The Steward Demonic Emperor

Chapter 1292: Cave of Emotions

Writer: StarReader

Proofreader: Silavin

Heavenly Sovereign sneered, “You know you’re a nobody, a pawn in the game of big players, then you should also know that you never had a choice. We created the apth you are threading. In short, you never even had the luxury of choosing a path, little brother…”

“What do you mean?” Zhuo Fan started.

Heavenly Sovereign shook his head, “The past is the past. There’s no point dredging it up, but understand this, as I admit of leading you on, you should also learn to play along.”

“What makes you think I’ll listen?”

“Like I said, you have no choice.” Heavenly Sovereign mocked in Chu Qingcheng’s direction.

Zhuo Fan tensed and clenched his fists.

The space cracked to reveal a portal, reflecting a lush forest within.

Heavenly Sovereign pointed, “This is Emotion Sovereign’s seat of enlightenment. Go and take the Sovereign path.”

“Emotion Sovereign? The most mysterious of the ten?”

Zhuo Fan blinked. [There’s barely any mentioned of him in the Nine Serenities Secret Records, with no rumors even circulating the Sacred Domain.]

“How am I supposed to do that?”

Heavenly Sovereign smiled, “By playing the role they and I gave you. Accepting their path is part of all our plans.”

[They…]

Zhuo Fan squinted, “You mean Nether Sovereign’s group? They gave me their paths just like you have. What the hell are you all up to? Would they still give it to me knowing you sent me?”

[I have to stall and get him talking, not like it’ll be difficult. The guy sure loves the sound of his voice. He’s bound to slip at some point. That’s when my chance comes.]

“For someone so seasoned in the demonic path, you’re quite slow, ha-ha-ha…”

Heavenly Sovereign laughed, “Remember my lesson. The higher you climb, the more useless tricks become. We all fight in the open to control everything. All of us are crystal clear of what the other is after. Just like in this game of chess, all of us can see what pieces go and stay. Even the outcome is plain to see. You’re overt and not covert, understand?”

Zhuo Fan didn’t argue, glancing at Qingcheng’s worried face and reassured her with a glance before going through the portal.

Birds chirped and danced in the air from branch to branch. The place was paradise, without a hint of evil or any strange elements. It was the best place for one to live in seclusion.

Though, there was something that caught his eye. Everything here came in pairs, including objects.

Two insects flying side by side, squirrels hopping together, and even weeds growing in pairs, all joined in bizarre ways.

The lone sun above struck a solitary figure in this paradise of emotion.

Zhuo Fan chuckled then it dawned on him to look across the sky and noticed the moon, hanging up alongside the sun.

“Just like Emotion Sovereign, to bring even the sun and moon together.”

Zhuo Fan pushed on, taking in the odd sights. Nothing stood in his way, be it a defensive array or guardian. The Sovereign’ seat of enlightenment was defenseless.

It was the complete opposite from the dark, eerie Nether Sea. This forest only knew tranquility and peace.

[Heavenly Sovereign is almighty, isn’t her? He could just waltz in here instead of sending me in his place. How peculiar.]

Zhuo Fan was trying to unravel the ten Sovereigns’ game and his role in it. He needed to in order to find leeway in shifting the balance in his favor.

First was how all Sovereigns wanted him to get all the paths. [Why would I need them all when one already is enough?]

Then, there was the obvious war the nine had with Heavenly Sovereign. [But why? What am I missing?]

Pondering while rooted didn’t get him anywhere so he walked ahead, arriving at a cave marked as the Cave of Emotion

“Greetings, Sovereign!”

Zhuo Fan gave a deep bow of respect.

Silence greeted him. Zhuo Fan cursed, [Is he out, or is Heavenly Sovereign’s aim off? There are only infinity of realms out here.].

“You’re finally here.” A faint woman’s voice came from within.

[So, a she, not a he. Noted.]

“Uh, yeah.” Zhuo Fan nodded, proving Heavenly Sovereign’s words. His destiny was to be the Sovereigns’ pawn. [But it won’t be that case for long.]

“Who let you in?” The voice asked.

Zhuo Fan was frank, “It was Heavenly Sovereign who brough me to your seat of enlightenment.”

“After all this time, it’d be strange for Heavenly Sovereign not to notice. Nine Serenities was right, the final winner is still up to fate.”

Zhuo Fan spoke baffled, “Sovereign, I can just go if you want…”

“No, I’ve waited for you for too long. There’s no way you’re leaving empty-handed.”

At her stern words, a prismatic light flew out of the cave.

It entered Zhuo Fan’s body and stayed there.

Zhuo Fan patted himself, checking for any abnormality. He made an odd face at the end, “Is that it?”

“Yes, now go.”

“I was expecting something more in line with Nether Sovereign’s approach. No punching through a sea of enemies? No running to an inch of my life? No unsolvable puzzle?” It felt anticlimactic how easy it all was, after all those tests the others put him through, “It all feels so… random.”

“You don’t like it? Tough luck, now beat it!”

“Ugh, fine.”

Zhuo Fan blinked at her wild temper and left with a bow, “Take care, Sovereign.”

He returned to the portal, pausing to give this place one last look.

The second he left, the paradise faded away. The pairs of insects and birds were gone, the sun and moon were no more. The only prevalent color was grey, from the clouds, to the earth, and the barren rocks. A chilling wind blew below the heavy clouds, over the endless bones roamed by mangy dogs and ravens as they searched for scraps.

“If heaven has love, then heaven has gotten old. Love is the deadliest poison in the world. Heavenly Sovereign ran amok through the world, yet fell for my bewitching and never again set foot here. Having sent him to take my path, this means he’s close to remove it. We are running out of time. Bali Yuyu, are you ready?”

A woman stood before the cave and nodded.

A pink glow filled the cave.

“We’re going to act soon, so let me remind you. My soul trace relied on my path to survive for so long. The day I sent it away is the day I will be gone from this world. But I’ll be able to control it once more through you. You can’t withstand a path’s might and will disintegrate. Do you still accept?”

“Don’t you want to stop Heavenly Sovereign? Why try to dissuade me now of all times?” Bali Yuyu looked at the cave with a cold gaze.

The voice came once more, “There’s no grudge between us and Heavenly Sovereign. Blocking is due to our diverging paths. Mortal world’s emotions have no play in this. I’m happy that you’d sacrifice yourself for me, but as the Emotion Sovereign, I need to confirm your decision. For emotion is as hard as stone. Mastering emotion means feeling every aspect of it at its most intense moment. Nether Sovereign sent you here believing you have that capability. I know that your emotions are one-sided. Whether they can reach or not…”

“I know. I won’t let him die before me.” Bali Yuyu was determined, showing a faint smile.

With a boom, the cave shone bright, and a light entered Bali Yuyu.

Bali Yuyu shuddered from pain, but soon her eyes opened to reveal a dreadful gaze.

Rumble~

The mountain crumbled and all in a thousand miles turned to dust.

Bali Yuyu flew away, gone in a blink.

A hundred miles from Mirror Moon Cottage, as sacred stones entered the earth, a strange array took form. Shuang’er took a deep breath and made a sign.

Li Jingtian’s group was grave, “Miss Shuang’er, can we actually save Steward Zhuo with this array? Even Steward Zhuo has no confidence in defeating Shui Jing with his mastery of arrays. How can you…”

“It’s not to fight Shui Jing, but to guide him.”

Shuang’er looked pained, “This is my ancestor’s mission to our clan, to give big brother Zhuo a way out.”

A prismatic light shone and Shuang’er released a frightening aura that got everyone gapping…