Chapter 152 - The Dragon Scale Oak that Rivals Mountains

Then, find them a Giant Dragon master, with a Giant Dragon as their master, the Gnolls will be unwaveringly loyal, even if they face a more powerful Giant Dragon. So long as their former Giant Dragon master has not perished, they won’t easily surrender, as this loyalty is also a mark engraved in their souls.Of course, if their current Giant Dragon master dies, they will not hesitate to transfer allegiance to a new master without any moral burden.

"I shall not covet what others hold dear," Virginia said, barely suppressing a smile. "I’m content being Miss Aivensa’s second favorite person."

But Aivensa was not ready to give up, "Are you really not going to consider it? I’m really useful!"

Now addicted to employment, she wanted to nab a part-time job from Yaling to further enrich the treasure hoard which she was about to establish.

"If there is a need, I will consider Miss Aivensa," Virginia said with a face showing nothing but sincerity.

The value of a Young Red Copper Dragon is quite high, for their advantage in flight is uniquely superior, especially since Aivensa’s potent acidic breath inflicts relatively light damage on forests.

"Remember me, okay?" Aivensa implored, looking back every three steps.

The Young Red Copper Dragon earnestly tied the Enlarge Necklace as a bracelet on its claw, content to fly slower with Gaven aboard, without using the necklace’s enlarging power.

Pikespirits are among the most dreamy and charming of the forest races.

They are only about thirty centimeters tall with gossamer wings like those of butterflies or dragonflies. They shine like the dawn and dazzle like the full moon rising.

That is if they choose to reveal themselves in your presence, as they possess a natural ability to become invisible.

This innate ability allows them to avoid most threats in the forest and to wander carefree, seeking joy. They are as curious as cats and as shy as fawns, preferring to watch others from hiding rather than making direct contact.

Once acquainted, they are eagerly willing to make friends.

These were Gaven’s impressions of the Pikespirits, and they were all confirmed by Nicole.

This miniature Fairy’s curiosity was far from ordinary; she wanted to dig into everything to the very root.

Gaven’s origins?

Aivensa’s background?

What does the Rocklands on the other side of the curtain look like?

And what do Gnolls look like? ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ɴoᴠel Fɪre.nᴇt

It wasn’t an intentional probing for information, just curious chatter, easily distracted, and lacking any sense of secrecy.

Gaven naturally did not miss this source of information and started extracting intelligence from her in turn, "Are there bad guys in your Fairy Wilderness? Did Lord Virginia just return from fighting a battle?"

"Of course, there are bad guys, and they’re very very bad. In the Saltwater Swamps to the west, live a group of evil, ugly, and malicious Ghost Witches who often send their Dark Servants to invade our Spring Bud Forest, capturing various creatures to enslave.

But the worst, are the foul Foul Giants living under the Black Forest to the north, in their dark caverns. They are greedy, ugly, and ambitious. They cannot stand to see anything beautiful. They like to use their twisted abilities to warp originally beautiful creatures, contorting them to become as ugly as themselves.

The Black Forest was once a part of our Spring Bud Forest, forcibly occupied by them, they transformed it into a place as ugly and bizarre as they are.

Lord Virginia personally led the troops this time to recapture a village previously overtaken by them. I heard that not only did they expel those twisted Dark Servants, but they also killed several Foul Giants.

After this blow, those evildoers certainly won’t dare to act rashly again."

Nicole, perched on Gaven’s shoulder, clung tightly to the breastplate with one hand while her tiny hand swung passionately, her expression full of righteous indignation.

Especially when talking about the Foul Giants, she not only displayed a deep loathing but also a fear that came from the heart.

This fear was clearly directed at their special abilities.

For beauty-loving Pikespirits, the Foul Giants’ ability to warp others was simply the most evil ability in the world.

She once witnessed the appearance of a twisted dark Pikespirit, which became an enduring nightmare for her, vowing never to fall into the hands of the Foul Giants, nor to become that horrifying figure.

When he heard the names Ghost Witches and Foul Giants,

Gaven didn’t need to ask anything more.

In the Multiverse, light and darkness, justice and evil are in opposition to each other.

This opposition even penetrates into their bloodlines and souls.

Just as angels are synonymous with light,

certain races are synonymous with evil. Devils and Demons are known by all, and because of the Crystal Barrier, their activity in Felen is relatively low.

The evilest names most active are the Ghost Witches. Many Dark Forests, swamps, and secluded wildernesses bear their traces, carrying out their own private, evil plots. It was unexpected that even the Fairy Wilderness bears their presence.

As for the Foul Giants, they are rare in Felen. Gaven had only heard of them but never seen them. They are synonymous with distortion and aberration. Any place where Foul Giants reside is sure to be shrouded in bizarre laws, causing plants and animals to mutate abnormally and deformities to abound.

"How extensive is the power of the Ghost Witches and Foul Giants? How frequent are their invasions?" Gaven continued to inquire.

"This... I’m not too sure," Nicole said with a hint of embarrassment, "I’ve only just recently come to Spring Bud Fortress from Nectar Village, so I’m not very clear about some things. Plus, the cunning Ghost Witch and the Foul Giants, they always hide deep in their dens, sending their Dark Servants to fight every time."

"Indeed, very cunning," Gaven agreed.

While Nick Spirit seemed to have said nothing of use, Gaven extracted exactly what he wanted from it, discerning that Yaling was in a reactive defensive state in this war.

Most of the time, they were only facing cannon fodder.

Knowing that he could not dig out any more information in this regard, Gaven changed the subject, "How much do you know about General Stelina? She seems to have other bloodlines as well."

"This..." Nicole’s delicate face squeezed into an expression of difficulty, looking as if she knew something but couldn’t say it.

"If it involves personal privacy, then forget I asked," Gaven backed off strategically, "Let’s see if there is a suitable opportunity to ask her in person."

"Don’t," Pikespirit interjected, "General Stelina does not like to discuss this topic."

Nicole emphasized in a serious tone, "Does not like it at all."

"So that means, you also don’t know what the matter really is."

"Who says I don’t? I know the most about this matter. General Stelina’s mother was a Dwarves Elf..." Nicole covered her mouth, "I shouldn’t be telling you this."

"You don’t need to tell me, it’s obvious to anyone with eyes," Gaven spoke with a look of disdain, "What I’m asking is how Yaling ended up with a Dwarves Elf? You’re not going to tell me it was love, are you? That kind of love wouldn’t be blessed by the gods."

"Of course it wasn’t love, but deception. Her mother disguised herself as Yaling using Magic Disguise to trick her father to obtain their family’s Golden Apple Tree, which led to her homeland’s ruin, leaving her nowhere to return to," Nicole blurted out the secrets without realizing it.

"Golden Apple Tree? What kind of apple would make the Dwarves go to such great lengths? Could it be like the World Tree?" Gaven’s curiosity was piqued as well.

"I’m not sure about that. I only know that General Stelina’s hometown is called the Golden Apple Garden. Oh right, I heard that General Stelina has a golden apple that looks like gold, but she never shows it to anyone, including Lord Virginia..."

"An apple that looks like gold?" The Young Red Copper Dragon, engrossed in the story while flying, almost drooled, "Could it be that the Golden Apple Tree bears apples made of gold?"

"Even if they were made of gold, it wouldn’t be worth the Dwarves’ great efforts. A Magic Disguise capable of deceiving Yaling is definitely not a common one," Gaven dismissed Aivensa’s wild guess, "However, if it’s a magic fruit with special magical abilities, that might be possible."

Nicole fiercely warned Gaven, "You must never mention this to General Stelina in front of her, and don’t say it was me who told you. Even if you do, I will deny it."

Such a ferocious expression on a little person not even the height of a calf had hardly any intimidating effect.

Gaven replied seriously, "Rest assured, I’m known for being tight-lipped, people call me ’Mr. Seal-the-Lips’ and even if General Stelina does find out, I would never reveal Miss Nicole. I have another nickname as well, ’Mr. Iron-Bone’."

"’Mr. Seal-the-Lips’! ’Mr. Iron-Bone’!" Nicole giggled, "Those nicknames sound so weird, it’s hard to take them seriously."

"You look much better smiling than when you’re being stern or fierce," Gaven complimented with a smile, "How much longer until we reach Nectar Village?"

"We’re almost there, see that thickest, tallest tree in the distance? Our village is just above that," Nicole pointed towards a distant large tree.

Gaven only knew the saying, ’Distant hills look green.’

Now he understood that looking at trees could be just as misleading.

They had seen that large tree half an hour ago.

Now, its outline had merely grown a few times larger.

That demonstrated just how enormous the tree really was.

When Gaven learned that the oak tree grew from the heart of an Ancient Red Copper Dragon’s corpse, his amazement subsided.

Not all dragons go to the Dragon Tomb after death.

Some choose to become the guardians of a place, consuming all their treasure before merging with their chosen spot, becoming a unique feature of the landscape—in the literal sense.

Hills, mountain ranges, lakes, swamps, and forests are often dragons’ most common choices.

Such areas are dragons’ favorite spots for laying their eggs.

It is said that eggs laid here are never disturbed.

Young dragons that grow in such places are said to form a close bond with the guardian’s soul, gaining the knowledge they need to become strong adult dragons.

Like Dragon Tombs, it’s rumored that some of the deceased dragon’s treasures may still be hidden in these areas, making them prime targets for treasure hunters.

Dragons who choose to be guardians are few, but when accumulated across dragonkind’s long history, the numbers are not small.

In Gaven’s past life, such sights were not rare, but most of them dated back so far that, besides the hill contours that might hint at a slumbering dragon or lakes that could bear the shape of a dragon’s head or footprints, they no longer held unique properties, including rarely being visited by dragons.

To see a Dragon Scale Oak like this one, where a dragon instilled its life essence into an oak seed to grow it into a tree rivaling the World Tree, was a first for Gaven.

No wonder Lord Virginia smiled so meaningfully when Gaven chose to take on this task.