Clotina, their long-lost clanswoman from afar, drew a massive amount of attention.
But the surrounding Night Elves did not forget the one standing beside her...
...their “uniquely” featured Shadow compatriot.
More and more elven spirits began to hover curiously around Lin Gui, sizing him up.
The glass bead swayed gently as pale purple soul light circled him.
Their gazes drifted over his face, lingering on his pointed ears and his calm expression.
Taking advantage of the moment while Clotina was chatting happily with her companions, Lin Gui gently tapped her glass bead with his fingertip.
Clotina snapped out of it.
She floated back to Lin Gui's side and cleared her throat.
“This is...”
She hesitated for a moment before introducing him according to their pre-arranged cover story.
“Lin Rolan Camur Shadow. A fellow member of our clan.”
“Because we ran into a human hunting party earlier... to avoid drawing attention, he... voluntarily disfigured himself.”
As soon as she finished speaking, a low murmur of sighs rippled through the crowd.
Several elderly elves floated closer, their eyes resting on Lin Gui's face.
In their eyes, there was no mockery, nor was there any disgust.
There was only deep sympathy and respect.
An elderly female spirit drifted closer, her voice gentle:
“Child, you have suffered.”
“Appearance is but a fleeting vessel; the radiance of the soul is eternal.”
A young elven youth added in a whisper:
“A-Actually, if you look closely... he isn't even that ugly.”
“He has... quite a lot of character.”
Another spirit nearby immediately chimed in:
“Yes! He is very recognizable!”
“Humans and their vulgar aesthetics simply don't understand the profound beauty of us elves!”
Even though these were clearly words of care and encouragement...
...under the umbrella of “disfigurement”...
...every single word felt like a tiny knife, stabbing precisely into Lin Gui's nonexistent “elven pride.”
Lin Gui's lip twitched slightly as he struggled to maintain a calm expression.
“Ah... haha...”
He let out a couple of dry chuckles.
“Thank you... for your concern.”
He wanted to finish the delivery and leave as quickly as possible. Lin Gui felt that staying here any longer would only damage his self-esteem.
Clotina's voice immediately echoed in Lin Gui's mind.
“When you express your gratitude, make sure to include honorifics for the deity.”
“The Night Elves used to worship the Moon Goddess, Elune. But after the Elven Forest was unified, the official faith was changed to the World Tree.”
“Use the honorifics for the World Tree first.”
Lin Gui's heart stirred, but he kept his expression completely neutral.
Following Clotina's instructions, he bowed slightly and placed his right hand over his chest.
Using the elven greetings he had learned beforehand, he spoke fluently:
“Praise the protection of the World Tree, which has allowed me to return.”
His posture was textbook, his tone devout.
And yet...
...the surrounding elves did not return the gesture with the same World Tree etiquette as expected.
They simply stared at Lin Gui in silence.
A trace of... oddness flickered in their eyes.
After a brief silence, an elderly elf slowly raised his hand.
Instead, he pressed his palm against his left shoulder—the ancient etiquette of Elune's faithful.
“May the radiance of the Moon Goddess illuminate your journey home.”
His voice was deep.
The other elves followed suit, performing the ritual of Elune one after another.
Not a single one of them mentioned the World Tree.
Clotina's soul shadow trembled slightly inside the bead.
She sensed that something was wrong.
Lin Gui's “devotion” to the World Tree, far from earning their approval...
...seemed to have brought a suppressed sorrow into the eyes of the surrounding elves.
Or perhaps even... anger?
A young elven warrior finally could not hold back and floated a step forward.
He stared at Lin Gui, his voice tense:
“Lin Shadow.”
“To you...”
“Are you a child of the Elven Forest?”
“Or a child of the Shadow Clan?”
The air suddenly froze.
Every eye was locked onto Lin Gui.
The subtle, tense atmosphere was almost tangible.
Lin Gui raised an eyebrow and glanced at Clotina's glass bead.
Inside the bead, Clotina's soul shadow flickered rapidly.
She hesitated for a fraction of a second before quickly transmitting her voice:
“Answer him.”
“Tell him you are a child of the Shadow Clan.”
“And a forever devout follower of Elune.”
Lin Gui did not hesitate.
He raised his head, meeting the elven warrior's gaze.
His voice was clear and resolute:
“I will forever be a child of the Shadow Clan.”
“And a devout follower...”
“...of the Moon Goddess, Elune.”
As soon as the words left his mouth...
...the tense soul bodies of the surrounding elves relaxed slightly almost in unison.
The vigilance and scrutiny in their eyes melted away like spring snow.
Replacing it was a soft, almost relieved...
...acceptance.
“Good child...”
The elderly elf nodded gently, his soul light warm.
“Welcome home.”
The elves gathered around curiously.
They had been trapped here for far too long.
Unable to leave, unable to perceive the outside world.
They could only drift day after day within these silent ruins.
“What... is it like outside now?”
An old elf asked softly, his soul light trembling slightly.
“How many of the Night Elf clans are left?”
“Are there... still any of our compatriots alive?”
Clotina froze.
She opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
Because she had also been trapped at the Deepwood Outpost.
She was just as... completely in the dark.
It wasn't that no powerful soul warriors had tried to cross the wilderness.
Alyia had tried, and the powerhouses of other clans had tried as well.
But no magic could completely mask soul fluctuations.
Even if the spectral demons near the Deepwood Outpost weren't exceptionally strong...
...their terrifying numbers were still enough to overwhelm the strongest warriors.
They couldn't break out.
And they couldn't receive any news from the outside.
Clotina looked toward Lin Gui.
Her eyes held the same bewilderment and longing.
Lin Gui fell silent for a moment.
He began to recall the scattered fragments he had heard from Theia along the way...
...about the elves.
“The Elven Forest...”
His voice was steady, as if stating an objective fact.
“...because ‘The Silent End’ devoured the three border cities.”
“That is... the very Dark Tide that caused you to end up like this.”
“The Elven Forest was forced to continuously migrate northward.”
“And they came into conflict... with several native races of the far north.”
He paused.
“Those races... the snow banshees, the iceborn giants, and the Frostwolf clan.”
“Ten years ago, they joined the City-State Alliance.”
“With the support of the Alliance...”
Lin Gui raised his eyes to look at the surrounding elves.
“...the Elven Forest was defeated.”
“Several of their core city-states fell.”
“After signing a ceasefire treaty with the Alliance...”
“...the Elven Forest sealed off all external passages.”
“Now...”
He shook his head slightly.
“...no one knows what is happening inside.”
After Lin Gui finished speaking, he quietly waited for their reaction.
Yet, the surrounding elven spirits simply listened in silence.
There was no shock, no anger, not even sadness on their faces.
There was only a nearly numb...
...flatness.
Or perhaps even...
...indifference.
Rate on N.U.
