In an instant, I even doubted if my eyes were playing tricks on me, but the next moment, I saw Richard's eyes slowly open and glance at me.
I stood there without speaking, nor did I alert Vici.
"Die!" Richard suddenly roared, his hand holding a shard of glass that had appeared from nowhere.
Hearing the enraged cry, Vici whipped his head around, seeing Richard's hand already swinging.
Vici quickly retreated, but it was still a beat too late. He was not skilled in combat, after all, so his retreat was not particularly swift.
If it were me, I felt I could have dodged it.
However, stepping back half a pace was already enough.
The shard of glass, originally aimed at his throat, slashed across Vici's face.
Instantly, Vici's flesh and blood on his face flipped open, and one could even see the bone beneath.
The sight was horrifying.
Unexpectedly, something seemed to be corroding the wound on Vici's face.
"Lake water! Damn you, you wretched thing! You used glass shards dipped in lake water to slash my face!" Vici roared. Then, he grabbed a dagger and fiercely thrust it into Richard's chest.
One stab after another, until Richard's chest was reduced to a pulp, only then did he stop.
Richard's hand had long since fallen limp. The man was utterly dead.
Just then, the ground's collapse abruptly stopped.
Following this, a gentle light drifted down from the Tree of Life, falling upon Richard's body.
Then, Richard's body seemed to be completely destroyed by an invisible force.
It transformed into specks of starlight and vanished.
Subsequently, that force returned to the Tree of Life, and then, leaves began to grow on the Tree of Life.
These leaves looked fresh and tender, and the pale green glow around them intensified.
To be honest, I had no idea why this was happening, but I had to admit that such a scene was truly stunning.
Soon, leaves covered the entire Tree of Life, and the tree appeared to have regained its vitality.
At that moment, I suddenly felt a burning sensation from the tattoo on my chest.
I looked at Vici; his face showed the same pain.
It seemed our condition was identical.
But at this point, I was more concerned about how we were going to get out of this place.
If one person died for nothing and we still couldn't leave, it would be a huge loss!
Just then, those leaves suddenly detached again, but they did not fall to the ground.
The leaves converged in mid-air, forming a giant, leaf-wrapped sphere that spun continuously.
I could feel a terrifying power emanating from the center of that sphere.
But things did not stop there.
The lake water in mid-air began to envelop the giant sphere, as did the Tree of Life, its energy pouring into the enormous ball.
I had no idea what was happening, but at this moment, I couldn't find anyone else to ask.
Vici and I both looked at the giant sphere.
The surrounding space began to become unstable, as if that area were about to collapse.
Under such circumstances, we dared not make any rash moves, so we could only stand there, hoping no major problems would arise.
Just then, that terrifying energy suddenly dispersed, and a portal appeared before me.
Seeing this, a ferocious smile spread across Vici's face: "It's real, it's real! It's real!"
Vici burst into laughter, trembling uncontrollably, as if he had discovered some incredible secret.
He looked utterly deranged.
I said nothing, just stared at Vici.
At this moment, I suddenly felt something was not quite right.
I turned to look and saw that the giant Tree of Life was gone, replaced by a sapling no bigger than my palm on the ground.
However, this sapling had the exact same shape as the Tree of Life, and it also had no leaves.
Seeing this, I quickly walked over.
Vici noticed it too. Even by instinct, he knew this thing was not as simple as it seemed.
Therefore, his first move was to reach out towards the miniature Tree of Life.
Naturally, I wouldn't let him succeed and grabbed it.
Vici gritted his teeth, holding the dagger, and swung it at me.
I took a step back, but my grip did not loosen.
He held a branch of the Tree of Life, while I held its trunk.
"Let go, this is not something you can have!" Vici said through gritted teeth.
"A joke," I sneered, my eyes turning cold. "I'll give you a chance. Let go, and I won't kill you!"