Caution doesn't hurt

Naga's body glittered in silver glow as opposed to his dark element while his purple robes fluttered moving through the wind. The ends of his hair whipped madly and yet his face remained perfectly calm and still.

Even if he had to show the seven heroes the respect they deserved didn't mean that he wasn't entitled to his own thoughts.

If he didn't have his own opinion in this matter, then that would be even more frightening. What kind of an Emperor can keep control over his Empire if he was a man without a calm mind and witty thoughts?

Resembling a stellar moon himself, his body flashed through the dark clouds while leaving a beautiful trail of silver light.

"Seven Rank 8 ancestors were defeated. The result is visible as they are afflicted with some ability that changed their gender and also destroyed their cultivation. This kind of attribute only belongs to the Prince of Lust— Asmodeus."

"But even for an Infernal Prince to gain such power, there is a need for a very expensive sacrifice."

"To defeat seven Rank 8s... Asmodeus must have been summoned at the peak of Rank 8 or even higher. Clearly, he didn't have enough time get familiar with his own body so he relied on an ambush. With his body sealed in an egg, we can consider him a delayed threat that needs to be tended to."

His thoughts churned as he finally held onto a key point.

"Sacrifice..."

"To summon the living sin of Lust in all his glorious power, a large amount of high-level sacrifice is required. Probable tens of thousands of cultivators."

"But where?"

"Such a large infernal signature wasn't detected inside the Empire."

"And how can a piece of news regarding the deaths of thousands of cultivators remain hidden?"

"An Infernal Cult?"

This was the problem with people of higher intellect and broad horizons. Since they know so much about this world, they start taking in all the variable factors they can recall and then try to connect the dots.

While this characteristic was required to be a successful ruler, right now, this very part of Naga kept him in the dark.

In his own mind, he started to form his own exaggerated speculations but he did come close to the truth.

"Wait, those three kids. How did they reach there and why was the trio even there?"

"There background needs some checking."

Naga thought as he finally saw the giant shining silhouette of his own palace. Calming his thoughts, he raced towards the Dusk City and quickly reached the base of a solitary tower behind the castle.

The tower looked quite luxuriously as beautiful and exotic glowing stones were embedded on its surface while the tower's surrounding was covered in a beautiful garden of Moon and Sun flowers that glowed silver and gold, looking spectacular.

The Moon flower and the Sun flower were actually mid-grade resources for light and stellar element.

Opening the portal to his Treasured House, nine figures and an egg quickly appeared in front of this magnificent garden.

Layla's gaze immediately brightened as she found this spot especially romantic while Perenna felt a slight tug by the thought of gaining her master's affection right in the middle of this spectacular scene.

Nora was quite calm as she was the one who planted these flowers a long time ago. Coincidentally, this particular garden was Naga's source of inspiration for the reconstruction of the Dusk City.

Smilingly, Nora turned towards the entourage and finally let out a small smile on her stoic expression.

"Welcome to my Garden of Constellation."

The remaining six smiled naturally while the devilish trio hung their heads low and acted humble.

Seeing the situation in the entirety, Naga's gaze flickered with the unknown and clasped his fist in front of his chest while smiling in a humble manner. The Dusk Family is known for their humility and every successor, though decisive in their actions, is also a humble person in his core.

This is one of the reasons that the Dusk Empire's citizens still have a content smile even if their eyes never witnessed the glory of a sunny sky.

Key to an Empire's well-being lays in the hand of the Emperor and every Dusk Emperor proved himself worthy of the title.

"I shall take my leave. Please do call me for any assistance required. Do the Seven Heroes wish for me to contact your successors?"

"The Dusk Emperor doesn't need to worry for us. We will contact our descendants shortly. Till then, we shall be imposing onto the Emperor. Our apologies."

Karma stepped up and bowed while representing the other five.

"Please don't embarrass me, Goblin Lord Kretta. It is my family's honour to entertain the founders of the establishments that we have thrived upon."

Since Karma herself bowed, how can Naga not bow, too?

This was one of the rare occasions when even the Dusk Emperor himself bowed.

"Naga, I will need your assistance in helping them to get their cultivation back. While we do not require high-grade resources, we would need elemental essence alongside elemental stones."

Her face covered with cold indifference, Nora spoke out without any shred of embarrassment or hesitation. No matter how much Naga felt resistant to this particular order, everything, even his own lineage came from his ancestor himself.

He cannot defy Nora's request neither did he wish to.

This was a golden opportunity to gain the other six heroes' favour. While he did not hope for anything exaggerated, he was smart enough to use this incident to gain better trading conditions from other members of the alliance.

"I will get right to it."

Naga clasped his hands once again before leaving.

After he took his leave, Nora looked at others and waved her hands.

"Please, follow me. Oh, Ganthor. What do you wish to do with these three?"

Nora pointed at her master and two seniors with an indifferent expression. Her actions were mere commands from her masters that she fulfilled dutifully.

Gloria touched her crimson bangs and spoke lightly.

"Since I have nothing better to do, I shall teach them a few lessons on swordsmanship and impart some of my experiences."

"Very well. You three, be sure to handle that seal with care. Once you enter, you will stay in the rooms assigned to your lot. Understood?"

Nora's piercing blue eyes peered towards them.

"Yes, thank you for the Heroes' generosity."

The three immediately bowed before the group entered the tower.

All of this was an act to keep their identities safe. After all, it never hurts to be too cautious.

Meanwhile, a shadow flickered through the waving flowers.

It turns out that Naga still had his misgivings and decided to keep an eye out. But their performance did satisfy Naga's curiosity as he finally decided to procure the cultivation resources according to their primary elements.

Even he was following the same concept: It never hurts to be too cautious.