Chapter 559: Arrogance & Blood Forest "Theory"
The Human Emperor that had been slumbering within the Human Emperor Sword stared at Liora and let out a quiet sigh.
"So things have come to this after all. It’s all my fault for being too ambitious..."
Liora didn’t rush to respond to these words.
She carefully observed the Human Emperor and examined her state, only relaxing upon confirming that his condition was far from good.
His aura was constantly flowing away. The longer he remained awake, the weaker he became.
Given enough time, he would simply dissipate and return to the outside world.
Realizing this, Liora inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. Even so, several doubts surfaced in her mind.
Fortunately, there was someone who could answer them.
"How did you end up in such a state?", Liora asked before adding:
"With your strength, there should be no one in the entire secret realm capable of injuring you, much less killing you."
In fact, Liora already had a faint suspicion.
Still, there was no harm in hearing the answer directly from its source. She believed that the other party would be happy to agree to that request.
Sure enough, upon hearing her question, the Human Emperor fell silent for a brief moment.
A trace of nostalgia flashed across his face before he slowly shook his head.
"It’s all my fault. I was too greedy back then, and it ultimately led to my downfall."
As he spoke, the phantom hovering above the Human Emperor Sword gestured ahead.
"Would you accompany me for a walk?"
After a brief hesitation, Liora nodded in agreement.
She didn’t maintain the Human Emperor clone.
With a wave of her hand, she dismissed it and let the clone enter her body.
It landed atop the Human Emperor Star within the Cosmic Sea.
Sitting down cross-legged, it closed its eyes and quietly refined the endless faith surrounding the star, strengthening both the Cosmic Sea and itself in the process.
Meanwhile, the Human Emperor Sword flew into Liora’s hand.
The Human Emperor’s phantom landed beside her, and together, the two began walking forward.
Neither flew through the sky nor used any of their abilities.
They simply walked across the land like two ordinary people.
Yet with every step they took, the surrounding scenery would change.
Different landscapes passed by as though they were teleporting, allowing them to travel hundreds of kilometers with each stride.
Looking upon the land he had once ruled, and watching the human race slowly recover from the previous catastrophe, the Human Emperor sighed once more.
"I’m the culprit behind all of this."
"Back then, I was simply too arrogant. After reaching Rank 11 and suppressing the demons and expelling the other races, I believed I had become invincible.", he started to speak.
Liora listened attentively, knowing his story would answer many of the questions she still held.
The Human Emperor continued:
"You can imagine my surprise when I discovered that beyond our world existed another realm—no, an entire universe, as you call it."
The Human Emperor paused.
He glanced toward a nearby tribe kneeling before a Human Emperor statue. However, that statue no longer represented him but the person before him.
A complicated smile appeared on his face.
"Mistaking the universe for nothing more than another demi-plane like those born within our secret realm, I gathered my strongest subordinates and led an expedition into it."
"Unfortunately... the outcome was exactly what you would expect."
He didn’t elaborate further, but Liora could easily imagine the result.
Not surprisingly, the arrogant Human Emperor had entered the outside universe, only to suffer an overwhelming defeat at the hands of the Human Federation’s true powerhouses.
Just as she was wondering whether this battle was what had ended his life, his next words proved otherwise.
"I was fortunate at that time. Because of my own strength and a bit of luck, I managed to escape with some serious injuries and return to the Blood Forest Realm."
"Then, using its environment, I was able to fend off the so-called Otherworld Demons."
"Unfortunately, this was not a long-term solution."
"After several centuries of bitter war, I finally understood the truth. The outside humans never truly regarded us as a threat. If they truly wished to destroy us, they could have done so at the cost of suffering some losses."
"The only reason we survived was not because we were strong, but because they chose to use this place as a training ground."
Although he spoke of a war that had claimed millions of lives, the Human Emperor’s tone remained calm.
He quietly admired the familiar scenery around him, occasionally raising a hand to eliminate the demons that were attacking the nearby humans.
"With that realization, and following another humiliating defeat on the battlefield, I chose to compromise. I reached an agreement with the leaders of the Otherworld Demons. In exchange for my own life, the biggest threat for them, I sought a chance of survival for my world."
"From that day onward, only Awakeners below Rank 7 were allowed to enter the secret realm."
"At the time, I believed the arrangement was foolproof. But now..."
The Human Emperor looked toward Liora before shaking his head.
Clearly, he had never expected that even such a sacrifice would ultimately prove insufficient.
However, he could not be blamed. He had done everything within his power to protect his hometown.
He had provided so much help for the Blood Forest Realm, leaving several trump cards for his descendants to protect themselves.
The Human Shrine, the Human Emperor Sword, and even the several Rank 11 demons in the forbidden areas could be used to defend against Otherworld Demons.
Unfortunately, he had never anticipated that someone like Liora would appear out of nowhere.
The Elders and other high-level humans believed that Liora was terrifying simply because she was an Otherworld Demon.
However, the Human Emperor knew otherwise.
Even among the members of the outside human race, the woman before him was extraordinary.
Even among the countless experts he had encountered during the ancient war, he had never seen anyone quite like her.
Of course, now was not the time to care about these. The Human Emperor raised his hand and stared at his palm.
"I’ve heard that in the outside universe, there exists something called the Dark Forest Theory."
"According to that theory, civilizations should remain silent and hidden, lest they be discovered and destroyed by more advanced civilizations."
"The secret realm was named after this theory, by me."
"You can think of my world as the inevitable fate of civilizations that grow arrogant and fail to heed this warning.", the Human Emperor said as his gaze settled upon the bloodstained ruins of a nearby human tribe.
He casually waved his hand, wiping out the surrounding demons.
Then, the solemn expression on his face gradually faded away.
His footsteps came to a halt as he turned to look at Liora and smiled.