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"How is the Little Demon Empress?"
Yun Canghai asked, his voice full of worry.
"Is she safe?"
Yun Qinghong shook his head.
"She is entirely alone,"
Yun Qinghong said softly.
"Her father and brother are dead. We could not protect her because of the poison. Duke Ming controls almost everything now."
"Does she know about Duke Ming's trap?"
Sam asked.
"She knows he is planning something,"
Yun Qinghong answered.
"But she refuses to run away. She will stand her ground at the ceremony."
Far away from the Yun estate, the Demon Imperial Hall was cold and quiet.
A young woman sat on the massive throne.
She wore a grey dress. Her face was very pale, but her eyes burned with a fierce fire.
This was Huan Caiyi, the Little Demon Empress.
The heavy doors opened.
Duke Ming walked in. He did not bow.
He walked up the steps with a confident smile.
"Your Majesty,"
Duke Ming said.
"The ceremony is in three days. Are you ready?"
Huan Caiyi looked down at him.
"I am ready to see you burn,"
She answered coldly.
Duke Ming laughed.
"You are so stubborn,"
Duke Ming said.
"Just like your father. But look around. Your hall is empty. Your loyal Yun family is broken. You have no one left to fight for you."
Huan Caiyi gripped the arms of her throne.
"I do not need anyone,"
She told him.
"I have the blood of the Demon Emperor. I will never hand my crown to a traitor."
"We will see,"
Duke Ming smiled.
"In three days, the whole realm will ask you to step down. If you fight back, you will die. Think about it carefully."
He turned around and walked out of the hall.
When the doors closed, Huan Caiyi let out a tired breath.
She leaned back against the cold chair.
She closed her eyes.
She was completely exhausted. She had been fighting this war alone for a hundred years.
"Father,"
Huan Caiyi whispered to the empty room.
"I will protect our home. Even if it costs me my life."
Back at the Yun estate, the main hall was quiet.
"I can kill Duke Ming right now,"
Sam told the family.
Yun Qinghong looked surprised.
"Then why wait three days?"
Yun Qinghong asked.
"I can't tell you specifically,"
Sam answered calmly.
"But think about it. If an outsider kills him, the realm will not respect your Empress. They will fear me. You and Huan Caiyi must defeat him in front of everyone. That is how you win the throne back."
Yun Canghai nodded slowly.
"That's right,"
The old man agreed.
"This is our war. We have to fight it."
Sam looked closely at Yun Canghai.
"You have the spirit for a war,"
Sam said.
"But your body is too weak. A hundred years in chains took a heavy toll on you."
Yun Canghai looked down at his shaking hands.
"I know,"
He admitted quietly.
"I am just a shadow of my former self."
"Not for long,"
Sam told him.
Sam raised his right hand.
Three gems glowed brightly on his hand.
The red Reality Stone bent the physical rules of the world.
The yellow Mind Stone repaired a century of mental trauma.
The purple Power Stone flooded the room with raw, endless energy.
A massive wave of three-colored light washed over Yun Canghai.
The old man gasped loudly.
His white hair rapidly turned jet black.
His wrinkled skin smoothed out. His bent shoulders straightened completely.
A heavy storm of profound energy whipped around the room.
The stone floor cracked under his feet.
Yun Canghai opened his eyes. Real lightning sparked in his pupils.
He was not just back in his prime.
He was completely transformed. His cultivation base shot far past his original limits.
Yun Qinghong stared in absolute shock.
"Father,"
Yun Qinghong whispered.
"Your power... it is terrifying."
"I feel like I can split the sky,"
Yun Canghai said.
He looked at his own hands in pure disbelief.
Sam lowered his arm. He looked at the three glowing stones.
*I completely underestimated these things,*
Sam thought to himself in awe.
*They are so much more powerful here than they were in the movies. There is no limit to what they can do.*
Yun Canghai looked at his hands again.
He closed his eyes to feel the energy inside his body.
"This is completely different,"
Yun Canghai said. His voice was quiet.
"I have passed the Sovereign Profound Realm. I can feel it. But the path ahead is empty. I do not know where I am."
Sam put his hands in his pockets.
"You are in the Divine Origin Realm,"
Sam answered.
"You have officially entered the Divine Way."
Yun Canghai looked up quickly.
Real fear flashed in his eyes.
"The Divine Way?"
Yun Canghai asked.
"We only have old stories about that. The legends say it is the path of the gods. I do not know anything about it."
"You will learn,"
Sam told him.
"Your foundation is solid now. The energy will guide you naturally."
Yun Canghai shook his head.
He looked up at the ceiling, as if looking at the sky above.
"That is not what worries me,"
Yun Canghai said.
"Our ancestors warned us. If a mortal touches the power of the gods, the Realm of Gods will notice. Will they come down here? Will they destroy our world because I broke the rules?"
Sam gave a short laugh.
"No,"
Sam replied easily.
Yun Canghai looked confused.
"Why not?"
He asked.
"Because you are only at the Divine Origin Realm,"
Sam explained.
"To the people in this world, you are a god. But to the people up there, you just took your very first baby step. You are at the absolute bottom of their ladder."
Sam walked closer to the old man.
"They do not care about a single Divine Origin cultivator in a lower world,"
Sam told him.
"You are completely off their radar. No one is coming to punish you."
Yun Canghai let out a long breath.
The tension finally left his shoulders.
"I understand,"
Yun Canghai said.
"I am a giant here, but I am still an ant to them."
"Exactly,"
Sam nodded.
"And right now, you only need to be a giant to crush Duke Ming."