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Chapter 265: The Reasons
Sylphia felt her heart flutter. His voice, so full of assurance, made her smile. The gentle touch of his hand on her head drew her to close her eyes and savor the moment. Though a trace of shyness lingered, she didn’t pull away. Instead, she remained still, her head resting lightly on his shoulder, saying nothing.
Aldrian, too, was caught in the same quiet emotion. His gaze softened as he looked at Sylphia, a warm contentment spreading through him. In this moment, his heart felt at peace—so serene he could drift off to sleep. Neither moved, both simply enjoying each other’s presence as time seemed to stand still.
After a while, Aldrian finally noticed that Sylphia had fallen asleep. A faint smile lingered on her face even in her slumber, prompting Aldrian to smile warmly in return. It was a relief to see her resting peacefully after the nightmare she had endured.
He paused for a moment, deep in thought, before his face flushed slightly. Leaning forward, he placed a gentle kiss on the top of her head. If anyone had seen him at that moment, they would have been utterly shocked. This wasn’t the composed and controlled Aldrian they knew. The sight of his flushed face, so uncharacteristic of him, was something no one could have ever imagined.
After kissing Sylphia’s head, Aldrian carefully began to shift his body, trying to move away without disturbing her. He moved with utmost care, even wrapping her gently in his golden energy like a blanket. Every movement was measured, ensuring he didn’t jostle her or disrupt her peaceful sleep. His energy radiated warmth and comfort, cocooning her so she wouldn’t wake from his absence.
After finally managing to stand up from the bed, Aldrian looked at Sylphia one last time, a warm smile gracing his lips. Then, without a sound, he disappeared. Moments later, small points of light began to shimmer around the bed, each glowing softly in a different position. Aldrian had created a formation—a protective barrier designed to ensure Sylphia could sleep even more peacefully.
His body reappeared in his own room. Today had truly been a remarkable day for him. His purpose in the Doria Empire could be considered fulfilled, and he had gained much during his time here. From mastering new techniques and deepening his comprehension to forming valuable connections—and, most importantly, reuniting with his mother—it had been an eventful journey. Though his time in this place was brief, he had accomplished so much.
However, he had also become deeply aware of the vast extent of the devils’ influence within the empire. Their plans ran far deeper than anyone could have imagined, with their presence infiltrating every corner of the empire. They had eyes and ears embedded in all its organizations, and their operations were intricately interconnected.
For instance, the master of the Alchemist Association, Master Dan, had been working to sow discord between Hector and Alderia by pretending to support Alderia. His true goal was to entice Alderia into joining the succession race. Yet, in reality, Master Dan’s support was with Lewis, as they were aligned within the same faction.
Aldrian had initially thought that traitors like Master Dan would flee after the war, but he was wrong. Instead, they remained because the devils needed them to stay in place, continuing to serve as valuable assets within the empire. It was a truly bold move by the devils, but Aldrian understood why they dared to leave their operatives in place despite the growing suspicions about them within the empire.
With key positions under their influence, the devils were likely to succeed in their plans. Emperor Durand, in his weakened condition, was on the brink of death if he didn’t meet Aldrian. The Doria Empire could descend into civil war, and in the end, it would likely fall completely into the devils’ grasp.
Aldrian sighed at this. The devils truly knew how to manipulate people’s negative emotions to turn them into accomplices. For example, the reason someone of Master Dan’s caliber could betray his own conscience and morals to align with the devils was tied to his alchemist abilities, which had stagnated for so long. It might sound simple, but it fueled an envious feeling toward the other three grandmasters of the association, whose talents were already renowned across the continent.
The envy devil took advantage of this, much like he had with Lewis, the third prince. He constantly enticed Master Dan, whispering like a devil’s temptation. In the end, Master Dan became yet another tool in the devils’ hands within the empire.
Aldrian touched his chin, deep in thought as he considered how the devils recruited their accomplices. Unlike the greed devil, who used the horror of "that thing" to break the will of his targets and force them into submission, the envy devil played on a much subtler, more insidious emotion.
The envy devil used people’s negative emotions to make them betray their kin. As for the lust devil, Aldrian recalled some memories he had read before the lord devil killed him. All of the lust devil’s accomplices were women, who obeyed him through dual cultivation.
Each devil had their own methods to "force" their targets into becoming allies of the devils or even turning into the devils themselves. While Aldrian couldn’t capture all of the devils’ accomplices in the empire, he had already removed the most troublesome ones. The small fry will have no effect on the devils’ plans in the future.
Now, a question arose in Aldrian’s mind: if the devils’ ultimate plan was to summon that ’thing’ upon the continent, why all of this hassle? Why create so much chaos and conspiracy? Couldn’t they just summon that ’thing’ without causing upheaval? Could they not do so within their own territory without disturbing the others, so no one would suspect that they were planning something?
This line of thinking emerged after he reviewed everything he had done in the empire. Even after delving into all those memories, Aldrian still couldn’t find an answer. The war seemed to have no clear objective, only causing chaos before the devils retreated. The only thing he learned from the memories was that the devil lord had instructed all devils to spread chaos across the continent in preparation for the incoming prophecy and the arrival of that ’thing’.
"From the looks of it, this is the devil lord’s plan with the specifics only known to him," Aldrian muttered.
Aldrian had already killed some of the devil’s strongest followers, causing the devils to lose a significant portion of their power. Yet, he still felt something was wrong with the devil lord. The devil lord’s actions so far suggested that he didn’t truly care about Aldrian eliminating his powerful subordinates, including the seven deadly sins and their successors.
Aldrian had already killed three members of the seven deadly sins. As for the envy devil’s successor, he finally learned that one of the devils he battled in the underground base, alongside Grand Duke Gouvard and Master Dan, was actually the envy devil’s successor after reading his memory.
"What is he trying to accomplish with all of this chaos? Does he simply want chaos on the continent? Wouldn’t it be better to preserve his forces for the prophecy? What am I missing?"
Aldrian tried to deduce the devil lord’s plan, but in the end, he sighed, unable to find a definitive answer. The only things that came to mind were possibilities, still unclear and ambiguous.
"I’ll just have to wait and see what the devil lord’s next move is," Aldrian thought.
Aldrian then meditated to organize his thoughts and reflect on his gains. All of his new insights made him eager to create a new technique, especially the curse laws. The envy devil had provided him with a profound understanding of curse laws, sparking his desire to develop his own curse laws.
The envy devil’s curse technique was actually the development of his own karma laws and Buddhist runes. He could alter the Buddhist runes and combine them with his karma laws, creating a powerful form of curse law that even affected the victim’s soul. This demonstrated the envy devil’s genius, for he had managed to twist something holy into something devious.
Aldrian could only lament the fate of a genius like the envy devil. Despite coming from a Buddhist sect, in the end, he couldn’t prevent himself from being consumed by his own negative feelings. The envy devil had once been a Buddhist monk who ventured outside to spread the Buddha’s enlightenment. His upright personality and firm commitment to justice and righteousness had once been his defining traits.
However, as time passed, he personally witnessed the darkness of the world. Unlike in the Buddhist sect’s territory, where such sights were minimal, the outside world was filled with countless ugly aspects that he couldn’t fix. Slowly, he began to feel envious of those who weren’t burdened by the ideals of justice and righteousness. His heart grew heavy and tired, and he longed to escape his own principles. His dao heart shook and eventually collapsed, leading him to decide to join the devils and cultivate the energy of envy.
Suddenly, Aldrian remembered the message from the monk he met in the Forgeheart Kingdom, and he understood why the monk had said that to him.
"However, not every being’s heart can hold righteousness, and even if they have a righteous heart, not all of them can bear the weight of that righteousness."
