The two took to the air with ease, riding on top of the High Elf senior's flying sword. Unfortunately, Xuan had yet to craft one of his own—flying swords differed from combat swords—so although he had the Qi control and experience necessary to use a flying sword, he was stuck flying with this old fogey for now. Crafting one for himself was high up on his to-do list, however, in terms of priority.
As expected, the mont they passed a certain altitude, the traps began triggering. Lasers of flas tore out from the volcano's walls, like dragons breathing arcs of fire through the air. Thankfully, the High Elf didn't seem to have any intention of getting Xuan killed, so he easily created a barrier around the flying sword to block all the incoming blaze projectiles. This also served as a sound barrier, however, and Xuan guessed the old senior wanted to speak with him as well.
"… You are not a normal Flowing Qi stage cultivator, are you, young man?"
"I could say the sa to you, senior. Or should I say… High Elf?"
"Haha, I noticed from the very beginning that you were looking at oddly," the High Elf replied, changing his appearance with a wave of his hand. Now no longer an old man, his true beauty was revealed—a handsoness far too beautiful to be considered human. It was almost on par with Xuan's real appearance, though still a bit lacking.
"Tell . How did you discover my true identity? It is not sothing just anyone can see through. Are you from a powerful force in Elysium, perhaps? Or is it Tartarus?"
"Neither," Xuan replied, as calmly as ever. "However, it would be a lie if I said I didn't have so connection to your race."
Otherwise, there was no way he could've known what the presence of High Elf was. But he didn't intend to tell this man the full story just yet. For every piece of information he gave, he expected sothing in return.
"Oh…? Is that so?"
As expected, he took the bait.
"What are the High Elves up to?" Xuan asked, eting the man's gaze. "They don't usually ddle in the affairs of lower realms like this."
"That is true, we tend to… focus on more important matters," the man replied. "But this ti around, a certain disturbance in energy has occurred within Lower Asphodel. After so searching, we ca across this small world known as the Flaming Sands Field. But that is much as I am allowed to tell you, I'm afraid. Even if you have so connection to us, the Queen will definitely not like it if I were to tell you anything."
'The Queen? Oh, right… that lazy bum.'
The Elven Queen was also the mother of Ling'er, but the reason Xuan didn't particularly have a good impression of her was because she was a bit… unorthodox. Not only was she extraordinarily lazy, she was obsessively nagging when it ca to her daughter, to the point where the Heavenly dicine Pavilion had to prohibit all contact from the High Elves. But though that's only what most people see on the surface, Xuan knew—she was actually a very shrewd woman. The fact that this envoy was here right now was proof of that.
In other words, she wasn't actually aloof—she just acted like so.
"What if I said I am acquainted with your princess?" Xuan continued, bringing out his next card. "In fact, I have her added as a friend in my System. I can show you evidence if needed."
"That won't be necessary," the man replied with a bright smile. "It doesn't matter if you are acquainted with her Highness or not. The Queen has ordered not to reveal the details to anyone—even if the princess herself were here, my answer would be the sa."
'Hm… quite the tight lips, huh? Well, that's fine, I suppose. What he told is already enough.'
Xuan's pri purpose had just been to find out what the Elves were here for. With this info, he was certain—it was related to that 'gate'. He didn't know why they would contact the Eight Great Families for this, however… was it because they wanted to use them as a scapegoat?
"You're probably wondering why we sought out the Eight Great Families, yes?" The man suddenly said, voicing Xuan's thoughts. "Haha, I'm afraid it is not so simple as using them as a scapegoat."
Xuan raised an eyebrow. "You're saying there is another reason?"
"Yes. I wish it were that simple. However, as you surely must know, it is difficult for those from upper realms to interfere with lower realm events, normally. That is why I am the only one here, and no other High Elves are."
That was true—the World Qi of lower realms was so poor that to people who ca from higher worlds with more rich World Qi, staying for too long within an atmosphere filled with it was in fact harmful to them. The only way to bypass this was through special artifacts that were extrely rare and difficult to obtain in the higher realms, and they were used to limit one's own cultivation. If the High Elf senior were to remove that artifact here to unleash his true power, he probably wouldn't be able to live for long.
"… So, you are using them in case you aren't able to accomplish sothing yourself?"
"Due to the limitations of this lower plane of existence, yes," the Elf replied. "But of course—you are not sided with them, yes? I think the two of us can develop a mutually beneficial relationship, as long as you stay out of my business and don't do anything to spoil my plan. You share so connections to my race, so I do not wish to harm you nor that girl who calls you father. However… if you do end up interfering with my plans… I'm sure the Queen would approve of getting rid of you."
'A threat?' Xuan snorted in his mind. 'Well… I saw this coming.'
For the ti being, Xuan simply nodded. It wasn't quite ti to act just yet. He would play along a little longer—now that he had the information he needed, he could slowly formulate his course of action.
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