Chapter 685: Act 45 – The Growth of Valhalla (Part 1)
Half a month had passed since the princess’s messenger returned with news from Lantonrand. The month of the Scrolls was an important time for the people of Bud in the silver city-state; during this month, the White Tower would toll its bells, announcing the arrival of the month dedicated to knowledge and wisdom. Wizards would publicly test their students either in the Gata or at the White Marble Square in Neichdi, creating a tense yet orderly atmosphere throughout the entire silver city-state.
However, for Erluin, a peasant far away in the countryside of Duke Toniger’s domain, it was merely a month that was becoming increasingly hot. The crops in the fields began to sprout leaves, and the colors of the Cold Fir Territory seemed to transform into a pleasing shade of green— even as astrologers and scholars from places like Bruglas and Ampere Seale debated whether the month of July should be linked with human logic within the systems of Vaunte. Their supporters and opponents argued passionately, but in truth, it had little relevance to the production and lives of most people in this kingdom.
People simply followed the cycles of time, observing the patterns of life, the rising and setting of the sun; nothing more.
The tension between the princess’s domain and Rendener had become increasingly evident. The impending war gradually made its way to dinner tables and became the most popular topic during meals.
While the Lord Earl had remained silent about this, everyone knew that their lord firmly stood on the side of Princess Grifian. It was well known that the lord was a young man, and the princess’s beauty had already spread throughout the realm, even reaching the ears of those from Cruz. In private, some of the people south of Mintai, and even those from the region of Vlada, speculated about the relationship between Brendel and Princess Grifian.
Of course, the most popular rumors among the people involved knights and princesses, earls and their noble lovers. Moreover, the battle at Ampere Seale resembled a plot from a knight novel— Brendel himself was unclear why the story of him leading a group of vassals to Ampere Seale alone had spread, but in any case, most people preferred to believe it.
As a result, lately, those around the princess had been looking at him strangely. Princess Grifian even occasionally brought up these rumors and blushed slightly, reducing her meetings with him, much to Brendel’s annoyance.
Fortunately, Romaine did not seem to be jealous at all; instead, she listened to the bard’s version of Brendel’s ‘knightly deeds’ multiple times. Every time she heard the part about the “Earl meeting the princess at night,” she could not help but appear particularly curious.
“Lord, the growth of the World Tree Fortress has exceeded our expectations. A month after you left the territory, we constructed the Moon Tower. With the magical transfer provided by the Moon Tower, the teleportation energy of the Light Vortex has increased to ten times, twenty times, thirty times… up to fifty times by the month of Summer Mist. Currently, my people have grown to one hundred, two hundred, three hundred, and ten, twenty… three hundred sixty-seven.”
Monica’s clear voice interrupted Brendel’s thoughts. He paused for a moment, raised his head to look at the treetops above.
The development of Valhalla was even better than anticipated; the enormous shade of the tree had more than doubled since the last time he left. The palm-sized leaves layered together formed a shade like a piece of jade, warm sunlight permeating through them dyed the edges of the leaves a comforting bright yellow. Brendel sat on the steps outside the town hall, listening to Monica monotonously recite her report—though the report was concise and detailed, her tedious counting method was difficult to correct. Fortunately, after enduring a period of this toilsome counting, Brendel gradually adapted to her naturally naïve way of numbering, and he couldn’t help but admire humanity’s strong ability to adapt.
He lifted his gaze to the moon-white spire above the crown of the tree, the slender tower piercing through the thick layers of shade, covered in climbing vines, with wooden-framed windows placed at regular intervals, giving the tall edifice a unique natural charm.
At the top of the tower stood a crescent-shaped resonance crystal, glimmering with fluorescence, proving that it was currently operational. This was Valhalla’s Moon Tower, situated at the other end of the square. Brendel withdrew his gaze; the area of the square between the town hall and the Moon Tower was no longer the mere hundred meters in diameter he remembered from his first visit, but had grown to over three times that size.
Moreover, since his last visit, there was a fountain added to the center of the square. The fountain showed no signs of artificial carving, appearing as if it had sprouted from the trunk below, surrounded by mushrooms. At the center stood a statue of a maiden, which Brendel recognized as a symbol of the Goddess of Spring.
According to Monica, this statue was a bonus structure for Valhalla, but its practical effects were quite significant. The entire fountain emitted a weak magical aura, capable of replenishing magic for all Valhalla-sanctioned beings and constructs within a hundred meters. Although the effect of this magic aura was very weak, its other function was one that Brendel valued greatly.
Meditating near this fountain would yield double the effectiveness. This was incredible news for cultivating wizards, meaning that apprentice wizards practicing spells beside the fountain could master new magic in half the time.
In fact, Charles had already discovered this benefit long ago. Brendel noticed many apprentices dressed in solid-colored robes casting spells like “Magic Sphere” and “Fire Arrow” around the square. Some even formed two groups to engage in mock battles, making the scene in the square resemble a display of fireworks, quite pleasing to the eye.
“However, since last month, Lord Charles has revoked the permissions for the Moon Tower. Therefore, the teleportation frequency of the Light Vortex has returned to its original level—” Monica finally finished counting, floating like a small ball of light before Brendel and continued, “In accordance with your orders, my lord, we have elevated Valhalla to levels one, two… and three; at the same time, the Tree Nests for defense have also been constructed. One, two, three… twenty-seven have fully grown, while another one, two, three… forty-three are still maturing.”
She flew to one side, adding, “My lord, you can look this way.”
Brendel swiped away the translucent lord interface floating in front of him, where the soporific data made his head ache. He looked up and saw some bulbous structures resembling tree knots growing on the tree trunks extending outward from the square, while some roots of ancient trees, thick as ancient trunks, twisted around these bulges.
Just as he turned his gaze in that direction, some pale green text appeared in succession on the roots wound around the tree trunks, reading:
Ancient Tree Roots, Parasitic Plant, Life: 40, Intelligence —, Will —, Perception —, Strength 22, Agility 20, Constitution 25.
These ancient tree roots alone were about on par with black iron peak standards, but he wondered how strong their practical combat capabilities were. Brendel couldn’t help but glance over at the other side, where Haruz was dressed in knight training attire, grappling with one of the roots; however, his swordsmanship was quite pitiful. Just then, a vine suddenly swept horizontally across the ground, sending the shy and cute Prince Younger tumbling onto the ground.
Watching the young boy clutching his red forehead with a tearful expression as he got up, Brendel couldn’t help but sigh in exasperation.
“As long as you defeat this root, you can take a break, Your Highness,” he interrupted Monica, calling out.
“I-I understand, teacher.” Prince Younger looked grateful, only to be unexpectedly knocked down again by another whip-like vine striking him against the wall of the square.
Brendel rubbed his forehead, wondering if he misread the situation. He sighed, “You may continue, Monica.”
According to Monica’s previous report, each Tree Nest could harbor ten such roots, and after all seventy nests were completed, Valhalla would possess around seven or eight hundred of these roots. That would be equivalent to the combat strength of seven or eight hundred of Erluin’s White Lion army or perhaps the elite soldiers of the Black Blade Legion.
Brendel knew that this was merely a comparison of strength; one should not overlook how much more coordinated the roots, unified under the command of the World Tree Fortress, would be in tactical cooperation than human soldiers.
“My lord, after the World Tree Fortress reaches level two, a new type of defensive structure, the Elf Archer Tower, has been added to the outer wall of the square and the lower second-tier walkway. Since it has not received authorization, it requires your personal judgment on whether to construct it,” Monica replied.
As she spoke, several Light Spirits fluttered around her, each greeting this designated clan leader chosen by Brendel. To Brendel, these Light Spirits dancing around the World Tree looked like countless fireflies, adding a touch of magic to the immense canopy.
“Elf Archer Tower?” Brendel inquired, “That sounds like a defensive facility invented by Silver Elves. The top layer of the Elf Archer Tower can accommodate three rooms for archers, with eight shooting apertures facing various directions, and the rooms contain frost and flame magic arrays to easily enchant the archers’ arrows—”
“Below the Archer Tower, there is an ammunition room and a level for crossbows, capable of housing two elven crossbows, am I correct?” he asked, tilting his head.
“My lord, you’re so impressive!” Monica exclaimed, her eyes widening in surprise. “That’s nearly correct, but there is one small detail wrong. The Silver Elf’s Elf Archer Tower was actually derived from the holy spires of the Light lineage; Valhalla’s Archer Tower is also based on this, though it differs slightly from the Silver Elf’s design, yet both exist in parallel.”
The Light Spirit girl proudly answered.
“Can I see the data first?” Brendel asked.
“Of course, my lord.”
Monica flew directly into the town hall and pulled out a long, detailed blueprint from inside. Brendel took one glance at the densely printed blueprint and couldn’t help but shake his head. In fact, he didn’t need it at all, as a light screen had already appeared in front of him when Monica said “Of course.”
The light screen displayed a three-dimensional model of the Elf Archer Tower, annotating various aspects of its data.
First, there were three archer rooms nearly identical to those in the Silver Elf Archer Tower, with eight shooting apertures and two magic arrays clearly visible. Below it was the ammunition room, where arrows and crossbow bolts could be transported to the upper archer rooms through a magical transfer; however, the lower crossbow room differed slightly from Brendel’s recollection of the Silver Elf’s Archer Tower.
Judging from the model, this Elf Archer Tower could only accommodate one crossbow, but the personnel configuration noted an allocation for a magic apprentice.
“Enchanted crossbow!” Brendel pretended to hold the blueprint, quickly realizing the implications.
“Truly, my lord,” Monica expressed in admiration.
“This is an ingenious design,” Brendel remarked. However, he silently concluded that Valhalla’s Elf Archer Tower would probably not outshine that of the Silver Elves. The enhancement in lethality from a single enchanted crossbow compared to two ordinary crossbows was relatively limited, yet having a magic apprentice assigned to one crossbow felt slightly extravagant.
He pondered for a moment and began to understand why Valhalla’s settings seemed designed largely for the cultivation of wizards. It now appeared that this territory might truly be a legendary advanced magical territory.
Such a territory was undoubtedly powerful, but the accompanying cultivation costs were clearly staggering.
Valhalla’s Elf Archer Tower offered front-line defenses equivalent to those of the Silver Elves, with slightly weaker side defenses but a certain degree of self-repair capability—overall, each had its strengths. Compared to the regular earthen and stone arrow towers of humans, this high-magic tower was naturally on a different level altogether.
Overall, Brendel was very satisfied. Once Valhalla possessed such a defensive facility, the overall defensive power of the territory could almost be said to have multiplied. He promptly decided, “Such towers will require a magic pool to support them, right?”
Monica nodded, “But it won’t be that wasteful; the magic converted from the crystal pool is sufficient to maintain the operation of these towers. One crystal pool can supply one, two, three… or even forty Elf Archer Towers. Moreover, according to your request, the crystal pool was completed three months ago.”
“How many of these towers do you think we need, Monica?”
“If building on the top square, currently only eight towers are needed to cover all areas. For the second-tier walkway, twenty towers are needed. If built in the lower Root City, we might require seventy or even more; additionally, if you choose the last option, it will take significant time since Lord Odum is busy constructing a wall there—”
Monica mentioned the outer walkway, which was actually a layer surrounding the trunk of the World Tree. The entire World Tree would eventually form three levels once fully matured; the central square, with a diameter of five hundred meters, served as the highest and most crucial area, with nearly all functional buildings surrounding this vast square.
Descending from the square, approximately thirty meters down, was a fifty-meter wide circular walkway winding around the World Tree, comprising two layers. The lower walkway connected to the upper one, while the upper walkway, adjacent to the tree walls, linked to the hollow internal hall of the World Tree.
Beyond the two walkways lay a wide area formed by the numerous roots of Valhalla anchoring into the ground. This area was uneven, roughly two to three thousand meters in diameter, featuring many flat spaces interconnected by roots as wide as roads, making up the lower city of Valhalla.
However, there were no simple paths in the lower city; rather, a descendant of a runic dwarf had a sudden whim to construct an artificial fortress in this area.
This was the first time Brendel heard of this idea, and he couldn’t help but sit up and ask, “Is Odum planning to build a wall in the lower city? Wait, is he insane? What if Valhalla expands further?”
“My lord, once the core area of Valhalla reaches its current diameter, it will stabilize for a period. Besides, the World Tree Fortress does not grow endlessly,” Monica replied.
“What about the future?” Brendel still found it hard to believe. He recalled that the last time, the guy mentioned building an ‘invincible city’ without doors, and he should have sensed something was amiss. It was astonishing that Odum was being even more reckless this time.
But Monica evidently had a different perspective: “My lord, the World Tree Fortress is a magical territory. Perhaps you have yet to experience its wondrous nature, but you need not worry; even if it continues to expand in the future, it won’t affect the old city in the slightest. At worst, you can just expand the lower city again.”
“Really?” Brendel frowned. In terms of territory, he had never seen a territory of Valhalla’s level; even the commonly available magical territories for players were unfamiliar to him. In this regard, he remained an unabashed novice.
“Of course! If every time Valhalla expands, the entire territory has to be overturned and rebuilt, how can such a World Tree Fortress be regarded as the strongest fortress from the era before?” Monica replied proudly.
“The strongest fortress?” Brendel keenly caught this descriptor. He initially thought this somewhat naïve Light Spirit was boasting, but to his surprise, after hearing his question, Monica nodded seriously and remarked, “My lord, you must be unaware of this territory’s origins. Once you understand why it was constructed, you will realize that what Monica said is not false.”
“What is its origin?” Brendel narrowed his eyes, curious.
Monica seemed momentarily stunned before changing her tone to respond in a mechanical manner: “The Hall of Heroes Valhalla, the Golden Palace Asgard, the Utopia Avalon, and the fortresses Altras I, II, III, IV, and V were originally copies of the Babel Fortress. After the War of Dusk, they were activated in succession. However, as far as I know, the Golden Palace Asgard and Utopia Avalon have both been completely destroyed; Valhalla is left with only one backup, and Altras has vanished without a trace.”
“But as the copy of the final battleground Babel, even though it is just a backup, the surviving Valhalla already symbolizes the pinnacle achievement of civilization from that era.” (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please consider voting for it on Qidian.com; your support is my greatest motivation.)
