Chapter 190: Emotions and Duty

In this secret realm, it felt like a secluded world away from all the chaos. Qian Ye quietly listened as Night Pupil recounted the past.

“At that time, we were young and full of pride. The blood race was struggling to survive, facing countless enemies—other dark races and even otherworldly beings that suddenly appeared in our world. My memories from those days are almost entirely filled with battles…”

This must have been a very old memory. In the empire’s historical records, there were few instances of large-scale appearances of otherworldly creatures. The most common were the occasional void beasts. And on the side of the Eternal Night Council, similar records were described as ancient legends.

“Later… there is no later. I can’t remember why I fell. That period of my memory is a complete blank, as if it was erased. After awakening, I asked Renault, but he had no answer. It’s said that during that time, I was wandering, and then news of my fall spread.”

“So who exactly are you?”

Night Pupil sighed softly, “I am still me, Night Pupil, unchanged. Awakening is like having some memories suddenly appear in my mind, nothing more.”

“Then why did you leave?”

“After I awakened, my reformed blood core sent a message to the Blood River, and I received a response. I knew then that they would eventually find me and call me back. If we stayed together, you would be in great danger. In ancient times, I had more than just friends like Renault; I also had many enemies.” Night Pupil continued, “If I could awaken, so could they.”

“Regardless of the enemy, we can face them together. Look, it hasn’t been that long.”

Night Pupil sighed, “Besides the danger, there is also responsibility. If the council summons me, I will likely have to go. But how could you possibly serve the council? Even if it’s not against the empire, you wouldn’t want to.”

Qian Ye remained silent. Indeed, he was like that back then.

Night Pupil continued, “Later, the council’s messenger found me, and Renault came too. You know the rest.”

“Renault… Why did he save me?” This was something Qian Ye couldn’t understand.

From the various signs and Night Pupil’s words, it was clear that King Qing had always had special feelings for her. Even though Night Pupil never responded, these feelings had remained unchanged for thousands of years. If Night Pupil had been injured, it would make sense for King Qing to give her his life-saving treasure. But Qian Ye was, in essence, a rival in love. How could King Qing be so generous?

Night Pupil sighed lightly, “He wasn’t saving you, but trying to save me.”

Suddenly, Qian Ye understood. If he had died, Night Pupil, who had accidentally killed him, would likely not have survived either. Perhaps King Qing had seen this and decided to save both of them.

At this moment, Qian Ye felt a mix of emotions, “That incident, I was too impulsive.”

“It’s in the past now.”

Qian Ye pointed to his chest, “What happened to my body? The Book of Darkness seems to have fused my blood core and heart together.”

Night Pupil glared at him, slightly annoyed, “You! At that time, you deceived me, and I instinctively used all my strength to counter your attack. Without that, I couldn’t have blocked your shot. Dream Shocking automatically targets an enemy’s weak points, so it shattered your blood core and heart.”

“Then how did I end up like this?”

“Luckily, you had the Book of Darkness. In ancient times, it was called the Book of Creation, said to have been born alongside the world, containing the true secrets of the fundamental rules of the world. Every time it appeared, all races would fight over it. The last person to obtain it was An Du Ya, and its power greatly increased, giving him the desire to challenge the Queen of the Night.”

Qian Ye knew the Book of Darkness was extraordinary, but he didn’t realize it had such a significant history, being a treasure contested by powerful figures since ancient times.

Night Pupil added, “Renault also obtained the Book of Darkness and studied it for a while. He used its creative power to regenerate your blood core and heart, using the Azure Mist Blood as a medium, sealing it within the Book of Darkness. From then on, the Book of Darkness became your blood core and heart.”

It was almost a miracle. And given the Book of Darkness’ incredible power, King Qing, upon obtaining it, did not covet it but instead focused on saving Qian Ye. Such a deep sentiment was truly overwhelming.

At this moment, Night Pupil’s eyebrows suddenly furrowed, her face showing hesitation, confusion, hope, and bewilderment. Qian Ye gently touched her forehead, trying to ease her worry, and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Night Pupil looked lost, “Just now, the connection to Renault’s blood mark completely severed… but now…”

At that moment, Night Pupil and Qian Ye both felt something, looking up at the sky. A subtle fluctuation emerged from the Blood River, and one of the floating blood marks dimmed, specifically the one belonging to King Qing.

This fluctuation was extremely obscure and brief, but at this point, both Night Pupil and Qian Ye had reached the level of a Duke in their bloodline powers, and their connection to the Blood River far exceeded that of ordinary blood races. They both captured this change.

Night Pupil, who had just felt a glimmer of hope, saw the mark dim again, and her expression changed. Fortunately, that was all that happened, and no further changes occurred.

Night Pupil mumbled, “I must have been too nervous, and I sensed it incorrectly.”

Qian Ye held Night Pupil’s hand, comforting her, “With Renault’s abilities, there are few in the world who could threaten his life, unless it’s a Sovereign.”

Qian Ye drew her into his arms, and the warmth helped both of them relax.

Night Pupil said, “Maybe we should go out for a walk.”

“Okay.”

“No, let’s not rush. You need to get used to your new body first.”

Qian Ye did not object. At this moment, his body felt very unfamiliar, each joint as if rusted, making control difficult. In this state, he could only exert about 30-40% of his combat power.

An Du Ya’s space was still intact, even surviving Night Pupil’s final burst of power. After resting for a while, Qian Ye stretched his body, then took out Dong Yue, and with a shake, the sword’s blade shook violently, creaking under the strain.

Startled, Qian Ye realized that the Book of Darkness had released chaotic primal energy, increasing his power and nearly destroying Dong Yue.

Dong Yue, after being refined by the Zhao Clan and enhanced with the giant rhino horn, had become almost indestructible. In Qian Ye’s past brutal attacks, using it as a massive axe or hammer was no problem. How could a 90% forceful shake almost destroy it now?

Qian Ye carefully sensed his body structure. His muscles and organs hadn’t changed, and the burning gold blood still flowed, though the small flames within were becoming somewhat dim. His bones were almost completely transformed, which might explain the increase in his body’s capacity, but it still didn’t account for the explosive power.

The only reason might be the unique primal energy emanating from the Book of Darkness.

This time, Qian Ye dared not add force recklessly, controlling the primal energy to half, practicing his sword techniques, and gradually increasing the force only after fully familiarizing himself. A significant part of Qian Ye’s combat power was based on his unparalleled fighting art, and without mastering his body, he could not unleash it.

Once in practice mode, Qian Ye’s mind became calm, ignoring everything else, focusing solely on the repetitive practice of his sword techniques, relearning the skill of control and force.

In a blink, three days passed, and Qian Ye finally woke from his practice.

He checked the time, startled, and quickly sensed the Blood River. Thankfully, King Qing’s mark had not completely faded, and he felt a little reassured.

Night Pupil had been sitting beside him, watching Qian Ye quietly.

Qian Ye slowly retracted his primal energy and walked towards Night Pupil. Suddenly, a surge of primal energy from the Book of Darkness caused the blood crystal on the cover to grow rapidly, releasing a large amount of burning gold blood to repair the last bit of damage to Qian Ye’s bones.

Qian Ye’s aura climbed steadily until it approached that of a Grand Duke, then stopped.

“Now it’s about right,” Qian Ye said.

Night Pupil had already packed their belongings and handed Qian Ye a backpack with spare supplies. Qian Ye stored the backpack in An Du Ya’s space, put on his battle armor, and left the small secret realm with Night Pupil.

In the Demon Continent, in the dark center, stood a magnificent and splendid castle. This was the most sacred place for the demon race, the Demon Palace.

In the Demon Palace, the Demon Emperor stood before a long table, staring at the blood core taken from King Qing, silent for a long time.

Palocia and Everburning Flame stood beside him, silent.

“So, you didn’t find Night Pupil and Qian Ye, did you?” The Demon Emperor’s voice was always gentle. However, Palocia and Everburning Flame’s auras fluctuated, indicating their agitated emotions.

If not for seeing it with their own eyes, it would have been unimaginable. Logically, while the power of the Great Kings and the Sovereigns had a gap, it shouldn’t be so large that they were completely suppressed. Everburning Flame, like Wolf Venerable, was considered close to the Holy Mountain. Yet, at this moment, the two Great Kings’ reverence for the Demon Emperor seemed to exceed what was expected.

Palocia said, “I didn’t expect that Renault could still unleash such terrifying power at the end of his life.”

The Demon Emperor sighed, “You didn’t underestimate his power, but his determination. Not all blood races are like Mephisto.”

After a moment of silence, the Demon Emperor waved his hand, and countless strands of demonic energy wove into a highly intricate polyhedron, enclosing King Qing’s blood core.

He said, “Take good care of it. This blood core still has a bit of life. As long as it remains intact, the mark in the Blood River won’t completely extinguish, and the Queen of the Night won’t be alerted. This time, Mephisto did not disappoint me.”

Everburning Flame shot out a pale flame, taking away King Qing’s blood core.

The Demon Emperor thought for a moment and added, “If we can use this blood core to glimpse some secrets of the Blood River, it would be even better. I’m always a bit uncertain about the things humans do.”

After Palocia and Everburning Flame left, the Demon Emperor stood motionless, deep in thought.