"Woo~ King Rhett, may we continue to follow you?"
In the crowd, a rotund bald man with a flushed face waved his right hand excitedly. It was President Carlton, who had established a branch of the Doton Chamber of Commerce in Darkhawk City and even helped Rhett publish Coiling Dragon.
Surrounding Carlton were prominent figures from Darkhawk City's business world, all invited by Ryley, who was well acquainted with them. They echoed, "Your Majesty, we wish to follow you as well!"
"Yes, you are the brightest new star in the world. We will be your most devoted followers!"
"Indeed."
Rhett glanced around, a smile playing on his lips as he raised his goblet high. "The Kingdom of Green welcomes all who wish to join, opening doors wide to every sincere builder!"
"Your Majesty is wise, and we will certainly devote ourselves to the construction of the Green Kingdom!" Carlton grinned as he raised his goblet and downed its contents in one gulp.
After two drinks, Sveita gave a signal to the kitchen maid standing in the hall. The maid hurried to the kitchen, and soon, a series of carts laden with various dishes were wheeled in.
Then, Sveita filled Rhett's goblet once again and respectfully stood at his side.
"Lastly, I want to thank those who have stood by me—the family, the servants of the estate, and my faithful steward, Sveita. Thank you for your unwavering loyalty. The new chapter ahead will require us all to write it together. The fledgling's wings will never fall!"
Rhett ended with a fervent shout, his hand trembling with excitement, causing the liquid in his goblet to spill over, running down his wrist and into his sleeve.
"And congratulations to Father! The fledgling's wings will only grow stronger and fuller as it matures!" Ryley beamed with a broad smile.
"The fledgling's wings will never fall!" Tucker also shouted loudly.
In the corner, some of the servants were moved to tears, gazing affectionately at their master.
Hearing his name mentioned, Sveita's body trembled slightly, his eyes welling with tears. Yet, in this solemn moment, he maintained his composure, wiping the moisture from the corner of his eye with his black sleeve. He whispered softly, "Thank you, my lord," and then joined the celebration. "As long as you live, the fledgling's wings will never fall!"
Night covered the land, and the moon rose in the west.
Under the watchful gaze of the stars, the laughter from Deep Rock Castle echoed through the night. The castle's lights and the bonfires in the estate seemed to illuminate the entire world.
As the host of the evening, Rhett roamed around the banquet, conversing with everyone.
Eventually, he smiled and headed outside the estate, joining the group dancing by the bonfire.
Though called "dancing," it was more about celebrating with the atmosphere, the focus being on the shared joy.
"Tucker, I brought you out here to get moving, but here you are, stuffing your face again. You'll lose all your grace like this!"
Rhett had danced for a while and then moved to a grill, pointing at Tucker, who was devouring a large piece of grilled meat, laughing as he scolded him.
The hulking figure, illuminated by the firelight, wiped the oil from his mouth with a napkin. Tucker grinned, "Grace doesn't fill your stomach, does it? Eating meat makes me strong. I need to eat more!"
"You're not satisfied with how strong you already are? You want to get even stronger?" Rhett asked, smiling.
"Of course! Even though, with your strength, Father, I may never need to protect you in my lifetime, I still need to become the pillar of the family! If you're ever gone, I'll be the one to protect the family!" Tucker rolled up his sleeves, showing off his steel-like muscles.
"You rascal! Are you cursing me?" Rhett glared and pretended to kick Tucker's behind.
"Heh, no way! You misunderstood," Tucker dodged with a roll, laughing sheepishly.
"You…" Rhett pointed at Tucker and shook his head, laughing helplessly. "Alright, since you have the heart, I'm satisfied. Here, take this. Go to a quiet place and drink it in secret. But remember, don't do it until the banquet is over tonight!"
Rhett pulled a small bottle from his space ring, the body-strengthening spring water gifted by the Peacemakers from the Beast God World, and tossed it to Tucker.
Catching the small bottle steadily, Tucker brought the bottle close to his face, eyeing the milky white liquid curiously. "What's this? Milk?"
"It's a substance that will greatly enhance your physique, a gift from visitors beyond our world," Rhett explained.
"Huh?" Tucker was startled, then glanced around warily. Seeing that no one was paying attention, he asked cautiously, "If it's such a good thing, how much do you have, Father?"
"Only this one bottle."
"What? Just one bottle?!" Tucker exclaimed, quickly covering his mouth as he looked around nervously.
Realizing that there was only one bottle and that his father had given it to him alone, Tucker was visibly moved—so, he was the most cherished child!
Secretly elated, Tucker's expression suddenly turned hesitant as something came to mind.
After a moment of deliberation, he took a deep breath and said earnestly, "Thank you, Father. But this body-strengthening elixir… let me share it with Ryley and Telles. I don't want to hog something this valuable."
Hearing this, a gleam of approval appeared in Rhett's eyes. Tucker's selflessness clearly pleased him!
In truth, Rhett had a way to ensure that all three of his sons, and even all his blood descendants, could benefit from this elixir.
However, he was concerned that such widespread use might arouse suspicion.
After all, only one bottle of this spring water was gifted, witnessed by all the Saint-level experts. If every member of his family gained the same benefits, it might raise eyebrows.
Using the excuse of being the "Child of the World" wouldn't work so easily in this case.
Moreover, given Rhett's current strength, even if his descendants' progress slowed slightly, it would make little difference.
After all, if a crisis arose that he couldn't handle, it was unlikely that his family members could stand up to it either.
Besides, with the cooperation with the Beast God World now solidified, Rhett wasn't in a rush to use the simulation to extend the elixir's effects to every descendant.
"Good child, I have other plans for the others. We won't be lacking in such body-strengthening treasures in the future. Go ahead and use it," Rhett patted Tucker's shoulder with a smile.
Tucker clutched the bottle tightly, nodding quickly, his expression full of gratitude. "Thank you, Father!"
As the night deepened and the banquet neared its end, the harp and harmonica ensemble Ryley had invited played soothing and cheerful melodies.
Under the moonlight, Sveita and the servants lined up to bid farewell to the guests.
Afterward, the servants began cleaning up the leftover food and transporting the temporary items placed around the estate.
Carrying a bottle of blueberry juice, Rhett leisurely returned to the fifth-floor hall, sitting on a bench by the now-extinguished fireplace.
The light reflected on his calm face as he pondered his journey since crossing into this world. His heart was filled with countless emotions.
After sorting out his thoughts, Rhett found himself somewhat bored.
On a whim, he pulled up the home panel and scanned through it. Seeing that he still had thousands of Fate Points, he decided to run a simulation, curious about how his collaboration with the Beast God World would play out.
—Although everything seemed friendly now, what if it was all part of a deeper scheme?
And so, he activated the system, preparing for a simulation.
[Would you like to begin a text-based simulation? Each simulated year costs 5 Fate Points.]
"Yes, simulate for one year."
[On June 8, 482 in the Kingdom of Gold Calendar, you returned to Deep Rock Fortress and instructed Ryley to spread the news of your return. All your friends and acquaintances from Darkhawk City visited to congratulate you, bringing flowers, applause, and exquisite gifts.]
[That evening, you handed the body-strengthening elixir, gifted by the strongest being in the Beastman World, to Tucker for him to consume.]
[On June 9, after a night of absorption and refinement, Tucker's body reached the level of a Sky Knight!]
[On June 3, 483, after days of hard work, Mina became pregnant with her third child.]
[On June 4, you received great news: research on blood source energy had finally achieved a breakthrough. Heipaste's sudden burst of inspiration resulted in the condensation of a highly pure Blood Source Energy Crystal, now referred to as a Blood Essence Stone!]
[On June 6, you rushed to the Ring Tower to test the results and learned that a fist-sized Blood Source Energy Crystal had an effect equivalent to simultaneously absorbing one hundred third-tier Wind Wolves. Most importantly, once the method for refining Blood Source Energy Crystals was mastered, it would be much easier to produce than bloodline potions, and any master alchemist could easily replicate it.]
[On June 8, you returned to the Green Kingdom's alchemy base and informed Master Alchemist Aesad of the refining method.]
[On July 15, Aesad successfully replicated the Blood Source Energy Crystal, and after verification, it was confirmed that both spiritual power and physical constitution were greatly enhanced! You were overjoyed and began to issue a series of policies nationwide to vigorously develop animal husbandry, while also proposing the creation of the profession of Supernatural Pasture Masters, focusing on the large-scale breeding of various magical beasts!]
[On July 18, the news of the Blood Source Energy Crystal spread worldwide, sparking an alchemical revolution. Ordinary people could also grow stronger using it! All nations scrambled to breed magical beasts, and the world entered a frenzy of competing for magical creatures!]
[On July 23, the widespread breeding and slaughter of magical beasts thoroughly provoked the Sacred Domain-level magical beasts, causing all Sacred Domain-level magical beasts to unite and seek a meeting with the kings of each country for negotiations!]
[On July 25, before the negotiations, you held a private meeting with the other kings to discuss whether to exterminate the four Sacred Domain magical beasts and seize control of all magical creatures globally, dividing them among the nations. The discussion went smoothly, and the kings reached a unanimous agreement on the proposal.]
[On July 26, four Sacred Domain magical beasts arrived for the negotiation as promised, while more than ten human Sacred Domain powerhouses gathered. Pretending to negotiate, the humans suddenly launched a surprise attack, besieging the four Sacred Domain magical beasts!]
[On July 27, the four Sacred Domain magical beasts unleashed powers akin to profound mysteries, combined with their terrifying physical strength, temporarily posing a great threat. However, after a day and night of battle, they gradually fell into a disadvantage.]
[On July 28, three Sacred Domain magical beasts were killed one after another, leaving only the Silver-Winged Storm Tiger. Sensing defeat, it transformed into a beam of green light and fled.]
[Despite your relentless pursuit, the Silver-Winged Storm Tiger remained elusive, forcing you to abandon the chase. Each kingdom then issued a global wanted notice.]
[On August 29, after investing a large amount of resources, you successfully cultivated several individuals who had grown using Blood Source Energy Crystals. These included your steward Sveita and Vanessa's sister, Elly. After combat testing, it was found that while both had exceptional spiritual power and physical strength, they lacked elemental affinity and combat aura. Their bodies were remarkably powerful, but after reaching the peak of a third-tier knight's physical constitution, further advancement became impossible. Their combat strength barely matched that of an entry-level second-tier knight.]
[Through further investigation, you discovered that there seemed to be some kind of defect in their bodies, preventing their physical growth from progressing any further.]
[On September 3, you organized a conference on Blood Source Energy research, inviting Sacred Domain powerhouses from various nations to discuss the spread of Blood Source Energy Crystals.]
[At the conference, you focused on the issue of the body's growth bottleneck, and the Sacred Knights provided a unanimous explanation: a body with only physical strength and no combat aura lacks the internal flow of blood and energy to stimulate special changes within the organs. Compared to knights, this represents a natural limit, and once the body reaches a certain level, it can no longer improve.]
[On September 5, disappointed, you returned to the palace and informed Aesad of the findings. You then lowered the strategic priority of developing Supernatural Pasture Masters and reduced the production of Blood Source Energy Crystals.]
[On November 11, your long-unseen ally Blackstar visited you, reporting that a strange phenomenon had appeared in the Strange Stone Volcano region—a vision of darkness as deep as night, possibly indicating the presence of a dark-type spirit. You invited him to join your forces, but he politely declined.]
[On November 15, you arrived at Strange Stone Volcano and detected a trace of an eerie presence.]
[On November 17, after days of tracking, you found a pitch-black eye deep within the lava. The eye seemed shocked that you had discovered it and immediately attacked, shooting out a sinister purple beam. You used Resonance Profound to block it, but the purple beam pierced through directly, and it was only after the beam collided with your Stone Shield infused with Condensed Profound that it was barely neutralized.]
[You were deeply wary of the power of the Purple Demon Eye and prepared to unleash your full strength to annihilate it. However, in the next moment, the eye closed slightly and disappeared from the spot, leaving no trace behind.]
[Perplexed, you searched the area for days but found nothing and reluctantly left.]
[On November 20, news of the assassination of the Ice Queen shook the world, and the Ice Kingdom was thrown into chaos. They sent emissaries to question the other kingdoms. King Reim stated that he had been with the Ice Queen at the time and that a Purple Demon Eye had ambushed them, firing a purple beam that took the Ice Queen's life. Shocked, you shared your own encounter, causing an uproar.]
[On November 21, the kingdoms jointly issued a global manhunt for the Purple Demon Eye.]