Elf Kingdom: Game of the World Tree

Awkward...

Although common sense had told Boxed Lunch and his group that these humans were merely NPCs in the game,

they had been playing for so long that they were used to the intelligence of these virtual characters, and they had long subconsciously regarded them as flesh-and-blood individuals, even becoming friends with many of them.

Therefore... when they realized the somewhat unsightly appearances of themselves, the five experienced players, even the calmest among them, Boxed Lunch, couldn't help but feel their expressions stiffen slightly.

Of course, this was on the premise that they still thought the Holy Light protected them.

If they knew that after Eve adjusted the "harmony" mode, the Holy Light only existed in the players' own eyes, they might have been even more frantic.

"Ahem, um, so, did you find the herbs?"

Hu Lu cleared his throat a few times, trying to change the subject, as he and his companions discreetly wrung out their clothes and gear.

"No, we've been searching the forest for many days, but we still haven't found them..."

Lily's voice had a tinge of disappointment.

However, as the girl looked dejected, her other human companions patted her on the shoulder:

"Lily, don't worry. Since we encountered the Divine, it must be Divine protecting us. The Divine surely knows the whereabouts of the Mandala Magic Flower!"

"That's right! The Divine live in seclusion here; they must know where to find the Mandala Magic Flower!"

"As long as we pray devoutly and offer enough tributes to the Divine, we will surely move them!"

As these young men and women spoke excitedly, they looked hopefully at the crowd of players.

The five players: ...

*Don't look at us, we didn't say anything!*

*But... tributes?*

A few players exchanged glances, their interest piqued.

"Ahem, if possible, we'd be happy to help. Miss Lily, could you describe in detail what this Mandala Magic Flower looks like?"

Hu Lu said with a smile.

Finding clues for quests through conversations with NPCs was a fundamental skill for every player.

Undoubtedly, the humans' plea for help and their mention of tributes had caught the players' attention.

Of course, they regarded it as part of the narrative task.

"Right! The Divine have been gone for nearly a thousand years. After all this time, the names we use might be different from what they used to be."

Lily slapped her forehead and scratched her head, a bit embarrassed.

*Gone nearly a thousand years?*

Eve, who was watching from the shadows, raised an eyebrow thoughtfully.

*Nearly a thousand years?*

*Does that mean this plane might be related to the divine war a thousand years ago?*

When she heard these humans refer to the players as "Divine," her first thought was whether this half-plane was like the lower worlds in the fantasy novels of Blue Star, a creation of her predecessor.

However, after reviewing the World Tree's heritage, Eve had confirmed that her predecessor, unlike other True Gods, had never had the habit of nurturing followers in half-planes or other main planes.

And now, hearing from this human girl about the "Divine disappearing for a thousand years" gave her another suspicion:

"Could it be... this half-plane appeared in connection to the main world after the divine war a thousand years ago? And these humans refer to those who fled into the half-plane as the Divine?"

Eve had various speculations in mind, while Lily continued her conversation with the players.

She thought for a moment and began to describe the appearance of the Mandala Magic Flower to the players:

"It's said to be a blue flower with oval leaves and humanoid roots... The Mandala Magic Flower is very mysterious, possessing powerful magic power. If you pull it out, it screams like a girl..."

*A blue flower? Humanoid roots? Powerful magic power?*

*And... it screams when you pull it out?*

After hearing Lily's description, the players were slightly startled.

They instinctively exchanged glances, all seeing a hint of peculiarity and anticipation in each other's eyes.

Meanwhile, Eve had an epiphany:

"So, it's the Mandela Grass Flower..."

The Mandela Grass Flower was a common magic plant in the Elf Forest, referring to the real Elf Forest.

For the players, they were also quite familiar with this plant.

Because the elves of Feilengcui often tasked them with collecting this magic plant!

Moreover, after players like Gugu Bird reverse-engineered a magic potion that could restore magic power, the main ingredient was also this Mandela Grass Flower.

Whenever players saw this flower in the wild, they would almost always collect it.

After all, it could be exchanged for money!

Even eating it directly could replenish some magic power!

Were it not for the abundant magic power in the Elf Forest, where this plant thrived, the forest's Mandela Grass Flowers might have been exhausted by the players long ago.

Of course, Boxed Lunch's team, who had explored the Elf Forest for a long time, had a stash of these flowers in their storage rings...

"Is it the Mandela Grass Flower?"

"It should be, right? It matches her description exactly."

"This flower isn't common in the Elf Forest, but if you search carefully, there should be no shortage. Is it really that rare here?"

"Maybe. You know, the boss lady said this plane's level is very low. Look at these human NPCs; the strongest of them is only level 11, and the rest are just apprentices. With such strength, they'd have been fodder for Demon Beasts in the Elf Forest, likely unable to even handle Goblins."

"Hehe, looking at it this way, it seems we're really able to run rampant in this half-plane!"

The players communicated within the chat channel.

Naturally, they kept moving in the game while they chatted.

Boxed Lunch suddenly reached out and touched a ring on his finger. A soft glow flashed across his hand, and a large bunch of purple flowers appeared.

Meanwhile, several humans present felt a strong magic power emanating from Boxed Lunch's hand.

"Is this it?"

Boxed Lunch asked the humans with a deep voice.

Upon seeing the large bunch of Mandela Grass Flowers Boxed Lunch had taken out, the young men and women opened their eyes wide in shock:

"They... they appeared out of thin air?!"

"Great Creator God above, is this the legendary spatial power?"

"As expected of the legendary Divine!"

When they saw the flowers in Boxed Lunch's hand clearly, they were even more shocked and suspicious, accompanied by a subtle excitement:

"Is this... is this... could it be the Mandala Magic Flower?"

"Such rich magic power!"

"Yes! It must be! This matches exactly what's depicted in the magic book!"

"Hahaha! We're saved! The elder is saved!"

Seeing the humans so excited, the players were quite sure of it.

"Take it."

Boxed Lunch handed the Mandela Grass Flowers to Lily.

This bunch of herbs was worth at most 100 contribution points, and with contribution points becoming increasingly devalued, it was a small matter to them.

Lily took the herbs with trembling hands, her eyes quickly welling with tears.

Before long, she and the other young men and women once again knelt before the players, gratefully exclaiming:

"Thank you, Divine! Thank you, Divine!"

Moments later, the humans stood up from the ground, looking at the players with even more reverence.

Lily hesitated for a moment, nervously asking:

"Great Divine, may I ask... what kind of tribute do we need to offer?"

Boxed Lunch glanced at Hu Lu, and Hu Lu, receiving the signal, smiled gently:

"No tribute necessary."

"We haven't been here long and don't know much about the outside world. You just need to tell us about the external situation and powers, to let us understand."

Upon hearing this, the young men and women were somewhat surprised.

Lily hesitated and then cautiously asked:

"Just... just that? For so many Mandala Magic Flowers, with such powerful magic power, we don't need to offer our souls or anything?"

Hearing her words, the players were shocked and quickly waved their hands:

"Offer what soul? We're not cultists!"

*Offer souls, my foot.*

*Boss Zero is watching from the side. If she misunderstood, the goodwill that was hard to earn would be gone in an instant!*

*Even though the elf NPCs were known for their good nature, the players had experienced firsthand how single-minded they could be.*

*Although the Divine Favored Zero was rather reserved and her character was hard to decipher, they dared not take the risk.*

*Even though they were seasoned players, none dared to joke about soul offerings in front of Divine Favored Zero.*

*For Boxed Lunch and his group, Spider Queen Rose was long given up on for goodwill. Divine Favored Zero was their highest chance to max-out friendship with a high-level NPC!*

*Of course, they needed no souls.*

Seeing the players firmly deny it, the young men and women breathed a sigh of relief.

Afterward, their expressions were even more reverent and grateful.

After a bit of discussion among themselves, Lily stood up again, sincerely and expectantly said:

"Then... how about this? We were wondering if the Divine might have some free time. If it's possible, we would like to invite you to visit our small town."

"Our elder has always been telling us stories of the Divine. He would be thrilled to see you!"

"Moreover, the elder is the most knowledgeable person about the god-blessed forebearers among us. Whatever news the Divine wishes to know, only the elder is most informed..."