It was known in the ancient history written by the elves that this was not always a dark forest. Monsters did not rule the world, and life beyond death was nonexistent.
These areas were once the ruling territories of the Elven Empire.
The underground lake, where ancient trees were growing and poking through a particular opening, is the central territory of the elves.
Thranduil, through his memories, knew he had to rise from where they had fallen. The advantages this territory could offer the elves were comparable to other zones they might claim.
Dol Blathanna was located east of Temeria and north of Aedirn. These lands were known to humans, but they were nothing more than an outpost of the dimensions controlled by the elves.
Those worlds, which had now lost their connection to the Continent, were inaccessible to the remaining elves in this place.
Thranduil hoped to travel across the various worlds he could reach, but first he needed to consolidate his strength on the Continent.
He was surrounded by enemies who wanted them dead, enslaved, and controlled.
Moreover, many areas of the Continent had been occupied by evil and dark creatures, such as the Dark Forest, which had now become territory of wicked races like the Undead and Cyclopes.
In addition, the power of demons was also deeply rooted in those areas.
Even in the Western Sea and the Arctic Ice Region, demon figures could be seen.
Relatively speaking, where they were now was the safest place to start over.
Although many evil and dark creatures still lived here, at least demons rarely appeared.
This was what Thranduil knew thanks to the knowledge he had gained through his connection to the World Tree.
Thus, this place was very suitable for establishing his base camp. The power of demons is extremely terrifying.
The massive armies of humans were also threatening and, for now, were invincible if somehow the remaining elven forces decided to start a war.
Before becoming powerful enough, Thranduil did not want to become a target of the demons.
…
"It's appropriate to leave the plaza tonight. We must work twice as hard." As his strength grew, Thranduil became bolder.
Haldir ordered the elves under his command: "Form several teams and hunt the undead that appeared near the plaza. Remember to take turns resting and recovering the magical energy consumed."
Night belongs to the evil and dark creatures.
At night, a large number of undead contaminated by dark power would appear in the ruins, something difficult to see during the day, at least in the ruins of the city center.
To hunt monsters during the day, one had to search everywhere. But by just making a little noise at night, you could attract a large number of monstrous creatures.
As long as one is careful, they will surely gain great benefits.
"As you command, commander!" the elves bowed respectfully. After dinner, they gathered into teams and walked toward the darkness outside the plaza.
About two hundred elves remained on guard around the ancient trees.
This was Thranduil's order. Under his leadership, the elves began building wooden houses around the large trees that were on the path toward the plaza.
The elves were also helping. They used their limited magical power to assist the others with the work.
During the day, the elves collected a large amount of wood from the ruins, and building dozens of wooden houses at once was no problem.
Tomorrow, more elves would join the resource-gathering effort. There would be an endless supply of wood.
Thranduil also asked the system if he could use its power to build more suitable structures—similar to the construction of the Tree of Life and the Ancient War Tree.
If he used some energy crystals, they could be built instantly. This was very convenient. However, the system responded negatively, stating that it only considered the construction and upgrading of Special Territory Buildings.
Ordinary buildings, like wooden houses, had to be handled by the elven race itself.
There was no other choice. Thranduil had to do it himself. Fortunately, the elves under his command were all professionals with magical powers.
Using magic to cut, stack, and reinforce the wood was very convenient. In a short time, wooden houses began to appear one after another in the plaza.
The elves even carved the exteriors of the wooden houses, creating many patterns in elven style, making the neatly arranged homes appear more refined.
Additionally, the elves removed the bricks and stones that covered the plaza, revealing the earth beneath.
Some elves asked Thranduil for permission to plant flowers and green grass around the wooden houses to beautify their living environment.
Naturally, Thranduil granted his permission, as he too hoped for his territory to have a beautiful environment.
…
It was late at night.
The elves built more than fifty wooden houses in total. Each house was divided into two floors, with three rooms in each. There was no problem accommodating more than a dozen elves.
"Let's build tree houses like these for now…" Thranduil could not afford to be impatient in this regard. "Once we occupy the city center—or even the entire ruins—we can consider planning the reconstruction."
His territory in the future would definitely not be as it was now. All the buildings must be exquisite and perfect.
He not only wanted to build a powerful territory but also to make it the most beautiful place on the entire Continent. Even the weeds on the side of the road had to grow with elegance.
…
Another new day had arrived.
The elves' nighttime harvest had also been tallied.
In total, more than nine thousand energy crystals were collected, and it is estimated that more than twenty thousand undead creatures were killed.
The undead that appeared near the plaza were basically eliminated by the elves.
But that was only last night.
Tonight, new undead will appear in this area. As long as the evil and dark forces beneath the ruins remain, the undead will continue to be born.
Not even the World Tree knows how many corpses are buried beneath the ruins.
Among them are not only elves, but also intelligent creatures from other races:
Humans, dwarves, orcs, goblins, and more.
This place was not only the capital of the Elven Empire but also a key battlefield where the coalition forces of several races resisted the invasion of demons, evil creatures, and human armies.
Over the years, if the sacred trees of the elves hadn't been consuming their power to suppress the evil and darkness underground, a hundred times more undead creatures would have been born.
The more than 9,000 energy crystals harvested were used by Thranduil to train elven swordsmen and archers as usual.
He obtained nearly five hundred elven soldiers. At this point, the number of elven troops under his command had surpassed a thousand.
The missions he had been granted were nearly complete.
Thranduil planned to upgrade the Ancient War Tree and unlock new soldiers once the missions were completed. After all, upgrading it would consume many magical crystals, which would delay its completion.
The reward for the first mission is to unlock the Magic Spring, and he desperately needs that building.
The reason is simple. The elven spring water condensed from the magic spring can quickly restore the magical power of the elven troops.
Indirectly increasing their hunting efficiency.
If an elf is injured, the wound can be healed quickly using the elven spring water.
"If nothing unexpected happens, today's hunting rewards will be enough to train more elven troops!"
Compared to yesterday, when there were just over a hundred elven soldiers hunting outside, the number of elven soldiers today had quadrupled, so the harvest would naturally be greater.
…
In the morning, after the elves left the territory in groups, Thranduil prepared to begin his new day of hunting.
Before that, he gave birth to the elf of the new day.
At that moment, the number of elves in his territory reached more than 2,600.
Looking up at the elves in the sky, as bright as stars, Thranduil couldn't help but feel heroic.
As long as he trained all these elves, he would have an elven army of more than two thousand and could reclaim the ruins of the ancient city in no time.