My Substitute CEO Bride (Nash Calicraft) novel Chapter 2468

The crack in the Celestial Tree closed, leaving Maxim alone in the empty, desolate space. His hand was still clenched tightly around the tufts of cotton from Thresmund's tattered jacket. His breath came in ragged gasps as he stared blankly at the now-sealed crack.

At that moment, he struggled to believe what had just happened. His master, the indomitable figure who had vowed to change their fate and defeat the invaders, was gone. His bright-eyed, energetic junior who was always clinging to him had also disappeared into the tree.

Maxim tried to speak, but no words came out. The overwhelming sadness paralyzed him. He wanted to cry, but his voice was lost, drowned in the immense pain that engulfed him. His mind went blank, consumed by sorrow.

His master had taught him to always save others and to offer a helping hand because sometimes, people simply lost their way. However, at this moment, Maxim felt utterly helpless.

His lips began to twitch uncontrollably as if trying to express the turmoil within.

Just then, Bjorn, the head of the Twigg family, appeared out of nowhere and struck Maxim with a powerful punch, sending him flying.

"What exactly happened here? This boy... It looks like his heart has been completely overtaken by grief," Bjorn muttered as he assessed the situation.

Cyrus, the head of the Wallace family, approached the unconscious Maxim and examined him.

"He's fine. He just passed out from the shock. Whatever happened here must have scared him to the core."

"Impressive, Cyrus. I didn’t expect you to be able to break through Albert's Bewitching Technique," Bjorn remarked.

"It wasn't too difficult," Cyrus Wallace replied. "The technique targets the soul, so I just had to release the spirit bound within the Wallace family’s artifact. That way, the spell was transferred away from us."

Cyrus approached the Celestial Tree, and Bjorn followed closely.

"Shall we investigate what that thing is?" Bjorn asked, his curiosity piqued.

After Bjorn consumed his portion, his body began to twitch uncontrollably. Suddenly, the Celestial Tree drew Bjorn’s soul out, merging it with the tree. When Bjorn reopened his eyes, however, he found that he still had control over his physical body.

"What’s happening?" Bjorn muttered, confused by the unexpected turn of events.

Seeing this, Cyrus felt a surge of unease.

"What… is this thing?"

"Just eat it," Bjorn urged excitedly. "I can already feel it, the endless power of the Celestial Tree!"

As Cyrus was about to take a bite, Maxim suddenly appeared. He dashed to Cyrus’ side and swiftly punched the remaining half of the fruit away.