Then, he changed the course of the conversation and said, “But what are all of you doing? You’re attacking the seal! And helping it to break out of its seal! Aren’t you afraid that by destroying the seal, you’ll really set the Tree of Life free?”
Nobody had anything to say to that.
In particular, all the knights of the Royal Holy Knight Order sank into total silence. Evidently, they were aware of what they were doing and also knew the consequences of their actions.
“Therefore, I hope that everyone can cease their attacks at once.”
Meng Lei’s voice was low and grave as he said, “Once the Tree of Life breaks the seal, all of us will die! Nobody will be able to escape! That’s all I have to say! Think about it yourselves!”
Then, Meng Lei turned, ready to leave. He didn’t know what they would do after hearing what he had to say, but that was all he could do.
Now that he’d fulfilled his objective, it was time to leave.
“Sir, we fully understand what you’re saying.”
A Golden Colossal Dragon Person dressed in royal armor stepped forward at this point. He had a pair of golden horns on his head and a pair of golden wings on his back.
As he pointed at the Tree of Life trapped within the golden shield, he said slowly, “We know that it’s a half-deity life form, and we also know that we’re currently attacking the seal, but we have no other choice.
“Our mission is to ensure the safety of every contestant and eradicate all external forces that interfere with the exchange competition. Therefore, it is our duty to protect every contestant.
“However, more than 100 contestants are currently trapped. In fact, they are sharing the same space with the half-deity Tree of Life. Their safety has come under serious threat.
“We must rescue them and ensure their safety while also ensuring that the exchange competition is running smoothly. This is our mission as well as our duty!”
“But by doing so, you’ll bring harm to everyone!”
Meng Lei was mildly taken aback. Just as he was about to persuade him further, Ol’ Amos’ voice suddenly rang out. “Look, Meng Lei! Your little princess housemate seems to be in there, too!”
Meng Lei hurriedly looked over. True enough, he spotted Abbe among those 100-odd contestants!
She stood behind the contestants, quietly watching him. Upon noticing his line of sight, she lowered her head at once.
“Abbe...”
Meng Lei was dismayed.
“There are also quite a few other familiar faces in there aside from her.”
Ol’ Amos went on. “That Netherworld White Tiger Person, Francis from the Fire Dragon Kingdom, and even that pure-blooded Golden Colossal Dragon prince...
“No wonder the Royal Holy Knight Order is attacking the seal so desperately. To think the future emperor is also trapped inside!”
“So many of them...”
Meng Lei couldn’t help but gasp.
“Actually, you don’t need to worry, sir.” The Golden Colossal Dragon Person spoke up again. He said, “We’ve already reported the situation to His Majesty. I believe that in no time, His Majesty will dispatch experts here to destroy that evil half-deity treant!”
“The empire’s experts?” Meng Lei was startled. “Can the empire’s experts stand against a half-deity?”
“Typical experts definitely can’t, unless it’s a half-deity.” Ol’ Amos nodded and said, “If a half-deity really comes forward, then dealing with that Tree of Life won’t be a problem. I’m just afraid that the Emperor can’t get them to do it.”
“Is there also a half-deity in the Dragon God Empire?” Meng Lei was a little startled. “Why haven’t I heard anyone mentioning it before?”
“Duh! If the great Dragon God Empire didn’t have a half-deity presence, it’d have been destroyed by other empires a long time ago!”
Ol’ Amos scoffed derisively and said, “And it’s not just the Dragon God Empire. The Titan Empire, the Beast People Empire, the Fairy Empire, and even some ancient clans living in seclusion—all of them have half-deity presences among them.
“It’s just that half-deities, as existences that stand above Saint Domains and below deities, represent the strongest form of combat power in Heaven’s Vault Continent. They usually only exist as strategic deterrents.
“In most typical situations, half-deities tend to stay behind the scenes. Unless situations such as the empire facing the threat of subjugation arise, they almost never make an appearance.”
“I see!” Realization dawned upon Meng Lei, who then asked, “Ol’ President, what did you mean when you said that His Majesty might not be able to get the half-deity to come forward?”
“The emperor can command ordinary Saint Domains, but if he wants to request something of a half-deity... It’s a hard task to achieve!” Ol’ Amos said dispassionately, “In truth, even a Saint Domain limits-level expert can ignore the emperor if they want to.”
Meng Lei shook his head lightly as he remarked, “Looks like not even the emperor is almighty.”
“Almighty? You’re thinking too much.”
Ol’ Amos was rather disdainful as he said, “Heaven’s Vault Continent is ultimately a world where the strong rule. Power will always come first and foremost.
“Status is but just something that comes with power.
“There are many experts in the Dragon God Empire who don’t fear the emperor at all. In fact, even the emperor has to bow respectfully in greeting when he meets the Dragon Kings who stand above the Saint Domain realm and the half-deities.
“Remember this—in the Dragon God Empire, there is no lack of people who can be the emperor, but there are only so many Dragon Kings and half-deities. You can do without an emperor, but you can’t do without a Dragon King or a half-deity!”
“In other words, whether the empire’s half-deity will make an appearance or not depends on whether they’ll act on account of the emperor?”
Meng Lei was rendered speechless.
“Exactly! After all, most half-deities are striving hard for the goal
