The Steward Demonic Emperor

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“G-Gu Yifan?”

Shangguan Yulin’s pulse quickened, his eyes widened, his face bore shock.

[What is going on here? What’s this traitor doing here? And, more importantly, what got him so confident to come here?]

Since every Shangguan clansman saw him as a traitor, it made not one ounce of sense for him to just waltz in here.

Questions upon questions filled Shangguan Yulin’s mind, yet there was no answer to lift the confusion, no sign to clear his doubts. Soon though, none of it even mattered, not when the hatred of revenge took over his faculties and was reduced to just crunching his teeth in rage.

It was all this guy’s fault that he, Shangguan Yulin, had his bright future as a double agent ruined.

It all went down the drain the minute Gu Yifan popped into the picture. He betrayed the Shangguan clan and was now under their strict and creative torture, while also losing his value to Shangguan Feiyun.

He was now so revolting, none saw him as a human being anymore. Everyone despised him, everyone hated him. What was worse, he now had no future, all because of this demon, Gu Yifan.

Shangguan Yulin’s fury only grew as all his failures came to mind. Looking at the insufferable smug face and that demeaning smile, he’d want for nothing more than to tear him apart piece by bloody piece.

The thing that took the last straw was that the punk faked being some bigshot demonic cultivator to toy with him and even had to knock his head on the floor for that. It was a humiliation this young master could never ever accept.

What emperor would prostrate to a filthy flea-ridden beggar?

[Anyone would be better than this freak!]

Everyone had their limits, whether aware of it or not. Shangguan Yulin’s was Zhuo Fan.

[Anyone can be better than me but not this bastard. I’m superior to you in every way!]

This was none other than Shangguan Yulin’s pride talking. It stemmed from his deep disdain of Zhuo Fan from the very start; he just couldn’t let go of it. Or maybe his obsession with Shangguan Qingyan, who ended up getting close to Zhuo Fan, that he couldn’t overcome.

In any case, while the entire event was made clear to any casual observer, he was still stuck in the past, blinded with his head stuck in the sand.

The same guy he viewed as inferior, as a mere smudge towards his glorious future ended up being an expert in deep disguise.

He would never accept it and would do anything to justify this fact to himself, to the point of being incapable of thinking basic questions as to why Zhuo Fan could just strut in here. All that came out was vitriol and bloodlust, “Sixth elder, he is the reason why we lost so many people in the Flying Cloud manor! He gave us a fake map! Sir has to grab him and avenge them all!”

Sixth elder gave Zhuo Fan an icy look.

He hardly talked with Zhuo Fan in the Gu household and knew how things transpired, thus labeling him as a double agent as well. Since he was too busy carving into Shangguan Yulin in here, he was not part of Zhuo Fan’s enlightening and inexorable speech held outside.

In short, he was oblivious of Zhuo Fan and the Shangguan clan’s deal.

He was now thinking of nothing else but catching this traitor and giving him a re-education he wouldn’t forget.

Sixth elder hated his kind the most.

He shot for Zhuo Fan, bearing his bloodthirsty palm on Zhuo Fan, to grab him. Late Genesis Stage power slammed into Zhuo Fan and pinned him on the spot.

Yet it didn’t seem to affect him, as if he chose to stay put, if that smile was anything to go by.

Shangguan Yulin snickered, relishing his mortal enemy’s plight.

No matter how sixth elder was raging and his attack seemed deadly, it was only meant to seize and not kill.

[That’s how you deal with spies. You capture them for interrogation, not kill them.]

Though that wasn’t to say the process was pain free. The grip on Zhuo Fan’s shoulder would be so tight, all the bones would snap like twigs.

[Then there’s the pain, he-he-he…]

[Followed by a world of hurt, as each day something new is done to you to relish newfound agony, he-he-he..]

Shangguan Yulin was actually looking forward to what came, snickering to himself as he pictured Zhuo Fan hanging from a rack with hooks in him.

[He-he-he, I’m the young master of Shangguan clan! A traitor will be deformed, twisted, tormented under all the pain he’s inflicted upon. To an outsider like you, that goes double. Let’s see how long you last under sixth elder’s deft hands!]

[Ha-ha-ha, I bet you’ll be far more miserable than me, but at least you’ll put me at ease, hi-hi-hi…]

Shangguan Yulin cackled in his mind, rapture clearly painted on his face, his eyes obsessed with turning those twisted thoughts into reality that he was already picturing Zhuo Fan bleeding, even as the attack had yet to land.

He perked his ears, ready to relish Zhuo Fan’s shoulder crumble like glass, the symphony soothing his disturbed mind.

[Ah, I’ve waited days for this. There’s no better joy out there…]

“Sixth, stop!”

An aged hand came out of the darkness and grabbed sixth elder’s cruel hand before it even reached its target.

Sixth elder started and found one of Shangguan clan’s three venerables next to him and the many other elders coming in.

Sixth elder shook, “W-what…”

“Mister Gu is a guest and needs to be treated with respect.”

The venerable gave him a look and pulled sixth elder to the side to whisper in his ear. Sixth elder jerked, bobbed his head and returned to Zhuo Fan with new eyes, “I ask Mister Gu’s forgiveness for my earlier ignorant transgression.”

Dong!

While the cave was awfully peaceful, the same didn’t apply to Shangguan Yulin’s mind, feeling like bombs went off constantly.

Gone from his elated state of hoping to see Zhuo Fan suffer, Shangguan Yulin’s mind was broken.

[What the hell? Why are the elders treating him like some prized pony? They weren’t like this even around uncle!]

“There’s no fault in ignorance. I may not be much, but at least I’m kind, ha-ha-ha…”

Zhuo Fan never registered Shangguan Yulin’s shocked eyes, closing in with his chest held high, putting on some mighty airs while taking a look around, “My, what base chambers. There’s not even a chair around…”

“S-since Mister Gu says it must, then it has to have one.”

One elder shouted, “Guard, get Mister Gu a laurel chair! What do you mean we don’t have one? Get Clan Head’s from the meeting hall if you have to!”

“Yes, sir!”

A reply came from outside and in no time flat, a disciple brought the chair behind Zhuo Fan for him to rest his laurels. But not before the thoughtful disciple gave it a good cleaning with his sleeve, “Mister Gu, please, he-he-he…”

“Since there isn’t, there isn’t. Why bother? I’m not one to nitpick, ha-ha-ha…”

With a smug grin, Zhuo Fan faked modesty as he made himself most comfortable in the prized chair.

But this wasn’t the end of it, not by far. Zhuo Fan gave a disapproving look around, like something was missing, and coughed.

Catching his drift, one elder shouted, “Get a table and tea! Damn fools, are you blind? How could you forget about the rest when you brought the chair?”

“Yes, elder.”

Two disciples were quick to arrive, gently placing a table next to Zhuo Fan. The other carefully placed the tea for their prized guest.

Grinning from ear to ear, Zhuo Fan leaned into the chair, the Clan Head’s chair, like a boss. He then made a show of picking his cup and sipping once with one of the most exaggerated expressions of joy ever.

[This is the life.]

Shangguan Yulin, dangling from his pole, twitched, his broken heart now in pieces.

His greatest hope these past torturous days was to see Zhuo Fan go through the same agony.

[What the hell? Why is showing off?]

[What’s with the elders? Why are they serving him like their ancestor, if not better?]

[Have you no dignity, old coots?]

Shangguan Yulin howled in his mind, but Zhuo Fan’s taunting face made him gnash his teeth in fury.

[Gu Yifan, did heaven placed you on this earth just so you can torture me? Ugh…]