Chapter 15: The Birth of the Elf Clan and Druids

The Original World has gone mad!

The Ant Queen, on the brink of death, escaped underground. In revenge against the human race, she ordered her entire species to attack. Countless dark soldier ants flooded the land, sea, and air.

Even the ocean’s deepest god-made creature—the Abyssal Octopus—was hunted and devoured by the Soldier Ants. After the Ant Queen consumed the Abyssal Octopus, her mental power surged, and her injuries healed rapidly.

The Abyssal Octopus had ruled the seas for hundreds of years, but now it faced ruin, devoured by countless water ants. No matter how powerful it was, encountering an army of ants was futile!

In this dire moment, the Abyssal Octopus’s nemesis, the third-generation sea overlord, the Dragon King Beast, came to aid it. With their fates intertwined, the Soldier Ants had become a common enemy to all races!

With the Dragon King Beast’s help, the Abyssal Octopus narrowly avoided extinction. However, the Ant Queen had fully recovered and had even undergone another evolution, her head enlarged and her mental power far surpassing any other creature.

The human race bore the brunt of the attack, suffering heavy casualties. The previous Human King had gravely injured the Ant Queen but succumbed to his wounds shortly after returning to the tribe.

Before his passing, he solemnly entrusted the Spear of Destiny to the next Human King, urging, ‘Retrieve the Stone of Truth. Enlighten the people. Unite wisdom and strength. Combine forces with all races to eradicate the ant clan!’ The new Human King accepted this heavy responsibility, tears in his eyes as he raised the Spear of Destiny, declaring, ‘The human race shall endure! My life’s mission is to eliminate the ant race!’

The fifth-generation Human King worked diligently, not only unifying his people but also forming a more efficient administrative system. He constantly allied with other extraordinary beasts to encircle the Soldier Ants.

The fifth-generation Human King’s life was spent in war against the Ant Clan, leading to rapid advances in human civilization. Various alloy equipment was forged, and he united all races to create powerful vocational champions like Pegasus Knights, Griffin Knights, and Dragon Knights (subspecies). Furthermore, he collaborated with human sages to develop various combat strategies and breathing techniques, significantly enhancing the strength of all races.

In his old age, the Human King personally led troops deep into the underworld, waging war against the Ant Clan. It was said that the bloodshed between the two factions filled the depths of the earth, with casualties in the millions.

The Ant Clan’s stronghold was breached by the Human King. However, this stronghold had been established by the Ants over a millennium, and ultimately, he did not succeed!

The fifth-generation Human King lived only one lifetime. Even the Elixir of Immortality failed to heal his longstanding injuries. He had no descendants, pouring all his energy into the human race.

With the ascension of the sixth-generation Human King, the Ant Queen, Belsha, reflected on her near-death experiences and realized that although overwhelming numbers had been exhilarating, they couldn’t hold back a strike force composed of hundreds of elite warriors for long.

The Ant Queen began to deliberately study elite tactics. She consumed everything, merging various metals and beast genes, and ultimately birthed the Ant Clan Heroes! Each Ant Clan Hero was unique, some incredibly strong or capable of launching psychic attacks, all possessed extraordinary powers, each capable of rivaling the Griffin King! Most importantly, they gained individual consciousness, allowing them to independently lead an ant army, greatly alleviating the Ant Queen’s burdens.

The most terrifying aspect of the Ant Clan Heroes wasn’t their personal strength. Despite the Ant Queen exhausting her resources, she only birthed a little over a hundred. The true horror lay in their commanding abilities. An ant swarm led by these heroes was ten times more fearsome than before! The various races on the ground were horrified to witness the formerly mindless ants becoming intelligent!

They learned tactics, surrounded their enemies, drew them in, and feigned retreat. The united forces led by humans were consistently defeated as the dark ant swarm consumed everything.

Thirty percent of the surface earth had turned into a lifeless desert, devoid of any vitality. Seventy percent of the territory was occupied by the Soldier Ants, forcing the coalition of races to shrink back to the central sacred tree.

Jiang Ping couldn’t help but grin at the situation from the outside. The Soldier Ants truly proved to be an embodiment of Genesis, a race vying against all others. Among those races were those he had personally supported, the humans, all dominated by the ants.

“With so much territory taken by the Soldier Ants, over time, once the Ant Queen exhausts the resources of the land, she’ll once again mobilize her forces. At that point, the coalition of races will be utterly powerless to fight back,” Jiang Ping thought to himself as he gazed at the vast expanse of gray desert.

“Ugh, the Soldier Ants are ruthless, leaving nothing but devastation in their wake,” Jiang Ping mused, faintly sensing the world’s essence being severely depleted.

“The Soldier Ants only know how to take and have no idea how to give back; their impact on the world is immense. So, can you complete the task of saving the world in the end?” Jiang Ping smiled as he looked down at the slender figure below.

The sixth-generation Human King was unexpectedly a woman. “I might just be the worst Human King ever,” she lamented in the dead of night, leaning against the sacred tree, Rahil, with tears streaming down her face.

At this time, most territories were occupied by the Soldier Ants. The races that followed her could only retreat to the center. If this continued, once the Ant Queen drained the resources of her territories, destruction awaited them! Since taking the Spear of Destiny, she had never slept more than four hours, spending most of her time on the battlefield, yet now the world stood on the brink of disaster.

As the Human King, she couldn’t reveal any sign of weakness or exhaustion in the outer world; she could only cry in silence at night.

“Rahil, sacred tree, you are our mother, the first life in this world. You were personally planted by the Creator God, priceless and noble. Soldier Ants devour everything, leaving no respite for other beings. Can you tell me how to save the human race? How can I save all life? How do I save this world?” The Human King gently caressed the sacred tree, her clear eyes gazing dazedly at it.

Under the night sky, stars twinkled between the branches as a tender green branch gently brushed against the Human King, as if wiping her tears away.

“For the sake of saving the human race and this world, are you willing to be bound to eternal rebirth, losing your soul in endless battles?”

A soft voice suddenly resonated in the Human King’s mind, making her widen her eyes as she firmly answered, “I am willing! I would rather lose myself amidst endless battles, becoming a machine of murder, than watch my race perish!”

“Good!” Rahil replied, “The Soldier Ants consume everything, and in the end, even I won’t escape. Then you shall sign a contract with me and become an indestructible warrior!”

Jiang Ping froze for a moment. He had thought the Soldier Ants were destined to wipe out all races, but unexpectedly, the sacred tree Rahil had begun to take part in the battle!

Looking at the queen signing a contract with the sacred tree, Jiang Ping exclaimed, “Isn’t this the embryonic form of the elves? Rahil is truly evolving towards the World Tree!”

Indeed, only war can stimulate the fastest growth. Rahil had been lazy for so long, but under the pressure of the Soldier Ants, it finally thought of signing a contract with the humans to fuse their souls into the essence, becoming indestructible eternal warriors.

On this night, the sixth-generation Human King died, and the Elf King, Nia, emerged. Similarly, other female human warriors followed one by one to sign contracts with the sacred tree.

The Elf Clan was born! They are immortal, their souls bound to the sacred tree’s essence. Their bodies can communicate with the tree, containing boundless energy. Each elf can contend with a dragon.

The coalition of races launched a counteroffensive! The Ant Clan heroes were dazed by the newly emerged elves. These strange beings were not only extraordinarily powerful, but even if countless soldier ants were sacrificed to kill them, they would turn to ash, not leaving a trace behind, as if they were virtual spirit bodies.

Yet not long after, they would suddenly reappear behind the soldiers, continuing to fight!

As long as the sacred tree remains standing and energy is adequate, the elves can revive infinitely! While this sounds invincible, each time an elf dies, their souls will integrate deeper into the sacred tree, eventually losing their self-awareness.

By then, the revived beings would only be ‘replicants’ with their memories. This was the predetermined outcome from the moment the contract was signed.

In the ongoing battles, other ancient races began to emulate the humans, studying how to sign contracts with the sacred tree Rahil. While it was much more difficult for other extraordinary races compared to the humans, as long as there were enough attempts, some would eventually succeed! After sacrificing countless lives, a few magical beasts finally managed to sign contracts with the sacred tree. They not only transformed into human forms but could also swiftly regain their dominant original form.

Jiang Ping sighed, “Druids have appeared.”

With the emergence of elves and druids, the Ant Clan began to suffer defeat after defeat, paying a heavy price for their losses. By the time they deciphered the strengths of these two fantastical beings, they had already retreated back to the Death Desert.

The Soldier Ants and the coalition of races stood in a tense standoff, each side claiming their territory.

Deep underground, nine thousand meters down, a furious roar echoed, “Damn Rahil! How dare you prevent me from ruling this world! One day, I will invade the center of the world and chop down the sacred tree!” The Ant Queen Belsha raged.