Chapter 238: Twilight of the Years

This was an exquisitely intricate and extremely complex family lineage chart, with a few nodes shimmering faintly. Among them was the Trisinny family that Qian Ye had deduced, but the Emma of the Carni family, who frequently married into other families, was not on it.

Qian Ye was initially stunned, then fell into deep thought. He had not expected that the Black Book, besides unraveling the rules of power, could also evolve a bloodline chart.

At this moment, Qian Ye vaguely understood why the Dark Sovereign was so eager to obtain the Black Book. As the Dark Sacred Mountain, which already stood at the pinnacle of this world, the Dark Sovereign was more interested in things beyond power. But what purpose did the Dark Sovereign have for the Black Book?

Qian Ye pondered for a moment, then set the question aside. He looked at the bloodline chart before him, quickly thinking about the uses of this new function.

From the chart, the key to strengthening this branch of the demon bloodline was very clear. Such information would be priceless for the Marquis of Carni. Unfortunately, the old Marquis Carni and several direct descendants of the family were now dead, consumed by the flames.

However, the Carni was a large family, and the old Marquis Carni was just one branch. The other branches of the Carni could still use this chart.

But in Qian Ye’s hands, it could play an entirely opposite role!

Qian Ye’s gaze fell on the illuminated Trisinny family crest. If the Trisinny and a few other similarly illuminated crests were cut off, it would mean that the ancient Carni bloodline would lose any chance of further enhancement and would only continue to degenerate in the future.

The Carni carried the blood of a duke, and the other grand dukes, princes, and even the distinguished families with great lords for generations, all had their own family charts that could be derived from the Black Book.

In other words, under the guidance of the Black Book, Qian Ye could sever the path of advancement for each demon bloodline. This was, in essence, cutting off their roots, much like what the Dark Sovereign had done to those ancient vampire clans.

Thinking of this, a fleeting thought crossed Qian Ye’s mind, as if he had glimpsed a bit of the Dark Sovereign’s larger plan. However, this spark of insight disappeared without forming fully.

Qian Ye was not discouraged. In fact, for him at his current stage, guessing the Dark Sovereign’s intentions was still unimportant. Because in this world, whether in reason or force, whether in negotiation or war, only the strong had the right to speak. To face the Dark Sovereign, he still needed to continuously gain power.

Qian Ye opened the atlas and found the location of the Trisinny family. He wanted to see if there was anything valuable to be found there.

The territory of the Trisinny family was not far, so by dawn, their ancestral castle was slowly collapsing in flames. Qian Ye, however, uploaded the Trisinny family chart into the Black Book.

The current head of the Trisinny family was merely an earl, and the most glorious period in their history saw only two marquises, not even powerful ones. No wonder the old Marquis Carni did not look up to them. But the old Marquis Carni did not know that the key to enhancing their bloodline lay in combining with the bloodline of a family that was currently just an earl.

The Trisinny family chart indeed gave Qian Ye a surprise.

About nine hundred years ago, a branch of the Meserstam family merged into this family. In the derivations of the Black Book, this Meserstam bloodline was very strong and full of potential. Its integration gradually caused a qualitative change in the Trisinny bloodline, making it possible for a duke to emerge in the future, and even further, there was hope.

The current head of the Meserstam family, Qian Ye recalled from the vast amount of information he had seen in the past two days, was Lord Ludren Floating Island, Grand Duke Sydney Meserstam.

Qian Ye began to search the atlas for the nearby territories of the Meserstam family. Cutting off a grand duke’s bloodline was naturally more interesting than a marquis.

Within a few days, the continent of Salphes was engulfed in smoke, with one ancient family after another crumbling. Although they were small families of marquises and earls, for the long-peaceful and seemingly frozen homeland of the demons, the flames seemed to have been burning for seven hundred years.

A fleet set out from Ludren Floating Island, heading towards the continent at full speed. The unique aspect of the Salphes continent was its numerous floating islands, distributed above the land rather than at the edges.

The warships, setting out from the floating islands, arrived at an ancient castle in no time. This was the Winton family, a long-established demon lineage. Though they were currently just a marquis, when they left Mysfield twelve hundred years ago, their leader was still the Grand Duke Winton. In a subsequent holy war, the Grand Duke Winton fell, being the highest-ranking fallen warrior in that holy war.

Though they had split off and established themselves, the bloodline originating from Mysfield made the Winton family a preferred choice for many intermarriages, including the Meserstams.

The warship hovered in front of the ancient castle, with the Duke of Meserstam, standing on the deck, his face grim, looking at the still-burning castle without a word.

He was tall, his silver hair meticulously combed, and his high nose bridge was as erect as a mountain range.

“Still Qian Ye?” he asked in a low, deep voice.

“It’s not confirmed. The survivors have been questioned, but there were no strong fighters among them, and they couldn’t clearly explain what happened. The battle was too short and too fast, far beyond their level of involvement.”

“What about the casualties?”

“Marquis Winton and his direct descendants are all dead. The family members above the rank of viscount, who were at home, were mostly killed, except for one viscount who escaped.”

The duke suddenly erupted, roaring, “With the direct bloodline wiped out, what use are these wastes?!! Execute them all!”

The demon strongman did not dare to say more and immediately agreed.

The duke slightly suppressed his anger, then said, “Take me to the scene.”

A group of strongmen leaped down from the floating ship, landing on the still-burning ancient castle. Where the duke passed, the flames within ten meters were extinguished, forcibly creating a path into the castle.

Marquis Winton died in his study, where the overflowing demonic aura suppressed the spread of the fire, allowing the scene to be somewhat preserved.

The Duke of Meserstam came to the corpse, silent. The old marquis’ face was filled with shock, his hand still extended forward, as if trying to block something, and then froze there.

A nearby demon marquis solemnly said, “It was an instant kill. Marquis Winton didn’t even have time to retaliate, let alone gather demonic energy.”

Another strongman said, “His Excellency the Marquis has not been in battle for over a hundred years.”

All the demons present had dark expressions.

Though the outer world was embroiled in war, it had nothing to do with Salphes. This continent had been too stable for too long, so long that the demons here had almost forgotten what war was.

Many elderly or frustrated demons would choose to manage a small territory in Salphes. The land was rich in resources, and the abundant dark energy made the demons drowsy, making it the most beautiful environment.

At the same time, because of the peace in Salphes, it could be considered a retirement place. There were no special military targets, and no powerful, warlike families eager to expand, so for hundreds of years, whether it was the holy wars of the Eternal Night camp or the internal strife of the demons, this place had never been targeted.

Marquis Winton’s experience was a typical example. He had lived in this ancient castle for three hundred years, loving art and sculpture, and skilled in managing the territory and connections. The only thing he was not good at, perhaps, was the original force and combat.

The Duke of Meserstam’s gaze fell on the old marquis’s chest, where there were several barely noticeable blood spots, and the flesh around the spots was showing signs of withering.

Seeing the wound, a flash of anger passed through Meserstam’s eyes, and he said, “Life force seizure!”

“But there doesn’t seem to be any residual blood energy,” a demon marquis asked in confusion.

The Duke of Meserstam frowned, also puzzled.

“Your Excellency, it has been several days, and the council has still not responded. If it really is Qian Ye, then…” The demon marquis did not finish, but his meaning was clear.

A hint of helplessness appeared in Meserstam’s eyes. “The war with the vampires has not ended, and other urgent matters have arisen. Even the semi-retired Emperor Jose has been mobilized. Now the council headquarters is particularly empty, with no extra forces to send. New reinforcements may take a week to arrive.”

“This is truly good news,” Qian Ye’s voice suddenly sounded.

The duke turned around quickly, but a wisp of gray mist landed on him, slowing his movements abruptly.

“Domain!” Meserstam exclaimed, but without panic, and demonic energy surged as he released his domain.

However, as soon as his domain appeared, countless gray feathers appeared around him. As the feathers floated down, Meserstam’s domain, still forming, was destroyed silently.

Only then did he show great alarm, staring at Qian Ye, and said slowly, “Qian Ye?”

“You already have the answer, so why ask?” Qian Ye replied calmly.

“To dare come to Salphes, you have quite the nerve.”

“When you slaughtered everywhere in Twilight, weren’t you equally bold?”

Meserstam laughed three times, saying, “Hah! Save that for when you face the Dark Sovereign!”

Qian Ye said indifferently, “I heard that the old Grand Duke Meserstam is in his twilight years, and the main person in charge of the family is his third son. That should be you, Your Excellency, the Duke.”

“So what if it is?”

“In the twilight years, it is no longer possible to pass on offspring. In recent generations, there have been no outstanding talents in the Meserstam family, not even an earl. That means, if I kill you, the Meserstam bloodline will be cut off by more than half.”

The Duke of Meserstam was shocked, then his anger flared, and he said coldly, “The first batch of emergency troops from the council is on the way and will arrive soon. If you want to kill me, you’d better hurry.”

Qian Ye smiled and said, “Do you think I don’t have the ability to quickly end your life?”

Meserstam’s eyebrows stood up, and arm shields sprang out from both arms, crossing in front of his chest, and then he said, “I have heard of your past achievements and know that you have the Storm in your hands. But a single famous gun is not enough to take my life.”

Qian Ye, with a calm demeanor, said, “I have also heard that the Meserstam’s original force defense is renowned among all the demons, even known as the source of ten thousand shields. I do have a famous gun, but this time, I didn’t bring the Storm, but…”

As he spoke, an ancient and magnificent short gun appeared in Qian Ye’s hand, and then there was a loud boom!

Countless images suddenly appeared in the air, and in each mirror-like image, the Duke of Meserstam was clearly visible! He had become flat, sealed in the mirrors, and finally showed fear on his face.

Countless mirror fragments shattered silently, turning into streaks of glass-like light, momentarily transforming the world into a dreamlike and illusory landscape.