how did you do that?"

Not only had he removed the flower crown, but he could even change its shape with an incantation.

Shu Li recited the spell again, transforming the flower crown back into a gold circlet. After placing it on his head, he explained, "The Elven King taught me the incantation. Now the flower crown can change into any shape I want."

"That's amazing!" Dixio clapped, his reverence for the Elven King rising even higher.

Once his amazement subsided, he noticed a problem.

"Sperien, when did the Elven King teach you?"

"After you fell asleep." Mixing truth with falsehood, Shu Li said, "The birds outside woke me up, so I flew through the crack in the window and into the courtyard. Then... I met the Elven King. I asked him to take the flower crown back, and he taught me the incantation."

After hearing the explanation, Dixio believed him completely.

Shu Li rubbed his nose.

Little cubs were so easy to fool.

Of course, he had told the truth. He had merely omitted the part involving the Elven mother tree.

Knock, knock.

Aisha knocked twice before opening the door and entering. Seeing the two cubs awake and chatting on the bed, she said gently, "Little darlings, it's time to gather. We'll be leaving for Lake Shengze'an soon."

The two cubs immediately spread their little wings and flew excitedly out of the room.

Many Fairy cubs had already gathered in the corridor outside. When they saw Shu Li and Dixio, they greeted them warmly.

"Huh? Sperien, can you take off the flower crown now?" Lois, one of the female cubs, asked curiously when she saw the gold circlet on Shu Li's head.

Dixio answered for his leader before Shu Li could speak. "The circlet is the flower crown!"

Lois stared blankly. "But a circlet and a flower crown aren't the same..."

They had nothing in common. How could they possibly be the same thing?

"That's right! Dixio, did you make a mistake?"

"The flower crown is green, but the circlet is gold."

"The flower crown has lots of emeralds, but the circlet only has one."

"Dixio is silly!"

Budno had just flown out of his room. When he overheard their conversation, he immediately began taunting Dixio.

The two of them had quarreled a little before falling asleep, and neither had completely gotten over it yet!

Dixio snorted and made a face at the chubby cub. "If you don't believe me, ask Sperien whether the circlet is the flower crown."

Budno immediately asked, "Sperien, is it true?"

"It's true," Shu Li confirmed.

Dixio proudly raised his little chin.

To clear up the cubs' confusion, Shu Li recited the long, complicated incantation in front of them. When they saw the circlet transform back into the flower crown with their own eyes, they cried out in astonishment and bombarded him with questions about how it could change.

Shu Li repeated the same explanation he had given Dixio.

The cubs exclaimed in wonder, their admiration for the Elven King reaching new heights.

Once Aisha had awakened all the Fairy cubs, she led them toward the great hall.

Numerous Elves and Fairies had already gathered there. Every one of them wore magnificent clothing and possessed an elegant bearing. Together, they formed a breathtaking feast for the eyes.

Shu Li spotted Kumandi, the quiet little genius, sitting atop the statue's head and flew over to him.

"Good afternoon, Kumandi," he greeted cheerfully.

"Mm." Kumandi inclined his head to the little cub.

Shu Li flew back and forth in front of him, occasionally spinning in a circle. His entire demeanor practically screamed, Hurry up and ask me! Hurry up and ask me!

Kumandi looked puzzled.

Shu Li deliberately flew closer to display his gold circlet set with an emerald, blinking expectantly.

At last, Kumandi asked, "You can remove the flower crown now?"

"Hehe." Shu Li grinned. "Guess."

Kumandi stared at the circlet and sensed an aura similar to that of the flower crown. He frowned slightly.

"It is the flower crown."

Shu Li clicked his tongue in surprise. "How did you know?"

"The aura is the same," Kumandi said. "There is a type of magic that can alter the form of matter."

Shu Li was truly impressed now.

A genius really was a genius. Kumandi was incredible!

Leaving out the beginning and the end, Shu Li briefly told Kumandi that he had asked the Elven King for help, and the Elven King had taught him the incantation.

Then he took out his notebook, opened it to the page containing the incantation, and showed it to the quiet little genius.

When Kumandi saw the elegant Elven script and the advanced magical incantation, he showed a hint of puzzlement.

There was no doubt that this was the Elven King's handwriting. Yet Sperien was only a little cub whose magical power had not even awakened. How had he managed to activate advanced magic?

Looking at the delighted little cub, Kumandi could only attribute it to the Elven King's blessing.

Those who received the Elven King's blessing were destined to achieve extraordinary things.

Saint Mage Danlov, King of Dragons Hamon, and the Elven warrior Ilio were all outstanding figures in their respective fields.

Sperien had received the Elven King's blessing at the moment of his birth as a Fairy cub. He was undoubtedly special in ways that could not yet be explained.

In truth, Kumandi had long since noticed that Sperien was different.

When Kumandi had been his age, he had never resonated so strongly with Elven poetry, much less entered an advanced illusion.

The same was true of the other cubs.

Only Sperien had twice witnessed the Elven King of the past and the gods within an illusion.

He was a fortunate little cub.

Once every Elf and Fairy had assembled, the Elven King led the vast procession out of the Crystal Castle.

According to ancient tradition, they could travel only by land. Teleportation and flight were forbidden.

The journey on foot from the Elven capital to Lake Shengze'an would take at least four hours, so the considerate Elves summoned docile magical beasts for everyone to ride.

All kinds of magical beasts covered the vast meadow, forming a dazzling spectacle.

From the moment Shu Li saw them, his mouth remained hanging open.

Sitting on the Elven King's shoulder, he looked this way and that, turning his head so much that his neck began to ache.

Sacred unicorns, enormous and powerfully built reindeer, snow-white bears...

There were too many of them. Shu Li couldn't name most of the magical beasts and couldn't even determine what kinds of animals some of them were.

He had no idea whether they were truly docile, but they certainly looked imposing.

The Elven King mounted a beautiful unicorn and was the first to set out along the road to Lake Shengze'an.

The other Elves and Fairies maintained perfect order, each mounting a magical beast suited to them before following behind.

The Fairy cubs and adolescent Fairies could not transform, so like Shu Li, they sat on the adult Fairies' shoulders. Some restless cubs flew onto the heads of the mounts, prompting the magical beasts to flick their tails continually and carefully moderate their speed, afraid that moving too quickly might jolt the little cubs off.

The long procession crossed the vibrant plains beneath the setting sun. As the evening breeze swept past, countless graceful robes fluttered in its wake.

The magical beasts were swift and sure-footed. By the time only the last trace of twilight remained on the horizon, the procession had successfully reached Lake Shengze'an.

Beneath the night sky, Lake Shengze'an glittered with reflected light. Like a serene and elegant goddess, it rested quietly before them.

The Elves and Fairies dismounted and approached the lake with excitement.

Standing at the water's edge, the Elven King withdrew a brilliant golden scepter from his storage ring and raised it high. In a deep, melodious voice, he recited an incantation.

"Great Water God Hildani Gerti, please reveal to us a path leading to Gest Island..."

Shu Li nervously clutched a lock of the Elven King's hair. To his astonishment, the gemstone atop the scepter released a magnificent beam of light. It surged irresistibly across the lake, churning the waves wherever it passed. The water split in two, gradually revealing a road of enormous dark green stones.

It was an ancient road concealed beneath the lake, leading directly to the island at its center.