Evolution: From Little Devil to Devil Empress

"I’ve observed you for quite some time. Although you’ve brought great chaos to this continent, some of it was natural."

"At the end of the day... I failed to account for everything. For example, the Gods."

Saying this, the Human Emperor shook his head, unwilling to dwell on the matter any longer.

By now, his aura had weakened considerably.

His body had begun to flicker, as though it might disappear at any moment. He knew he didn’t have much time to live.

He had to make every word count.

"I won’t ask you to protect the Blood Forest Realm."

"Since you’ve inherited my talent gene and taken my place as the Human Emperor, I only ask that you preserve a single spark of my world’s civilization."

The Human Emperor didn’t speak any further, nor did he wait for Liora to respond.

The next moment, he took the initiative to cut off his last trace of vitality.

His phantom immediately dispersed.

The lingering will within the Human Emperor Sword vanished completely, allowing the weapon to return to its normal state.

Only the lingering words of the Human Emperor remained behind, along with several streams of information left behind for Liora.

She didn’t rush to digest them.

She stared at the spot where the Human Emperor had just stood for several seconds before finally raising her hand.

Demonic energy flowed from her palm. It gathered earth and stone before compressing them into a simple tombstone.

After engraving the words "Emperor of Humanity" on it, Liora looked at it one last time, took a step, and disappeared.

--

No one knew that the Human Emperor had awakened one final time, let alone that he had quietly met his end.

On the opposite side of the continent, a streak of golden light shot across the sky before crashing heavily into the ground.

Dust and rubble billowed in every direction.

As they gradually settled, the figure hidden within them was revealed.

It was the Human Temple’s last remaining Elder.

One of her arms was permanently missing, a sacrifice for her escape, while her aura still fluctuated violently.

Anyone could see that she had little time left.

She had already lived for far longer than an ordinary Awakener of her Rank should ever have.

Combined with the backlash and injuries she had just sustained, even she doubted whether she could survive for more than a couple more months.

Yet the demonic aura rising throughout the continent constantly reminded her of the Otherworld Demon.

She knew she had to do something in order to seek out a chance of survival for the human race. Otherwise, humanity would truly perish, and she would become the greatest sinner.

With that thought, the Elder completely ignored her worsening condition.

She raised her cracking scepter, causing hundreds of lights to fire out as she summoned the remaining members of the Human Temple.

Only after ensuring that the messages had been transmitted did she finally relax.

She struggled to carve out an underground chamber, stepped inside, and sealed herself within.

Through this method, she hoped to preserve what little vitality she still possessed.

--

Liora made no attempt to chase after the Elder.

Yet the moment the message spread throughout the continent, she raised her head and looked in her exact direction.

A faint smile appeared on her lips, as though she was able to look directly at the Elder.

Then, she gently shook her head.

She didn’t pay much attention to this person for now.

Instead, she closed her eyes, shifting her attention inward and allowing her consciousness to sink back into the Cosmic Sea.

Not much had changed compared to the last time she took a look at it.

The Cosmic Sea had expanded slightly, while one additional star had appeared among the countless others, radiating an aura of humanity and righteousness.

Resting atop it sat an exact replica of Liora.

The Human Emperor clone remained seated in meditation, refining the endless faith surrounding it. It sorted through the prayers of its believers and familiarized itself with its newly acquired abilities.

A few minutes later, Liora gained a complete understanding of its current state.

Previously, the Human Emperor had solely existed as a historical projection summoned by the Elder, feeding on faith and others’ essence.

Following the replacement of both faith and bloodline, however, that projection had become a true living being.

Combined with the Human Emperor talent gene she had plundered, it had become a real Awakener.

It no longer had to rely on faith to maintain its existence and could now practice and grow stronger through its own efforts.

However, this was something Liora had known long ago.

What truly caught her attention was the ability of the Human Emperor talent.

"Gathering the power of all human believers and temporarily bestowing it upon its owner..."

"The Human Emperor deserves his title. No wonder he was able to rise to power so quickly during ancient times."

In some ways, the ability resembled the Cosmic Sea, which allowed Liora to borrow the power of the countless beings within it, such as the small silver dragon.

However, although the ability of the Cosmic Sea had a higher ceiling and potential, the Human Emperor talent was easier to utilize.

As long as someone was human and believed in the Human Emperor, their strength could be borrowed without any side effects.

Long-term, the Cosmic Sea would undoubtedly be stronger and self-sufficient.

But in the short term, the Human Emperor talent was both simpler and more explosive.

"Had the Human Emperor been born in the outside universe instead of this secret realm, his achievements would have been unimaginable."

"The faith of the Blood Forest Realm already allowed him to stand at the apex of Rank 11 Awakeners."

"If he possessed the faith of the quadrillions of humans of the outside universe, then just how powerful could he have become?"

Liora didn’t mull over this thought for long.

Ultimately, the Human Emperor was gone, and he would not have such an opportunity.

She, however, had the potential to achieve this.

Looking at the Human Emperor clone and sensing that she could freely wield the Human Emperor talent, she couldn’t help but break into a smile.

Besides the creation of the Cosmic Sea, this clone was perhaps the greatest reward she had obtained during her adventure to the Blood Forest Realm.

Recalling this, though, her expression subtly shifted.

Her consciousness withdrew from the Cosmic Sea and returned to reality, as she chose to summon the System Panel.

Secretly, she was quite intrigued, not knowing what other unexpected changes she should expect.