Upon hearing this, Ju Zi abruptly covered her own mouth, afraid that the guards outside the door would hear the noise in the room. She had wanted to hear this voice for far too long.
The figure at the window became increasingly clear. It passed through the wall as if it had no physical form, then casually sat to one side, appearing like a wisp of light, a gray mist.
"You… I'm sorry…"
Ju Zi spoke softly, her voice so quiet that even she herself could barely hear it.
"What's there to be sorry about?"
"The night before the Heavenly Dou tournament…"
"Wasn't that something we agreed on in advance? I actually quite liked your way of doing things, clean and direct. It saved me a lot of trouble."
Although she couldn't make out the appearance of the gray mist in front of her, Ju Zi knew that the person behind this mist was Lin Xiao.
Hearing Lin Xiao's words, she detected no trace of blame in them, which only made it harder for her to speak. "You had already noticed something was wrong, hadn't you?"
"That wasn't actually a lethal drug. I… I just didn't want you to take the risk…"
"I know you were going to return to the Holy Spirit Cult headquarters, but Xu Tianran was preparing to use a Class 9 stationary soul cannon to raze the evil soul masters' base. If you went back, you would definitely…"
At this point, Ju Zi suddenly stopped. "The one the Imperial Dragon Soul Engineer Legion encountered in the Evil Demon Forest, that Calamity Douluo… that was you, right?"
"Calamity… That title isn't bad." Lin Xiao seemed to chuckle. "You're right. That person was me."
"I thought so." Ju Zi let out a long breath of relief. "By the way, why did you come here? Was it Ke Ke who found you?"
"Ke Ke?" Lin Xiao's expression shifted slightly upon hearing this. As expected, Ju Zi had always been cautious. With her personality, there was no way she would have people inquire about his experiences just to erect a stele.
"No." After thinking for a moment, Lin Xiao shook his head slightly. "I just had something to do and came back to Mingdu. I happened to hear that you were having people ask about me."
"So… what do you want with me?"
Ju Zi did not answer immediately. Instead, she slowly stood up and walked to the table, looking at the assassin's soul sitting there. It was as if she could see Lin Xiao's gaze through that soul.
"Does what you promised me before still count?" After seeming to hesitate for a long time, Ju Zi finally spoke slowly.
Ju Zi slightly lowered her head, waiting for Lin Xiao's response, yet also somewhat afraid to hear his answer.
She knew that with Lin Xiao's intelligence, he would certainly be able to guess what he would have to face once he agreed.
Whether his answer was yes or no, Ju Zi would not be surprised.
"It still counts."
Upon hearing this, Ju Zi abruptly raised her head.
"I always keep my word. Since I promised you, I won't go back on it. If you truly grow tired of this life of 'revenge,' even if you are the Empress, I can still take you away from here."
The gray mist in front of the table gently floated up, as if it had "stood" up. "Right now, with the war between the Sun Moon Empire and the three great empires so tense, it would be perfectly normal for them to send soul masters to assassinate you, their commander."
"Just like that night, you could use this opportunity to escape and never concern yourself with the Sun Moon Empire's affairs again."
After Lin Xiao finished speaking, he received no response from Ju Zi for a long time. When he turned to look, he saw Ju Zi slightly narrowing her eyes, her gaze filled with ruthlessness.
"What if I said… I don't want to leave here?"
Lin Xiao looked at this somewhat unfamiliar Ju Zi and remained silent for a long while. "What do you mean?"
Ju Zi paused slightly, but since the words were already out, she no longer hid anything.
"When I was little and met all of you that day, I had no one to rely on. Only the hatred in my heart supported me to keep living. Back then, I secretly swore to myself that for the sake of revenge, I would not hesitate even if I had to sacrifice everything."
"But now, I finally realize how bitter making such a decision truly is. Unease, fear, pain… Xu Tianran's madness has already devoured all his reason, and it has also devoured me."
"Now, though I am the Empress, I am like a bird in a cage. When I'm hungry or thirsty depends entirely on someone else's mood."
"I want to leave Xu Tianran's side. I want to completely break free from him. I want to become the true master of this palace."
Ju Zi's voice was not loud, but it was exceptionally cold.
"Will you… still help me?"
"Sigh—"
Lin Xiao let out a long sigh. "What I promised you back then was that if one day you no longer wanted to continue with revenge, you could come find me."
"I was afraid your hatred would cloud your judgment, so I gave you a chance to back out."
"And now, I can see that you have already made your choice."
However, it was somewhat different from what Lin Xiao had expected. Ju Zi had not chosen to leave this life because of the pain she felt now. What she wanted was to stand in an even higher position, no longer manipulated by others.
Lin Xiao's consciousness, through the assassin's gaze, stared at Ju Zi for a long time. In a daze, she seemed somewhat unfamiliar, or perhaps, this Ju Zi in front of him was the real Ju Zi from his memories of his previous life.
Or maybe she had always been that Ju Zi all along. She was also the commander of the three armies and the Empress of the empire.
Upon hearing this, Ju Zi slightly lowered her gaze. She also understood the meaning behind Lin Xiao's words back then. Speaking now was merely her final attempt.
Now it seemed…
"However—"
Lin Xiao's voice rang out once more. Ju Zi abruptly raised her head. Although she could not see any change in Lin Xiao's expression through the gray mist, for some reason, she vaguely felt that something had subtly shifted between her and Lin Xiao.
"I can make a deal with you."
Lin Xiao gradually calmed his emotions, and his tone became much more composed. If just a moment ago he had been facing Ju Zi, now the one conversing with him was the Empress of the Sun Moon Empire.
"I know what you want, and I can help you in this matter. But likewise, I have one demand."
Ju Zi seemed somewhat unaccustomed to Lin Xiao's current tone and slightly furrowed her brow. "What demand?"
"If one day you successfully take power, I need you to help me with one thing." Without waiting for Ju Zi to ask, Lin Xiao spoke in a deep voice, "Establish the Tongming Cult as the state religion and promote it throughout the entire Sun Moon Empire."
"You—"
Ju Zi looked at Lin Xiao in some disbelief. In her heart, Lin Xiao had always been different from other evil soul masters. Yet now this demand—what difference was there from Zhong Liwu back then?
"The Tongming Cult… is it an evil soul master sect like the Holy Spirit Cult?"
"Pretty much." Lin Xiao narrowed his eyes, seemingly thinking of something. "You can think of it that way."
Ju Zi did not speak. She simply stared at Lin Xiao, wanting to discern truth from falsehood in his words. However, from a mass of gray mist, she really couldn't see much.
After thinking for a moment, Ju Zi finally nodded. "Fine."
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Here are the chapters for today (づ￣3￣)づ╭～
"Don't forget there are chapters available on Patreon."
"From Douluo to Godhood by Defy 30 Advance chapters."
"Douluo: Far North Invincibledo 30 Advance chapters."
"Douluo Peerless: Living as an Evil Soul Master 40 Advance chapters."
"Douluo Dalu 2:Peerless Tang Sect Dawn of Sun and Moon 40 Advance chapters."
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