Reincarnation: The Soul of Dashul

"..."

"This……"

"What the hell?"

"Nether energy again?"

"Who exactly is the undercover agent?"

"What happened?"

"Old Knight! Now it's your turn to explain yourself!"

"This messenger of darkness... isn't he a member of the Raziel family? How can he also control underworld energy?"

"That old bastard Raziel was very close to Ulysses back then; they really were in cahoots!"

"We must report this to the Royal Council of Elders and the higher-ups of the Ministry of Magic immediately. The situation has far exceeded expectations, and we fear a powerful enemy may be approaching!"

……

After a few seconds of silence, the elderly men and women in the Ministry of Magic's council hall, who had calmed down, were suddenly filled with panic upon seeing the two black monsters in the Ancient Tree Secret Realm, and they began to condemn them once again.

"What's going on? Two spies? Both possessing Nether Energy? I'll go report this!"

"Immediately stop the formation that summons the Tree of Life, cut off its energy supply, and trap them in the secret realm!"

Even the two law enforcement mages sent by the Ministry of Magic's higher-ups were starting to sound flustered. The information they had was far less complex than what they were seeing now. If there were still more members of the Light and Shadow Society lurking in the shadows, things could get very dangerous if they continued to venture deeper into the Tree of Life.

One enforcer vanished from the spot in a blur, heading off to report to the higher-ups at the Ministry of Magic. Another enforcer, speaking in a forceful tone, demanded that Minister Robert immediately cease supplying energy to the summoning circle, intending to completely trap and kill those within.

"Once the energy supply to the Tree of Life is cut off, the magic array will not be able to be summoned again for the next ten years, and those three children will die inside!"

Minister Robert was clearly reluctant; his priority was still to safely teleport the participants out, and then decide who was right and who was wrong. Unfortunately, the teleportation array did not respond.

Previously, the higher-ups of the Ministry of Magic had cut off all access to the Ancient Tree Realm from the outside world. If the supply of energy to the Ancient Tree array is stopped as well, the Ancient Tree of Life will immediately disappear and once again vanish into the mysterious void.

In that case, the people inside the Ancient Tree Secret Realm would be unable to return to this world, and the people outside would be unable to enter to provide rescue, leaving them only to watch helplessly and worry in vain.

“That’s Nether Energy! It will be completely annihilated by the Ancient Tree’s Order Energy! No one can save it!” The enforcer’s attitude was firm, and he was very dissatisfied with Minister Robert’s hesitation.

"But some people aren't! Children shouldn't be sacrificed innocently! I won't do that!"

In fact, Minister Robert had secretly received requests from the deans of the Everest Magic Academy, the Khogori Magic Academy, and the Annapurna Magic Academy, asking him not to do that, and he himself did not intend to harm the students.

After all, the three participants have gone through countless hardships and fought hard to reach the top of the current generation's Magic Soul Ranking, leading their respective academies into a new era of glory. This is a great achievement in the history of magic academies, so how can we just stand by and watch them be trapped and die?

Leido of the Everest Magic Academy and Ricky of the Annapurna Magic Academy are clearly adversaries. Even if there are thieves from the Light and Shadow Society, they are only one of them. Whether the other is friend or foe is still unknown.

Moreover, Gabard of the Jogori Academy of Magic is even more innocent. He is a peerless genius who awakened the power of space ahead of time and is the future pillar of the empire. How could he be buried with a spy?

"That's not up to you!" The enforcer raised his right hand, and a beam of command light flew out of the council hall and instantly arrived at the control panel of the magic circle that summoned the Tree of Life.

"Stop!" Minister Robert was clearly not expected that this enforcer would be so forceful, completely ignoring him, the Minister of Magic. The two were of similar cultivation levels, with the enforcer being slightly stronger. Minister Robert had no time to stop him.

Apart from the deans of the Everest Magic Academy, K2 Magic Academy, and Annapurna Magic Academy who disagreed, everyone else present tacitly approved of the law enforcement's actions. No one was willing to stop them, since they had nothing to lose.

Just as Elder Knight, Dean Busu, and Dean Ukirov were about to break ties with the law enforcers and unleash their cultivation to forcibly stop them, an urgent message came from the control panel, echoing throughout the dome of the council hall.

"The energy inside the ancient tree's secret realm is expanding strangely, causing the live stream's energy to become completely disordered and unable to support a clear and complete live image..."

"Not good! The summoning magic circle of the Ancient Tree of Life has completely gone out of control and cannot be shut down from the outside! It's not the summoning magic circle that's providing energy to the Ancient Tree of Life now, but... the Ancient Tree of Life is supplying magical energy to the entire capital! Requesting further instructions!"

The two urgent messages shocked everyone present. Minister Robert and the three deans were stunned at first, but then they calmed down. They were all seasoned veterans, and since the outcome was already irreversible, there was no need to clash with law enforcement again.

"Your recklessness and overstepping of authority will be reported to the higher-ups of the Ministry of Magic. You are no longer welcome here. Please leave! Otherwise... even I cannot stop the wrath of the three higher magic academies!"

Minister Robert's expression was serious. He knew that this enforcer must have been secretly instructed by some high-ranking officials in the Ministry of Magic to have such a tough attitude and behavior. As a member of the Ministry of Magic, it was not appropriate for him to engage in a tough dialogue. Invoking other powerful forces to suppress him was the most appropriate method.

“…Ha! You old fool!” The enforcer looked around and saw that the deans of the three magic academies were all surrounded by a faint light, and all the magical energy was concentrated on him. Even if he was a little stronger than the people present, he would not dare to offend the three major powers at the same time.

The enforcer faded away and left, leaving an awkward atmosphere in the council hall. The deans of the three academies were still seething with anger that lingered for a long time.

Clearly, they were all dissatisfied with the way the people present treated their students. Apart from Minister Robert, who kept arguing his case and trying to save the lives of all the students, everyone else remained silent. In such situations, the silent bystanders were also perpetrators.

Each faction naturally has its own considerations; there's no right or wrong. They simply have different interests, so they can't understand the feelings of the three academy deans, let alone truly consider their perspectives.

The original purpose of the Magic Tournament—fair competition and shared glory—was perhaps distorted from the moment the Magic Soul Ranking was launched. Now, with the Nether Energy incident, some issues have been brought to the forefront, deepening the divide between various factions and causing them to become wary of each other.

"As I always say... please calm down. The empire's magical heritage has existed for ten thousand years. It cannot be easily shaken by any demons or monsters. Your fear stems from your overly comfortable lives, but isn't this stability also a fruit of the empire's peace?"

Minister Robert spoke first once again, trying to break the awkward atmosphere. The Magic Tournament was supposed to be a grand event for the Empire, a grand gathering to select talents for the Empire, and it shouldn't be like this.

"The Ancient Tree of Life is mysterious and profound. I believe that under the guidance of the god Barrett, it will not kill the innocent. It has activated its own defense mechanism, and the life support system has been strengthened. Moreover, it can no longer be interfered with from the outside. The three deans do not need to worry too much. Everything will have to wait until the pre-arranged debate ends!"

Minister Robert comforted the three deans, while secretly contacting the control panel of the summoning circle and learning some positive news.

Minister Robert then signaled to everyone to quietly return to their seats, not to attract too much attention, and not to leak any information about the secret meeting. Under no circumstances should any disturbance be caused in the capital, or they would be held accountable.

The standoff outside the Ancient Tree Secret Realm, seemingly over, was just beginning, and it was far more than just the undercurrents in the council hall. Just like now, Ledo and Reggie were about to begin their true final battle.