Pillars of Ita

Chapter 1238 The Determined Lone Walker IV

Fang He looked at Tata who was standing beside him. His fairy lady had been acting out of control since the beginning. Although she remained silent, she had rarely shown herself to outsiders before.

Perhaps noticing his gaze, the Great Saint of the Moon Elves also looked in that direction. A hint of tenderness flashed in her purple eyes, and she didn't seem very surprised when she saw Tata appearing in front of her.

"……His Majesty……"

Tata whispered, "Is it you?"

This title surprised Fang He a little. He couldn't help but look at the Great Saint of the Moon Elves again, only to find that she nodded slightly: "It's me, my child."

Now it was Fang He's turn to have his pupils tremble violently. A thought involuntarily occurred to him: Who am I? Where am I?

He and his fairy lady were connected in spirit, and he had actually gotten the answer from the other's mood changes. He looked at the great saint, who smiled at him, nodded, and said:

"I am not what you see, kid. This is just my outward appearance. My identity is not convenient to be made public, so I need an identity to hide myself. This identity is an agreement between me and the Moon Clan..."

"So...you are..." Fang He had actually roughly guessed the answer.

Tata turned his gaze towards her, his eyes were complex, full of tenderness, even a little weak.

"Mr. Knight," she said, "She is my mother, the sixth dragon soul you saw in the tower, our..."

"I am Roshar's daughter, the eleventh-generation queen of the fairy clan," the Saint interrupted her daughter with a smile, "Of course, that was only my past identity. Now I can only be considered half a wandering soul—"

"Half a...wandering soul...?"

Fang He was a little confused.

"The birth of the Fairy Dragon Soul originated from a plan. You should have known that plan. It was for the end of the world, to fight against the star of disaster, the dead world," said the Great Saint. "For this, the fairy clan is willing to sacrifice themselves. Not only me and Tata, but many generations of fairy queens have chosen to become the carriers of the dragon soul long before us..."

Fairies are the most curious race in Ataria and are the closest to mortals. As early as the Dark Ages, they have had the experience of traveling with humans.

During that period of time, many histories and legends about the Dragon Slaying Holy Sword and the Oath Keepers were left behind.

After the Numelin elves left, the darkness did not disappear, but the dead world came even closer to Ataria.

Therefore, they stood up again. The fairies are friendly to magic and have strong and noble souls, making them the most suitable carriers of the fairy dragon soul.

They are naturally optimistic and compassionate, and are not afraid of death. Instead, they face it calmly and regard it as a noble sacrifice. They only hope that one day, their dragon souls can be in the hands of those who are good at using them.

To fight against the end of this world that will surely come one day.

When Fang He asked about Miss Tata, Miss Long Hun never showed any reluctance to let go of the past. She always seemed so calm, as if everything was natural.

She would only occasionally recall her past in the Silver Tower, her companions, and those days in the past. But when she looked at her knight, there was never a trace of regret in her eyes.

"It is my luck to meet Mr. Knight."

"The ancestors sacrificed themselves, but they didn't really get to see it all with their own eyes."

"But Mr. Knight has made all these possibilities possible, allowing me to see the end of the journey, the end of my companions' and my goal."

Fang He stretched out his hand and let his Miss Dragon Soul fall into his palm. The two of them did not need to communicate, their intertwined gazes had already given everything a silent understanding.

The Great Saint's gentle gaze fell on the two of them and nodded with satisfaction, "That plan was half successful for me, and you are our pride."

So this is the origin of the half wandering soul?

At that moment Fang He couldn't help but think of Ms. Owena. He had seen the projection of the previous fairy queen's dragon soul in the Silver Tower, but she had lost her self-consciousness and became a carrier of data.

"You don't have to look at us like that, child," the Great Saint said, "It is death that gives meaning to life. Fairies can face the withering of all things calmly, and we just choose its meaning on our own."

Fang He couldn't help but think of Ms. Withering. Could it be that the goblins are actually followers of this lady?

The Saint nodded gently. "Not every fairy dragon soul has the opportunity to face the end. They are different from you, Ed. Of course, this is not your luck, but your responsibility. However, every fairy dragon soul will eventually meet a dragon knight that suits her. I have also met my own dragon knight——"

"I traveled with her to many places, and finally returned to the White Tree. There, we discussed the fate of the elves, the fate of the Giant Tree Hill, and the fate of this world with the current Elf King and a former Sword Master."

She raised her head and looked at Fang He with gentle eyes: "Do you know the origin of this white tree?"

Fang He closed his mouth and nodded. He knew that the conversation that followed would be about the unknown life or death of Ms. Withered.

The fairy queen must not have come to him to reminisce about the past. The big cat man had told him long ago that she came because of his identity. He had been glimpsed by Aymea in Saint Hugh's, and it must have been the elves of Heimwor who passed the message back.

The will of nature has not descended on the Hill of Giant Trees for a long time. This is a huge matter for the elves, but because of the communication between the two worlds, it will take some time for the news to be transmitted across the continent.

The only ones who could have brought his message back to Heimwor were the elves who were there at the time.

"Does it have anything to do with what's happening right now, this gray disaster, Ms. Aimaya's kingdom of God, and the changes that are happening in the gray forest?" Fang He asked.

The Great Saint nodded slightly: "The Numelin elves planted the Twin Sacred Trees not just to build their capital. Or rather, on the contrary, they built the capital at the foot of the sacred trees to anchor the location of the Sea of ​​Light."

"Anchor Gwanghae's location?"

Fang He was slightly startled. What does this have to do with the Sea of ​​Ether? He couldn't help but think of the Dark Blessing. The Lizardmen predicted the extinction of the Sea of ​​Light, and that prophecy had come true not long ago.

Is there any connection between the two?

"The Sea of ​​Light is the manifestation of astral light. It is located outside the material world and the elemental plane. There is only a wild ether torrent there. Even the crystal tower of the Artisan Guild cannot penetrate it."

The Saint replied softly, "But that is also the outermost layer of the world. Due to the pure power of the starlight, the origin of the world comes from here, and at the beginning of everything, sporadic fire seeds were also born from it."

"Those first seeds all contained divine light, and the first laws of our world were also born from them. They are the manifestations of the saints, the first gods of Ataria."

"You should have heard the story of the Creator Saint Itar, so I will not elaborate on it here. In short, after disputes prevailed in the world, the pillars of the world broke in the middle, and the worlds were torn apart."

"The shadow of death has not passed the base of our world after all, and the star of disaster has also appeared in the sky, but before they reach our world, they have to pass through a world barrier first—"

“That is, Gwanghae.”

The surroundings seemed so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Fang He was even a little surprised. Logically, the surroundings shouldn't be so quiet. Let alone Selina's dying wail, shouldn't Mia, Juliana, and Elindor have returned here after defeating the other party?

But when he looked around, he found that there was something strange in the forest - a fallen leaf was suspended in the air, and not far away a fluttering butterfly was flying away. On the grass leaf where it took off, a crystal dewdrop stayed at the moment of falling.

The woods were completely silent.

"This is just a trick," the Saint said to him gently, "because I don't want outsiders to hear what I'm going to say next."

"Lady Aimea's kingdom, the Ash Forest is located in a corner of the wild wilderness. In that naturally disordered land, the sacred oak forests are intertwined to form a wall."

"And the Wild Wilderness is nothing more than a fragment of the world floating on the sea of ​​light, a reflection of the laws of nature. Including it, it is the first line of defense of Ataria—"

"The saints are not without time to take a look at everything that happens on earth, but they only want to deal with their own enemies, the many evil gods from the world of death."

"Some of them are remnants from the first era, some came with the verdant, and others are the death manifestations of dead gods," said the Great Saint, "You have been to the kingdom of the Naga God, you should know that place--"

"Those two sacred trees..." Fang He couldn't help but ask.

"Yes," the Great Saint replied, "It is the bond between us and the sea of ​​light. It is rooted in the present world, but its roots extend deep into the boundary between life and death, forming a barrier."

"Quvenlar, the former king of the Holy White Descendants, stole the seeds of the Holy Tree and planted them on the Hill of the Giant Tree. Although this was done out of selfish motives for the sake of the Light Clan, it was actually approved by all the Saints."

"But the Numelin elves burned the Two Sacred Trees at the end of the Second Age. On the one hand, it was to fight against Verdant, and on the other hand, they actually saw its drawbacks."

"Because the Holy Tree is connected to the World of Light, it is not only a link between us and the Kingdom of Saints, but also gives the power of darkness the possibility to bypass the Sea of ​​Light and invade this world."

Fang He suddenly reacted. He was puzzled as to the origin of this gray disaster. Luo Yu once said that he had seen the remains of the Xinsas era under the Giant Tree Hill, and there he saw countless insects climbing up along the roots of the sacred tree.

So where do those bugs come from?

The snake-man ruins from the Sinsas era are easy to understand, and the Terraka giant tree did not grow from just a seed. When Quvenlar planted it, it was actually on a remaining floating continent.

But he understood it completely now.

If the roots of the Holy White Tree penetrated deep into the Ether Realm, then the Dark Saints eroded the roots of the Holy Tree from there, allowing the Gray Plague to spread along its branches to the main trunk.

This is the origin of the terrible "death plague" in Giant Tree Hill.

"But what about in the ash woods?" he asked.

"Ms. Aimaya acquiesced to Quvenlar's actions," the Great Saint said, "so she naturally understood the risks involved. She established her own kingdom of God on the root branch of Terraka and used the ash forest to protect the passage from Ataria to the Sea of ​​Light."

"So this is why there is an entrance to the Gray Forest in the Sacred Woods?" Fang He asked, "Is that actually the entrance to the Sea of ​​Light?"

The Great Saint nodded.

"So what happened in the ash woods?"

The Saint replied: "In the era before the disaster, the power of the dark saints declined, and as the world of death approached Attalia day by day, they were able to be resurrected from death -"

"In the era when the power of darkness was weakening, the Ash Forest was able to protect the Holy White Tree. However, as the disaster star approaches, the power of darkness is gradually recovering, and Lady Aimaya is unable to defend this gap."

"In fact, many years ago, she had issued an oracle, ordering mortals to follow the example of the Numelin elves, burn the sacred tree, and completely block the entrance from the Sea of ​​Light to Etalia."

Fang He was shocked. He had never heard of such a thing. If this was true, it would have a profound impact on the fate of Giant Tree Hill. It was impossible that there was no rumor outside.

Then there was only one possibility left, that someone had covered up the oracle. And in the Hill of Giant Trees, the only place that could have done this was the Sacred Forest.

Then everything makes sense, why the Sacred Forest repeatedly concealed the truth about the Gray Plague, because even without the Sacred Tree Telaka, there are still natural temples all over the world.

But without the Holy White Tree, the Holy Forest would have no reason to exist.

"It's not just the Holy Forest, but also the Elf Court," the Great Saint Lady explained as she watched Fang He's expression change. "The reason you haven't heard about it is very simple, because even the two princesses don't know about it."

"But neither the Elven Court nor the Sacred Forest is bold enough to go against the will of Lady Nature. There is another reason behind this."

"Many years ago, when I returned to the Holy White Tree with her, my dragon knight, I discussed this matter with the Elf King. Burning the Holy White Tree can certainly solve the problem once and for all, but if we can do it, the former Elf King Quevenlar would not have to take the risk of stealing the tree seeds a thousand years ago..."

"Is it because of anchoring in Gwanghae?" Fang He asked.

The Great Saint nodded. "If we lose contact with Guanghai, it means we will have to face the evil star alone. Without the protection of the saints, the enemies lurking in the darkness will also revive."

The oath-keepers' warnings involuntarily came to Fang Que's mind: Never forget your dead enemies.

And those shadowy figures that seem to be everywhere, are they active because the power of the saints has lost control over this world?

He looked at the great saint. She continued, "...At that time, we came up with a plan that might allow the Holy White Tree to survive, and the plan was approved by Ms. Aimaya..."

The Saint’s tone was somewhat melancholy. “Everything was just like today. Ms. Aimaya’s eyes were also on us, just like she had chosen you—”

Looking at the other party's expression, Fang He had actually guessed in his heart that this "method" might be the source of all the problems today.

Sure enough, the Saint said, "But we failed. A major misjudgment occurred during the execution, which resulted in the death of my knight, and Lady Apoptosis had to sacrifice herself to plug the hole."

"The girl of destiny, Elaine, made a prophecy at the cost of her own life. In that prophecy, one day, the withering death and the shadow in the forest will be rampant in the world, but the dead will be given new life under the ashes, and new shoots will grow from the humus soil. A new god will be born from the twins."

"At that time, the Gray Forest will be closed, and everything will revive, and the Holy White Tree will survive. Elaine used her divine power to block the detection of fate, but because of the loss of her divine power, the Soul-Eating Lord Atumas took advantage of the opportunity and split a god from her corpse, named Insect King Karsak."

"It ordered the insect to climb up along the roots of the sacred tree to find the reason why the passage and destiny were blocked. This is why the Gray Disaster came."

"But the real fatal thing is not the Gray Disaster," said the Great Saint, "but the fact that Lady of Withering Death used her own divine fire to maintain the Holy Tree. She has actually died, but the flame of divinity has not been extinguished."

"According to Elaine's prophecy, a new God of Withering will be born from that flame, from a pair of twins. But if the Insect King Karsak finds the flame of Lady Withering first, then the new God of Withering will become a dark god."

She looked at Fang He: "Do you understand what will happen then?"

Fang He certainly understood what that meant. Once the Lady of Withering was resurrected as a dark god, her twin sister Aimaya would almost certainly be affected by her.

Then the Gray Forest will open its gate, and the White Tree will become the entrance for the Dark Saints to connect to this world. In other words, as Kwenral said:

The third evil star will descend upon this world immediately.

With unprecedented strength.

But it is obvious that the saints did not fail to foresee this series of consequences. Starting with the destined girl Elaine, they had been planning this from the beginning.

In order to prevent the other party from finding the prophecy hidden by Elaine along the branches of fate, the three goddesses chose a more roundabout way. They had already chosen themselves as early as when they were in Istania.

But why?

After much thought, Fang Yu could only think of one possibility.

He raised his head and felt the weight of the crown on his head, which was the Hailin Crown. Perhaps it was because of Cang Zhihui that the other party took a fancy to him.

But what is the connection between Cang Zhihui and this series of events? Fang He's mind was spinning rapidly, but he suddenly thought of something even more terrifying.

Unicorn girl.

The Alliance tried to use the souls of the Unicorn Girls to control the Blight Branch, because the Blight Branch itself was also grown from the White Tree, and as the guardians of the Holy Tree, their souls were naturally compatible with it.

The Alliance tried to use this method to quell the disaster that spread throughout Giant Tree Hill and to consolidate their own position. From their point of view, this was understandable.

But Fang He suddenly thought of that woman Selina.

If the mastermind behind her is controlled by the power of the Dark Saints in the mortal world, then once the soul of the unicorn girl enters the branches of the white tree...

"Not good!" Fang He was horrified. Elaine's concealment of the white tree and fate should only be directed at the external world, and not include the holy tree's own perception of itself.

No force can do this.

But once the soul of the unicorn girl merges into the white tree through the disaster branch, it means that the other party has most likely found the location of the divine flame of the Lady of Death.

The Guild Alliance seems to be on the road to victory, but in fact it is leading the world into the abyss.

He suddenly raised his head and looked at the great saint in front of him.

The other party found him, obviously because of Emaya's oracle. But whether it was the sacred forest or the elves of Heimwol, they still didn't know what the Linoril Council had done.

This is bad news.

Fang He broke out in a cold sweat, suddenly realizing that the time left for him seemed to be extremely limited, and those damn bastards from the alliance probably still thought that they were on the verge of victory, right?

These... idiots.

He couldn't help but greet her in a friendly and cordial manner.

……