Chapter 84: The Race Against Time

"What we need to do is for you to help us stop the spread of dark energy for a moment. Realm spirit had a plan to allow us to escape and at the same time close the crack, but it needs to use a lot of energy for this plan to work. Right now, the dark energy is interfering with the realm spirit's energy gathering, and we need you to first stop the dark energy. Can you do it?" That was the order given to William.

William agreed with the plan since he had no other ideas. In order to stop the spread of dark energy temporarily, William needed to go to a place not far away from the tower. According to the realm spirit, there were four places that acted as anchors to the garden, besides the core under the white pagoda. The realm spirit had been preoccupied with the fight for control over the garden with Jack and had forgotten about these four places. Although the four places only served as anchors to fortify the white pagoda's control, one shouldn't forget that they were still filled with energy. That's why, as the first step in stopping the dark energy momentarily, it was crucial to secure these four places. However, it wasn't going to be as easy as the plan suggested.

Considering the distance alone, one could see how far apart these four places were from each other. If they had four people working together, it wouldn't be a big problem. The real challenge lay in their current lack of manpower and time. That's where William came in. Inside the Emperor's Garden, William was currently the strongest among Sarah and the others. Not only was he unrestricted by the garden's laws, but he was also bolstered by the realm spirit. However, being the most suitable person for the task didn't make it any less difficult. The challenge remained the same, and William was required to accomplish it alone.

"Can he do it?" Sarah asked the realm spirit, her uncertainty evident. No matter how she thought about it, Sarah wasn't sure whether William could complete the task or not. Even though William's constitution was unique, she doubted it was as great as others believed. The task she had assigned to William was important, and she had hesitated about allowing him to do it. In the end, she relented and listened to the realm spirit's advice.

"Don't worry about him and instead focus more here. When that boy succeeds and returns to us, only to find out that we are still at this stage, won't that make us look like fools?"

Sarah refocused on her own tasks after being rebuked by the realm spirit. As Queen Elizabeth's inheritor, she played a crucial role in the plan. One small mistake could derail the entire operation.

On the other hand, the realm spirit remained calm, seemingly unwavering in his belief in William's capabilities. While others might not have realized it, he had noticed from the very first time that William was a warrior and not a mage. There was a nostalgic feeling that invoked within him when he first saw William. That's why he had no doubts about William's abilities.

Not wanting to delve further into his past, the realm spirit quickly refocused on his task. He knew that while William's task might appear difficult to others, it was actually an easy feat for him. The tricky part lay in what came after. Even with Sarah as his collaborator, it was still a challenging endeavor.

As a genius from the spirit race, the realm spirit could usually solve such problems easily, but not this time. In the past, he had been bound by a pledge from Emperor Alexander, which restricted his strength. Not only that, but Jack's machination had also managed to weaken him further, forcing him to rely on the backdoor spell left by Emperor Alexander. Aware of these limitations, he concentrated intensely and avoided distracting his thoughts with other matters.

The place William needed to go was not far from the flower field. In fact, it was just at the periphery. When William arrived at the first location, he saw a massive boulder, realizing that it was what he needed to find. He approached the boulder and touched it. While it might seem like a simple touch, in reality, he transferred the energy given by the realm spirit to him toward the boulder. This allowed the realm spirit to directly control the boulder, greatly assisting in suppressing the space crack.

Completing his task with the first boulder, William swiftly moved on to the other three places. At the second place, which marked the boundary between the flower field and the forest, William found another boulder and repeated the process. The same went for the third boulder. However, when he reached the fourth and final one, he encountered an undead army that he hadn't encountered in the previous three places.

With no other choice, William braced himself against the undead army alone. As time passed, William realized that the energy boost given by the realm spirit was growing weaker and weaker. It wouldn't be long before it ran out completely. This realization spurred him to work faster, and just like that, he finished transferring the energy to all four stone boulders.

"I'm done," William reported back to the realm spirit telepathically.

"Good. Now return back. We are just about to start."