The Elven Cultivator

Eternal Hall, eastern annex.

The spacious hall was brightly lit.

Seven or eight rattan tables were scattered about, their surfaces piled high with sheepskin paper scrolls and folders. Dense text and numbers snaked across the paper like ants.

A dozen or so young Elves were buried in their work at their desks. Quill pens rustled across paper. Occasionally, someone would pause, frown, and search through the materials beside them, or whisper a question to the person at the next table.

This was one of the offices where the Clan handled its daily affairs.

Eleanor sat behind a desk by the window in the far back, a thick stack of documents also piled in front of her.

She held a quill pen, her head lowered as she wrote on a piece of sheepskin paper. Her emerald-green hair was tied back in a neat ponytail with a silver thread. A few stray strands fell by her ear, softening the focused line of her profile.

The tip of the pen glided across the paper, leaving behind neat and beautiful lines of handwriting.

Eleanor finished the last stroke, set down her pen, and gently pushed the sheepskin paper aside before picking up another document and opening it.

This was a report on the settlement of the newest batch of Elves.

Three months ago, Elena had led the guards and brought back the last Elf group from the eastern Eldron Plain.

With that, all the scattered Elf groups on the Eldron Plain had been integrated into the Silver Moon Clan.

The Clan’s total population was now close to nine thousand.

A century ago, this was a number the Silver Moon Clan wouldn’t have even dared to imagine.

Back then, the Silver Moon Clan had fewer than two thousand members at best. They fought bloody battles against the Molten Spike Tribe year after year, and their population only ever decreased, not increased. The trend of their decline was plain to see.

But now, in less than a century, the Clan’s population had more than quadrupled.

This showed how brilliant the decision to absorb the other Elf groups had been.

Of course, the Progeny Pills and the Life-Nurturing Formation were also to thank for this.

These two things had significantly raised the Clan’s birth rate over the years. Although the increase wasn’t astonishing, for the Elf Race, it was an incredibly rare achievement.

After all, Elves were a long-lived species.

Even the smallest increase in the birth rate, when viewed over a long period, represented significant population growth.

Now, the number of newborns in the Clan was increasing every year, providing a steady stream of new blood for the Clan’s future.

”Eleanor.”

A voice from the doorway interrupted her thoughts.

Eleanor looked up to see Laila walking in, carrying a stack of documents. She had a smile on her face, and her steps were light.

”More new documents?” Eleanor glanced at the scrolls in her arms, a hint of resignation in her voice.

”The last stack.” Laila placed the documents on her desk with a cheerful grin. ”Once you finish these, your work for the day is done.”

Eleanor glanced at the darkening sky outside the window and sighed. Without a word, she picked up the topmost document and opened it.

Laila didn’t leave right away. Instead, she leaned against the desk, watching her with a grin.

Eleanor paid no mind to her friend’s little antics, her full attention on the document.

The first was about the domestication of the Scale Rock Lizards.

After nearly a century of taming and breeding, the Scale Rock Lizard herd had grown to a considerable size.

Most of the Scale Rock Lizards could now be used as combat companions.

For this reason, the Forest Guard had formed a battalion of Scale Rock Lizard archer cavalry (300 members).

This cavalry unit was fully equipped with Runic longbows, Runic shortswords, and Runic leather armor. Mounted on tamed Scale Rock Lizards, their mobility and combat effectiveness far surpassed that of ordinary infantry.

Eleanor had once personally witnessed this cavalry unit’s drills.

Three hundred mounted archers charging forward at once, arrows raining down like a torrential storm, the roars of the Scale Rock Lizards shaking the heavens and the earth. The overwhelming momentum was enough to startle even a spectator like her.

If they’d had a cavalry unit like this back when they were fighting the Molten Spike Tribe, a single charge could have routed the enemy.

And this was only the beginning. As the Scale Rock Lizard herd continued to expand, the number of cavalry would only grow.

The Elder Council’s goal was to form at least three battalions of Scale Rock Lizard archer cavalry within the next thirty years.

In comparison, the domestication of the Rift-Spine Dragon Beasts was not going as smoothly.

The wildness of the Silver Tier Dragon Beasts was too strong, and their intelligence was higher, making them an entire level more difficult to tame than the Scale Rock Lizards.

After decades of attempts, there was still little progress.

But the Clan had enough patience.

Once they succeeded in taming the Rift-Spine Dragon Beasts, the benefits for the Clan would be even greater than those from the Scale Rock Lizards.

Eleanor wrote her comments on the document, then opened the second one.

The contents were a report on the equipment allocation for the Forest Guard.

Eleanor’s brow furrowed slightly as her eyes swept over the numbers on the page.

The rapid population growth had allowed the Forest Guard to quickly expand to nine battalions, totaling twenty-seven hundred members, and its combat strength had risen sharply.

However, this had also given rise to a number of problems.

The biggest one was that the production of Rune Equipment was far from keeping up with the speed of the Guard’s expansion.

Currently, only about sixty percent of the guards were equipped with Runic weapons and leather armor.

The remaining forty percent were still using ordinary equipment forged by the Dwarves.

On the Eldron Plain, this level of equipment wasn’t considered bad. The fine craftsmanship of the Dwarves had always been famous.

But everything is relative.

With the shining example of Rune Equipment, the guards naturally looked down on ordinary gear.

Fully outfitting everyone with Rune Equipment had always been the Forest Guard’s top priority.

And this was also one of the problems that had been giving Eleanor the biggest headache lately.

Whether it was Rune Equipment or the Dragon Essence Potions, the biggest bottleneck had never been the materials, but the creator.

Only Anton could craft Rune Equipment.

Only Anton could brew the Dragon Essence Potions.

Before, when the Clan’s population was small and the demand wasn’t high, Anton could handle it all by himself.

But now the Clan’s population had multiplied several times over, and the Forest Guard had also expanded significantly. The demand for these two items had grown exponentially. Even if Anton had three heads and six arms, he couldn’t be everywhere at once.

Production of both items had long been unable to keep up with demand.

The Elder Council had discussed this problem with Anton long ago.

But Anton’s method of brewing potions was completely different from that of other Pharmacists.

He didn’t use common pharmaceutical tools like glass containers and beakers. Instead, he used a strange bronze cauldron and had to master a special kind of fire Magic to brew the Dragon Essence Potions.

It was impossible for others to replicate.

The same went for Rune Equipment.

The Runes Anton carved on the equipment were unheard of, a system unto themselves.

The Clan’s Alchemists had studied them for decades and still hadn’t scratched the surface, let alone been able to craft them independently.

The Elder Council was also troubled by this but had no solution.

It wasn’t until a while ago, when Anton happened to mention during a barbecue that he was making headway on a revised formula for the Dragon Essence Potion, that Eleanor could finally breathe a small sigh of relief.

’I wonder when Anton’s revised plan will be ready?’

Eleanor wondered to herself as she casually picked up the next document and opened it. To her surprise, her eyes widened in delight as she looked at it.

At the very top of the first page was a bolded title.

”An Improved Method for Brewing Dragon Essence Potions”

Seeing the change in Eleanor’s expression, Laila, who was standing to the side, burst out laughing. ”Not so tired now, are you?”

Only then did Eleanor realize her friend had known about the revised plan all along and was waiting to see her reaction.

She shot Laila a playful glare before eagerly turning her gaze back to the document.

Unexpectedly, the revised plan didn’t seem complicated.

Compared to the original brewing process, the new plan didn’t have many changes in material ratios; it just designed a new procedure.

The brewer would need to use something called a ”Spirit Fire Talisman” in conjunction with a Sensing Spirit Stone to activate Spiritual Fire and brew the potion.

Eleanor, of course, knew what a Sensing Spirit Stone was.

It was a special Energy Crystal created by Anton. Its energy density was comparable to a high-grade Magic Stone, yet it could be artificially produced at a very low cost.

By using a Sensing Spirit Stone, one could activate all sorts of Talismans with strange and varied effects.

Thanks to this, the Forest Guard had gained another powerful and practical combat support tool.

Eleanor quickly understood the core of the plan, an irrepressible joy appearing on her face.

She was happy not only because this plan solved the production issue for the Dragon Essence Potion, but also because she realized the significance of combining the Spirit Fire Talisman with the Sensing Spirit Stone.

Whether it was for improved potions or Rune Equipment, the biggest headache was the need to use ’Spiritual Fire Magic’ to create them.

And the combination of the Spirit Fire Talisman and the Sensing Spirit Stone completely solved this problem.

This meant that it wasn’t just the Dragon Essence Potion; the Clan’s Pharmacists could now also try brewing the other improved potions Anton had created.

Furthermore, the Spiritual Fire Alloy needed for crafting Rune Equipment could now be handed over to other Alchemists for preliminary quenching.

Although it only simplified one step for Anton, in the long run, it would save him a great deal of effort.

Building on this, if they could also solve the Rune problem, the Clan’s Alchemists could take over the crafting of Rune Equipment as well.

Regardless, with this revised plan, Anton would be freed from the burdensome work of brewing potions.

It was undoubtedly great news.

”As expected of Anton. He never disappoints.”

Eleanor couldn’t help but exclaim, her eyes sparkling.

Seeing this, Laila found it rather amusing.

She recalled how, at the beginning, Eleanor couldn’t stand Anton’s behavior, unilaterally treating him as a rival and doing everything she could to surpass him.

But now? Every time Anton was mentioned, she had a tone and expression of admiration and worship.

The change in her attitude was so drastic it was hard not to chuckle.

Eleanor quickly came back to her senses and noticed Laila’s teasing gaze. Her expression became a little unnatural. She cleared her throat and called over a young Elf Maiden nearby.

”Furlo, take this document to the three elders for their review.”

Furlo acknowledged the order, took the document, and quickly walked out of the hall.

”Alright, I’ll let you get back to work. I’m going back to cultivate.”

Her business done, Laila didn’t linger. After exchanging a few more words with Eleanor, she turned and left.

Eleanor gathered her thoughts and picked up another document.