Replacement

"Heh, Pupula, you really couldn't leave well enough alone. Why couldn't you just disappear quietly? You had to go looking for trouble." Aier looked mockingly at the Light Screen in his hand.

The Light Screen showed exactly what was happening on Pupula's end. That was right—not a single move she made had escaped their eyes.

Aier stopped paying attention to Pupula and turned to ask Feng Luo:

"How are things going in the Elf Kingdom?"

Feng Luo gave a flat reply.

"Almost done."

Aier had no intention of letting Pupula have an easy time. How could he let her plan go so smoothly? Wouldn't that be immoral? He voiced the thought aloud:

"Deal with it as soon as possible. I really can't stand that Pupula or whatever her name is."

"..." At his words, both Feng Luo and Ji Ying, who had been listening nearby, were left at a loss.

Provoked by their looks, Aier launched into an impassioned rant:

"What? Life is full of ups and downs and downs and downs and downs and downs and downs and downs and downs and downs. Can't I let her get a taste of that early?"

"..." Ji Ying and Feng Luo thought, We know that's what you're thinking, but don't aim your rant at your teammates! We're on your side! No friendly fire!!!

Meanwhile, Pupula sat on her throne, strands of hair hanging loosely as her beautiful fingers tapped the armrest. Her lips were pressed together, her flawless face utterly solemn. The emotions in her eyes shifted again and again until only resolve remained. Her brows knitted tightly, and her soft voice seemed liable to scatter on the wind:

"Lily, don't blame me. This is all for the people of the Flower Fairy Kingdom. As my dear sister, you'll surely understand."

Her expression was hideous and terrifying as she spoke. There was nothing of a goddess left in her, only a selfish person who plundered others under the pretense of acting for their good, contributed nothing herself, and reaped the rewards of their efforts. She claimed both the benefits and the credit, while the one who truly paid the price remained unknown. More precisely, that person was not even regarded as human. They all thought the so-called mysterious power was merely a form of energy or an object. But who knew that the mysterious power was a person?

When they used this power, they only felt how immensely strong it was, never knowing the bloody process behind it. Everyone knew that power could be exhausted, so why had this mysterious power endured without weakening?

Because behind it lay a pile of human lives. The energy of one person after another had created this enduring legend.

Behind the so-called mysterious power lay cruelty.

Yet people yearned for this power so desperately. One could only marvel at how baffling human nature truly was.

The opulent Palace was now shrouded in gloom. Its former golden splendor was gone, leaving only darkness, as though black clouds hung over it. Its former sanctity had vanished, as if it had revealed its true face—so bleak and sordid.

No matter how reluctant she was, no matter how close she and Lily had been, none of it would change her decision.

Gods were cold and merciless. If they had feelings, they were no longer gods. That was the mortal world's understanding.

At the same time, the Elf Kingdom was in turmoil: political rebellion, internal upheaval... shifts in power. All of these were intimately bound to its future. Amid the chaos, Prince Manda Gabriel, the Golden Mandala of the Elf Kingdom, successfully seized control and became the most powerful person after his father, the king. Even his father had to yield before his might.

At some unknown point long before, the outwardly glamorous Prince Manda had already been replaced by someone else. As for who...