Lord Whitman had previously been gravely injured in a fierce battle with General Hawke, yet had no time to heal.

　　On top of that, after two months of exhaustion, he had tried everything to find a glimmer of hope for Taicang.

　　Now, the chance to win three years of respite for Taicang had likely been completely cut off.

　　In that moment, the King Bennett, who had sheltered Taicang for decades, felt his last breath of spirit dissipate, never to be gathered again.

　　“So, I made my royal father die of anger?”

　　Summer Clark sighed helplessly and asked the people before him.

Chapter 2: The Divine Tree

　　“Your Highness, please hand over the Taicang National Seal. We will select a wise successor from the royal family to take over as the ruler of Taicang.

　　Even though Taicang is now a heavy mountain to bear, even as its king, one cannot escape poverty.

　　In such circumstances, perhaps no royal dares to shoulder this heavy burden, but we must at least try.”

　　“Now that external threats are imminent, we cannot let you delay any longer. After deposing you as crown prince, we, the old ministers forcing this coup, will naturally take our own lives to atone.”

　　“The late king said countless times that the position of Taicang’s ruler is special. If he could not teach Your Highness well in his lifetime, he would have to choose a worthy successor.”

　　“……”

　　Summer Clark looked helplessly at the crowd of ministers before him, some still weeping in grief, all roused with emotion.

　　He was speechless at the original owner of this body, with only unbearable memories surfacing in his mind.

　　Summer Clark pondered over these memories while also searching for a way to break the deadlock.

　　But all the memories in his mind were of rather unsavory scenes.

　　“No wonder these people treat the crown prince this way. In a country where the people, officials, and royals are united, struggling to survive in the cracks, one misstep means national extinction—how did such unruly nobles arise?”

　　“Is this what they call ‘the diversity of man,’ or is it proof of Xunzi’s ‘human nature is evil’?”

　　Another official, seeing Summer Clark once again fall silent, stepped forward and said, “Your Highness, please do not force yourself any longer. We have searched your chambers and found no trace of the Taicang National Seal. Now that the late king is gone, we beg the crown prince to think of the more than 600,000 people of Taicang!”

　　Summer Clark was speechless.

　　These people only wanted to depose him, not kill him.

　　In this situation, he would certainly be willing to reveal the whereabouts of the Taicang National Seal.

　　In his memory, Taicang called itself a nation, but in reality, it was just a city-state with only two cities… no, towns—unimaginably poor.

　　The royal family also bore heavy responsibilities.

　　There were not many real benefits to being king.

　　But the problem now was that his memories had not fully merged, and he simply could not recall where the Taicang National Seal was.

　　Even if he wanted to say, he was powerless.

　　The Vigorous Old Man waited in silence for a long time, then finally sighed.

　　He then turned to look at a The Man in Black standing nearby.

　　The Man in Black bowed respectfully to The Vigorous Old Man.

　　Only then did he look at Summer Clark.

　　His face was extremely pale, and except for his face, not a single part of his body was exposed.

　　“I didn’t even notice this strange person just now!”

　　Summer Clark was puzzled and wanted to take a closer look at The Man in Black, but his gaze was involuntarily drawn to the man’s eyes.

　　Suddenly, Summer Clark’s mind spun wildly, as if he had fallen into an endlessly twisting mire, his thoughts instantly overwhelmed!

　　“Your Highness, where did you hide the Taicang National Seal?”

　　The Man in Black spoke, his voice hoarse, as if a jagged stone was lodged in his throat, sending chills down one’s spine.

　　Summer Clark’s eyes went blank, the question echoing endlessly in his mind, while The Man in Black’s figure grew enormous, towering above and looking down on Summer Clark.

　　Just as Summer Clark’s consciousness was fading and he was about to lose control, a golden light burst from his mind, instantly dispersing those voices!

　　Summer Clark regained clarity, and to his astonishment, found a gigantic, unimaginably large tree shining brilliantly in his mind!

　　This divine tree’s trunk was pitch black, its branches thick, its leaves gleaming like gold foil, and its crown lush and mysterious.

　　Summer Clark stared at the giant tree in shock—he had never seen a tree so massive!

　　From afar, the tree seemed to reach the sky, its branches and leaves layered in strange patterns, each layer growing upward, yet it did not feel unnatural.

　　Instead, it added a sense of mystery and solemnity.

　　On the first layer of the trunk, Summer Clark could clearly see a huge black egg-shaped object and a glowing silver fruit hanging there.

　　As for the higher trunk, it was shrouded in mist, and Summer Clark could not see clearly.

　　Suddenly, a beam of light flashed atop the divine tree, briefly illuminating the mist above, but as the light faded, the mist returned.

　　In that fleeting moment, Summer Clark caught a glimpse of what was revealed on the upper trunk.

　　There were enormous stars, vast lands, even boundless worlds.

　　Amid the clouds and mist, he could vaguely see awe-inspiring, even terrifying, shadowy figures looming in and out of sight.

　　“Oceans, continents, the veins of the land—nothing is missing. Clouds drift slowly over the planet. This is incredible.”

　　Summer Clark’s consciousness wore a look of astonishment, still unable to believe it.