With her mind made up, Ling Luoyi led the former Asura King towards the center of Shuiyun Jian. The Heavenly Dao power was strongest there, and the suppression would be greater, giving Ling Luoyi a chance to kill him.
Seeing Ling Luoyi, whom he was chasing, fleeing in a panic, and especially noticing her cultivation level, the former Asura King let down his guard. He treated her like a cat playing with a mouse, letting her run around aimlessly.
Sensing the attacks behind her had slowed, Ling Luoyi didn't believe he would let her go. He merely wanted to enjoy the prey's final struggle. However, who the hunter and who the prey were was yet to be determined.
The cave and the waterfall were not close, but at the speed of Ling Luoyi and the former Asura King, it was only a matter of a few breaths. They arrived instantly.
Upon reaching the bottom of the waterfall, Ling Luoyi stopped running. She turned to face the former Asura King, who was hovering in the air, and slowly spoke, "May I ask which esteemed expert you are? Why do you relentlessly pursue this humble woman?"
Seeing Ling Luoyi stop, the former Asura King retracted the black mist that had been swirling around him and landed on the ground.
The black mist on the Asura race was their second to last protective barrier, used only during combat. However, the former Asura King retracting the mist was not to spare Ling Luoyi, but because he considered her too weak to require its protection.
After steadying himself, the former Asura King took two steps towards Ling Luoyi. Upon clearly seeing her face, he was momentarily stunned. He then asked, "Looking at that mark between your brows, it seems to be the Seal of the Human Race's War Goddess. Are you the War Goddess of this generation of the human race?"
After succeeding to the position of War Goddess, Ling Luoyi's brow bore a red mark shaped like a short sword and a shield. This was the Seal of the War Goddess, storing the power of all previous War Goddesses.
It wasn't just Ling Luoyi who had it; other Saint Sons and Saint Daughters did as well, though their marks differed in appearance and color. The Saint Son of Artifacts had a small brown hammer, and Qiu Yuanxi had a green sprout. Like Ling Luoyi's, these marks stored the power of previous Saint Sons and Saint Daughters, representing supreme honor to them.
However, for Ling Luoyi, red symbolized blood, and blood symbolized death. Therefore, she could not accept it. Except for occasions where the War Goddess was required to be present, Ling Luoyi would conceal it with her divine power.
Although Ling Luoyi was no longer directly stimulated by the color red, she still couldn't accept it and kept it concealed. It was only the pain in her right hand and legs that forced her to withdraw her divine power, revealing the mark.
Hearing his words, Ling Luoyi became even more certain of his identity and her resolve to kill him strengthened.
"That is correct. This殿下 is indeed the War Goddess of this generation of the human race."
Upon hearing her answer, the former Asura King's smile grew even stranger. He scanned her from head to toe, praising her without reservation, "Not bad, not bad. At such a young age, to possess such cultivation, you are indeed worthy of the title War Goddess."
"You flatter me, esteemed sir." Although it was a compliment, Ling Luoyi did not let down her guard, nor did she miss the fleeting strange look in the former Asura King's eyes.
However, upon hearing Ling Luoyi's words, the former Asura King shook his head regretfully and said with a hint of pity, "It is a true pity that heaven envies talent. With such excellent talent, you grew a divine bone before your immortal bone. Judging by the divine power in your spiritual energy, you should have grown a second divine bone. It is a shame that in all my years, I have never seen anyone successfully cultivate a third divine bone. Given your current physical condition, it is impossible for you to achieve it. If you were not about to die, I would truly have wanted to take you back to the Asura tribe."
Ling Luoyi smiled and did not respond to his statement. Instead, she asked, "Judging by your self-introduction, are you the previous Asura King?"
"Previous?" Hearing this word, the former Asura King was taken aback, then burst into laughter. "It's only been over two thousand years since I last returned to the Asura tribe, and they already have a new king. War Goddess of the human race, do you know who the current king of our Asura tribe is? Chao Yan, or Xi Yan? It couldn't possibly be my brothers or their sons, could it?"
Hearing the former Asura King's question, Ling Luoyi finally understood what Gu Yuncheng had told her about the current Asura King needing to change if the former Asura King abdicated normally.
The former Asura King had three sons: the eldest son, the current Asura King; the second son, Chao Yan, now the Yan Prince; and the third son, Xi Yan, now the Ye Prince. Yet, he suspected his brothers and their sons, never considering his eldest son would succeed him. How much did he not want the current Asura King to inherit the throne?
Seeing Ling Luoyi's continued silence, the former Asura King grew anxious and asked, "Could it be that both my sons were defeated by my brothers and their sons? Chao Yan and Xi Yan are so useless, to have lost to my former vanquished foes?"
"No, neither of them," Ling Luoyi replied, shaking her head. "The current Asura King is named Jun Yan."
"Jun Yan?" Hearing this name abruptly, the former Asura King was startled. He thought for a long time before remembering who this person was. However, upon hearing that his eldest son had succeeded him, the former Asura King showed no happiness, only extreme displeasure. "I was planning to make Chao Yan the heir upon my return from the expedition, but I never expected Jun Yan to be the one to succeed. War Goddess, do you know how Jun Yan ascended to the throne?"
Unexpectedly, the former Asura King was also biased. Ling Luoyi was somewhat annoyed and replied, "This happened over two thousand five hundred years ago. How would I know?"
"That's true." The former Asura King didn't notice anything and remained engrossed in the news of Jun Yan's succession and the defeat of his favored Chao Yan. Suddenly, he realized the timing of Jun Yan's succession and became enraged. "I thought Jun Yan only succeeded me after I went missing for a thousand years, but to think he succeeded in less than two hundred years! He truly doesn't put me in his eyes! When I return, I will grind this unfilial son into dust!"
As he spoke, a terrifying power erupted from the former Asura King, affecting an area of a hundred miles. Ling Luoyi even felt that within a mile of the former Asura King, the Heavenly Dao power was momentarily scattered.
While the former Asura King continued to vent, Ling Luoyi, unnoticed by him, left her mark and entered the small world. The small world was vast, but there were few people, so no one noticed Ling Luoyi's return.
Ling Luoyi kept a close watch on the former Asura King. After the most violent spiritual energy storm passed, she immediately emerged. The former Asura King felt that something was amiss just now, but seeing Ling Luoyi kneeling on one knee, appearing heavily injured, he had no further doubts. He merely thought Ling Luoyi was quite formidable to have survived the spiritual energy storm.
Relieved that she had managed to deceive him, Ling Luoyi also gained a new understanding of the former Asura King's bias. A father speaking of grinding his son into dust – how much did he dislike this son?
Ling Luoyi couldn't quite comprehend why the former Asura King was so heartless. She had met all sorts of parents, including biased ones, but the most extreme they had ever been was to hit them a few times, starve them, or give them fewer clothes in winter. They would never wish their son dead, let alone speak of grinding their child into dust.
But why was the former Asura King so biased? Not only did he not consider Jun Yan for succession, but upon learning of Jun Yan's ascension, he wanted to grind him into dust. What was the reason for all this?