Chapter 123: Forest

"This is the Seed Vault," the old elf announced.

"It’s huge..."

The underground cavern stretched as far as the eye could see, row upon row of stone shelves vanishing into the distance.

The air was fresh and pleasantly cool — not damp in the slightest, countless glowing stones studded the ceiling, casting a soft, steady light that reached every corner, the temperature felt perfect, as if carefully maintained by some invisible force.

"Meow, this place is incredible..." Pearl said.

"What’s wrong?" Ethan asked.

"Meow, spatial magic has been cast here," Pearl explained.

"This space exists independently, outside the normal world."

"You are a very smart cat," the old elf said with a smile.

"That’s right, this space exists independently of the outside world, no matter what happens out there, it will not affect this place." His tone carried quiet pride.

"Does that mean this space wasn’t created by the dragon?" Ethan asked.

"Correct, this space was constructed by our elven race," the old elf confirmed.

"The elven race? Does your race really have such a powerful mage?" Pearl asked, astonished.

"We borrowed the power of the World Tree," the old elf said.

The World Tree possessed the power of creation, the elven race had used that power to forge this independent pocket dimension.

"Perhaps it was exactly because we borrowed the World Tree’s power that it withered," the old elf added, his tone tinged with sorrow.

"However, I do not regret it, we traded the World Tree’s power for the future of countless plants."

"You are truly great," Ethan said, and he meant it.

He looked around, countless sacks sat neatly arranged on rows of shelves.

"What kind of seeds are you looking for?"

"I want to find paddy rice seeds."

"Paddy rice? That is a crop humans used to cultivate," the old elf noted.

"Yes." Ethan had guessed early on that the Seed Vault would hold paddy rice.

The old elf led him to a large wall covered in hanging sacks, each bearing the name of the seed inside.

"Meow, why are there so many?" Pearl asked in surprise.

"Paddy rice was a staple food crop for humans, because it underwent countless improvements over generations, many varieties exist," the old elf explained.

Every sack contained a different paddy rice strain, the old elf stroked one of them, his eyes distant with nostalgia.

"These seeds were all collected by me, back in the day," the old elf said.

"I traveled the world with a group of human friends, collecting seeds of every plant we could find..."

Those friends were all gone now, some had passed away peacefully, taken by the natural course of time, others had vanished without a trace when humanity disappeared.

The old elf’s hand lingered on the sack a moment longer, as if touching a memory rather than burlap.

He cleared his throat and handed the sack to Ethan. "I’ll give this one to you, this variety is resistant to pests and diseases, drought-tolerant, and has a very high yield, the taste is slightly lacking, but it should be more than enough for a beginner."

Ethan reached out and took it.

"As long as you agree to one condition," the old elf added.

"Once you successfully grow the rice, you must bring back a sack of seeds."

"No problem. I promise," Ethan agreed without hesitation.

"Good, the next time you come, I will give you seeds of other varieties."

"Thank you."

"You truly are not a greedy young man," the old elf said with a warm smile.

"I thought you would want more seeds."

"Even if I took more, I wouldn’t have anyone to help me plant them." Ethan laughed, cultivating this single sack of paddy rice would take a massive amount of time and energy, and he still had other crops to tend back home.

"Meow, are there World Tree seeds here?" Pearl asked.

"Hehe, regrettably, there are not."

"Is that so..." Pearl drooped a little.

"If possible, I’d like to store the World Tree seeds I grow here in the future," Ethan said, as he spoke, he took out his World Tree seed.

The old elf’s eyes widened. He recovered quickly, though, and smiled. "I look forward to the arrival of that day."

After Ethan and Pearl emerged from the Seed Vault, Elara hurried over.

"Mr. Ethan, did you find anything good?" Her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

"I found some paddy rice seeds," Ethan replied.

"Paddy rice? What is that?" Elara asked.

"Paddy rice is a staple food crop that humans used to cultivate," Leon explained.

"Rumor has it the taste is incredible."

"Oh, I see." Elara nodded, it wasn’t some instantly lucrative cash crop, but she was still happy for him.

"Mr. Ethan, you are truly incredible to have found paddy rice seeds."

"Just good luck," Ethan said modestly.

"Mr. Ethan, when do you plan to start planting the paddy rice?" Leon asked.

"As soon as we return to the Great Forest, I’ll start right away." He had promised Althea he would cultivate rice so the elves could taste it again.

"Mr. Ethan, then we will take our leave first," Leon said, preparing to part ways.

"Alright, see you next time," Ethan replied.

After bidding farewell to the old elf, they boarded the carriage and left the Tree of Life.

"Meow, we’re finally going home."

"Yeah, it’s time to head home." Ethan nodded, eyes bright with anticipation, he could finally return to the Great Forest and begin planting the World Tree.

"Mr. Ethan, when will you come to the Elven Kingdom next?" Elara asked, her tone was tinged with reluctance, and she fiddled with the hem of her sleeve.

"I’m not completely sure myself," Ethan admitted.

"But I will contact you frequently through the crystal."

Elara’s face lit up. "Really? That’s wonderful!"

The carriage sped along and quickly arrived at the Southern Plains.

"Let’s part ways here," Ethan said.

"Mr. Ethan, please take care of yourself," Leon said. Elara echoed the sentiment.

"You too," Ethan replied.

He summoned the Blood Jade Beast and transferred the cargo from the carriage onto its back. "I’ll deliver the sheep, goats, and chickens to you next time."

"Thank you, Mr. Ethan," they said gratefully.

The carriage was already crammed with gifts from the Elven Kingdom; there was simply no space left for livestock.

"Then we will take our leave first."

"Goodbye, Mr. Ethan." Leon and Elara waved farewell.

Riding the Blood Jade Beast, Ethan crossed the Southern Plains and entered the Great Forest.

"Meow, we’re back~"

"Yeah, we’re back."

The countless trees and the undead wandering beneath them seemed to welcome Ethan’s return.

"Where did Walter run off to?" Pearl asked.

"I don’t know, maybe he’s in the cabin." If Walter knew he was back, he would definitely come out to greet him.

Ethan rode toward the wooden cabin.

"Oh, you’re back."

"Yeah, welcome back." Walter and Zharok were inside, playing chess.

"You brought back quite a lot," Walter commented, eyeing the cargo on the Blood Jade Beast’s back.

"Hehe, yeah, and some gifts too, I’ll show them to you later," Ethan said with a smile.

"We’re both hungry, hurry up and cook," Zharok urged.

"Help me unload first, I’m going to check on the fields."