"Laia…is…you!"
Those three words seemed to echo in the air, stunning both Lilian and John stiff. John turned his wide gaze to his master, whose eyes were even wider than his. Her face was white as snow, and her lips quivered with a thousand emotions. He had never seen his master this vulnerable emotionally.
He wanted to rebuke Zeras' claims as nothing but lies, as what he had described was too far-fetched. He had his ideas on Laia's relationship with Lilian, as they had identical faces. He had figured they were just sisters, but the truth was far more unbelievable than that. In fact, it was too unbelievable, and he would never have believed Zeras' words if not for one thing; Lilians reaction.
If Zeras' words were false, she would have quickly rebuked Zeras as a lying idiot, but her stunned expression and lack of a reply was more than enough evidence for John to realize the unbelievable claim was true.
The smirk on Zeras' face widened as he saw Lilian's reaction, and he spoke out once more.
"Now that you know the truth, you have no choice but to return to the Astral Empire with me after this realm closes," Zeras said, taking advantage of Lilian's emotionally distressed state.
"I…" Lilian mumbled, her blood racing and her thoughts still chaotic.
"Surely you wouldn't abandon Laia, now that you know the truth," Zeras spoke out once more. "When you somehow managed to split yourself, you left all your vibrancy and innocence behind with her, although I'm sure you know this more than anyone else. Laia is nothing more than an innocent lamb, too kind and naive for this world."
"I…she..." Lilian mumbled again, still collecting her thoughts.
Zeras smiled wider, and continued to press the situation, taking advantage of it as much as possible.
"Without your help, I'm sure you know the fate that awaits her," Zeras said, his voice turning slightly colder as if reminding her of something terrible. "A fate that you somehow managed to learn of, and as a result fled. But you see dear little sister, your talent back then was immense, and even if what father had planned was carried out, you would still most likely survive the ordeal," Zeras continued his ramblings, and snaked an arm around Lilian's shoulder, speaking closely into her ear.
Lilian seemed to shudder as Zeras mentioned the fate that she had escaped, but was now awaiting Laia.
"But perhaps if you return, and help Laia, then that fate would not be so miserable after all. Only you can save Laia…only you, can save yourself," Zeras said, his voice like that of a whispering snake, his smile stretching across his entire face.
That snake-like smile suddenly vanished as Zeras suddenly felt something strike his side, forcibly separating him from Lilian. He was knocked back hundreds of yards, and felt like a mountain had just struck his ribcage, sending a wave of pain through him. Zeras' narrowed gaze snapped onto John, who lowered his fist slowly after unleashing a blow onto Zeras.
"No fighting!" the artifact spirit suddenly boomed.
"I wasn't fighting! I was just separating this creep from my master is all," John said wryly, as if he were truly innocent after all. "See, he's not hurt at all."
"I suppose you are right, but do not do that again," the artifact spirit warned, to which John quickly complied. After talking to the artifact spirit, John's gaze narrowed as it locked back onto Zeras, who stared at him coldly, his eyes like icy daggers.
He had truly been stunned upon hearing the truth regarding Laia, but had managed to recover quickly, at least quicker than Lilian. He could tell that Zeras' intentions were sinister just based on his words and expression, and quickly made sure to take action to remove the snake from his close proximity to his master.
"To think you would dare to lay a hand on me?" Zeras said with a low voice, as if the mere thought of John touching him was inconceivable, let alone actually punching him. As a high-prince of one of the most powerful empires in the world, the only thing that matched his talent was his arrogance and sense of self-importance.
"So what? Are you going to do something about it?" John replied flippantly.
Zeras' gaze narrowed further, as he knew he couldn't touch John without being removed from the realm, which was something he was not willing to do. The secrets of the realm were too important to give up on.
"This matter is between me and Lilian. You have no business interrupting us," Zeras replied coldly.
"I already told you, Lilian is my master, so her business is my business. And if what you said is true, then that goes double, because Laia's business is also my business," John replied defiantly. "Besides, I can tell you have no good intentions at all, so even if it wasn't my business, I would make it my business. Now fuck off, and leave me and my master alone."
"Thank you," John heard a soft whisper behind him. It was incredibly soft, almost inaudible, but the warmth and sincerity behind the words were beyond clear.
"Heh, you say that," Zeras scoffed as he seemed to reign in his anger and became composed once more.
His gaze shifted to Lilian who moved forward and now stood beside John. "But this matter is only for Lilian to decide upon. Dear sister, surely you will not abandon Laia to the fate-"
"Shut up!" Lilian's cold voice drifted out, her tone so cold as if it might freeze the air around them.
Zeras' face pulled back as his composure faded, as he had not been expecting Lilian to reply in such a frigid manner.
"Little sister…" Zeras said after clearing his throat, trying to salvage the situation.
"One more word, and I'll kill you right now, this realm be damned," Lilian said while glowering at Zeras with simmering rage. Her wide eyes and quivering lips were no more, something that John sighed with relief when he instead saw her cold yet confident gaze instead; the gaze he was used to seeing on Lilian's face.
"My fate was only sealed when you betrayed the trust I placed in you back then. I was unable to do anything to you back then, but now...I'll kill you without a moment's hesitation."
While such a threat would most likely not be possible normally, their cultivations were all normalized at the moment. Lilian's combat prowess was beyond immense, and even Zeras was not one hundred percent confident that he was stronger with normalized cultivations.
A scowl appeared on Zeras' face, and he snorted after exchanging heated gazes for a short while. It seemed he realized he had lost his one opportunity to get Lilian to come back to the Empire willingly, and his helping facade faded away as a result.
"Hmph, one way or another, you will return to the Empire. Your existence is now known to us, and hiding is no longer possible. I tried to make it easy for you, but it seems you will have to be brought back the hard way," Zeras spat out, unable to hold his tongue. "You have always belonged to father, and the Empire."
Boom!
A powerful aura, pure black in color and thick with the Dao of Death exploded out, filling the arena with a dreadful aura. Lilian's hair and the skirt of her dress fluttered violently about, an outward manifestation of her inner rage. The thick and deathly aura swirled violently around her like a tempest as she dashed towards Zeras, her doubt and vulnerability gone. Instead, she appeared as though she had become a true goddess of death, dashing towards Zeras to claim his life.
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