"Ask yourself carefully whether one disciple is worth placing every future disciple of the Nine Lotus Academy upon our list of enemies." Luka threatened directly.
Natasha immediately turned toward Da Vinci.
"Headmaster!" she exclaimed. "You cannot listen to such threats! If we abandon our own disciple today, what face will the academy have tomorrow? Every student who enters our gates entrusts us with their future. We cannot retreat because of intimidation."
Da Vinci closed his eyes briefly. He naturally understood Natasha’s reasoning. Yet he also understood Luka’s.
A conflict between the Nine Lotus Academy and the Demonic Sea Tribe would not end today.
It could continue for generations. Hundreds... Perhaps thousands... Of innocent disciples could become targets because of a single decision.
His expression gradually became complicated.
Ancestor Long quietly sighed. Even the old ancestor felt helpless.
The Demonic Sea Tribe had chosen a target that placed every major faction into a dilemma.
Protect Emma... Or protect countless future disciples. Neither choice was easy. The battlefield remained frozen beneath unbearable tension.
Nobody noticed one young man quietly stepping out from behind the elders.
Tony Clark leisurely brushed the dust from his sleeves before looking first at Emma, then toward Luka, as though he had only just arrived at an amusing play.
A carefree smile slowly spread across his face. He stepped forward until he stood directly before every expert present.
Then, under the astonished gazes of humans and Demonic Sea Tribe alike, Tony spoke with complete confidence.
"Who dares bully my wife?"
The words that came out of Tony Clark’s mouth struck the battlefield harder than any martial technique released that day.
Every pair of eyes turned toward him.
Nobody could believe what they had just heard.
The problem was no longer that Tony had stepped forward to protect Emma Stone. The truly unbelievable part was the identity he had publicly given her.
Wife... In front of every supreme expert, every academy master, every clan patriarch, every royal elder and every disciple gathered beneath the World Tree, Tony had declared Emma Stone to be his wife.
"Tony! What are you doing?" the Clark Family Patriarch shouted in disbelief. His expression completely changed as he stared at his son. Never in his wildest imagination had he expected Tony to publicly create such an explosive situation.
Protecting Emma was already enough to drag the Clark Family into unnecessary trouble, but calling her his wife before the entire continent was no different from throwing a thunderbolt into a calm lake. Even Ancestor Kent stopped smiling and looked at Tony with genuine curiosity, wondering what exactly was going through the youngster’s mind.
Peak Master Natasha also froze. Among everyone present, she knew more about the complicated relationship between Tony and Emma than most. She remembered Emma’s obsession with revenge. She remembered the hatred that existed between them. She also knew pieces of their hidden past that others did not. Yet even she could not understand why Tony would reveal such shocking words at a moment like this.
Her eyes immediately shifted toward Emma, whose beautiful face had completely frozen in place. Even Emma herself looked as though she had forgotten how to breathe.
Before anyone else could recover, another furious voice echoed across the battlefield.
"Tony Clark!"
Lily Frost stepped forward with an expression filled with disbelief and anger. "What is the meaning of this? You... you just called another woman your wife in front of everyone?"
The Frost Family elders also became restless.
One elder immediately stepped forward and pointed toward the Clark Family. "Patriarch Clark! Control your son immediately!"
Another elder angrily shouted, "Our Frost Family entrusted our daughter to your family, not to become a laughingstock before the entire continent!"
A third elder coldly declared, "If Tony Clark insists on humiliating the our Family today, then the marriage between our families shall end here and now."
Several Sky Family members immediately voiced their agreement.
Lily herself clenched her fists before staring directly into Tony’s eyes. "Tony... answer me."
But Tony never glanced at Lily. He completely ignored every protest around him.
Instead, he calmly reached toward his storage ring. A flash of golden light appeared.
A magnificent long golden bow slowly emerged in his hands. Its surface shimmered with ancient dragon inscriptions while terrifying pressure spread from the weapon.
In his other hand appeared a pitch-black arrow... The Black Dragon’s Breath. The divine arrow bestowed upon him by the World Tree Spirit.
Tony slowly raised the bow and pointed it toward the Demonic Sea Tribe without the slightest hesitation.
"I’ll say it one last time. Who dares to bully my wife?"
Nobody expected a mere junior to stand before so many supreme experts with such confidence.
Even many human elders secretly admired his courage.
Luka herself remained stunned for a brief moment. This outcome had completely exceeded her expectations. She had originally believed the human factions would hesitate. She believed Emma would eventually be abandoned.
Yet the first person to openly challenge the Demonic Sea Tribe was the very youngster she had intended to ignore.
After a long moment, Luka smiled again. "So..." she said softly. "Tony Clark, have you made your decision? I intend to take Emma’s life today. If anyone wishes to stop me... they may try."
The pressure instantly descended once more. Yet Tony did not move. His bow remained aimed toward the Demonic Sea Tribe.
Instead... He slowly turned around. His eyes met those of a single person.
"Academy Master Da Vinci."
The old academy master quietly looked back at him.
Tony smiled faintly. "A deal is a deal... I got what you want!"
The battlefield suddenly became strangely quiet.nNobody understood what those words meant.
Nobody... Except two people. Da Vinci. And Luka.
Da Vinci’s calm eyes immediately became serious. Across the battlefield Luka’s pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.
For only a brief second... The two supreme experts looked directly into one another’s eyes. Both instantly understood... The World Tree Seeds. Tony had succeeded... The secret transaction had been fulfilled.
Luka immediately realized why Da Vinci had remained silent until now. Da Vinci understood that Luka had also reached the same conclusion.
One brief exchange of glances... It was enough.