"He lay in wait for an opportunity. The moment I made a major decision and showed even the slightest hesitation, he would appear, influence my mind, and make a decision for me that I would regret—but would have no choice but to follow through with!" Xia Ruize shook his head with a bitter smile. "Like raising an army in the Central Region, like killing Master, like what happened at the Ascension Altar—none of those were my true intentions! But what else could I do? No one was willing to believe in me anymore... And if I didn't keep moving forward, what would happen to Mother? What about Xiaoxue? What about my friends and brothers? Was I supposed to raise both hands and surrender to everyone, letting those who believed in justice and vengeance kill me? What about the people behind me... Besides... I tried that too. Back then, while I was under his control, I killed a general who opposed my decision... That general had been my brother and had followed me for a long time! When I came to my senses, I regretted it beyond words. I even had his family kill me! But in the end? Just as his younger brothers pounced on me and were about to kill me, the possessed me slaughtered every last one of them! I had no choice, so I could only keep walking forward, step by step..."
A trace of hesitation flickered across my face. How credible was Xia Ruize's attempt to clear his name?
"His influence was enormous. In the Human God Realm, he had been laying plans ever since that war. Even the Demon Hall in the Human God Realm, where Heizi was, had one of his pieces among its ranks. After all, he hadn't merely left countless contingencies behind