Divine Emperor of Death

Chapter 4785  Lydia Davis

Without announcing her visit, Lydia pushed open the door and entered, finding Arc at the center, seated on a purple cushion.

”Ah!?”

Arc was dressed in a silk dark green robe. If it werenʼt for the color of his robe, he practically looked no different than Davis, but he lacked the sharpness of the brows and the enigmatic look of his fatherʼs. His face now bloomed with anger, but, seeing it was little Lydia, he calmed and shook his head.

”Lydia, how many times have I told you to announce your visit first?”

”Canʼt do, shishi~”

Lydia ran to him and threw herself at him, hugging him from the side, ”Big brother! I love you so much. Why didnʼt you come outside?”

”Hurhur,” Arc chortled as he resigned himself to Lydiaʼs antics, ”How can I go out after crippling my immortal foundation? I donʼt dare show my face for fear of letting others down when they have helped me so much.”

”So you really did it?”

Lydia took a step back, her amethyst eyes gleaming with a strange look.

”Yes, Iʼm not lying.”

Arc shrugged, ”The ancient texts you brought me did say that one has to be mortal. Therefore, I have no choice but to get rid of everything I accomplished until now if I want to be as good as others.”

”You-” Lydiaʼs lips went agape, her eyes becoming teary, ”I caused this…?”

”Ah, no, no!” Arc hurriedly stood up and clasped her shoulders, ”It isnʼt your fault. Iʼm just done with practicing cultivation with a mediocre talent. Father did say that I need to be decisive when it comes to these matters, and he fully allows me to cultivate however I want as long as it isnʼt suicidal. Iʼm not suicidal. I never will be, and even my mother knows that… sigh…”

He looked towards the door, his expression guilty, ”She really wanted to whoop my ass when she found my immortal cultivation dispersing, but didnʼt, only crying silently… Iʼm such a failure…”

”…” Lydia went silent as she looked down.

Seeing Lydia look sad, Arc chuckled, ”Donʼt worry. Iʼm not going to die off or lament forever. I have a real idea of how to carry out my cultivation from now on. I would be the familyʼs first cultivator who is neither of the Immortal Path nor the Transcendent Path. But still, it was really painful dispersing my immortal cultivation…”

He rubbed his abdomen, causing Lydia to look up before she giggled.

”Mother revealed to me that Mother Everlight can cause my cultivation to regress. If I had known it sooner, I mightʼve considered convincing my mother and Mother Everlight, but since itʼs a gamble, I donʼt want anyone to feel sorry if I failed again. If I really canʼt cultivate to my liking, yes, I can always support the family in many other ways. Considering my intelligence amongst our peers, I would do well under the intelligence department or even take care of the familyʼs finances and make a lot of profit for all of us. Then, all of our siblings would come toward me for cheap change.”

”Hehe~ Youʼre so funny, big brother~” Lydia slapped his leg, causing him to flinch.

Arc sweated as he felt one of his thigh bones break just now.

”Eh?”

Lydia took back her hand, her lips quivering in guilt, ”No way… You dispersed all your cultivation already?”

She had already held back her strength greatly, but that cracking sound was unbelievably real.

”No time to waste…”

Arc rubbed his thigh before he took out a healing pill and popped it into his mouth. The medicinal pill essence was top-tier. It practically swept all over his body and mended any broken bones and rejuvenated all cells, making him feel quite refreshed.

”I heard that weʼre departing for the Upper Realms soon. I need to at least consolidate the Astral Core before then.”

”No… no…!” Lydia hurriedly shook her hands, ”Thatʼs too soon.”

”Hmm?”

Lydiaʼs gaze darted, ”I mean, I also read that ancient text. It said it is better to enter the highest realm before consolidating the Astral Core. Shouldnʼt we head to the Greater Realm before consolidating the Astral Core?”

”…” Arc could only wryly smile, ”The Greater Realm? I donʼt think our family can move there anytime soon.”

”Then big brother should at least wait until we enter the Upper Realms. From there, you can sense many more Astral Stars in the Astral Ocean! Your talent in sensing the innumerable stars across the layers is practically unmatched! Peerless!”

Lydiaʼs amethyst gaze shone with a fanatical light, ”It shouldnʼt be wasted here… according to the ancient texts…!”

She hurriedly added the second part.

”…” Arc gave Lydia a good look.

”…”

Lydia didnʼt avert her gaze, looking into his eyes as she held her ground.

Arc moved his gaze away and brought his finger to his face, tapping his chin, ”The realm of Astral Cultivation is strange and unique. Our sister Xiesha is said to also have been born with an innate connection to a dangerous astral star, so she has been banned from utilizing that energy until we know more about it. It would become the same for me if Iʼm not careful. Iʼm curious to know what made you think that Iʼm peerless in this cultivation path. Is that also from the ancient texts?”

”…”

Lydiaʼs smile froze with her cheeks raised. She giggled forcefully, ”Of course, I read it all before I gave it to you.”

Arcʼs lips went agape, ”Youʼre really a gifted child in soul force. It would require an immortal-level soul force to read through it. How you did it two years ago when you were nothing but a Fifth Stage Cultivator is beyond me.”

”Canʼt have you forgetting who my father and mother are ~” Lydia placed her hands on her waist and harrumphed proudly.

But inwardly, she harrumphed even more proudly, ʼI wrote the texts, duh… My old familyʼs unique astral cultivation method is incredible!ʼ

ʼBut whatʼs more incredible is that I didnʼt dream of finding a suitable successor upon awakening… if I didnʼt have my Amethyst Eversoul Radiance Soul Physique, I would try to convince my father and mother to let me practice my original Astral Cultivation… but I could never compare to you… I knew your talent went all to perception the moment I saw you look like a child who wasnʼt gifted despite all the odds in this lineage… and I was right… the first-ever session of practicing perception to sense the astral stars and the resulting discreet phenomenon told me all I need to know…ʼ

Unaware of Lydiaʼs thoughts, Arc smiled profoundly as he reached out his hand and shook her white hair.

”Ah, you- Donʼt make a mess of my hair! I hate it…!

”Hehe, you will only allow father to do it, huh? Not me? Big brother is sad!”

Arc grinned as he messed up her hair more.

”Youʼre such a bully. Ugh, if you hadnʼt dispersed your cultivation, I wouldʼve punched your gut right now!”

Lydia growled, revealing her canine teeth, sharp like fangs, causing Arc to laughingly step back.

”Alright, alright. Big brother is sorry…”

”Shaaa!~”

Lydia looked like she was about to attack, but she slowly calmed down and corrected her hairstyle, appearing reluctant.

ʼMmhph~ This kid… Iʼll teach him a lesson after he becomes powerful enough to fight me...ʼ

She turned around to leave and came to a pause, feeling vexed.

ʼWhat am I even doing…? Risking being exposed to enhance anotherʼs cultivation…? Curses, this family is an accursed family, even making someone like me soft-hearted…ʼ

Lydiaʼs eyes became moist as she walked away, ʼCurses. Living as a child messes up oneʼs mentality. I need to grow up fast and leave before I get found out!ʼ

Arc watched Lydia leave as his smile slowly faded.

ʼLydia shouldnʼt be in possession of this ancient text. She stated that she found it in her motherʼs research room, which could be true, but thereʼs a hand behind. Lydia seems guided by someone. Most likely, Mother Ellia watched her pick it up and had her guide me, but why does Mother Ellia want me to cultivate this? Am I the experiment? Is there a scheme within the harem I am not aware of? Or she just doesnʼt want my mother interfering?ʼ

Arc was confused. Despite the sacrilegious thoughts, the Mother Ellia he knew was kind and playful. She had visited him numerous times to give him advise and prescriptions, so he couldnʼt understand heads or tails.

ʼEither way… I can tell this is immensely beneficial to me… perhaps Lydia is right… I need to wait until we reach the Upper Realms… I cannot be hasty…ʼ

Arc clenched his fist. The feeling of wanting to protect the family was also shared by him. He was afraid that the more he waited, the odds that something bad might happen would go up, and he might regret waiting. However, now that he considered the matter more clearly, he wryly smiled.

”I guess Iʼll continue to be the pathetic loser of the Davis Family a bit more…”

Outside, Lydia exited Mother Fioraʼs residence after bidding farewell.

She was about to go down the stone stairs when she saw someone walking up. Her heart sank, and her body turned cold as she saw a black-robed woman. She paused on the stairs and smiled at her with an eerie gaze.

”My dear Lydia, what brings you here?”

”…”

Lydia shook ever so lightly, ”Mother Mingzhi, I came to meet big brother Arc. Are you here to meet Mother Fiora?”

”Yes, of course. Everyone knows sheʼs my sworn sister~” Mingzhi giggled, yet her eyes stayed wide open on her.

She moved past Lydia and went up, ”Iʼll see you later. Go back to your siblings. Weʼre going to leave soon.”

”Okay~” Lydia said, but only a few seconds later did she realize she was holding her breath.

She went down the stone stairs, but her gaze couldnʼt stop shaking, ʼThis woman… Mother Mingzhi… her gaze always scares me… her gaze always lingers around me a few seconds more than the others as though she knows… but it shouldnʼt be possible… my reincarnation technique allows even karma to be hidden, so tracing is impossible… and I am Lydia. This is literally my next incarnation, so itʼs not possible to differentiate the soul and become aware of my presence…ʼ