Chapter 158 158: Changes



With time, the people started getting swayed by her talent, wondering if the prophecy could be wrong. However, as the outsiders' opinion changed, the Eldest Daughter and the Queen also changed. 

Each time she was defeated, she hated Yunxi even more. The seed of hatred had been planted in her heart by her mother, and it was constantly watered by the fact that Yunxi was so good at everything, always receiving all the attention of their father. 

The Eldest Daughter felt left behind... She felt abandoned. She felt that it was unfair. Why did Heaven bless her sister who was said to bring their Downfall? Why didn't Heaven bless her, who deserved it even more! Why her sister and not her?

The equation between the two sisters had slowly changed. It became even worse with time. The Eldest daughter started fading in the background, never making any appearances. It was as if she had abandoned the Royal Family. 

In fact, she left the Royal Family, disappearing into the unknown. The Royal Family searched for her everywhere but she was never discovered. 

After a few years, the Eldest Daughter finally returned, appearing even more mature than ever. For the most part, no one could find anything peculiar about her, yet everyone felt a strange feeling from her. 

At that time, Yunxi was twelve years old. 

"For the next few days, everything was peaceful. The Eldest Princess had returned. The King was happy and even tossed a celebration in the entire Kingdom. Albeit, he didn't know that the Eldest Princess was different now... Very different."

"Different how?" Xu Shan asked the maid. 

"She appeared... Cold and detached. Everyone thought it was because she lived alone. They didn't think seriously about it, until..."

"Until...?"

"A few days after that, Lady Yunxi was found unconscious in her room. Both her Celestial Spirits had disappeared. Her Star Signs were also destroyed, as if someone had swallowed her Celestial Spirit."

"Only some faded useless marks were left on her arm. She lost her Celestial Spirits, but she also lost all her fighting skills and all other talents."

As the maid spoke, even she found it hard to believe that this was the reality and not simply a figment of her imagination. If she hadn't seen with her own eyes, even she would've found it hard to believe that this was the reality. 

Yunxi was the living proof that this happened. 

"Even though Lady Yunxi appears to be twelve years old, she is actually much older... After that day, she hadn't just lost her talents but also her ability to age. She had been twelve for so long. Albeit, she can never get older, forever stuck as a child."

The maid spoke a lot, but Xu Shan was still mostly focused on just one sentence... The Celestial Spirit... It was taken. It was quite similar to his own Ability of Devouring! 

The only difference was that he couldn't devour anyone's talents... At least not yet. Moreover, whenever he devoured someone's Celestial Spirit, no faded Celestial Mark was left behind. His Celestial Spirit devoured everything, leaving no trace behind. 

Something was different about this incident... 

"Are you listening?" The maid asked, finding Xu Shan lost in some thought. 

Xu Shan snapped back to reality and nodded, "Huh? Ah, yes. Continue."

The maid further recounted how this incident shocked everyone in the Royal Family, especially the King who personally stayed with Yunxi for three days when she was unconscious. 

After Yunxi regained her consciousness, she was finally able to recount what had happened. 

"According to Lady Yunxi, the one who did it was none other than her own Elder sister who came to her room to meet her. The young lady said that the Eldest Lady did it, using some black demonic book. She said she felt like she was being devoured whole..."

"Seeing the young lady in this condition, I still remember that scene vividly. She was in such a trauma that she was trembling as she recounted what happened. She had lost everything she had!"

"A black book that could devour someone's talent and Spirits?" Xu Shan turned to Xinren, realizing that things were even more serious than he thought. 

If his guess was right, it was one of the Celestial Books. However, he didn't remember Xinren ever mentioning a Celestial Book that could devour? Something still didn't match up. 

In the meantime, the maid continued with her story. "Hearing everything, the King was so furious. He went to ask for an explanation from the Eldest Princess."

"That day, everything changed in the Empire. The Eldest Princess was too strong. The King was imprisoned. Yunxi's mother was also imprisoned. The Ministers loyal to the King were killed by the Eldest Princess as she took over the reigns of the Empire!"

"The Prophecy was right! Lady Yunxi did cause the downfall, but not in a way that everyone expected. All she did was unknowingly become the cause of someone else's jealousy."

"Many Citizens revolted against it. However, all of them were either executed or sent to mines. The Eldest Princess was now the queen and she didn't stop there."

"If anything, that was just the beginning of her conquest. And the result is what you see today. As far as one can go, all the land comes under the domain of this Kingdom... A Kingdom that she rules."

"There are only a few organizations which remain out of her jurisdiction, like the Tower of Prophecy, Shadow Hall, and some Ancient Families. Everything else... is hers."

"And that is just the beginning. With the Celestial Lotus in her grasp..."

The more she spoke, the more she intrigued Xu Shan. First the Heaven's Blessing, then the Book, and now the Celestial Lotus. 

For some reason, Xu Shan felt that the Queen was similar to him. However, at the same time, she was different. 

They were both ruthless, even when it came to someone close. However, he didn't have any greed for the Kingdom or to control the entire land. He didn't want to rule. That was a waste of time according to him. However, that appeared to be the goal of the Queen... Or at least a step of her goal. 

"How does the Celestial Lotus fit into all this?" Xu Shan asked.