Chapter 96: Aren’t We Doing It?

“Ah, that. Because the old man wanted to push me into a political marriage, so I ran away. I met Lance when I ran into the Moonlight Forest, helped them kill a few demonic beasts along the way, and then went with the flow to cooperate and stay here temporarily.”

Alice said nonchalantly.

“Cooperate on what?” Wen Chu asked curiously.

Alice took it for granted: “Rebellion, of course.”

As they spoke, the flower float went deeper into the forest, and scattered buildings gradually appeared around them.

Most were small treehouses built against the trees. Scattered elves were carrying hoes to farm, bowing politely when they saw Lance’s float.

In the vegetable patches, crops flourished, green wheat seedlings stood tall, grapevines hung full from branches, and Wen Chu even saw a few chubby field chickens pecking in the fields.

A group of cold, arrogant, and aloof elves carrying hoes to farm was a bit too incongruous, and Wen Chu couldn’t help but look a few more times.

Lance explained at the right time: “We haven’t communicated with the outside world for a long time, so we need to be self-sufficient.”

Wen Chu nodded. He understood; the rebel army was like this too.

The further they went inside, the more buildings there were. Trading places like shops and restaurants gradually appeared, and there were more elves around the streets.

Amidst the melodious sound of flutes from the honor guard, the sound of uniform footsteps rang out.

Wen Chu looked from afar and saw a phalanx of well-trained human soldiers marching in formation, neatly lining up on both sides of the street.

“Salute—”

The leading soldier shouted.

The soldiers behind him pointed their spears diagonally at the ground, right hands clenched into fists and placed over their left chests: “The Third Knight Order offers loyalty to Her Highness the Princess! And pays respects to His Highness Prince Lance and the distinguished guests!”

Their voices were resonant, spirits high, and well-trained—obviously soldiers who had been trained for a long time.

The soldiers on both sides of the street ahead lined up all the way to the palace gate in the distance. After Wen Chu listened to the salutes of the human mage corps and the elf archer team in succession, he gradually realized something was wrong.

Why were there so many soldiers here?

Did Alice flee her marriage with an entire division?

Just as Wen Chu was about to ask, Xiu beside him spoke first: “So that’s it. The ‘festival’ you mentioned is military training, right? I was wondering what kind of festival would use so many resources, unwilling to trade even a few stalks of Moonbreath Grass externally. It turns out you are stockpiling wartime supplies?”

Alice didn’t deny it: “That’s right.”

Wen Chu was even more confused. He looked at Lance: “Did Alice give you any benefits? Why help her so much?”

Providing a venue for military training and diverting resources—what benefit was there for the elves, who had lived in seclusion for many years, to participate in human royal struggles?

Lance frowned, looking somewhat conflicted: “Wait a moment. Things are a bit complicated. We’ll arrive at the palace soon, and I’ll explain to you later.”

The flower float stopped steadily in front of the palace.

The elf palace was also built relying on a circle of century-old trees. From the outside, one could see the branches of the towering giant tree enclosed in the middle.

Lush and flourishing, a full hundred meters high, with a pale green halo lingering on the branches.

Wen Chu guessed this was the Tree of Life.

Lance led them in through the main entrance. Just standing in the palace hall, Wen Chu felt a pure power.

Lance said: “I’ll take you to see the Tree of Life now. At that time, I think you should be able to understand without my explanation.”

Wen Chu: …

He was overestimated.

He knew nothing about this world; without an explanation, he really wouldn’t understand.

Forget it, Xiu definitely knew. He would ask Xiu via mental communication later. Anyway, he couldn’t act too stupid and embarrass Xiu.

Wen Chu made up his mind and followed Lance all the way deeper inside.

The further forward they walked, the richer that pure power became.

Until Lance stopped in front of a narrow door, this power reached its peak.

Mixed with the fragrance of grass and trees, this was a purer, original magic power from nature.

Even if Wen Chu didn’t understand magic, he could feel the power within the door.

【Lifespan +1h】
【Remaining Lifespan: 3 years, 4 days】

For the current Wen Chu, one hour of lifespan was nothing, but he was still startled.

Just being close to this power increased his lifespan by a full hour.

It should be known that when he ate white honey until he was stuffed, he barely gained a few dozen minutes.

Is this the power of the Tree of Life?

Lance didn’t notice the change in Wen Chu behind him. He took a step forward, undid the magic array on the door, and pushed open the wooden door.

“Creak—”

The wooden door opened, and the scene inside was finally revealed.

Wen Chu widened his eyes in surprise, and Xiu also raised an eyebrow unexpectedly.

Before them, the roots of the towering giant tree were pitch black, and the ground was dry black soil—completely different from the fertile soil Wen Chu had seen outside just now.

The entire Tree of Life seemed to be divided into two parts. With the middle of the trunk as the boundary, below was the withered black trunk and root system, emitting an ominous and familiar black aura, while above were emerald green branches.

Under the Tree of Life, a female elf with long silver hair was sleeping. A green energy ribbon extended from her body, connecting to the entire Tree of Life.

The pure power Wen Chu felt came from her connection with the Tree of Life.

This is…?

Lance had been silent since entering. Wen Chu looked at the sleeping female elf, thinking hard for a long time but failing to find her information in the system data.

“Juliana,” Xiu beside him spoke at the right time. “The Elf Queen.”

Lance walked to the Tree of Life and nodded gently.

“Yes.” He lowered his eyes to look at the sleeping female elf. “This is my mother.”

“So… what is going on here?” Wen Chu was baffled.

Lance raised his hand, stroking the withered trunk of the Tree of Life, and whispered: “After the Dragon Slaying War, it wasn’t just this wasteland that declined, but also our elf race’s Tree of Life.”

“At first, no one noticed this until the Tree of Life brought fewer and fewer elves, and herbs gradually stopped growing around it. My mother realized something was wrong.”

“—The Tree of Life was contaminated without any of us noticing.”

Wen Chu was surprised: “Contaminated?”

Lance nodded: “Exactly. This is an irreversible toxin. Mother tried every possible way to save the Tree of Life after discovering it, but all failed. In the end, she could only use all her power to temporarily stabilize the superficial prosperity of the Tree of Life.”

“Although the contamination of the Tree of Life’s root system cannot be changed and herbs no longer grow around it, at least this half of the Moonlight Forest can still maintain peace and contentment. Herbs can still grow outside the root system of the Tree of Life, but the price is that she has fallen into a deep sleep since then.”

“The elves also gradually secluded themselves in the Moonlight Forest because of this. Both my mother and I suspect it is related to the Dragon Slaying War back then, but we have no evidence.”

“Then I happened to meet Lance when I ran away,” Alice chimed in. “At that time, their squad was being chased by a nest of fourth-tier demonic beasts, and I killed the beasts in passing.”

“I originally planned to run away to win over the old… Mr. Xiu, so I brought a lot of gold, silver, and jewelry, and also stole some evidence of Moonbreath Grass contamination from the old man. When I ran into Lance, I thought I’d try lobbying him too.”

“But none of us expected that the manifestation of Moonbreath Grass after contamination would be exactly the same as the initial contamination of the Tree of Life.”

Alice curled her lip as she spoke.

“Old thing, knows nothing but stabbing people in the back, just like my great-great-great-grandfather.”

Her great-great-great-grandfather was the initiator of the Dragon Slaying War back then.

Alice advocated speaking with fists and was almost pitted by the king into a political marriage, so she had no good face for them. With this cursing, she directly cursed several generations of her family together.

Lance’s mouth twitched, then he looked at Wen Chu and said seriously: “Previously, I cooperated with Alice because she promised that after successfully seizing the throne, she would let me participate in the interrogation of the king personally to find the antidote. But none of us expected the wasteland to revive.”

“According to Alice, you also solved Mr. Xiu’s contamination problem. Therefore, I want to ask you to try and see if you can save our Tree of Life.”

Lance spoke sincerely, and Wen Chu wavered for a moment.

He wanted to save it, but his lifespan and Xiu weren’t very willing.

“I also want to help very much,” Wen Chu said deliberately. “But the magic power required for life revival is a lot. Restoring the wasteland has exhausted most of my magic power. If you have potions to increase magic power quickly, I can give it a try.”

After speaking, he looked at Xiu, seeking Xiu’s opinion: “Is that okay?”

Xiu turned his face away, avoiding his eyes: “Up to you.”

Only then did Wen Chu notice that Xiu, unusually for today, didn’t have those colorful gem accessories on him. Plain unlike a dragon.

Wen Chu was a bit surprised at first, then realized after thinking about the gems he played with last night, pursing his lips to suppress a laugh.

“Cough cough.” Lance coughed lightly.

Wen Chu’s attention was pulled back.

He saw Lance directly take out a bottle of purple potion from his spatial ring: “If we’re just talking about magic potions, I have a hundred or so bottles of high-level magic potions here. You can try first to see if there’s any effect. If there is, I can arrange people to make them for you immediately. As long as the Tree of Life can be saved, you can have as many as you need.”

Wen Chu took the potion and drank it without hesitation under everyone’s gaze.

This small bottle was only about a hundred milliliters, grape-flavored, like juice. Wen Chu finished it in a few gulps.

【Lifespan +1h】
【Remaining Lifespan: 3 years, 4 days】

Wen Chu: …

“How is it?” Alice lost her patience first and asked expectantly.

Wen Chu told the truth: “No effect. You should be able to sense that my magic power hasn’t changed much.”

Xiu nodded, proving Wen Chu’s words were true. Hearing this, Lance frowned in confusion.

“Strange,” Lance muttered to himself. “This is a high-level magic potion. Normally, it can quickly restore all the magic power of a Grand Magister. Why does it have almost no effect on you?”

Wen Chu: “Maybe because I eat dreams?”

“Eat dreams?” Lance was confused.

Wen Chu flicked his heart-shaped tail and explained: “I am a Nightmare, a demon. My cultivation method is different from humans.”

Only then did Lance notice his tail and suddenly realized: “That might be the case. Elves lean more towards the divine race, and almost no demons buy potions from us. We know very little about demons.”

Hearing this, Wen Chu’s thoughts shifted slightly.

“Know very little? How little exactly? To the extent of knowing nothing about demons?” Wen Chu asked.

Previously in the Forging Duchy, although the dwarves of Edward’s Weapon Shop mistook him for a succubus, they obviously had a general understanding of demons.

And Lance actually didn’t realize he was a demon immediately.

Sure enough, Lance said awkwardly: “…Know almost nothing.”

Wen Chu opened his mouth, looked at the Tree of Life, intending to mention the familiar power beneath it, but closed his mouth after thinking.

Forget it, he wasn’t sure either. Wait until he was sure before telling Lance.

He changed the subject: “According to the effect just now, to save enough lifespan to revive the Tree of Life, at least 17,520 bottles of potion are needed.”

Alice exclaimed: “Ah? How many??”

So many potions, let alone whether Wen Chu would die from drinking too much, even if the entire current elf race was squeezed dry, they couldn’t produce nearly twenty thousand bottles of magic potion in a short time!!

Lance’s face wasn’t looking good either, obviously shocked by this number.

He pursed his lips: “I will make potions suitable for demons as soon as possible. Can I trouble you to stay in the elf territory for a while?”

Xiu spoke impatiently first: “We are very busy.”

Lance was sensible: “I will give you a reward that satisfies you.”

Alice also helped: “And anyway, we can be considered a victim alliance against that old man. Isn’t it better to form an alliance?”

Xiu mocked: “Think again?”

Wen Chu understood now and said very straightforwardly: “But Xiu and I won’t get any benefits.”

Defeating the king, Alice could become queen, and the elves might restore the Tree of Life.

But Xiu had already been cured by him. Not to mention they wouldn’t get a share by participating, they would also invite a lot of trouble.

Alice was stunned: “You… can get revenge?”

Xiu showed no fluctuation, gently taking Wen Chu’s hand and preparing to leave: “I have no clansmen left, unlike Lance who needs to fight for the future safety of the elves. I just want to cherish everything in front of me.”

Alice reached out to stay them: “Don’t leave so early. I can give land, give you titles. Doesn’t the current human empire’s territory include one-third of the dragon race’s original habitat? Everything is negotiable.”

【Do you want it?】 Xiu asked Wen Chu via mental communication.

Wen Chu thought about it: 【Maybe?】

He didn’t have the heart to become a king or hegemon, but obviously, the situation of the entire continent was unfavorable to Xiu.

Among the seven major races, only he had no kin and no rich habitat, only a cave of cold gems.

Although he didn’t like Xiu always being bent on saving the world, Wen Chu didn’t want Xiu to be the one abandoned by the world.

Receiving Wen Chu’s reply, Xiu stopped temporarily.

He had been poisoned by the king for so many years; it was impossible not to retaliate.

Previously, with only Alice offering conditions he didn’t need, Xiu naturally wouldn’t choose to cooperate. Now that the benefits were sufficient, Xiu didn’t mind contributing.

Leaving just now was of course just a show. Since Wen Chu wanted a fiefdom now, there was even less need to leave.

Alice breathed a sigh of relief: “That’s right, we can discuss slowly. Don’t leave at the drop of a hat.”

Lance looked politely at Wen Chu: “However, Mr. Wen Chu, could you trouble yourself to demonstrate your ability? After all, neither Alice nor I have seen it. Now that investment is needed, we at least want to confirm it.”

Wen Chu understood: “Sure.”

He gave Xiu a reassuring look and said via mental communication: 【I’ll just use a tiny bit of lifespan, just one hour. Pretend to be weak later.】

Xiu reluctantly let go.

Wen Chu walked to the Tree of Life.

The moment he placed his hand on the withered trunk, the remaining majestic magic power of the Tree of Life rubbed against him almost affectionately.

He seemed to have extremely high compatibility with this power.

【Lifespan +1h】

The lifespan jumped again.

This wasn’t lifespan absorbed from the Tree of Life, but more like Wen Chu himself leveling up under the guidance of the Tree of Life.

He lowered his eyes and quickly transferred one hour of lifespan to the Tree of Life.

【Lifespan -1h】

The moment the lifespan was transferred, a new branch grew on the charred trunk he was touching.

Only about five centimeters long, the tiny branch struggled to grow a yellow-green leaf, then went limp and stopped moving.

But this was enough to shock Lance and Alice.

This was the Tree of Life, which even the Elf Queen using all her power could only temporarily preserve.

It actually grew a new branch after a light touch from this weak demon?

Wen Chu withdrew his hand, deliberately pretending to be shaky and falling into Xiu’s arms, saying with a pale face: “This is all I can do now.”

Lance nodded, somewhat self-reproachful: “Sorry for causing such a big impact on you.”

He was an elf, sensitive to magic perception, and could clearly feel how weak Wen Chu was. He readily accepted Wen Chu’s display of frailty and even felt vaguely guilty.

As Lance spoke, he began taking out potions, stuffing dozens of bottles into Wen Chu’s hands.

“Take these first. I’ll take you back to the residence to rest. I’ll send someone to bring you more supplements later. Just tell me if you need anything else.”

Wen Chu didn’t stand on ceremony and directly put the potions into his spatial stone.

These were the rewards he and Xiu deserved.

Especially since Alice and Lance wanted to pull Xiu into the partnership, Xiu was naturally at a disadvantage, so he had to ask for more back.

Thinking this, Wen Chu said ambiguously: “I’ll think about what exactly is needed.”

Wen Chu didn’t know if he should mention what he found on the Tree of Life. He wanted to discuss it with Xiu first.

After agreeing with Lance and Alice to continue talking at the banquet, Wen Chu and Xiu were sent to the guest room in the palace with even more respect.

One of them was an existence capable of healing the Tree of Life, and the other was an impending ally. Lance and Alice dared not neglect either.

Almost as soon as Wen Chu stepped into the bedroom, before he could clearly see what was inside, various compensations flooded in.

Various high-level magic potions sent by Lance, various jewelry sent by Alice to show sincerity, and countless raw herbs…

Xiu didn’t bring a spatial stone, so these all went into Wen Chu’s space first.

At this moment, Wen Chu’s face showed no trace of the pale frailty he had feigned just now. While happily storing things, he doubted: “Did Alice empty the entire treasury? Why did she even send the national seal?”

Xiu leaned in to take a look and explained: “This is the seal of her fiefdom, not the king’s. She pretended to be obedient in front of the old king, so the king wasn’t very guarded against her. Sending it now is also because this fiefdom was originally dragon territory, right?”

Hearing this, Wen Chu paused and looked at Xiu.

“Do you feel lonely without kin here?”

Would it feel sad to be an outlier?

Wen Chu felt Xiu should be sad because he was like this in the hospital too. To comfort himself, he deceived himself into thinking he was human.

Even though no human grew tentacles, and no human could recover after being chopped into so many pieces.

But the doctor said this was treatment. As long as the treatment was successful, he could become human.

Although he became clearer and clearer in these worlds that he wasn’t human.

“A little,” Xiu seemed indifferent. “It’s the same with or without them. I haven’t seen them since I was born.”

He looked at Wen Chu, a faint smile curling his lips: “Besides, don’t I have you now? You were defending me everywhere just now, and now you suddenly comfort me. Turns out it was just a whim, and you don’t consider us companions once you turn your head?”

Wen Chu hurriedly explained: “I didn’t.”

How could he slander a Nightmare!

Xiu’s stern brows softened: “Mm, you didn’t.”

The weak Nightmare abandoned by demons and the last dragon.

Wasn’t this a match made in heaven?

Wen Chu puffed his cheeks and said seriously: “It’s not a question of having companions or not. I just think if you had kin, you wouldn’t be at such a disadvantage in this kind of large-scale conflict.”

Xiu chuckled: “It’s useless to think about it now. I can’t give birth to a dragon egg.”

Wen Chu sighed: “If only the Tree of Life gave birth to dragons instead of elves.”

Xiu agreed: “Then I would pull up the Tree of Life and take it away… No, better leave it with the elves. Raising little dragons is too annoying. Leave it to the elves to raise kids; they have patience.”

Tree of Life: ?

Elf Race: ?

Wen Chu laughed instantly, sweeping away that bit of melancholy just now.

He quickly packed up the things sent by Lance and Alice, then took Xiu’s hand and walked into the bedroom.

Xiu flicked his tail uncomfortably: “What are you doing?”

Having had that kind of dream only last night, Xiu was a bit triggered seeing a bed now.

His tail also became a bit strange.

Xiu glanced around the room, then at Wen Chu.

The bed was quite big; if they really wanted to do it, it wasn’t impossible…

Just had to set up a soundproofing spell in advance.

【Do you have any way to isolate sound?】

Just as Xiu’s thoughts wandered elsewhere, Wen Chu’s voice suddenly rang in his mind.

Xiu’s tail went stiff with shock, almost suspecting he had accidentally spoken his thoughts aloud just now.

【Yes, what do you want to do?】

Wen Chu looked at Xiu strangely, meeting Xiu’s gaze, which was red-eared yet faintly expectant.

Wen Chu: ?

Did Xiu already know?

That made sense; Xiu was so smart, he must have guessed it long ago.

Xiu quickly set up the soundproofing spell. Wen Chu drew the curtains and pulled Xiu to sit on the bed.

Xiu increasingly felt that Wen Chu wanted to do some mutual assistance things like in the dwarf territory.

Oh, daytime lust.

He liked it.

“Smack.”

He sat down, and his huge dragon tail slapped directly onto Wen Chu’s legs, occupying both of the other’s thighs.

Wen Chu: ?

Was this some strange custom?

He hugged Xiu’s big tail at a loss, looked at Xiu, and said seriously: “You should have noticed it too, right?”

Noticed what? Sure enough, Wen Chu also discovered there was more than friendship between them?

Makes sense. What friends slept in the same bed and grabbed the other’s tail to finger the other?

With Wen Chu defending him today and suddenly being so ambiguous now, no matter how he thought about it, it felt like Wen Chu had sensed feelings for him.

He was in a very good mood and gave a light “Mm.”

His restraint was indeed useful; the beautiful little gem would eventually let him into his heart.

“That’s right, you and I are…”

“There is a demonic aura in the charred lower part of the Tree of Life.”

Xiu and Wen Chu’s voices rang out simultaneously.

Wen Chu looked at Xiu in confusion, and Xiu also looked at him in astonishment.

In his shock, Xiu forgot to close the mental connection.

【You actually didn’t want to ** with me?】

Wen Chu: ???