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Chapter 243: The Web That Covered the Empire
There was nothing remarkable about this man, except for his long black-and-white hair flowing from beneath his robe. He wiped the blood from his mouth and frowned.
"The curse on the emperor Durand has been broken?"
He was certain there was no one on this continent capable of dispelling this curse except the devil lord. He had designed it so that, even if detected by an Emperor-stage cultivator wielding holy energy, it could not be undone. The uniqueness of this curse lay in its fusion with the concept of resilience. This resilient concept was then combined with his comprehension of karma laws, creating a "living" curse that could "defend" itself whenever someone tried to destroy it.
But his curse had just been broken—and not only broken, it had actually become a medium for a karmic attack from the person who dispelled it! The attack targeted his soul, but fortunately, he had already shielded it with a karmic barrier, minimizing the damage. Without it, his soul would have been severely injured.
The only possible explanation for this was that the person who broke his curse was highly skilled in karma laws and deeply understood the intricacies of the curse. He frowned at the thought, as it meant someone outside his expectations had joined Emperor Durand’s side. He was certain there was no one on the emperor’s side capable of even detecting this curse due to its unique nature.
The emperor could only travel to the Heavenly Direction Church, but someone there was already prepared to ensure he would not achieve his goal.
"This is truly troublesome. We’ve already lost contact with the Information Guild, and now the main plan in the Doria Empire is in jeopardy. If the emperor is fully cured, my lord plan here will fail," the man thought.
"I’ll report this to my lord first. It seems that the drastic plan is our only chance. If even that fails to kill Emperor Durand, we’ll have to abandon our initial plan for the Doria Empire and search for another alternative."
He then rose from his meditative position.
"I must also warn Wei Zhi to be cautious. We need to prepare for the worst-case scenario—that the emperor has already fully recovered and regained his power."
He walked out of his room, intent on reporting this new development.
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Emperor Durand, still stunned by his recovery and overwhelmed by the fresh vitality coursing through him, turned his gaze to Aldrian. Rising to his feet, he immediately bowed at a perfect 90-degree angle. His movement was resolute and without hesitation. Aldrian wanted to stop him, but Emperor Durand seemed adamant.
"Allow me to express my gratitude, young Aldrian. At the very least, let me bow to you for what you have done, for it will ease my heart. Thank you, young Aldrian. You have saved me, and it can be said that you’ve safeguarded the stability of this empire. I cannot thank you enough for this. I, Durand Doria, as emperor, will never go back on my word. If I promised to grant you anything upon curing me, then I will honor that promise."
Aldrian could only sigh but still smiled.
"Alright, your majesty, but please straighten yourself. I feel bad making your majesty keep bowing to me when I am nothing in front of your status."
"No way. What is the use of status if it can’t save you from the schemes of others? This curse is an example of that. Even though young Aldrian doesn’t have any status or title, your achievements alone are already worthy of being engraved in the history of the continent," Emperor Durand said.
"I agree, Sir Aldrian. You have already earned great merit for this empire, so there is no need to be so humble. As the steward of the emperor, I also give my thanks to you." The steward bowed his head to Aldrian.
"Alright, I accept your respect, and thank you, but please stop bowing to me like this," Aldrian said, touching his forehead as if tired of repeating himself. "It is also an honor for me to contribute to this empire. With your majesty’s recovery, I no longer worry about the future of the empire. There is also something I wish to discuss with your majesty later."
Emperor Durand smiled and nodded. As time passed, the more he liked Aldrian’s personality.
"If only I had a daughter," he lamented to himself.
"Father, congratulations on your recovery. With this, the succession race can be postponed, as you can govern the empire for much longer," Hector said, bowing to him.
"No, the succession race will still proceed as I announced."
Hector was stunned, wondering what was going through his father’s mind.
"As I said, the appointment of the crown prince is my backup plan in case something happens to me. I mentioned it not only for my condition but also as a plan B, should something truly happen to me, even if I remain healthy. It’s better to address the succession issue now than to postpone it indefinitely. We are in a time when the prophecy keeps drawing closer, so I need to resolve the political matters of this empire as soon as possible, including the succession race," Emperor Durand said.
"Also, you must already know that you are the most worthy to take the throne. This is also my assessment. Your second brother is capable, but he doesn’t seem to care much about the throne. He only focuses on his cultivation and alchemy. As for your third brother... aish, forget about him."
"You’ve already secured the support of Grand Duke Herlion, so now you only need the backing of either Grand Duke Lumeria or, if possible, Grand Duke Rivas to topple your third brother, who has already gained the support of Grand Duke Gouvard. I know that old fox only wants to create a puppet emperor by backing your third brother. So, I hope that you will be the one to take the throne in the future."
Hearing his father’s reasoning, Hector felt truly frustrated. Truthfully, he believed that this succession race was too rushed. None of his brothers, including himself, had reached the emperor stage yet, so he felt that it was too soon. He also felt slightly lacking in himself.
But when he considered the bigger picture, he could see why his father wanted to resolve the succession race as soon as possible. It was better to bring the "chaos" earlier than to face internal turmoil when the time of the prophecy arrived.
Aldrian, who had also been listening to the father and son, nodded in understanding. What Emperor Durand said made sense, so he couldn’t find the words to rebuke it. He also knew that Hector’s third brother was the youngest son of Emperor Durand and his second wife, while Hector and Alderia shared the same blood, being the children of the emperor’s main wife, the empress.
He had heard that the third brother was different from his two older siblings. He seemed untalented and weak, and also appeared timid. In conclusion, there were no leadership qualities in this youngest son. There was no hope, no potential. That’s why the support of Grand Duke Gouvard for the third prince could easily be seen by others as an effort to create a puppet emperor who would obey the grand duke’s will.
"By the way, Your Majesty, regarding the curse, as we know, a curse can only be cast on the target if the caster has a medium to deliver it. Aside from direct touch, something connected to the target can also serve as a medium, as the caster must also comprehend karma laws. I would like to know how this curse managed to enter Your Majesty’s body. Did you interact with anyone or give or receive something from anyone before the symptoms of the curse began to appear?" Aldrian asked.
Emperor Durand then fell into thought, trying to recall events from those years before he first noticed the strange changes in his body.
"I have given rewards to some people before that time, but none of the items were personally connected to me. I also received items from many places—artifacts, artworks, and pills. Perhaps it came from one of them," Emperor Durand said, frowning.
"But the closest gift I received, if I remember correctly, was a pill—an enlightenment pill that I consumed three days before the symptoms appeared. This pill was concocted by the master of—" Emperor Durand paused, as something clicked in his mind. "Master Dan, the head of the Alchemist Association."
After saying that, both Hector and Aldrian were struck with realization. The emperor also understood Aldrian’s assumption that the master of the Alchemist Association was in cahoots with the devils. If the curse had been placed inside the pill concocted by Master Dan, it would all make sense. The curse would have easily entered Emperor Durand’s body undetected.
"At that time, the pill’s effect was astounding, as expected from one of the grandmasters of the Alchemist Association. I never suspected Master Dan, so I never questioned any gift from him. But after hearing young Aldrian’s assumption, I’ve started to think that perhaps I was too ignorant or naïve not to doubt him," Emperor Durand said.
"I feel ashamed of my inability to read people more deeply."
With this new information, Aldrian realized that the devils’ plan within the Doria Empire was both intricate and well-constructed. The traitors and infiltrators were all interconnected, forming a web that spanned the entire empire. This made every piece of information, every movement, synchronize perfectly. For any family, including the imperial family, it would be nearly impossible to break free from this network.
However, this web had a significant weakness. Once one of the traitors or infiltrators was captured and forced to reveal their secrets, the entire operation could unravel. Every connection, every participant, would be exposed. This was exactly what Aldrian was doing—little by little, he was dismantling the web, causing it to collapse slowly but surely.
