God-Tier Extraction Talent: Reincarnated in a Game-like World! Chapter 654: Sophie’s Awakening

The moment the golden green light appeared, the entire forest seemed to awaken.

The first change occurred in the grass beneath Sophie’s feet. The blades of grass, which had grown slightly yellow after more than two months of war, regained their vibrant green at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Tiny white flowers pushed their way out of the soil one after another before rapidly blooming. Yet the change did not stop around her. It continued spreading outward along the ancient roots intertwined deep beneath the earth.

More and more ancient trees began to tremble gently.

Rustle...

The sound of countless leaves brushing against one another gradually merged into a continuous wave that spread outward from the depths of the forest. Even the bird type magical beasts that had been resting among the canopies were not frightened. Instead, they poked their heads out from their nests one after another and simultaneously turned in the same direction.

The several elves responsible for protecting her were completely stunned. The oldest among them seemed to realize something, and the shock on his face gradually transformed into disbelief.

"This is impossible..."

He had lived in the Sacred Forest for more than a hundred years, and precisely because of that, he understood better than anyone what the scene before him meant.

This was not an ordinary gathering of natural mana, nor was it a phenomenon caused by some wood attribute skill.

The Sacred Forest itself was responding to her.

"Quick!"

The elf abruptly snapped back to his senses.

"Inform Elder Aelira quickly!"

Another elf beside him also recovered and was about to leave when he suddenly realized that he could not move his feet.

With trembling eyes, he looked down, and his eyes widened.

Ancient roots had somehow emerged from beneath the soil. They did not attack anyone. Instead, with Sophie at the center, they continued extending outward, eventually forming layer after layer of extremely complex natural patterns around her.

And the instant those patterns completely connected...

Hum!

A golden green pillar of light shot into the sky.

There was no explosion, no terrifying impact, not even the slightest oppressive force. Yet the instant the pillar appeared, every elf throughout the Sacred Forest, regardless of what they were doing, simultaneously felt a tremor originating from the depths of their bloodline.

...

The elven warriors who had just finished a major battle were disposing of corpses and repairing the defensive fortifications when one of them suddenly stopped moving and looked up.

His friend closest to him was confused as to why the latter had stopped moving and followed his gaze.

Just like that, more and more elves raised their heads, their eyes glistening with confusion.

"What is that?"

In the distance, a golden green light pierced through the night sky above the forest.

Some of the younger elves merely stared blankly at the pillar, but the expressions of the older elves, especially several high ranking warriors responsible for the defensive line, changed noticeably within only a few seconds.

Unlike the younger, inexperienced elves, they could feel it, the aura of the World Tree.

Although faint, there was absolutely no mistaking it.

...

The Elven Settlement.

Aelira had originally been discussing the next deployment of the Third Defensive Line with several elves.

Bang!

The meeting room door was suddenly pushed open, causing everyone to turn their heads simultaneously.

One elf had not even had time to reprimand the intruder before the young elf who rushed inside hurriedly spoke.

"Elder! Something has happened in the Sacred Forest!"

Aelira stood up.

"Where?"

"Where Sophie is."

The entire room instantly fell silent.

"What did you say?" Aelira asked as she got up from her chair.

"Just now, all the ancient trees nearby began leaning toward her location simultaneously, and the Sacred Tree’s underground root system began awakening on its own. Now there has already appeared..."

Before the young elf could finish...

Hum!

An invisible fluctuation suddenly swept through the entire settlement. Ripples appeared across the water inside the cups on the table, while the branches naturally grown from special trees that formed the walls began trembling gently at the same time.

The next second, every one of those branches slowly bent in the same direction.

The expressions of the elves in the room changed simultaneously.

Aelira said nothing, merely staring at the bending branches.

Several seconds passed before her lips finally parted.

"She isn’t controlling the forest," Aelira finally spoke, her voice much lower than usual. "The forest is welcoming her."

Those words plunged every elf in the room into complete silence.

One elderly elf abruptly raised his head.

"Could it be..."

"Don’t say it."

Aelira interrupted him directly.

The old elf stopped.

Aelira had already turned around.

"I’ll go personally."

However, just as she was about to leave, a figure suddenly rushed through the open doorway.

"Aelira!"

The familiar voice made her pause. Edgar appeared inside the room. His breathing was slightly heavier than usual, clearly indicating that he had barely slowed down throughout the entire journey back.

Seeing him return alone, Aelira immediately realized something had gone wrong.

"The children?"

"We rescued them." Edgar wasted no time. "All eleven. Not one is missing. Erin is bringing them back now."

Joy immediately appeared on the faces of several surrounding elves, but Edgar’s next words caused the atmosphere that had only just relaxed to become tense again.

"But the Veylor Chain and the Holy Church also appeared."

Aelira’s gaze turned cold.

"The Holy Church?"

"Cardinal Matthew Grant personally participated in the transaction," Edgar said. "Gabriel captured him, but someone responsible for observing the transaction escaped. And according to what Matthew revealed just now, the Holy Church has basically confirmed that Sophie is inside the Sacred Forest."

The joy on Aelira’s face disappeared completely.

She immediately turned around.

"Lock down the settlement. From this moment onward, any non elven lifeform approaching the core region, regardless of identity, is to be restrained first. Inform every forest patrol and raise the alert level."

She paused briefly.

"Also, tell the Third Defensive Line to maintain its original deployment. No one is to be recalled because of what is happening here."

Edgar raised an eyebrow slightly.

"You’re worried the goblins will take advantage of this opportunity to attack?"

"I’m not worried," Aelira said. "They definitely will."

Edgar quickly understood. If the Veylor Chain had been cooperating with the goblins for this long, then the most convenient method for the Holy Church to find someone inside the Sacred Forest was never to personally send large numbers of people inside. It was to have the goblins already within the forest create chaos for them.

Once attacks erupted simultaneously across several locations on the front lines, the elves would have no choice but to divide their forces.

That would be the perfect opportunity to infiltrate the Sacred Forest.

"I’m going to Sophie," Aelira said. "You’re responsible for this place."

"There’s something else," Edgar suddenly said.

"What?"

"Matthew knows something about Sophie’s bloodline."

Aelira stopped in her tracks. "How much?"

"Not much." Edgar shook his head. "But he knows the Holy Church has been searching for a special bloodline capable of directly establishing a connection with the World Tree. And according to him, only the Holy Church’s Saintess and a very small number of core figures are qualified to access the complete records regarding that bloodline."

At the word "Saintess," an unmistakable coldness appeared in Aelira’s eyes for the first time.

"So it really is her."

Edgar caught those words, his eyes flashing sharply.

"You know the Holy Church’s current Saintess? I’m not talking about the Pope."

"Wait until Gabriel returns," Aelira said in a calm tone. "There are some things that truly cannot remain hidden any longer."

With that, she walked directly out of the room.

Edgar stayed where he was, staring in the direction she had disappeared. After a moment, he sighed softly.

"You’re finally ready to tell them..."

...