Asa never believed in the existence of heaven or hell.
When he was seven or eight, he became fascinated by the mysterious worlds described by old adventurers and thought that the often-mentioned heaven and hell were also realms to explore. So, whenever the old priest in the village preached, he would ask questions out of pure curiosity.
At first, the old priest was happy to see a child interested in theology, but as Asa bombarded him with relentless questions, the priest found himself unable to respond. When Asa asked, "Why do gods eat but not excrete?" and "Male and female gods have been up in the heavens for so long, why they don't have any children gods? Is it because they're castrated like the pigs in the village?" he was quickly shooed away by the adults nearby.
He had never seen evidence of either place, just as no one had ever come back from the great unknown like that old adventurer to describe it in detail. So, when he woke up, his first thought was that he wasn't dead.
He pressed his hands against his belly and found it intact. His muscles felt just as taut against his skin, and his internal organs were still in their proper places, functioning normally. In fact, he felt more vigorous than ever.
Could it be a dream? But the sensation of being blasted away by the red-robed man and the feeling of blood spraying from his mouth seemed too real to be an illusion, and all his memories were clear and coherent without the usual haziness of a dream.
Asa got up from the ground. It was a strange place, resembling a tree hollow or perhaps a room. Twisted branches and vines formed the walls, and in appropriate places, the branches twisted aside to create windows and doors. Vines stretched across the walls, hanging in the air like a bed, while a few oddly-shaped trees served as tables and benches.
This must be the dwelling of elves. Asa recognized the unusual houses; he had heard many stories about elves from dwarves back in his hometown.
Elves lived in remote forests. Though they resembled humans, they could not be categorized as "subhumans" like orcs. They had their own unique culture and lifestyle, much like dwarves.
It seemed that dwarves and elves shared some kind of blood relation, and dwarves often looked down on their kin. Usually, they would use elves as a derogatory comparison, suggesting that elves were rigid and self-righteous, lacking emotion and vitality, resembling wooden lumps.
Suddenly, footsteps echoed outside, and two elves entered.
One was male with black hair, and the other was female with silver hair. At least from their appearance, they didn't embody the stereotype of wooden lumps at all. Both elves were extraordinarily beautiful and graceful by human standards, tall with long ears peeking out from their shoulder-length hair, exuding an air of elegance. It was hard to imagine they were close relatives of the short and stout dwarves.
The male elf spoke to Asa in a gentle and steady voice, "Hello, human. First, let me introduce myself. I am the elder of the noblest and purest elven race on this continent. You can call me Cranford in your human tongue."
Just like the dwarves, one couldn't judge age by appearance. Asa had seen dwarves with long beards who looked younger than him; this elf, who appeared to be a young man, might very well be several hundred years old.
Elder Cranford pointed to the female elf beside him, "Her name is Ruya." Asa suddenly realized she was the same elf he had seen naked in the spring. Now, she was looking at him with an emotion that elves supposedly shouldn't possess.
Sitting on a wooden bench, Elder Cranford regarded Asa with calm and steady eyes, saying, "You are the first human to enter the depths of this forest in nearly five hundred years. We have never welcomed lowly humans, but we witnessed your willingness to risk your life to help us deal with that dark servant. Moreover, due to some other reasons, we have brought you to this place, which you humans are not allowed to enter."
Asa listened impassively, realizing this was a fortunate misunderstanding.
"I'm afraid that, although it was the dark servant's fault, it was indeed you who disrupted an important ceremony of ours and allowed the dark servant to take one of the World Tree's leaves."
So it really was a leaf from the World Tree. At least only one had been taken, meaning there were still two left; there was a chance. Asa maintained his composure. He could tell that this wasn't something he could simply request to take with him, so it was best not to reveal his intentions. He needed to understand the situation better first. He probed, "How many leaves are left on the World Tree?"
The elven girl, Ruya, turned her head away. Though her face showed little expression, the action spoke volumes of disdain and contempt. Elder Cranford's demeanor and tone remained unchanged, still gentle and calm as he said, "There is no World Tree. The leaves of the World Tree are not true leaves; they are divine objects left behind by the God of All Things, Fahma."
That tree was a species called Fahma, known for its powerful leaves. Asa recalled the expert translation by Christine and couldn't help but grin, and he imagined landing a punch on her face.
"Can you tell me the background of this matter?" At this point, Asa wanted to understand everything clearly.
Elder Cranford fell silent. His tranquil expression remained gentle as he silently regarded Asa. It wasn't hesitance due to interests or stakes, but rather a consideration, like a noble lord pondering whether to reveal his genealogy to a monkey. Fortunately, he eventually spoke.
"Our clan of elves has lived in this forest since ancient times. We are the origin of all elven races on the continent and the messengers of light. For tens of thousands of years, we have protected the two divine objects left behind by the God of All Things, Fahma, along with the entire forest: Three leaves of the World Tree and the Sun Well. According to the prophecies passed down to us, there is an evil object located on the southwestern edge of the continent, left there by the gods at the creation of the world. When the world descends into chaos, it will awaken from its seal, lead everything to ruin. Only the combination of the divine power of the Sun Well and the life force of the leaves of the World Tree can we destroy that evil object."
"Although we never interact with the outside world, other elven races have continually reported their observations to us. We are aware that the world has already begun to descend into chaos. The once harmonious coexistence of elves, orcs, and nature has been completely disrupted. This is all because of you humans. You have forgotten your faith in the divine and your respect for nature, even going so far as to build cities near this sacred forest. You have also disrupted the once-stable lives of the orcs; now those remaining wild beasts are about to go mad along with the world. Most importantly, some humans have completely succumbed to the allure of darkness, surrounding that evil object with a dark force of death."
"During this rare celestial event, the Golden Ring Eclipse, which occurs once every hundred years above this forest, we held our ceremony. At that time, the previously stable power of the Sun Well would realign and fluctuate, allowing our most gifted clan members to receive that power, preparing to use it in conjunction with the leaves of the World Tree to combat darkness. Unfortunately, that was also when the Sun Well lost its power to protect this forest. We did not know how the dark servant became aware of this event. He seized the opportunity to disrupt our ceremony."
"And you know the final outcome: the dark servant took one of the leaves of the World Tree, just as our ceremony was about to be completed. You, gravely injured, fell into the Sun Well, and the power within the well automatically flowed into your dying body. Since the water overflowed with the life essence of the World Tree's leaves, that power transformed and healed your injuries."
"That power should have flowed into my body," Ruya said, her voice tinged with anger and regret, as if her pearl had been fed to a pig.
"If it weren't for me falling in, that red-robed man would have probably dragged you out as he did with that fat pig-like official." Asa shot her a glance, suddenly struggling to imagine how such beauty could transform into a hideous corpse.
"Although the ceremony was disrupted, it is not yet beyond repair. The power of the Sun Well should not have been completely exhausted but remains in your body. Such divine power cannot be utilized by your polluted human form. Only we who carry the noble bloodline of the divine power can merge with it. We must find a way to extract this power from you and then combine it with the remaining two leaves of the World Tree. This is our only hope against the darkness."
Elder Cranford's attitude and tone remained calm and steady throughout, yet it felt like the self-assured politeness of someone who believed themselves superior, revealing a complete disdain for Asa's human identity. "Before that, you must remain here. Fighting against darkness and death is also your responsibility as a person granted life by the sun. Furthermore, as a lowly human, you should feel honored to participate in this sacred plan."
Asa still kept his composure, mentally flipping off this elf who considered himself superior to him. Do you think you're so impressive?
This grandiose speech had no effect on his original thought structure, like simply listening to a bard's tale.
He had never considered that he had any connection to light, darkness, or peace; these concepts felt far removed from his actual life. It was like the miners in his hometown, who were lost in cheap wine and prostitutes, hearing others passionately discuss national affairs and moral culture, no longer caring about whether what they said was true or not. All they felt was the speaker's self-importance, spitting in your direction, as if to say, "Why should I care?"
However, it seemed that it truly was a difficult situation. Since it was a divine object, it definitely wouldn't be given to someone they considered a lowly human. Asa decided to slowly clarify the situation and take a longer view. He asked, "So how long will it take for you to extract that power from my body?" If it only took a couple of tries and they would kick him out immediately afterward, that would be troublesome.
"I don't know; we still need to search slowly through ancient texts for a method. We have never encountered such a situation before." Elder Cranford stood up, signaling the end of their conversation. "Although humans have short lifespans, you need not worry; we will find a method before you age and die."
Asa shook his head and replied slowly, "I'm not worried at all."