Elven cultivators

Summer of the year 9490 in the Dawn Calendar.

The war between the Emerald Court and Bloodhowl Fortress is intensifying.

Both sides amassed large armies on the Azure Plains and launched a major battle, attracting the attention of many forces on the continent.

Countless spies were dispatched to the Azure Plains, striving to obtain intelligence on this war, which could significantly impact the balance of power across the entire continent, as soon as possible.

……

The once vast plains, covered in lush green grass and meandering rivers, have now been completely transformed into a bloody battlefield, a veritable meat grinder.

The dark brown soil rolled up on the outside, plowed countless times by the flames of war. The charred grass roots and dark red bloodstains were layered on top of each other, forming a shocking hard shell.

The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder, mixed with the acrid odor of rust, blood, and burnt leather, making one's chest feel heavy.

Millions of soldiers clashed and fought fiercely between the two armies. The clang of weapons clashing, the booming of spells exploding, and the screams of the dying blended into a continuous, muffled roar that shook the distant mountain ridges.

High in the sky, the fighting was just as fierce.

The Ironfeather Cavalry of Bloodhowl Fortress stretched across half the sky like a surging, iron-gray cloud.

The Ironfeathered Thunder Beasts they rode had wingspans of five or six meters, dark iron-like feathers, hooked beaks, and sharp claws.

The riders, all clad in black scale armor and wielding spears and javelins, unleashed deadly attacks on their enemies as the Ironfeathered Thunder Beasts charged at high speed.

The Emerald Court's Radiant Cavalry were equally imposing.

The Lightfeather Beast is pure white, without a single feather of any other color. The tips of its wings and the edges of its tail feathers shimmer with a flowing pale gold hue, like light shuttles streaking across the sky.

Their flight was more agile and elegant, with almost no noticeable deceleration when changing direction, and their sharp claws moved with terrifying precision, tearing a gap in the Ironfeather Cavalry's ranks with each charge into the enemy lines.

The two sides tore, chased, and strangled each other in the air. White feathers and iron feathers fell from the sky like snowflakes and iron filings, mingling with the muddy, bloody soil on the ground, making it impossible to tell which piece came from which side.

The entire plain was like an iron pot being boiled over a fire, churning and boiling, as if trying to cook everything stuffed into it into a pot of indistinguishable mud.

Every minute and every second, countless lives are lost.

Several kilometers away from the battlefield, at the edge of higher clouds.

Four figures hovered in the air, their robes fluttering wildly in the air currents above, but none of them raised a hand to suppress them, their gazes all fixed on the distant battlefield.

Mia narrowed her eyes slightly, gazing at the billowing smoke and the constantly exploding magical flames in the distance, and couldn't help but click her tongue in amazement: "The fighting is so intense... This is the first time I've ever seen a war of this scale."

She stood beside Ryan, a long crimson whip coiled around her waist. The whip's body resembled a rope chain polished from ruby, with a small copper bell the size of a fingernail at its end, which occasionally tinkled softly in the wind.

The Silvermoon Clan itself has a small military force, and even with the addition of vassal races, it does not exceed 400,000.

After removing the standing troops stationed at various resource points, mines, fortresses, and the spirit realm itself, the maximum number of troops that can actually be deployed to a particular battlefield is no more than 300,000.

Even when they went to war with the Bloodclaw Clan Alliance, the total number of troops deployed by both sides was only 1.3 to 1.4 million.

However, in this battle, the Jade Court alone has deployed an estimated two million troops.

The Bloodhowl Fortress's array stretched from one end of the plain to the other, resembling a tide of iron-gray water, roughly estimated to be at least three million strong.

The combined forces of both sides are likely approaching five million.

This is just the frontal force of both sides on this front; a large number of troops are still being rotated and replenished from the rear.

It can only be said that it is indeed one of the top five powers on the mainland.

Ryan nodded thoughtfully: "It seems that both the Emerald Court and Bloodhowl Fortress are pinning their hopes on this battle."

"Who do you think will win?" Mia suddenly asked.

Ryan pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "It's hard to say."

"The Jade Court has a small population and absorbs relatively few vassal races, so its total military strength is far inferior to that of Bloodhowl Fortress."

Upon hearing this, both Flora and Mia couldn't help but smile.

Lucius's eyes flickered slightly.

The Elven race is considered rather xenophobic, and the Emerald Court is particularly xenophobic in this regard.

They inevitably feel superior and aloof when facing their own kind outside the royal court, let alone other races.

Especially after the birth of Silver Bloodlines such as Sun Elves, Moon Elves, and Wood Elves, the 'racial discrimination' of the Emerald Court became even more obvious.

Despite the need for its power to grow, the Emerald Court has absorbed many allied and vassal races, but it strictly controls their numbers, taking a path of valuing quality over quantity.

Therefore, their number of allied and vassal races has always been the smallest among the five major powers.

The Silvermoon Clan initially exhibited this tendency, but under Anton's influence, it gradually evolved into a more pragmatic approach.

In contrast, Bloodhowl Keep is much more lenient in this regard.

They accept almost anyone who comes.

He has gathered powerful allied races under his command, including Ironskull Minotaurs, Stormhawks, Thunderhoof Centaurs, and Mountain Giants.

There are thousands of vassal races.

If Bloodhowl Fortress hadn't been so harsh and exploitative towards its vassal races, there would probably have been even more vassal races flocking to them.

In terms of military strength, Bloodhowl Fortress completely overwhelms the Emerald Court.

"Of course, the Emerald Court isn't without its advantages; their troops are far superior in quality to those of Bloodhowl Fortress," Ryan continued. "And they have other trump cards up their sleeves."

As he spoke, Ryan looked toward the rear of the Emerald Court army.

Mia, Flora, and Lucius followed his gaze.

Behind the Jade Court army, a towering tree stood silently.

The tree trunk, reaching two to three hundred meters in height, pierces the sky like a pillar supporting the heavens, while its canopy spreads outwards like a giant, open emerald umbrella, with countless aerial roots and vines hanging down.

At this moment, a soft cyan light curtain spread outward from the giant tree, like an invisible veil covering most of the battlefield.

Wherever the light barrier reached, the elven warriors' physical abilities were significantly enhanced, and their recovery speed was noticeably accelerated.

The spellcaster's mana recovery speed has also been significantly increased; spells that previously required several breaths to fully charge can now be completed in half the time.

That's not even the most amazing thing about that giant tree.

Mia's gaze fell on the roots of the giant tree.

There, a group of elven soldiers were burying dark brown seeds, each the size of a pigeon's egg, into the soil, and then pouring a small bottle of crystal-clear spring water along the edge of the seed.

The moment the seed was planted, it seemed as if something suddenly pushed it open from the inside.

The bluish-white roots instantly burrowed into the soil, the main stem grew taller at a visible speed, and the branches and leaves spread out wildly in just a few breaths.

In just a short while, an oak tree as thick as four or five people could hug had taken shape.

Immediately afterwards, a blurry face emerged from the surface of the oak tree trunk.

The thick branches spread out like arms, and the roots slowly emerged from the soil, transforming into strong legs. The entire oak tree, like an awakened guardian, took heavy steps and swayed as it walked towards the front of the battlefield.

Every few minutes, hundreds of oak guardians join the battlefield, one after another.

Mia watched this scene and couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "What exactly is that tree? It feels a bit like the Tree of Eternity, but not exactly the same."

Ryan guessed, "It should be some kind of large magical artifact. The Emerald Court's expertise in alchemy and enchanting is second only to the Heart of the Mountains. That giant tree must be a weapon of war they created."

The Emerald Court is skilled at crafting golems and magical equipment.

In this war, they deployed a large number of golems of various shapes and sizes.

The Yellow Turban Warriors purchased from the Silvermoon Clan only accounted for a small portion of them.

This is something that orcs, who are only good at fighting and are despised by other races as having strong limbs but simple minds, cannot do.

The individual strength of the elves, along with the giant tree and the golems, leveled the gap in troop strength between the two sides.

"The clans are much stronger than before, but they still lag behind the five major powers." Mia sighed with emotion.

Ryan and Flora exchanged a glance and both nodded silently.

They traveled a long way to watch the battle not only to obtain firsthand intelligence, but also to see the gap between clans and top powers.

After the Dragon Slaying War ended, the five major factions successively cultivated their own Black Iron Legions.

The Emerald Leaf Guard of the Emerald Court, the Bloodblade Legion of Bloodhowl Fortress... each is an elite force capable of standing alone on the front lines.

However, the Silvermoon Clan also has its own Black Iron Legion.

In terms of both equipment and soldier quality, the Silvermoon Legion is no less than the Emerald Leaf Guard and the Bloodblade Chapter, and may even be slightly better.

In terms of puppets, the Silver Moon Clan has Yellow Turban Warriors, Five Camps of Divine Soldiers, and Yin Soldiers, which are in no way inferior to the Jade Court.

The Emerald Court has that strange giant tree, but the Silvermoon Clan also has a fleet.

Overall, the Silvermoon Clan is in many ways no less powerful than the Emerald Court.

The only thing it lacks is its population.

The Emerald Court has been passed down for nearly ten thousand years. Even with the low birth rate of the Elven race, their population has already exceeded one million over the past ten thousand years.

This is something the Silvermoon Clan, which has only been around for less than two hundred years, cannot match.

"Actually, our clan has developed very quickly," Ryan said with a smile. "From a small clan that was just a name without substance, it has developed into a first-class power in less than two hundred years."

"With the teacher here, and given more time, the clan will definitely be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the five major powers in the future, or even surpass them."

Mia smiled and said, "Of course."

Flora smiled as well.

Even Lucius, who had been standing on the far side and hadn't said a word, had a slight glimmer in his usually calm eyes.

They followed their teacher all the way, witnessing countless things that others thought were impossible, turning them into reality one by one.

As long as the teacher is there, the Silvermoon Clan will eventually reach its peak.

That was the only thing they had no doubt about.