Unsealing Emptiness

Chapter 473: I Know Not Whose Child It Is...

Back in the estate, Ember appeared on the training grounds where Rai was giving pointers to the trio separately.

Coincidentally, Ozul was just about to go out for his next target when he noticed her and came over as well.

"What happened there, my Lord?" Rai asked as the trio continued to train.

He was a little concerned about her meeting with the other Empyreans because even though she too had become one, they were still stronger than her.

The Sect Leader had been an Empyrean even before Rai was born, so one could only guess the true extent of his powers.

If even one of them decided to fight with Ember, she would have no choice but to escape with her life on the line.

"Nothing much. Those old coots only wanted to keep me in line," Ember grumbled, not at all amused by their threats.

"What about Old Gu?" Ozul asked, he was more interested in him than anyone else.

She shook her head, "That old man is one of the 7 Heavenly Virtues."

"Heavenly Virtues?"

The trio couldn’t help but pause their training as well and listened attentively.

She explained, "There are 7 people who are among the strongest in all of the Realms, rumored to surpass even the Celestial Beasts in strength. They are considered only second to the God Emperor ruling the Land Above Realms."

Seeing their surprised reactions, she nodded her head. This information was news to her as well. Glancing at the only person who stayed as cold as a stone, she muttered in her heart, ’Is even this uninteresting to you?’

"It is said that the Heavenly Virtues are also disciples of the God Emperor."

Only a handful of people in all the Realms knew that officially, the God Emperor only ever had two disciples.

The mention of the God Emperor always brought awe to the faces of those listening.

However, Ember was only depressed since the man who had crippled her was also one of the Heavenly Virtues. It meant that her revenge was still nowhere in sight.

Meanwhile, Ozul was contemplating the words of Old Gu to him.

That old man knew something about him at the very least. After all, he had hinted at there being a ’power’ within him that could force even God to answer him.

Considering the fact that the old man was a disciple of God, his words didn’t seem so unbelievable now. So, even if forcing God was an idea too far-fetched, he could at least force answers out of the old man.

’And there is the fact that he wants me to fight God...’

Considering the possibilities, it was evident that God and his so-called disciples might not have aligned goals.

’I really don’t like being in the dark...’ He thought, frustration building up inside of him.

Someone finally knew something about him but refused to reveal anything. The helplessness at being unable to force him to answer was like burning fuel, motivating him to keep growing stronger.

’Now that I have this ability... I only need to keep absorbing people...’

"Where are you going?" Ember called when she noticed him walking away.

"I have to grow stronger."

She smiled brightly, almost ominously, and said, "Come back early. I will have a renewed list of people and some extra tasks for you."

Ozul nodded and walked away.

Meanwhile, Rai and the trio had to witness the sinister aura surrounding Ember as she muttered to herself the following:

"If those old bastards think they have intimidated me, they should think twice."

For all his wisdom, Hakuja had forgotten one simple fact: his disciple was the most petty person he ever knew.

Just because they tried to minimize the casualties on their side by threatening her, she would target them even more actively.

"If it’s the rules they want me to follow, I will follow the rules."

Unlike the trio, however, Rai was looking more excited than ever. He too knew a bit about the Empyreans refraining from acting out.

And since he had become a Sage now as well, it only meant more action for him.

Though it was as if Ember had thrown a bucket of cold water over him when she said,

"You have only recently become a Sage. Focus only on consolidating your strength and teach these three."

Rai’s face dropped, but he wasn’t completely disappointed. He still remembered that a war was coming.

In the chaos of war, the lines between permissible and taboo were blurred.

At that time, he would then have three monsters helping him as well, Rai thought secretly as he eyed Raven, Blaze, and Zier.

Having taught them these previous days, he could imagine their future prowess more than anyone.

And so began the tireless days of training in the estate.

While Ozul occasionally went out of the city to absorb people, the overall activities of the estate declined.

The people who had continued to pester Ember for business slowly backed away after she thoroughly rejected most of them.

The Transcendents of the estate barely left the premises as Ember forced everyone to train, even spending extra resources on all of them.

The City Lord did not dare to send any spies into the estate, fearing Ember’s wrath.

He spent his days worrying over the long-awaited revenge from her, but it never came, which further worsened his mental state.

The Wilderness and the Immortal Sect kept suffering, losing their key pawns every other day because of one being named The Masked Death.

While the matters of the Realm of Abezan stilled, the same couldn’t be said about other Realms across the existence.

. . .

Old Gu was in yet another Realm as he conversed with Minho, his faithful servant.

"So you want to know why I am so interested in that kid?" The old man made a thoughtful face, wondering where to start the story from.

"Did I tell you that the only two disciples of ’God’ were the Wise Seer and the Demonic Emperor?"

Minho nodded his head; he couldn’t forget such a thing even if he wanted to.

"Do you know why the Wise Seer, a man whose strength was on par if not greater than the Heavenly Virtues, died all of a sudden?"

Old Gu lost his usual smile while he was speaking, something which unsettled Minho to a degree.

"It was because of a prophecy which got out of control."

"A prophecy? But didn’t he reach the peak of this art? It was rumored that the Wise Seer could see even the death of God if he wished to..."

Old Gu’s eyes squinted sharply, before he relaxed and sighed, "It wasn’t just a rumor."

Minho looked with shock at the back of Old Gu, having now completely forgotten that he had asked about Ozul.

"The Wise Seer, having mastered his domain, attempted a prophecy regarding Him."

"’When the shadow of clover leaves falls... It will eclipse the eternal light... a great darkness-’ These were the words which the Wise Seer managed to let out from his trembling lips before he lost consciousness for several months."

Old Gu narrated the incident with great detail as if reminiscing about the past to wallow in melancholy.

The Wise Seer couldn’t stop the news from spreading and it reached the ears of all concerned.

Everyone understood that the eternal light referred to the God Emperor of the Land Above Realms.

The darkness that would eclipse him, however, was assumed to be the Demonic Emperor who had only recently broken off his ties to him.

The first part of the prophecy hinted at the signs, but no one could link it to anything. Yet, it caused havoc across the Realms while the subordinates of the Demonic Emperor rejoiced, having already envisioned a great victory in the near future.

Yet, the God Emperor remained impervious to the ruckus.

He continued on with his daily matters as if there had been no prophecy as if his disciple hadn’t just been unconscious for months.

"The Wise Seer had never been wrong in his prophecies before, yet when the subject was the ’God’, many rejected it outright as well.

And one day, I was invited to Mount Hua by none other than the Seer."

"He woke up?" Minho asked, immersed in the story.

"We were friends, he and I. He woke up, but chose not to disclose this information to anyone but me."

This was the first time that Minho was hearing about his Master being close to the Wise Seer. Now he could grasp why there was such solemness in his Master’s tone.

...

Old Gu had rushed to Mount Hua only to find his best friend lying on his bed with blood trailing down from his lips and his eyes.

"Why... did you even try such a stupid stunt?! You knew full well that the greater the existence of the subject, the more toll it would have on you... and yet..."

But the Wise Seer shook his head, "My friend... it..."

He coughed violently, and only calmed down after he threw up a small lump of meat.

"It... was because of that darkness... not ’Him’... that made me like this."

Old Gu’s eyes widened in shock. He had assumed, like everyone else, that the backlash received by the Wise Seer was because he looked into the future of the God Emperor.

"My friend..." The Wise Seer coughed again, fresh blood leaked from his ears as well now.

"I don’t... have much t-time..." The blood vessels in his eyes could burst out at any time.

"Tha-t darkness..."

His voice seemed to be fading. As if there was no other choice, he grabbed Old Gu’s hand as images flashed past the latter’s eyes, showing him the birth of a Broken World in the domain of the Realm of Abezan.

"I know not whose c-child it is... It existed before Go-..."

The Wise Seer’s life force completely disappeared, leaving Old Gu standing beside him with a grave expression.

Between the death of his lifelong friend and the words he had just heard, he didn’t know which weighed more on him.