Chapter 334: Five Hundred Years of Perseverance

After the Holy Tree Kingdom had been destroyed for over a hundred years, a collector stumbled upon a note left behind by the Elf Sage while browsing through old books.

He thought he had found a rare treasure and hoped to glean some secrets of elf magic from it, only to discover that it was nothing more than an ordinary diary.

Still, the collector reasoned that it was at least a historical document, and perhaps some important information could be dug out of it, so he steadied himself and began to read.

Contrary to the rumors of a mysterious powerhouse, the daily life of this famed great sage was nothing but blowing and hitting, eating and drinking, endless chaotic social pleasures, and he never did any proper work.

Having grown up listening to the sage's stories, the collector felt duped when his idol fell from grace; when a friend visited, he angrily shared the diary, and the friend laughed until he doubled over, saying it was the funniest joke book he had ever read in his life.

Inspired, the collector pondered overnight, decided that keeping the book to himself would be a waste, and resolved to broadcast it so the whole world could see what the great sage was really like; he made a perfect replica, even preserving the cover format, and printed countless copies that spread throughout the world.

Thanks to this legendary work hailed as "the greatest joke book of the Yangyue World," the collector became a renowned tycoon, with rumors that his descendants still live affluent lives thanks to his ancestor's clever trick.

After the Elf Sage Hesweyi Ailin'onola Teerdouleike Heitan was exiled to the civilized frontier and disappeared, even this remaining good reputation was utterly ruined by the diary's exposure; thereafter no one cared about the fate of this former dynasty's loyalist, and he was buried in the dust of history.

For the already disheartened Old Woman, she thought this outcome was merely her own just deserts, and thus she resolved to completely abandon the name Hesweyi, which appeared more often and was once renowned worldwide, choosing instead the nickname Buluowa, unknown to many, as her new name.

"So that's how it is..."

Upon receiving the SpiritGathering Liquid that Ji Ming handed over at lightning speed, Buluowa, who had just recovered from a serious illness and still felt weak, drew a breath of qi and blood.

No, if that were really the case, then everything would make sense.

Although I haven't interacted with the Lionheart King for long, from his few words I can tell he may not be a traditional good person, but he is certainly not a fanatic, and he still retains his progressive ideas.

"Besides, when you were exiled, you clearly didn't suffer any torment, so why did you disappear right after leaving Jueqiao Pass and become like this... even the Forest God set so many curses on you—what happened in between?"

"At the surrender ceremony, when we met, there was no humiliation; on the contrary, you proactively offered a cup of wine, saying thank you for our willingness to surrender and for not causing any loss to this ancient forest with thousands of years of history."

Never mind that, the soldiers wanted to strike it rich early by charging into the Deep Forest, so they fought nonstop for seven days and seven nights, only for the Lionheart King to casually say the victory reward was gone.

"Hold on, hold on, hold on—don't bombard the old man with so many questions at once!"

???

As for why the king and queen were ultimately killed, and the Deep Forest and the elves were nearly exterminated...

Following this line of thought, Ji Ming thought of even more historical mysteries.

"Come to think of it, as the Great Sage, you are naturally the second-in-command of the Holy Tree Kingdom, so why were the king and queen directly sent to the guillotine, many great and small nobles—including the Holy Nine Clans—hanged on the gallows, while you alone were merely exiled?"

—Even your country's king happily taught classes at our Deep Forest school; what right do you old fogies have to nitpick, complain, and keep causing trouble?

"Actually, these questions can be answered with a single explanation—listen carefully."

The Lionheart King's acknowledged flaws, aside from his chaotic love life, are burning the Deep Forest and slaughtering surrendering elves; how can the teacher, as the person involved, deny both with just a few words?

"In fact, after the Deep Forest army entered the Deep Forest and declared victory, facing the surrendered elves, the Lionheart King issued no order to kill prisoners, and even strictly restrained the troops."

As a modern transmigrator, Giuseppe appears to the Deep Forest nobility as the greatest king, a lord for whom they would sacrifice their heads and shed blood, yet he is also the biggest oddball among the Deep Forest nobles.

It is precisely this sentence relayed by Buluowa that made Ji Ming believe this was the Little Lion's true plan being carried out, for he is too familiar with this theory—outsiders wouldn't do it this way.

Were it not for this BYD debate prowess, his ability, with no one able to surpass him under his command and no one confident enough to replace him, the moment this order went out, the army would surely mutiny.

Thus in his vision, the elf clan, especially the hereditary Holy Nine Clans, would be far more useful alive than dead; they must be dragged from their splendid palaces to the fields, brought to the mines, to experience what labor, what contribution, what responsibility are, in order to thoroughly remodel this corrupt clan.

After hearing Buluowa's explanation, Ji Ming fell into contemplation, but another question occurred to him.

Ji Ming knew Buluowa's next words would inevitably be shocking big news, yet he never imagined they would be a single sentence capable of overturning the entire history book.

So while he was alive, he could still use his own will to forcibly reverse and lead the kingdom's future, drawing on the advanced experience of predecessors like Old Qin Wuhou Chongba, suppressing all opposing voices inside and outside the Royal Capital.

But when he mysteriously died young on a succubus's bed—well, the authenticity of this old cliché is also questionable—in short, many things are beyond the control of a dead male lion.

Therefore, right after the Lionheart King's death, his sons began arguing at the funeral; had it not been for his numerous lovers stepping in to break it up, there might have been a scene of filial piety and violence over the father's portrait.

Even so, the brothers and sisters are many, but there is only one throne, and the Lionheart King died too early to have designated a successor; thus every direct descendant has a claim, and under the objective contradictions and conflicts of interest, the young lions' "chicken-eating" competition began.

Amid the internal struggle of the twenty-four powerful dukes and several ruthless offspring constantly forming and reforming alliances, the elves confined to the forest became sacrifices in their fight for bravery and ferocity, and finally, together with their homeland, turned to ashes.

Yet this group of arrogant "young" nobles clearly underestimated the influence the elves have exerted over this land for thousands of years; when the Third Prince publicly used the guillotine to behead the elf king and queen to establish his prestige, the kingdom's high-level internal strife actually began to slide toward civil war.

Those who were once vassals of the Holy Tree Kingdom, later "turned from darkness to light" and joined the Deep Forest, relying on their family influence still wielding considerable power within the kingdom, raised a powerful voice of opposition.

It is not that they still hold loyalty to their former lord; rather, they fear that if this reckoning continues, the frenzied new nobles will drag them down and kill them as well, so the elf sage, who originally should have been beheaded, escaped by the skin of his teeth in the various power plays, receiving a laughably light exile punishment.

It was precisely in this contest that the Deep Forest's internal two major noble factions and their antagonistic relationship were formally established: one faction originated from military conquest, with most fiefs located in the kingdom's northern borders, holding military authority to counter the Beimosi Khanate; the other faction originated from commerce, with most fiefs in the western borders, controlling ocean trade routes and a strong navy, thus holding financial power.

This pattern has persisted to this day, with far-reaching influence.

The western nobles felt their face had been respected, successfully making the almost warlord-like northern nobles yield.

The northern nobles also felt they had made a killing this time, successfully extracting a batch of high-priced military aid from the wealthy western nobles.

Yet, despite achieving a win-win, they did not forget the elf sage they had personally sent beyond civilization; although they did not outright dispatch assassins to kill him, they also contacted the Deep Forest state religion's Forest God Church, asking them to send someone to slightly "look after" him.

After that, things became relatively simple: Buluowa was assassinated, she barely escaped with her life using every means, but also became disabled, and the Forest God inflicted all kinds of curses on her, making every moment thereafter a deep, marrow‑penetrating pain.

Yet it was precisely this process that allowed Buluowa to undergo a second growth; awakened, she knows the past cannot be made up for, but at least she still has room to act, and she wants to truly use her power on things within her ability.

Thus she quietly traveled the whole world as an Elf Sage, seeking out her missing kin and giving whatever help she could, and this search lasted a full five hundred years.

After finally confirming the life or death of the last person on the list, feeling her days were numbered, she returned to Yanglight City.

Who would have thought that the gears of fate would creak, and three months later a high‑dimensional existence named Ji Ming would descend here as well.

"I've spent these hundreds of years busy with others' affairs, so the last bit of time I should spend on myself—at least not let our Heitan lineage be cut off; therefore I regard you as my closed‑door disciple, otherwise why would I put in so much effort to teach you?"

Having finished her story, Buluowa leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.

Ji Ming fell silent for a long while.

"Actually, you don't need to blame yourself so much; even if you had this awareness back then, the Holy Tree Kingdom, burdened with deep‑rooted problems, could not be saved by a single person, and you were born too late."

"Perhaps, but I never thought of changing the past, and the fact that I cannot do it is never a reason not to try."

Buluowa's withered lips twitched.

"Actually, when I found the head of the Rose Family and said I wanted to look for every clansman to confirm their whereabouts, he didn't believe I could do it, but the fact is he was wrong."

"Eh, I understand..."

Unfortunately, no matter how we try to make up for past mistakes, they can never be fully restored to their original state.

Just like Buluowa's appearance now—whether she likes it or not, accepts it or not, it can never return to what it was back then.

Discussing the past always brings a strong sense of regret, so after Ji Ming's reply, both fell into silence.

Just as Ji Ming thought Buluowa had fallen asleep, wondering whether to put her in Dog Town or go to High Tower Castle to find a bed, Lao Nv Shi suddenly opened her eyes.

"You won't let me go today if I don't say something, right?"

"Um… I thought you looked a bit tired, why don't you rest a bit?"

Ji Ming saw for the first time on Buluowa's face an expression that could be called a "bitter smile."

"I'm not tired; I just suddenly felt no pain, and it feels like nothing matters anymore, as if I'm about to die..."

Ji Ming thought the Death God using poison gas grenades as a Ping A was already vicious, but he didn't expect someone to also use curses as a stimulant for themselves; after finally getting away, they still feel lifeless, an utterly ruthless person.

What kind of steel will is this! Do you have that kind of steel will where you are? It's just steel and will, going through a security check even scares the machine into beeping wildly.

"Impressive."

After casually praising her, Ji Ming activated the Teleportation Technique and returned to the Clinic with Buluowa.

It was noon; the morning patients had finished, the afternoon patients hadn't arrived yet, making it a rare break for AdaiEr.

She therefore locked the door, took off her shoes, and lay on the sofa Ji Ming often sat on, reading a comic, her face showing a wild, rising smile, until hearing the noise she slightly restrained herself and lifted her head.

"Doctor?"

Ji Ming was about to greet her, but upon taking a close look at the comic's cover, he hurried over and snatched it away.

"Can kids read this kind of book? Kids shouldn't read this kind of book! Confiscated, and your sitting posture—are you practicing gymnastics? Can you tone it down a bit?"

Although Ji Ming successfully removed the curse from Buluowa, her lost hands and feet haven't returned yet, so she walks very slowly; only after Ji Ming finished destroying the comic titled Elf Sage's Wonderful Tales did she come down.

One can only say that although they aren't blood-related, the three of them being able to span three generations isn't random; there is indeed some inheritability, such as a keen sensitivity to others' conditions.

Therefore, AdaiEr merely glanced and asked in a low voice.

"Doctor, Ms. Buluowa looks especially spirited today; did you cure some hidden ailment of hers?"