Eve decided to accept Ouros’ ‘gift.’

How could she not when Ouros, the demigod, had practically given up everything in a desperate gambit to reawaken the World Tree.

But from her perspective, Ouros plan had ultimately failed.

Judging by this demi-realm’s condition, it seems like it could not endure the reawakening of a true deity.

In the process of him drawing upon its life force, this demi-realm gradually depleted its own reserves, which hurtled it toward destruction.

Had Eve not arrived, Ouros would almost certainly have perished alongside the crumbling demi-realm.

Yet, in his desperation, Ouros had actually succeeded in one crucial aspect:

That is, Eve’s timely arrival ensured that everything was preserved before the realm inevitably collapsed.

Ouros’ final gift now served as a vital source of energy for her.

With it, she could grow even stronger, so from this perspective, Ouros efforts, though costly, were not in vain.

His actions ultimately benefited the World Tree and the elven race as a whole.

Although Eve was not the previous World Tree, she had been chosen as its successor from another world. She successfully inherited the divinity of the World Tree, ascending to the role of the new Matriarch of the elves.

Now, the future of the elven race rested squarely upon her shoulders.

Receiving Ouros’ gift also forced Eve to confront a critical issue:

—The weight of her inheritance.

By taking up the mantle of the World Tree, she had accepted not only her predecessor’s power but also the responsibilities and duties that came along with it.

This wasn’t a matter of conscience but a principle—a conviction that a true deity must uphold to remain true to themselves.

With this in mind, Evé murmured:

“One hundred and thirty-eight gods…is it? Even though some fell at the hands of my predecessor, there are still over a hundred enemies remaining.”

“However, if I remember correctly, when I visited the Pantheon, there were fewer than a hundred thrones currently active. Considering the deities who refrained from participating in the Heavenly War, the actual number of enemies I’ll face might be even lower.”

“Of course, among those hundred-plus enemies of mine, there are likely also a few Evil Gods whose thrones don’t exist within the Pantheon.”

“Either way, it’s going to be a challenge.”

“But since I’ve chosen to accept my predecessor’s inheritance, I will ensure the elves and Ouros receive the resolution they all deserve.”

Evé resolved firmly within her heart.

With a complex mix of emotions, she distributed the rewards to the players who had participated in the quest before departing the scene, carefully controlling her newly acquired incarnate body. Рå

She made no attempt to resurrect Ouros.

This demigod had completely sacrificed his soul in the desperate act of forcefully ‘converting’ this land into a demi-realm.

It was an irreversible choice, one that had cost him everything.

What remained of him had been thoroughly polluted and assimilated by the Abyss, leaving behind only fragments twisted beyond recognition.

Without a functional soul or even a coherent remnant, there was no foundation upon which to revive him.

Moreover, as a demigod without believers to provide him the power of faith, Ouros could no longer be revived.

All Eve could do was honor the wishes embedded in the fragments of his fading memories—to guide the elves back to prosperity.

She would also inherit his burdens, taking up the mantle to confront the enemies of her predecessor.

With the Heart of Life in her possession, Evé quickly returned to her divine kingdom.

Within the Supreme Temple, the Scepter of Life awaited.

Sensing the approach of its final fragment, the artifact began to radiate a faint yet unmistakable emotion of joy, as though it too longed for completion.

Evé raised her hand, and the Heart of Life floated gently from her grasp, glowing softly with an inner light. The Scepter of Life, hovering as if alive, drifted forward to meet it.

When the two artifacts finally touched, a radiant brilliance erupted, flooding the temple with light as they merged into one.

In an instant, Evé felt a surge of pure, immense divine life energy emanating from the Scepter of Life.

A radiant pillar of light shot skyward, illuminating half of her divine kingdom.

As the light receded, the fully restored Scepter of Life appeared before Eve.

It was now more exquisite than ever, shimmering with a gentle, iridescent glow, as if it were the world’s most treasured artifact.

Through her divine perception, Evé also noticed the Scepter’s abilities had significantly been enhanced.

It had fully regained its peak state, reclaiming its rightful place among the top ten divine artifacts in the entire universe.

Eve beckoned softly, and the Scepter of Life spun joyfully in the air, like a child responding to its mother’s call before settling into her hand.

Holding the Scepter, Eve immediately felt her mastery over the Laws of Life ascend to an unparalleled level of refinement.

In that moment, she realized the extent of her newfound power.

With just a thought and the expenditure of divine energy, she could now bestow life upon anything she laid her eyes upon. Even lifeless objects such as rocks, a table, or even grains of sand—could be imbued with intelligence and consciousness, molded by her sheer will alone.

At the same time, she now held dominion over life itself.

With the Scepter in hand, she now possessed the power to strip the life force from any living being below the level of a true god, determining their fate with nothing more than a single thought.

This ability came effortlessly, requiring only a minimal expenditure of divine power.

If not for the taboo against gods directly interfering with mortals, which is an act that would draw the attention of other entities, then Evé would already be invincible in the realm of Seigües.

Of course, this newfound ability of hers also further reduced the cost of reviving any players that died.

Additionally, Evé had now also fully gained the power to create new races.

Now, Evé possessed the ability to create any race she desired or even transform one race into another.

However, whether these new creations would match the elves’ perfection was another matter entirely.

Transforming races also consumed significant divine power, with the cost varying depending on the complexity of the race.

Eve couldn’t help but feel an itch to experiment.

She planned to find some free time to create a few small creatures to test her abilities.

Beyond granting and taking life, and creating or transforming races, the Scepter’s ability to purify one’s bloodlines had grown significantly stronger, to the point where she could now manipulate even the most distant traces of elven heritage.

Evé could now purify the bloodlines of half-elves on a much larger scale.

Even humans with just the faintest whisper of elven ancestry could now be transformed into full-fledged elves, and at a fraction of the divine energy it had once required to purify even a single half-elf.

Though this power was technically a form of race transformation, it was far less consuming and more sustainable.

Unlike before, Eve didn’t have to fear overextending herself since the divine energy it required was minimal, and what she spent could easily be replenished through the faith of her believers.

This revelation sparked a bold idea within her:

Perhaps, with this power, she could restore the elven population, which had dwindled over the centuries.

The Scepter of Life’s completed form greatly surprised Evé.

After gaining control of the demi-realm and her predecessor’s incarnation which containing nearly 2,000 points of divine power, Evé herself underwent significant changes:

【 Name: Eve Yggdrasill 】

【 Race: World Tree (Ancient God) 】

【 Level: 150 (Mythical-rank) 】

【 Status: Lesser Divine Power 】

【 Divinity: Nature, Life, Elvenkind 】

【 Titles: Goddess of Life, Mother of Nature, Matriarch of the Elves 】

【 Divine Power: 8534/10,000 】

【 Number of Believers: 25,765 (1 Saint, 128 Zealots, 3,199 Devout Believers, 22,437 Casual Believers) 】

【 Abilities: Absorption, Communication, Blessing, Awakening, Healing, Summoning, Divine Descent, Celestial Domain, etc. 】

【 Divine Artifacts: Scepter of Life, Withering Heart (Incomplete) 】

Of all these changes, the most noteworthy was the increase in her believers.

Ouros had transferred the status of God of Creation to the World Tree and strengthened the residents’ faith through compulsion, resulting in a massive influx of new believers for Eve.

These believers, consisting of both ordinary citizens and former priests of the demi-realm’s original church, totaled over 20,000 which far surpassed her current number of believers.

Unfortunately, most of them were only casual believers.

Moreover, since they possessed only traces of elven blood, the faith energy they provided was far less pure than that of pure-blooded elves.

“Indeed, the quantity of faith varies greatly depending on the races it came from,”

Evé mused.

“Even with so many believers, the ones who contribute the most faith to me are still Alice and Meryer, who advanced to Gold-rank and became devout believers of mine. It’s no wonder dragons are so sought after by the gods.”

“If only dragons weren’t so few in number, they would undoubtedly be the most coveted creatures to convert into one’s faith.”

“I should sort out what kind of races my current believers are.”

At her command, a new section appeared beneath the ‘Number of believers’ within her status screen:

【Types of Believers: Crypt Spider Queen (1), Dragon (1), Oak Guardians (105), Elves (2,157), Half-Elves (244), Human-Elven Hybrids (23,200), Humans (58)】

The Crypt Spider Queen was none other than Rose.

She’s still residing at Rivendell, offering her silk to players in exchange for rare metals.

The dragon of course was Meryer.

After advancing to Gold-rank, he became a devout believer with Eve’s assistance, which is an exceptional feat for a dragon.

The Oak Guardians included the first one, Berserker, along with 104 enchanted oak trees from Chosen City, which were awakened when Evé ascended to a lesser divine power.

Aside from Berserker, who had taken human form, the other Oak Guardians remained in Eve’s divine kingdom, serving as temple guards and attendants.

The elves were those who had returned to the Elven Forest, along with over a hundred members of Oakhand active in the human territories.

The half-elves shared a similar distribution.

The largest group was the human-elven hybrids, which are Ouros’ legacy—the demi-realm’s inhabitants.

These individuals bore diluted elven bloodlines, wherein their elven traits had fully Regressed, thus making them no longer natural-born magical beings.

Lastly, her human believers were an unexpected addition:

58 members of the Oakhand, currently active across the Holy Maniya Empire.

“This is such a diverse mix…”

“It seems my title as the Matriarch of the Elves isn’t entirely accurate anymore.”

Evé remarked with a wry smile.

After reviewing her believers, Evé finally turned her attention to her newly acquired demi-realm.

Taking over this demi-realm was just the beginning.

As its new master, she now faced a series of challenges—the most pressing being the realm’s decline and its impending collapse.

— 459 —

【 A BOUNTIFULHARVEST 】

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