Chapter 408: Flirting?

Su Mu smiled faintly. "When did I ever lie to you?"

A flash of anger crossed King Chi's eyes. "Even now, you're still trying to deceive me? You've been hiding your true identity this entire time, lurking within the Chiyan Empire. I trusted you so much, yet you're actually..."

"Pride?" Su Mu interrupted.

"Yes, exactly! Are you finally going to admit it?"

Su Mu shook his head helplessly. "I think I told you I was Pride a long time ago. More than once, in fact."

King Chi froze. She blinked as memories from the past surfaced in her mind.

Outside the Law Enforcement Bureau, she had run into Su Mu wearing the Pride Mask.

"If you're Pride, then I'm King Chi!"

"Hahaha... How did I never realize you were so funny?"

"I didn't figure you for trendy. The Seven Deadly Sins have been all the rage lately—are you just joining the fun and pretending to be Pride?"

"I'm not pretending. I am Pride."

...

As the memories flooded back, King Chi grew even more dumbfounded.

Wait... that actually did happen!?

King Chi was briefly at a loss for words. Fueled by indignation, her stubborn, unreasonable streak flared to life.

"I don't care! You still tricked me. I thought you were just joking back then!"

Su Mu laughed in exasperation. "How was I supposed to tell you, then? Throw a banquet, send you an invitation, and issue a formal public statement declaring that I am Pride?"

"You!" King Chi bared her teeth in exasperation. "I don't care! As far as I'm concerned, you tricked me! You—"

"Ahem..." Shangguan Chen's voice drifted from the Silver Ring. He simply couldn't listen to this anymore. Was this an interrogation? They were practically flirting!

He half-suspected that if they kept chatting, King Chi would break free from the Primal Divine Magic's brainwashing entirely, and the two of them would go off to live happily ever after like in a fairy tale.

A wisp of white smoke drifted slowly from the Silver Ring, taking the shape of Shangguan Chen.

Gone was the pathetic figure who had been fleeing for his life just moments ago. He stood proudly atop the high platform, looking down at Su Mu.

"Su Mu, bet you didn't expect this! I am here to expose your scheme!" Shangguan Chen wore a mocking look, eager to see the shock on Su Mu's face.

He was certain Su Mu could never have imagined that he—a man who was supposed to be scurrying for his life in the Nightmare World—would show up here so brazenly, bringing a carefully prepared grand gift!

"I did," Su Mu said plainly.

Shangguan Chen was speechless.

"Still acting tough when death is at your door! You snatched Supreme Heaven from my hands, and today, your retribution has arrived!" Shangguan Chen roared.

"Retribution? Where?" Su Mu casually glanced around, his tone entirely unconcerned.

This dismissive attitude only infuriated Shangguan Chen further, robbing him of the joy of a successful revenge.

"I am your retribution!" Shangguan Chen sneered. "I know you can escape into another dimension, which is why you remain so fearless even after your identity was exposed. What a pity. Hahaha... This time, you won't escape even if you grow wings. If you don't believe me, give it a try. See if you can still enter that dimension!"

"All right, I'll try." Su Mu nodded and attempted to enter the dreamscape. However, he found his way blocked. Some invisible force had sealed him inside the current world.

"What! I really can't get in. This is impossible..."

"Hahaha..." Shangguan Chen threw his head back and laughed, triumphant to the extreme. "It's too late for you to realize..."

"Was my acting convincing?" Su Mu asked softly, his expression returning to total calm.

Shangguan Chen fell utterly silent again.

He suddenly felt like he was being played for a fool. The smile stiffened on his face.

"It was pretty convincing," King Chi suddenly chimed in.

Shangguan Chen flew into a rage, his face twisting into an ugly scowl. He despised the Mad King more than ever, and he hated everything in this fake world.

"Mingyue, do it! Capture him!"

He roared the command, yet King Chi made no move.

"Mingyue, did you not hear your father? Now is the best time to seize Su Mu!"

King Chi hesitated. "But didn't you say I should only capture Su Mu if he tries to run or resist? He hasn't run away."

Shangguan Chen froze. He had said something like that.

In his head, suddenly appearing to expose Su Mu's plot and restricting him with the False Supreme Heaven would force the boy into a corner. Su Mu would never just sit there waiting to die; a battle was supposed to be inevitable. But the script wasn't playing out the way he had envisioned.

Su Mu hadn't panicked, nor had he tried to run.

It felt like throwing a full-strength punch only to hit empty air. An indescribable frustration welled up in his chest.

On top of that frustration, he was furious, utterly unable to understand how he had fathered such a foolish daughter.

"Father King, wasn't your goal in restraining Su Mu just to let the Blood Clan Progenitor retrieve Supreme Heaven? You were worried he might transfer Supreme Heaven away. But he's right here, and he isn't fleeing. There doesn't seem to be any point in attacking him."

"How is that the same? He is the enemy! An enemy! How can you not strike against an enemy?"

"But you also said that even with Supreme Heaven, Su Mu is incredibly difficult to kill. Against an unkillable enemy, what's the point of fighting?"

"I..." Shangguan Chen was losing his mind. He knew Shangguan Mingyue's thought process had been a bit eccentric since childhood, but he never expected her to be this obtuse as an adult.

Right at that moment, a spatial fluctuation rippled through the grand hall.

Shangguan Chen's face lit up with joy, and he quickly looked toward the disturbance. A second later, an aloof woman dressed in a scarlet gown stepped out of the rift. The newcomer was none other than the Blood Clan Progenitor, and in her hand was a dark gold ring—Supreme Heaven!

"I have retrieved the item. It is time for you to fulfill your promise and restore my memories," the Blood Clan Progenitor said expressionlessly. Plagued by chronic memory confusion, she resembled a soulless puppet, acting in a completely mechanical manner.

"No problem. Quick, give me the ring!" A look of wild ecstasy flashed through Shangguan Chen's eyes.

The Blood Clan Progenitor made no move to hand it over. Instead, she insisted, "Restore my memories first."

Shangguan Chen threw a wary glance at Su Mu and ordered King Chi, "Mingyue, subdue him quickly! We can't let him interfere at a critical moment like this!"

King Chi nodded. She waved her pale hand, sending a stream of radiant golden fire shooting out. It burst open directly above Su Mu, scattering specks of golden sparks that rapidly formed into a cage of golden flames, sealing him inside.

Having lost his means to enter the other dimension, Su Mu's personal strength was equivalent to a Gold-tier powerhouse at best, Shangguan Chen reasoned. There was absolutely no way he could break free from Shangguan Mingyue's restraints.

The only thing that gnawed at him was how utterly calm Su Mu had remained from the very beginning. It was as if he were just watching a play. Even when faced with the cage of flames, he hadn't made the slightest attempt to dodge.

No matter how much he thought about it, he simply couldn't see any way for Su Mu to turn the tables. He could only chalk up the young man's bizarre behavior to his personality.

After all, this was the Mad King. His thought process was bound to be different from that of a normal person.

If Su Mu had actually panicked, Shangguan Chen would have started doubting if the person standing before him was the real one.