King Xi first raised his head to glance upward. A Creation Sunstar radiating violet light hung there, yet neither he nor the Creation artificer seemed to find anything amiss.
He slowly withdrew his gaze and looked at the Creation artificer again. In a deep voice, he said, "Zhu Yi, you have done very well."
The Creation artificer's body trembled. This was the first time King Xi had called him by name. Suppressing the excitement in his heart, he bowed toward the man before him and declared, "This is what your subordinate ought to do!" He raised his head again. "Light Capital cannot be without Your Highness! The Hao Clan cannot be without Your Highness! And we cannot be without Your Highness!"
King Xi rose from the metal platform and stepped down, standing where he landed. Reaching out, he took up a rod-whip from the side of the platform and slapped it once against his palm. With a cold laugh, he said, "Not necessarily. I fear many people now do not want me to return, nor do they hope that I can return. Once news of my army's destruction reaches them, I imagine quite a few will be delighted."
The Creation artificer shouted, "Your Highness, those people are all treacherous rebels!"
King Xi pointed the rod-whip at him. "Correct. You are correct. They are all treacherous rebels." He reached out and patted the Creation artificer on the shoulder. "You are very good."
The Creation artificer was overcome with emotion.
He had followed King Xi since childhood and had been instilled with the belief that he must be loyal to King Xi. To him, loyalty came first; everything else was secondary. Without King Xi, he was nothing, a person who did not exist. That was unacceptable to him. And deep in his