Chapter 676 Blood Godwood (6600)

This is a story about freedom and reality.

The imperial royal family holds the greatest power in this world. In exchange, members of the royal family are among the least free people in this world.

Perhaps the emperor still has the possibility of being autocratic, a tyrant, but as a prince, he is also greatly restricted, especially if he is not the crown prince, his mother's family is not strong enough, and his ranking is far behind.

Living in the palace—or rather, being imprisoned in the palace as a prince—all he can see every day is the unchanging scenery of his mother's palace and its surroundings. All there is is the cold wind and heavy rain blowing from the mountains around the imperial capital, and the air filled with incense.

Raised in the depths of a woman's chamber—this is a derogatory term, and it is indeed true. Locked in a small area of the palace, how can one understand the vastness of the world, and how can one correctly learn all kinds of attempts?

However, the young prince was very intelligent.

Even compared to his dozen or so older brothers, four or five younger brothers, and over a dozen sisters, he was one of the smartest.

So he learned everything: the common sense taught by his mother, the knowledge taught by his teachers, the cautious secrets taught by his elders, and the ability to hide his talents, which he learned without a teacher.

Because of this, he successfully became an inconspicuous prince in the palace, but not the worst. Everyone knew his name and abilities, but did not think he was a threat.

As he grew older, the prince's range of activities also expanded. He began to have study companions and playmates, and he could walk in some areas of the palace.

But obviously, he was not satisfied.

In his mind were the legends he had read in books, and in his memory were the beautiful sceneries in those picture albums. He was smart and knew the vastness of the world, far surpassing the palace, the imperial capital, and even the empire where he could wander, because his source energy talent was outstanding. He could even sense the height of the world with the sound of the wind, far beyond his imagination.

The most painful thing for smart people comes from the fact that their intelligence cannot change the status quo.

This was the prince's situation. He understood everything, he knew everything. He knew the open and secret struggles between the adult princes when his father was seriously ill, and he also knew that a prince like him, whose mother was just the daughter of a small noble, could never become emperor.

He even knew that he had to choose a brother to support, and even if this brother won, he might not be able to survive.

The tradition of the Asmodai Empire rarely involves conferring titles of king.

--Too boring, this kind of life.

He always thought so, sitting on the roof of the palace in the quiet of night, looking up at the stars and moon in the sky.

The prince couldn't help but fantasize, fantasize about the distance. He wanted to see the mountains and seas outside the city, to trace the source of the long river, and reach the end of the great river.

He wanted to explore the lairs of magical beasts, discover never-before-seen scenery, and broaden his horizons and vision greatly, leaving his footprints in very far places.

He thought, but he couldn't.

The royal family is not free—the management of the clan, the gaze of his old father, the vigilance of his adult brothers, and the scrutinizing eyes of the ministers, all firmly locked onto the young prince.

He had even heard several discussions about him: in the discussions, he repeatedly became part of conspiracies, a tool for adult princes to fight each other, a sacrifice for a brother to suppress another brother.

Other brothers had already died. The internal strife in the Asmodai royal family had entered a fever pitch, and the emperor, wanting to choose the strongest heir, turned a blind eye. He had too many children, so much so that love could only be given to the strongest one. An existence like the young prince, without a background, had no right to receive love from the moment his mother became pregnant.

"Leave the palace, Mihail."

The prince's study companion, a rewarded border noble, the second son of the Sakashvili family, who was in some sense unlucky, named Aharonov, suggested. He also knew very well that if this continued, not to mention the prince named Mihail would suffer, he and the family behind him would probably be finished as well.

"We leave the palace and pretend we're dead—your brothers won't care about a prince who has declared himself dead. Their energy won't be spent on us. As long as we use this method to declare that we completely give up the right to inherit the throne, we can at least survive."

"I've thought about it for a long time, Aharonov, but how do we get out?"

The prince was also very helpless about this. He looked at the scarlet moon with a wry smile, and then mocked himself: "And who said they wouldn't send someone to assassinate me? With my little strength, it only takes a small team to kill me. Anyone can spare that."

"Hey, friend, I really want to try the pancakes from your hometown and see if they're as fragrant as you said."

"I haven't eaten them in years, maybe it's just memory beautification?" The noble young man obviously didn't have any good ideas either: "Hey, your royal family is just troublesome. My dad didn't choose between me and my brother. He's older, isn't the title his?"

"Primogeniture is indeed stable, but it doesn't choose the best one."

The two chatted casually, venting their frustration at being unable to control their own lives.

And their conversation was heard by the prince's mother.

After thinking for several days, the sorrowful woman, the prince's mother, made up her mind and taught the prince one last lesson.

That is, the thing called 'fate' is indeed 'up to oneself.'

The prince, whose mother accidentally fell into a pond and died, had the opportunity to return to her hometown with her mother's remains. The grieving prince certainly knew the meaning of his mother's actions. She used her life to bring her child an opportunity to survive.

"Live well, Mihail." This note with his mother's elegant handwriting was swallowed by the prince. He couldn't leave any evidence, and then, he embarked on the road back to his hometown.

And as expected, a team of people came to assassinate him along the way, but they did not find the prince and his study companion.

They had already left the caravan at the very beginning and came to the wilderness.

Surviving in the wilderness is not simple, or rather, it is very simple. Fortunately, the prince and his study companion were not weak, and they had prepared for this moment for a long time—they were successfully chased around the world by passing source energy beasts, and the simple thing was that before they were eaten, they were saved by a talented hunter boy living in a mountain village.

The tall boy wielded a giant wooden棒 (bàng - stick) as tall as himself. With just one blow, he smashed a black-spotted giant python into a bloody mess, its head caved in.

"At that time, I was only relying on brute force. My skills were really terrible."

Iloviz rarely reminisced about the past, but as he got older, he always did.

Disaster Realm (灾境 - Zai Jing) powerhouses have long lifespans, but they have to endure the pain brought about by the enormous source energy. The energy they can control exceeds their own level. This is unavoidable and is the world's punishment for the descendants of the Creator they killed.

But the Burning Spirit (燃灵 - Ran Ling) Realm is different... Burning Spirit is a god.

And the fate of a god, in this world where the god has killed the Creator, is destined death.

Iloviz knew that he would not live much longer, perhaps a few decades, perhaps a century or two. It sounded very long, but for a god, almost eternal, immortal life, it was just a brief moment.

As the highest condensation point of source energy, the Burning Spirit Realm's Heart Light Body (心光体 - xin guang ti) is so powerful that its existence absorbs the surrounding source energy, and eventually, gradually, transforms its Heart Light Body and even its soul into a 'source energy singularity.'

In other words, they will self-destruct from their own excessively large source energy and be completely annihilated.

Unless... find a sustenance.

An indestructible sustenance that can withstand almost endless source energy.

The story of the prince, the study companion, and the hunter boy ended a long, long time ago, but back then, they adventured across the land, exploring ancient ruins. They walked the world like true blood brothers.

The prince saw the mountains and the distance he had dreamed of. Although it was difficult, he never regretted it.

The study companion gained freedom. He had no obsessions, and thought it would be great to eat good food and live a peaceful life.

And the hunter boy's talent was so high that it seemed unbelievable. After the prince taught him how to cultivate source energy, this genius living in the mountains became a genuine Transcendent. He excitedly announced to his two friends that he would become their knight in the future, guarding them, upholding all the rules of loyalty and morality.

"Get over yourself." To this, the prince laughed: "You talk as if I'm still a prince—we're friends!"

"You should work on your barbecue skills." And the study companion was washing mushrooms by the river. He complained: "The last time you roasted a terror bird leg, it was fucking raw inside. Is that what you used to eat?"

"Hey, Mihail, you idiot, don't soak your smelly feet upstream. I'm washing vegetables!"

These free and easy days lasted for quite some time, and they even gradually made a name for themselves among adventurers and mercenaries.

Just as the prince excitedly wanted to form a mercenary group to continue their adventures on the continent of Aean, a royal guard appeared in their small manor in a fixed village.

In the manor, there were grapes planted by the study companion and workers hired. In addition to winemaking, the hunter boy had also dug a small pond with his bare hands, saying that he could raise some fish to eat in the future—this was both their base and home, and also the prince's idea of the future headquarters for the trio's mercenary group.

But when the guard in black armor opened the gate, everyone knew that such a future no longer existed.

"Good day, Your Highness. His Majesty requests that you return to the imperial capital."

"...I don't want to go back. You can see that I don't want to be a prince, and I don't want any imperial inheritance. Why can't you just let me continue to live a mediocre life and die here?"

"It's not up to you, Your Highness. Your achievements in these few years have been dazzling enough. His Majesty admits that he misjudged you. Your abilities have entered His Majesty's eyes. You are qualified to compete for the throne, so you must go. This is the Emperor's order."

The prince was silent for a long time.

He longed for freedom, longed to explore, but he knew very well that if he refused, the only outcome would be death.

Even if he didn't die, his two friends would die.

If he died, everything would be meaningless. Both freedom and the dream of exploring the future would disappear completely.

Freedom is just a dream, survival is an unavoidable reality.

He had no choice.

"Mihail, take it easy... we'll be with you."

The knight at that time flexed his arm muscles, foolishly comforting the other party: "At worst, we'll die together. Three people won't be lonely!"

"Yeah, brother, no matter how fierce your brothers are, are they fiercer than the relic guardian golems we've seen?" And the study companion shrugged. Although he wasn't as carefree as the knight, he was obviously not so worried either, as if he had been mentally prepared for a long time.

His friends' comfort was indeed reassuring, but the prince had always been silent since then.

Without rights, without power, there is no freedom, no survival.

His father could arrange his life at will, and he couldn't escape unless he came to participate in this battle for the throne according to his will.

Moreover, without rights and power, he could not judge the evildoers he wanted to judge, he could not kill the enemies who hindered him, and he could not change this empire and world that he deeply hated.

But, most importantly, he could not be without survival.

He must live, otherwise, neither his mother's sacrifice, nor anything else, would be meaningless.

People are not free, they can only do what they should do within the existing conditions.

Just like people cannot choose their parents, they can only choose what to do.

Therefore, in this world, whether it is dreams, freedom, or everything else that humans pursue, is essentially rooted in existence.

Death is nothingness.

The memories of his youth flashed through his mind. Although Iloviz was flying in the air, his eyes were always fixed on this land.

Back then, the strength of the Emperor's Guard was irresistible to them when they were young, but in the end, it was nothing more than the peak of the Heart Light and a touch of Divine Intent (神意 - shen yi). Not to mention that he could kill ten thousand with a single breath now, he surpassed them a few years later.

But weakness also has its advantages, at least it won't be strong enough to self-ignite.

The improvement of strength in the Burning Spirit Realm is equivalent to accelerating suicide unless it can surpass the entire Aean world. Even if Mihail chose the branches of the Burning Ember Godwood (燃薪神木 - Ran Xin Shen Mu) as his sustenance, the fragments of the Godwood could not bear this almost infinite source energy.

Therefore, they focused their attention on things that were neither objects nor souls.

That is the entire empire.

In order to help his overly powerful friend, after becoming emperor, a vast network was generated in the hands of the former prince. A huge net was established between the mobile cities. They had no physical form, only a kind of imprint. The area covered by the imprint was the territory belonging to the true empire.

And Burning Spirit Realm powerhouses can, by virtue of certain oaths and contracts, divert the source energy pressure they need to bear to all the land, buildings, and humans in the entire empire.

In contrast, Burning Spirit Realm experts can also use the power of the entire empire to increase their output.

A genius-like concept, implemented jointly by the three. The emperor joked that the knight was now the empire's guardian spirit, and the knight rolled his eyes. He felt that the emperor himself would reach this realm, so where did he get the right to joke about himself?

And the former study companion, now a general, although not as strong, was the most handsome and was now married and had children.

To celebrate, the emperor even hid his identity and left the palace to personally celebrate the birth of his friend's child for an entire night.

…

So, when exactly did it become like this?

Probably... after knowing that the Holy Sun was about to die out.

The world is about to be destroyed, and all the environments where humans can live will disappear.

Unable to escape, unable to ignore, it is right in front of us, and for the strong who can live for a long time, it is almost tomorrow.

Having finally rebuilt such a large empire and exhausted all his efforts to complete the reform, he suddenly learned such news.

Putting himself in his shoes, Iloviz would also feel that Mihail would be greatly impacted, and even feel that everything he had done in his life was meaningless.

But, Mihail clearly cheered up. He found a way to let more people survive. He quickly made plans and arranged the steps. He was the strongest and best emperor since the birth of the Asmodai Empire. He certainly had the qualifications and could save this civilization.

"Necessary evil, I also understand. In order to survive in the mouths of ferocious beasts, herds of cattle will abandon some of the old and weak to facilitate the overall survival of the herd... but why?"

Why would Mihail become like this?

Iloviz didn't understand, he never understood, just like he never understood why nobles would want to exploit the common people to death, nor did he understand why taxes had to be so high that farmers couldn't survive.

He didn't understand why meaningless luxury and enjoyment would become fashionable among the upper classes, and he couldn't understand why resources enough to feed millions of people would end up being the consumption of a banquet in the imperial capital.

This world clearly doesn't have so many points worth fighting for! Everyone can do their job well, do the right thing, everyone can trade fairly, empathize, and work together in times of difficulty, instead of being like the Aean world now, facing the end of the world and splitting into so many large camps to interfere with each other...

As long as you are not selfish, content, and know how to make trade-offs...

If everyone could do these things, where would there be so much trouble, so much war and killing!

Clearly, life and life should be friends, friends who work together to survive, not like this, competing and exploiting each other, looking like enemies!

"Clearly everyone being a good person would make everyone happy... Mihail, you also understand, you clearly also know that everyone taking a step back would allow everyone to gain more than taking a step forward!"

However, the knight also understood very well.

If you take a step back, others will take a step forward.

Not everyone thinks about win-win situations, everyone just wants to ensure their own survival.

The lives of others are like weeds in the eyes of some people. They don't care at all. They can remain indifferent even if hundreds of thousands or millions die.

In fact, many people don't even care about their own lives. Even when they are in the midst of a plague, they won't take any protective measures, as if they think they are the chosen ones.

There are too many people like this in every world, so the world can never be at peace.

The knight sped through the air, bringing thunder and storms.

He was not selfish, because he was not afraid of death. Death was meaningless to Iloviz.

He was perhaps an illegitimate child abandoned by noble relatives, without parents or friends, and was raised alone by a childless hunter. When he was young, the hunter was killed by a ferocious beast. He struggled to survive all the way until he met the emperor and the general.

For the first period of time, he didn't know what the meaning of living was. He couldn't taste whether food was delicious or not, and he didn't understand what things counted as happiness. He just imitated the hunter's past lifestyle, living day after day. He didn't need to mend his clothes when they were torn, and he didn't need to repair the house when it leaked air. In short, he just lived, like a nihilistic walking corpse.

Until the prince at that time taught him the method of cultivation. This thing, which was much more interesting than anything else, finally made the knight feel alive. He began to feel that becoming stronger was what he should do, and becoming stronger itself also gave the knight many more ideas, allowing him to help his friends and give his existence meaning.

Even now, Iloviz still does not regret saving Mihail and Aharonov on that day. The joy of their adventures back then has not been forgotten to this day.

Moreover, it is very likely that it is not the emperor who has changed, but himself and Aharonov.

He changed from a nihilistic hunter's son to a guardian of morality, to the empire's first knight.

He changed from the prince's study companion, a young man who only wanted a peaceful life, to the empire's general, a maintainer of imperial power and order.

But he. Mihail. From beginning to end, he is exactly the same.

He is just someone who wants to live.

——Life is selfish.

This selfishness surpasses everything. Even if one cannot survive, one's descendants must survive. If one's descendants cannot survive, they must leave a mark in the world, leave a legacy.

For some people, legacy may be more important than blood, but in the final analysis, it is nothing more than existence and continuation. How could Iloviz not understand? He once accompanied the emperor and the general on adventures, exploring the relics of the previous era. They felt the nothingness after the demise of civilization, and they also felt the significance of legacy represented by the existence of relics.

And in the face of the end of the world, to want to survive one hundred percent, one must be more selfish than anyone else.

He made a choice.

"It's just possible that you forgot your original intention, forgot why you wanted to live, and are just living for the sake of living."

Closing his eyes, Iloviz muttered to himself: "You are clearly an adventurer who wants to explore the distance, aren't you?"

"Did you forget, or is this also part of your plan?"

At this moment, the knight could already see the Hee Light Tower (希光高塔 - Xi Guang Gao Ta). He could sense the incomparably powerful source energy fluctuations at the top of the tower, as if they could shield the entire mountain range and the sky.

That is where Svetlai of Hee Light (希光的斯维特雷 - Xi Guang de Siwei Telei), the man who made Aharonov commit suicide, lives.

A truly good person. So good that the knight feels ashamed.

None of his actions are for himself, or only for himself. His eyes are always fixed on the entire world, gazing equally at all things.

His thoughts and actions are correct. His program is orderly, much clearer than himself, who only worries about 'why.'

The knight did not intend to take revenge, and even if he were to fight, it would not be for this reason.

He went forward, just wanting to ask the other party a question.

"What are you living for?"

Or.

"What is the meaning of your existence to this day, becoming so powerful, and protecting all living beings...?"

But soon, the knight, noticing something, frowned.

He turned his head and looked south, sensing spiritual energy fluctuations that were unbelievable—there, on the land where the Southern Border nobles were located, hundreds of near-Disaster Realm experts suddenly appeared.

Celestial phenomena reacted, and even half of the Aean world was roaring with an unstoppable gale.

This was obviously not right, even bordering on bizarre.

Hundreds of Disaster Realm experts. If the Southern Border nobles had such power, as long as there were a few top Disaster Realm experts, they could pile up and kill themselves, and after they died, the emperor, who had the same contract, would also be affected.

In short, the Southern Border nobles would immediately become the number one power in the Aean world and could easily level the entire world.

Therefore, he directly turned around and sped south.

Then, the knight saw it.

He saw the Godwood trees that were constantly growing and spreading on top of the cities.

Wailing, cheers, roars, and cries were all mixed together, spreading eerily in all directions in the light of the blood moon.

Subconsciously stopping his flight and hovering in mid-air, Iloviz stared blankly at this scene.

He saw the dance of flesh and blood, the coagulation of bones, and the ultimate fusion of 'life' and 'existence.'

He saw it.

A Blood Godwood tree coiled above a mobile city, all its branches and leaves being human faces.