Chapter 103

“Goodnight, Your Highness.”

Inside the underground relic, as the space trembled and air rushed, the already shaky mountain began to collapse.

Ivyst’s ten fingers glowed with a captivating crimson light, sharp as bloodied claws, plunging fiercely into the surface of the Wishing Jar.

At the same time, her Devouring Power surged with full force, robbing every second of this powerful Level 0 Sealed Item of its properties and laws.

However, as the devouring continued, Ivyst’s complexion grew increasingly pale.

The intense pain inflicted by the sealed item’s properties swept through her body, causing her to tremble uncontrollably.

This was the most challenging sealed item she had ever dealt with.

After merely absorbing a small fraction of its power, Ivyst felt like she was about to faint.

Yet, with sheer brute strength, she was still inflicting visible damage on this supposedly indestructible sealed item.

With a delicate shattering sound, fine cracks began to spread in all directions.

Ivyst clenched her silver teeth, suppressing a moan that threatened to escape from deep within, her body on the verge of collapse, barely able to hover in the air.

The platform below, once submerged in black mire, seemed to boil and shake due to the clash of these two powerful forces.

Crack!

After a clear sound, a visible fissure ran across the surface of the Wishing Jar.

Perhaps just a few more seconds, and the host of the sealed item would suffer catastrophic damage!

It’s close.

It’s close.

Exhausted, Ivyst exerted all her effort to control the sealed item, trying to minimize the leakage of the tainted and cursed power beyond the underground relic.

Though she was in excruciating pain, for some reason, driven by a flicker of obsession in her heart, Ivyst persevered.

Throughout her life, she had never succeeded in anything.

Yet here she was, desperately fighting for the lives of others and for some trivial matters.

How unlike me.

When did I begin to change?

Meanwhile, the cracks on the surface of the Wishing Jar expanded further.

Tendrils of black light, intertwined with some incomprehensible abstract symbols, emanated from those cracks.

“Cough, cough.”

Ivyst suddenly coughed up black blood, and the cursed markings on her face seemed to spring to life, crawling towards her originally pure neck and chest.

This curse eroded her sanity and life, constantly tempting her to fall into the abyss of evil.

It’s close.

Everything is about to end.

Although she could still sense the destructive power within the Level 0 Sealed Item, Ivyst spoke to herself.

In an instant, a familiar voice echoed in her ears.

“Don’t you want to live?”

This was the life stored within the sealed item speaking to her.

In the next moment, the boiling black mire beneath her suddenly twisted and trembled.

After a surge, a female face resembling that of the Wishing Jar appeared in the center of the mire.

It… no, it was the Creation Goddess worshipped by the Creation Sect, but according to High Priest Askin, its true identity was actually a demon.

Creation Demon.

The female face emerging from the black mire was enormous, as if wanting to fill the entire underground relic.

“Do you want to die?”

Looking at Ivyst in the sky, its voice was filled with confusion, reiterating its previous question.

Swish!

A massive blade formed from the River of the Dead, flowing with blood, flashed through space, striking the Creation Demon’s face.

The face was instantly split in two.

However, these were just phantoms conjured by the mire.

Moments later, a mass of black mud floated in mid-air, condensing into the figure of a curvaceous woman.

It looked down at the pained Ivyst: “You’re strong. If it came down to a life-or-death struggle, given my current state, I likely wouldn’t be your match.”

“However, you chose the most foolish method, actually intending to swallow the Level 0 Sealed Item lodged within me.”

“Is it to prevent me from bringing disaster to this country?”

Ivyst remained silent, not replying to its question.

Right now, her face was pale, blood trickling from the corners of her mouth, deviating from her usual calm demeanor.

But even so, she did not cease her actions.

“I see,” the Creation Demon suddenly smirked with a hint of mockery after reading a thread of thought from her, “Burdened with such powerful strength, yet willing to become a mere ‘tool’.”

“Your foolish ideals deserve the suffering you’ve endured along the way.”

“You should have harbored intense hatred in your heart, yet why do I not sense any urge from you to destroy everything?”

“Let me guess… Is it because you’ve suddenly found an inexplicable hope?”

“Is it because the other party is a man?”

Swish!

The crimson giant sword slashed through space again, cutting through the heavy mountain, flattening several distant peaks.

Yet soon, the Creation Demon solidified into a black entity once more.

All its power now resided within the Wishing Jar, clashing against Ivyst herself.

But due to her idiotic strategy of trying to forcibly swallow it, she was now at a disadvantage.

“Women, the most untrustworthy beings in this world are those filthy men.” At this topic, the Creation Demon wore a face of resentment, “In the end, all the power you can rely on is far less critical than your own strength.”

“This truly is a world where the weak are devoured by the strong.”

Looking at the currently weakened Ivyst, the Creation Demon was tempted to kill her.

Not only had it failed to consume enough human sacrifices to regain strength, but also Askin, that fool, had awakened it prematurely, putting everything in the worst possible situation.

So right now, it was imperative to deal with this foolishly strong woman first.

And demons specialize in using various evil and cunning tactics to tempt humans to fall.

“Let’s make a deal.”

Accompanied by a surge of invisible force, the curvaceous female demon suddenly spoke enticingly.

Her voice seemed capable of awakening the deepest desires in one’s heart, utterly annihilating a person’s remaining sanity.

“You’re so strong. I see you having a place among the future deities.” She floated in the air, circling Ivyst, who was locked in a standstill with the Wishing Jar, “And I, too, was once a high-dimensional demon, but due to being hunted down, I ended up like this.”

“If you let me consume a sufficient number of human souls, I can regain my peak in no time.”

“So, let’s join forces.”

“Don’t you want to become queen of this country? Once we possess the power to destroy all order, that wish will be within your grasp.”

“Then you can kill whoever you want, change whatever you desire; no one would dare oppose you, I assure you.”

As she spoke, the female demon floated in the air, gently embracing Ivyst.

This should have painted a lovely yuri scene.

But in the next second, a silent, crimson sword light beheaded the Creation Demon.

Moments later, the female demon’s alluring figure appeared once more.

Yet this time, her face was twisted with intense rage.

“Foolish brat!” The Creation Demon’s expression was contorted, seemingly somewhat deranged, “Until now, you still refuse to give up that ridiculous hope?!”

“Clearly, that guy has long boarded the train back to the Imperial Capital, knowing fully well that no one would come to rescue you… Why?!!”

“Why do you insist on acting like a lunatic, willing to destroy your own body to halt it all?!!”

Its sharp voice echoed throughout the vast underground relic.

However this time,

the always silent Ivyst finally spoke.

Though her face was blanched to the extreme and her body swayed unsteadily, a faint smile appeared on her lips.

“I… knew about all that a long time ago.”

Days and nights of despair.

Enduring various torments in her sleep, the days of darkness felt everlasting.

No one would ever, and could ever, reach out to help her.

No one would come to save her.

Ivyst had known this for a long time.

Even now, she wasn’t harboring those whimsical, laughable thoughts.

The flicker of unquenchable hope in her heart was never about the present.

But the future.

Ivyst understood well that this time she would suffer unprecedented damage, perhaps unable to awaken for a year or two, and would repeatedly endure the torment of the characteristics of the Level 0 Sealed Item in her sleep until she finally cracked.

But when she opened her eyes again, that guy who always created miracles might be by her side, bragging about the big events he had pulled off during those one or two years, like a little kid showing off.

And she would really be at a loss for words.

Thinking of this possibility, for some reason, Ivyst felt a flicker of anticipation for what should have been a pitch-black future.

Perhaps, even amid endless torment and pain, as long as there was a flicker of hope to cling to, no matter how precarious like a candle flame, it would be enough to keep her sanity intact.

Humans really are strange and contradictory beings.

She had previously despised her role as a tool so intensely.

But now, Ivyst suddenly wished for the sleep to come sooner, even wanting to leap ahead one or two years to see what kind of scenario awaited her.

Of course, there might be other possibilities too.

Like that guy returning to the Imperial Capital and then turning to serve under another prince.

While the outcome would definitely piss her off, thinking it through, it could be an interesting result.

Then, another cat-and-mouse game could unfold, watching that lovable yet infuriating guy kneeling on the ground, crying and begging, “Spare me, Master!”

In any case, reality may be harsh, but the future is worth looking forward to.

“Click, click, click.”

In the next second, with brilliant red light igniting again around Ivyst, she seemed to be wrapped in a blooming rose.

Beautiful and powerful.

The Wishing Jar had resisted for far too long, but ultimately could not withstand her overwhelming strength.

“Crack!!!”

Accompanied by a wave infused with black light, the face on the jar emitted a painful scream.

Then it shattered with a loud bang!

Radiant black light erupted like an ocean, as if intending to engulf everything.

And at the very center of this powerful force, a core of properties formed by endless abstract symbols finally unveiled itself to the air!

This was the true power fused from the Wishing Jar and the Creation Demon.

And it was Ivyst’s sole aim for this endeavor.

She aimed to devour it!

In that instant, the power of the Creation Demon surged rapidly, drilling into the core property!

Meanwhile, a voice filled with malice resurfaced, mingled with infinite grievances.

“You want to swallow? Then I’ll make sure you swallow enough!!!”

“But when the time comes… will you still be yourself?! Hahaha!!!”

The Level 0 Sealed Item was already immensely powerful.

What if another former high-dimensional demon were added within it?

If this foolish woman truly intended to ingest this core property, it might not actually be the worst outcome.

Her body was a splendid vessel, capable of sensing a certain powerful and ancient aura, though its origins were still unknown.

Although after being swallowed, she might undergo a lengthy period, given the former status of the Creation Demon, it wouldn’t be impossible to erode this woman’s consciousness entirely.

When that time comes, it would descend into this world once again in Ivyst’s guise!

Watching that core property, resembling a shooting star, racing towards her, a look of determination suddenly flickered across Ivyst’s pale face.

“I will always be myself.” She extended her arm towards the streaking star, “Ivyst Roland Alexini, the Third Princess of the Saint Roland Empire!”

Gazing at the core property drawing near and her own body and will about to collapse, Ivyst felt an unprecedented calm.

She didn’t know if it was an illusion.

In that moment, her gaze seemed to transcend the barriers of countless ages, glimpsing a sliver of her predetermined fate.

A grand hall, the seals of the gods, a white-haired woman bound in chains, an unperturbed and calm gaze, and a tragic ending facing solitude.

Is this my destiny?

For some reason, Ivyst felt no despair.

If this is my predetermined fate, then I shall accept it.

“Goodnight.”

Ivyst’s lips parted slightly, unsure of whom she was addressing.

Gently, she closed her eyes, calmly welcoming whatever was about to come.

“Goodnight, Your Highness.”

A familiar voice echoed in her ears, like thunder piercing the black night of despair.

Ivyst instinctively opened her eyes, her heart seeming to stop in that moment.

That figure, which should have already boarded the return train, stood unwaveringly before her like a dream.

“Also, this is not your fate,” the boy’s voice was very calm, “but mine.”

Before the words faded, he suddenly reached out, grasping the wicked, resentful essence of the sealed item in his hand!