Corrupt Creations

If Seth were to say that he had a very bad and tough time while staying at the Demonic Shadow Royal Clan castle, ninety percent of it, was due to First Shadow's influences. Velgor was always a fear inducing presence for him, a person that was mysterious and shrewd. But if Velgor was the true definition of terror, First Shadow was the true horror. 

Velgor was the one who ordered and First Shadow the one who executed. All the hardships and tortuous trainings Seth had to pass through, were always commanded by First Shadow. That woman was nothing good and she had a thoroughly twisted personality; at least that was how Seth had always seen her, as an executioner that would mercilessly butcher anyone for her master. 

In reality, First Shadow was a devoted follower of Velgor, just like all the other Shadows. But she wasn't a witch when it concerned about anyone else than Seth, unless they were Velgor's targets. When dealing with Seth though, she had always used the worst methods possible. 

When Seth first joined the Shadow's training course, First Shadow started to gradually make his life turn into hell. Throughout all her trainings, there were multiple episodes where Seth had almost died and from multiple different forms. All the attention she had put on him, was a very strange thing for a cold blood executioner like her, but what Seth didn't know, was that she had felt threatened at that time; threatened that Seth would take her place as Velgor's First Shadow, his favorite Shadow. 

All those things were already in the past, but they had marked him deeply. That's why when he looked at her now, his guard automatically went up. 

"May I know, why are you holding our little princess?" First Shadow suddenly asked, pretending she didn't know what was happening. 

Seth furrowed his eyebrows and said: "Is there really the need to pretend? As if you would be following me until here for nothing. Since when... Since when Velgor knew about my relationship with Serene?" 

First Shadow changed her stance and said: "Eh? How would I know about that? But if I were to guess... I would say since the very beginning." 

"... I see..." 

Seth realized that maybe, everything was already orchestrated by Velgor. Even the alliance with the Lion's Pride Golden Palace, was a way for him to achieve one of his goals. 

Actually, Seth was right. Velgor's goal with this, was to actually infiltrate inside one of the Higher Grounds and deal with Seth altogether. Unfortunately for him, at least the Lion's Pride Golden Palace part was already a lost project. Apart from that, there was still Lexi's existence, a spirit that was the bane of all his lifelong plans. 

While Seth and First Shadow were facing each other, at the Lion's Pride Golden Palace territory, only death and cruelty remained. Even those two Golden Lions were already dead. They died battling the other two beasts. Actually, they had won their individual battles, but the injuries inflicted on them were so heavy, that there wasn't a way the crimson corruption wouldn't enter their bodies and take control over their instinctual will. 

Because of that, the remaining Lion Guardian was forced to fight against those two severely injured Golden Lions, since they were not themselves anymore. In the process of battling against three different beasts, the Third Lion Guardian was forced to a dead end. He executed a self-explosion technique, very much alike the one Qiao Xuan had executed, but the difference between their powers was as high as the distance between the stars. 

His self-explosion technique was not enough to cause a massive destruction, much less create a golden sun like Qiao Xuan's technique. But it was able to create a concentrated subjugation, killing all the Profound Mana beasts he was battling with. 

After his fight had ended, the Lion's Pride Golden Palace was pretty much done for. In the span of a single day, it had turned into a huge graveyard of beasts and people. Only a few practitioners were able to escape from that area, but the majority of the disciples that stood behind to fight, had perished. All Lion Guardians were dead and the main family lineage named Qiao, had been cut off from the world. 

There was a common saying in the cultivation world, often telling people about the strength of fierce beasts. If a beast were to fight a human at the same level and realm of power, out of hundred battles, the beast would never lose, not even once. 

Those creatures had naturally stronger bodies and inborn affinities that humans took a lot longer to develop. Of course, there were many exceptions to that rule, but after witnessing the bloodbath that had happened at the Lion's Pride Golden Palace, it was clear that those exceptions were very rare. 

The Lion's Pride Golden Palace had fallen; all Lion Guardians were dead; Qiao Xuan had perished while fighting against the Elf Queen. Now, the battle had changed places and theme. From light, it had gone to darkness. 

Seth and First Shadow were done talking. She wouldn't say anything he wanted to know, nor he would give her any answers for his behaviors. 

Since their conversation wouldn't vary too much from what they were talking, First Shadow was already feeling impatient to make a move. But just as she thought of doing it, she felt her Master's presence calmly approaching from behind. 

First Shadow suddenly started to act differently and Seth realized something was wrong with that. He stance changed from an aggressive to a tamed one and he didn't even need to use his Soul Sense to see what was the real motive behind her changes. 

A somewhat old man, calmly approached them by the side. His steps were very calm and unhurried, as if his target would never be able to escape from him. 

When Seth's eyes met with his, he immediately changed to alert mode. If his guard was already up, now he was like a beast that had to protect its family from a predator. At that moment, there were two Mana Sovereigns right in front of him and Seth knew there was no way for him to move away from that place. 

As Velgor approached, donned in an old black robe, there was a mild smile on his face. A smile that seemed amicable, but Seth couldn't trust it at all and no matter how many times he looked into Velgor's face, he would always feel like he was looking to a snake. A venomous viper that was always ready to pounce on him. 

"So that's how it is..." Velgor said after stopping besides First Shadow. 

"Master, he..." 

"Isn't it funny?" Velgor rhetorically asked, cutting First Shadow. 

"..." Seth didn't say anything, he was in state of alert and many things were wildly passing through his mind. 

"Isn't it funny? How the relationship between the two of you had unfolded?" Velgor was referring to Serene and Seth. 

"..." 

"Ahaha, you might think it's not a coincidence, but meeting with the important princess Silver Nights, the most beautiful symbol of our whole demonic race, right inside the Demonic Shadow Royal Clan territory and under the nose of a Mana Sovereign cultivator... Do you think it would have been possible under normal circumstances?" 

"!!!" Seth suddenly felt some alarm bells ringing inside his soul. He felt the necessity to ask something: "What do you mean? What are you implying with that?" 

"Heh! Don't you think it is kind of funny? Well... Since the beginning, your meetings with her were always silently "allowed" by me. Whatever you feel for that girl right now, was something orchestrated and put inside the table list for my final plans. It is a pity, that I was never able to acquire the item that I wanted from her... Maybe she didn't have it." 

Velgor allowed them to develop a relationship, so he could monitor Serene's actions through Seth's Soul Trap. Unfortunately, that Soul Trap was never under his control and it didn't send him signals that Seth had acquired the Hades Manual from her hands. It was what he was looking for and was never able to find. 

If he were to find out, that a single spirit had ruined all his plans, Velgor would definitely try to find a method to torture Lexi.

"What are you trying to say?!" 

Seth wasn't able to get what he meant with that, but Velgor was uninterested in explaining that for him, so he decided to say something else. 

"What I'm saying is... Isn't it funny, that the love between the two of you, was practically created by me?" 

Seth didn't know from where it was coming, but there was a boiling rage rising inside of his body. What Velgor was trying to say, was that every single time Seth met with Serene, had been an induced scenario created by Velgor. Even this case-scenario where Seth would come to rescue Serene was inside his plans too. The solid proof for that, was his presence there right now. It showed how terrifying the Demon Lord really was. 

His shrewd schemes were deep, not even leaving his own niece out of them.