Evangeline smiled. “Is that your subtle way of asking about my origins? This old lady has some secrets to keep. If you want to know about them, shouldn’t you share some of your own first?”
“What would you like to know?”
This kind of response surprised Evangeline. She didn’t expect Dyon to be so straight forward.
“Okay. I’ll see how sincere you are then. What are you doing here?”
Dyon shrugged. “I’m not here for anything in particular. I just had some free time and came for some experience.”
“Oh? I’m surprised… It doesn’t seem like you’re lying.”
“Of course, I’m telling the truth. I wouldn’t dare to lie to you.”
“You must know how dangerous it is for someone surnamed Jafari to come here. Yet, you really have no other purpose? It’s either you’re a very good liar, or you gave up your intelligence for that handsome face.”
Dyon burst into a fit of laughter. “I guess I’m not very intelligent. However, this is the perfect environment for me to train in. I could slowly consolidate my cultivation in a safe space like everyone else, or I can give myself a bit of pressure. It’s pretty clear what will help me out more in the long run.”
“I see…”
“Does this mean you’ll tell me why you’re here now?”
“What if this is just my home quadrant? Why can’t I be here?” Evangeline responded with a bit of a teasing tone. If this really was her home, Dyon’s question would be silly. Of course someone with her talent would come here if that was the case.
“Something is telling me your origins aren’t so simple. Call it intuition.”
“A little mystery would do you good.”
Evangeline’s smile truly had a way of lighting up the room. Coupled with her almost blinding golden hair and she looked as though she was a goddess that just descended from the heavens. Dyon felt lucky to be able to speak with her so casually, but he didn’t understand why this lofty beauty was so familiar with him. Could it really just be because she was a good natured person?
“I’ll let the Soul Rending Peak goddess keep her secrets then.” Dyon graciously took a step back, but he still took the opportunity to do a little give and take. “Do you mind if I ask you a question?”
“Depends on what the question is.”
“Why did you stop me from killing her? I’m not that magnanimous.”
Evangeline was startled. She could sense that Dyon wasn’t messing around, had she not stopped him, he would have killed Lilith without any qualms.
However, could she really blame him? With her cultivation, how could she not see through the despicable means Lilith was using?
This also confirmed something else for Lilith. Had Dyon had a true purpose here, would he really risk it just for the sake of short-sighted revenge? The fact he was willing to kill Lilith meant that he truly didn’t have some higher purpose here.
But, this also confused Evangeline at the same time. She had heard Dyon promise to save the poor girl with soul talent. Why did he hold back then but not with Lilith?
Truth be told, it wasn’t anything so complicated. Dyon didn’t save the young lady because he knew it wasn’t just her life on the line. He had a sneaking suspicion that there were many in her situation, so saving her alone would be short sighted.
However, that opportunity to kill Lilith was definitely his best. He knew that she was powerful, so attacking her while her soul was being torn apart would have been far easier. In the future, not only would she be on guard against his power, she herself would also be more powerful.
Even if he ended up being chased my the entire 98th quadrant because of it, Dyon was confident in his ability to hide and gather clues. Of course, this would be much harder without the status of a core disciple, but it would be worth it.
In the end, though, Evangeline couldn’t see through Dyon. It was rare for people to care like he did, but it was even rarer for people who did care to know when to set aside their morality to fight for themselves. This latter issue was the problem Evangeline, herself, faced. However, for the sake of not becoming the same woman she was in her past, she chose to endure even when she shouldn’t.
Evangeline sighed. She truly envied Dyon’s demeanor.
“Since you’re a member of the Jafari family, you should know a little bit about the underworking of this quadrant. Quite simply put, the clans of those young women you saw today are responsible for the state our 98th quadrant is in, but it’s also the reason the current situation is sustained.
“As for why those clans chose to send their youths here, I have no idea. What I do know is that they don’t plan on staying here for long. I’m sure you’re clever enough to understand what that means.”
Dyon pondered for only a moment before grasping the crux of the situation.
For one, Lilith took over the position of key wielder. Obviously, this meant that what the younger generation was doing here was already clear and didn’t need to be explained further.
What was odd was the fact they would still be here instead of directly heading to the Epistemic Tower. Why risk being found out by experts from other quadrants? Obviously, they had some loose ends to tie here before they left, and whatever those loose ends were, was related to exactly what Dyon wanted to accomplish here.