Elor and Irene were the strongest experts here, but just like everyone else, even they were finding it hard to process what Lurin no…Ruthren and Damien were talking about.
Damien didn't need Ruthren's confirmation to know the truth since no living being can have so much death aura. If experts like Elor or even Marvin had used their senses to scan the Lancaster Emperor's body, they would have figured that something seemed off and unpleasant.
Whatever Ruthren did to control a corpse wasn't perfect, unlike how Damien controlled Tristen, where the aura of death was suppressed to the maximum, making Tristen seem like a real living being.
And if any of them had carefully observed, the mannerisms and speech patterns of Ruthren clearly didn't match that of the Lancaster Emperor before. But it was already surprising that he managed to fake it a lot.
"How…When did you kill Emperor Lancaster?" Damien asked calmly, though his eyes were still jet-black, making him look like a devil who was about to snap.
Just when he thought he had gained a powerful ally like the Lancaster Emperor, Ruthren somehow turned the tables on him. Not even a day had fully passed since he discussed things with him yesterday, and yet…
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})Ruthren mockingly chuckled as he said, "Right after he came back to the central lands yesterday. It was child's play to kill him and take over his body. He couldn't even use his cultivation properly within the death lands. He did try to put up a fight, though, but I easily crushed him. I couldn't let him join hands with you and lose the final key I needed to open the gates. As for Daugmir, don't worry...he is already mine as we speak."
Damien frowned, hearing Ruthren's words since this meant that Ruthren somehow helped Daugmir escape from the dungeons. Since Damien was busy with the wedding today, he didn't check in with Tristen.
But now, things looked quite grim since Ruthren now had all four keys to open the gate and unleash whatever hell was waiting outside into this continent.
And the fact that puzzled Damien was how Ruthren was able to remain unaffected by the nethereal energy that filled most of the area in the central lands. Ruthren was obviously an ethereal energy cultivator. He should have gotten weakened just like the Lancaster Emperor unless…Damien felt that he was missing something here.
"Ruthren…You can't get any lower, can you? If only Emperor Lancaster had known you never had a speck of dignity or honor to backstab him like that…and even control his corpse."
Ruthren smirked as he said, "You make it sound like I am the devil but have you ever taken a look at a mirror? Your eyes…And even your lightning…They are all a strange color…The aura you give off is not the same yet somewhat similar to the one in the death lands. Nothing about you makes sense as a native of this continent, but what if you are really from the Old World with ulterior motives? Why does nobody ever wonder that? What if somebody powerful out there planted you here as a mole?"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})Damien wrinkled his brows in annoyance, knowing what Ruthren was playing at here. But Ruthren's words did draw a lot of gazes towards Damien.
Everyone obviously was curious about Damien's monstrous talents and skills, but nobody ever asked since they respected the secrets of a cultivator. Anyone knew that the cultivation secrets of a cultivator were their lifeline. If they give it away, they would be literally telling others how to kill them as easily as possible.
But the reason lots of gazes landed on Damien was that Ruthren said Damien's aura was similar to the aura in the death lands where every living being and even the lands were dying for no reason. And with Ruthren also mentioning Damien's origins being from the Old World, people just didn't know what to think.
"That's enough! No matter what you say about Damien, nothing will change," Reva said with a frigid expression as he stepped forward and stood beside Damien.
"That's right. The only devil I see is you," Yuria said with a cold scoff as she also stepped forward and stood beside Damien.
"Why are we even concerned about who Damien is when we all already know it? We should be punishing the man who killed my ancestor," Lily said with a hard expression, her eyes red but dry.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})She had decided to stop mourning for now and instead help Damien deal with the one who caused her so much pain. This would be what Marvin wanted as well.
"The girls are right! Damien has always been one of us and always will be. It doesn't matter what his origins really are or what his powers are. All that matters is he is here with us now. He is one of us…our family and that unlike you, he values love and loyalty," Elor said with a powerful stance as he stepped forward with Irene following him behind, her eyes cold and determined to finish the man who destroyed her life and almost everyone she loved.
"Hmph, he is just scared since Damien is probably the biggest threat to him," Irene made a snide remark, though Ruthren's expression never flickered except his eyes had a certain tightness to them as if he got offended by Irene's remark.
The Forsaken people shook off all unnecessary thoughts after hearing the three princesses and their leaders, disappointed in themselves for losing focus on what mattered. They no longer had any dying curiosity to know about Damien's origins. They were happy and satisfied that he was on their side and their family, especially now that Reva was his wife.
Damien softly smiled, feeling moved by all the support he was feeling. For a moment, he thought people might doubt him for having powers that looked a bit unsettling and frightening, but none of them seemed to be uncomfortable with him.
"Ruthren, you are going down today!" Elor roared as he, King Krisen, and Irene, along with all others, charged forward to take down Ruthren, who was in the middle with only a bloodied blade in his hand.
