NOVEL NEXT Chapter 8: Chapter 8
While the room buzzed with muted conversation and shadowy figures exchanged guarded glances, a blade suddenly tore through the air, aimed directly at my head. It was a perfect strike, its speed far beyond what even the emperor could react to. Yet, as though guided by instinct, I had already shifted my head aside, the blade grazing my cheek instead. Warm blood trickled down, sharp against the silence that followed.
"Who dares?!" My father rose to his feet, his eyes ablaze with fury as they darted across the hall. The room fell deathly quiet, all present straining to spot the assassin. Yet the culprit seemed to have melted into the sea of faces.
I broke the silence with a calmness that cut deeper than my wound. "Another assassin," I murmured, dabbing at the blood on my cheek with the back of my hand. "How quaint. My instincts tell me this one was sent by the crown prince... but it seems he's working with someone else this time. How cute." My gaze swept the hall, lingering pointedly on the clusters of nobles.
"The Lu Clan, the Su Clan, and the Mo Clan," I continued my voice steady but laced with steel. "I'll give your ancestors one day to crawl out of their graves and beg my forgiveness. Unlike the crown prince and his fool of a mother, I won't be so indulgent as to let you stew for ten years in the knowledge of your doom. Your three clans... simply aren't worth it."
The room was silent, save for the faint rustle of silks and the barely audible gasps from the crowd. No one could believe the audacity of my words, yet no one dared to speak against me.
As I turned to leave, but to this, Lan Mei sighed. "Young master," she said, her voice tinged with exasperation. "Could you at least point out the assassin before you go?"
I halted and tilted my head slightly, my gaze flicking toward a man in black robes standing beside a striking woman in a blue dress. "Him," I said, my tone casual as though commenting on the weather. "He's from the Blood Sun Hall. If he realizes he can't escape, he'll likely self-destruct."
All eyes turned to the man I had singled out. He shifted uneasily under the scrutiny, his composure unraveling as murmurs spread like wildfire. His nervousness gave way to a sneer, and his hands began to glow faintly as he prepared to end himself in a blaze of destruction.
But before he could act, Lan Mei appeared beside him like a phantom. With a single, precise strike, she knocked him unconscious. His body crumpled to the floor, lifeless save for the faint rise and fall of his chest.
The emperor's voice thundered across the hall, shaking the walls. "Where is the Crown Prine!" His fiery gaze swept the room, searching for the crown prince, but the young man was conspicuously absent.
***
How was I able to pinpoint the assassin and who was behind it? The answer was simple: Ultra Instinct. Well, my version of it, at least. While attempting to recreate the legendary technique, I had a revelation, what if I cultivated my instincts instead of just trying to replicate an elusive state of mind?
Imagine this: answering a quiz using nothing but gut feelings, yet achieving a perfect score. That was the principle I trained under since birth, honing my instincts to an unparalleled level. I sought to sharpen my senses to the point where I could discern someone's emotions, predict their actions, anticipate their words, and even sense their presence before they arrived. Over the years, I succeeded.
Now, my instincts were like a sixth sense, guiding me to the truth with unerring accuracy. When the blade shot toward me earlier, it wasn't luck that saved me, it was instinct. When I identified the assassin amidst a sea of people, it was that same cultivated intuition that pointed me toward the right answer. With a single thought, I could break down even the most complex puzzles.
I retreated to my lab, a sanctuary of experimentation and innovation, where I turned my attention to a glass enclosure teeming with movement. Inside was my pride and terror combined, a colony of Hell's Ants. These creatures were infamous, their venom capable of delivering pain so excruciating that death became a mercy. Survivors often lingered in a liminal state, neither fully alive nor dead, their minds broken by agony.
To illustrate their torment, consider this: a man once stung by a Hell's Ant was subsequently kicked in the groin multiple times. Yet he barely flinched. His entire being was consumed by the unbearable sting of the ant, rendering every other sensation irrelevant.
As I observed the nest, my lips curled into a cold smile. "A new test subject," I murmured, reclining in my chair and glancing toward the unconscious assassin. He was from the Blood Sun Hall, an organization notorious for training its members to endure levels of pain that would shatter lesser beings. Their resilience made them dangerous but also intriguing.
My goal? To develop a pill capable of surpassing even their formidable resistance to pain. A concoction that would amplify the effects of the Hell's Ant venom to incapacitate even the strongest adversaries without killing them or permanently damaging their minds.
Why this obsession with improving the venom? The three clans I named earlier, the Lu, Su, and Mo, were filled with cultivators in the Core Formation realm. Their advanced cultivation rendered them immune to the current effects of the venom. That immunity was a problem I intended to solve.
This wasn't just about science or vengeance, it was a declaration. I needed the world to understand that targeting me came with consequences so harrowing that even hell would seem a kinder alternative. I wasn't interested in their power struggles or ambitions. But if they dared to aim for my life, I would ensure they regretted it deeply.
Cruel? Perhaps. But this was a cultivation world, where reincarnation and the cycle of rebirth were common beliefs. They could try their luck again in their next life, and who knows? Perhaps they'd find better fortune in the wheel of samsara.
As for me, I had work to do. The devil needed to ensure his reputation was well-earned.
***
"Young master, you have a guest," Lan Mei said with a faint bow, her tone calm but deliberate. I raised an eyebrow. A guest? Other than my siblings endlessly scheming to curry favor, who else would bother? And if it were one of them, Lan Mei wouldn't bother with subtlety, she would have outright named them.
"Let her in," I said calmly, my instincts already giving me an inkling of who it might be. Setting the book in my hands aside, I fixed my gaze on the door, which creaked open to reveal an unparalleled beauty.
She was stunning, her long, jet-black hair cascading down her back like a silken waterfall. Her features were flawless, ethereal, and commanding. She carried herself with an air of nobility, her presence demanding respect even without uttering a word. Anyone looking at her might admire her beauty, but the sheer authority she exuded ensured no one would dare entertain disrespectful thoughts.
"Well, well," I said, a faint mocking smirk curling my lips. "If it isn't the Empress. After years of incessant plotting and bitching, you've finally decided to meet me in person."
Her frown deepened at my words, her lips parting to speak, but I silenced her with a raised hand.
"As you can see," I continued, leaning back with a casual arrogance, "I'm a genius. I've already seen through your schemes. To me, this is nothing more than a game. You see yourself as someone important as if the world revolves around you. But to me, you're nothing. Insignificant." I allowed my words to linger, sharp and unyielding. "Do you know how little regard I have for you? I don't even know your name. That's how irrelevant you are."
Her expression hardened, but I pressed on, my tone icy. "Run along. Rally empires if you like. Have them converge on me in a desperate bid to erase my existence. That might be your best chance of seeing me six feet under. But if you fail…" I gestured subtly to the side.
She turned, her gaze landing on the figure of the assassin who had tried to kill me earlier. Now, he was a shadow of his former self, his hair stark white, his body trembling with residual pain and fear. He looked broken, the result of my earlier experiments. The empress's pupils widened in horror as she took in the sight.
"You and your precious son," I said, my voice dropping to a venomous whisper. "You'll serve as a message. Somewhere within the next nine years, be it today, tomorrow, or on the final day, I'll make my move. And when I do, your death won't be quick. It won't be merciful."
The empress remained silent for a long moment, her expression inscrutable. Then, without a word, she turned to leave.
Just as she reached the door, she paused. Her body tensed, and in an instant, a sword materialized in her hand. She spun with lightning speed, her blade slicing through the air toward me.