Draven took a deep breath, relaxed his whole body, and tried hard to calm his mind. He entered the consciousness space once again, this time determined to carefully sense the changes brought by the new contract.

  Sure enough, within the aura of the third forced contract, a small image of Liliana appeared—faint but clear.

  Draven slowly reached out with his mind, attempting to touch that image. Suddenly, an inexplicable insight surged in his heart. It felt as if a light had been turned on in his mind, and all the scattered pieces of information began to connect.

  He slowly opened his eyes and looked toward Liliana, who was nestled in Viola's arms, her eyes red and swollen but still chewing on a piece of jerky.

  "Do you have the bloodline of a wood elf?" Draven asked bluntly.

  Liliana was stunned, nearly choking on the jerky in her mouth. She swallowed with difficulty and asked in surprise, "How do you know?"

  Draven chuckled softly and mysteriously closed his mouth without answering immediately.

  "You already know the situation," he said calmly. "Since you are already contracted, just obediently stay with the Black Flag Territory."

  Liliana's expression immediately darkened. She resisted the order fiercely in her heart. But she knew that once the contract was formed, she had no choice but to suppress her rebellion and dissatisfaction helplessly.

  Silently, she prayed that the teacher who raised her would return from the North soon and rescue this poor apprentice.

  "Come with me." Draven said nothing more and called Liliana to prepare to test his newly acquired skill.

  Two figures walked slowly, one behind the other, into the forest behind the village. The air was filled with the moist scent of leaves and soil, and sunlight filtered through the dense foliage, casting mottled shadows.

  Draven's palm occasionally lightly touched the rough tree trunks, seemingly sensing carefully, selecting the most suitable target.

  Time passed moment by moment, until finally, Draven stopped and a faint satisfied smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. His palm emitted a gentle green glow that slowly flowed into the inside of the tree trunk.

  In the forest, the originally still giant tree began to sway slightly, its branches and leaves fluttering as if moved by a breeze, though the air was nearly still.

  The green glow gradually intensified, like the pulse of life spreading inside the tree.

  After a long time, the glow slowly receded, and the tree's swaying stopped. The tall tree seemed to have shrunk and transformed into a treant about four or five meters tall.

  Liliana stared in amazement at this marvelous change. This was no longer an ordinary tree but a treant with hands and feet and clear facial features.

  "Treant Acorn Oak, greetings to my lord!" The treant slowly opened its sleepy eyes, kneeled on one knee, and respectfully bowed to Draven.

  "Treant awakened!" Liliana said in a trembling voice, hardly able to believe her eyes.

  At that moment, Liliana recalled the question the wolf leader had asked her before: "Do you have the bloodline of a wood elf?"

  A spark flashed in her eyes, and she couldn't help blurting out, "Do you also have the bloodline of a wood elf?!"

  Draven coughed, nearly choking on his own saliva, and thought silently that this little girl really had a wild imagination.

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  Of course, he did not have any wood elf bloodline. In fact, the wood elves had long been extinct, and no one knew why Liliana still carried that slight trace of the lineage.

  The treant awakening was a unique skill of the wood elves, rumored to be only usable by those with pure wood elf bloodlines. Unexpectedly, Draven had contracted with a half-blood Liliana and accidentally gained this ability.

  At his current level, the treants he could awaken were limited to those with warrior-level strength, and not all trees were suitable for awakening. The tree had to be able to merge with the green light emitted by his palm to qualify to become a treant.

  Draven himself couldn't clearly explain the essence of this green light; he only knew it was a certain natural energy flow.

  Besides that, the number of treants he could awaken was also limited.

  He estimated he could control at most five warrior-level treants simultaneously, but that number was already enough for him.

  Treants, this special race, have an origin long lost to history. All that is known is that they have existed for an extremely long time, even being said to be among the oldest races in the world.

  The treants' combat style is straightforward, without complicated techniques, relying mainly on their immense strength to overpower enemies. At the same time, their defense is astonishing — their thick bark and sturdy branches can withstand the vast majority of attacks.

  However, treants have a fatal weakness: they are extremely afraid of fire. Once engulfed in flames, their bodies can be almost instantly destroyed. This weakness limits their effectiveness in many battle situations.

  But to Draven, this was not a big problem. He never expected these bloodline warrior-level treants to perform spectacularly on the front lines.

  What he valued more was their endurance and their natural affinity with plants. It was this ability that made them the ideal builders and cultivators.

  Standing before the newly awakened treant, Acorn Oak, Draven's heart brimmed with hope and excitement. Seizing the momentum, he decided to act immediately.

  Draven, accompanied by Liliana and Acorn Oak, slowly advanced along the forest path, beginning to seek other suitable trees to awaken.

  In the depths of the forest, sunlight mottled the leaves, and the air was filled with the moist scent of grass and wood. Draven's palm gently pressed against each trunk, feeling the life pulse of every tree.

  After careful selection, he successfully awakened four more treants, each with a different form but all equally tall and mighty.

  Watching Draven so busy, the small druid girl Liliana's eyes showed a complex mixture of emotions.

  She was both surprised and somewhat uneasy, as if doubting the reality of everything happening before her eyes.

  When they returned to the village, everyone's eyes were immediately drawn to the tall treants. Like living guardians, they stood at the village's edge, imposing and majestic.

  Liliana climbed onto Acorn Oak's shoulder, swinging her pale little legs, suddenly feeling that perhaps staying here was not so bad after all.

  Especially in the evening, when smoke rose from the village kitchens and Viola's hand-roasted meat gave off an enticing aroma that instantly won over Liliana's appetite and mood.

  Even more delightful was that Draven made an exception this time and brought out the rarely indulged blood wine and monkey wine — precious treats in the village, seldom drunk freely.

  Though Liliana was not fond of blood wine, she was particularly fond of monkey wine. After less than half a bowl, she became dizzy and flopped down to rest on the ground. Ayla quickly helped her back inside to rest.

  Once the atmosphere calmed, Draven began to recount the day's events to Bran and the others.

  He revealed without reservation Liliana's identity, the killing of the strange beast, and the harsh lesson dealt to the Green Serpent.

  "For the next few days, don't go out hunting," Draven said firmly but with obvious concern. "Stay in the village and watch for any moves from the serpent tribe."

  He took a sip of blood wine and spoke slowly, though his heart was filled with anxiety.

  Bran clenched his fists and slammed them hard on the floor. The village had now twice been forced to defend against the serpent threat. This helpless feeling made him angry yet powerless.

  Draven glanced at him but, unusually, didn't reprimand him. A man's growth was like this — only through pain and failure could one become strong.

  Draven knew in his heart that if the serpents truly attacked, with the four leader-level fighters under the Black Flag Territory, they could certainly fight back.

  Late at night, the village echoed with the sorrowful yet stirring voice of the little fox girl, as if preparing for the coming war.

  Liliana woke groggily to find herself sleeping among a group of children. She shook her head, trying to block out the noise, but the sounds only grew louder, making it harder to fall asleep.

  Adding to her headache from the wine, she angrily pushed away the arms and legs pressing on her and stormed toward the main house, shouting, "Can you keep the mating noises down a bit?"

  The noise inside immediately stopped. Draven's face turned ashen. He grabbed the wooden door latch and charged out.

  Unfortunately, the latch was a temporary installation without any protective enchantments and was easily broken in two by Liliana's blow.

  Draven was furious and chased her around the village with bare hands.

  The next day, everyone under the Black Flag Territory was yawning. After the haunting sounds and the late-night shaking, who could sleep well?