Chapter 518: The Fruit of Fate IV
Just as quickly as Kyle got excited, he became bored just as fast. After the second time he paused on the stairs, he let out a faint sigh, and before anyone could even blink, he vanished from his spot and appeared before the cage made of numerous thick branches.
Instantly, every single person around him fell silent and gazed at him with shock, disbelief, and bewilderment. They couldn't help but wonder if he could freakin' ascend in less than a second, then what the heck was he doing all this time!?
Kyle ignored the curses the demons hurled at him and noticed that many of the leaves on the tree's branches had begun to darken and wither, probably because of the dark energy spreading across the planet.
In the next second, the branches clustered before him began to shift, creating a small opening within the wide cage.
He narrowed his eyes at the darkness ahead and, after covering his body with ice armor to be ready for any surprises, he stepped into the opening.
The many onlookers staring at him all became quiet when his figure vanished into the cage, and they all eagerly started waiting for him to come out.
Contrary to their expectations, after a few minutes, instead of the hoodied individual, what came out from the cage were chilling blue flames that expanded to engulf the cage made of branches before the flames started to spread out to cover the entire Tree of Fate in a chilling embrace.
In an instant, the elven Queen's eyes widened with panic.
"What's happening!?"
She let out a scream.
"Stop the flames! Hurry!"
But before anyone could lunge forward to halt the chilling blue flames spreading out to encompass the whole Tree of Fate, another voice echoed in the air. It was the white-haired elven woman who has always stayed as the elven Queen's shadow. She stopped the elves with a loud shout.
"Don't! The flames aren't harming the Tree!"
Immediately, everyone paused and stared at the older woman with disbelief. However, upon closer inspection, many strong individuals noticed that the flames were indeed not harming the Tree. Instead, they were cleansing the dark energy that had corrupted the tree for many years. An elderly elf let out a shocked gasp.
"How...?"
No one could answer his question. They were too shocked by the sudden turn of events because even the elven Queen and the many supreme-rank elves together weren't able to completely cleanse the dark energy from the tree, even after exerting all their strength. So... seeing the icy flames devouring the darkness without harming the tree left them all stunned.
Samara's expression chilled at the sight.
"What is happening? How can someone from the elven race possess something so... otherworldly? These flames have a powerful allure to them, and I can sense they are no ordinary flames..."
She shouted at the demons around her because she couldn't allow this individual to live, especially since she had planned to take over the elven planet in the future. He could very well become a huge obstacle for her in the future if he survived!
"All of you, get ready! The moment that person comes out, we need to eliminate him at all costs! He can't consume the fruit of fate unprepared; he is just a divine rank individual. So, the instant he emerges, kill him and seize the fruit!"
The elven Queen's face, which had been tense for so long, finally relaxed upon witnessing how the icy flames transformed the dark energy clinging to the Tree of Fate into mere particles drifting in the air. She let out a faint smile and gestured to the elves beside her to get ready. No matter the cost, she would protect the elf inside the cage. How could she allow him to die at the hands of the demons when he held such a promising future? The icy flames alone were sufficient to deem him valuable.
"You think I will let you kill him, Samara?"
The elven Queen made a mental note to learn everything about the elf inside the cage after this crisis subsided. She faced the demons with a resolute expression, and all the floating elves gathered behind her. There was no way they would let someone who could become a strong pillar of their race in the future die.
The atmosphere grew heavy, and in the next moment, the floating demons and the elves attacked each other with loud cries. They wielded their weapons and attempted to overpower their opponents with all their might, completely unaware that the man responsible for all this chaos had already secured a means to leave the planet after striking a deal with the Tree of Fate.
A while back, after Kyle entered the cage, he was greeted by nothing but darkness. But his eyes quickly shifted to the surrounding darkness, and as he took a few slow steps forward, he noticed a small light twinkling within the dark enclosure. In an instant, his gaze focused on the fist-sized fruit that had sprouted from a leafless branch.
He rushed to grab the fruit, but a familiar barrier of spiritual energy materialized in front of his hand and prevented him from reaching the fruit. A vein throbbed on his forehead as he spoke with a cold voice.
"Are you kidding me? After luring me here, you now want to stop me from taking the very thing I came for?"
Before he could say more, the bright spiritual energy in front of him quivered slightly and formed a few words in the air. Kyle narrowed his eyes at the words.
("Help me.")
"Huh... what's this now? You can even communicate with others? Well, it's to be expected from something with its own consciousness."
There was a moment of silence before Kyle let out an exasperated breath. He couldn't believe he had to deal with all this because of a tree he could just chop into many pieces. But as he stared at the powerful fruit before him, he realized he couldn't just let it go now that he had laid his eyes on it.
"Alright, let's first hear what help you want from me when so many strong individuals are floating around you. If it's within my ability, I will assist, but even if it's not, I expect you to give me the fruit because if you don't, I'm gonna light a fire here and watch as it consumes each and every branch of yours."
After a few seconds of pause, the spiritual energy before him quivered once again to form new words.
("Help me cleanse the dark energy that has begun to consume my essence with the flames you used to turn Glacia's body into particles. In return, you can take the fruit, and I will also teleport you directly to the Sacred Divine Land. You desire to go there, correct?")
Kyle raised a brow, and a mirthful chuckle escaped his lips.
"So, you witnessed me killing that woman? I won't delve into how and why because I like the deal but... how can my flames assist you in cleansing the dark energy when they are only capable of completely obliterating whatever they touch? I have indeed learned to unfreeze things frozen by the flames with divine energy, but how will they cleanse the dark energy?"
The spiritual energy before him shifted to form some new sentences, and his eyes widened slightly as he read them.
("Your flames can consume dark energy as long as you possess sufficient control over them. I will provide your body with ample spiritual energy; all you need to do is concentrate and envelop me entirely with the flames, then gradually control them to only eradicate the darkness seeping into my body.")
Kyle's eyes narrowed with a hint of suspicion. So, everything would be resolved just like that? He would leave this planet with a powerful treasure without any issues at all... Suddenly, a smirk played on his lips.
"Aren't you afraid? What if... instead of helping you, I completely destroyed your body once my flames engulf you?"
His smile faded as the response came almost instantly.
("No, I'm not. Your flames lack the strength to harm me at this point. They are feeble because you are feeble.")
Kyle scoffed with an impassive expression. He was already strong enough to easily defeat a transcendent rank individual, so when he heard the Tree label him as weak, a bitter taste lingered in his mouth.
"Huh, let's just begin without further delay so I can leave as soon as possible."