Chapter 012: The Three Elders of the Dwarves

Seeing the four elders approaching, Du Fan and the others were surprised at that moment. Though these four elders had extremely aged faces, their heights of less than one meter were even shorter than Bashaa’s by a head! Such a height was completely that of a child—about three or four years old. Strangely enough, these extremely short people had adult expressions on their faces. What was even more peculiar was that they didn’t seem to take steps at all; instead, they moved straight toward the group.

“Greetings, four elders,” Bashaa stepped forward first and asked the four elders in front of him, “May I ask if one of you is an elder of the dwarves? I am the leader of the dwarf race.”

“You are the leader of the dwarf race?” The elder standing at the front stepped forward and said excitedly, “So the dwarves are still alive! I knew the Creator wouldn’t be so unfair. By the way, what’s your name?”

“My name isLock·Bashaa, and I am the new leader of the dwarf race,” Bashaa said, looking kindly at the elders of the dwarf race. “Then what’s your name?”

“Dewey Lumba,” Lumba replied after stating his own name, then introduced the three others behind him to Bashaa, “This is the First Elder, Diluo Jones. This is the Second Elder, Bada Or. This is the Third Elder, Kilo Dubai.”

“Greetings, elders,” hearing Lumba’s introduction, Bashaa also introduced Du Fan and the others, “This is Du Fan, the king who rules the south and also my younger brother. This is Moses, a nature elf. This is Du Fan’s wife, Naixiu, who is the queen of the nature elves. This is Lan Xin’er, the princess of the Earth Tiger clan. And finally, this is Rob, a powerful warrior from the Dark Demon Tiger clan.”

“Hmm,” as soon as Bashaa finished speaking, Lumba smiled kindly at Du Fan and the others, patted Bashaa’s shoulder, and said, “Let’s go inside. Our dwarven underground plaza is quite large.”

Hearing Lumba’s words, Du Fan and the others bowed their heads and followed Lumba into the dwarven underground plaza.

The plaza was not only extremely spacious but also had mechanical robots over two meters tall standing on both sides. They held the same magic cannons that the dwarves had used to welcome Du Fan and the others earlier. Moreover, every magic robe contained the magic core of a level-9 magical beast.

“Chieftain Lumba.” At this moment, Basha looked at the robots beside him with some confusion and asked curiously, “Are these robots? There are records of them in our two clans’ histories, but the magic cores inside these magic robes are all of level nine—this seems a bit extravagant.”
“No, no, no.” Hearing Basha’s words, Lumba smiled and began to explain, “Although the Creator banished our dwarf clan to the forbidden lands, these magic cores are remnants from our time on the surface. They’re not enough to create such magic cannons. Though these are small magic cannons, they’ve been improved by our dwarf clan. With the energy from level nine magic cores, they’re definitely top-tier combined forbidden spells.”
“Combined forbidden spells?”
Hearing Lumba’s words, everyone immediately broke into a light sweat. The energy of a single forbidden spell was already beyond what an army could easily handle, let alone combined forbidden spells—their power was unimaginable. If such magic cannons came into existence, the entire continent might be destroyed.
“Chieftain Lumba, I think a combined forbidden spell must require more than just one level nine magic core,” Basha said boldly, ignoring the presence of the dwarf clan’s chieftain and elders.
These robots must be the dwarves’ new products. Though it’s unclear how long they’ve been around, they’re definitely the finest on the continent. But these magic cannons are far too extravagant for us warriors. Even if we pooled all the wealth of the continent, it would still be insufficient! Those level nine magic cores are probably priceless. Moreover, on the continent, when level nine magical beasts appear, human warriors would first try to tame them as their own magical beasts, never thinking of killing them to extract their cores for magic cannons!
“Clap, clap, clap.”
Hearing Basha’s words, Lumba clapped his dry palms in satisfaction and said appreciatively, “Chieftain Basha, you’re right. Still, I think it’s sufficient for a single war. If we use these armored men as cavalry under our dwarf clan’s control, it would be far better than the Holy Church on the continent. But does the Holy Church still exist?”

“Well…” Basha scratched the back of his head awkwardly and spoke in a low voice, “The Holy Church not only still exists but also allies with human empires to carry out despicable acts.”
“Hmph,” said Chief Lumba disdainfully at that moment. “During the great war, if it weren’t for the Creator banishing us to the underground world, I don’t think those empires would have gotten away with anything. But Basha, I’ve been feeling a strong sense of hostility on the surface lately. Could it be that war has broken out?”
“Yes,” Basha sighed helplessly and began to tell Chief Lumba about Du Fan’s experiences, as well as the situation on the continent.
Upon hearing Basha’s words, Chief Lumba looked at Du Fan with some admiration. After all, not many people dared to confront an empire with their own military strength, let alone one backed by the Church. Even Lumba had to acknowledge Du Fan’s prowess.
“Young man,” said Lumba to Du Fan, “the continent is even more chaotic now than before. The Laney Empire and the Gavin Empire are no easy opponents. On top of that, there are remnants of the Azalea Empire in the north. Strictly speaking, that Count Wade mentioned by Basha isn’t a good guy either—rumor has it he’s even the leader of the underground world. Your situation doesn’t seem easy at all.”
“Please forgive me, elder,” Du Fan replied with a forced smile. Without any preparation, he went straight to the point and asked, “I was wondering if Chief Lumba has any device that can lead us out of the underground world. Not just us a few people—I also need to take an entire race with me.”
“A race?” Hearing this, Lumba exclaimed in shock. He looked at Du Fan and said, “The races in the underground world aren’t like those of us who live on the continent. They’re not honest people. If they turn on you, you’re done for.”
“No, no,” Du Fan quickly explained to Lumba. “This race actually dates back even further than your era. It’s the Earth Dragon clan. Among dragons, surely no one is more trustworthy than them?”
At that moment, Du Fan couldn’t help but wipe the cold sweat from his forehead. Although the Earth Dragon clan and he were nominally allied, there was no real alliance between them. If they really turned against him, he would have no choice but to accept his fate.

“Oh.” Hearing Du Fan’s words, Lumba finally understood and nodded, saying, “You’re talking about that Earth Tiger tribe outside, right? That race isn’t bad. They’ve been lurking in the underground world for so many years, allowing the Dark Elves and Spiders to run amok there without showing any reaction. But even if we could leave now, they probably wouldn’t agree to your request.”
“Why?” Du Fan asked curiously upon hearing Lumba’s words.
“Just because,” Lumba replied, looking at Du Fan. “It’s not just me who rules the Dwarves. You should also look at those three old bastards behind me. If they disagree, it’s useless no matter how much you argue with me. But right now, the Dwarves need to elect a regent. If you can become the regent of the Dwarves, then you don’t even need to ask me—just order the creation of machines, and there should be no problem.”
“Chieftain, no,” the three elders behind Lumba—Or, Dubai, and Jones—objected at once. Dubai said to Lumba, “Chieftain, this kid is human. Have you forgotten why our Dwarves were banished to the underground world? Isn’t it all because of that terrifying human race?”
“Or, shut up,” Lumba snapped, turning around and slapping Or hard in the face. He added coldly, “Do you still consider me the chieftain of the Dwarves? If not, leave now. Don’t think that without you three old fools, our Dwarves can’t survive.”
“Fine, you’re the chieftain,” Or said, his eyes filled with murderous intent. With a cold snort, he led the two others toward the exit.
“So satisfying!” Lumba said, looking at his slightly red palms from the forceful slap. “If I weren’t old now, back when I was young, I would have slapped him over a thousand times.”
“Chieftain Lumba,” Du Fan said, frowning as he looked at him, in a low voice, “It seems those three elders—Or, Dubai, and Jones—are not good people either. I don’t understand why you use them as elders. Aren’t you afraid their actions will undermine your authority?”

“Du Fan.” At this moment, Basha called out to Du Fan beside him, explaining with a laugh, “Or, Dubai, Jones—these three surnames have existed among the dwarves and dwarves since ancient times. Although they can’t become clan leaders, they can forever hold the position of elders. As for the clan leaders, they can be ignored at will whenever those elders feel like it. I think they must hate you to death by now.”
“Young man, don’t be afraid,” said Lumba with a smile to Du Fan. “The position of regent among the dwarves has always been open to all races, and the regent holds even more power than the clan leader. Moreover, whatever the clan leader wants to do must be approved by the regent. That’s why those three old guys act as regents to suppress me. But then again, even ordinary dwarves in the clan are extremely afraid of those three old guys. I think you’d better be careful too. I can’t guarantee they won’t come after you with magic cannons at night.”
Hearing Lumba’s words, Du Fan helplessly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He hadn’t expected that not only were the dwarves irritable, but the dwarves were just as fierce. As the saying goes, geniuses and madmen are just one step apart. Du Fan could understand this—how could anyone create something extraordinary without a good temper?
“Heina!” Lumba called out, watching as a young dwarf girl rushed over from the intersection. Only then did he speak with relief, “Take these guests to the dwarf caves to stay. But it’s best to find a place far away from those three old guys.”