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Under Tang San's persuasion, the innocent Mèng Mèng and Niàn Niàn believed him completely. Not only were they convinced by his words, but his handsome appearance, along with the natural and life-filled aura he exuded, played a key role in gaining their trust.
Especially after Tang San unleashed the Blue Silver Emperor, both girls, who had a deep connection to plants and life, began to revere him as a true deity.
"Great Lord Tang San, you must visit our elven kingdom and spread your wisdom!" Mèng Mèng and Niàn Niàn pleaded.
"Honestly, I've never been to the elven kingdom before," Tang San readily agreed but then added, "However, you don't need to address me with a title. All life is born equal, and every being has its own value. Take fruit, for example. You might think its only purpose is to be eaten by others, but in reality, after you consume the fruit's flesh, whether you collect the seeds or carelessly discard the core, those seeds will travel far and wide."
"If plants could speak, they wouldn't resent you for eating their fruit, because in doing so, you help them spread their seeds. Their next generation can grow in distant lands and witness sights their ancestors never did, generation after generation."
"The fruit tree provides its flesh to attract you, and in return, you help spread its seeds."
"This is a mutually beneficial process. In this relationship, you gain food, and the fruit tree uses you to spread its future offspring."
"Thus, among all races, there is no distinction of high or low in terms of dignity. Each one fulfills its role. Otherwise, it's just an abuse of power."
As Tang San used this metaphor of the interaction and survival between fruit trees and elves to explain his philosophy, the elves grew even more respectful toward him. Several bold elven women even approached Tang San to express their goodwill.
However, Tang San declined.
After all, he wasn't the kind of person who would take a woman to bed after just a day of meeting. His relationships with Xiao Wu, Guāng Lín, Ning Rongrong, and Huǒ Wǔ were all built on deep emotional bonds, right? How could these impulsive and carefree elves compare?
After walking for about an hour, Mèng Mèng and Niàn Niàn led Tang San to the kingdom of the natural elves.
At this moment, Tang San and his companions stood atop a cliff, a hundred meters high. About two hundred meters away, a waterfall nearly fifty meters wide cascaded down. Below the cliff lay the elven kingdom.
Compared to other regions, this kingdom spanned over a hundred kilometers in diameter. Most of the houses were built in trees, or carved out from the trunks of large trees. Bridges connected the trees in all directions, forming a complex network. From the cliff, the view was an intricate yet orderly scene, as if woven by a spider not skilled in spinning webs.
But what stood out the most was the towering tree at the center, nearly a thousand meters tall. Its aura of life was second only to the Golden Tree Tang San had encountered before. Hanging from its branches were clusters of emerald green fruits, with some in deep purple, all of them looking quite enticing.
"That's the Tree of Nature, also known as the Tree of the Elves," Mèng Mèng explained as she noticed Tang San gazing at the fruit. "Those fruits are the seeds that gave birth to us—or you could say, they are our future sisters."
"The green ones will give birth to natural elves like us, who possess the power of nature and the light element. The purple ones will give birth to moonlit elves, who are born with an affinity for darkness."
"We don't discriminate against the moonlit elves, but they tend to be mischievous and dislike sunlight, so we don't get along well. Most moonlit elves have left to establish their own kingdom, built by the first of their kind."
"That's why you won't see any moonlit elves here."
Tang San nodded and, without saying much, asked, "Are all elves born from the seeds of the Tree of Elves? Aren't there any elves born through the union of couples?"
Under Tang San's spiritual sense, the body structure and internal organs of Mèng Mèng, Niàn Niàn, and the other elves didn't differ much from humans. At the very least, they had reproductive organs. They might be reproductively isolated from humans, but among elves, there shouldn't be such a barrier, right?
"There are," Niàn Niàn replied. "Elves are male and female, but they don't feel any attraction toward each other. There were cases where outsiders stayed in the elven kingdom and coupled with elves, but the fertility rate was extremely low... Now that we know your identity, it's likely those outsiders were inheritors of the Creator God, though they probably didn't pass the trials."
"The offspring born from humans and elves are called rén jīng."
Rén jīng? Tang San almost wanted to laugh but held back. With a forced smile, he said, "Rén jīng? I thought they'd be called half-elves."
"Well... About two hundred thousand years ago, the fifth human to arrive here called them that. In his world, there was a similar elven race," Mèng Mèng explained. "But the rén jīng in our kingdom found the term offensive, so he challenged the human to a duel, defending his honor at the cost of his life. The human lost an arm and a leg and disappeared shortly after."
No doubt he failed the trial and was kicked out.
Still—
Tang San couldn't quite accept the term "rén jīng," but he moved past it and asked, "Are there any rén jīng still in the natural elven kingdom?"
"Yes, there's one. He's six hundred thousand years old and has reached god-level strength, second only to the Lord of Nature, King Easton," Mèng Mèng responded. "But he's only a soul now, and he's in eternal slumber. It's said that after six hundred thousand years of seeing the same unchanging scenery every day, his mind collapsed... I can't say I understand that."
Tang San remained silent for a moment before asking, "Did he ever think of leaving?"
"Leaving? You mean leaving the Eternal Domain?" Niàn Niàn shook her head. "As far as we know, the only way to leave the Eternal Domain is by defeating King Easton and gaining his approval."
Actually, there was another way—to seek the help of the user of the Eternal and Creation God King's Seal.
Lù Qiū and those thirteen moonlit elves had left through Xú Huáng's authority.
However, this wasn't something Niàn Niàn, Mèng Mèng, or the other elves were aware of. Only the moonlit elves, who were often involved in the trials of others, knew some of the truth.
As for the natural elves, Tang San suspected their queen might know some truths, but the others had probably only heard legends of the Creator God.
Otherwise, when Tang San revealed that he was a candidate being tested by the Creator God, Mèng Mèng, Niàn Niàn, and the other elves wouldn't have been so shocked. At most, they would have been mildly surprised.
Besides, regarding the other candidates, they only knew that, throughout the ages, humans would sometimes arrive in their lands, wandering around aimlessly...
(End of Chapter)