Chapter 324: The Wild Hare Beneath the Forest (12)

Elves live in trees.

Enclosed tree hollows, semi-open tree sheds, exquisite tree houses, etc.; in any case, they are inseparable from big trees.

Soon, Luosen and the female demon Lixia found a semi-open tree shed beside the Pilgrimage Avenue.

Above is a natural rain canopy made of huge broad leaves; around, interwoven hanging branches and vines form a grid-like wall; below is a dense, soft grass like a wool carpet.

As a temporary resting place, the comfort level is not bad.

Lixia lay on the ground with legs curled like a horse, reached out to take a light-red fruit passed by a vine, and shouted toward the tree shed entrance: "Ruike, we want some quiet; don't let anyone disturb us."

"Understood."

The tree shed owner responded, and as he spoke, the vines at the shed's edge drooped down like snakes, carving out a relatively independent space in the bustling Elven Capital.

After biting the fruit, her azure gaze looked through the wall's lattice, somewhat blankly at the passersby on the Pilgrimage Avenue; Lixia asked Luosen: "My soul has lived over ninety years, but guess how long this body of mine has been in use?"

Luosen carefully examined the female demon, noticing her thick hair and smooth, delicate skin, like that of a newborn infant; almost no trace of time's wear could be seen.

Usually in such cases, either one possesses astonishing means to constantly repair, like Luosen.

Or one has just obtained a new body.

Luosen's ability is hard to copy, so this female demon must have been reincarnated not long ago.

He guessed: "Less than a year?"

Lixia shook her head: "More than that; actually less than half a month."

Her face showed a weariness from past events too painful to recall.

"Do you know? In the past five years, I have undergone reincarnation a full sixteen times!"

Luosen understood immediately, switching to a respectful tone: "You are truly a hero of our people."

In the Elven Empire, this situation occurs only for those strong and brave warriors.

Lixia's face showed no self-satisfaction, but rather was full of cynicism and resentment.

"Hero? If I fight to defend the Endless Forest, then I am indeed a hero."

"But how was my body damaged?"

"I was conscripted to the Storm Continent across the sea, where I fought battle after battle against a group of ghostly things resembling snail monsters, for no apparent reason."

"Many warriors fell, and their souls were reclaimed by the Life Tree, quickly beginning reincarnation."

"I have thus died sixteen times on the Storm Continent; each death was extremely painful, inflicting great harm on my soul, dropping my mana from nine rings to six, and causing me to forget much of the past, even many combat skills."

Lixia bit hard into the fruit, as if gnawing on an enemy's flesh.

"Before the war broke out, I had thirteen sisters."

"We grew up together in joy and laughter, our bonds deep, but now only I and my Fourth Sister remain; the rest of my sisters are gone."

"Tragically, I now know I have many close relatives, but I can no longer recall the exact appearances of those departed sisters."

"Even so, in another half month, once I adapt to this new body, I must return to that damned foreign continent's battlefield!"

She bit hard into the fruit again: "In their eyes, I am merely a tool to be consumed!"

Luosen said cautiously: "The Storm Continent was once the elves' homeland; trying to reclaim it seems only natural."

"If we could create another Endless Forest on the Storm Continent, life would surely be much better than now."

Lixia nodded in agreement with Luosen's words: "Everyone says that; I admit the argument has some merit."

"We have indeed occupied considerable land and obtained many resources on the Storm Continent."

"If even one-tenth of these resources were used to improve the people's welfare, I would have nothing to say."

"But there is none; all new resources go entirely to forging warriors."

"It is laughable that, despite pouring so many resources into war, we still suffered repeated heavy defeats in the Dragon Archipelago, with at least two million warriors' souls completely annihilated!"

"This is not two hundred, nor two thousand, but two million!"

The female demon Lixia's gorgeous face was intertwined with fear and fury.

Then she actually spoke an astonishing remark.

"Before the Lord of Truth returned, we steadily expanded our territory."

"We drove the Radiant Empire to flee across the oceans and between the mountains."

"After the Lord of Truth returned, former glory vanished; the entire Dragon Archipelago fell into the hands of mortals."

"In my view, the Lord of Truth is nothing but an incompetent waste!"

Luosen wore a look of shock.

"Lixia sister, watch your words; this is Atelasen, and if the big shots hear you, trouble will follow."

Lixia, however, wore an expression of indifference.

"It's not just me; many think this way, even the empire's high ranks, and even the Gloried Ones dwelling in the Great Life Tree share this view."

"Everyone understands that as long as I don't shout loudly in the streets, no one will pursue the matter."

After a pause, she looked at Luosen, her gorgeous face showing vigilance: "Little guy, or should I say, are you planning to report me?"

Luosen felt a stir in his heart: 'The Gloried Ones on the Great Life Tree are already the empire's highest tier. It seems the defeat in the Dragon Archipelago has dealt a heavy blow to the elves' confidence.'

This is excellent! Facing the female demon's words, he of course shook his head repeatedly: "Of course not; in fact I also harbor similar thoughts, merely hidden deep inside, not as bold as you, elder sister."

Upon hearing this, he fully understood.

No matter which country, a war defeat is a very serious matter.

Think about it: everyone entrusts their lives to your hands, letting you command them, yet now you lack the ability, squandering the big folk's lives for nothing.

Moreover, because De Rui Tan is a mighty god, replacing him with a mortal king would already have shattered the crown.

But harboring dissatisfaction is one thing; daring to rebel is another.

Finally, whether one can succeed in rebellion is yet another, higher-level matter.

Looking again at the female demon before him, from her soul's fluctuations Luosen could sense that she harbored some design toward him.

It seems they want to recruit me.

This is also normal, because he is disguising himself as a rather talented lower-class Elf who already possesses five-ring magic power at over thirty years old, with great future growth potential.

But knowing exactly which group to join cannot be done just by detecting fluctuations.

Then Luosen spoke softly: "Lixia sis, I certainly know what you say is right, but what's the use of just complaining with words?"

Lixia's blue-green eyes flashed, and she switched to telepathy: "Not just complaining with words."

Luosen's heart stirred slightly, and he replied via telepathy: "Sis, it seems you have something to say to me."

Lixia shook her small tail, similar to a wild rabbit's, and finally told Luosen the situation he wanted to know.

"Have you heard of the Wild Rabbit Society?"

"I haven't heard of it, but from the name, it should be an organization good at hide-and-seek."

From the information Lixia revealed, and her somewhat unrestrained attitude, Luosen immediately knew: "This so-called Wild Rabbit Society is likely large in scale, and behind it probably stands a big figure of the Elf Empire."

He immediately developed a strong interest in the Wild Rabbit Society.

At this moment, a hint of self-mockery flashed across Lixia's face: "That's right, we are indeed good at hiding, especially good at hiding deep underground, just like those weak wild rabbits."

"Only then can one possibly evade the detection of those powerful void beings."

That statement is also not wrong.

Magic rings are generated from elemental energy; thus, the deeper one goes into the earth, the more stable the magic rings become.

At the same time, the elements themselves have various forces vibrating; the air element on the earth's surface is too thin, so this vibration effect is weak, but deep underground, the various forces vibrating together accumulate to form a natural force mist.

In fact, as long as one hides quietly beneath a soil layer deeper than 300 meters, it is enough to block the detection of the Great God. If one goes deeper than 800 meters, one can safely go wild.

Not to mention the Great God; even if Luosen trains Laifu's related abilities to the peak, he can only sigh in vain.

Then Luosen asked: "Are there many members in the Wild Rabbit Society?"

"I can only say it's not few, but I can't tell you the exact number unless you become a member of the Wild Rabbit Society."

Luosen's curiosity grew stronger, but he sensed Lixia's wariness, knowing he couldn't appear too eager.

Thus, he immediately mimicked the normal reaction a young person should have, showing a hint of 'hesitation' on his face.

"Mmm~~ Although I'm a bit curious, I'm just an ordinary person; I'm completely unprepared mentally, and I still need to go find Lilian."

Having said that, he seemed to make up his mind: "Lixia sis, thank you very much for sharing this secret with me; I will keep it strictly confidential."

"It's about time, I... I have to go."

After saying that, he stood up and was about to walk out of the treehouse.

This reaction indeed relaxed Lixia's already slight wariness.

After just a few steps, Luosen's hand was grabbed by her: "Don't rush to leave!"

Held tightly, Luosen struggled a bit but couldn't break free, so he turned his head to look at the forest spirit of the upper-class Elf.

The other party also gazed at him, speaking in a deep tone: "Young man, I can tell you are an exceptionally talented Elf."

"You can certainly go find your Lilian, together worship the Great Life Tree, then return together to your Colorful Valley, living as an ordinary lower-class Elf, leading an ordinary life."

"But I must tell you, this is just a beautiful dream."

"In fact, you will soon be conscripted, and the cruel, merciless Overlord will waste your young, beautiful life for nothing."

"But you have another choice!"

Saying this, Lixia's eyes shone with hopeful light: "You can also join us, and together we will strive to overthrow tyranny!"

Luosen showed a look of 'struggle', but his mind was turning over how to join the Wild Rabbit Society more reasonably and without future trouble.

Lixia merely thought her words had moved Luosen.

She pressed on, using a tempting tone: "Young man, whether to remain obscure or become a legend depends entirely on your current choice."

Luosen remained silent, his eyes flickering, seeming to be swayed.

But there is still one last problem to solve: that he previously said he was looking for "Lilian".

This Lilian is fictional; he needs to figure out how to round off this lie.

Just as he was thinking, there was also movement in the canopy of the Great Life Tree above his head.

Just as he had expected, the Elf's new commander's methods were astonishing and his actions extremely swift; indeed, he soon sought out the newly risen God of Stars, Xixi.

(End of chapter)