Why can't humans do it too?

Chapter Forty-Nine: Unexpected

'The essence?'

Su Er silently memorized this word he had never heard before, but then felt it wasn't enough, so he took out his pen and paper from his pocket and wrote it down.

"Hmm? Is Mr. Monkey writing something?" Xin Ke, who was lying next to Su Er, noticed his movements.

"No, it's nothing," without offering any explanation, Suer stuffed the paper and pen back into his pocket and asked instead, "Is this how the gods of the forest elves are? You must have seen your gods before, right? After all, what was your title again... Lord Flower Crown?"

His response was a disdainful snort from Xin Ke, the utter disrespect clearly conveyed to Su Er.

"Hmph, although they appear in different forms, they are all just boring and foolish gods," Xin Ke said through her nose, as if speaking a single word would be a waste of her life, completely unlike how she described her creator.

Silently turning his head, Suer stared wide-eyed at the forest elf next to him—was it really okay to describe his creator like that?

This is a living, real god, the god who created you... How did you become the Flower Crown Minister with such disrespect?

Are all the other elf species blind?

Your reaction makes those who, despite the absence of a God, conjure up an object of their own imagination to worship with fervent devotion feel utterly inadequate.

"So where does Mr. Monkey, who claims to know a lot of the gophers' language, plan to go now?" Unlike Suer, Xinke had no interest in the city built by the goblins and only glanced at it briefly.

Perhaps because they believed that no race would send just a few people to their base, the goblins' defenses were far smaller than Sur and Xin could have imagined. There were no guards stationed at fixed points, not even a single patrol. But that was understandable; perhaps that was the confidence and assurance that their lair was 10,000 meters underground.

Most importantly, their god is here, and that is the strongest protection.

Thanks to this mindset, Suer and Xinke, who were originally on high alert and ready to fight, were stunned for a moment when they found the submarine's hatch empty after it opened, and then quickly slipped away.

Although no soldiers were assigned to patrol or stand guard, goblins would still come to check when ships returned. Shortly after Sull and Hink hid under a pipe, they saw a gray ball of fur fall from the sky next to the submarine.

Yes, the gray furball—that's a goblin, at least in Sul's eyes. It left him speechless. What kind of underground gooey world scenario is this? Isn't it a little too cute?

Unable to ask the goblin beside them about their curiosity and questions, the two of them, led by Xin Ke, silently avoided all the goblins they encountered along the way until they arrived at this place where they could overlook half the city.

To be honest, the question Xin Ke raised at that moment left Su Er puzzled as well.

"Um, shall we take a look around first?" Suer tentatively suggested slowly, "to see the goblins' military equipment or other important places?"

Suer guessed that Xin Ke beside him probably wanted to gather some information about the enemies of the forest elves.

To be honest, the light golden-haired forest elf's reaction to his creator was really hard for him to understand, but if he really had no feelings for the forest elves, he probably wouldn't have come to the front lines to fight against the goblins, right?

Death is not a game.

"Hmm~, it's not impossible, is it?" Xin Ke did not deny Su Er's suggestion, and then pointed to a direction to the right of the two of them, "Let's go there, I sensed some residual magic unique to the forest elves in that direction, and I'm a little curious."

Suer naturally wouldn't object.

The two of them concealed themselves and crouched low as they moved through the goblin city. Although it had a strong stealth game feel to it, to be honest, it was a bit too easy.

The more stealthy Sull became, the clearer he felt that the goblins had never considered the possibility that an individual could infiltrate their city. To be honest, if someone really wanted to cause trouble here, the chances of them succeeding were far too great.

What a coincidence, right next to him is a guy with both ample motivation and sufficient strength—Sul glanced sideways at the forest elf beside him.

If it were just an ordinary forest elf soldier, it might not be able to cause enough damage, but this guy who calls himself a Flower Crown Lord and an Eightfold Sorcerer is a different story... To be honest, Suer really didn't expect that this forest elf from the Nielbaren family would have such a powerful background, especially after he pressed him to tell him what those two words meant.

The title of "Flower Crown Lord" is the highest-ranking sorcerer among all forest elves, a position second only to the gods. An "eightfold sorcerer" means one who can cast eight spells simultaneously. The forest elves are stratified by the number of spells they can cast at the same time. Currently, only Xin Ke among all forest elves can cast eight spells simultaneously.

This proud and beautiful forest elf could be said to stand at the very pinnacle of the entire race, coldly looking down on everyone below her.

It's a pity I'm going to die here.

Suer grinned silently.

"Mr. Monkey's malice needs to be better concealed. It would be too naive to be discovered like this," Xinke said without turning her head as she walked ahead of Suer, without even stopping her steps. "Well, it's not entirely incomprehensible. After all, he's just a monkey. It's really too difficult for him to learn such advanced thinking."

"There's no other way. After all, it's too difficult to hide anything from a race like yours that can directly observe elves and even changes in flesh and blood... Speaking of which, could you please tell this humble monkey what elves in the air look like? Also, what does it feel like to cast magic?"

He was already quite adept at dealing with the racial attacks of a certain forest elf. Suer found that he adapted very quickly. He even asked questions that he had been curious about for a long time but had never been able to get answers to, as if he were chatting with a friend.

Compared to real harm, the sting of words cannot even pierce the surface.

"...I never expected to feel like I'm being asked questions by a junior here. Well then, let me, the most talented person in the history of the White Tree, kindly give this curious Mr. Monkey a little lesson," Xin Ke said casually as she led Su Er through the twists and turns between the pipes and iron walls.

Chapter 50 Xin Ke's Little Classroom

"First, let's confirm how much Mr. Monkey actually knows about elves?"

"Not many. From the records, it seems that elves are everywhere on this planet, very small, and are a necessary element for casting magic... Is our information wrong?" Suer thought for a moment before answering.

“That’s right~” Xin Ke said lightly, “So what about the fifteen races?”

"I know that too. From first to last, they are: Gods, Fantasy, Elves, Dragons, Giants, Winged Elves, Forest Elves, Goblins, Fairies, Mechs, Demons, Vampires, Moonlit Singers, Beastmen, and Seafolk..."

And then there are us—the human race.

He swallowed his last words, but even though humanity had never gained the recognition of any race, Sull still firmly believed in his heart.

It's not fifteen races, but sixteen.

We can also call it civilization.

Incidentally, the ranking of races is not determined by combat power, but by their affinity for the Elf Corridor, specifically their magical affinity.

Those who possess a circuit within their body that connects to the elven corridors of the outside world can use magic, and this is precisely the kind of circuit that humans lack.

"So, could the third-ranked elf species be related to the ubiquitous elves on the planet?" Noticing Xin Ke's intention in mentioning the fifteen races, Su Er asked curiously, "I thought they would be those... energy creatures that gather in clumps?"

Suer struggled to find the right words.

"That's too superficial," Xin Ke said with unusual seriousness when discussing academic topics. "Do you know the difference between organisms and life?"

'Even Mr. Monkey isn't calling out anymore...' he thought to himself, while respectfully saying, 'Please speak.'

"That's a good attitude, isn't it?" Xin Ke teased Su Er as she turned the steel gate in front of her. "Among all races, those below the seventh rank are living beings, and those above the seventh rank are life."

Noticing Suer's thoughtful expression, Xin Ke, who had turned halfway around, curled the corners of her lips under her hood. "That's right, it starts with the Forest Elves—races below them, including the Forest Elves, possess physical bodies and reproduce through conventional means, so they are defined as living beings. But those races above the Forest Elves directly possess energy or a certain concept that represents will, so they are called life. In a sense, it can be considered a watershed moment when common sense no longer applies."

“For those guys, they are irrefutable proof that the impossible is possible… so the term ‘energy creature’ that you mentioned can be applied to all races ranked above the Forest Elves,” Xin Ke said, suddenly stopping in her tracks. “Like those Skywing races, although they have a respectable ugly appearance, their bodies can be said to be formed from a high concentration of elven energy… you could even call them twisted monsters~~”

The wise one didn't respond. Although Suer didn't know exactly what had happened in the past, he had already figured it out—Miss Nielbaren definitely had a grudge against the Skywing race.

But judging from this young lady of the Nielbaren family's personality, it wouldn't be unreasonable for her to make enemies with anyone, right? After all, she—Pfft!!!

The muttering in his mind was abruptly interrupted by a fatal punch. Su Er's eyes widened, and he clutched his stomach as he knelt on the ground, experiencing firsthand what it meant to see stars. His vision was still blurry, and everything in his sight was flashing back and forth.

The culprit has been found; it is the forest elf with long, light golden hair who is walking in front. He hasn't even retracted the small, white fist that is sticking out from his dark gray robe as evidence of the crime.

"Didn't I already tell you, Mr. Monkey? You need to hide your malice properly~~~"

From this angle, Suer could clearly see Miss Nielbaren's smiling, sunny expression. Just by looking at that lovely smiling face, no one could imagine what kind of atrocity this guy had just committed, right? Suer nodded seriously and solemnly affirmed.

"You're right!"

So the conversation continued.

"So to be precise, all the elves scattered across the entire planet are elves, and there are currently no independent elf species with intelligence," Xin Ke gave an unexpected answer. "In the beginning, the divine species flowed out from the Elf Corridor and were born. They are the origin of all things, the direction of all things, and even the essence of various races was created from the Elf Corridor... Ah~ I've gone a bit off-topic. Anyway, elves are very small in size~, and their bodies shimmer with blue and white light."

"Huff...huff..." Sul asked, panting heavily, "And what about magic?"

Even without using magic, the Forest Elves' physical abilities far surpassed those of Sul. At the very least, climbing up and down various pipes and steel walls didn't make Xinke sweat much, and she didn't even have trouble breathing. On the contrary, Sul was exhausted.

"Ah~, so this is what you care about most?" Xin Ke touched her chin and continued, "It's like an extension of your own limbs. You can clearly feel something being released... I find it hard to describe this feeling clearly. You can't understand this flow of spirits unless you experience it yourself."

"Why would Mr. Monkey care about this? Or is using magic every monkey's dream? Unfortunately, Mr. Monkey's magical aptitude is just too poor. It's impossible for him to not even be able to see magic... Mr. Monkey? Mr. Monkey?!"

To be honest, Su Er completely ignored the usual sarcastic remarks that followed. He excitedly grasped the key point in the first half of Xin Ke's sentence—this was the feeling! He knew this feeling!!

Although there are still some differences, when facing Asano Shirasu, Suer did feel as if his soul and body were extending.

"Miss Nielbaren!" Before Xinke could get angry because the monkey hadn't responded to her rare well-intentioned science lesson, Suer jumped up, his eyes practically sparkling if they could light up. "Is there such a thing as casting magic without using elves?!"

To be honest, his reaction was a bit too obvious and too excited, but he really couldn't control himself.

Chapter Fifty-One: Blood of the Forest Spirit

As soon as he blurted it out, Suer realized his mistake and quickly tried to salvage the situation, asking, "Even in cases where the number of elves is extremely low, can magic still be cast?"

Unfortunately, it's no longer effective.

She wasn't the type with a bad memory; both her thinking speed and associative ability were highly developed. Xin Ke immediately caught Sul's clumsy attempt to cover it up. The confusion caused by the magic that had failed a few days ago still lingered in her mind.

"Did Mr. Monkey ever cast a spell?" she asked curiously. Even Xin Ke herself didn't realize how much more excited she became when discussing academic topics. "When? In what form? This is a major evolution for beasts! I knew the spell's failure before wasn't my fault… Damn it, why am I in a place like this? If only I could go back to my workshop…"

Muttering to himself, the elf with light golden hair got so excited at the end that he even subconsciously bit the tip of his thumb. Although it looked very cute, Suer didn't like it at all—the gaze that swept over his body from time to time was like beams of light cutting through every inch of his muscles.

"Well, if I could cast magic, would I need to run for my life like this? It's completely impossible," Suer said with a stiff smile. To be honest, it was questionable what Asano Shirasu said before he died: that no elven activity had been detected. The elven aptitude of the orc race was extremely poor, not much better than that of humans. What if he was wrong?

"..." Without affirmation or denial, Xin Ke simply looked Su Er up and down with suspicion. "It seems to make some sense. So what exactly caused Mr. Monkey to choose to leave his tribe? Humans like Mr. Monkey should be quite rare even in your tribe, right?"

"...It's just because of some unavoidable reason," unable to answer, Suer could only mumble vaguely, "Let's not talk about this anymore, are we almost there?"

"Hmm~, it seems you want to keep it a secret? But it doesn't matter, you'll expose everything sooner or later, including why that magic didn't work on you before—I'll find the answer myself." Without any intention of hiding her thoughts, Xin Ke turned her head and continued walking forward. "As for the answer to Mr. Monkey's question before, you can't cast magic without the help of spirits~. You can cast magic by directly manipulating spirits, or you can cast magic by destroying spirits, but it's impossible to cast magic by bypassing spirits. That's an ironclad rule. Although Mr. Monkey has some spirits left in his body from his breathing and other behaviors, the number is too small. Theoretically speaking, it's completely insufficient to cast any kind of magic. Even if he could cast it, the power would be pitifully small."

'So, magical battles are simply battles involving the manipulation of numbers of spirits?' Suer pondered, he roughly understood.

"Then what about the divine race? Do they also need to use elves to cast spells?" Suer asked sharply.

“Don’t use the shallow eyes of a monkey to speculate about the divine race. They are magic themselves, so why would they need to go through the extra step of casting magic? That’s why, among the fifteen races, the forest elves are the most skilled in magic… It seems we’ve arrived,” Xin Ke said, opening the iron gate in front of her. Her voice suddenly lowered.

Following closely behind her, Suer noticed the forest elf's sudden change in mood and quickly quickened his pace to go around to the other side to peek out—what appeared before him was a mountain of corpses.

The two were currently in what appeared to be a crematorium-like building, with emerald green flames burning and spewing out from the opening of the huge furnace, like an insatiable maw devouring the corpses that were sent inside. Hiding at the highest point of the three-story corridor, Suer and Xinke took in this cruel scene in its entirety.