Game of the World Tree

His next words then resounded throughout the vast elven woodland.

“Stop right here, Your Highness.”

Despite being on the opposing side, his manner maintained a high level of respect. This veneration stemmed from an inherent reverence for beings who had successfully ascended into godhood…

Every deity has mastered the natural laws of reality, making them beings who reign supreme and stand at the pinnacle of existence, especially here in the Mortal Realm of Seigües.

Therefore, such existence, whether they be enemies or not, deserve the proper respect.

Nonetheless, despite his respectful manner, there was still a small hint of arrogance within the Totem Guardian’s expression.

It was the pride of being the victor!

Normally, the very notion of confronting a true god sends shivers down their spines. Such an ordeal is practically a death warrant, and the three legendary Totem Guardians wouldn’t even think of attempting such impossible mission…not unless they were directly ordered by their Divine Father.

But things were different now.

The Withering Heart possesses the ability to seal a true god’s power, temporarily reducing the strength of a deity to that of mere mortals…

And a true god whose divine power has been sealed can, at best, only exhibit strength at the legendary level.

Henceforth…this was their only chance to slay a true god!

It was also the opportunity for the Hunter God, their Patron Deity!

The other two Totem Guardians also raised their weapons, and their expressions showed excitement as they looked at the cornered elven maiden.

After their recent chase, the trio finally had a good understanding of their opponent’s strength.

The Withering Heart had indeed successfully sealed her divine powers.

In this very moment, this mysterious newly born patron deity of the elves had truly fallen from grace, possessing only strength at the legendary-rank.

With the thought of attaining the impossible feat of slaying a god, the three legendary Totem Guardians couldn’t help but feel inexplicable joy as they envisioned their fame spreading across various realms…

Their auras continued to surge, and their gazes gradually showed a trace of hostility, with their expressions becoming more solemn.

As their emotions changed, the temperature in the surroundings also rapidly dropped, and a layer of frost began to form on the trees within the vicinity.

This was their legendary domain with a winter attribute the trio had unleashed!

At this moment, they simultaneously chose to manifest the full power of their domain, intending to strike with all their might, without holding back!

On one hand, it was out of respect for the Elven God.

While at the same time, it was also out of fear of her!

After all, despite being sealed, she is still a True God.

Beings who ascended into the pinnacle of existence can never be underestimated no matter what the circumstance is, and the totem trio fully well understood that they only got this rare opportunity by using underhand methods of sealing her divine powers.

Even if they had the upper hand, the three Totem Guardians still remained cautious.

In an instant, the three legendary totems simultaneously unleashed their domains, and a layer of frost quickly spread outward with the trio at the center.

A powerful pressure then immediately permeated the surroundings.

Feeling such terrifying pressure, even the few remaining small animals in the vicinity rapidly began to flee…

But at this time, the elven maiden who had been thoroughly silent all this time suddenly spoke.

“You scared away the animals in the forest.”

She said this without any preamble, her voice carrying an ethereal, enchanting quality tinged with solemnity and sanctity.

Upon hearing her words, the three Totem Guardians were left in stunned silence, unable to comprehend her message.

However, their bewilderment quickly intensified as they watched the elven maiden suddenly move nonchalantly, as if being surrounded by three legendary beings meant nothing to her.

“…This won’t do, this is my territory.”

She shook her head gently.

Then afterwards, the silver-haired elven maiden casually raised one of her hand as power began to visibly converge within her palm.

Seeing this scene, the three Totem Guardians’ eyes widened as their expressions changed to shock.

T-That…

That was definitely divine power!

And…she can still use it!?

Could it be that the sealing has failed!?

However, as the elven maiden gathered divine powers into her hand, the sacred radiance within her palm then only formed for a few seconds before quickly dissipating into nothingness in an instant.

What followed next was the skull mark on her forehead faintly flickering a couple of times.

For a moment, the silver-haired maiden furrowed her brow, appearing somewhat surprised.

Upon seeing this, the three Totem Guardians inwardly felt relieved.

It seemed…the seal had indeed been successful!

Yet, before they could even make a move, the elven maiden started talking to herself once more.

“Hmm…oh I get it now, the principle of this seal is to create a curse energy, that could block the source of power?”

“In other words…its essentially targeting a true god’s divinity.”

“How impressive…A true divine artifact that can seal a deity’s divinity. Even if it’s damaged, such artifact is really something remarkable. Ahh, I really want it since I don’t even have a single divine artifact for myself…”

She then studied the mark on her forehead, with her words even carrying a hint of envy.

Seeing her acting nonchalantly like this, the faces of the three Totem Guardians didn’t look very good.

Why, she actually had the leisure to care about the artifact that sealed her powers!

Despite her power being sealed and her falling into the ranks of a mere legendary being, she still acts with indifference, as if facing the three of them matters little to her.

This made the three totem guardians feel a little aggrieved and a sense of humiliation at being looked down upon…

The trio then exchanged glances, and after nodding slightly amongst each other, raised each of their weapons and charged towards the elven maiden.

However, at this moment, the elven maiden simply raised her head once more as she looked at them coldly.

“…I told you, this is my territory.”

【Stop】

She didn’t make any other movements, and just spoke that single word, as if giving a natural order.

But to their horror, the three Totem Guardians charging towards her found that, after her simple command to “stop,” they immediately lost control of their own bodies!

They still maintained the posture of charging, but…the three of them are now currently stuck in motion.

the trio at that moment experienced a sensation of being transformed into mere puppets, as if their entire bodies were ensnared by some invisible strings, compelled to move at the whims of an unseen force.

W-What was going on?

What was this all about?

Why…can’t they move at the moment?

The three Totem Guardians were shocked.

The legendary domains they had previously unleashed which had covered the surroundings in frost, had now entirely vanished. In their place, the frost was melting, and the forest’s plants were beginning to bud and turn green, as if heralding the arrival of spring.

At the same time, numerous faint little green lights then began to float aimlessly around, as divine aura continuously wafted through the forest.

In that moment, it was as if the entirety of the elven forest had transformed into a wonderland of greenery.

But for the three Totem Guardians, it was a different experience…

In an instant, they felt like they had become enemies of the entire world, and everything around them gave rise to an indescribable sense of rejection.

No, it was more like as if their very own life itself is being denied by the world!

The three Totem Guardians had a change in expression as they looked into the elven maiden’s eyes, filled with disbelief and fear…

At this moment, they finally realized…

“Ce…Celestial Domain!”

One of the Totem Guardians struggled to say the word, with his face etched with utmost fear and horror.

Likewise, the other two Totem Guardians had equally dramatic expressions of horror.

A Celestial Domain!

How could it be a Celestial Domain!

Great Father Above!

Wasn’t her powers already sealed?

How could she still use her domain!?

And as of this moment, whilst looking at the calm-looking maiden, suddenly…a hint of understanding arose within their hearts:

They had been tricked!

What they’re facing now…wasn’t her true self!

In an instant, the hearts of the three Totem Guardians shivered as a cold, foreboding sensation inexplicably gripped them…

But… since her current appearance wasn’t her true self, then where was her real body!?

To manifest a celestial domain of this magnitude… only true god’s could do that.

Now that she had unleashed her domain, and the silver-haired elven maiden before them was not her true form, but most likely just one of her incarnations…

Then, where had her real body been all this time?

No wait…

Had she, perhaps, lured the three of them here deep within the Elven Forest just so that they could appear close her real body?

Could it be that her real body… couldn’t move!?

In an instant, the thoughts within the minds of the three Totem Guardians whirled madly.

Nevertheless, they couldn’t do anything at this moment because their bodies were already being manipulated.

The three Totem Guardians hopelessly gazed in the direction of the elven maiden, and in response, she returned them an innocent look and a brief, simple wave, right before numerous vines suddenly sprouted from the ground underneath their feet.

War sacrifice!

With no hesitation nor delay, the vines immediately latched onto the bodies of the trio as the elven maiden simply looked on impassively whilst the three Totem Guardians were slowly being devoured and pulled down underground by the vines with little to no resistance.

“Devouring the power of these three legendary Totem Guardians aren’t enough to cover the cost of using a Celestial Domain.” Evé said calmly before glancing in a certain direction.

“Don’t you think so, Your Majesty, Uller?”

— 250 —

【 Outwitted 】

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