Chapter 1045: Emerald Forest? No, the Forest of Lustful Desires.
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 1045: Emerald Forest? No, the Forest of Lustful Desires.
Dean Mei did not adopt the plan to open a brand-new battlefield in the Main World. Of course, she didn't reject it either.
As such, it remained a backup among backups.
As for the matter of a world colliding with the Main World, it wasn't the first time such a thing had happened.
Back when that botanical technology world arrived, Dean Mei had said the same thing: when two worlds collide and are forced to merge, the spatial fabric of the worlds will tear. Dense spatial rifts will appear in the areas where the dimensions overlap.
As for where this "impact zone" would be set... at Afuhemi Academy, naturally.
I had already selected the candidate from the game world's preparatory community worlds: the Emerald Forest, the very first world I had descended into.
In truth, I was quite curious to see what those elves—who prided themselves on being so noble and aloof—would think when they saw their own kin enslaved, oppressed, and even bought and sold for entertainment by a mere game world.
Don't elves forbid the oppression of their own kind by other races?
It was a common enough sentiment. The Witch race also forbade the bullying of fellow Witches, but the prerequisite was that the victim had to be recognized as part of the Witch community.
If they weren't recognized?
They’d be lucky not to be branded as Betrayer Rebel Witches. Did they really expect the Witch race to come to their rescue?
That was a bit too much wishful thinking.
Regardless, the Afuhemi Forest Elves were particularly loud and aggressive in this regard. To them, the elven race—no matter the branch—could only be exploited by them.
Thus, the Emerald Forest was the bait to hook the elves.
The Afuhemi Forest Elves were the most critical link in the Staff of World Destruction Plan.
As for the issue of the Ley Line Shackles between worlds... for a mere small world whose foundations were nearly hollowed out, the spatial rifts created by a collision with the Main World would be more than enough.
After all, worlds possessed an "invasive" attribute toward one another.
* * *
Meanwhile, in the Emerald Forest.
Under the constant invasion and relentless harvesting by players, the elves of this world lived a life of unspeakable misery.
The turning point for this world occurred when an elf named El was possessed by a player.
And that player was... me.
In truth, this character had existed for several months. My avatar in the game world had been continuously "operating" in the background.
Even though I had technically retreated behind the scenes in the game world through a staged death, the account still existed.
It wasn't just this world called the Emerald Forest; after playing for so long, I had used my administrative cheat codes to develop quite a few worlds.
Yet, this first world remained unforgettable to me.
Because this was the world where I played the most simply, yet made the slowest progress!
In other worlds, I could draw a summoning ritual at any time by relying on the factions and Beyonder materials I controlled. But the elves of this world... their thinking was incredibly pedantic.
Of course, this so-called "pedantry" was from my perspective.
They wouldn't believe a word any player said, and that naturally included me.
Actually, for this world, that was a good thing. they couldn't afford the risks of the unknown, even if they had already been oppressed by players until they had nothing left.
According to my thinking, in such a dire situation where things couldn't possibly get any worse, there should have been at least one elven tribe willing to accept my "cooperation."
But the final result was... none. Not a single one.
So... I eventually changed direction.
I stopped looking for wild elves and returned to the "Forest of Lustful Desires"—a place built by players that was utterly discordant with this world.
Though called a forest, it was essentially a "Player Main City" constructed by players, utilizing the original architectural style of the Emerald Forest.
It appeared to be in perfect harmony with nature.
After all, the players didn't have a style of their own; their art and aesthetics were entirely derived from their bloody plunder!
Inside the Forest of Lustful Desires, it was basically a place of hedonistic oblivion, a regression to the most primitive slave-based civilization. Elves of various branches were the most common commodities here.
Here, you could witness the most vile and filthy aspects of humanity.
Nature, wildness, and "lust" were perfectly coordinated within the Forest of Lustful Desires.
"Hey~ beautiful! Interested in playing a development game? Exclusive for female character players~"
"Beautiful~ want a slave? Just finished 'training' this one today. Still a bit feisty, but I've got submissive ones too!"
The moment I arrived in the Forest of Lustful Desires, the merchants began their hawking. Walking along the path, I was harassed more times than I could count.
Eventually, I toggled on "Do Not Disturb" and "Pure Mode," turning myself into a moving mass of pixels. Only then did the harrassing cries begin to fade.
I silently approached the merchant who had just been shouting.
"Hello~ guest. What do you need? We have every elven specialty imaginable here~"
"Oh? How 'special' are they?" My voice had been processed, making it difficult to distinguish whether it was male or female.
"As special as you want! We have every type! What are you looking for, guest? Shall I take you for a look?"
"Give me a few of the most obedient ones. The kind that will stay submissive even if I unlock their slave restrictions."
"Oho~ guest, you certainly know how to play~ Those aren't cheap! We only make a hard-earned living here." The merchant froze for a moment upon hearing my request, then gave me a look that said he understood perfectly.
"Money is no object."
"Right away~ I'll bring them out for you to see. If they catch your eye, we can settle the deal immediately."
The merchant was overjoyed to hear this, his face practically glowing with the prospect of a big sale.
Before long, he drove out several scantily clad elves. Tattered rags failed to hide the wounds covering their bodies. The merchant roughly dragged them over; they collapsed to the ground in a heap, not even daring to crawl back up.
"Guest, do any of these catch your eye? You can try them out first, no charge."
"No," I refused. "Do these ones still know any magic or the like?"
"Magic? Oh... that. These ones have all been crippled. Otherwise, they'd be far too dangerous to play with..."
"I like dangerous. Do you have any?"
"Eh? Oh! Yes... yes! But they aren't cheap~"
"I'm not short on cash, understand?" I said, my tone hardening.
"Understood, understood!" Hearing my impatience, the merchant immediately adopted a fawning posture to soothe me, then scurried back to prepare anew.
After all, the customer is god, isn't that right?
A while later, after what seemed like a rigorous selection process, he brought out a single elf.
"Guest, if you don't mind this one, she's the most obedient we have..."
"Whether she's obedient isn't for you to decide. Unlock her restrictions and let her come with me, and I'll pay immediately," I interrupted him.
Only then did I turn my gaze toward the petite figure before me. She had a meager frame and a gaunt body; it felt as though anyone could knock her over with a single push.
"Ah... this..."
"Can't do it?" I questioned.
"Of course I can!" the merchant blurted out. He reached out and unlocked the shackles around her neck. "These elves, you see, their servility is buried in their bones. We've been domesticating this one since she was small. She hasn't fully grown yet—elven lifespans being what they are, as you know, guest—it wasn't easy for her to get this big. But small has its own charms~"
I listened to him quietly, feeling no empathy for his "charms."
Once the restraints were removed, the young elf, her frame trembling, walked toward me under the merchant's harsh reprimands.
She didn't say a word. She walked to my side and turned to stand beside me, never once daring to meet my eyes.
The "Do Not Disturb" pixelation mode only applied to fellow players; the native elf before me couldn't see it. To her, I appeared as an elven "big sister."
"Guest, look~ she's not running. How will you be paying? We don't accept discounts or stacked coupons here~"
"Have her cast a spell. Even if she can't complete it, I need to see that she possesses Beyonder power. Once I see it, I'll pay immediately," I continued.
"Guest, you aren't here to mess with me, are you? All these demands, you'd better buy her in the end." After this series of hoops, the merchant's temper was beginning to sour.
"If you don't show me, I'm leaving right now."
"Fine! I hope you're a person of your word." The merchant's tone lost its previous sycophancy, but he still wanted to close the deal. He looked at the little elf, his expression and voice changing instantly.
"Hurry up! Did you hear that?! Show this guest your ability! If you don't, and you get returned as a loss, you're dead tonight!"
Under the merchant's vile threats, the elf timidly reached out her hand. A clump of natural life force, so dim it was nearly invisible to the naked eye, flickered into existence. Restricted by the character's limitations and without the use of mental power to probe, I would have almost missed it if I hadn't been paying close attention.
Just as the merchant, failing to see anything, was about to lash out at the elf, I stopped him.
"Quote the price. I'll transfer the funds."
"You... yes, right away!" Hearing my directness, the merchant's face did a complete hundred-and-eighty-degree flip!
A fawning smile reclaimed the high ground!
"The total is..."
"I'll pay directly. I can't be bothered to haggle with you."
"Excellent! How generous, guest!"
As the payment window lit up before me, I ignored the long string of zeros and paid instantly.
To me, this game currency was meaningless. The game world didn't really have much in the way of inflation; for the upper echelons of the game world, currency was merely a tool to drive the lower classes to sell their labor. They had countless ways to dump excess currency into a bottomless abyss that offered no return.
Then, they would fabricate and elevate a "lucky" commoner. Once the craze of envy and hatred passed, they would toss that person back to the bottom.
Afterward, they would claim that the lower classes simply lacked vision, winning the resonance of the very people they exploited.
This was the norm of the game world.
At that moment, the merchant—who had accidentally entered an extra zero due to a trembling hand—stared at the payment notification in shock, his expression becoming even more groveling!
"Take care, Big Shot! Let's add each other as friends! We have the best supply channels here, guaranteed to have the freshest goods! We..."
No matter how the merchant called out, he couldn't bring the guest back. After his attempts proved fruitless, he happily looked at the payment and his massive commission.
He was already thinking about which game he would go to tonight to enjoy himself!
The Emerald Forest was an old game, after all, though it remained a perennial favorite.
Elves were good things, after all.
But the joys and sorrows of humans are not shared, and the same was true for humans and elves.
The little elf I had bought was still barely clothed, so I bought her a set of clothes to finish the transaction. I didn't feel any sting spending game currency.
Finally, I arrived at a guest house that looked somewhat respectable. It was built in an organic style of vines and rubble; it was hard to imagine such a building could reach eight stories.
However, the style changed completely once inside. The interior was a pure, template-style game room. It was likely done to save money, as high-end interiors cost extra, while the exterior... was probably just an architectural skin.
Under the blatant hints of the innkeeper, I bypassed the "pleasure rooms" his finger was pointing toward and tapped on the most expensive top-tier suite.
This move made the owner beam with joy, his face becoming intensely hospitable.
"Don't bother me unless it's important. Prepare two of your best meal sets. Use the unmanned delivery service. Deduct the cost yourself. It's best if the food arrives before she finishes her bath."
Leaving those words behind, I took the little elf up to the top floor, to the room that now belonged to me.
The elf, clutching several sets of her new clothes, followed me closely, not daring to fall behind by even half a step, as if being a few paces away would result in her being snatched away by someone else.
Entering the suite, I flopped casually onto a luxurious sofa. After a few seconds of rest, I opened my eyes and looked at the elf, who stood there looking lost.
"The bathroom is over there. Go wash yourself. When you're done, change into the new clothes," I said, pointing toward the bathroom.
To be honest, I was tired of this world, so my tone was naturally none too pleasant. After hitting a wall with the elves and being disgusted by the players, I felt zero psychological burden about bringing the flames of war from the Main World to this place.
As for the "innocent" people... that was an even bigger joke. If they aren't of my kind, their hearts must be different. Even among humans, there are national and familial feuds; when the races are different, any excess sympathy should be thrown into the fires of war to burn.
The blood sacrifice incident on the Blood Slave Peninsula had taught me only one thing: I wasn't ruthless enough with my methods. Otherwise, why would they still be thinking of resistance and revenge?
Humanity is the kind of thing where the more you understand it, the more you realize it deserves to perish.
After venting these stray thoughts, my mood improved considerably. Then, I saw the elf standing motionless before me.
"What? Do you not know how to wash?" I stood up, intending to walk toward her, but she clutched her clothes in terror and scurried toward the bathroom.
In her nervousness, she even took a wrong turn into an adjacent empty room.
"The bathroom is here. If you don't know how to use the facilities, I'll teach you, but you're washing yourself."