The land of Banderi, in the realm of the Demonkin, is relatively young. Its sky lacks the vibrant hues of the Dusklight continent, yet it is full of dynamic beauty. Innumerable beams of light converge and separate at a very slow pace, transforming from elliptical rings into curtains and then stretching into fan arcs.
The geography and vegetation of the Demonkin’s land differ significantly from those of the Middle Layer Continent. The deeper one ventures, the more ancient the environment feels, as if the passage of time has left its mark here. It seems to stand apart from the main continents of other dark races as well.
Before them lies an expansive sea of crystal flowers, sprawling across the land, extending to the far horizon as if without boundary. An ancient castle perches on a gentle hill, occupying almost the entire sunny side of the knoll. However, it does not exude the usual foreboding aura of a fortress; every line, every corner, and every carved decoration is intricate yet elegant, standing out like a work of art against the backdrop of the crystal flower sea.
Habus stood before the floor-to-ceiling window on the second floor, gazing outside. A half-played game of chess lay on a small table beside him.
Outside, floating in mid-air, Emperor Kain played a sky harp with intense concentration, the fourteen strings emitting a melody clear and pure as the crystal petals beneath his feet. The lingering tones resembled the aurora diffusing over the petals, intertwining to form a misty glow that gently swept over every corner of the land.
Habus listened quietly. This was a popular piece in the Eternal Night world, telling the story of a traveler walking through the boundless void, where the revelation of the world appeared before him—a pure, mysterious, grand, and eternal darkness.
At the usual end of the piece, an unexpected variation began. Before the traveler, the endless darkness evolved into rich layers, and the curtain of the world slowly lifted, revealing the brilliance of the stars.
The music stopped abruptly.
Emperor Kain stood in the same spot, head slightly bowed, his profile resembling a silhouette. When a wave of communication reached the main gate, he turned his gaze and, with a flick of his finger, drew a parchment scroll from the air.
A glance at the content, and another flick, sent the scroll back to whence it came.
In the next moment, Emperor Kain appeared in the lounge. Habus, now seated by the small table, toyed with the chess pieces.
“Darkflame in the New World is almost extinguished,” said Emperor Kain, “but the remaining part burns much slower, and the mist it releases will hardly dissipate. The pressure in the environment is not only unrelieved but is actually increasing. We and the Empire have had to retreat from several nearby posts. It seems we will need to wait a few more days.”
“The rules there are too chaotic,” remarked Habus.
Emperor Kain shook his head. “It’s not the rules that are chaotic, but a manifestation of the concentration of primordial force being compressed to the extreme. Just like when a subordinate faces a superior, the power becomes so overwhelming that it collapses under its own weight.”
Habus pondered, then asked, “What is inside?”
“It is a substance—or perhaps energy—that can repair the essence of our world. Its form is still indeterminate.” He smiled. “There is also an interesting matter.”
Habus glanced at him. “What could interest you so much?”
“Nyetong and Qian Ye have appeared.”
Habus raised an eyebrow, waiting for more.
“Qian Ye has recovered his strength so quickly; I underestimated him.”
Habus said calmly, “He is still just a Marquis of Honor, no matter how strong he is. Even if he possesses cross-tier combat power, you have many talented subordinates. Why should you pay such close attention to him?”
“Qian Ye is now at the rank of Duke, and he has Nyetong with him. Together, they managed to make Palochia suffer, which makes them significant figures.”
Seeing Habus’ expression, Emperor Kain chuckled. “You don’t need to provoke me. Even without any promise, I wouldn’t go to the Dusklight continent to bully that child.”
“Dusklight continent?”
“Yes, they rescued the Dark Evangel and some of the Blood Race, as if intending to bring people out of Dusklight,” mused Emperor Kain, deep in thought.
Habus frowned, interrupting him. “With Howard unable to awaken the Queen, and the blood pools of the clans you intended to clean already cleared, even if they join forces with Origin and Crescent, it shouldn’t affect the overall situation, right?”
Emperor Kain looked at Habus and waved his hand good-naturedly. “The Book of Darkness is with Qian Ye.”
“Book of Darkness?” Habus was taken aback. “This so-called holy object is surrounded by all sorts of legends. It is said that Anduaya’s strength surged after mastering the ancient secrets recorded within. But we all know it’s just a myth. Are you interested in the Book of Darkness?”
By the time a Blood Race member reaches the rank of Prince, no external force can show them the path forward. Habus, as an ancestor, had already walked part of the way.
Communicating with the Blood River, receiving the memories and inheritance of the race, and igniting the blood mark, is one path based on one’s own bloodline. Observing, thinking, and understanding the essence of the world, mastering the underlying rules, is another path.
The inheritance of the race is unpredictable, while comprehending the world’s rules is more proactive. However, the latter is extremely dangerous. People generally believe that exploring the upper layers of the world is crucial for understanding the underlying rules. Yet, even setting aside the infinite Void Sea and the mysterious beasts, simply entering the Upper Layers is not something an ordinary Prince can achieve.
No matter which race, those above the rank of Prince have walked a unique and arduous path.
It was because of this that Habus did not think there could be a secret method to easily surpass the bottleneck above Prince. And for someone at the level of Emperor Kain, the Book of Darkness was utterly useless.
“I have seen the Book of Darkness,” Emperor Kain said. “It is not a secret method. The Book of Darkness, also known as the Book of Creation, was born at the same time as our world. Its actual purpose is to record and evolve. There are also some minor functions, not worth mentioning.”
Habus, puzzled, asked, “Does its evolution reveal the rules of the world to us? That would be interesting indeed.”
Emperor Kain shook his head. “If you had seen it, you would know that the world it evolves into is very different from our current real Eternal Night.”
Seeing Habus’ confusion, Emperor Kain continued, “The Book of Darkness records the moment of the Eternal Night’s creation. Its evolution simulates how the Eternal Night should evolve and flourish after its creation.”
Pausing, Emperor Kain added, “In other words, the world the Book of Darkness evolves into is what the Eternal Night was meant to be—a truly pure world.”
Habus, stunned, suddenly realized the issue. “You mean the outcome of the Book of Darkness’ evolution is different from the real Eternal Night?!”
While Qian Ye did not know or care what a pure Eternal Night looked like, when Emperor Kain spoke the last sentence, he felt a sense of awareness and turned his head, looking into the distance.
Nyetong, noticing the change, asked, “What’s wrong?”
Qian Ye, pale, silently activated his bloodline isolation talent, cutting off the mysterious gaze that locked onto him. In that short moment, his aura had dropped noticeably.
Nyetong, startled, asked, “Who?!”
Qian Ye shook his head. “I don’t know. But I think someone is targeting me.”
At that moment, Howard approached, saying, “My airships are ready. All the direct descendants of the clans are here. When will your airship arrive?”
Qian Ye looked into the distance and saw a fleet of transport ships approaching rapidly. In the secret valley, the Blood Race members emerged from their temporary tents, looking excitedly at the incoming airships.
Qian Ye, Nyetong, and Howard’s rescue mission went smoothly, finishing a day earlier than planned. For some reason, the Council seemed to be executing a routine task, and the troops began to withdraw from the Dusklight continent the next day.
This greatly reduced the trouble for Qian Ye and his companions. They focused on rescuing people, avoiding territories that showed no signs of invasion, thus avoiding traps like the one set by Little Lin Qi.
Throughout the process, they encountered the Council forces only twice, and Medanzo never appeared. The highest-ranking official left to maintain order was a Duke, and although some units later began to search for them, without a Grand Lord, they couldn’t even find their tracks.
In the end, around ten thousand Blood Race members gathered in the secret valley.
When Howard asked, Qian Ye, feeling something, said, “They’re here.”
In the distant sky, a giant ship penetrated the clouds, appearing over the Dusklight continent. The city-like structure belonged only to the Hall of Heroes.
The Hall of Heroes headed straight for the secret valley, landing even before the transport fleet. Its descent was like that of a land dragon, turning graceful at the last moment and gently touching down.
The Blood Race in the valley, who had never seen such a massive ship, were spellbound.
“Quickly, let them board!” Qian Ye said. “Leave unnecessary things behind. The presence of the Hall of Heroes won’t stay hidden for long.”
Howard, coming to his senses, immediately supervised the boarding. The Blood Race, having narrowly escaped death, knew the danger was still present and boarded quickly under his urging.
On the other side, the large transport fleet landed one by one, responsible for sending ordinary Blood Race members to Yolng. Tens of thousands of Blood Race members crowded around, filling each ship as soon as it landed. The transports wasted no time, taking off for Yolng once full.
Seeing the efficient chaos, Qian Ye felt somewhat relieved. As he retracted his gaze, a fierce wind blew from the side, and a black shadow hurtled towards him at incredible speed, smashing him into the ground.
The impact was heavy. Despite his ancient Blood Race constitution, Qian Ye was left dazed. The key was the suddenness of the attack, with no warning whatsoever.
Shaking his head, Qian Ye felt a small figure clinging to him like an octopus, squeezing him so hard that his nearly fully formed bones creaked.
Then, a beautiful, almost unreal face appeared before him, smiling sweetly and kissing him repeatedly. The kisses made Qian Ye feel as if a spider demon Duke had smacked him with a hammer, making him dizzier.
“Daddy!!”
Qian Ye suppressed the instinctive urge to retaliate, focusing on the face. After a moment, he said uncertainly, “Jooji?”
“It’s me! Don’t I look better now?”
“Wait, get up. My ribs are about to break.” Qian Ye groaned, grabbing Jooji’s neck and lifting her off him.
Fortunately, though she had grown a bit, the weakness in her neck remained. Once grabbed, she became limp and obediently curled up.
Climbing out of the pit, Qian Ye shook off the dust and examined Jooji carefully.
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