Above the mage

Chapter 272 Drawing the Sword (Part 2)

"Make way!" Grant, along with God and Catherine, pushed through the crowd and went inside.

Only then did Gaode finally see the specific situation on the scene.

Before the radiant ice-jade parasol tree, Sunafa looked at a tall, sunken old man with an expression as cold as frost.

It must be Donald, the Great Elder of the Zhenbing Tribe.

Donald was still a short distance from the Ice Jade Phoenix Tree, and despite Sunafa's cold gaze, he still had a smile on his face, as if nothing had happened.

Perched on a branch of the Ice Jade Wutong tree stood a tiny Flora, looking down with wary eyes.

It looked just like a stray cat that had been chased onto a roof beam.

"Master!"

Flora saw Gao De squeezing in from the outside and immediately raised her voice.

It was like a bullied little girl finally seeing her father rushing to her side.

Flora looked at Gao De from the Ice Jade Wutong Tree, the wariness in her eyes now turning into joy.

Although Flora was protected by the Ice Jade Wutong tree, and although Sunefa had arrived first.

However, none of this made Flora lower her guard or let her guard down until God arrived, at which point she finally felt at ease.

But the truth is, Ice Jade Wutong can protect her, Sunafa can win over Donald, but Gao De can do nothing.

He was too weak in front of Donald and the Zhenbing tribe.

Gao De frowned and looked around, his eyes taking in a variety of faces with different expressions.

Some were watching the show, some were observing coldly, some were worried, and some were equally angry; everyone had different thoughts.

The elders present were mostly reformers, but there were also a few conservative elders.

These elders of the "conservative party" realized something was wrong the moment Donald appeared and sent someone to inform Sunefa.

However, it was too late. If it weren't for the miraculous power of the Ice Jade Wutong, Flora would already be in Donald's hands.

Finally, Gao De's gaze fell on Donald and Sunefa.

"War Mother".

He took a deep breath, steadied himself, and repeated what Flora had said earlier:

"Flora was invited by you to supervise the construction; she is a guest. The noble elder's attempt to capture her is an act of rudeness, and you should not let him off the hook."

Sunafa nodded to Gaode with an apologetic expression.

"Elder, it is indeed rude of you to attack the guest I invited," she said coldly, her tone filled with anger.

This is tantamount to slapping her in the face.

"Please forgive me, Mother." Donald's face showed no sign of panic. He bowed to Sunefa, then chuckled, seemingly unconcerned about Sunefa's displeasure, and calmly explained himself:

"I heard that you, Mother Zhan, invited outsiders to 'diagnose' the Ice Jade Wutong, and the conclusion was that the Ice Jade Wutong was about to advance in its cultivation level, and that it needed outsiders' help to do so."

"The Ice Jade Wutong is the guardian tree of our clan, and it is of great importance. If it truly succeeds in advancing, I will naturally be happy."

"But they are, after all, outsiders. If they harbor ill intentions and cause something to happen to Bingyu Wutong, that would be a grave sin."

"As the Great Elder of the Zhenbing Tribe, I naturally cannot do nothing, so I came here specifically to check on the situation."

"As for attacking the guest you invited, that's a complete misunderstanding. I just wanted to talk to her and see if she really had that ability."

"But she seemed to be very resistant to me and kept avoiding me. In my anxiety, I made some rough movements, which made it seem like I was going to hit her, but that was not my intention."

Donald managed to glorify his actions as being in the best interests of the tribe with just a few words, even though everyone knew it was just an excuse.

But so what? As long as there's a way out, that's fine.

"I admit that my actions were too barbaric and disrespectful to you, Mother of War, and I am willing to accept punishment."

Donald's voice was low and sincere, and he adopted a repentant posture, as if he were really reflecting on his mistakes, but a sly glint flashed in his eyes.

The next moment, Donald narrowed his eyes, his sharp gaze sweeping over Flora still on the Ice Jade Phoenix Tree, his tone suddenly turning stern and angry: "But my fears have indeed come true!"

He abruptly raised his hand and pointed at the Ice Jade Wutong Tree, his voice filled with indignation:

"Since its birth, the Ice Jade Phoenix Tree has grown in the core spiritual land of our tribe, cared for and worshipped by our people for generations. It is our tribe's guardian tree. But just now, the guardian tree actually helped outsiders to deal with me!"

"I am the Grand Elder of the Zhenbing Tribe, and even I am treated this way. What about others?" Donald's voice echoed, drawing everyone's attention. His expression grew increasingly serious.

"War Mother, those who are not of our kind are bound to have different hearts. The Guardian Tree is so important, how can we allow outsiders to easily come into contact with it? Now, the Guardian Tree has fallen under some evil spell of this little thing and no longer protects our kind. The situation has reached a point where there is no time to lose."

"Compared to punishing my disrespectful behavior, it is more important to take down these two foreigners now."

"Otherwise, if things continue like this, even if the Ice Jade Wutong successfully advances, it will be meaningless."

"What's the use of having a high rank if you no longer protect the guardian tree of the Zhenbing tribe?" His tone became more urgent.

After these words were spoken, the expressions of everyone present changed slightly.

Even the conservative elders, who initially also wore expressions of anger, fell into deep thought.

Because what Donald said makes sense.

The Ice Jade Wutong has been the guardian tree of the Zhenbing tribe since ancient times. What Donald did just now was indeed wrong, but that should not be a reason for the guardian tree to help outsiders against the Grand Elder.

If you side with outsiders just because Donald did something wrong, what kind of guardian tree is that?

In any case, the guardian tree should favor the Zhenbing tribe.

It's like a mother not disliking her child's appearance. Even if a mother complains about her child, she will still side with her child when it comes to crucial moments. Otherwise, there would be a big problem.

No matter how much they believe in Flora, or how much they like Flora, it doesn't change the fact that God and Flora are outsiders.

Seeing the crowd's reaction, Donald knew that his words had resonated with them.

Even Gao De had to admire Donald's quick reaction; in this situation, he managed to turn the tide with just a few words.

"War Mother, although the Grand Elder's behavior was somewhat rude, he did act impulsively because he cared about the interests of hundreds of thousands of people in the tribe. We should not pursue the Grand Elder's mistakes now, but rather pay attention to what the Grand Elder said."

At this moment, a reformist elder stepped forward, first bowed to the War Mother, and then expressed his opinion.

The other reformist elders present also nodded in agreement.

Sunafa, carrying the ice bow, glanced at Donald expressionlessly. "Flora diagnosed the problem with the guardian tree and helped it advance. Although she is not one of our kind, to the Ice Jade Wutong, Flora is one of our own."

"When Flora was in danger, Bingyu Wutong instinctively stepped in to protect her, which was only natural and reasonable, rather than being affected by some evil spell as the Grand Elder claimed."

"Furthermore, even a tree knows how to repay kindness. How can the Elder, who was born as a human being, be inferior to a tree?" Sunafa's eyes were now filled with cold light.

With just a few words, she turned the situation around again.

"If the Guardian Tree successfully advances, I will definitely be very grateful to them. I'm just worried about these outsiders." Donald quickly laughed it off after being challenged by Sunefa.

"I don't care what your motives are. Since you attacked the guest I invited behind my back, it's disrespectful to me and you deserve to be punished." Sunafa didn't let Donald off the hook.

"I was in the wrong first, and I am willing to punish myself by being confined to Ice Prison Cliff for six months." At this point, Donald stopped trying to excuse himself and immediately bowed his head to admit his mistake.

"Not enough." Sunefa said coldly in front of everyone.

"War Mother, the Grand Elder was indeed at fault, but he was already willing to punish himself with six months of confinement. Is it too harsh to punish the Grand Elder so severely for an outsider of unknown origin?" A reformist elder stood up to speak for Donald.

"Mother of the Warriors, the Grand Elder is at fault, but his crime doesn't warrant this!"

"War Mother, the Grand Elder is a respected elder of the tribe. He has made countless contributions to the tribe over the years. If you treat the Grand Elder like this for the sake of an outsider, how many people in the tribe will feel disheartened!"

"Yes, the elder's self-imposed six-month confinement is enough. We can just give them some compensation. Otherwise, it might cause resentment among the other elders in the tribe and affect the unity of the tribe."

"As the Grand Elder, even if he needs to be punished, it should be a decision made by everyone together."

Immediately, the crowd was outraged, and one after another, elders stood up to speak for the Grand Elder.

The Grand Elder himself did not express any opinion, but simply watched the scene calmly—in fact, by not stopping these people from speaking, he was expressing his own attitude.

Gao De watched this scene quietly.

In fact, the scene before us is a microcosm of the conflict between Sunifa and Donald over the years.

While the public's awe of Sunefa was undeniable, many still sided with Donald.

"Take the Grand Elder to Ice Prison Cliff first, and then I will convene an elders' council to discuss and decide on today's events," Sunafa said slowly, facing the overwhelming opinions of the crowd.

"Don't worry, this won't end like this. I will give Donald a proper punishment and give you an explanation." At the same time, Sunafa's cold voice rang in Gao De's mind.

This was a guarantee given to him privately using the [Communication] spell.

Gao De didn't say anything, nor could he say anything.

On someone else's turf, he was just a lowly mage at the first ring. For someone of Sunef's status to be willing to make such a promise to him despite public criticism, Sunef was already showing enough "loyalty".

Other leaders wouldn't even care about his feelings.

He was grateful that Sunefa was willing to stand up for him.

But one thing at a time, he was not satisfied with the solution offered by Sunefa.

"Lady Flora, come down." Gao De arrived under the Ice Jade Wutong Tree, looked up at the little girl, and patted his left shoulder.

Upon hearing this, Flora flapped her little wings without hesitation and leaped down from the Ice Jade Sycamore branch, landing lightly on Gaode's shoulder.

"Mage~"

"Let's go home."

"Okay~"

Gao De glanced at the elders present, said nothing, and silently left with Flora.

Catherine followed silently.

Grant looked left and right, then slapped his thigh hard and sighed, before chasing after Gaode, who had already walked some distance away.

"Lady Flora has been wronged."

"I'm not wronged."

"Someone is bullying Lady Flora."

"Lady Flora is protected by a tree~"

Flora's tone was very natural, as if she had just encountered a great danger and was not the one who had been wronged—if it weren't for Bingyu Wutong, Flora would have already fallen into Donald's clutches by now.

Gao De looked at Flora with an apologetic expression.

How could I not feel wronged?

"That old man is stupid. He tried to fool Lady Flora, but she saw through him right away."

"How so?"

"He said you sold Lady Flora to him."

"That's impossible."

"Yes, that's impossible, so he can't fool Lady Flora."

"Lady Flora is wise."

"certainly!"

Gao De looked down at Flora on his shoulder.

The little one proudly raised his head at this moment.

The former had a complex look in his eyes, while the latter had clear eyes.

"What if there were no tree to protect Lady Flora?" he asked.

"Thank goodness there are trees~"

"What if there isn't one?"

"But it does exist!"

"If there were no tree, Lady Flora would have been captured by that old man," Gode himself provided the answer.

"What will happen if we get caught?" Flora tilted her head and asked curiously.

"I can dispel the spell and bring Lady Flora back, but I'll have to trouble her to stay in the dark room for a while."

"It's alright. The mage did it to save Lady Flora. Lady Flora won't hold a grudge."

"But what if he harmed Lady Flora before I knew she had been captured?" God asked again.

"Oh right, so what should we do?"

After thinking for a long time, Gaode gave his final answer: "There is no way."

He was too weak and lacked sufficient status and position, so even if Flora was hurt, there was nothing he could do.

This answer left Gaode speechless.

He accepted being bullied because of his weakness, and he would fight back when he became stronger.

But the feeling of being bullied because of your weakness is devastating.

In the silence, Gao De suddenly felt a tightness around his neck.

Looking down, he saw that it was Flora pulling at his collar.

"Hmm~ It's okay." Flora said, her eyes widening, when she saw Gao De looking over.

"Gordon, don't blame War Mother, she's had a hard time too." Just then, Grant finally caught up.

He was unaware that Sunefa had made a private message to God and given a guarantee, so he chased after God to speak up for Sunefa, and at the same time to appease God's emotions, fearing that God would be disappointed and dissatisfied.

"I know."

"To avoid division within the tribe and to prevent disruption to unity, the War Mother cannot make decisions alone, especially when it involves the Great Elder," Grant continued to explain.

"I know," God nodded, interrupting Elder Grant, and pointed at Flora, "but she works for you and shouldn't be bullied."

"That's how it is." Elder Grant was momentarily speechless.

At this moment, they had arrived at the magnificent square where dozens of ice crystal pillars stood.

"I need justice," Gao De looked up at the Zhenbing Sword on the high platform and finally made a decision, "If you won't give it to me, I'll find a way to get it myself."

(End of this chapter)