Chapter 149: Evolution of the Tree of Life

The so-called natural sacred objects are magical plants with a strong natural aura, among which the Elves’ Mother Tree, the Tree of Life, is the finest existing natural sacred object in the world.
This unknown natural sacred object evokes such a strong reaction in the Elves—it surely isn’t an ordinary magical plant.
When the Lord returned, the people of Dalaran and officials from all levels gathered in front of the Lord’s residence to welcome him.
After some conversation, Donald led everyone inside the Lord’s residence. He first arranged for the Elves to rest in the guest rooms at the back of the residence. Then, aside from Uther, who was still overseeing the construction of the territory and the mining of blue-veined magic gold in the Orc Valley, three Silver Mages were helping to smelt magic gold in the blacksmithy. Several officials in charge of various regions also came to report on the progress of the territory during his absence.
“You all have done very well during my month-long absence, especially William. You’ve had to oversee various matters in the territory, manage resources, and coordinate between different departments. In a few days, you’ll all receive a surprise as a reward!”
Due to other important matters, Donald only listened briefly to the reports and encouraged his subordinates.
He then introduced Augusta’s background and appointed her on the spot: “From now on, Augusta will be the head of commerce in Dalaran. Although she’s taking on such an important role right away, some may complain. It depends on her performance. Of course, if she fails, I won’t show mercy to the Queen either. Additionally, Jesse will continue to oversee finances and also handle interactions with foreign nobles.”
“As you command, Lord!”
Seeing that both the newly appointed head of commerce and the finance officer with changed responsibilities accepted their roles with great enthusiasm, Donald ordered the others to leave, keeping only William, Clinton, and the three family mages.
“I’ve brought new guests to the territory this time. If nothing goes wrong, they’ll be settled in the Moonlight Forest. However, their identities are sensitive, so William, try to ask the people not to approach the western part of the Moonlight Forest.” Though his subordinates were curious about the guests’ identities, they stayed respectful. Since Donald didn’t mention it, they only guessed and didn’t ask.

Donald continued, “Kelsas will be in charge of the specifics. All that needs to be arranged in the territory is some supplies for daily life. As for the Adventurers’ Guild, Clinton and the three mages should also pay attention to ensure those adventurers don’t disturb our guests!” This was a decision made after careful consideration by Donald. The Twilight Forest had a relatively large population because its southern end was close to Stonehold, while to the north, there were several logging camps in Graywood Village, and civilian hunters would occasionally enter to hunt beasts for their families. He had other plans for this area as well, so the best place to settle the elves was undoubtedly Moonwood.

The dangerous magical beasts in Moonwood had long been eliminated by the hunting teams and adventurers in the territory. Even if a few remained, the elves’ strength would not be affected by them. Moreover, the Tree of Life was there, which might encourage the elves to decide to settle in Dalaran and thrive there.

After dealing with matters related to the territory, Donald and Kelsas went to the lord’s manor, where they met Elder Ilyas. Donald then explained the purpose of his visit. Elder Ilyas was delighted upon hearing the news and immediately gathered all the elves in the backyard to await Donald’s arrangements.

When Donald proposed that his territory welcomed elf friends to settle there and that a vast forest area had already been designated for them, all the elves were very happy. Their homeland, where they had lived for thousands of years, had been destroyed, leaving them rootless, so they didn’t consider other options and unanimously decided to stay in this territory for now.

Thus, Donald led all the elves to Moonwood. A group of cloaked figures leaving the lord’s manor for the outskirts of town naturally attracted a lot of attention. However, with the elves’ speed, especially in a forest-like terrain, they quickly reached the depths of Moonwood. A few curious adventurers followed from the town but were soon left behind once they entered the forest.

Along the way, they encountered the Ancient Guardians assigned by Donald to protect the territory’s safety. Sensing their different life force from that of ordinary trees, Elder Ilyas exclaimed in surprise, “Are these… ancient treefolk?” Donald nodded with a smile. “These are the Ancient Guardians I’ve set up in the territory. They are the lowest rank of treefolk. Though their strength and wisdom aren’t high, their vitality is very strong! Stand up and greet our elf friends!” At Donald’s command, the Ancient Guardians immediately transformed into treefolk forms and stood up from where they were rooted.

Having lived for over five hundred years, Ilya, who was considered an elder among ordinary elves, had never seen a true tree person. He had only heard from his elders that a few tree people still existed in the forest elf tribes and the sacred lands of the Elf Island. If Ilya was like this, then there’s no need to mention other elves. When the group arrived at the sacred place for transformation, all the elves were utterly astonished and overjoyed upon seeing the giant Tree of Life with its broad crown. Without any orders, all the elves, including the lone elder Ilya, rushed forward in awe and bowed before the Tree of Life with the utmost reverence. Donald noticed that the natural energy within all the elves who approached the Tree of Life became even more vibrant, as if all previous weakness and gloom had vanished. This change was clearly beyond Donald’s expectations. He went up to Elder Ilya and said, “This is a seedling of the Tree of Life. I’ve nurtured it since I was young, and it has formed a symbiotic contract with me. I didn’t mention it before because I feared you wouldn’t believe me. After all, I also obtained this seed of the Tree of Life by chance!” Ilya said excitedly, “Lord, I never expected you to have a Tree of Life. With this tree, our tribe can have several more newborns within a decade, and in a hundred years, we’ll be at least three times stronger!” This abandoned elf tribe hadn’t seen what a Tree of Life looked like in over a thousand years. Now that they had discovered its existence in human territory, they were naturally overjoyed. Donald asked curiously, “Oh? Does the Tree of Life have such effects?” Elves were notoriously low in fertility. Judging from the development of their tribe over thousands of years, their current size gave a clear indication of this.

Ilya said solemnly, “This is the greatest secret of our elves. However, since Lord Lord is half of our kind, it’s fine for him to know!” “Although elves are similar to humans and can reproduce on their own, without the nourishing aura of the World Tree, our fertility will greatly decline. Moreover, the physique and talents of our offspring will gradually diminish. After a few generations, we will lose the favor of nature and become inferior elves. After yet more generations, both our lifespan and strength will drop to an extremely low level, even inferior to some healthy humans.” “But as long as we live near the World Tree, our reproduction rate increases tenfold, and the talents of newborns are enhanced, making it easier for them to become powerful professionals. Over time, even descendants with the bloodline of high elves like Lord Kelthas may emerge!” Donald understood—this might be what’s known as atavism. With the help of the World Tree’s power, it’s not impossible for ordinary elves to regain some of their ancient high elf traits.

“I see! I wonder how much help this unfinished World Tree is to you!” “It’s already enough, Lord Lord. Although this mother tree is far from being fully grown, we have ways to speed up its growth! Just by taking in us escaped elves, you’ve already done a great deal. Moreover, as a covenanter of the World Tree and a guardian of nature, we should repay you in some way!”

After discussing it briefly with the other adult elves, Ilya made a decision and solemnly took out a flat wooden box from his arms.

The wooden box seemed to have been cherished by its owner for many years. The surface of the wood had turned jade-like, shining with an amber glow. Clearly, just the box itself was already an extraordinary treasure. Donald was very curious about what was inside.

Two adult elves stepped forward and held the box with both hands. Ilya opened the lid solemnly, and a fresh and strong natural aura was immediately released. The plants within a hundred feet seemed to come to life as they swayed. All the elves, including Donald and Kelthas, felt their bodies and souls nourished by this aura, as a faint yet strong vitality blossomed within them.

“What is this?”
Seeing only a palm-sized green leaf inside the box, seemingly carved from jade, Donald exclaimed in shock.

“This was a leaf taken from our Mother Tree before our tribe was forced to migrate. It’s a pity our Mother Tree was destroyed by the invading Abyssal Demons; otherwise, our Druid tribe wouldn’t have declined to such a state!” Ilya said with a hint of sadness.

You see, nowadays, there are only one Life Tree each on the Elven Isles overseas and among the Southern Forest Elven tribe—the two remaining Life Trees, held by the Elven Court and several major tribes. All that our Druid tribe has left are just a few leaves from the original Life Tree. It was with these leaves that our tribe managed to survive for thousands of years. Now, only the last leaf remains. Even without orc invasions, our tribe couldn’t last much longer. Sooner or later, we would have to abandon our tribe, migrate to the Southern Forest Elven tribe, or submit to the rule of the Court to continue our lineage.

This is our tribe’s sacred relic. Without the support of a Life Tree, this small tribe has managed to preserve its heritage solely thanks to this ancient leaf from the Life Tree.

Donald never expected that this item would actually be a leaf from the World Tree, the ancestral Life Tree of the elves in this world. When the box was opened and the leaf appeared, the Life Tree instantly transformed into a tree-man form, swaying its branches as if waving, sending a longing message to Donald.

Donald already somewhat understood what Ilya meant, but he still asked, “Elder Ilya, why did you bring out this leaf…?”

Ilya nodded and said, “That’s right! As descendants of the World Tree, the Mother Trees can transfer power to each other without harm. A Mother Tree nearing the end of its life can condense its fundamental power into a seed to continue life, or it can transfer its power to other Mother Trees to strengthen and evolve them!”

“Although the energy contained in this leaf isn’t much, it’s enough to save this young Mother Tree hundreds of years of growth time and grant it some of the abilities of an adult Mother Tree!”

Upon hearing this, Donald was overjoyed. If the Life Tree could accelerate its growth, it would be of great benefit to him. At the very least, the range of the natural barrier would expand significantly. With the increase in the size of his territory, the natural barrier that once covered the entire Darknight Manor could now only encompass the Manor, Dusk Town, and part of the Moonlight Forest. The rest of his territory could only benefit from the natural aura, making it slightly warmer than other noble territories, but without the powerful effects within the barrier.