The Villain Who Walked in the Light

She stared blankly at the trembling girl in the distance, her mind caught in an unprecedented deadlock.

Kill her? This child was the Tang Sect's last remaining spark!

If even she vanished from this world, then the Tang Sect, once glorious and prosperous ten thousand years ago, would truly lose its inheritance forever and exist in name alone.

If Shrek personally slaughtered the Sea God's last bloodline left in the mortal world, it would be the greatest joke imaginable!

But... if she didn't kill her and simply let her go, or secretly sheltered her instead?

Zhang Lexuan knew all too well how dangerous Evil Soul Masters were.

Once that extreme hatred consumed the child's reason, this continent would undoubtedly gain another cruel, bloodthirsty evil presence.

As a member of the Shrek Inspection Group, her duty was to nip all evil in the bud.

Sheltering a future Evil Soul Master completely violated the faith and bottom line she had always upheld!

To kill her would be heartless and unjust.

Not to kill her would mean betraying her beliefs and indulging evil.

No matter what she chose, Shrek's seemingly flawless "justice" and "glory" were torn to pieces by this cruel dilemma.

Seeing Zhang Lexuan's paper-white face and her lower lip bitten so hard it was nearly bleeding, the mockery in Qian Jue's eyes deepened.

"Why aren't you saying anything? Doesn't Shrek love standing on the moral high ground and judging others?"

Qian Jue straightened up and looked down at the struggling Zhang Lexuan, his tone cold enough to pierce bone.

"The facts prove that when your so-called 'justice' conflicts with your 'personal feelings' and your 'founding ancestor,' those hypocritical doctrines of yours aren't worth a damn."

Clearly, this soul-piercing question was far too difficult for Zhang Lexuan, who had always lived beneath Shrek's halo of "absolute justice," to bear.

At that moment, Zhang Lexuan fell completely still, and her once-bright eyes turned dim and lifeless.

Her faith had been violently shaken. She desperately wanted to find an answer within this dead end.

But sadly, under Shrek's rules, it seemed that no matter what she chose or did, she would be wrong...

Seeing Zhang Lexuan's despairing expression, as though her faith had completely collapsed and she had been thoroughly "broken," Qian Jue knew the timing was about right.

The mockery faded from his eyes as he slowly said, "Since you don't know what to do, I'll tell you the correct answer."

"The correct answer..."

Zhang Lexuan raised her head somewhat blankly. Her unfocused beautiful eyes instinctively turned toward Qian Jue, like a drowning person grasping for the last straw.

Qian Jue sneered, shifting his gaze away from Zhang Lexuan and back to the trembling girl in the dark corner.

"You Shrek people always trap yourselves in a deadlock of black and white.

"The so-called correct answer is to step beyond your disgusting, hypocritical moral coercion."

As he spoke, Qian Jue strode calmly toward Tang Ya in the depths of the alley.

His voice echoed through the dim alley, like a Funeral Bell striking against Zhang Lexuan's heart.

"Since Shrek, which prides itself on 'light,' abandoned her; since the lofty Sea God ancestor ignored her; since this world gave her nothing but despair, then the solution is simple."

"I'll take over this mess you abandoned."

Zhang Lexuan's eyes widened abruptly as she stared at Qian Jue's back in disbelief. "You... what are you going to do?"

"Since the light won't save her, then let darkness embrace her."

Qian Jue stopped before Tang Ya and looked down at the girl whose eyes were filled with deathly stillness. His voice carried a bewitching power.

"Rather than letting her be consumed by hatred in helplessness and become a lowly Evil Soul Master driven by the instinct to kill, I might as well grant her the power to control darkness."

"The Ironblood Sect owes her a blood debt, and I'll let her collect it herself. This world owes her justice, and I'll let her take it herself by stepping over her enemies' corpses!"

At those words, Zhang Lexuan felt as though she had fallen into an ice cellar, her blood seeming to freeze throughout her body.

She finally understood what Qian Jue meant by the "correct answer."

Not only did he intend to seize the Tang Sect's last remaining spark, he intended to personally turn the Sea God Tang San's last Tang Sect successor in the mortal world into a fallen one who would take revenge on the world!

Qian Jue intended to use Tang San's bloodline to slap Shrek and the Sea God across the face!

At that moment, Tang Ya in the corner seemed to notice the shadow before her.

She raised her head woodenly, and her once-empty, lifeless eyes met Qian Jue's profound, abyss-like gaze.

Qian Jue slowly extended a hand toward the pitiful, weak, helpless girl, like a demon offering a contract.

"Get up, little one. Do you want revenge?"

The moment his words fell, an asphyxiating aura of darkness erupted from Qian Jue's body.

It was profound and cold, carrying endless corruption and destruction.

The space behind him twisted violently, and the phantom of a Fallen Angel with jet-black wings silently emerged, gazing coldly down upon all things in the world.

Then, the shadow beneath Qian Jue's feet seemed to come alive and began to boil violently.

Accompanied by a low growl that made one's scalp prickle, a ferocious demon burning from head to toe with dark-red flames slowly crawled out from the abyss of the shadows.

Fire Demon Nama.

The surrounding temperature instantly soared. The Demonic Fire, carrying the scent of sulfur and destruction, forced Zhang Lexuan in the distance to circulate her Soul Power desperately to resist it, her eyes filled with horror.

But Qian Jue paid no attention to Zhang Lexuan's reaction. Lowering his eyes, he looked at Tang Ya, who had already been cowed by the aura before her. His voice was gentle, yet filled with extreme temptation.

"Do you want to avenge your father and mother? Do you want to trample those scum who slaughtered your sect beneath your feet and reclaim the Tang Sect that belongs to you? I can help you."

As his words fell, the massive Fire Demon Nama let out a deep roar. Its enormous body abruptly collapsed, transforming into sparks that filled the sky.

The sparks rapidly gathered and intertwined in midair, ultimately condensing into a sheet of parchment radiating an ancient aura, which slowly drifted down before Tang Ya.

The parchment was covered in dense, obscure Demon Contract runes traced in dark-red flames.

"All you need to do is sign your name."

Qian Jue's slender finger lightly tapped the contract. "Then you can immediately obtain a portion of the Fire Demon's power. This power will be enough to burn every enemy you have to ashes."

Tang Ya stared blankly at the parchment floating before her, feeling the heart-palpitating yet incomparably powerful force of destruction within it.

Her breathing grew hurried, and within her formerly dead eyes, a spark called "desire" finally ignited.

But she didn't reach for it immediately. Instead, she struggled to lift her head and fixed Qian Jue with bloodshot eyes.

"You... why are you helping me?"

There was no such thing as a free lunch, much less from a mysterious person who had descended like a god and granted her the power to take revenge.

Hearing Tang Ya's question, tinged with wariness and confusion, Qian Jue was briefly taken aback before he let out a low laugh.

"Why?"

The curve of Qian Jue's lips widened as he casually spread his hands, giving an utterly frivolous yet irrefutable reason.

"Mm... maybe because it's fun. If I have to give a reason, then it's this: the strong help the weak. No reason is needed."