Novel Full Chapter 862: A Shaddy Scheme
Chapter 862: A Shaddy Scheme
After thinking about it for a while, Michael finally spoke.
"Stop resisting," he said calmly. "Try to leave the realm."
Arianne did not question him. She did not suspect anything. She assumed it was only a matter of timing. If she left first, she would simply see Michael outside a moment later.
"Alright."
Without hesitation, she reached down and drew her tamed beast closer to her side, placing a reassuring hand on its back as she relaxed her resistance and allowed the realm’s expulsion force to take hold.
The reaction was immediate.
Pale light began to gather around her body. Thin threads of distortion formed along the edges of her silhouette as space itself started to pull her away.
But what happened next was something Michael had already expected.
The light intensified.
Then it flickered.
And stopped.
Just like Renn before her, the expulsion collapsed abruptly. The distortion vanished as if it had never existed.
Arianne looked around in confusion.
Michael, however, was not surprised at all. He had already suspected this would be the case.
Something was definitely wrong.
But what exactly was happening?
Far away from Michael was a group of ten individuals.
It was the group from the Black Serpent Empire.
Right now, Prince Rui was looking at the magic circle on the ground before turning to his attendant, the Awakener who had recognized Michael earlier.
"Do you have any idea what happened?" Rui asked calmly. "Why is the realm closing before the scheduled time?"
The attendant lowered his head slightly.
"We do not know, Your Highness," he replied. "But at least we managed to complete our preparations before this began."
Prince Rui watched the unstable glow of the magic circle for a moment longer before nodding slowly.
"Good."
His gaze then shifted to the other eight members of the team standing nearby.
They were exhausted, and several of them were still struggling to stabilize their breathing.
But despite their condition, all eight straightened the moment Rui’s eyes fell on them.
"You have all tried your best," Prince Rui said calmly. "The Empire will remember your efforts."
The words were simple, yet the effect was immediate.
The eight individuals quickly bowed their heads.
"For the Empire!"
"Your Highness’s will is our duty!"
"We only did what we must!"
"Serving the Empire is our honor!"
Their voices overlapped as they hurriedly declared their loyalty, each trying to speak before the others.
Prince Rui observed them quietly as he thought back to the mission his father gave him before he left.
Millions of miles away from this constructed realm, the Black Serpent Empire stood as one of the true overlords of the continent.
It was not merely large in territory. Its strength came from the terrifying number of great beings it possessed.
Even among other empires, the Black Serpent Empire stood firm. Its foundation had been built over thousands of years.
However, in recent decades, something subtle had begun to change.
The Empire still ruled over several kingdoms that acknowledged its authority, but the control it once exercised over the three strongest among them was slowly weakening.
The reason was simple.
Those three kingdoms had grown too powerful.
Each of them now possessed enough great beings that, under normal circumstances, they could have declared themselves empires in their own right.
Among them, the Lionheart Kingdom stood at the very top.
Its military power, cultivation resources, and rising young generation had begun attracting attention even from foreign empires.
To outsiders, this might have seemed like natural growth.
But to the Black Serpent Empire, it was something far more dangerous.
No master enjoyed watching their servants grow strong enough to question authority.
When the ruins of this constructed realm were first discovered inside Lionheart territory, the Empire immediately realized its potential.
If properly explored, it could elevate the Lionheart Kingdom even further.
That was unacceptable.
Unfortunately, the Empire could not simply seize the ruins by force.
Long ago, a former Emperor of the Black Serpent Empire had left behind a strict rule that limited imperial intervention in certain external territories.
The rule had once been meant to prevent civil wars and reckless expansion.
Now it restrained them.
Because of that law, the Empire could only pressure the Lionheart Kingdom from the shadows and secure a share of access to the ruins.
But in truth, the Empire did not care much about the ruins themselves.
What they cared about was control.
And that was why Prince Rui had been sent here.
His mission was far more subtle.
Thanks to the special rules governing this realm, most of the participants were the most talented young individuals of their respective kingdoms.
The future pillars.
The next generation of commanders, masters, and perhaps even kings.
If something unfortunate were to happen to them inside this realm, the consequences would be catastrophic.
Most kingdoms would be weakened from within.
For an empire seeking to maintain control, it would be a very convenient outcome.
Prince Rui’s gaze slowly swept across his exhausted companions.
Placed in any kingdom, those eight would have been considered priceless.
They were not ordinary elites.
There was a reason each of them had been chosen so carefully, and it was not only because they could fight.
Each of them was an heir of an important family. For the ritual, a certain level of strength was also required. That was another reason they stood here now.
That was why the eight were exhausted.
That was why their faces looked pale.
They had not simply been preparing the circle.
They had been feeding it.
Prince Rui watched them quietly, calm on the surface, cold beneath.
Unfortunately, none of them were going to leave this realm with him.
Ironically, it was the same reason the elites of the three kingdoms had been sent here.
This realm was a perfect knife.
If those youths grew stronger, their kingdoms would become harder to control.
If they died, their kingdoms would bleed for decades.
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