Deep within the Red Line, in the mysterious palace of Pangaea Castle.
Candlelight flickered gently.
Im was hunched over a massive desk, a secret letter clutched in her hand. The surrounding candlelight was still and dim, stretching her shadow into a grotesque and eerie form.
But at that moment, the movement of her hand paused slightly, a slight frown creasing her brow, a wave of displeasure rising from the depths of her heart.
That familiar presence came from the Five Elders, far away in Elbaf.
A battle had erupted there, which was within her expectations, but she could also clearly sense another layer of emotion in the battle—it wasn't the confidence of being assured of victory, but anxiety, even a hint of a stalemate.
Logically, the power she bestowed should have been a symbol of invincibility in this world. Whether it was Jin or any other enemy, they should have been easily crushed like straw dogs.
However, the Five Elders' battle didn't seem to be going so smoothly, and even began to show a kind of sluggishness and disadvantage that she extremely disliked.
"How could this be..."
She murmured softly, her voice low, as if talking to herself, but her eyes gradually turned cold as ice.
Im's fingers tightened slightly, the force causing the secret letter to involuntarily crumple, her mood instantly becoming sharp.
She had originally placed high hopes on the Five Elders, expecting them to easily eliminate all obstacles with her gift.
But now, their performance filled her with deep disappointment.
She hadn't bestowed this power without preparation. To do so, she had spent a great deal of energy, pouring her centuries of accumulated dark power into it.
But the Five Elders... had still failed to fully control it, and instead seemed to be hampered by this power.
She slowly rose, her deep eyes narrowing slightly, as if looking through the Red Line towards the distant Elbaf, her expression carrying a hint of cold mockery and contempt.
"How pathetic..."
Those Five Elders were truly disappointing to her.
She had originally thought that she had chosen the most suitable agents, who could easily defeat Jin and his companions one by one, but now it seemed that her trust had also been somewhat betrayed.
Im's expression gradually turned as cold as frost, and she gently waved the staff in her hand, instantly freezing the surrounding air, as if even the wind on the Red Line had stopped.
Various thoughts flashed through her mind: were the Five Elders incompetent, or were Jin and the others unexpectedly powerful?
Or... was her choice of the Five Elders simply a mistake?
"Hmph..."
She snorted coldly in her heart.
If the Five Elders continued to be bogged down in a protracted battle, or even be defeated, she would never stand idly by.
She lowered her eyes, pondered for a moment, and decided to speed up the progress at hand.
The Five Elders were just her pawns. If these pawns couldn't complete her orders, she wouldn't mind taking action herself to end this war completely.
"After receiving my power, they actually fell into this kind of situation, truly useless..."
Her voice was low and cold, as if containing a power that could destroy everything.
Im's gaze focused again, as if piercing through the barriers of space, gazing at the focal point of that distant battle.
Her eyes gradually turned cold, and she was already planning her next move—if this battle couldn't achieve the result she wanted, then she would personally destroy Jin, and even that ancient Elbaf would be destroyed along with him.
A hint of cold killing intent appeared in Im's eyes as she narrowed them slightly, silently overlooking a chess piece in her palm.
With a slight movement of her fingertip, the joints slightly exerted force, as if to crush the chess piece into powder.
The Five Elders, these servants she once trusted, had repeatedly disappointed her at the most critical moment, and even dragged down her plan's progress.
She realized that it was time to deal with these useless people.
A cold smile appeared on her lips, her eyes revealing an unshakable determination.
These five old men who had been in power for so long may have already been corrupted by the comfort of power, becoming dull and incompetent.
In the past, they may have been her sharp claws, but now, they had become flaws in her perfect plan.
Soon, when they returned, she would completely eliminate them and replace them with truly qualified new Five Elders.
And she would personally select these "successors", inject her accumulated dark power into their bodies, and personally create more loyal, more powerful, and never disappointing "new Five Elders".
"Hmph, perhaps it's long overdue for these five people to be replaced."
She muttered to herself, her tone low and cold, as if these words were only murmured in her heart, even the air felt a bit chilling.
She turned around and turned her attention to the instruments and magic circles in front of her. That was where her true focus lay—the "important matter" she was currently working on was her true masterpiece.
In this world, as long as she completely completed her work, no one would be able to contend with her, whether it was Jin or those restless pirates.
She raised her hand and waved it gently, and the surrounding candlelight flickered violently, illuminating her face indistinctly, reflecting the madness and indifference in the depths of her eyes.
To her, the Five Elders were just pawns. Once they couldn't play their role, they were like trash, easily discarded.
She didn't need to hesitate, let alone feel guilty. No one in this world could match her will. Only those absolutely obedient and absolutely loyal tools were worthy of staying by her side to be used by her.
"Perhaps..." she murmured softly, a sharp light flashing in her eyes, as if she had already foreseen the collapsing scenes of the future, "they should also realize their stupidity."
As soon as she finished speaking, she gently twisted her fingertip, and the chess piece symbolizing the Five Elders turned into dust in her hand and scattered with the wind.
She curled her lips into a cold smile and turned her gaze to a dark light array in front of her.
Her thoughts instantly focused, immersing herself in her own world, concentrating on promoting that unknown and powerful ritual.
As long as the ritual was successful, she would have the power to completely control the entire world, and the Five Elders, these old and decaying people, would naturally no longer be needed—a new symbol of power would reappear from this moment, to be controlled by her.
"Let all of this... return to its original trajectory."
Im's voice echoed faintly in the empty hall, as if every word was fused into the darkness, without a trace of emotion, carrying a cold determination.
She turned around, her figure slowly disappearing into the shadows behind her, the flowing candlelight behind her stretched her silhouette into an eerie shadow, until it completely disappeared into the darkness.
Her figure was light and silent, like an invisible mist, or like a part swallowed by darkness.
Every step she took was on the ancient stone slabs, as if an invisible force was driving her.
There was only a faint firelight around, and the faces of the reliefs on the walls appeared distorted and eerie in the shadows, as if silent wails echoed in this ancient palace.
However, she didn't care about these gloomy and terrifying scenes. There was only coldness and endless ambition in her eyes. Her goal was already clear—to reshape everything, with her will as the cornerstone, and to place the entire world back under her control.
She lowered her head and glanced at the runes in her hand that glowed with a faint blue light. This rune was her "rewriting" of the world.
She gently closed her eyes, and her palm clenched the rune tightly. It felt as if a deep force was slowly surging in her heart, spreading throughout her body, reaching her limbs and bones.
"Return to the original trajectory..."
She opened her eyes slightly, and an ominous light flashed in her pupils.
This trajectory was the blueprint she had designed long ago. Any obstructors would be mercilessly erased and disappear without a trace.
As Im slowly stepped into the deeper darkness, the temperature of the entire hall seemed to drop suddenly, and the surrounding air became stagnant, as if even the light was trembling.
Those eyes that had tried to peep into her power and those voices that had questioned her will were gradually dimming in the depths of darkness.
In a moment of silence, her figure completely disappeared, and the darkness wrapped her in it, as if she had never existed.
However, her power and her will were like poisonous snakes, wandering in every corner, silently affecting every corner of the world.
In the darkness, only that almost imperceptible smile revealed her determination.
All of this will eventually return to the trajectory she had set, and she will still be the shadow king who dominates everything.
...
