Farming in a Parallel World and Becoming a God
Chapter 773 - 526 Visit from Gnome Village_1

Chapter 773: Chapter 526 Visit from Gnome Village_1

The only thing that seemed disproportionate to the huge caravan was the coachman driving the vehicle: he was not a giant with a large physique but a gnome, a full size smaller than humans.

This stark contrast made the gnomes appear even more delicate and the vehicles seem bigger.

Gnomes and demi-humans are known in Felen as the two smallest, most intelligent races: the former are unrivaled in their inventive and creative abilities, while the latter possess the wisdom to adapt and survive.

In size, demi-humans are even smaller, just like their race name suggests. Not only are they half the height of humans, but all their dimensions are proportionally scaled down, similar to humans under the effect of a shrinking spell.

Gnomes, on the other hand, are a bit taller, with an average height of just over one meter, though few ever grow taller than one meter twenty.

Unlike the proportional downsizing of demi-humans, gnomes don’t have the stature of humans but have larger heads and palms of the hands and feet. However, the rest of their bodies are crammed into comparatively cramped dimensions, making them look like deformed human dwarfs, hence the origin of the name gnome.

Gnomes are undoubtedly a long-lived race. Though their lifespan is not as extraordinary as that of elves, it’s comparable to that of dwarves, with the average gnome living for at least three centuries.

Scholars from Candlefort refer to gnomes as the "forgotten race," for they often intentionally avoid the wars in Felen’s history or disasters that put other races in the spotlight. Despite having been enslaved by powerful empires like Nesserel and Karinshan, they have never been truly conquered.

Gnomes as a race have a trait of isolationism. They dwell in forests and mountains rarely frequented by humans, elves, and dwarves, who are also intelligent races. To them, the danger of these sage races is far greater than that from Monster Tribes.

Their survival amidst environments surrounded by monsters is related to another racial trait: they are natural masters of illusion techniques. They use an abundance of illusions to protect their villages, settlements, and farms, keeping monster tribes at bay.

Many of them are followers of the god of invention, Gond, revering him almost as much as their racial deity Garl Glittergold. They not only inherit Gond’s passion for invention but also his disdain for joining large groups. They prefer to form small groups united by a common inventive spirit, rather than change the whole society with their creations.

This characteristic has led to a severe wastage of gnome inventiveness because many inventions are left to collect dust in storage rather than being promoted for use. Due to the death of the inventors, many have been lost to the annals of history. In other places, gnomes repeat the old paths, continuing to create inventions that have been made countless times over in this world.

The Gnome Bombards and Gnome Hand Cannons, along with other alchemical firearms from Landan Island, are prominent examples of this. They are also among the few places in the world where a large number of gnomes gather, while gnomes elsewhere live relatively secluded hermit lives.

This gnome caravan comes from a gnome village named Querose, which is very close to Dwarf Statue City, less than thirty kilometers away. The massive farm that Blood Claw spoke of belongs to this village.

It’s not defenseless; rather, it’s shrouded in layers of illusions. What Blood Claw and his group saw may not be the real body of the gnome farm, but a phantom created by refracted illusions. Charging in might result in coming away empty-handed.

After Gaven took over Dwarf Statue City, it wasn’t they who approached Querose Village, but the gnome village sent emissaries to them, extending goodwill and proactively presented a congratulatory gift for the city construction.

Establishing friendly relations with the strong local forces, especially those close to their own villages and towns, is also one of their survival strategies. They presumably had similarly ambiguous relations with the Wailing Dwarf Kingdom of trolls before. Their ability to maintain such a huge aggrandized farm right at the doorstep of trolls is proof of this.

Don’t be misled, even though Gaven and his group have eradicated the Troll Kingdom, in retrospect, there are still lingering fears; the dangers involved are too great to withstand close scrutiny and analysis.

If it weren’t for the incredibly swift pace of Gaven’s actions, stirring up plenty within a month in Thacel’s territory, amassing greater power for themselves, and delaying the migration, or the serendipitous diversion of the Blood Claw Legion... without any one of these conditions,

even without giving in the entire migrating force, the losses would have been huge.

The two strikes from that noble two-headed troll named King Kodi Koli were both ferocious and ruthless, a typical case of a lion putting full effort into catching a rabbit.

Without definite knowledge of the realities of the migrating force, they employed the most brutal Demon Blood Sacrifice, using monster vassals to wear them down, followed by a demon army to countercharge, and finally, the Troll Legion to reap. This tactic was flawless; it’s hard to imagine any common or elite army bearing such an assault, except Gaven and his group had an absolute advantage in strength, though unintended.

In the Wailing Dwarf Kingdom, King Kodi Koli’s setup was similarly deadly. If not for Gaven’s unique abilities, which transformed his one-time enemy, the Six-armed Snake Demon, into Nightshadow, it would have spelled disaster even for a legendary squad rushing in.