Chapter 2340: Fundamental Problem

The Elders spoke lightly, but Xia Duo understood that only by having fought against a High Mage in their shoes could one truly understand just how strong the opponent was.

Xia Duo had defeated High Mages while in the Main Plane, but that was only by taking advantage of the war spells of a Floating City; if it came to a real one-on-one fight or a life-or-death struggle, he did not have much confidence that he would definitely win.

However, it would not be so easy to make him lose, and if he prepared a Saint Form Avatar in advance, his chances of winning would be quite high.

It was just that Xia Duo had never thought about fighting like a barbarian; being able to utilize the power of external objects was the prerogative that intelligent beings had evolved over countless eons, so why give it up!

It was only because the Demon Descendants were currently in a state of near-total destitution; otherwise, he would absolutely have armed these few Elders to the teeth and equipped them with specialized War Magic Artifacts before letting them go off to fight.

Duels and the like, in Xia Duo's view, were merely minor paths—perhaps a way to entertain the masses, inspire thought, or display martial prowess—but they could never become the righteous path of war.

……

Ever since the few Elders had slain two High Mages, the subsequent journey had become much easier. The Demon Descendants were essentially a nation in arms; as long as they cut off the Pure-blood Elves' ability to spy and track, there was much to be accomplished in this vast world.

"Maruen, we have already gathered a large number of Elf Commoners scattered across the wilderness due to the war as you said. Thousands of years have passed, and many of them have lost their civilization and become Wild Elves in the fields. Are we really going to take them with us as we migrate?"

At this moment, ten days had passed since Xia Duo's arrival. Through his continuous performance, he had gradually won the trust of the seven Elders and become the de facto leader of this group of Demon Descendants.

But in these recent days, as more and more Elf Commoners were gathered along the way, the speed of the group's march was constantly being dragged down. Furthermore, there was the food problem, which had become increasingly severe over these days.

By now, quite a few Demon Descendants had begun to complain, and this sentiment was quickly reflected to the Elders, which led to this inquiry from the Elder.

However, Xia Duo did not answer the Elder's inquiry directly, but instead asked the Elder a question in return: "Elder Kulumete, do you think there are more Demon Descendants, or more Pure-blood Elves?"

"Of course there are more Pure-blood Elves."

Elder Kulumete knew what Xia Duo wanted to say as soon as he heard it, but he still shook his head firmly. "But what does this have to do with migrating while bringing those Wild Elves along? Can we really turn them all into Demon Descendants?"

Normal Pure-blood Elves could of course be turned into Demon Descendants, but the transformation was not one hundred percent successful. They, these Demon Descendants, were already victims of their bloodline; why force these commoners to undergo forced transformation into Demon Descendants!

Back then, being infected by the Demon Aura was a matter of having no choice, but now that there was a choice, the vast majority of Demon Descendants would not want their children to be in the same state as themselves, where even their birth had to rely on luck to choose.

What's more, the Demon Descendants were originally victims of the bottomless fighting between Aryvandaar and Ilythiiri. If they were to forcibly convert Elves into Demon Descendants now, they would instead become the perpetrators. Could Demon Descendants created in this way be of one heart and one mind?

From the first day Xia Duo gathered the commoners, the Elders had seen through his intentions, but out of trust in Xia Duo, they hadn't mentioned it before. But if they continued to gather commoners now, it would likely hurt the foundation of the Demon Descendants.

Regarding the Elders' worries, Xia Duo actually had an idea in his heart, but for the Demon Descendants to grow stronger, there was no shortcut other than converting other Elves.

Even if the hidden dangers of natural reproduction were solved, he could encourage procreation on his side, but the Elves could also follow suit, making it difficult to widen the gap.

Moreover, the hidden dangers of natural reproduction might not be solved even after thousands of years. At present, only by converting Elves could they achieve a rapid population increase where one side grows as the other wanes!

Even if they just gathered them and took them away without converting them into Demon Descendants, it was still far better than leaving them for those Upper Family Elves to use for nation-building!

But food was indeed a problem now. Besides the food, having so many commoners on the road together would also greatly delay the time it took for the main force to reach the designated development site.

Xia Duo felt a massive headache after pondering for a long time, but the policy of gathering commoners could not be shaken. "Elder Kulumete, even if those Wild Elves are not converted into Demon Descendants, we cannot abandon them. Future competition will surely be based on population. What can a mere ten thousand Demon Descendants accomplish? At the very least, we must establish a nation that can accept us. I ask the Elder to reconsider."

"Then how do we solve the food problem now? The little food we brought is simply not enough for so many mouths to eat, and how do we solve the issue of those Wild Elves dragging down our marching speed?"

"I will find a way!"

After saying this, Xia Duo asked the Elder again, "How is the mood of the clansmen? How much longer can they hold on?"

"Suoermante and Kashmont have already gone to appease the clansmen, but if the fundamental problem is not solved, even the Elder going out won't work. You have at most three days."

"Three days?"

Xia Duo deliberated for a moment, then nodded with a firm gaze. "I will definitely be able to solve it within three days! Please, Elders, you must believe in me!"

"If I didn't believe in you, I wouldn't be the one who came." Kulumete sighed and said with some helplessness.

Only then did Xia Duo suddenly remember that the Maruen he was inhabiting was not without roots; this guy was actually the descendant of a student of Kulumete's own younger brother.

Later, Maruen had also studied magic by Kulumete's side, but although the previous Maruen was considered intelligent, he did not have much talent for magic.

It wasn't until Xia Duo descended that a qualitative change occurred, from the Bloodline Sorting Spell to discussing the grand future plans of the Demon Descendants, which brought great shock to Kulumete.

"Elder, rest assured, when I say three days, I mean three days."

"Hmm."

After that, Kulumete did not say much more, only reminding Xia Duo that if he needed anything, he could find him or the other Elders at any time.

……

After Kulumete left, Xia Duo no longer had his previous confidence. As the saying goes, "Food is the people's heaven"; as long as it is a living thing, as long as it has breath, it must eat.

Although there was still quite a bit of food in his Personal Space—which was truly not a small amount for an individual—it was completely inadequate when facing tens of thousands of mouths waiting to be fed. Furthermore, the source of the food was not easy to explain.

"Difficult!"

Xia Duo pondered for a long time, and in the end, he could only let out a sigh. "It seems I have no choice but to advance the plan."

Originally, he had intended to gather Elf Commoners along the way, reach an alliance agreement with Yinsitedaoge after passing through Yinerfalang, and then head to the location of the future Sluwen to develop a New Homeland.

But he had previously overlooked the food problem, and now he had to contact Yinerfalang in advance; food would become a major factor in the alliance agreement.

Thinking of this, Xia Duo no longer hesitated. It was indeed his lack of consideration, and now that he had discovered the problem, it was not too late to deal with it.

……

Next, Xia Duo found the few Elders and had them arrange for manpower to search for food in the vicinity, including but not limited to the Wild Elves' stores, wild fruits, wild beasts, and so on; as long as it was edible, they were to find it.

Afterward, he found Yinsitedaoge and asked the other party to help set up a Magic Array. Although the Demon Descendants had been banished and were nearly destitute, High Mages had their own special qualities and could bypass most materials in the form of a one-time Mythallar.

Xia Duo gave a few hints, and Yinsitedaoge knew what was going on and guaranteed that it would be completed before he returned. Thus, Xia Duo chose to trust the other party and left the main force alone to head west in search of Yinerfalang.