Deep within the forest at the border of the Moon Demon Territory, Shien and the others moved through the shadows. Only the scaled lion-tiger beast, due to its size, was easily visible, while the others were concealed by the trees.

However, none were hindered by the darkness, moving freely through the forest.

Hartley led the way.

Shien followed, watching her back.

Shafney, sitting on the scaled lion-tiger beast, brought up the rear, her languid posture exuding an irresistible charm. Unfortunately, no one was there to appreciate this, not even Shien.

Shien was doing this on purpose. He didn’t want to talk to this woman, finding her presence annoying. He had already seen everything there was to see, and a few glances wouldn’t quench his thirst.

Therefore, he quickly ignored Shafney, focusing on Hartley, then finally asked,

“So, what do you want me to help you with?”

Hartley had mentioned needing his help yesterday. Even after Shien stood her up, she still came here to wait for him today, not even mentioning it during the day. This showed the importance of this matter to her.

And it was true.

“…I want to ask you to help me save someone,” Hartley said after a long silence.

“Save someone?” Shien was taken aback.

Hartley nodded, then pondered, seemingly choosing her words carefully.

“Before that, I want to ask Master Shien, are you familiar with the Ice Woman Clan?”

“Ice Woman Clan?” Shien was confused.

Seeing this, Hartley knew he wasn’t.

Then, a sweet, languid voice echoed,

“They are a small clan with a very small population, no men, only women, reproducing through special methods, but their reproduction rate is extremely low, their numbers never exceeding a dozen even at their peak.”

Shafney glanced at Hartley, then looked at Shien and explained casually,

“They don’t have a fixed territory, having wandered the world since before the Demon Realm’s creation. Coupled with their small numbers, very few people have ever seen them, even on the battlefields between the God Race and the Demon Race, it was rare to encounter a member of the Ice Woman Clan.”

This showed how mysterious and rare this clan was.

However…

“Every member of the Ice Woman Clan is incredibly strong, reaching level eighty upon adulthood, and like the Dragon Race and the Stone Woman Clan, they are a Unified Clan, incredibly rare among the Demon Race.”

Shafney’s explanation both enlightened and confused Shien.

“Unified Clan?” he asked.

“It refers to a clan whose members have very similar life structures and soul compositions, thus awakening Unique Skills with almost identical effects,” Shafney explained patiently, “Everyone knows that there are no two identical Unique Skills, each a unique miracle belonging to a single individual. But some special clans awaken Unique Skills with the same name and similar effects.”

For example, the Dragon Race, upon transforming into humans, all awakened the [Dragon Transformation] Unique Skill, the only difference being its strength. Most transformed dragons only received a three to fivefold increase in power, Yulin’s sevenfold increase unprecedented, and Airi, the Dragon Lord, Dragon Mother, and Dragon King, had a unique tenfold increase.

But besides the difference in effect, all transformed dragons had the same Unique Skill.

Clans that awakened Unique Skills with the same name were called Unified Clans.

“The Stone Woman Clan in the Succubus Territory is also a Unified Clan. Once they awaken their Unique Skill, they all gain the ability called [Stone Devil’s Eye], which can gradually petrify living beings into inorganic matter. Depending on the user’s magic power, some can even petrify everything within their sight into statues, incredibly powerful.”

Shafney’s words reminded Shien of his first encounter with Liel, when he almost fought her. At that time, Liel’s eyes became strange, seemingly containing a powerful force that made even him become serious. Now that he thought about it, that should have been the [Stone Devil’s Eye] Unique Skill.

“Unified Clans like the Dragon Race and the Stone Woman Clan are incredibly powerful, possessing great strength from birth, and all members reach a certain level upon adulthood, elites of the Demon Race, standing at the top, envied and feared by others.”

Saying this, Shafney sighed regretfully.

“Unfortunately, their numbers are too small. In the entire Demon Race, there are less than five such Unified Clans, and they all have their own problems.”

The Dragon Race, for example, was formed by dragons transforming into humans, and only a small portion of them, less than one percent, could awaken their Unique Skill. Coupled with the already small number of pure-blooded dragons, less than ten dragons in the entire Dragon Race could transform into humans. Even so, they were still considered the strongest race in the Demon Realm, showing their power.

The Stone Woman Clan was the same. With only females and reproducing through special methods, their population was naturally small, and those who awakened their Unique Skill were even rarer, yet they were still the strongest tribe in the Succubus Territory.

These were the Unified Clans, special and rare, yet powerful.

If there were more such clans, then perhaps it would have been much more difficult for the God Race and the Human Race to contend with the Demon Race.

“The Ice Woman Clan, as one of the Unified Clans, has the smallest population, but every member can awaken the Unique Skill called [Ice Prison], which allows them to control winter’s cold. In the past, they were even seen as the Ice Goddesses of the Demon Race, their abilities comparable to the Goddess who governs the concept of winter.”

Shafney suddenly smiled.

“Because of this, the Ice Woman Clan is also known as the second strongest race after the Dragon Race, even higher ranked than the Stone Woman Clan, another Unified Clan. And since they’re also an all-female clan, the Stone Woman Clan has always seen them as rivals, constantly competing with them, both in the past and now.”

Hearing this, Shien’s lips twitched.

“No wonder that crazy Stone Woman has been glaring at Hartley ever since arriving here…”

He originally thought they had a personal grudge, but now it seemed it was due to the rivalry between their clans.

However…

“We, the Ice Woman Clan, have never seen the Stone Woman Clan as enemies,” Hartley said casually, her words enough to infuriate Liel.

“I find this quite amusing,” Shafney chuckled, covering her mouth, “It’s a pity Hartley doesn’t want to join my Succubus Territory. Otherwise, it would be much more lively here!” This Succubus truly enjoyed chaos.

Hartley simply shook her head indifferently.

“The Ice Woman Clan swore allegiance to the Moon Demon long ago. As a member of the Ice Woman Clan, I naturally won’t break that oath,” she said, even if the one trying to poach her was the incredibly charming Shafney.

Of course…

“That’s why I lost interest in you later. Obedient puppets are the most boring,” Shafney said, curling her lip, “Otherwise, the Ice Woman Clan, with their icy hearts and indifferent nature, resistant even to my charm, would truly be my type.”

Shafney liked those who could remain calm and composed before her, resisting her charm and not blindly obeying her. The Ice Woman Clan, with their natural indifference, could resist her charm to a certain extent and should, logically, be favored by her. However, not only were they indifferent, but their hearts were also frozen, not heartless or cold, but like machines, only acting according to their clan’s rules, without any hesitation or dissent. Therefore, although powerful, they rarely expressed their opinions or showed any initiative, unable to live unique and exciting lives, only following others’ orders. Perhaps, for many leaders, such a clan was the most ideal and trustworthy subordinate, but for Shafney, such blind obedience was the most boring. Even if Hartley could remain calm before her, she would still obey her every command.

Therefore, Shafney lost interest in the Ice Woman Clan.

The Stone Woman Clan, on the other hand, with their unwavering hearts, difficult to conquer, disdainful of love and even looking down on men sometimes, piqued her interest, which was why she took Liel as her subordinate. Although Liel now obeyed her every command, Shafney did have to put in a tiny bit of effort to conquer her. This tiny bit of effort was enough for Shafney to give Liel a score of ten, right?

Shien wasn’t interested in Shafney’s personal assessment. This vixen is just being pretentious, still thinking about playing around. Has she forgotten how she was “conquered”? If she weren’t a Demon Lord, playing these games for thousands of years, she would have been utterly ruined long ago. Shien cursed her inwardly, forgetting that this particular Demon Lord could read minds.

“…” Sensing his thoughts, Shafney was annoyed, but remembering how she was indeed “conquered” by him, she felt a pang of frustration.

How could she be so unlucky?After thousands of years of playing others, she was now taken advantage of by a man she’d just met, losing the most important thing.

She, the Succubus, the most beautiful woman in the three realms, the enchanting demoness who captivated countless heroes and experts, desired by billions yet unattainable, had lost her virginity to a man she barely knew?

If this news spread, Omnipotence would descend into chaos, countless men and women heartbroken and despairing. And what was even more ridiculous was that this man was also her future brother-in-law.

Fortunately…

(He’s the one chosen by Mother.)

And he was special, different, not the type she disliked. On the contrary, she had even given him a score of ninety-eight in her heart, almost catching up to Airi, who held the top spot. Therefore, although Shafney felt complicated emotions, she didn’t particularly dislike him. Moreover, she could often read his thoughts, and these factors combined made her develop feelings for him.

Shafney, with her [Ripple Heart Demon], could read the minds of many, especially those captivated by her, knowing their deepest desires and thoughts. Even that person in the Supreme Castle just now, his seething jealousy, was clearly sensed by Shafney, but she didn’t care. Over the years, she had seen countless hearts, all their ugliness and desires, some even disgustingly obsessed with her.

Only Shien, despite having “had” her, didn’t harbor any lewd thoughts towards her, often looking down on and cursing her in his mind, even fantasizing about “conquering” her, treating her like an ordinary person.

Of course, he wasn’t without desire, sometimes even quite blatantly attracted to her, having some rather lewd fantasies that made her blush and grit her teeth. But those were just fleeting thoughts, quickly replaced by others.

This showed that although he was tempted by her, he wasn’t completely captivated. His adaptability was incredibly strong, easily accepting and letting go of things. Some might call this heartless, but Shafney, who could read minds, knew that he had a heart and feelings, simply being open-minded and carefree.

There were several figures in his heart, their presence always bringing a warm feeling, a feeling that transcended mere desire.

Whenever he thought of them, his attraction to her would decrease, even disappear completely.

This meant that even she, the most beautiful Succubus in the three realms, couldn’t compare to those he loved.

This surprised Shafney. After all, no matter how devoted a man was, upon seeing her, they would abandon their previous lovers and become infatuated with her. Even those renowned heroes and champions, although they might not abandon their original lovers, those lovers’ positions in their hearts would be instantly replaced by her. Shafney despised this, finding those so-called heroes and champions who easily abandoned their vows for a new love to be just ordinary, fickle men. Therefore, she disdained those heroes and champions, and those emperors and kings with countless concubines.

Only Shien, in her tens of thousands of years of existence, was the only man who, even after meeting and being with her, still loved others, those women who also loved him.

She, however, could only arouse his desire, nothing more. He didn’t love her, only occasionally feeling desire.

This made Shafney resentful.

(As expected, good men always belong to others.) She could only sigh.

Hartley had also been observing Shien and Shafney.

Their interactions since arriving in Central City were unusual.

Especially Shafney, who was usually indifferent to everyone, acting so intimately with a man, truly surprised even the cold and aloof Hartley.

Tonight, Shafney even came out alone with Shien, constantly explaining things to him, talking to him, even flirting with him.

All of this told Hartley how special Shien was to Shafney.

(As expected of the Hero who captivated even the Dragon Demon.)

Hartley didn’t overthink it, simply feeling a sense of wonder.

Shien didn’t know how these two women, both considered “unattainable flowers,” viewed him.

He simply looked at Hartley and asked the most important question,

“The person you want me to save, is she a member of your Ice Woman Clan?” He realized this.

“…Yes,” Hartley nodded after a long silence, “I’m the only one left in the Ice Woman Clan. The others are all frozen.”

“Frozen?” Shien raised an eyebrow.

“Indeed, frozen,” Hartley confirmed.

Shafney seized the opportunity to explain.

“The Ice Woman Clan is strong, very strong, even capable of rivaling transformed dragons at the same level. Even we Demon Lords consider their Unique Skill, [Ice Prison], to be incredibly powerful. With enough magic power, they can freeze even flames, lightning, magma, or volcanoes, theoretically even the sun, but to achieve that, they would need an unimaginable amount of magic power, even beyond Transcendent Level beings.”

The strength of the Ice Woman Clan didn’t need further explanation.

However, not everything was better when stronger.

“The Ice Woman Clan’s [Ice Prison] is too powerful, but its wielders are naturally indifferent, not even caring about their own lives. This mentality often leads them to unleash power beyond their control, ultimately being affected by their own [Ice Prison], freezing themselves and becoming trapped.”

Shafney revealed this tragic truth.

Hartley didn’t deny it.

“Because I reached Limit Level, possessing the greatest power and rarely encountering any opponents, I’ve never reached that point.” She had never needed to unleash power beyond her control, thus avoiding her clansmen’s fate.

“The reason our Ice Woman Clan has such a small population, besides our low reproduction rate, is also because we don’t value our own lives,” Hartley said, as if talking about someone else, evaluating herself, or rather, her clan.

“Since ancient times, powerful members of the Ice Woman Clan rarely die at the hands of others.”

“Because when we encounter a formidable enemy, we choose to unleash our full power, freezing both the enemy and ourselves.”

“Even without a strong enemy, if necessary, we will use [Ice Prison] to freeze everything, returning everything to silence.”

Hartley spoke of this tragic matter in a calm tone. For them, this wasn’t sadness or glory, but simply a way of life.

Shien found it hard to understand their mentality, but it was their business, and he wouldn’t judge them self-righteously.

So, he simply asked, “Can’t those frozen clansmen be freed?”

With Hartley’s power, unfreezing her clansmen, who were below Limit Level, shouldn’t be difficult, right?

Even if she couldn’t, couldn’t the Demon Lords do it? As Sara’s capable subordinate, one of the only three Limit Level experts in the Demon Realm, Hartley should be able to ask Sara or the other Demon Lords for help.

As Shien thought this, Shafney shook her head.

“The Ice Woman Clan’s ice is different from ordinary ice,” she said. Ice that could theoretically freeze even the sun, how could it be ordinary?

“It’s not a power that affects temperature, but a power that affects space and time, freezing the space and time of the target, not the target itself.”

“To dispel such ice, one needs either overwhelming power or the ability to manipulate space and time.”

“We can fulfill the former, but we can’t guarantee the safety of the frozen Ice Woman Clan members.”

“As for the latter, perhaps only Lildas, the Goddess of Fate, and the Three Goddesses of Time can do it.”

Besides them, there was one more.

“The Hero’s Holy Sword, capable of purifying all evil and countering all demonic powers,” Shafney said, looking at Shien.

“It’s you, then.”

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