Chapter 2713: The World Trembles

"So, what do you all think? Do you still believe he’s incapable of defeating the Void Hunter?" Supreme General Tian asked a moment later, breaking the silence.

"While he didn’t defeat the Void Hunter in that recording, it clearly shows just how much he has improved in such a short amount of time. At this rate, it won’t be long before he’s fully capable of defeating it."

After another moment of silence, Heavenly Furnace’s representative turned to Yuan and asked, "That power... can you swear on your soul that you’ll only use it against the Void Hunter and never against another human? That you won’t use it for selfish purposes?"

However, before Yuan could even respond, Ember City’s representative shouted, "Even if he swears on his soul, how can we trust him?! If his power goes unchecked, there’s nothing stopping him from going back on his word!"

Yuan smiled and said, "He’s right. My words will probably mean nothing to many of you, so you’ll simply have to hope that I keep them."

"Let’s put the assembly on hold right here and take a few days’ break so we can all think about it," said Cloudpiecer’s representative.

"I agree."

"Me too."

Other representatives shared similar sentiments.

The Union’s representative then said, "In that case, let us pause the assembly for now and return in four days. That should be plenty of time."

Once everyone agreed, they left the chamber and returned to their respective residential areas.

After returning to their residential area, Supreme General Tian started a conference with everyone on the spot.

"If you have anything to say, now’s the time to say it."

General Gu was the first to speak.

"I have some concerns. First, even though Captain Yuan is part of our military, what will we do to ensure his power doesn’t go unchecked? Don’t tell me we’re simply going to let him walk around without any restraints. Even if he says he won’t misuse that power, we need guarantees. Quite frankly, he’s a ticking time bomb, and I understand why the others are concerned."

"I agree with General Gu. His power is too dangerous. Even if he’s one of our own, there’s no telling what might happen in the future, and if he betrays us, that’d spell disaster."

"He has no reason to betray us, but if you keep antagonizing him, I wouldn’t blame him for doing so," Mei Feng said coldly.

"That’s not something someone of your stature should be saying, General Mei." General Gu sneered in disdain. "You’re basically saying you don’t care if he goes on a rampage. And we’re not antagonizing him. We simply want some reassurance. It’s standard procedure, just like how we restrict the cultivation of everyone living within the city."

Mei Feng replied, "If only that rule applied to everyone, regardless of their status. Let’s not pretend there aren’t people who can bypass those restrictions and abuse their power."

"This matter is on an entirely different scale. We’re talking about someone who could potentially destroy an entire city by himself!"

Supreme General Tian turned to Yuan and spoke, "Let’s see what the subject of the topic has to say for himself."

"Before I say anything, I want to make one thing crystal clear," Yuan said in a calm, unwavering voice. "My loyalty does not lie solely with Gaia’s Heaven."

"What?!" General Gu exclaimed in disbelief.

He couldn’t believe Yuan would utter something like that when they’d been questioning his loyalty just seconds ago.

"I’m not staying in Gaia’s Heaven because I love the city or because I have some deep attachment to it. I’m here because of a few specific individuals, and if it weren’t for them, I would have no problem leaving," Yuan continued, leaving everyone speechless.

"I am not a hero, nor will I pretend to be one. Although I said I would defeat the Void Hunter, I’m not doing it for anyone or any city. I’m doing it because it aligns with my own interests.

"That being said, I don’t care about fame or status, nor am I an unreasonable person. As long as you don’t give me a reason to, I won’t misuse my power."

Yuan’s gaze locked onto General Gu as he continued, "If I were the kind of person who misuses their power, you wouldn’t still be standing there right now, especially after all your attempts to get rid of me."

"T-That’s just your own—"

"Shut up. You can keep shouting about there being no evidence, but that doesn’t matter. You’re the type of person who believes the strong are always right—and right now, I’m the stronger one."

Yuan swept his sharp gaze across everyone present as an invisible pressure descended upon them.

"I am not someone you can control, nor will I allow myself to be controlled by anyone."

"..."

Everyone was speechless, even Mei Feng.

"That is my response. Satisfied?" Yuan asked Supreme General Tian, whose jaw was on the ground.

After a long, long moment of silence, Supreme General Tian cleared his throat and opened his mouth to speak.

However, before he could even utter a single word, the ground suddenly began to tremble.

"?!"

It wasn’t a minor earthquake, either. The ground shook so violently that several people were knocked off their feet.

"W-What’s happening?!"

While everyone looked around in confusion, Yuan tilted his head toward the sky, his eyes narrowing as his brows knitted into a deep frown.

The others eventually noticed Yuan’s reaction and followed his gaze upward, their eyes widening in disbelief.

Massive ripples were spreading across the heavens, sweeping throughout the world as though an invisible barrier surrounded it and something had just struck that barrier from the outside.

Each time another ripple appeared, the world trembled even more violently, making it clear that the two phenomena were connected.

This phenomenon continued for a few more minutes before it finally stopped.

However, just as everyone began to believe it was over, another ripple suddenly appeared in the sky.

This time, it swept across the world far faster than before, indicating that whatever had struck the barrier had done so with far greater force, and the world trembled violently once again.