The Shining Star Above The Heaven-Chapter 462: Still Not Giving Up

Aldrian could sense the emotions of the people who were watching him—fear, anxiety, respect, piety, worship. All of them reflected a single truth: they had no power before him, and so they chose to submit.

Some submitted because of the circumstances, while others did so with their whole will and soul. At this moment, Aldrian’s very presence resembled that of a god. In fact, many had already prostrated themselves before him, compelled by their souls to do so. For lower-level cultivators and mortals, his presence carried a force that filled them with reverence.

He was a god who had descended to the mortal plane, delivering his own judgment to those who had dared to offend him. A powerful god who is always watching and all-knowing.

Every scheme the second prince had devised now seemed meaningless in the face of Aldrian’s overwhelming power. As some would say, before such might, all tricks are futile.

Even now, the wounds on Aldrian’s body were healing rapidly and he would be fully healed in no time.

Aldrian looked toward the unconscious Cardinal Carsius and acknowledged his strength. Cardinal Carsius was a truly powerful cultivator.

Although the cardinal did not specialize in combat, his peak Emperor-stage cultivation and legacy artifacts made him a difficult opponent to face. He was much stronger than the Greed Devil, even when the latter wielded a high divine-grade artifact.

Until Aldrian encountered Cardinal Carsius, the Greed Devil had been the strongest opponent he had ever faced. At that time, the Greed Devil was at the high Emperor stage and wielded a high divine-grade sword he had taken from the vault of the Forgeheart Kingdom.

However, Aldrian knew that the Greed Devil couldn’t fully unleash the sword’s potential. The weapon wasn’t truly his to begin with. That sword wasn’t compatible with the devil’s energy, even if it still granted him a considerable boost in power.

Cardinal Carsius, on the other hand, was entirely different. He was already at the peak of the Emperor stage and wielded legacy artifacts that were fully compatible with him. He had successfully refined them. In addition, he possessed two artifacts that complemented each other perfectly, granting him an even greater surge in strength.

Without a doubt, Cardinal Carsius was the strongest opponent Aldrian had faced up until now.

With a thought, Aldrian teleported Cardinal Carsius’s body away to a safer place. He looked down at the massive army below and saw that they had already lost the will to fight.

Even though the holy territory was still active and gave the army both confidence and a boost in power, Aldrian’s strength was simply too overwhelming. Even the attack of a peak Emperor-stage cultivator wielding a divine-grade artifact had failed.

In the face of such power, they could only surrender. Their numbers and tactics were meaningless against someone like him.

His gaze then shifted toward the city wall, where Grand Duke Donovan, Prince Wilmar and Carlson Harris were supposed to be. Their presence had vanished the moment Cardinal Carsius was defeated. Aldrian assumed they had escaped using an escape talisman or something similar, as their presence disappeared instantly.

However, he did not mind. He would find them soon enough.

The remaining Emperor-stage cultivators and dozens of King-stage ones were still there, but he simply let them be as he swept his gaze over the vast army below.

"The battle is over. Return to the places you belong," he said, his voice echoing throughout the entire city. "I don’t care who leads you in the meantime, but I hope we never cross paths like this again."

He then turned his gaze toward a distant part of the city, where a large and imposing palace stood. It was located outside his domain, which meant he could not teleport to it directly. He was fairly certain it was the imperial palace.

Without hesitation, he teleported inside the city barrier and flew toward the palace.

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In a vast forest at an unknown location, a figure sat in a state of panic. His face was pale, sweat rolling down his cheeks, and his eyes filled with unease. He leaned against a tree, his breathing ragged, as though he had just escaped from a nightmare that refused to let go.

Though he wore low divine-grade armor and carried a low divine grade sword at his waist, none of it brought him comfort now.

All that mattered to him was escaping. He had to get as far away as possible so that the monster would not be able to catch him.

And who else could this be, if not the esteemed second prince, Prince Wilmar?

When he saw the curse break, Cardinal Carsius defeated, and Aldrian still alive, he didn’t hesitate for even a moment. He immediately activated the escape talisman he had prepared and escaped to a remote location far outside the capital.

There was no way he would stay in the capital for even a second longer—not after witnessing the failure of both Cardinal Carsius and the special artifact the devils had given him.

He still couldn’t comprehend it. The artifact was a middle divine-grade treasure, something powerful enough to curse even a high Emperor-stage cultivator with ease. He had used it on his own father, and thanks to that, his coup had succeeded.

But to think that even a curse cast through a divine-grade artifact had no effect on Aldrian... he no longer knew what to believe. That monster didn’t seem to have any weakness at all.

"Fuck! All of my dreams, all of my glory—gone!" he shouted in frustration, clutching his hair.

He knew that after everything, Aldrian would hunt him down. Sooner or later, he would be found. He wasn’t sure if Aldrian had a way to track him more quickly, but with how formidable he was, it was only a matter of time.

"No... I need to do something. I have to find a way to make him give up his intent to kill me."

He gritted his teeth, trying to think of something—anything—until his eyes widened slightly. A thought struck him.

He remembered that Aldrian hadn’t come to the empire alone. He had arrived with a group.

"Yes... I can use them. I can use them to threaten Aldrian. He’ll have to listen if I get my hands on one of them."

Wilmar stood up and looked off in one direction, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm

Without wasting another second, he took off at full speed. As a low Emperor-stage cultivator, his movement was swift, his figure blurring as he shot eastward through the sky.

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Back in the capital, Aldrian had already arrived at the imperial palace grounds. He had changed into a fresh robe to cover his upper body, as he had no intention of walking into this place bare-chested.

During his flight, his body had fully recovered, and the wounds had vanished without a trace. The golden energy that once surrounded him had already been retracted.

The imperial guards did not dare to stop him. They simply let him land and even lowered the palace barrier to allow him entry. After what they had witnessed and sensed from him, they had no reason to resist.

Although they were far from the battle site, those in the imperial palace could still sense the clash in the distance. A few King-stage cultivators stationed there had witnessed the battle from afar. The outcome was clear, and it was obvious that Aldrian intended to come to the palace.

There was no way they could stop someone like him with their strength. The only thing they could do was make sure not to provoke him.

After landing on the palace grounds, Aldrian walked into the palace without the slightest hesitation. He had already spread his senses and could instantly detect everything within the imperial palace. There were several places that caught his interest, and he intended to visit them.

He walked past many of the palace staff, but all of them quietly stepped aside to let him through. A few maids blushed at the sight of Aldrian’s handsome face, though they quickly composed themselves and bowed in submission.

Aldrian made his way to his first destination, a place where he had sensed the presence of someone powerful. The strange thing was that their aura felt weak and fragile, but he still intended to meet this person.

When he arrived at the room where the presence originated, the doors were already open. Inside, he saw a butler and a physician tending to someone.

What Aldrian saw was an old man with a white beard and pale skin, lying on his bed as if gravely ill. The man had just opened his eyes, and the physician was in the middle of checking his condition. The butler stood beside them, assisting the physician as he examined the old man’s health.

When they noticed Aldrian standing at the door, both the butler and the physician stunned before their faces turned pale. As for the old man, he looked in Aldrian’s direction with a hint of curiosity.

Aldrian met the old man’s gaze and asked calmly,

"Are you the emperor of this empire?"