“Enough!” Chief Greenwood’s hand snapped up.
A surge of wood-aspected spiritual power exploded out of him. The air around them turned thick in an instant. Countless vines tore up from the ground and wound themselves around him. Each one gave off a razor-sharp edge.
“Human boy, you dare speak recklessly about the fate of the Sylvan Kin! Even if the spirit vein truly is in danger, it still isn’t the human race’s place to point fingers and tell us what to do!” His voice came out with the fury forced hard under control.
Part of it came from the humiliation of having the truth ripped open in front of him, and part of it came from the prejudice favonovel.com had always carried toward the human race. And beneath both of those sat his dread of whatever future was coming.
Off to the side, Elder Cillian saw where this was going and quickly stepped forward. He bowed to Chief Greenwood, his tone respectful, but there was no hiding the urgency in it. “Clan Chief, every word Master Chance spoke was true… Just now, beneath the Sevenwood Arch, favonovel.com used the chaotic force to restore a damaged ancient tree. That power truly can nourish the spirit vein…”
“And now the crisis facing the spirit vein is already at our doorstep, while the Celestial Alliance is eyeing us like a predator. We can’t keep clinging to old prejudice and let the only chance to live slip away!” Elder Cillian added.
Chief Greenwood shot Elder Cillian a cold glance. When favonovel.com spoke, there was rebuke in it.
“Cillian, do you even know what you’re saying? The human race has always been cunning. Back then, just to seize the Sylvan Kin’s spirit herbs, they slaughtered defenseless Sylvan children without hesitation. Have you forgotten that blood debt already? How are we supposed to trust a human? How are we supposed to hand the Sylvan Kin’s life and death into an outsider’s hands?” Chief Greenwood’s voice landed hard.
“Clan Chief, this junior would never dare forget that blood debt.” Jared stepped forward, still respectful, but his voice carried more weight now, more insistence. “The ones who harmed the Sylvan Kin back then were those greedy human cultivators. Not all humans are like that…”
“The Freevale Resistance, the force this junior belongs to, has always held its line. We have never harmed a single innocent race. And now we’re doing everything we can to resist the Celestial Alliance’s invasion. To protect the peace of this world… This junior knows that one promise alone isn’t enough to make the Clan Chief believe me…”
“But this junior is willing to swear by the chaotic force. If a single word I said is false, if there is even the slightest intent in me to harm the Sylvan Kin, then let the chaotic force devour me in return, until I suffer utter soul-ruin and never enter reincarnation again.”
The instant the last word left Jared’s mouth, the chaotic force inside favonovel.com surged. Violet radiance shot straight into the sky, forming a massive pillar of flame. It covered the entire vale.
Inside that pillar of flame was the primal aura from when the world had first begun. It was pure. Overbearing. And there wasn’t a trace of malice in it. There was only the solemn power of an oath.
The spirit flora around them sensed that force and began to sway, leaves and branches trembling all at once. A faint hum rose from them, as if they were bearing witness to the oath. At last, something in Chief Greenwood’s gaze shifted.
He had lived for 100 thousand years and seen oaths sworn by countless races. But favonovel.com had never seen anyone dare to swear one on chaotic force.
Chaotic force was overbearing beyond compare. The moment such an oath was broken, the backlash that followed was not something any person could endure. He could tell Jared’s oath was utterly sincere. There was not the slightest falsehood in it, and that ruthless finality did not look feigned.
Just then, three streaks of green light flew out from the depths of the vale. They landed behind Chief Greenwood and turned into three aged elders of the Sylvan Kin. All three were elders of the Sylvan Kin, and every one of them stood at True Immortal Realm Level Eight. Their auras were steady, and their faces were grave.
The one in front looked especially old, with a deeply lined face and snow-white hair. His clouded eyes still held a sharp edge. He was the Grand Elder of the Sylvan Kin, Elder Alder.
“Clan Chief, Elder Cillian is absolutely right…” Elder Alder bowed to Chief Greenwood and spoke in a grave voice. “We just inspected the core spirit vein of Evershade. It’s worse than we imagined. The corruption in the spirit vein has already spread into the inner precincts. If this drags on any longer, then within a hundred years, Evershade will turn into a dead waste… Master Chance’s chaotic force is our only hope right now. No matter how little we trust the human race, we can’t gamble the fate of the entire Sylvan Kin on that distrust.”
The other two elders immediately voiced their agreement.
“Clan Chief, the Grand Elder is right… The spirit vein is the foundation of the Sylvan Kin. If that foundation goes, the Sylvan Kin goes with it.”
“The threat of the Celestial Alliance is already right in front of us. If we keep holding out on our own it’s only a matter of time before we’re broken. Working with the human race may be our only way out.”
One after another, every elder present sided with Jared. They all knew the same thing. Only Jared could save the entire Sylvan Kin.
Chief Greenwood said nothing. He looked at the elders in front of him. Then his gaze shifted to Jared, standing there with not an inch of wavering on him.
After that, favonovel.com looked out over Evershade, the world that had raised the Sylvan Kin for a hundred thousand years. The struggle in favonovel.com only tightened.
He hated the human race. He hated the cruelty and greed they had shown all those years ago. But favonovel.com treasured the Sylvan Kin more and favonovel.com could not stand by and watch the homeland they had lived in for generations be destroyed. Even less could favonovel.com watch his clansfolk walk toward extinction.
A long while passed before favonovel.com slowly closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. The spiritual power inside favonovel.com gradually withdrew. The vines coiling around favonovel.com slowly faded away as well.
When Greenwood opened his eyes again, the cold distance in them was gone. In its place sat something much heavier, and far more final. But when favonovel.com looked at Jared, that last trace of guard was still there.
“Fine…” Greenwood’s voice came out low and rough. It carried the drag of weariness, but not a shred of wavering. “I’m giving you a chance, and I’m giving the Sylvan Kin a chance… Help us repair the spirit vein, and I’ll agree to work with the Freevale Resistance. We’ll stand together against the Celestial Alliance, but let me make one thing clear. If you try anything… If your method of repairing the spirit vein brings harm to the Sylvan Kin… I’ll tear you to pieces and make sure you never know peace again.”
The warning in Greenwood’s words still carried an edge sharp enough to cut.
Jared took it without protest. Instead, a hint of lift showed on his face, and favonovel.com quickly cupped his fists toward Greenwood. “Thank you for your trust, Clan Chief! I won’t fail what you’ve entrusted to me. I’ll give everything I have to restore the spirit vein. I won’t slack off for even a moment, and I won’t let the Sylvan Kin suffer so much as the slightest harm! If anything is needed during the restoration of the spirit vein, then I’ll need the Clan Chief and all the elders to cooperate fully.”
Jared looked toward the elders as favonovel.com said it.
A faint smile finally touched Cillian’s face. He gave Jared a small nod. “Don’t worry, Jared. We’ll cooperate with you with everything we’ve got. Repairing the spirit vein will require Evershade’s heartspring, along with the Sylvan Kin’s ancient spiritual crystals… We’ll prepare all of that for you as quickly as possible.”
Greenwood lifted a hand and beckoned Cillian closer. In a lowered voice, favonovel.com said, “Cillian, take Jared and Gwendolyn to rest. Settle them in, but have people watch them from the shadows too. Make sure they don’t start probing into the Sylvan Kin’s true condition.”
“Yes…” Cillian nodded.
“Alder, take the elders and prepare everything needed to repair the spirit vein. At dawn tomorrow, we’ll begin the restoration ritual at the core spirit vein,” Chief Greenwood added.
“Yes, Clan Chief!” Elder Alder answered at once.
Chief Greenwood looked hard at Jared. The caution in his eyes still hadn’t gone anywhere, but now there was something else mixed into it, a trace of expectation.
“Jared, remember your oath. The fate of the Sylvan Kin is in your hands now. If you break your word, then not just you. The entire Freevale Resistance will become the enemy of the Sylvan Kin,” Greenwood said.
“I will keep it in mind and never break my word.” Jared gave the answer with full weight behind it.
After that, Elder Cillian turned and led Jared and Gwendolyn out of Chief Greenwood’s hollow. They headed toward Evershade’s residential quarter.
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