An enormous black and white wheel manifested behind Demonraise; the wheel was grand, noble, and anyone who looked at it would believe they had seen the origin of life in this grand universe.
Demonraise's wheel did not last long as it turned into a black gate of equal proportion. The gate was as noble and grand, and it contained countless animals engraved on it.
[Six Path of Samsara: Animal Hall]
Underneath Demonraise's hood, a tattoo of a mantis shrimp appeared on his forehead. Then, he rushed toward Wang Ju and slashed her with his claw.
Her danger instinct went on overdrive as she reacted.
Slash!
Three of her seven shadow clones were bisected into two with one attack. And one of these three clones was the real one with Dao Ancestor strength.
Wang Ju acted swiftly and replaced the missing real clone by appointing one of the remaining four. Then, she ordered them to enter the Shadow Dimension and attack from the dark.
However, her attempt was futile.
A tattoo of a Star-Nosed Mole appeared on Demonraise; this creature contained more than 25,000 sensory receptors that grant super senses to detect, hunt, and navigate in the dark abyss of the ocean.
With this tattoo, Demonraise's senses were elevated to a higher state. And with a glance, he discovered Wang Ju's Shadow Dimension.
Swish!
With one movement of his claw, he cleaved through that dimension. The power of the Mantis Shrimp not only elevated the speed of his claw but drastically increased his slashing or clawing ability.
So, he tore apart the dimension without much effort.
Alas, his attack was not as successful as he wanted to be. After destroying the Shadow Dimension and killing another clone, the remaining three Wang Ju acted simultaneously to control the leaking power of the Shadow Dimension to attack him.
As such, countless shadow creatures with sinister or macabre appearances rushed toward Demonraise, trying to either kill or drag him into the remains of the Shadow Dimension.
Demonraise killed most of these shadow creatures with relative ease. However, there were too many, and they were too quick. Soon enough, he discovered myriad tentacles binding his limbs and immobilizing his movements.
During the entire ideal, Demonraise was calm as he assessed the situation and chose the best way to deal with the situation. Then, a tattoo of an anglerfish came from the Animal Gate and entered his body.
Subsequently, his eyes turned into two glowing lights–a light so intense that it evaporated the shadows faster than a solar flare could annihilate an entire civilization.
Demonraise was swift as he took on another animal–the cuttlefish. He blended into the environment and disappeared. And in a very short period, before Wang Ju could react, he appeared behind one of the three genuine clones and ripped her heart out.
The other two reacted swiftly. The moment their counter died, they instantly sealed Demonraise by creating a special dimension around him. However, they knew such a measure was not enough.
So, as soon as the dimension appeared, they instantly blew it up. And this was not the entire power of this attack. Wang Ju layered hundreds of dimensions on top of the first one and exploded them without hesitation.
However, she soon frowned as she sensed a powerful vitality amidst this chaos full of spatial energy. And as expected, Demonraise appeared at the center of the explosion.
He had lost half of his torso, his right leg was twisted at a weird angle, and his head appeared to be sliced into two. Although his mask and hood still did not reveal his face, Wang Ju could sense his calmness.
Demonraise borrowed the power of the Axolotl–an animal capable of regenerating limbs and even their brains. With its power, his natural regenerative power reached an even higher level.
Then, he glanced at Wang Ju.
'Not good,' thought the leader of the Fate Shadow Guard as she felt her mind. An uncontrollable amount of fear overwhelmed her mind as she began to reminisce about every time in her life she felt true unimaginable fear.
Wang Ju swiftly controlled her memories to combat this attack.
…
"Young master," said Wang Ju, kneeling on one knee. Normally, she would have received a response by now and stood up. But, she stayed in her position for at least half an hour, sweat following down her back with each passing second.
"Li Jun told me he has seen you often in the past few years," said Wang Wei, who seemed engrossed in a book; he flipped every page with a gentleness that was odd; it was like this book was the most precious thing between Heaven and Earth.
"The…final battle is approaching, and I'm just trying to relay the information we analyzed and ensure our victory."
"Is that so?" he muttered without looking at her. "I doubt even you believe that's coming out of your mouth."
Wang Ju's heart sank.
"I–"
"As you said, the final battle is approaching. Everyone is on edge–including me. I'm taking this short break from cultivation, so I don't have time to waste with your nonsense. So, tell me the truth, and don't make me have to find it myself."
These words were calm, without any intonation, intimidation, or release of an aura. However, Wang Ju felt her soul leave her body as fear rushed through every corner of her vein.
She lowered her head, and after a few seconds, she said:
"It…it was an order from…the Madam."
"My mother? What did she want?"
Wang Ju hesitated but realized it was pointless to hide it anymore.
"She feared Li Jun's betrayal at the last moment. So, she asked me to seduce him to keep him in check."
"That's impossible. She has watched Li Jun grow up and treats him like her own son; she knows he won't do such a thing. Furthermore, she's too smart to plan such a shoddy method."
Wang Wei turned his head to glance at her, frowning. "Are you lying to me?"
"Young master, you know I would never do such a thing," quickly answered Wang Ju; she never thought she was this fast.
"Then, explain what's going on?"
Wang Ju secretly sighed in relief but did not dare take another breath, "Someone has planted these ideas into the Madam's head."
"Someone? Who?"
"The people from the Wang Clan."
"I see," muttered Wang Wei. His mother was quite capable. However, she suffered from a major flaw–she lost that intelligence when it came to him.
Most cultivators form an extreme when it comes to their family–they either treat them coldly as if they don't exist or dote on them to an abnormal point. This fact is the result of their long lifespan and low birth rate.
So, they either don't care about their children or descendants since the latter might not live as long as them. Or treat them as the most precious thing in the world since they might never conceive a second one.
So, Wang Wei believed his mother would do such a stupid thing after the people from the Wang Clan placed the idea in her head. As for why they did it?
Well, the answer is simple–politics and power. Despite the unity of the factions of the sect–especially the three families, it's still a fact that the main power of the sect is in the hands of the Wang Clan.
And a few minority of these people even believed in the supremacy of the Wang Clan, believing they should have absolute control over the sect.
So, after seeing that Wang Wei has the chance to become the fifth Emperor of the Wang Clan and the second Eternal Emperor, some people will go to extreme lengths to ensure nothing happens.
Wang Wei finally closed his book, "Why didn't you tell me as soon as she ordered you?"
"I…feared my actions would lead to contradictions between you and the Madam."
"So, you executed your order so badly, leading to today's charade?"
Wang Ju lowered her head; she knew the best action was to immediately tell the truth. However, she also knew the consequences if the relationship between the Madam and the sect master was affected because of this.
So, she chose the best method she could think of.
Wang Wei looked in the distance, "Go apologize to Li Jun and tell him the truth. Secondly, go warn these Wang Clan members–send a few to prisons and exile another as an example.
"Finally, I want you to remember–you're my Shadow and only follow my orders."
"As you wish. Then, what about the Madam?"
"That's not your concern," replied Wang Wei, glancing at her. "In your career, that is the second time you've disappointed me. I hope there is not a third time."
Wang Ju's body trembled, "I promise there won't be."
"I hope so."
Wang Wei left to talk to his mother. Meanwhile, Wang Ju felt a tremendous weight lifted from her shoulder.
Break!
Wang Ju's memory broke apart as her mind entered a state of absolute darkness. She opened her eyes and glanced at Demonraise–her eyes red with anger and intense killing intent.
