CHAPTER 620

【 PERFORMANCE OF THE ELEMENTAL FAERIES 】

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The performance of the Chosen Ones lasted for nearly three hours.

Tonglu swore that he had never before witnessed such a novel form of celebration, nor such an array of strange yet utterly delightful performances.

In the world of Seigües, festivals were plentiful and yet the pattern of festivities across the various races was typically predictable. In most cases they almost always began with solemn rites and ritual offerings, followed by spectacular magical fireworks and concluded with a jubilant city-wide parade.

This elven celebration, however, was something different altogether.

To see the elves prepare an entire stage specifically for performances, and even use magical crystal screens for projection, was something entirely new to him.

Hiccupping drunkenly, Tonglu set down his wine cup.

By now, he had already lost count of how many glasses of “Erguotou” he had consumed. This clear, fiery liquor suited his taste perfectly. After drinking it, he felt that the beer he usually consumed was as bland as water by comparison.

Without contrast, one cannot know the difference.

Tonglu now feared that after tasting such a drink, no other brew would ever bring him satisfaction again.

He absentmindedly plucked up another “crystal bun,” savoring the sweet burst of flavor as it melted in his mouth, while his eyes wandered the plaza in search of the tiny elemental fairy responsible for refilling his cup.

But at that very moment, the venue erupted with cheers and whistles. At the same time, Tonglu’s keen senses detected an overwhelming presence spreading across the sky above.

“Sir Tonglu, it has begun. Please look up in the sky,” came the voice of Little Salty Cat from beside him.

The legendary dwarven warrior paused in surprise, then instinctively raised his gaze upward.

What he saw left him wide-eyed in disbelief.

In the clear blue sky above them, countless tiny orbs of light had appeared without him noticing. They were so densely packed that they seemed to number in the tens of thousands.

And the aura emanating from these orbs instantly cleared the drunken fog from Tonglu’s mind.

Silver!

Every one of those countless orbs was of silver rank!

By the Dwarven God above, was he hallucinating?

How could there possibly be so many silver-ranked beings?

Tonglu’s mouth fell open, his heart filled with shock.

“Sir Tonglu, this is the performance of the elemental fairies. Each orb of light represents an elemental fairy. According to Lady Alice, this performance was organized voluntarily by the fairies themselves, to celebrate and honor the Goddess, and to express their gratitude for the gift of life.”

“Each orb… represents an elemental fairy?” Tonglu unconsciously straightened his posture, drawing in a sharp breath.

By the Dwarven God! Just how many elemental fairies had the Goddess of Life created?

Was she perhaps intending to form an elemental fairy legion, much like the Mother of All Gods had once created her Nature’s Legion?

Could it truly be that she was nothing more than a lesser divine power?

At that moment, Tonglu felt the Goddess of Life and Nature, Her Grace Eve, to be more mysterious and more powerful than ever before.

Tonglu sat in stunned silence as the performance had only just begun.

The glowing orbs shimmered with radiant hues as they danced through the sky. Each orb left behind a trail of light, and those trails expanded outward, transforming into colorful elemental magic.

They spun and intertwined, forming one magnificent pattern after another. The images continuously shifted, like a series of living paintings in motion.

Light shimmered and colors flourished until the heavens resembled a vast painted canvas, ever-changing and alive.

It was somewhat reminiscent of magical fireworks, yet its brilliance and dreamlike beauty far surpassed anything a mere fireworks display could ever achieve.

Tiny specks of light then drifted downward from the heavens, gently falling upon the plaza like a cascade of snowflakes.

These “snowflakes” descended in a vision so surreal and enchanting that the entire venue was bathed in resplendent radiance.

In that instant, silence overtook the special guest seats.

All present stared blankly at the sky, some unable to resist reaching out toward the glowing particles of light, their faces filled with awe and wonder.

“A miracle… such beauty is nothing short of a miracle…” whispered the dark dwarf Firebeard, his expression filled with reverence.

Tonglu too extended his hand, brushing against the drifting light closest to him.

The moment it landed on his palm, the light swiftly burst apart, and he felt a gentle warmth flow into his body.

Startled, he made no attempt to resist, allowing the stream of warmth to course freely within him.

The legendary warrior was then startled to discover that the gentle current of warmth was actually assisting him in channeling the martial power within his body.

“What kind of magic is this? It is helping me refine my life force?” Tonglu exclaimed in surprise.

Life force was the counterpart to magic, the energy cultivated by martial and strength-based experts. Generally speaking, the various skills of such warriors were applications of life force itself.

Of course, strength-based experts rarely referred to their power as “life force,” for that term had been coined by the mages from the former Magic Kingdom. It was originally intended to elevate the status of spellcasters while demeaning the experts that relied on strength alone. As a result, many warriors resented the term.

Instead, such practitioners usually referred to their energy as martial power, raw strength, or simply left it unnamed.

In essence, however, life force and magical power were of the same origin. Both were simply forms of energy, differing only in manifestation and activity.

When an expert ascended to godhood, these powers would eventually be purified into the higher essence of divine power.

Noticing Tonglu’s astonishment, Little Salty Cat smiled.

“Sir Tonglu, this is the magic of the elemental fairies. They excel in elemental arts and possess a unique ability to regulate magical energy and cleanse corruption. They can stabilize regions saturated with chaotic magic and even purify areas tainted by the power of the Abyss, at least to a certain extent.”

“Those specks of light you see are the manifestation of their abilities.”

“What?! They can regulate magical energy… and even purify abyssal corruption?!”

For the first time, Tonglu lost his composure. His expression soon shifted to one of growing excitement.

To regulate magical energy…

To cleanse abyssal power…

Even if only partially, such abilities were truly astonishing!

He knew well that although the Dwarven Kingdom had secured victory in the battle on the Sealed Lands, the long years of abyssal corruption had already ravaged the underground land beneath their kingdom, leaving the area scarred and highly tainted.

This damage continued to hold back their kingdom’s development. The surface of the southern mountains remained relatively barren, while the true wealth of their people—precious mineral deposits and underground resources—lay hidden in areas polluted and dangerous to approach.

So if… if their kingdom could somehow obtain the aid of the elemental fairies…

Would that not mean the abyssal corruption in their kingdom’s underground regions could one day be cleansed completely?

At this thought, Tonglu’s heart was deeply moved.

“Lady Salty Cat, how can I proceed if I wished to seek the aid of the elemental fairies?” he asked earnestly, suppressing his excitement.

“The help of the elemental fairies?” Little Salty Cat blinked in surprise. She quickly understood and smiled.

“Sir Tonglu, you mean to say that you wish to purify the region underneath your kingdom, right?”

Tonglu nodded, letting out a sigh.

“Indeed. Though the evil god sealed there was destroyed, the land remains unusable unless the abyssal corruption is removed.”

“Hm… I don’t know… but if you—” The elven girl suddenly stopped mid-sentence. Her expression shifted, her eyes glazing over as though something had caught her attention. After a brief pause, she spoke again, smiling faintly while staring into the air as if reading something.

“Sir Tonglu, I’m sorry, but we Chosen Ones cannot influence the actions of the elemental fairies. A few individuals may have earned their recognition, but those cases are rare exceptions.

The elemental fairies themselves are said to have been created by Her Grace, the Goddess, to balance the world’s mana, cleanse abyssal corruption, restore nature, and improve the environment. Simply put, they answer only to the divine will of the Goddess.

If you wish to seek their aid, I believe your only option is to speak with the Holy Saintess or Lady Zero once the festival ends. They can pray to the Goddess on your behalf and seek an oracle to determine whether She would grant your request.”

For reasons he could not explain, although the girl was smiling warmly as she spoke, Tonglu could not help but feel as though she were reading lines from a script.

“I understand. Thank you, Lady Salty Cat,” the dwarven warrior said, nodding in gratitude.

With that, he lifted his gaze once more to the sky, continuing to admire the performance of the elemental fairies.

The fairies’ display of magic was both magnificent and dreamlike. As time passed, the atmosphere within the venue grew increasingly fervent.

Looking around, the Chosen Ones appeared deeply enamored of the elemental fairies. As their numbers filled the sky, the entire plaza seemed to boil over with excitement. More Chosen Ones hurried to join, coming out of taverns or leaving the stalls where they had been idly wandering, until both the square and the surrounding streets were completely packed.

So many elves gathered in one place made Tonglu feel as though he were dreaming. The sheer scale and grandeur even gave him the illusion that he was attending a human festival.

—No, not even a human festival could compare to this.

If nothing else, merely maintaining order at such a scale would normally be a daunting task.

This was what surprised Tonglu the most.

During the Battle in the Sealed Lands, his impression of the elves had been that while they cooperated well in small groups, large gatherings tended to descend into disorder.

Yet what he now witnessed completely overturned his prior understanding.

Tens of thousands of elves had gathered in Florence.

Though the crowd seemed chaotic at first glance, a closer look revealed that not a single one was disrupting the order of the celebration.

Especially when the elemental fairies appeared.

In that instant, the deafening cheers gave Tonglu the illusion that the elves might at any moment soar into the skies themselves. Yet, in the end, not a single one acted impulsively.

Had there been a sufficient number of guards maintaining order, Tonglu would not have been so surprised. The truth, however, was that he could not find a single city guard present to enforce discipline.

These elves… were maintaining order entirely on their own.

The initiative and discipline they displayed stirred a sense of admiration in Tonglu.

“How remarkable…” he could not help but sigh.

Of course, Tonglu had no knowledge of something called system restraints, nor of a punishment known as quest penalties.

The elemental fairies’ performance lasted for twenty minutes.

As the display drew to a close, the radiant orbs of light gradually faded, and the fairies returned to their true forms. One after another, they fluttered their wings and came to rest around the plaza.

The flowing music gradually came to an end, and the square fell into silence.

Within a few breaths, the massive gathering of hundreds of thousands of elves became so quiet it was as though no one were there at all. Once again, Tonglu marveled at their discipline.

Naturally, he was also unaware of something else called server-wide system ‘mute’ feature.

At that moment, a young elven maiden in a sacred gown ascended the high platform.

She had golden hair and bright blue eyes, her beauty radiant, exuding a soft, divine presence.

At the same time, her image was also projected on the crystal screens—

It was Alice Galewind, the Holy Saintess of Life.

Tonglu immediately recognized her. He had not yet had the chance to meet this high-ranking cleric of the Church of Life in person, but he had already seen her portrait beforehand.

“My beloved kinsmen, honored guests from afar, welcome to Florence. Welcome to our Harvest Festival!”

Her voice, amplified by magical sound arrays, resounded across the city.

What followed was a heartfelt speech.

Accompanied by moving music, the Saintess recounted the thousand years of suffering endured by the elven people, as well as the countless achievements they had accomplished in just the past four years.

Meanwhile, the massive screens displayed vivid imagery, depicting scenes of events that had taken place during those four years.

There were moments of construction, of battle, of sorrow, and of joy.

From the expulsion of the goblins inhabiting the ruins, to the reclamation of the Elven Forest, to the defense against the orc invasions, and the thwarting of human conspiracies—

The gentle music echoed, cleansing the heart and drawing all who listened into its rhythm.

Watching these scenes unfold upon the crystal screens and hearing the Saintess’s words, Tonglu sighed softly to himself.

“These four years… from nothing to this much. It has not been easy for your people.”

He spoke quietly to Little Salty Cat beside him.

Then, curiosity sparking in his eyes, the dwarven warrior asked, “That crystal screen… it have been prepared by your guild, yes? But those moving images—how exactly did you record them?”

Yet no answer came.

Puzzled, Tonglu turned and saw the young elf girl staring blankly at the projection, her expression dazed as if to say:

“I have no idea either…”

Noticing his gaze, Little Salty Cat turned her head toward him.

She gave a helpless smile, pointed at her own mouth, shook her head, and shrugged with both hands.

Tonglu froze for a brief moment before realization dawned on him. He nodded lightly and said with a hint of apology,

“I see… this sacred moment indeed calls for silence. Do forgive me.”

Suppressing his curiosity, he too fell silent.

Little Salty Cat: “…”

Silence my foot!

What she had actually meant was that she had been muted by the system and literally could not reply!

The recorded images on the screen had nothing to do with their guild’s preparations. If anything, eighty percent of it was just cutscenes from the game spliced together.

Still… she had to admit, the way they edited it was surprisingly impressive.

She might as well take a screenshot while she was at it.

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