The Appearance of the Divine Chosen

Following Kalin in was the Elf Goddess —or rather, her physical body, which wasn't wrong. The existence of the Divine Chosen was precisely to make it easier and safer for gods to descend into the Prime Material Plane; it wouldn't be wrong to call them divine bodies with their own consciousness. Of course, from a human rights perspective, this would naturally create many problems, but unfortunately, there were no universal human rights concepts circulating among Li Lin and the gods in this world.

They won't fight for their rights unless they know they have them.

"Hello, Arcane Mage."

The Divine Chosen bowed slightly, performing a solemn gesture that the Li Lin race only used when interacting with those in higher positions.

Thank you so much for arriving in time.

"It's nothing, this was part of my plan."

After fiddling with the nautical chart on the table, Li Lin gestured for Angela to remain quiet. He didn't need the little one's intelligence and sharp words for the time being when negotiating with the elf.

"May I have your name?"

"I have no name."

The Divine Chosen shook her head. This wasn't surprising. An existence like her was probably unique among the elves, especially since she was a "descended body" reserved for the Elf Goddess. According to the elves' understanding, she could only be addressed as "Your Majesty the Elf Goddess." In ordinary times, she would be respectfully addressed as "Your Divine Chosen One." This was the fate of the Divine Chosen. From birth, they never possessed anything that represented their existence, until their death.

"Then... never mind."

Li Lin opened his mouth, instinctively intending to give her a name, but ultimately abandoned the idea. In the past, when the elves sent their Divine Chosen to Li Lin, he would give Divine Chosen random names for convenience. After all, Arcane Mage were beings equal to gods, and it was impossible to call them "Divine Chosen One" all the time. However, Li Lin ultimately dismissed the idea. He had first seen this Divine Chosen in the ruins of the imperial capital, and she had been responsible for the appearances of the Elf Goddess these past few times, so the goddess hadn't yet shown any intention of giving her to him. Since she wasn't his, there was no need to waste brain cells; respecting the traditions of other races was best.

"Then, Her Majesty the Goddess must have told you about your mission."

"Certainly."

The Divine Chosen answered calmly, lowering her head slightly. Her once holy and beautiful face became somewhat solemn and uneasy—this was the manifestation of the will of her original body.

"Her Majesty the Goddess has commanded me to assist you in accomplishing everything you desire, and has also placed all these spirits under your command and control."

"Are they willing to listen?"

Li Lin raised an eyebrow and went straight to the point.

"Her Majesty the Goddess has issued a divine decree: if they do not obey your command, then Her Majesty the Goddess will withdraw her ever-gentle attention and protection."

That's a blatant threat.

Li Lin's lips twitched. In the Underdark, the Elf Goddess had done the same thing when she ordered her daughters to protect the Dark Elf matriarchs and priests to help them maintain their positions. It seemed that the usually gentle and composed Elf Goddess had become accustomed to such tricks. However, considering the serious problems facing the Elven race, her actions didn't seem to violate the treaty.

Arcane Mage and gods have always maintained this relationship. The gods naturally need the help of Arcane Mage, while the Arcane Mage carefully observe the gods' every move to prevent any from causing trouble. Especially with gods whose concepts are fixed, if they make decisions or adopt strategies inconsistent with their divine duties, it's hard to say whether the Arcane Mage will maintain a good cooperative relationship. After all, gods who deviate from their duties don't live long; if they can't compensate in time, they might soon become useless, and their divine positions might be usurped by others. This is the tragedy of gods—half personality, half rule. If the rules were absolute... Then there would be no deviation in behavior; if it were an absolute personality, it wouldn't become a god. This hybrid also indicates that while gods are bound by rules, they can also betray those rules due to their own will. The consequences of such actions are very severe. Previously in the Underdark, because the opponents were Dark Elf, the Elf Goddess's actions weren't too excessive. But now these are her own subjects; it's a bit strange to do the same. Elves aren't Dark Elf. They are devout in their faith in the goddess and don't have the same clear-cut sense of self-interest as Dark Elf. For the Elf Goddess to treat her own subjects this way makes it hard not to Li Lin.

Under normal circumstances, Li Lin probably wouldn't be so sensitive, but after all, the Elf Goddess and the Spider Goddess fought a great battle, with Li Lin killing the other and taking the Dark Elf. Li Lin had neither the interest nor the opportunity to observe battles at the divine level, so he naturally didn't know what impact it might have. Moreover, the Spider Goddess was in charge of conspiracies and the like, so it was hard to say whether this would affect the Elf Goddess. After all, a thousand years ago, there was a story of a Goddess of Wealth who disappeared for a long time and then became an accomplice and concubine of the Abyss Demons.

However, after carefully observing the starlight in the Divine Chosen's eyes, Li Lin did not find any changes. This meant that the Elf Goddess's decision, at least for now, was in line with her identity and divine duty. Therefore, Li Lin decided not to inquire about it for the time being.

"Then, report the details. How many of you are there, and what kind of people are they?"

"Reporting to the Arcane Mage, there are a total of 725 elves, including myself. There are 30 priests, 350 warriors, and..."

725...

Li Lin didn't hear the Divine Chosen's subsequent report. He just glared coldly at Kalin. Even if it was the goddess's order, she actually dared to buy so much, almost a thousand? Didn't this girl know when to stop? Why didn't she just buy a mercenary army? Facing Li Lin's angry gaze, Kalin shrugged, spread her hands, and made a gesture of "it has nothing to do with me," then winked and turned to leave the room.

"Sir, is there a problem?"

Just then, the Divine Chosen finished reporting and quietly raised his head to look at Li Lin.

"I assume you have experience handling boats."

Li Lin glanced at Angela. Since Li Lin didn't need her help, the little one had already run off to look at the sea view, seemingly ignoring their conversation. Of course, considering they were speaking Elvish, another possibility might be more likely.

"Of course, sir. My sisters are all skilled sailors. Many of them have spent years patrolling and observing the sea to protect the Holy Island."

"Then, the ship is yours."

As Li Lin spoke, he pushed the nautical chart in his hand over as well.

"We're heading to this place. Hopefully, your elves' proud seafaring skills won't cause any problems."

The Divine Chosen respectfully and methodically accepted the nautical chart that Li Lin pushed towards her. She quietly gazed at it, observing the parts marked by Li Lin and the map, and then frowned.

Booty Bay?

"You know that place?"

Li Lin asked with some curiosity, while the Divine Chosen hesitated slightly before finally giving an answer.

"Yes, it's rumored that the treasure left behind by the Pirate King is there, and many of my sisters were forced to sail there because of this legend—of course, none of them came out alive."

Although it's unknown whether the so-called "Pirate King's Treasure" and "Grand Line" are true or false, Booty Bay does seem to be a very dangerous place.

The information Li Lin realize the situation was somewhat complicated. Unlike the other Seven Ring Spirit Envoys from the Book of the Rings, Suoxiate was completely devoid of combat abilities. After all, she was created to assist him, not to be used for attack. Therefore, Li Lin had essentially erased all of her offensive capabilities. Similarly, she lacked the strong self-protection abilities of Nia or Kalin. In short, she was the only one among the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys, even when sealed away, should not pose any danger.

But now it seems things have changed. Someone's prophetic spell has confirmed that Suoxiate is in Booty Bay, so Li Lin has no choice but to go there and see what exactly happened.

That's our destination.

Li Lin made his decision, then cast a curious glance at the Divine Chosen's back before speaking in the Common Tongue.

Who is this young lady?

As he spoke, Li Lin raised his chin and pointed behind the Divine Chosen, where a little elven girl stood. She appeared to be about the same age as Angela. However, before leaving, Kalin had given her a wink. In other words, the Elf Goddess had gone to such lengths for this little girl.

She is my maid.

The Divine Chosen remained calm and answered without any expression.

"Maid?"

Li Lin fell into deep thought, and just then, Angela, who already understood his thoughts, spoke up with a cold smile.

"Since you are a maid, how about I borrow you for a couple of days?"

"Why?"

Before the Divine Chosen could react, the little girl behind her was startled. She instinctively met Angela's blood-red eyes and took two steps back, letting out a small scream. Angela, on the other hand, wore a strange smile, then walked to the side and casually kicked the two desiccated corpses.

"As you can see, there's a problem with the slaves who were supposed to serve me, and they're temporarily unavailable. So, I hope there won't be any problem with me borrowing one from you temporarily?"

"I'm so sorry, Angela."

The Divine Chosen remained unmoved by Angela's presence.

"She is my maid, so she cannot serve you... If you would like, I can choose a few maids for you, what do you think?"

Although her expression didn't change, it seemed she was determined not to hand the little girl over.

"Hmph, then forget it."

Angela snorted coldly. Li Lin coughed at the opportune moment, interrupting their conversation.

"So, it's decided then. How long will it take the Divine Chosen to reach their destination?"

"Based on the current wind direction and current speed, it will probably take three to four days."

Are we adequately stocked with food?

"Her Majesty the Goddess has prepared enough food for us."

"Then, there's no problem."

Li Lin shrugged, indicating the end of the conversation. The Divine Chosen stood up quietly, bowed slightly to Li Lin, and then turned to leave. Just as she reached the door, Angela stared at her back and suddenly asked again.

"Hey, elves, if you're so free, wouldn't it be alright to prepare some food for me?"

"Of course, Miss Angela."

The Divine Chosen was somewhat curious, but nodded in response. After receiving an affirmative reply, the little fellow revealed a sly smile.

"Then, I need a young and beautiful virgin for dinner. I hope you can bring her to my room when the sun goes down—don't worry, I won't eat her flesh, I just need to ingest a little bit of her blood."

It's unclear what the Divine Chosen was thinking after hearing Angela's request, but at least her expression remained unchanged. She simply bowed slightly, then turned and left the room.

"Hmph, they're nothing but soulless puppets, nothing more than puppets."

Watching the two leave, Angela said with a cold laugh.

"Even being a puppet isn't so easy."

Li Lin rubbed his forehead.

"Angela? Well then, the rest is up to you. Just don't cause any deaths, okay?"

"Please rest assured, Master."

Angela stood in front of Li Lin with a charming smile, lifted her skirt, and gave Li Lin a ladylike curtsy.

"Unlike that useless 'thing' Kalin, I will definitely bring you clear information."