Chapter 89: Someone actually asked the Elf King about time travel and then asked to fight him? ...

Purification?

When had he purified the Elven King’s comrades who had fallen on the battlefield?

Thoroughly confused, Shu Li stared blankly at the Elven King.

Sitting across from him, Ilio was amused by his adorably bewildered expression and kindly explained, “The ancient battlefield in the north was the burial ground of countless dark undead. Without a seal to contain them, they would have run rampant and brought disaster. The Wood Spirit could originally have helped purify them, but she disappeared after the war ended. With no other choice, the fallen Elves and Fairies gave up their chance to ascend to the heavenly realm and used their own power to suppress the dark undead. That is also why the land became barren and remained uninhabited for ten thousand years.”

The more Shu Li heard, the more astonished he became. He recalled what the Wood Spirit had said when he met her.

Weren’t you the one who brought me here?

Before he could make sense of it at the time, an immense force had suddenly poured into his body, and he had gradually lost consciousness. Now, after hearing Ilio’s explanation and connecting it with the Wood Spirit’s words, a strange thought occurred to him.

Had the Wood Spirit disappeared ten thousand years ago because he had brought her out of the illusion?

If so, then the illusion had not been an illusion at all, but the real past.

Watching the little fellow’s astonished expression, Ilio continued, “You successfully summoned the Wood Spirit and purified all the undead, restoring life to that land. The fallen Elves and Fairies were finally released and able to return to the Light God’s embrace.”

Every Elf in the dining hall rose, faced Shu Li, and placed their right hand over their chest, offering him their highest salute.

With so many Elves—including the Elven King himself—saluting him, Shu Li was overwhelmed. He hurriedly rose and waved his hands, his words tumbling out incoherently. “No, no, no. I... I didn’t do anything... I only went there to try my luck... I never expected it to work. Actually, I... I only wanted to slack off... I thought that if I earned the Wood Spirit’s recognition... I could learn silent magic...”

His face flushed scarlet, and his voice grew softer and softer until he finally lowered his head in guilt and embarrassment.

The Elves regarded the flustered young Fairy with warm gazes. The Elven King reached out to stroke his hair and praised him gently. “Sperien is the luckiest and kindest Little Fairy.”

Shu Li’s face grew even redder.

“I... I’m still hungry... Let’s eat. Eat!”

He sat down at once, grabbed a wheat cake with his left hand and a piece of fruit with his right, then buried his head and ate furiously, hoping to conceal his nervousness and embarrassment with food.

One advantage of growing bigger was that his appetite had increased, allowing him to eat all kinds of delicious food. Unlike when he had been tiny, he no longer became stuffed after only two large fruits.

At the sight, the Elves broke into good-natured laughter.

Hearing them laugh, Shu Li’s ears turned so red they seemed ready to bleed, and he nearly buried his entire face in his plate.

The Elven King served him a bowl of throat-soothing nectar and said thoughtfully, “Slow down. Be careful not to choke.”

“Mm-hmm!” Shu Li finished the food in his hands, picked up the bowl, and took a large drink of nectar before letting out a breath.

Truth be told, he had been eating so quickly and the food was so dry that he really had nearly choked. The Elven King’s bowl of nectar had arrived just in time.

After finishing it, he licked his lips contentedly.

Once his stomach was full, his embarrassment faded, and he regained his composure. Seeing that the Elves were all concentrating on their meals, he edged closer to the Elven King and lowered his voice. “Your Majesty, I want to ask you something.”

The Elven King paused with his nectar halfway to his lips and turned his head. “Go ahead.”

Ilio and the other Elves immediately pricked up their ears while pretending to remain absorbed in eating and drinking.

Shu Li deliberately glanced at Ilio across the table. Seeing him happily eating away, he relaxed and said, “Your Majesty, when I went north, I encountered a high-rank magical beast named Orsop. He gave me an emblem...”

He took out the emblem, placed it on the table, and pointed to the design engraved upon it.

“Is this yours?”

The Elven King wiped his slender fingers with a cloth, picked up the emblem, and examined both sides. After a long moment, he said, “Yes. This emblem belongs to me.”

Shu Li said in surprise, “Orsop told me that he found it near the basin when he was young.”

A high-rank magical beast’s childhood had to have been at least a thousand years ago, right?

The Elven King handed the emblem back to Shu Li and said thoughtfully, “The basin is the focal point of the formation suppressing the dark undead. My power was sealed within this emblem to sustain the magical formation. Eight hundred years ago, the emblem vanished without a trace, weakening the formation. To prevent the undead from escaping, I had to reinforce it every six months... So a magical beast picked it up.”

Shu Li was dumbfounded.

Even someone as powerful as the Elven King probably could never have guessed that such an important magical artifact had been picked up by a young magical beast.

Lizards could burrow and dig through the earth. Orsop had probably been mischievous as a child, tunneled beneath the basin, and discovered the emblem at the heart of the formation. Mistaking it for treasure, he had happily taken it for himself.

Through an extraordinary chain of coincidences, Shu Li had encountered the enormous lizard and traded a red crystal flower seed for the emblem, which had turned into a lump of iron.

Then, of all things, he had chanted a purification spell toward the basin and inadvertently activated the formation. The emblem had sensed the magical formation and suddenly grown scorching hot. When he took it out to inspect it, it had been too hot to hold, and he had dropped it into the basin.

The emblem had returned to the heart of the formation, activated it, and triggered the illusion.

No, that was wrong. It must have opened a passage through time and space and sent him to the battlefield ten thousand years in the past.

Shu Li gathered his thoughts, then solemnly told the Elven King every detail of how he had encountered the enormous lizard, triggered the formation, and traveled ten thousand years into the past.

He had to figure out why the “people” within the illusions kept seeing him.

The last time, the Elven King had said he had not seen him. What about this time? Not only had Shu Li spoken to him, but he had even introduced himself. Surely the Elven King could not deny it again?

Shu Li gazed intently at the noble blond Elf, hoping to receive an answer from him.

This was extremely important to him.

If he truly possessed the power to travel through time and space, didn’t that mean he might be able to return to his original world and reunite with his family as long as he found the right method?

Meeting the young Fairy’s persistent, expectant gaze, the Elven King lowered his eyes and murmured, “Unfortunately, I had no interaction with you during that battle.”

Refusing to give up, Shu Li pressed, “Really? You really didn’t?”

The Elven King reached out to stroke his hair and explained patiently, “Your guess about the emblem is correct. You did inadvertently trigger the magical formation. As for why the Wood Spirit suddenly appeared, perhaps only she knows. You may ask her yourself.”

“She said I was the one who brought her back.” Shu Li puffed out his cheeks, his brows knitting so tightly they nearly tangled.

The Elven King said, “Time is a curious thing. Perhaps ten thousand years to us is merely an instant to someone else.”

Shu Li froze.

What did the Elven King mean?

Ilio toyed idly with a grape-like fruit. “Little Sperien, think again about the opening lines of the Song of Creation.”

Shu Li turned to stare at him.

So while he and the Elven King had been whispering, Ilio had been listening the entire time?

But why was it the Song of Creation again?

Spirits of water, fire, wood, wind, and earth, ancient elemental spirits, please open the gateway through time and space and carry us to the glorious age when the gods gathered together...

Shu Li silently sang the lines twice, then his eyes abruptly widened.

Ancient elemental spirits, please open the gateway through time and space!

“Elemental spirits can travel through time and space?” he blurted out.

Ilio winked at him. “The songs of the Elves are true history.”

Shu Li immediately thought of the song related to him and wrinkled his nose awkwardly before reaching a conclusion: he had not been the one traveling through time and space. The Wood Spirit had.

What he had seen was still an illusion, but the Wood Spirit had heard his prayer across time and space and arrived ten thousand years later when the war ended. That was why the Elven King had said that ten thousand years to them might be only an instant to someone else.

Shu Li tugged at his hair, marveling at how capricious and ridiculously powerful the elemental spirits were.

The battle had only just ended, and the dark undead on the battlefield had yet to be purified, but she had abandoned her responsibilities and run off. That had forced the Elven King to construct a magical formation and have the souls of the fallen Elves and Fairies suppress the dark undead together.

Then again, if they were assigning blame, he was also the culprit.

If he had not gone to the ancient battlefield yesterday and summoned the Wood Spirit, would any of this have happened?

Time paradoxes were far too complicated to explain coherently.

“Don’t dwell on it.” The Elven King’s heavenly voice sounded beside his ear. “Let events unfold naturally. The gods will guide us toward the correct path.”

Shu Li released his hair, lifted his little face, and gazed at the Elven King’s flawless features.

“Everything that seems unreasonable will ultimately have a reasonable explanation.” The Elven King lightly touched the young Fairy’s chest with one finger. “Follow your heart. If you believe something is right, then do it. If you encounter a problem you cannot resolve, I will help you.”

The place where the Elven King had touched his chest grew warm, and his heart began pounding faster.

“I want to find all the elemental spirits,” he said earnestly.

The elemental spirits were the key to returning home. Once he gathered them all, he would be able to open the gateway through time and space.

“All right.” The Elven King inclined his head.

Shu Li was thrilled.

He had suddenly discovered a way home. How could he not be happy?

As for why the “people” in the illusions could see him, there was no need to agonize over it. Just as the Elven King had said, what seemed unreasonable was reasonable in its own way. Someday, he would learn the answer.

What he needed to do now was grow stronger and prepare to search for the elemental spirits.

Having thought it through and freed himself from his worries, he picked up a fruit without a care in the world, opened his mouth wide, and took a bite. His left cheek bulged as he ate with relish.

After what had happened the previous night, he had advanced to Senior Mage, bringing him one step closer to becoming a Mage Sovereign.

If he encountered a few more extraordinary opportunities like that, would he advance even faster?

Shu Li began looking forward to his future adventures.

After breakfast, he accompanied the Elven King to the library to study magical theory. Following an hour-long midday rest, he diligently read through the stack of books.

The God of Fortune did not favor him every day.

Despite reading all afternoon, he found no new clues.

Later, he went to the pasture.

One advantage of his larger body was that he could finally learn to herd livestock and milk them.

The deer-cows, animals unique to the Elven Kingdom, were remarkably docile. All Shu Li had to do was ride his unicorn around them once, and they returned to their enclosure on their own without him even needing to crack a whip.

When he milked them, they stood obediently without moving and never lost their temper, no matter how clumsily he tugged.

Milking for the first time left Shu Li in a complete fluster, and he ended up spraying milk all over his face. When Ilio saw him, he pointed and doubled over with laughter.

Damn it!

Shu Li puffed out his cheeks, wiped the milk from his face, crouched beside the deer-cow’s udder, and resumed his work.

His perseverance eventually paid off. After tireless effort, he finally filled an entire bucket with creamy white milk and completed the day’s task.

Just as he was preparing to leave, Ilio approached carrying two long staffs.

“Sperien, would you like to get even?” he asked with a beaming smile.

“For what?” Shu Li asked in confusion.

“Catch.” Ilio tossed him one of the staffs. “Come on. Hit me with it.”

Shu Li caught the staff, unable to comprehend the way Ilio’s mind worked.

There was actually someone in this world who went looking for a beating, personally provided the weapon, and begged someone else to hit him.

“Are you sure?” he asked skeptically.

Ilio nodded. “I’m sure.”

Shu Li tightened his grip on the staff and assumed an attacking stance. “I’m really going to hit you, you know?”

Ilio stood perfectly straight, gripping his own staff and looking as if he were prepared to let Shu Li beat him however he pleased. “If you’re going to hit me, hurry up.”

Since he had put it that way, how could Shu Li pass up such a wonderful opportunity?

“Hah—I’m coming—”

He swung the staff viciously at the black-haired Elf.

“Bang!”

His staff collided with the one in Ilio’s hands, producing a deafening crack.

“Didn’t you say I could hit you however I wanted?” Shu Li demanded incredulously.

Ilio gave him a sly smile. “I never said I wouldn’t fight back.”

The next second, he counterattacked.

“Aaaah! I don’t want to play anymore!”

Shu Li shrieked, clutching his staff as he raced across the pasture.

Was this some kind of joke? Could his combat ability possibly compare to that of the strongest warrior among the Elves? If he did not run, was he supposed to stand there and wait to be beaten?

That wretched Ilio had tricked him! He had gone too far!

And foolish Shu Li had actually believed his nonsense.

“Waaaaah!”

The Elven King stood before the pasture cottage, watching the young Fairy run and wail. The black-haired Elf chasing him was deliberately going easy, occasionally prodding his back with the staff and making the young Fairy leap in fright and scream again and again.

“Isn’t he a Fairy? He could fly with his wings.”

A cluster of green light appeared upon the Elven King’s shoulder.

The corners of the Elven King’s mouth curved upward, but he did not answer.

The green light solidified into a miniature version of the Wood Spirit.

“Freyus, why did you lie to such a lovely Little Fairy?”

Listening to the distant laughter, the Elven King said softly, “He should grow up happily instead of bearing a responsibility that should never have fallen upon him so soon.”

The Wood Spirit sighed. “Perhaps this time, you are right.”