"They originally planned to offer me to the sect leader's holy maiden, Vanya, as a small servant and plaything. But Vanya noticed that my physique seemed to match something she needed, so she didn't touch me. She only made me take a secret medicine and your blood, and I ended up carrying your child."
He lowered his eyes and looked at his swollen pregnant belly, gently caressed it, then raised his gaze to Elara. "There are others in the Lianhuang Sect who went through the same thing as me. They were all forced to carry your child, just like me, you…"
Elijah spoke, and his calm eyes suddenly rippled like water, filled with hatred. His snow-like eyes stared at Elara.
"The Lianhuang Sect wants to harm you. I don't know how the contract between you and me was formed, but it's been urging me to come and save you. I also want to use your power to one day escape from the Lianhuang Sect, so when I overheard Vanya and the others conspiring, I came to find you."
Elijah looked at Elara, exposing all his inner thoughts and plans. "I want to rely on your strength to regain my freedom. But this child…"
He gently stroked the edge of his belly that was slightly moving with the baby inside. "I don't hate this child, and I won't blame him. He's been with me every moment over the past few months. I'll give birth to him, but I won't give him to you. He's my child. After everything ends, I'll take him away and raise him on my own."
After understanding the situation inside the Lianhuang Sect, and what Vanya did with her blood without her knowledge, Elara stayed silent for a long time, then agreed to Elijah's request.
She promised that once the battle was over, she would take him back to the Plumera Kingdom, away from the Lianhuang Sect's control, and let him live freely as an ordinary citizen. She also said she would not fight him over the right to raise the child.
When they finally reached the end of the secret passage and Elijah was being escorted into Bluestar City by the elite troops, he took out a bell-like object from his sleeve and handed it to Elara.
"This is the puppet bell. In the future, if you destroy the Lianhuang Sect, the men inside who were forced to carry your children by Vanya will cause this bell to ring slightly when they're near."
"If you can, please try to save them too. They're pitiful people."
In the original mountain forest,
The army of more than 300,000 did not find their target, the one they were supposed to eliminate. Unwilling to give up, they searched for a while longer before reluctantly retreating.
Not long after they withdrew, several figures suddenly descended like drifting wind onto the battlefield where Elara had just fought. Their long silver-white hair and fine white robes made them appear like ethereal immortals.
The man leading them even had pure snow-white eyelashes and pupils. He was tall and elegant, with an air of otherworldliness, beautiful and radiant like a spirit born of snow.
He slowly blinked his thick white lashes and looked around with his clear, see-through eyes.
In that instant, a faint, illusory reflection seemed to flicker in his eyes, like time flowing backward.
A few seconds later, he closed his eyes, and the phantom vanished from his gaze.
"Too late…" His voice was light and pleasant like a snow spirit in the mountains. His hand, pale as jade, slowly emerged from his sleeve, and with a touch of his fingers, tiny golden lights scattered like fireflies, covering all traces of battle around him.
"Go, erase all her presence and tracks."
Several other disciples behind him, just as ethereal, responded and began casting spells with raised hands.
Once everything was cleaned up, he took out a semi-transparent white jade plate from his sleeve. In its center was a water mirror. The mirror's surface shimmered, revealing a figure.
The snow-white spirit asked the figure in the mirror, "How is Yuancheng Island?"
"The Golden Spirit Envoy has been guarding the rift and all is safe for now."
The water's surface rippled slightly, reflecting a tall figure with golden hair and golden eyes.
The snow-white spirit glanced at it, said nothing more, and added, "Time is running out. Have everyone prepare."
"Yes."
"Yes."
Elara faced danger in the Northern Frontier, but Prince Yu in the south did not encounter the same. The few Blood Garment Tower troops sent to stir trouble in the south were all dealt with directly by Prince Yu.
With Elara and Prince Yu guarding the north and south, Prince Leland led the allied army of the three countries stationed at Bluestar City, standing firm against the five-nation siege. Gerbera Kingdom also blocked the united attack geographically and promised to take action if needed.
For the next month, Prince Leland held off the five-nation siege. Not only did they resist, but they even pushed south and took several cities from the weakest of the five, a second-class junior kingdom. This bold move humiliated the alliance and expanded Gladiolus Kingdom's territory in the Central Continent.
Elara thought that such a blow would provoke the alliance into an even fiercer attack. But to her surprise, only the invaded second-class kingdom fought back aggressively for a month, and when they achieved nothing, they simply gave up.
The alliance's strength weakened and showed signs of falling apart.
Just as Elara and the others planned to send spies into those countries, word came from Gerbera Kingdom. The Divine Servant Palace had recently been spotted in the area investigating matters related to the Dark Sky Hall and discovered that several countries, including the five second-class allies, were secretly involved with the Dark Sky Hall.
The Dark Sky Hall was known as a demonic cult and public enemy of the continent. It once caused chaos and destruction across the land, leading to countless deaths and the collapse of many powers.
Now that it had resurfaced, any sign of it would be reported to the Divine Servant Palace, which would immediately begin a purge.
Any country connected to it was thoroughly investigated and dealt with.
In the alliance, many powerful officials and noble families were implicated and punished. This caused internal unrest in the five countries, leaving them with no energy to continue fighting Prince Leland. Some even withdrew their troops on their own.
With the intervention of the Divine Servant Palace, Gladiolus Kingdom's crisis was resolved in advance. The five-nation alliance disbanded, each returning to its place. The plans of Lianhuang Sect and Blood Garment Tower also failed, while Gladiolus Kingdom further rooted itself in the east and gained a good reputation for resisting the siege.
Elara and Prince Yu accomplished their mission on this trip.
At this point, it had been over two months since Elara left Plumera Kingdom. The two ships she had sent out from Yan Sea City before departure had each entered the eastern and southern seas.
The merchant ship heading east had traded all along the coast, officially opening Plumera Kingdom's first maritime trade route.
The southern exploration warship constantly sent messages back using the "Sound Transmitter" to Elara and officials in the Commerce Ministry who were recording maritime data. Elara had given them two transmitters before they left.
So far, they had discovered dozens of rich islands in the southern sea and were now heading toward an even larger island further south.
Listening to their reports, Elara felt eager to return and see the potential of the southern sea for expansion.
Once she confirmed there were no more problems in Prince Leland's area, she and Prince Yu decided not to stay longer. After informing Gerbera Empress, who also planned to visit Leif with them, the three parties began preparing to leave.
After finishing the war and solving a major problem, Prince Leland didn't want them to leave so soon. At the celebration feast, he asked if they wanted a city in the Central Continent. After all, their help was crucial in Gladiolus Kingdom's success. He knew they deserved such a reward.
Prince Leland also said they could appoint officials to govern remotely. Gladiolus Kingdom would protect the city and defend it if needed.
This arrangement removed any worries about security.
Previously, if Elara wanted to sell goods from Plumera Kingdom to the Central Continent, she had to take the long route through Lianyi Tower. If she could own a city there, it would be a permanent base. Her goods could be delivered directly into major powers of the Central Continent.
As for travel safety and managing a distant city, the commercial route could follow "Plumera Kingdom - Dahlia Kingdom - Gladiolus Kingdom".
That way, most of the route would stay within the borders of friendly nations, making it much safer.
For management, Elara still had a Level-One Teleportation Gate from the "Divine Ruins" that could send people anywhere regardless of distance.
If needed, she could place a teleportation gate there for easy management. But for now, she felt it wasn't worth using it for just one city.
Prince Yu shared the same idea. They each chose a city in the Central Continent to serve as their future gateway and starting point.
Once everything was confirmed, Elara and Prince Yu officially prepared for the return journey.