Prime Originator

"The king's heartlessness have angered the heavens into action! This must definitely be divine punishment from the heavens!" The elf continued to speak self-convincingly.

However, the rest of the crowd thought differently. 

"You're speaking nonsense. Divine punishments should be accompanied by worldly phenomenons like thunderous clouds and smiting lightning. This should be the Guardian Spirit's doing." Another elf believed. 

As if the elf's words had angered the Guardian Spirit, the ground quickly shook from its root's movement before the broccoli—er, no. Before the Elf King's corpse was tossed to the ground. 

"Ahh, forgive me, O great Guardian Spirit!" The elf was quickly frightened into pleading for forgiveness.

Shortly after, the crowd soon laid their eyes upon the Elf King's corpse before becoming greatly shocked.

At the same time, Faelyn did not know whether to be heartbroken or similarly shocked. 

The Elf King's form was too startling. 

With an ashen-yellowy green complexion and top that sprouted numerous green curd-like substance amongst the branches and leaves sticking out of the Elf King's head, the body greatly resembled broccolis.

In other words, the Elf King's had transformed into a plant.

Princess Faelyn and the crowd had never seen such a bizarre and startling transformation. 

They immediately ruled out the possibility of the Guardian Spirit absorbing all of the Elf King's body nutrients with its tree roots and killing the Elf King in the process. 

Except for the face, the rest of the body was far from looking like a shriveled husk.

"This should be my father's backlash after using his secret ability to greatly boost his combat prowess to the Seeking Insight level." Princess Faelyn guessed.

Sorrow filled her heart, but no tears would flow for her to mourn her father's death. 

It was not long before her father's last words suddenly rang in her head. The tragedy of her family and her father's change; she had to get to the bottom of it. 

Princess Faelyn's eyes became resolute.

After finding a female elf with a motherly figure to take care of the baby in her arms, she departed for the Elder Tree's crown to seek out the secrets that lie within the Heart of Spring Chamber.

…

Meanwhile, the elven commoners were mostly evacuated from the subterranean space below the southern parts of the tribe.

The last batch of couple hundred elves had at least made it onto the bridge. They were the slowest batch due to their movement impairments.

"The tribesmen have all made it onto the bridge. We should also pull back before the rats surround us, Third Elder." The Sixth Elder said while manipulating the vines to slay the rats.

The Third Elder observed the surroundings and nodded, "Alright."

The two Elders shortly made their retreat back towards the bridge and recovered the vines from the erected staircases.

The other six Elders in the subterranean space also began making their retreat towards the bridge. 

The flames from the fire ring were gradually dying out, allowing the rat tide began pouring inside the warded zone.

"What did the Supreme Elder say?" The Sixth Elder asked after regrouping with the other six Elders as they defended the foot of the bridge.

"Defend the bridge until the tribesmen are all safely evacuated. The Guardian Spirit will know when to pull back its roots." 

"Understood." 

The Sixth Elder and Third Elder nodded. 

Together, the 8 Elders formed a defensive formation surrounding the foot of the bridge and defended the point from the incoming rats.

Leon could be seen squatting by the ground at another location while fanning the flames heating his pill cauldron within a cage of vines that prevented the rats from interrupting him.

The Supreme Elder dropped by and tossed a few rat carcasses inside from the top before the vine cage was sealed again.

"Say, why do you need the rat's blood again, young prince? I thought our plan was to collapse the passageways?" Supreme Elder Haldir asked.

Leon drained the blood from the rat carcasses and fed it to the pill cauldron while using his Divine Will intricately to keep the rat blood and reactive herbal essence from contacting.

"It still is. You will see." Leon responded vaguely. 

At the same time, Aria could be seen flying on her ice-lightning sword in the distance. 

Suddenly, she leaped high into the air while manipulating her flying ice-lightning sword to shoot into the sea of rats, penetrating them one after the other.

Arcs of ice-lightning surged from each contact and bounced to nearby rats, causing a chain reaction that scalded every rat with biting coldness. 

A short moment later, she landed back on her ice-lightning sword and flew towards one of the passageways to destroy it.

However, she was unable to reach it.

The endless rats poured out from the passageways like water from the floodgates. It was impossible to get through without removing the rats from the equation.

Aria was forced to go back to just killing the rats.

"I'm not sure what you are planning to refine, but wouldn't it be easier to ask the Guardian Spirit to use its roots to help us collapse the passageways?" Supreme Elder Haldir asked doubtfully while killing the rats outside the vine cage.

"No, the surface ground has already become too unstable due to its previous movements. If it draws more roots over, the surface might just collapse on us. Besides, we cannot tie the Guardian Spirit down here." Leon explained.

"Why not?"

Supreme Elder Haldir expressed his confusion.

Leon paused his pill refinement for a moment before glancing at the Supreme Elder in question.

"Aren't we migrating the entire tribe to the Human Domain? Don't tell me you were planning to leave your revered Guardian Spirit behind?"

"Huh? Wait a minute… Oh, my god." Supreme Elder Haldir widened his eyes in shock and asked, "Young prince wants to bring the Guardian Spirit with us? Is that even possible?"

"Why not? Haven't you seen how it moves its tree roots? It definitely can. I guess it'll be the first time to see a migrating tree for you, Marquis Haldir. Better make sure to enjoy the breathtaking sight when the times come."

"Moving its roots is different to moving its entire body… can the Guardian Spirit really support its own weight?" Supreme Elder Haldir was slackjawed. 

The Elder Tree's main body was so huge, while its tree roots were so small in comparison. Was it really possible?

The Supreme Elder was in doubt. 

However, Leon did not answer the Supreme Elder's following question and focused on completing the last step of his pill refinement. 

The exploding pill works by mixing the Demonic Energy contained within the rat blood with the Spirit Energy in spirit herbs, causing a reaction akin to water and fire. 

With a few supplementary herbs added, the destructiveness of the reaction would be magnified many folds in an instant.

Of course, the actual mixture within the exploding pills does not take place until the capsule-like pill is pinched.

"The first batch is done. Try pinching one of these before throwing it at the rats." Leon shortly tossed over an exploding pill.

The Supreme Elder Haldir caught the pill before opening his palm and stared at it while asking dazedly, "What if I accidentally crushed it already?"

"Huh? Then throw it quickly—!" Leon barked. 

Supreme Elder Haldir reacted instinctively before Leon could even finish warning. 

Boom!

The slight delay caused the pill to explode into brilliant flames in midair as waves of hot air quickly swept across the Supreme Elder's face. 

However, the Supreme Elder's eyes remained wide open in aghast at the sight before cussing, "What the f*ck!"