Becoming a god starts with enhancing fire arrows.

Race: Elf

Age: 116

[Class: Warrior]

[Rating: Elite]

[Description: An elf with powerful combat talent is currently in a coma.]

It really is an elf.

Rhodes suppressed his surprise.

This was the first time he had seen an elf in a work outside of film, television, or animation.

The visual impact of her succubus-like beauty was much greater than he had imagined.

He looked at Harvey: "I remember the elven territory is quite far from here, isn't it?"

Elves are social creatures, and unless something unexpected happens, they rarely appear as solitary elves.

Harvey continued, "The elves have always lived in the forests of the eastern part of the continent of Hize, while we live in the south."

"Logically speaking, if it weren't for teleportation magic, there wouldn't be any elves here at all."

Could she also be an elven noble who ran away from home to become an adventurer?

Rhodes thought to himself with amusement.

As the two were discussing, Clint threw the charred corpse of the witch on the ground.

The rotting tongue was not spared in the explosion, but fortunately the body was still relatively intact, and it could be used to communicate with the dead.

Without a word, Rhodes nodded to Harvey, gripped his staff, and began to summon spirits.

He carefully considered his words before asking his first question:

"What does the petrification disease in Phil have to do with you?"

"It's alright...it's...the mastermind..."

It's okay?

It seems that the investigation into petrification disease must start from the "black hand".

Harvey and Rhodes both fell silent.

"Why don't we ask about its dealings with 'Black Hand'?" Harvey suggested.

Rhodes nodded and continued to ask:

"What kind of deals did you make with 'the Black Hand'?"

"It's all about human trafficking... I use my alchemical knowledge... to exchange for humans..."

Exchange alchemical knowledge?

When alchemy is mentioned, one person immediately comes to mind for Rhodes.

Nathan, the first alchemist in Phil Town.

Should we just ask it if it knows Nathan?

wrong.

Even if Nathan had any dealings with it, it must have been through the "Black Hand" organization acting as an intermediary; they probably didn't even know each other in reality.

He immediately asked the third question:

"What kind of alchemical knowledge?"

"It's... about... potion making..."

The corpse of the Rotting Tongue Hagra was brought to rest.

Harvey sighed. He had gone to great lengths to find clues about the petrification disease, eventually reaching the Corrupted Tongue. He never expected that even after risking his life, the clues would still be lost.

Rhodes was somewhat unwilling, but overall he wasn't sad.

The truth behind petrification disease must be far-reaching and cannot be uncovered overnight.

This campaign to eliminate the corrupt tongues was not without its gains.

Not only did it rid the people of a scourge, but this witch also possessed a staggering 500 points of life essence.

Does this include everything Harvey and his team faced outside?

[Next enhancement requires 560/350 Life Essence]

Strengthen it.

Please select a skill enhancement direction.

[Fire Arrow - Silent Explosion (Rare): The Fire Arrow explodes silently]

[Firebolt - Reduced Mana Cost (Normal): Casting Firebolt will reduce the amount of mana required.]

[Flame Arrow - Random Legendary Enhancement: Randomly consumes ? Life Essence, with a ?% chance to obtain a legendary enhancement]

[Next enhancement requires 210/400 Life Essence]

There is indeed a shortage of mana right now.

You can only use Fire Arrow five times per battle without drinking mana potions.

Moreover, there's the stealth step we need to use.

The basic [reduced mana cost] enhancement is too weak.

I've never had a legendary talent before.

But the last two? They really make me a little unsure.

Forget it, why bother agonizing over it?

With only 210 Life Essence left, not even enough for one enhancement, I might as well take a gamble.

All in!

Confucius once said: "All-in poker is a hymn to courage and wisdom."

Rhodes resolutely chose the third card.

[Current Life Essence: 200]

[Current Life Essence: 190]

......

Ok?

Rhodes paused for a moment.

I thought the results would be given out immediately, but it turns out they deducted the amount gradually.

The small print on the front panel was jumping around very fast.

In the blink of an eye, it went from a three-digit number to a two-digit number.

[Current Life Essence: 90]

[Current Life Essence: 80]

[Current Life Essence: 70]

......

As the life essence gradually decreased, no notification of successful enhancement was received.

Rhodes's expression grew increasingly grim.

No way...

[Current Life Essence: 20]

[Current Life Essence: 10]

[Current Life Essence: 0]

!

He watched helplessly as his life essence, which he had accumulated for a long time, dropped from 210 to 0.

I stared at the panel and took a deep breath.

Is it because I didn't pray this time?

Forget it.

Try to take it easy.

The total loss was only 210 points, which is within an acceptable range.

What goes around comes around.

Rhodes tried to calm himself down.

Unexpectedly, the small print in front of me continued to jump.

[Current Life Essence -10]

[Current Life Essence -20]

[Current Life Essence -30]

......

I go?

What does this mean?

Can emotions really drop to negative numbers?

Just as I was lost in thought...

The number in front of me has jumped to three digits.

[Current Life Essence -250]

[Current Life Essence -260]

......

Don't...

forget it.

I'm not going to upgrade it anymore.

Stop immediately.

Rhodes started to panic.

Although there are already considerable sunk costs involved, this method of deduction seems to have no upper limit.

What if the life essence becomes negative 10,000 by then?

The next enhancement is estimated to be in 10 or 20 years.

He originally gained strength by killing alien races, and after becoming stronger, he killed even more powerful alien races, creating a virtuous cycle that made him increasingly powerful.

Once the essence of life is severely depleted, the cycle is disrupted.

Given the original owner's limited talent, he could only keep killing alien races of his current level to pay off his debts little by little.

Rhodes stared wide-eyed as he scanned the panel, but unfortunately there was no stop button.

dying.

[Current Life Essence -330]

[Current Life Essence -340]

[Legendary enhancement obtained]

A sudden turn of events?!

Rhodes, who was already depressed, suddenly saw a glimmer of hope.

[Flame Arrow - No Cost (Legendary): Flame Arrow requires no cost to cast.]

Oh.

That would be invincible.

From now on, please call me the human-shaped fire arrow launcher, the maker of five-minute time bombs, the king of crazy explosions, and the ancient Greek god of magic...

In an instant, the gloom before my eyes seemed to vanish, and the future appeared bright.

If I had this skill when facing a witch, why would I waste my breath talking to her?

Why not just unleash an endless barrage of fire arrows?

Next up is a one-hour fireworks show brought to you by Rhodes.

......

Most of the dwelling of the Rot Tongue Hagra has been burned down.

After a quick search, the group decided to head back.

It was already dusk when we got back to the hotel.

Rhodes struggled to place the golden-haired elf on the sofa, panting heavily, and had Paril remove the elf's heavy armor.

The heavy armor fell down.

It revealed a military uniform made of multiple layers of sturdy, thick linen.

This armor is several centimeters thick, and its main function is to absorb and disperse impacts from the outside of the armor, protecting the bones and internal organs.

Paril stared blankly at the elf's upper body.

Rhodes followed the little priest's gaze.

I was filled with awe and respect.

Silently sighing to myself:

She is truly a remarkable woman who embraces all things, possesses a broad mind, and whose small branches bear abundant fruit; who can be seen as a mountain range from any angle.

Oh no, I mean elves.

The flowers outside the window are in full bloom, their stamens hidden deep within, their petals full and round, swaying gracefully heavily on the branches.