Chapter 305: Chapter 275: The Allied Family of the Southern Branch, Thirteenth Aunt of the Royal Court!
"Wei Wuyang? This name sounds a bit familiar. What’s his background?" Chu Yi’s curiosity was piqued.
"Your observational skills are really sharp, Brother. You’re right; he is a direct descendant of the Wei Family in the Imperial Capital." Nanzhi licked the soy milk from her lips, her perky hips perched on the edge of the bed, while her feet, clad in white silk socks, dangled back and forth.
The Wei Family of the Imperial Capital? Chu Yi pondered for a moment, but his attention quickly fell upon the pair of jade feet tightly wrapped in thin white socks. The toes were round, tender, and pale, petite and exquisite, with a hint of pink. They were even smaller than Lias’s feet. He wondered how soft they would feel in his hands.
Suddenly, he thought of something. The Enchanting Demon Queen showed a hint of disgust. "He can’t control a part of the authority granted by the Desire Mother Goddess. He flies over like a fly every time, persistently proposing to me. It’s truly exasperating."
Chu Yi was completely ignorant in this area, so he decided to ask for some clarification. In the Evil God Sect, the Saint and Saintess inherit a part of the Evil God’s authority, known as the Evil God Sequence, and are the future successors to the Pope. The essence of desire is to tempt people towards a turning point; this turning point could be good or bad and is unpredictable. Because the Desire Mother Goddess is a chaotic and evil entity, the final outcome, without exception, is to be dominated by one’s inner desires, ultimately leading into darkness, falling into the Abyss, and becoming followers of the Desire Sin Divine Kingdom.
As for Saintess Nanzhi, she had obtained [Thirst], one of the sequences of desire. This sequence could trigger the desires in one’s heart for wealth, power, beauty, food, status, slaughter, and more, and could strengthen the Power of Rules within the sequence, even giving birth to some special Pet Beasts. This was the first time Chu Yi had encountered such knowledge, and it stirred his curiosity.
"Then, why did you invite me, Princess Nanzhi?" Chu Yi asked in confusion. If it was just to capture Saint Wei Wuyang, with the Royal Court teeming with experts, they wouldn’t need a minor player like him, right? Given the Enchanting Demon Royal Court’s foundation, with a pillar-level Evil God as their matriarch, capturing a Saint of an Evil God Sect should be a trivial matter.
Could it be... the Nine Infants he sacrificed and refined, also part of the desire sequence, were discovered by the Enchanting Demon Royal Court?
"Because..." Nanzhi tucked her white-stockinged calves together, her snowy, smooth jade legs, white as snow, gathered beneath her skirt. She lifted her fair neck, her thick eyelashes trembling slightly, a hint of a blush appearing on her innocent yet desirous young face. "I’ve grown rather fond of you, Brother. I just love the feeling of you secretly looking at my feet..."
「Deep within the Royal Court.」
A majestic giant tree pierced the clouds, vast and boundless, overshadowing the four corners of the world. Its branches twisted intricately, with cities perched upon them like budding shoots on an enormous stem, forming a continuous line that rose and fell like a mountain ridge. From afar, this giant tree seemed rooted in the deep, boundless Abyss, its crown reaching beyond the ninth heaven, to the zenith of the starry sky, resembling the World Tree, bearing worlds upon worlds.
At the top of a massive branch, an exquisite and opulent tower rose, its surface inlaid with countless jewels that occasionally flickered with vertical pupils, as if alive, their light waxing and waning. Atop the tower was an expansive square, encircled by nine towering bone pillars. These pillars resembled the skeletal claws of a bizarre raptor, firmly gripping and controlling the plaza.
At this moment, a group of fully armed figures had gathered on the square. They were of diverse appearances: the Winged Race with feathery wings, the Machine Armor Race gleaming with a metallic sheen, the Spirit Race with vertical pupils on their foreheads, and more. These young powerhouses, without exception, all exuded a formidable aura. In the very center stood three voluptuous Enchanting Demon examiners: one chief examiner and two sub-examiners, all renowned grand nobles within the Royal Court.
"First, congratulations on passing the three initial rounds and reaching the final examination site," the chief examiner announced, looking down with a disdainful sweep of her eyes at this elite group, screened from the Royal Court’s favored races. Her tone was casual, almost indifferent. "In this ultimate exam, only the top fifty contributors will qualify to follow the great Princess."
"Within the top ten, each rank advancement doubles the reward. The top three may receive special rewards; Blessed Weapons, Sequential Divine Positions, the Elixir of Eternal Life, and more are all possible."
Immediately, a stir of excitement went through the crowd of young powerhouses. Having endured great hardships and emerged victorious from the first three rounds of examinations, they had finally reached the last venue, and the rewards were so bountiful.
"Becoming the Princess’s follower is my lifelong dream! I will never give it up!"
"Ever since a chance encounter three years ago, I’ve been captivated by the Princess, unable to forget her."
The interior of the Royal Court is actually a World Tree? It’s enormous!
The thoughts of these elite among elites surged, their eyes burning with passion. In the Abyss, resources were scarce, and the law of the jungle—the survival of the fittest—prevailed. Only by attaching themselves to powerful factions could they gain more opportunities. Moreover, once they became the Royal Court’s hounds, the Princess’s enforcers, even if they didn’t achieve much, this political capital as a follower of the Princess could secure them a high position back in their own clan, allowing them to wield significant power.
Nearly the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn passed. Then, the chief examiner raised her hand. A mountain-like pressure erupted, surging and overwhelming. Everyone immediately fell silent, a hint of dread in their eyes. This was clearly a Radiant Moon-level Enchanting Demon.
"In this examination, the Princess will participate alongside you. The rules are as follows..."
She explained that the examination site was the Divine Hall of an Evil God. This small world had long been polluted by the Desire Mother Goddess. In addition to protecting the Princess, they had to slay the Evil God’s Favored within the Divine Hall to weaken its power. The strength of the enemies killed would be recorded by a specialized Thousand-Eyed Tyrant from the Royal Court. This was an Overlord-level Demon-type Pet Beast, corresponding to Radiant Moon-level strength, and one of the tamed Pet Beasts within the Royal Court.
At the same time, contribution points could also be obtained by looting resources, handling bizarre incidents, shielding the Princess from harm, and other such actions, all of which were explained in detail.
Thus, shortly thereafter, this elite group of over a thousand of the favored ones began to cluster together, forming small teams. Fighting alone was inadvisable; winning through numbers and complementing each other’s strengths was the correct choice. Everyone here was an elite from their respective clans, each possessing their own trump cards. If they teamed up, wouldn’t they have countless trump cards? And if one were to secretly sabotage their teammates and plunder their contributions, they might very well contend for a spot in the top ten. At the thought of such benefits, many rubbed their hands in anticipation, becoming even more enthusiastic towards their temporary teammates while inwardly scheming about the profits of betrayal.
Moreover, although the ultimate examination ground was the Divine Hall of an Evil God, due to some unknown rules, enemies of overwhelmingly disparate strength would not appear. There had to be limitations; otherwise, the Royal Court would not let the Princess venture there personally. At the same time, to ensure a foolproof outcome, the Royal Court had also applied for several external reinforcements.
However, Chief Examiner Della waited for a long time, but the Fourth Princess had yet to arrive, and she couldn’t help but feel somewhat anxious.
Just as the atmosphere was growing increasingly tense, a thick fog surged from the horizon, accompanied by a spine-chilling neigh. In no time, it reached the high tower. Four Fallen Unicorns emerged from the mist, drawing gasps of admiration from the crowd. To use Fallen Unicorns to pull a carriage was excessively extravagant. Any one of these was a colossal beast, inherently cursed, capable of unleashing a catastrophe comparable to doomsday—a terrifying existence whose baleful influence radiated for thousands of miles!
She’s finally here. Della immediately composed herself and rose to greet them. Although she too was a pure-blood Enchanting Demon born from the Mother Tree, she was a far cry from a Princess.
TAP...
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the ornate carriage door opened, and a jewel-studded ramp descended, resembling a bridge of twinkling starlight.
Subsequently, a young woman in an ink-black palace gown came into view. With a youthful, lovely face, pure as a lotus, she offered the crowd a naive and innocent smile, instantly enchanting the elite favored ones, making them willing to go through fire and water for the Princess. Indeed, the willingness to die for her was an almost irresistible temptation.
It was only when a handsome youth appeared beside the Princess that the crowd’s simmering anger ignited, and all eyes glared fiercely at this individual.
Who does he think he is?
"Greetings, Your Highness the Princess," Della, presiding over the ultimate examination, said, a flicker of astonishment in her eyes. There’s actually a... human accompanying the Princess? She sniffed subtly. Her Radiant Moon-level strength allowed her to easily catch a whiff of an enticing aroma emanating from the youth. It was a flawless, peerlessly delicious scent that sparked an intuition, making her involuntarily lick her lips, her throat constricting slightly. This youth’s vital essence is incredibly pure, rich, and fragrant—a top-grade specimen, the likes of which I’ve never encountered in my entire life! Della bit her lip, then shook her head. What a pity. He’s been targeted by the Fourth Princess and has already become her personal property. If possible, I’d love to find an opportunity to sneak a taste.
"This is Brother Chu Yi, a distinguished guest visiting my Royal Court, and also, according to the rules, the external reinforcement we applied for," Nanzhi gave a simple introduction. After all, this group of elite favored ones had been engrossed in their examinations and were completely unaware of the Divine War game that had taken place in the Dark World a few days prior.
She glanced at Della and said plainly, "You may begin."
"Yes." Della bowed her head, not daring to question the youth further, and immediately activated the high tower.
「Ancient Great Hall.」
A chilling aura, like slippery tentacles, filled the entire hall, writhing and undulating.
"Aunt Thirteen, I don’t understand why you want to involve him," Chen Xi said, lifting her jade-like neck to look towards a flight of stairs cloaked in darkness. Upon a throne intertwined with gold and scarlet sat a majestic figure.
This was a woman with a stunning figure. Her long hair was blood-red, silky as satin, cinched at her slender waist by a brocade sash. Below her waist, there was only a drift of ethereal gray smoke. Her silhouette, however, seemed more like a shadow merging into the gloom, with only the bone-white lantern light at her side illuminating the perfect curves of her beautiful form.
"Xi." A gentle murmur resonated. The mere sound of her voice caused the entire hall to tremble. Countless writhing hues twisted, myriad sibilant whispers densely filled the air, and vertical pupils emerged from every corner. "Are you questioning me?"
"I wouldn’t dare." Chen Xi bowed her head, her dark hair veiling her jade-like face, making it impossible to discern her disgruntled expression. "Xi merely cannot understand Thirteenth Aunt’s decision."
Originally, she had intended to use her identity as the Third Enchanting Demon Princess to properly entertain Chu Yi, recruit his talents, secretly drug him, and then, step by step, devour him. However, her Thirteenth Aunt had directly summoned her. These "aunts" were the Royal Princesses of successive generations, equivalent to the reclusive, secluded grandmasters of a Cultivation Sect.