The Steward Demonic Emperor

Chapter 1308: Heart’s Choice

Proofreader: Papatonks

Bam!

The prismatic palm crushed the Heavenly Eye.

The Heavenly Sovereign jerked and coughed blood. As he looked up again, he watched the figure eaten away by the black energy, “Sacrificing yourself for a moment of Sovereign Stage power, humph. Well played, younger brother. But it’s still your loss.”

“We two are the only ones who have touched upon the Supreme Stage. You used that power to give me a heavy wound at the price of your life, but how will you stop me when I heal? You’ve only delayed the inevitable. I’ll be the last one standing in the end!”

“Think again!”

A soft voice reached him and in a prismatic glow, a pink arrow shot the Heavenly Sovereign.

The Heavenly Sovereign sneered, “Emotion Sovereign, I am wounded, but not enough for your cheap trick to work. Divine Eye of the Void, Void Barrier!”

Whoosh~

Twelve barriers formed before the Heavenly Sovereign, blocking the arrow. The Heavenly Sovereign gave a triumphant smirk.

Clap~

The Heavenly Sovereign’s left eye flashed with lightning and the barriers were destroyed. The pink arrow struck true, striking him and making his eyes go pink.

“Ha-ha-ha, Heavenly Sovereign, weren’t you on the heartless path, the empty void? My bewitching is nothing on others but deadly on you. Your very path is at risk of crumbling and you want to ruin the world? Humph!”

“I-impossible!”

His neck went red and the Heavenly Sovereign spat, “Why did Purple Lightning Gold Eye flared up. You got the drop on me knowing this would happen. How?” 

An image appeared of Emotion Sovereign’s soul, “Did you think yourself the winner? Long before you approached Kunpeng, she had approached him. Your destruction plan had won you no allies, while your Divine Eye of the Void grew their fears. So she sacrificed herself in a plan with Kunpeng, leaving a trace of her soul behind in the purple lightning to strike at the right moment and help me plant the bewitching. Now you understand, Heavenly Sovereign, the best in the world!” 

“Younger brother, to think that it’s you who won in the end!”

The Heavenly Sovereign clenched his fists as he made a bitter face at the fading image of his younger brother, “Well done. I’ve always been above you all our lives, but you won this time. But now those Sovereigns only have their path protecting them, weak. While I’m bewitched, even with a thread of hope, I will be back. Time is on my side. I will take back this win!”

He went back to Sword Heart’s side. The weakened Sovereigns couldn’t stop him.

The fading younger brother showed a faint smile, “Elder brother, I’ll stop you even in the next life!”

“Fine!”

The Heavenly Sovereign shouted back with a nod, “We shall see. I’ll be waiting.”

The Heavenly Sovereign left with Sword Heart. As the black energy burned the younger brother fully, his figure vanished from the lake, making Zhuo Fan sigh.

[The war of Sovereigns and the brother’s feud is only because of diverging paths – not out of a grudge.]

[That’s why the Heavenly Sovereign said true big players fight in the open, because tricks and schemes don’t work on them.]

[Despite the Heavenly Sovereign losing to his younger brother’s ploy…]

“Well?”

Zhuo Fan flinched, turning to the old man with a bow, “Senior, forgive my ignorance of not knowing that you were the Nine Serenities Demonic Sovereign!”

Nine Serenities waved him off, “Let formalities not constrict us. How do you feel after watching the ancient drama?”

“Feel?”

Zhuo Fan pondered, “I now know why you could write down the Nine Serenities Secret Records.”

“Oh? The hero of the story wasn’t me yet you could see my experience?”

“Of course, and not through just the lake, but from talking with senior. I realized that senior loves gossip, but it’s because of this that you could learn so many secrets and arts of the Sacred Domain to compile the incredible Nine Serenities Secret Records. I am in awe. I can never look at those nagging biddies the same way, he-he-he…”

“Ahem.”

Nine Serenities felt awkward, “You know that I walk the demonic path, that demons are born within our hearts. To remove demons, you need to inquire into people’s hearts all the time. It’s part of the job description. Let me ask you this, what do you feel about the Heavenly Sovereign’s younger brother?” 

Zhuo Fan fell silent for a while, “I walk the demonic path, a selfish path. Even sacrifice, it will only come for someone, not for the world. I lack that kind of great compassion and love. The Heavenly Sovereign’s younger brother did it for all creation, even forsaking the Supreme path. I could never escape its allure, that of becoming a god and having the world at your fingertips. Despite having no emotion center, yet still willing to follow the path inside his heart to dedicate himself to the world, is worthy of respect. He’s far better than I could ever be.” 

“It’s reasonable for you to say that…”

Nine Serenities looked up, “But would you believe me if I say he is you?”

Zhuo Fan shuddered, “He is… me?”

“A more apt description is that he is a past you.”

An aged and familiar voice sounded this time, making Zhuo Fan look over, “You’re that old man from the Nether Sea. How…”

“Let me introduce you. He is the master here, the Rebirth Sovereign, in charge of the past and present lives.”

Nine Serenities smiled. The old man nodded, “You met my regrets in the Nether Sea, but the Heavenly Sovereign has now destroyed it. I guided you to the Heavenly Rebirth Lake to see you and check if you inherited the Supreme path from your past.” 

“The Supreme path?”

Zhuo Fan was confused, “What is going on here? The Heavenly Sovereign’s younger brother was the past me? Didn’t he sacrifice himself? Without a Sovereign path, a broken soul would fade away. Did he reincarnate here? No, no way. He was burned down to nothing…”

The two laughed, with Nine Serenities speaking, “Even destroyed, how was it that you got reborn, Zhuo Fan?”

“Wasn’t it through your Nine Serenities Secret Records, through desire?”

“Could anyone be reborn by relying on another’s soul through desire? Rather, your soul wasn’t obliterated in the detonation, leaving but a fraction behind. Not even you could damage it. Why then was this sliver protected?” 

Zhuo Fan exclaimed, “Sovereign path?”

“Yes, my path has been shielding your soul from total destruction.”

Nine Serenities nodded, “When the Heavenly Sovereign’s younger brother died, I used my path to protect his sliver of soul and reincarnate. As for me, I reincarnated too, but lived a mortal life.”

Zhuo Fan gasped, “Then the you here…”

“A shadow’s memories…”

The Rebirth Sovereign explained, “A sliver of obsession. You know that to reincarnate at the Heavenly Rebirth Lake, one must leave behind memories, feelings, everything. Nine Serenities left behind his thought of reincarnation in order to see with his own eyes your return according to the plan to inherit that Heavenly Daos of before. Only then can he find peace.” 

Zhuo Fan was conflicted, “Shadow?”

“It can’t even be called a soul, only a shadow of a thought. After seeing you, it will fade.” Nine Serenities smiled and patted his shoudler, “You now have a choice. Inherit the emotional Heavenly Daos and grasp the precious power, fulfilling the promise in blocking the Heavenly Sovereign from destroying the world. Or do nothing and wait for death. The Heavenly Sovereign will be coming here soon to steal the rebirth path.”

Zhuo Fan cried, “You call that a choice? No one wants to die!”

“Of course it is, a choice of the heart.”

Nine serenities was solemn, “You said it yourself, you’re a selfish demonic cultivator, but you were once on the emotional Heavenly Daos path. Your hearts differ and thus makes inheriting that power impossible. Even though you’re one and the same…”

Zhuo Fan hung his head, “Everything can be fake in the world, but only my heart is ever true. I could never just give up all these years spent on the demonic path at the drop of a hat. And for a path of love? Why did I even choose demonic path in the first place?”

“Because you had my Sovereign demonic path. So no matter what life you’d have, all would choose the demonic path, even if you were the son of a righteous leader.”

“Why do I get the feeling you played me?”

Zhuo Fan’s mouth twitched, “In that case, why not just give me a righteous Sovereign path. They didn’t want to? Was only master Nine Serenities willing to sacrifice himself for me? Is that a way to treat the guy who sacrificed himself for the world?”