321: fanning the flames

Shang Wan Ning stepped forward, her withered hand pointing outside the hall, seemingly piercing the fleshy walls to point directly at the Elves outside the city.

"The Elf Goddess? Heh! She is nothing more than a false god who stole fragments of the Law. Do her dependents even dare to clamor in front of the mother of flesh and blood's believers?"

"Exactly."

Chen Yu seized the opportunity, stuck her hands on her hips, and bounced out, her voice crisp and loud, drowning out the entire hall.

The White-Haired Loli scurried into the center of the great hall, her little face flushed with excitement, waving her small fists, nearly spraying spittle onto the face of the Bugman Overseer beside her.

"Who's afraid of their bird egg?" Chen Yu's voice was extremely loud. "Who does the Elf Goddess think she is? She's not even fit to carry our Mother Goddess's shoes."

She jumped onto an empty bone stool nearby, looking down with impressive momentum.

"Look at us! The Flesh and Blood Furnace never rests, and the Bone Devouring Legion sweeps across the four directions. The Space Anchor is as steady as a rock, and the Mother Goddess's glory illuminates the Ativi Continent."

Chen Yu pointed her finger at the high-ranking figures in the hall one by one: "You, you, and you!"

"Which one of you is not a powerful expert blessed by the mother of flesh and blood? Which one of you is not a figure whose stomp can shake the continent three times?"

"Letting a bunch of Long-Ears block our door demanding someone—how embarrassing!"

She put her hands on her hips, sticking her small chest out high. "If the Elves want war, then let there be war! Let them witness what the Power of Flesh and Blood is."

"What Unspeakable Terror is."

"If we hand over one Elf today, tomorrow they'll dare to ride atop Wormrock City and defecate. The day after, they'll dare to curse the Mother Goddess's statue in the streets. Can we tolerate this?"

Chen Yu slapped the shoulder of the Bugman Overseer beside her, shouting until she was hoarse. "Brothers and sisters! For the Mother Goddess's glory, for the dignity of Wormrock City!"

"Let's take down those flashy Long-Ears!"

"We'll fill their Moonwells and use them as blood pools, and chop down their Ancient Trees of Life for firewood! Let the entire Ativi Continent know that the Gray Mist Territory must not be insulted, and the mother of flesh and blood must not be offended!"

"War! War! War!" Her last three words cracked, and her little face was completely red.

[Damn, I'm fired up. Mercury's Oscar owes me a Little Golden Man.]

Chen Yu was giving herself crazy thumbs-up internally.

The great hall was silent for one second.

"Roar—!!!"

The Eyeless Giant Leader thumped its chest violently, letting out an earth-shattering roar.

"Tear the Long-Ears to shreds!" The Armored Bugman's compound eyes glowed crimson, and its bone blade slid halfway out of its sheath.

"For the Mother Goddess." Even Mordecai started roaring along, his Soul Fire leaping high, as if he had forgotten that he was the real culprit.

The fanatical atmosphere instantly ignited.

The earlier feeling of being stifled was swept away, replaced only by the stirred-up rage toward the Elves and the blind confidence in the "Mother Goddess's Glory."

Angmar’s compound eye crystals flashed wildly, and his tentacles excitedly slapped the throne.

[Good, very good. Shadow Erosion's apprentice is a talent. This eloquence is exactly to my liking.]

"Shadow Erosion!" Angmar's eyes were filled with excitement.

"Take your people and go to the city wall. Tell the Emerald Royal Court's emissaries—"

His tentacles pointed outside the hall, radiating killing intent.

"There are no Elves here. If they want war, Wormrock City will accompany them to the end. Let them come and experience the mother of flesh and blood's wrath themselves."

"I obey, City Lord." Shang Wan Ning slightly bowed her hood, placed her withered hands behind her back, and gestured to Chen Yu to "follow."

As she turned, a cold arc curved on her lips beneath the hood.

[This girl's madness has saved me a lot of trouble.]

Chen Yu obediently trotted after her. As she passed Mordecai, she shot him a look: "Priest Mordecai, five Beast-Eared Girls are going on your tab!"

Mordecai's Soul Fire twitched, but he didn't reply.

[Master Shadow Erosion allowing his apprentice to be so reckless must have been planned long ago. Forget it, as long as we can force the Elves to retreat, I'll accept the heartache.]

...Passing through the gloomy, damp Bone Passage, the two quickly ascended Wormrock City's tallest Arrow Tower.

Outside the city, gray mist surged. The Emerald Royal Court's delegation tents floated like isolated islands. Hundreds of Silver-Armored Elves held longbows, the Wood Magic Power condensed on the bowstrings flashing with cold light in the fog.

They could sense the aura of their kin inside the city, but the gray mist churned, preventing precise localization.

"A-Yu, stand behind me. Don't speak carelessly."

Shang Wan Ning pressed her withered hand onto the crenellation, and Spiritual Power spread through the stone cracks, wrapping around both of their auras.

Chen Yu stood on her tiptoes, peering at the Silver-Armored Elves, her small face still carrying the excitement that hadn't faded from the great hall.

"I know, I'll just look."

[Look? The fire in A-Yu's eyes looks like it wants to burn down the Elf camp.]

Shang Wan Ning wanted to roll her eyes, then turned her hood toward the outside of the city. "Emissaries of the Emerald Royal Court, the City Lord has ordered you to return."

The tent curtain was lifted, and Elder Elora walked out, leaning on a Crystal Staff. His green eyes swept over the Black-Robed Figure on the city wall, finally settling on the little figure with partially exposed white hair behind him.

The girl didn't look old, and her aura was as weak as a Scarlet Poison Grass that had never seen the sun.

Among the monsters of Wormrock City, she was simply an inconspicuous speck of dust.

"Black Mage!"

Elder Elora said arrogantly, "Hand over Princess Leah, and we will immediately withdraw our troops."

"Otherwise, the Gray Mist Territory shall taste the Wrath of Nature today."

"Wrath of Nature?"

Chen Yu's crisp, bright voice suddenly exploded. She darted out from behind Shang Wan Ning, stuck her hands on her hips, and grabbed hold of the crenellation.

"Hey! Is the Elf Goddess's wrath even worth a single strand of Mother Goddess Sabrina's hair?"

These words were like a heavy hammer smashing into the group of Elves.

The bowstrings of the Silver-Armored Elves instantly went taut, the arrow tips unanimously aimed at the little figure who knew no bounds.

On the Ativi Continent, the Elf Race's reverence for the Elf Goddess was ingrained in their bones. Even the high-ranking figures of Wormrock City only dared to mock her secretly.

They would never dare—to openly and directly blaspheme her.

Elora's green eyes blazed with fury, and the gem on his Crystal Staff shone brightly. "Audacity! How dare a mere apprentice speak rashly about the Goddess?"

"I'm speaking rashly?" Chen Yu's voice grew even louder; she simply stepped onto the edge of the crenellation and bounced half an inch.

"When you Elves were hiding in the forest gnawing on wild fruits, the Mother Goddess's Flesh and Blood Furnace had already refined Abyssal Demons into ash! Elf Goddess? Is she fit to carry shoes in front of the Mother Goddess?"

"Silence!"

Elder Sylvia, standing behind Elora, abruptly raised her staff, and a cluster of emerald green light condensed at the tip.

"Black Mage, do you just allow your apprentice to blaspheme the divine like this?"

Shang Wan Ning looked as if he had just reacted, pressing his withered hand onto Chen Yu's collar and pulling her back behind him, his raspy voice carrying a deliberate "reprimand."

"Wicked Disciple, you know no bounds! Retreat now."

While his action looked like a reprimand, he was actually pulling Chen Yu toward safety.

To Mordecai and the others watching from afar, it seemed as though Master Shadow Erosion was trying to suppress his apprentice's crazy words but failed to stop her.

After all, this girl dared to point and curse the high-ranking figures in the great hall; being unrestrained toward their enemies now certainly fit the image of a "spoiled, crazy apprentice."

"Your Excellency Elora." Shang Wan Ning turned to the Elf Elder.

"The apprentice is ignorant and has offended your side. However, the City Lord has commanded that there are no Elves inside the city. Please return."