The marquis, a confidant and pureblood descendant of Miedanzo, received no concealment from his master. Miedanzo spoke bluntly, “Only through Julio can we trace Nighteye’s whereabouts. Now that he’s dead, it will be impossible to lock onto her for at least a short while. Thus, you must investigate who Julio came into contact with before his death. Perhaps there is a suitable replacement. I grant you the use of all means necessary!”
“Nighteye? The princess of Monroe? But is she so important that we need to go to such great lengths?”
Miedanzo snorted, “Her importance far exceeds your imagination. Do not ask why, as it is not something you should know. Get to work!”
“Yes, Your Majesty!” The marquis bowed and left the hall, his heart filled with unease. He was fully aware that this command would cause significant turmoil; anyone below the status of Earl Eiden would fall under scrutiny.
The marquis was also worried that if they couldn’t find any leads, Miedanzo might expand the scope of the investigation, which would not just be an internal matter for the bloodline but could involve others. Yet, this was the will of a dark sovereign, and it was unshakable and resolute.
Now, only Miedanzo remained in the hall, and the domain of the Lord of Darkness gradually expanded, plunging the entire room into a churning abyss.
For a dark sovereign, the death of a powerful marquis was not a trivial matter, potentially affecting the dynamics of territories. However, Julio was different. He was unique, especially at this moment, irreplaceable.
Julio had the ability to listen to fate and was the first to discover the awakening of Nighteye’s original bloodline, making him the sole medium for locating her. With his death, Nighteye’s whereabouts became shrouded in mystery.
If Julio had survived, Miedanzo planned to capture him secretly after the battle, using every possible mystic method on him to trace Nighteye. Under the suppression of Miedanzo, the second-generation ancestor, Julio would not even be able to die until he fulfilled his role.
Unwilling to wait in vain, Miedanzo considered one name after another, only to dismiss them. These were renowned seers in the Eternal Night World, but most were severely injured in the Battle of Beast’s Sleep, needing a long time to recover.
The remaining few were either incapable or of extraordinary status, mostly from noble demonic lineages, even beyond Miedanzo’s power to compel.
Nighteye’s bloodline was too strong; she was a pure-blooded Blackwing Queen, and thus, she had a profound connection with Anduia.
The most infuriating part was that though Anduia had been missing for a long time, his mark in the River of Blood never completely faded. This meant predicting Nighteye’s location was akin to confronting the Blackwing King himself, an impossible task for most, even for Miedanzo.
In the past, Nighteye was merely an original, however talented. But with Habus igniting the Crown of Fire’s mark and the reawakening of the River of Blood, an original with pure second-generation ancestral blood had taken on a new significance, especially for Miedanzo.
In the darkened hall, Miedanzo muttered, “No matter where you flee, I will find you.”
The imperial army rested for several days, and Qian Ye used this rare free time to refine the blood essence from the demonic earl and Julio using the Mystic Chapter, continuing to sift through the fragments of the River of Blood’s memories. Yet, he still couldn’t understand why the vampire marquis had given him a drop of source blood, feeling nothing special even after refining all the essence.
While the Great Beasts’ Slumber on the Eternal Night Continent saw a brief respite, a corner of the void was not so peaceful.
The void was not empty; besides floating continents and celestial bodies, various impurities and energies roamed, both in order and disorder.
Between the upper and middle continents lay a vast, funnel-shaped void storm, covering thousands of square kilometers, spinning rapidly. The paths of the violent energy had solidified, and snake-like lightning often stretched out, tearing and closing the space in moments.
Compared to this monstrous entity, the figure standing outside the vortex was like a speck of dust, seemingly about to be crushed by the stray storm’s aura.
Habus had stood here for an unknown length, appearing ordinary in appearance and attire, except for the blood mist swirling in his eyes, like a raging river. His gaze pierced through the intense energy currents to the core.
Within the eye of the storm was a tranquil space, with a floating ship hundreds of meters long. Without any markings, its style and the spiky turrets protruding in all directions indicated it was a high-end warship of the Great Qin Empire, never seen in major battles.
Habus walked forward, the void storm tearing apart continents like a mere curtain, easily passing through without a stir.
Inside the eye of the storm, he found the tranquil space was stationary. The void storm, spinning in place, confirmed Habus’s suspicions. Whether created naturally or artificially, it was being used by the empire to influence the void currents, disrupting nearby space.
Habus, not an expert in this field, did not fully understand the principles but knew the battlefield of the Night Queen, the Eternal Flame, and the Celestial Ghosts was within tens of thousands of miles. The defeat of the Council’s army in the Great Beasts’ Slumber likely stemmed from the disruption of information, preventing the Night Queen’s timely return.
After traversing the storm, Habus did not approach the imperial warship. Powerful consciousness scanned the area, and Habus allowed the primal force to pass over him, not hiding.
Two heavenly kings had appeared on the Eternal Night Continent, while others defended the homeland. The strongest presence aboard the airship was an upper divine general. Yet, even the strongest generals were just generals, and the warship’s guns were mere toys to Habus.
He stood in the void, waiting silently.
After an indeterminate time, a figure suddenly appeared hundreds of meters away, walking as if on solid ground. The figure had silver hair and simple robes, like riding the wind. As he neared, it was clear his white hair was mostly a lifeless gray.
Habus abruptly said, “Self-destruction cannot harm me. The dark primal fire in your old wound carries my source blood, enough to neutralize most of the self-destruction’s power.”
Even Lin Xitang, calm as he was, paused, then continued, “Your Highness seems to have arrived late. The battle of the Great Beasts’ Slumber is over, and this eye of the storm is useless now.”
Habus replied, “I wasn’t on the list of combatants. I came only to verify my conjectures.”
Lin Xitang stated, “The war is not over.”
Habus chuckled, “So what? For me, there will indeed be an important war, not between the Council and the Empire, but… the Holy War.”
Lin Xitang frowned. The Holy War was the dark world’s civil war. The Empire had heard fragmented news, hinting at internal strife, but not yet at the level of a civil war.
This was not necessarily good for the Empire. Usually, they would take advantage of the dark races’ internal conflicts to strengthen themselves. But this time, with a vital goal, the dark races might unite against the Empire, resolving their issues and focusing their anger on the Empire.
Lin Xitang said, “What you say is meaningless. Even if some in the Empire might ally with you, it won’t be me.”
Habus shrugged, “General Lin, never say never. Have you never wondered why the human form is closest to the demonic and vampiric races? Even the ancient mountainous races, werewolves, and spider demons, need great power to transform. But your race, only a thousand two hundred years civilized, was born in this perfect form.”
Lin Xitang’s eyes darkened. This question had been raised by both factions, but no answers had been found. “Is there an answer to this?”
Habus replied, “There’s no answer, but there is a coincidence.” He said no more.
Lin Xitang understood. If no alliance was formed, Habus would not reveal the crucial information. After a moment, he asked, “Did Your Highness come here today just to say this?”
Habus turned, seeing a void in the storm barrier, a flash of lightning piercing through. It was a man on a small boat, glowing with flickering runes.
Habus vanished and reappeared near the top of the eye, a flaming crimson light.
He chuckled, “General Lin, your use of my dark primal fire to counteract the backlash of divination shows true genius, but it drains your life, your soul. In this dark-blessed world, restoring a soul is not easy.”
Zhang Boqian, having stowed his boat, approached Lin Xitang, turning to glare at Habus.
Habus bowed slightly, “General Lin, nothing in the world is eternal. Perhaps one day we can face a common enemy together.” Then, the young blood prince vanished as silently as he had appeared.
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