Elf Kingdom: Game of the World Tree-Chapter 178 - 172: Exploring the Underworld
Chapter 178: Chapter 172: Exploring the Underworld
The Underworld was also known as the Dark Territory.
In the legacy of the World Tree that Eve had obtained, there wasn’t much description about the Underworld. She only knew that the history of the Underworld was not shorter than that of the surface world, and perhaps even longer.
It was said that at the very beginning, several ancient gods who were defeated during the Creation Era had delved deep underground, creating this dark world.
However, over time, these ancient gods fell one after another or degenerated into evil gods. The Underworld was gradually occupied by newly-born intelligent beings and others coming from the surface world, bringing with them the faith of True Gods.
Unlike the surface world, where kingdoms had formed, social order had been established, and wars had significantly decreased overall, the Underworld was filled with bloodshed and chaos.
Wars, conquests, declines, and collapses formed a similar cycle among the various realms of the Dark Territory.
Here, there were no formed nations, only settlements built on races or underground cities formed around particular strong individuals.
The intelligent beings here were generally more ferocious than those on the surface, and due to the presence of evil gods, the preaching of True Gods was difficult.
In the past ten thousand years, only the Netherworld, which had Plane Channels connected to the Dark Territory, saw any True God manage to take root here.
But even so, it was barely enough.
After the world’s Plane Channels closed after the thousand-year divine war, it became even more challenging for the True Gods to spread their faith.
Due to a lack of exploration and communication, for the intelligent residents of the surface world, the Underworld often only existed in legends. Even the Old Elves of the Flame Tribe, who lived for nearly a thousand years, knew little about the Underworld.
They only knew it seemed to be a dark world composed of huge caves, underground rivers, and lakes, illuminated only by glowing stones. A rich underground water system connected areas that were nearly isolated from each other.
Overall, in the cognition of intelligent races on the surface, the Underworld represented mystery, wilderness, and chaos…
Merely entering the Dark Territory and returning to tell the tales was an achievement worthy of documentation for adventurers.
And Eve only had a complete impression of the nearby Underworld after further deep interactions with the Spider Queen Rose.
The Underworld beneath Rivendell was considered a remote area of the Dark Territory.
This place was made up of a giant cave called the Deep Cave, where the primary intelligent beings were the Dark Dwarfs who migrated here nearly a thousand years ago. Besides them, numerous monsters and demon beasts inhabited the area…
After gaining deeper understanding, Eve remained deeply interested in the Underworld.
Currently, there were no threats in the Elf Forest, and the demon beasts to the north of the Elf Forest were too powerful for the current players to deal with.
Moreover, *what’s the point in continuously dealing with the demon beasts of the Elf Forest?*
It was still better to go out and fight!
Before welcoming the next counterattack of winter and Uller, the Hunting God, Eve still needed to train the players further.
The Underworld was a great choice.
The place was inherently chaotic, and its natives were ferocious, offering players a chance to revel in their freedom.
However, to prevent players from encountering accidents during exploration and to avoid conflicts with the followers of Death God Hela, Eve promptly organized some information she obtained from the Spider Queen Rose and uploaded it to the data section of the official forum.
After all… dealing with the already formidable lesser divine power Uller was enough. As for the medium divine power Hela, Eve was still somewhat intimidated.
Moreover… after using someone else’s hidden identity for so long, she felt a bit guilty.
To further stimulate the players’ enthusiasm, Eve added achievements related to exploring the Underworld.
The achievement system had actually been activated when players successfully constructed the Chosen City.
The earliest achievement system was the construction of the Novice Village. Not only did the stele in the central square record the nicknames of the three hundred players from the first test, but also they could still find their names under the “Main City Construction” achievement in the system’s achievement section.
In subsequent missions, contributors who completed major tasks would still be granted related achievements, and their deeds would be recorded in the system’s achievement section.
For example, several life-type players from the “Mengmeng Committee,” who completed the [Crop Planting] task, received related achievements, with their nicknames and deeds input into the game system. They even received the exclusive title of “Planting Expert.”
Exploring the Underworld also naturally had achievements associated with it.
As the “First Legion” guild, a frontline exploration group like the lunchbox team, they mobilized all their guild strength to enter the new map…
They wanted to achieve the first successful exploration of the Underworld!
Driven by curiosity, while players were exploring the Underworld, Eve sneakily transferred her vision to them, enjoying the local customs and landscape of the Underworld.
The entrance to Rivendell’s underground cave was merely a passageway. To officially enter the Underworld, one had to continue descending along the cave.
The players continued downward and walked about three kilometers before finally reaching the true Underworld.
Having long been accustomed to the beautiful grandeur of the Elf Forest and the miraculous magnificence of Rivendell, they were once again stunned by the sight before them…
This was a vast cave, with no end in sight.
On the cave ceiling, countless luminous stones were embedded in the rocks, emitting a faint blue glow, providing the only light to the dark Underworld, like the stars in the sky, splendid and magnificent.
In the cave, there were hills, valleys, underground rivers… and the more rugged and variable rock landscapes formed by complex geological structures.
Closest to the players was an underground forest consisting of giant dark purple fern-like plants, whose names they couldn’t figure out.
These giant ferns were also luminous, emanating tiny spots of faint purple light from their bodies. Their trunks swayed gently in the underground breeze, causing their light to flicker slightly, making them look like a dreamlike world.
Of course… if they could ignore the occasional growling of monsters from afar.
“Wow, I thought the Underworld was just a barren hole, but it truly is a world! There’s a forest here with its complete ecosystem! These underground plants look so cool!”
Seeing the view of the Underworld, a player exclaimed excitedly.
“Indeed! These ferns look beautiful. Let’s see if we can dig some up and plant them on the surface later.”
Another player wholeheartedly agreed.
“Be careful. The official data mentioned not to underestimate any creature from the Underworld. This map is full of chaos and unknowns. All species that survive here are not to be trifled with.”
The Guild Leader of the “First Legion,” Fried Tomato, said.
“Also, take note of the intelligent species like the suspicious Dark Dwarfs. From the official data, it seems they are worshipers of the Death God and are the local bosses in this area. They have the potential to become neutral or even friendly NPCs. Try not to provoke them; otherwise, the entire group could be wiped out.”
Having gone red-name once, this guy became more cautious.
Subsequent similar incidents proved that even though the red-name mechanism in “Elf Kingdom” had levels, it was also strict.
He got off lightly then, with only a few contribution points deducted.
The world was big, and there were all kinds of birds. Besides him, other players had challenged the rules later, but they all received varying degrees of punishment.
Moreover, as player levels increased, these punishments escalated exponentially.
A high-level player once had a conflict with another player after a wild battle. Instead of consuming contribution points to activate PK mode, he just attacked. The red-name mechanism was immediately activated, and after the system warning went unheeded, he killed the other player. He was subsequently banned for three days by the game officials, almost bankrupting his accumulated wealth.
Three days… which equaled twelve days in the game, during which a lot could be done.
The game’s quick ban policy was often complained about on the official website by the players.
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Many felt, *is it necessary just for killing someone? It’s just a game…*
Of course, the official website did not respond. Anyway, the attitude was to play if you wished, or leave if you didn’t.
With so many players waiting for the public test on the internet, Eve really wasn’t short of one or two players; if someone left or was driven away, they could just add more players.
She needed obedient fighters, not troublemakers. “Elf Kingdom” existed not to make money or ensure players’ enjoyment but to motivate players to work.
In the end, the players had no choice but to comply once more…
*After all, “Elf Kingdom” was truly unique.*
The officials were capricious, but they had the conditions for it…
Over time, the players just came to terms with it. “Elf Kingdom” wasn’t a place for recklessness, unless one was prepared for severe punishment or account deletion!
Just like the chicken at the entrance of Streamwood Town in the classic game scroll, few old players dared to mess with it… except those seeking the thrill of becoming enemies with the world.
Of course, if any player really dared to stir up trouble, Eve would ensure they understood why the flower was so red this way.
Listening to Fried Tomato’s reminder, the other players nodded.
Soon, they witnessed a shocking scene.
A small demon beast, resembling a mouse, suddenly dashed out from a rocky path nearby and accidentally fell into the forest.
The beautiful fern-like plants immediately extended their dimly glowing purple “tentacles,” wrapping around it.
The small demon beast struggled only for a moment before becoming motionless, quickly turning into a puddle of sticky liquid absorbed by the ferns.
Players: …
“Oh crap!”
“Oh crap!!”
“Indeed… beautiful things often have thorns…”
Fried Tomato also looked serious. He thought for a moment and said,
“Let’s bypass this forest and explore deeper. We should be able to find traces of the Underground Demonic Beasts.”
With that, he led the team onto another rocky path.
That was where the mouse-like demon beast emerged from. If there was a living creature, it meant the path was open.
After taking a few steps, he couldn’t help but look around.
For some reason, after entering this underground cave, he always had a feeling of being watched. But after looking around, he saw nothing.
“Could it be an illusion?”
He shook his head and continued leading the team forward…
