Hyper-Dimensional Player

Chapter 278 - 143: Battle of the Divine Tree! Clash of Races

The army of Dark Elves was drawing nearer.

At the forefront were Dark Elf warriors clad in heavy armor, wielding shields and war blades. They evidently struggled with the swampy jungle terrain, moving at a sluggish pace, hacking away a path.

At that moment, a Dark Elf commander at the head raised his palm, and immediately, hundreds of warriors halted in unison.

"Alchemy Potion!"

His deep voice echoed, blood-red eyes staring into the distance, seemingly locking onto the position of the Heister Divine Tree.

Gulugulu! Gulugulu!

Each Dark Elf withdrew a pre-prepared alchemy potion, one that enhanced poison resistance—a necessary precaution against the highly toxic enemies when fighting against the Sub-dragons, not to mention the numerous poisonous creatures in the vicinity.

The Heister Divine Tree slowly alters the surrounding environment, using toxins to perfect its ecosystem, ensuring its safety.

Clang!

The Dark Elf commander unsheathed his blood-colored war blade, and with his command, agile figures flitted into the darkness behind the heavily armored warriors in the front line, quickly vanishing into the dense forest.

—Dark Elf Stealth Archer (Two-Star Silver-Grey)!

—Dark Elf Hidden Archer (Three-Star Silver-Grey)!

Clearly, this was not their first war against the Sub-dragons. The vast empire needed slaves, whether they were humans, Catmen, or Sub-dragons, all considered excellent sources of slavery.

But today’s war was evidently not just for slaves. They intended to destroy an outer Heister Divine Tree surrounding the swamp.

This was akin to eradicating an outpost for the entire Sub-dragon race.

The Dark Elf heavy infantry was still pushing forward slowly, but fierce combat had already erupted in a segment of the dim primitive jungle.

On Duncan’s strategic map.

A Sub-dragon hunter, camouflaged on the trunk, cautiously raised its bow to aim, its scales merging with the tree like a chameleon. The poisoned arrow was aimed ahead, but before he could react, a sharp arrow pierced the air.

Pfft!

The Dark Elf’s arrowhead penetrated straight through its skull, and the Sub-dragon, like a dying lizard, slumped its head and tail down the trunk, slowly falling, leaving a vivid bloodstain on the bark.

Markers for the Sub-dragon jungle hunters started to vanish.

The Dark Elf hidden archers gradually emerged from their invisible state, some shooting enemies with Elf War Bows, others thrusting daggers straight into their opponents’ backs, an almost unilateral suppression.

Their equipment was just too strong!

Dark Elves were uniformly equipped with enchanted leather armor, and various potions, including invisibility potions. The first skirmish was practically a massacre.

But at this moment, the Hive Will trembled once.

In the next instant!

Almost all the lurking Sub-dragon hunters turned to look at the exposed Dark Elf units beside them.

Their minds were already united.

Their consciousness existed in a curious symbiotic state.

Thud.

From beneath the foul swamp, an agile Sub-dragon suddenly leaped out, its poisoned war blade transforming into a streak of light, toppling an exposed Dark Elf. Before she could rise to counterattack, the poison widened her pupils, and with a swift gleam, the Sub-dragon slit her throat.

—Dark Scale Assassin [Three-Star Gold]!

On Duncan’s strategic map, Dark Elf infiltrators vanished like fireworks, as stronger Sub-dragons emerged throughout the jungle, striking swiftly and retreating regardless of success.

"Guerrilla tactics? Or master level command?" Duncan appeared surprised.

The silent slaughter continued.

The entire swamp jungle transformed into a battlefield, with fetid, murky pools revealing dark brown eyes, followed by a Sub-dragon emerging, shooting a Dark Elf warrior, then leaping into the swamp river.

Crackling arcs of electricity coursed through the forest! A dense electric net formed a death arc!

Behind the Dark Elf army, over a dozen figures in magic robes appeared, both men and women, but predominantly women, chanting incantations. Flames, ice, lightning—a barrage of spells targeted the front lines.

Some Sub-dragon hunters didn’t even have a chance to act, as corpses quickly floated up in the swamp.

"Fools!"

The lead Dark Elf commander’s gaze was icily cold. He gestured behind him, and soon a scorching fireball floated in mid-air, resembling a meteor descending from the heavens.

Boom!

This meteor, roughly a meter in diameter, fell with devastating impact over an area of nearly a hundred meters ahead.

"Form ranks!"

Clashing sounds of blades and swords erupted. The foremost line of Dark Elf warriors stepped forward, raising intricately engraved blood-red rune shields, while archers formed a loose guerrilla formation at the rear, with mages in the center, conjuring flames and lightning, enveloping frost—powerful spellcasters ready to release fire and ice spells at any moment.

"Let these vile slaves understand the price of rebellion!"

As the command fell.

The entire legion of Dark Elves broke into dozens of small battle groups, warriors at the front, infiltrators spreading on both sides, archers in the rear, mages central, advancing towards the Sub-dragon settlement, in the direction of the Heister Divine Tree.

A brutal battle erupted.

Sub-dragon markers disappeared one by one! Dark Elf battle groups advanced all the way!

The Hive Will of the War Lizard Legion was gradually collapsing.

As Sub-dragon casualties mounted, the final psychic consciousness spread out in every direction.

Duncan seemed to hear something.

Giant Dragons possessed a certain level of psychic ability, capable of hearing the whispers of the Heister Divine Tree.

"Escape!..."

"Flee to the depths of the swamp... to serve other Divine Trees... to continue the Dark Scale lineage..."

At this moment, the Hive Will shattered.

The grey Skull Mark of this Heister Tree directly shattered, turning into an ordinary Three-Star Whiteboard.

Some Sub-dragon warriors continued to fight desperately, but others carried lizard eggs, fleeing deeper into the swamp without looking back.

Blood and fire engulfed the village.

The lead Dark Elf commander’s gaze was cold, crushing a lizard egg underfoot. Inside was a yet to be hatched lizard, only half humanoid in shape. He stared at the Divine Tree with icy disdain, "How presumptuous!"

"Burn it!"

"Bring back the captured slaves."

The Dark Elf Empire was destined to conquer everything!

Could a mere tree hope to stop their mighty army?

How presumptuous!

The entire Sub-dragon village soon turned into a sea of flames, and the sacred Heister Tree was incinerated and destroyed, flames spreading in all directions, but quickly extinguished by the damp environment.

Whispers of grief not heard by mortals resounded.

In an area invisible to the naked eye, hazy Sub-dragon souls appeared, gazing sorrowfully at the remnants of the Heister Tree, then flowing along the river and swamp to the deeper dark marshlands, where other Heister Divine Trees awaited to accept their restless souls.

It was then that the juvenile dragon finally moved.

Once the Dark Elf army had confirmed their retreat, Duncan guided the juvenile dragon towards the remnants of the Divine Tree. There were almost no survivors, but there were still lizard eggs whose hatching had been interrupted—marked with a unique yellow.

.........