Chapter 86: The ancient battlefield ruins witnessed the war of the gods.

Dorei’s feathers bristled again.

Although he was only a fourth-rank magical bird, his presence was formidable. He seized Shu Li’s little cloak in his beak and tossed him onto his back, ready to flee at any moment.

“Oh, Dorei, wait—”

Shu Li tumbled into the soft feathers. After struggling free, he spread his wings and flew up above Dorei’s head.

“Let me introduce myself first...”

High-rank magical beasts were intelligent enough to understand Elven and communicate, just like Mr. Serpent.

When Shu Li had first encountered Mr. Serpent, the creature’s ferocious appearance had nearly scared him to death. But after mustering the courage to speak to him, not only had Shu Li avoided being attacked, he had even received help.

Looking fierce did not mean someone was bad.

The higher a magical beast’s rank, the more terrifying its appearance.

“Coo...” Trusting Shu Li, Dorei smoothed down his puffed-up feathers, though his sharp avian eyes remained fixed on the ugly magical beast drawing closer and closer.

When the enormous lizard spotted the Sekern bird, its cold pupils narrowed into vertical slits—the excited gaze of a predator that had found its prey.

But when it noticed the tiny winged Fairy flying above the Sekern bird’s head, it hesitated and slowed its approach.

Shu Li flew half a meter forward and performed an elegant greeting. Then, in flawless Elven, he said calmly, “Hello. I am Sperien of the Faerie Forest, and this is my companion, Dorei. We are currently guests at the Crystal Castle.”

After introducing himself and mentioning the Crystal Castle of the Elven Kingdom, Shu Li was certain no magical beast would dare touch them.

Sure enough, the enormous lizard stopped four or five meters away, and some of the ferocity faded from its gaze.

“Sperien of the Faerie Forest, I am Orsop. It is a pleasure to meet you.”

A cool, alluring female voice rang out.

Shu Li never would have imagined that such an... imposing-looking enormous lizard was actually female.

The fact that she had answered meant she was willing to communicate.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you too.” Shu Li immediately struck up a friendly conversation with her. “I apologize for intruding upon your territory. Please forgive my rudeness.”

The enormous lizard shifted her gaze away from Dorei, a trace of regret showing on her savage face.

Sekern birds were delicious, and this one was a newly matured fourth-rank magical bird. His flesh was sure to be exceptionally tender.

But since he was the Little Fairy’s companion, eating him was out of the question.

Orsop was a magical beast who had lived in the Elven Kingdom for nearly a thousand years. She knew perfectly well what she could and could not eat.

“Sperien of the Faerie Forest, why have you come alone to this barren place?”

“I came to find the Wood Spirit,” Shu Li replied frankly.

“The Wood Spirit?” The enormous lizard froze, clearly not expecting such an extraordinary answer from the Little Fairy.

“Yes.” Shu Li nodded his tiny head. “At noon, I read a book titled The War of the Gods. It said that ten thousand years ago, the Wood Spirit and the noble Elven King fought the God of Death here. That’s why I came to investigate the ruins of the battlefield.”

The enormous lizard tilted her knobby head, her bulging eyes examining the Little Fairy from head to toe.

Shu Li held his head high and his chest out, looking straight ahead as he allowed her to study him openly.

After observing the Little Fairy’s earnest expression and confirming that he was not joking, the enormous lizard raised her forelegs. Her body abruptly rose five or six meters higher, startling Dorei into shuddering and once again seizing Shu Li’s little cloak in his red beak.

Ignoring the Sekern bird’s wariness, the enormous lizard pointed in a particular direction with one thick forelimb. “If you don’t mind, I can take you to the center of the ancient battlefield.”

Shu Li was delighted. “Really? Thank you so much!”

The enormous lizard lowered her forelegs and settled back onto the ground. “However, I should warn you beforehand. There are no traces of the Wood Spirit ever having existed there.”

“That’s all right!” Shu Li said with a cheerful grin. “I only want to try my luck.”

Even the Elven King had not seen an elemental spirit in ten thousand years. How could a ten-year-old Fairy like him possibly find one as soon as he arrived?

His main purpose in coming here was to search for clues.

“Then... please follow me.” The enormous lizard wasted no time and turned to leave.

“Ah, please wait.” Shu Li called after her, then said to Dorei, “You should go back first. I can follow Orsop on my own.”

“Chirp!” Dorei let out a sharp cry. How could he possibly allow the Little Fairy to leave with an unfamiliar high-rank magical beast?

Shu Li patted his red beak. “I didn’t report to the king before leaving. You fly quickly, so could you go tell him for me?”

Dorei was a highly intelligent magical bird. As soon as he heard Shu Li’s request, he understood the intention behind it.

After chirping several times, he reluctantly spread his wings and soared into the air.

Shu Li watched until he had flown away, then followed the enormous lizard.

Although she bore him no ill will, it never hurt to remain cautious when traveling away from home.

Sending Dorei away was Shu Li’s indirect way of informing the enormous lizard that the Elven King stood behind him. If she intended to harm him, she had better consider whether she could bear the consequences.

Besides, Sekern birds were renowned for flying as swiftly as the wind, making them perfect messengers. If Shu Li failed to return for too long, the Elven King would inevitably come here to search for him.

Whether or not the enormous lizard had understood his unspoken warning, she behaved herself throughout the journey. After leading Shu Li onward for more than twenty minutes, she arrived at a basin.

Standing at its edge, she pointed toward the scorched earth below. “This is the center of the ancient battlefield.”

Shu Li covered his nose and stared at the basin in surprise.

It stank!

A powerful corrosive stench permeated the air. Taking only a few breaths was enough to make him dizzy.

He hurriedly rummaged through his storage ring, pulled out a small handkerchief, and fashioned it into a makeshift mask over his nose and mouth.

The stench weakened slightly, allowing him to breathe with some difficulty.

The enormous lizard seemed accustomed to the smell and remained completely unaffected.

“Thank you, Orsop.” Shu Li’s voice was slightly muffled. To express his gratitude, he took a seed from his storage ring and offered it to the enormous lizard.

“What is this?” The enormous lizard stared at the tiny red crystal in the Little Fairy’s palm, nearly crossing her eyes in the effort to focus on it.

“A red crystal flower seed.” Shu Li smiled. “It’s a gift to thank you.”

As a knowledgeable high-rank magical beast who had lived for a thousand years, the enormous lizard had naturally heard all about red crystal flowers, which could raise one’s level of magical power.

“Are you certain you want to give it to me?” she asked in disbelief.

“Yes.” Shu Li nodded.

The enormous lizard’s pupils contracted. Lowering her knobby head, she extended her tongue and curled it around the tiny crystal in Shu Li’s palm, whisking it away in an instant.

“Is there anything else you need my help with?”

Receiving such a precious seed merely for showing him the way seemed far too easy.

Shu Li shook his head. “No.”

The enormous lizard fell silent for a moment, then spat a round metal disk out of a storage pouch inside her mouth. “This is an insignia I found near here when I was young. Perhaps it will be useful to you.”

Surprised, Shu Li fluttered closer to the object lying on the yellow sand. It was so blackened that its original appearance was impossible to discern. It looked more like a charred lump of iron.

Still, if the enormous lizard said it was an insignia, then it probably was one.

“Thank you.” Shu Li landed lightly on the yellow sand and tried to lift the lump of iron.

Uh—it wouldn’t budge?

He glanced awkwardly at the enormous lizard and tried again.

Good grief!

It was not especially large, but it was incredibly dense. Even with all his strength, he could not move it an inch.

He had wanted to turn it over and see whether there was a design on the other side, but since he truly could not lift it, he had no choice but to give up.

Shu Li put the lump of iron into his storage ring and thanked the enormous lizard again.

Before leaving, the enormous lizard warned him that he must depart before nightfall or he would be in danger. As the ruins of an ancient battlefield, this basin had once become the grave of countless restless souls that could not be purified. They emerged to wander the area every night.

A chill ran down Shu Li’s spine.

There was actually such a terrifying place in the Elven Kingdom.

Could even the Elven King not purify them?

“All right... I’ll be careful.” Shu Li nodded solemnly.

The enormous lizard departed with heavy steps.

After watching her leave, Shu Li turned to face the basin and its pervasive stench of decay alone.

The basin was not large, measuring approximately two hundred meters across and more than thirty meters deep. Strictly speaking, it resembled an enormous crater formed by a meteor strike.

There was nothing inside it, not even a single stone.

Shu Li flew into the air and pondered for a moment before taking out his magic staff and silently reciting a purification spell.

Great Light God Lainte Freis, I beseech you to command the light elements to gather around me and grant me the power of light to cleanse corruption, dispel darkness, and oppose evil—

The sunstone at the tip of his magic staff erupted with dazzling radiance. Light elements surged toward him from every direction, converging into a sphere of light. With a dashing sweep of his magic staff, Shu Li sent the sphere streaking toward the center of the basin like a bolt of lightning.

Sizzle—

The sphere, which was as large as a soccer ball, vanished without a trace as though something had swallowed it.

Shu Li stared in stunned disbelief.

Whenever he purified the mother tree, he controlled the size and power of the light sphere as much as possible to avoid attracting the Dark Elves’ attention.

Now that he had nothing to worry about, he had unleashed an intermediate purification spell with all his might. He never could have imagined that the sphere of light would sink into the basin like a stone dropped into the sea, disappearing without so much as a sound.

There was definitely something strange about this place!

No wonder even the Elven King was powerless against it.

Shu Li puffed out his cheeks, took out his notebook, and turned to the page on which he had recorded the incantation. Whatever happened, he decided he might as well recite it first and worry about the rest later.

He had arrived filled with hope, but after seeing the barren ground, he no longer expected anything.

Once he had memorized the lengthy incantation, he put away the notebook and raised his magic staff. Closing his eyes slightly, he rehearsed the words twice in his mind before reciting them with carefully measured cadence.

“Wood Spirit from ancient times, you once aided the Mother Goddess Isfu in creating the world and brought prosperity to the Austin Continent. You are the greatest essence of the elements! I am Sperien of the Faerie Forest. Please hear my prayer and grant me the mighty power of the Wood Spirit—”

Silence.

Shu Li opened his eyes and gazed ahead, letting out a soft sigh.

As expected, it was not that simple.

He lowered his magic staff and looked up at the sun gradually sinking toward the west, then decided to return.

As a good boy, he ought to listen to his elders.

He had to leave before nightfall.

Just as he turned around, the finger wearing his storage ring suddenly grew hot.

What was going on?

Startled, Shu Li hurriedly searched for the cause and discovered that the lump of iron he had just placed inside the storage ring was acting up. Without hesitation, he threw it out.

The lump of iron no longer resembled iron at all. It had transformed into a flaming ember. After landing, it rolled several times and, amid Shu Li’s startled cry, tumbled into the basin.

“Ah—”

Shu Li reached out dramatically, hesitating over whether to chase after it.

After all, it was the gift the high-rank magical beast had given him in return.

But it rolled far too quickly. Within a few breaths, it had reached the bottom of the basin.

Shu Li flew half a meter forward, then quickly retreated.

It stank too much!

The closer he came to the basin, the worse the air became.

It was not that he did not want to retrieve the lump of iron. The stench ahead was simply unbearable, and his tiny body could not withstand it.

Gazing regretfully at the insignia that had rolled to the bottom of the basin, Shu Li tightened his grip on his magic staff and decided to use earth magic to “transport” it back.

Before he could begin chanting, however, a mass of black smoke erupted from the bottom of the basin. It spread with astonishing speed, expanding in every direction in the blink of an eye. Shu Li had no time to flee before the smoke engulfed him.

The burning insignia shed its blackened exterior, revealing an intricate totem as it began to glow green.

Thinking quickly, Shu Li immediately recited a wind incantation and summoned a tornado in an attempt to disperse the black smoke.

Unfortunately, the attempt backfired. The smoke remained undisturbed, while Shu Li himself was pulled into a black hole by an unseen force.

“Wah—”

His head spun violently. The little handkerchief covering his nose and mouth fell away and disintegrated into fragments.

He had no idea how much time passed. When he finally regained his senses, the deafening roars of beasts resounded all around him.

Shu Li’s eyes snapped open. The instant he saw the scene before him, his pupils widened uncontrollably.

Hundreds of dragons in every imaginable color soared through the sky. Dozens of splendidly dressed Elves and Fairies stood upon each dragon’s back, all of them valiant warriors. Some held their magic staffs high and rapidly chanted advanced spells. Others wielded golden {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} bows and unleashed volleys of countless arrows. Still others charged directly into battle with longswords in hand.

Their enemies were high-rank magical beasts corrupted by the aura of death, necromancers dressed in black robes, mounted Black Knights, and the God of Death hovering behind them with a soul-reaping scythe in hand.

The two mighty armies clashed in a ferocious battle, and every exchange inflicted devastating destruction upon the verdant land.

Shu Li had appeared in an exceptionally unfortunate position—directly in the center of the fighting.

When a fireball hurtled toward him, he nearly died of fright, certain that his life was over. But the fireball passed straight through his body and blasted away a necromancer from the army of darkness.

Shu Li clutched his pounding heart, overwhelmed by the relief of having narrowly escaped death.

If his guess was correct, the scene unfolding before him was none other than the War of the Gods from ten thousand years ago!

Astonished, Shu Li opened his eyes wide and began searching rapidly.

It did not take long for him to spot an exceptionally large silver dragon among the others. Standing upon its back was a blond Elf dressed in purple robes and wearing a silver crown.

It was the Elven King!

Shu Li beat his wings and flew toward the silver dragon, passing through layer upon layer of magical attacks.

As he drew closer, he slowed down and turned his head toward a green, translucent figure hovering beside the dragon.

Long, slender hair resembling willow branches; a dress made from broad leaves; a cloud of mist beneath her feet; and a thorn-covered vine held in one hand—

She was the Wood Spirit!