The room went silent, just breathing could be heard in the room after that. Zhang Mengyao then closed her eyes and let out a sigh, “I am sorry. I should not have vented out my frustration on you, Sis Jingyi. Knowing that several God Ranks might come and destroy the home we have rebuilt stressed me out. I have been on the edge these days.”

“However, since I did it already, I might as well say my piece. Do you know what he said to himself all this time to convince him that he is doing the right thing? The world has changed, and he has to accept the new change and adapt. That’s the only way to survive. That’s what he said to himself, and I agree with it. The world has changed, and we have to adapt to the new world. He might be cruel for executing the traitor, but what the traitor did was much worse than what he did. And maybe there are many worse things outside our view that we don’t know. We have to adapt if we want to survive, or you don’t need to as long as my husband is alive. He adapts to the new world and will protect you and the other people who have been calling him a monster.”

“I still respect you for what you have done, but I hope you can stop calling him a monster too. That will give him peace of mind, knowing someone that is close to him understand him. You don’t have to call him by his title and any other formality, but you don’t have to call him a monster too, the person who tried his best to protect our new home,” Zhang Mengyao smiled and stretched out, “It feels good to speak out.” She then heard a notification in her head.

“A new message from His Majesty,” She then turned toward Viona and Yeon Hee, “He sends your leader back, along with a big reinforcement for our next war. You know what to do, right?”

“Yes, Ma’am!” Viona and Yeon Hee looked delighted when they heard Lu An would return. The work had been hard without Lu An.𝗈𝒱𝑙xt.𝓬𝒐𝐦

“Let’s return and defend our home from the invasion!” Zhang Mengyao rose from her seat, leaving the meeting by herself.

That was a shocking revelation that even Kang Xue was shocked. She did not knot and never in her mind would think that Cao Jingyi would call her husband a monster. She thought Cao Jingyi would understand every Tang Shaoyang decision, but she was wrong about it.

“I am sorry…. I don’t know he has been enduring the guilt all by himself all this time while I ignorantly called him a monster. I…” Cao Jingyi did not know what to say anymore.

“I understand your perspective. We were living peacefully two years ago, no monster, no zombie, no tower, no system. It is still hard to accept how the world changed. It’s even still hard to believe that I have this magical power, and he is also the same as us, a person with feelings and guilt. He looked strong on the outside, but we always remind him to look strong in front of people. If he shows weakness as Emperor, how will people trust him to protect them? That’s what we always say to him, but just remember, he is also a person with feelings like us. We can’t expect everyone to understand him, but as the people who are close to him, we have to understand him,” Kang Xue hugged Cao Jingyi, caressing her back, “Remember what he said to you before? He still needs people who always question his decision so he can reflect on his decision. Don’t mind Mengyao, she was on the edge because Tang Shaoyang had been fighting recklessly on the upper floor. She has been restless after knowing he died once, please understand her. His Majesty still needs you in the court.”

*** ***

As soon as they returned to Earth, Zhang Mengyao held another meeting. Meeting after meeting to discuss their future move. While they knew the World Government and The Uprising Guild brought the reinforcement, they did not know the exact location of this reinforcement location. The World Government and The Uprising Guild were never a threat to them, but the Federation of Allurion and The Divine Church. They needed to find where these people were before they figured out how to find the Earth’s location if they had not figured it out yet.

“We have a sub-region in Europe, and we have set up a portal to their territory. We can send TEID to search where the reinforcement is and kill them all with our finest men,” Zhang Mengyao turned toward the Minister of External Affairs who had been managing the diplomacy issue. The World Union, the leading faction in the World Government was in Europe, and the reinforcement might be staying with the World Union.

“We have a problem, Supreme Commander Zhang. You have invited The Belem Guild to come, but they haven’t sent any representative yet. I sent my people to check on them, but they haven’t returned yet,” The Minister of External Affairs was a middle-aged man in his mid-forties, and he was handpicked by Prime Minister Li Shuang.

Bang!

Zhang Mengyao slammed the table hard, but she controlled her power not to break the table, “Why don’t you tell me earlier? My invitation to them was three days ago, and we have been in this meeting for three hours. Why didn’t you inform me earlier that the people you sent haven’t returned?” She raised her voice, furious that she was not informed earlier.

All the sub-regions had received the call and all of them were coming. She thought everyone from the sub-regions had already arrived, no one told her that their sub-region in Europe had not arrived. There were several possibilities. First, The Belem Guild was destroyed by the World Government. Second, The Belem Guild betrayed the Tang Empire.

“The meeting is over for now.” Zhang Mengyao then looked up, “Origin! Check the Belem Guild’s contract!” Then he turned toward Lu An, “Prepare to depart with me, Lu An. I need to know what happens in Europe’s sub-regions!”