The elf race had a glorious and illustrious history. They once ruled the entire continent and many extraplanar spaces, until several rifts opened between the Abyss and the primary material world. Demon Lords led their subordinates in a cataclysmic descent, bringing slaughter and destruction.
In that war, the Elf Royal Court ultimately repelled the demonic host and sealed the passages, but the elves suffered devastating casualties, their numbers dwindling sharply. Combined with their chronic difficulty in reproducing, they never recovered, gradually being supplanted by other races and retreating to their "Natural Abodes" centered around ancient elf trees — one of which was Strup Forest, roughly one-third the size of the Holm Kingdom.
Over the long ages, the other forests containing elf trees were destroyed one by one, occupied, and slowly absorbed into human society. Only Strup Forest, home to the Royal Court, maintained its relatively transcendent status thanks to its deep heritage and the presence of the Elf King Tree. It remained a holy land in the hearts of Sun Elves, Moon Elves, Wood Elves, Sea Elves, and other elf subtypes.
According to the Continental Magic Parliament's records, over a hundred thousand elves currently reside in Strup Forest. Their influence extends far into the Boundless Ocean, where they jointly rule vast stretches of sea with the Sea Elf tribes — not enough to expand, but more than enough to protect themselves.
"The Elf Royal Court has six Legends. The most powerful is Empress Aglaia, who has half-fused with the Elf King Tree. Her strength has reached the peak of the Legend tier, and she excels in various nature spells and demon-breaking arrows."
Upon hearing that Lucian had volunteered to go, Douglas briefly introduced the Legend-level situation of the Elf Royal Court. "Of the remaining five Legends, three are Druids, including Grand Druid Malfurion, who previously visited the Parliament — third-tier Legend. Those three, along with two non-elf Legend Druids, together form the 'Druid Elder Council,' which coordinates the relationship between non-elf Druids and the elves."
"So there are eight Legends in Strup Forest?" Lucian had only superficial knowledge of the elves and Druids.
Brook rested both hands on his chin and supplemented Douglas's explanation: "That's right. The remaining two are elf Epic Knights who can cast nature spells through the magic runes on their bodies. Their combat power increases by half a tier within the forest. I'll give you the detailed information shortly."
"Actually, the last time we went to war against the Southern Church, we had intended to request the Elf Royal Court and the Druid Elder Council as reinforcements. Although they needed to fight the Koutao Merfolk and other sea races in the Boundless Ocean, and guard the Abyssal rift within Strup Forest, mobilizing two or three Legends would still have been feasible. Who could have expected the all-out war to end so quickly..." Oliver remarked with slight regret. He had a great interest in Legend-level elves skilled in arts and history — if they happened to be female Legends, even better. "It's a pity I need to explore the Netherworld recently..."
Once it became clear that Monster Viken and Pope Viken were mortal enemies, several Legend-level archmages in the Parliament had plans to venture into the Netherworld, study the Soul Hearth, observe the "Immortal Passage" up close, and fathom the mysteries of quantum superposition — for them, the danger was manageable as long as they didn't encounter the Northern Church's Pontiff and company.
After all, the Legend-tier undead in the Netherworld had been severely damaged in the Parliament's previous expedition. Even one of the four third-tier Legends — the Ancient Mummy — had been killed by Lucian, and nearly half of the sentient Legend-tier undead had fallen.
As for the "World of Doors," Monster Viken wouldn't commit his full strength, but one could easily run into the "Angel King" and six Seraphim. Apart from peak-Legend figures like Douglas, Brook, Fernando, and Hathaway who dared to venture deep, no other Legend-tier powerhouses would risk it.
Douglas pondered for a moment: "This is a preliminary investigation. The main task is to determine why the Abyssal rift, which had been stable for tens of thousands of years, suddenly lost control, causing the demon influx. Moreover, the aura of destruction and chaos has strangely spread into the forest, polluting the Elf King Tree and causing a small number of elves to show signs of demonic corruption... Ailika, Atlant — you two are the demon specialists. Who will go with Lucian?"
"I'll go. I happen to need some demons as research materials." Atlant "Curse Eye" Forman nodded with his eyes closed, his voice hoarse and deep yet seemingly resonating in everyone's mind.
Once the personnel was decided, the emergency session quickly drew to a close. Fernando, Brook, and most of the other Supreme Council members hurriedly departed.
Combining Lucian's techniques on second-order quantization with the relativistic wave equations, they had developed some ideas for the next steps in quantum mechanics. However, they discovered in actual research that difficulties were manifold, lacking adequate mathematical tools for support!
Although the mathematical field had shown vigorous signs of development after the publication of "Nature," it still couldn't match the great leaps being made in the microscopic domain. They had no choice but to pause and turn to mathematical research, shoring up the foundations.
This was the state of the microscopic field in recent times — constrained by mathematical foundations, the surging tide had slowed, waiting for its next great surge.
Douglas led Lucian and Atlant Forman to a room on the thirty-fifth floor. Two golden-haired elves sprang to their feet and said urgently: "Lord Douglas, have you decided on the candidates? Are these two gentlemen? Uh, Luci—"
They were acquaintances of Lucian — Prince Exirion and Princess Elistin — so upon seeing Lucian, they couldn't help but blurt out. But they quickly remembered his status and composed their expressions: "...Lord Evans."
After the greeting, both Exirion and Elistin felt rather conflicted. When they had first met Lucian ten years ago, he had been merely a second-circle mage. At that time, their own level had already reached what humans called mid-tier. Yet in just ten years, he had become a second-tier Legend mage, while they remained at mid-tier, only just approaching high-tier! And their own rate of improvement was considered outstanding among the elf race!
For elves, ten years was not a very long time, but facing Lucian again, they suddenly felt the weight of time's passage — as if forests had turned to oceans, and oceans had dried into fields.
"No wonder Lucian Evans emphasizes that the manifestation of time is change..." Elistin had only a basic understanding of Archanist theory.
The two elves' appearances had barely changed from ten years ago. Their bearing had matured slightly, and their style of dress remained refreshing and close to nature. So Lucian also recognized them at once and nodded with a smile in acknowledgment.
"'Atom Controller' Lucian Evans, 'Curse Eye' Atlant Forman — these two will lead a contingent of mid- and high-tier mages to the forest to provide you with assistance." Douglas made the formal introduction.
Elistin took a light breath, restraining her inner anxiety: "Honored Lords, allow me to give you a brief overview of the situation..."
What she said was almost identical to Douglas's description: a rift to the Abyss remained within Strup Forest, with demons periodically raiding through it, but the rift was not large enough for the "Will of the Abyss" or the peak-Legend Abyssal Prince to descend. Without unified command, the Demon Lords were more inclined to slaughter each other, so the Elf Royal Court and the Druid Elder Council could easily guard it with only one rotation at a time.
But a few months ago, the rift — which had been stable — suddenly lost control and began expanding again. A flood of demons poured through alongside the Demon Lords. Fortunately, Grand Druid Malfurion was on guard at the time, preventing the tragedy of a Legend's fall.