Purgatory Palace.
Hecate reclined on a throne woven of bones and thorns, watching the figure stepping in from outside the door, a pleased smile gracing her lips.
The figure possessed a thick, winding snake tail just like hers, scales as black as ink, and purple eyes gleaming with a cold luster.
Truly her child—so perfect!
Ning Busan stopped before the throne and looked up to meet Hecate's gaze.
Knowing full well he was no match for Hecate, he was naturally not stupid enough to deliberately provoke her.
This direct confrontation was a test.
A test of Hecate's attitude toward him, and a test of her next move.
“My child, do you remember me now?” Light shimmered in Hecate's purple eyes. “You were born in my embrace. I bestowed upon you the purest dark energy in this world, and sang lullabies to you for seven whole days.”
The corner of Ning Busan's mouth twitched slightly.
He recalled Satan's memories and strongly doubted the veracity of Hecate's words.
Before Satan was born, he had stayed in a pitch-black place where the daily wailing of ghosts and howling of wolves had nearly shattered his eardrums.
You call that a lullaby?
Are you serious?
Hecate's tone was filled with regret. “It is a pity I was still imprisoned by Surya back then. Otherwise, I could have watched you grow up slowly.”
“But no matter what, you are my only child.” Hecate licked her lips, her laughter carrying a sharp edge. “You belong to the darkness, and even more so, you belong to me.”
Ning Busan suddenly felt that Satan was incredibly lucky.
The guy had been born at a good time and never had to face Hecate directly.
Ning Busan suddenly asked, “Mother, do you love me?”
Hecate's fingers gently brushed over Ning Busan's cheek, as if caressing a precious work of art. “Of course.”
The moment the words left her mouth, a sudden burst of frenzied killing intent erupted in Ning Busan's eyes.
An Hourglass of Time appeared in Ning Busan's hand. He crushed it, and fine sand spilled from between his fingers.
This was the Hourglass of Time gifted to him by his master's wife, Mowen, which could cause everything in the surroundings to fall into a brief stagnation.
If augmented with the power of a godhead, it could produce an effect that defied the natural order—
A time stop of nearly two seconds.
Ning Busan abruptly drew a dagger he had prepared beforehand. Slicing through the stagnant air, he lunged straight for Hecate's heart.
His movements were so fast they were practically a blur. He didn't need two seconds; he didn't even need half a second.
Yet, at the exact instant the dagger was about to pierce her, Hecate's purple eyes flared. An invisible force locked tightly around Ning Busan's wrist.
The dagger hovered suspended in mid-air, unable to advance even a fraction of a millimeter.
With a sudden whip of her snake tail, Hecate knocked the dagger from Ning Busan's hand, sending it clattering to the floor. Her beautiful face contorted as she roared in question, “Why?”
Ning Busan's lips curled into a twisted, sickly smile. “Because I cannot feel your love.”
“Rather than a fake love, I would prefer to turn you into a corpse so that you can stay by my side forever.”
How should one deal with a yandere who possessed an extreme desire for possession and control?
Naturally, kill her while she was off guard!
And if the assassination failed, it didn't matter—just act even more yandere than her!
Let's see who is crazier!
“It is my fault. I did not give you enough of a sense of security.” Hecate's voice held an almost doting tenderness, as if she were soothing a disobedient beast.
A ball of pitch-black fire suddenly materialized in her palm, burning silently and swallowing the surrounding light.
“I am willing to share the authority of darkness with you, so that we can always be by each other's side.” Hecate slowly raised her hand, pressing the ball of pitch-black fire toward Ning Busan's chest.
“As long as darkness exists, we shall have eternal life. Even if we are killed, we will resurrect once more in the darkness, becoming even stronger than before.”
The flames danced on her fingertips, as if alive, slowly seeping into Ning Busan's body.
Ning Busan could feel that he could suddenly control a powerful force. However, this force did not truly belong to him and could be reclaimed by Hecate at any moment.
“You want to kill me? That is no big deal.” Hecate chuckled, her seductive purple eyes clear with the wisdom of seeing through everything. “I allow you to show your killing intent before me, but you can only belong to me.”
Ning Busan did not speak.
After this round of testing, not only did he suffer no losses, but he also reached a conclusion: Hecate's desire to control him was extremely high, but her level of tolerance was equally immense.
Ning Busan asked, “Mother, have you still not found that mermaid?”
Hecate said indifferently, “She is no longer in Hell.”
Ning Busan's heart leaped into his throat. “Do you know where she is?”
“I do not know where she is.” Hecate curled her lips. “But I know that the God of Light definitely has not found her either.”
The heart Ning Busan had held in suspense finally settled back down.
That Lilian and the Lock of Causality had not fallen into the hands of either the God of Light or the God of Darkness was already the best possible outcome.
Ning Busan asked, “Mother, since the mermaid has escaped from Hell, will you still kill the demons here?”
“Of course I will.”
“Killing them serves no purpose.”
“Keeping them alive serves no purpose either.” Hecate had her own set of logic. “It is enough to have the two of us in Hell. Why keep those eyesore ants around?”
Ning Busan tried to reason with her. “Demons are born in Hell and naturally believe in darkness. With a little cultivation, they could become your most loyal believers.”
Hecate smiled contemptuously. “Believers? I no longer need believers.”
“...What do you mean?” Ning Busan did not understand. “You were just fighting with the God of Light for believers in the Elven Valley. Why don't you need them now?”
“Fighting for believers is time-consuming and exhausting.” Hecate smiled sweetly. “Wouldn't it be easier if I simply slaughtered all of Surya's believers?”
“When neither of us has any believers, we will be standing on the same starting line. How fair is that!”
Ning Busan: “...”
When a lunatic possessed the power to destroy heaven and earth yet desired nothing, wanting only pure destruction, it was simply terrifying.
At this moment, Ning Busan suddenly felt a wave of empathy for the God of Light.
If he were the God of Light, he would also definitely do everything in his power to kill Hecate.
Rate on N.U.
