Chapter 465: "Do I look like an ordinary incubus to you?"

"Phew..."

Gray adjusted his robe and walked toward the door.

’First, I’ll let Scarlett see the result. Then I’ll visit Elira tomorrow.’

He paused, considering the order of events.

’No, perhaps I’ll visit Elira first. Scarlett might start asking where all her cultivation resources went, and I’d rather hear her complain after I’ve secured another batch.’

A pleased smile spread across his face as the door opened.

Outside, a servant waiting in the corridor immediately stiffened. Even with Gray suppressing most of his aura, the change in his presence was hard to miss.

The faint pressure around him felt entirely different from the aura of the Peak Saint who had entered the chamber just hours ago.

The servant lowered his head.

"Young Master Gray, Her Highness Scarlett asked me to inform you that she would like to see you once your cultivation session is finished."

Gray looked at him.

"Did she say why?"

The servant hesitated, clearly unsure how much he should reveal.

"Her Highness said she wished to discuss the resources allocated to your cultivation, as well as your plans for the academy."

Gray’s smile remained unchanged.

’There it is.’

He had known Scarlett would notice sooner or later.

The princess was proud, observant, and far too sharp to keep providing resources without wondering what he intended to do with them.

Still, there was no reason to worry.

He had made good use of every treasure he received, and the results spoke for themselves.

"Very well," Gray replied, stepping into the corridor.

"Tell me the way."

The servant bowed and hurried away, while Gray followed just behind him, passing through the long corridor.

The residence was quiet at this hour.

Black crystal lamps hung from the ceiling, their crimson flames casting a soft light over the dark walls, while several servants moved through the distant halls carrying trays and sealed boxes.

A few guards stood near the intersections, their armor marked with the crescent moon insignia of Scarlett’s family.

Gray had passed through these corridors many times over the past few days, yet the servants and guards he encountered now seemed to look at him differently.

Some bowed their heads immediately, while others stole brief glances at him before pretending to return to their duties.

Even with most of his aura suppressed, his presence had changed.

The difference between a Peak Saint and an Emperor was far too large to hide entirely.

’News travels fast in a noble household. By dinner, half the residence will know I’ve broken through.’

He was not particularly bothered by it.

Reaching the Emperor Realm at his age, especially being an "incubus", was an achievement worthy of attention, and pretending otherwise would only make people more suspicious.

Besides, Scarlett had already promised him a supply of cultivation resources. Letting her see the results of her investment would hardly hurt his position.

The only question was how she would react when she learned he had consumed the Pure Heartseed.

Gray almost smiled at the thought.

’She’ll either congratulate me or start questioning every single thing I’ve done since the auction. Knowing her, it’ll be the second one.’

The servant stopped before a pair of tall doors decorated with silver crescent patterns.

"Young Master Gray, Her Highness is waiting inside."

"Thank you."

The servant bowed and stepped aside.

Gray pushed open the doors.

The room beyond was a private sitting hall, furnished with dark wooden chairs, a low table, and a wide window overlooking the residence’s gardens.

Crimson flowers grew beneath pale stone arches, their petals reflecting the faint glow of the demonic lamps scattered throughout the courtyard.

Scarlett sat on a chair beside the window, dressed in a dark crimson gown with silver embroidery along the sleeves.

Her long hair fell over one shoulder, and a cup of tea rested untouched on the table before her.

She looked up as Gray entered.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Scarlett’s ruby eyes moved over his face, then down to his chest, where the faint traces of his aura remained despite his efforts to keep it hidden.

Her expression did not change much, but the hand holding her teacup stopped halfway to her lips.

She set the cup down.

"Close the door."

Gray did so.

"Good afternoon to you too, Princess. I trust the day has treated you well?"

"Gray."

"Yes?"

"Sit down."

"You’re being unusually commanding today."

"And you’re being unusually talkative. Sit."

Gray pulled out the chair opposite her and settled into it, crossing one leg over the other with the ease of someone who had done nothing wrong.

Scarlett stared at him.

He returned her gaze.

After several seconds, she leaned back in her chair and folded her arms.

"You broke through."

Gray blinked.

"That was quick. I had barely entered the room."

"Don’t try to distract me. Your aura has changed, your energy is denser, and your body is carrying the pressure of a higher realm. You entered the cultivation chamber as a Peak Saint, yet the person who walked out of it feels like an entirely different person..." Her eyes narrowed.

"Tell me, Gray, what happened in there?"

"I cultivated."

"I gathered that much."

"Then I’m glad we’re making progress."

Scarlett’s lips pressed into a thin line.

For a brief moment, Gray thought she might throw the teacup at him. Instead, she took a slow breath, picked it up, and drank before setting it down again.

"You’re going to answer my questions properly."

"I’ll do my best."

"You say that as though you’re preparing to disappoint me."

"I wouldn’t dream of it."

"You’ve disappointed me several times since the day we met."

"Several? Princess, I remember only a few minor misunderstandings."

"The auction alone gave me enough reasons to regret meeting you. You encouraged Elira to compete with me, accepted resources from both families, and somehow left with everything you wanted while pretending you had nothing to do with it."

Gray placed a hand over his chest.

"Those are serious accusations. I was merely accompanying you to an auction."

"And yet you somehow managed to turn a simple visit into a competition between two royal families."

"Perhaps the auction house should reconsider how it arranges its guests."

Scarlett stared at him for another moment, then let out a quiet breath through her nose.

"You are unbelievable."

"I’ve been told that before."

"I’m sure you have."

Her gaze returned to his chest.

"Now answer the question. How did you reach the Emperor Realm? And more importantly... how did you not trigger a lightning tribulation?"

Gray’s playful expression softened slightly.

Unlike his teasing about the auction, this was a question she had every reason to ask.

An advancement from Peak Saint to Early Emperor was an enormous step, and even among the descendants of royal demon families, reaching it required talent, resources, and time.

The only reason it was important was that it was on this realm that one would be able to communicate with the Laws of the Universe.

The Pure Heartseed was an exceptional treasure, but its value came from its purity and the way it helped refine a cultivator’s foundation, not from some miraculous ability to force anyone through an entire realm.

For most cultivators, even absorbing it would have required a lengthy period of preparation.

Gray’s foundation, however, had been built differently.

He had accumulated too many strengths, too many techniques, and too many competing demands for ordinary cultivation methods to produce quick results.

The Heartseed had allowed his body and mana core to advance together, removing one of the greatest obstacles holding him back.

He had expected a breakthrough.

He simply had not expected it to be so clean.

"The Pure Heartseed," he replied.

"I used it to refine my foundation, and the breakthrough followed."

Scarlett’s expression grew serious.

"You consumed the entire thing?"

"Every last trace."

She went silent.

Gray watched her eyes shift toward his hand, as though she expected to find the seed sitting in his palm, waiting to be returned to its case.

"How...? It’s an object purely made of the purest kind of mana. An ordinary incubus like you... shouldn’t have the ability to transform mana into Demonic Energy."

Hearing those words, Gray’s expression suddenly changed, and as if to prove a point, he switched his crossed legs and suddenly tilted his head.

"Tell me..."

A scarlet mist suddenly started seeping out of his body, shrouding his entire body in mystery.

"Do I look like an ordinary incubus to you?"

The moment he uttered those words, a strange yet suffocating killing intent instantly filled the whole room.

"U-Urgh..?"

Scarllet immediately covered her mouth, as her own legs suddenly started quivering from the huge amount of pressure coming from him.

Thump, thump, thump!

Gray watched Scarlett struggle against the pressure surrounding her, his crimson eyes remaining fixed on her trembling figure.

For several seconds, he said nothing.

Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the scarlet mist began to retreat into his body, and the suffocating killing intent vanished from the room.

Scarlett staggered slightly before catching herself against the table. Her chest rose and fell as she took several deep breaths, her ruby eyes burning with disbelief and anger.

Gray tilted his head.

"Well? Have I answered your question, Princess?"

Scarlett stared at him as though she were seeing an entirely different person.

"You’re..." She paused, gritting her teeth as she regained control of her voice.

"What exactly are you, Gray?"

He smiled innocently, the same harmless expression returning to his face as though nothing had happened.

"An Incubus, of course."