A vicious female is trapped in a beastly hell.

Chapter 456 The Cataclysmic Disaster
Observatory.

This is the residence of the High Priest of the Yiyuan Empire, a place far removed from worldly troubles, isolated from the outside world, quiet and secluded.

The outer perimeter was heavily guarded, and even emperors throughout history could not easily enter.

The highest floor of the pavilion is the library, which contains many ancient books, including many that are out of print or lost elsewhere.

Apart from a few servants who do the daily cleaning, the place is usually undisturbed and empty, with hardly anyone around, which makes it quite peaceful.

rustle.

A young boy sat at a table, flipping through an ancient book in his hands.

The boy was not old, only about eight or nine years old, with black hair and fair skin, and a handsome appearance. However, his exceptionally beautiful eyes held a maturity and calmness that did not match his age, like a still ancient pool that was difficult to ripple, which diminished his original brilliance and made him appear particularly cold and lonely.

Someone knocked on the door and respectfully called out, "High Priest, the High Priest requests your presence."

"Okay, I'll be there shortly."

The boy closed the book, got up, and left.

Shen Tang's mental state was very unstable. She was forced to enter the next memory. When she opened her eyes again, this was the scene in front of her.

She looked at the boy not far away, whose aura was somewhat familiar but whose face was unfamiliar, and a hint of surprise flashed through her mind. Wasn't this Shen Li's mental illusion? Who was this person?
Soon, Shen Tang understood the reason.

After the boy went to the high priest's residence, he took off the string of beads from his hand.

His ancient hair color cascaded into a fiery red, waist-length style, making his face even more exquisite and beautiful, especially his pair of narrow, alluring fox eyes, which foreshadowed his future captivating charm. Yet, he was not the kind of person who would be vulgar; the indifference in his eyes tempered his beauty, making him even more mysterious and unique.

It's Shen Li!
But then, Shen Tang became even more puzzled.

Shen Li has already ascended the throne as emperor, so how did he become the young master of the Star Gazing Pavilion? The son of the High Priest?

She was too curious to leave immediately and followed them again.

"Master, you called me here, is there something you want to tell me?" Shen Li walked into the room and looked at the old man on the bed.

The high priest sat by the bed, his figure tall, thin, and withered, like an ancient tree that was about to wither away.

He looked to be in his eighties or nineties, but in reality he was only in his forties. The priestly clan possessed the mysterious power to glimpse the secrets of heaven, but everything in the world comes at a price. Each divination of the future would shorten his lifespan, turning this high priest, who should have been in his prime, into a frail old man on the verge of death.

Shen Tang noticed that Shen Li called him "Master," not "Father."

The high priest looked at Shen Li with affection and beckoned him over, "Your Majesty, if I remember correctly, you have been at the Star Gazing Pavilion for almost half a year now."

Shen Li: "Yes, five months and twelve days."

He remembers it perfectly clearly.

On the night of his father's burial in the imperial mausoleum, he switched identities with his double and went to the Star Gazing Pavilion to become the High Priest's apprentice.

The priest clan has always been mysterious, never revealing any information to outsiders. Only emperors of past dynasties knew that they were the Illusionary Fox clan, extremely skilled in illusion magic.

The high priest's son, Yu Xi, was about the same age and build as Shen Li. In order to show his loyalty to the royal family, he volunteered to become his stand-in.

Now, Shen Li is officially the son of the High Priest and the future successor to the priesthood. Before he comes of age, he will stay in the Star Gazing Pavilion to receive training and will not appear in public.

For him, this was the safest place in the empire.

"The late emperor entrusted Your Majesty to this old minister for guidance. Unfortunately, my health is deteriorating day by day, and I am afraid I will not be able to help Your Majesty much. I would like to do one more thing for Your Majesty before I die."

"Master!"

Seeing the boy's sudden panic, the old priest waved his hand and said, "This is what our clan should do, and I have wanted to do it for a long time."

He was lost in memories. "Many years ago, when I first met Your Majesty, I could tell that Your Majesty's aura was extraordinary, and you were no ordinary person... In the future, something earth-shattering will surely happen to Your Majesty. However, I do not know whether it will be a blessing or a curse. Last night, I dared to divine Your Majesty's fate."

Shen Li looked at the high priest in front of him with deep sorrow, finally understanding why he had aged so much overnight.

Since things had come to this, Shen Li had no choice but to say, "Please give me some guidance, Master." His clear, youthful voice carried a hint of bitterness.

"Your Majesty, I have divined two important pieces of information."

The high priest did not rush to answer; his aged voice carried a hint of remoteness and etherealness, "Does Your Majesty know about the core of the earth's source?"

Shen Li nodded. "I've read about it in books. Legend has it that it's an energy crystal formed from the earth's core, possessing the power to create the world and protecting countless living beings. Whoever obtains the core will unify the continent... But it's just a legend. No one has ever actually seen it. Why did you bring this up, Master?"

The high priest sighed, "No, child, this is not a legend; the core of the earth's source truly exists."

"Really...really?" Shen Li was stunned, then overjoyed. "That's wonderful! With the protection of the Earth Source Core, the orcs can be kept safe."

"Is that so?" The old priest closed his eyes wearily and sighed softly, "But in my divination, the core of the earth's source a thousand years ago was guarded by the vampires, but in the end, the vampires were all slaughtered overnight."

Some say that vampires are cursed.

"What?" Shen Li was shocked.

He seemed to have seen related descriptions in some nearly lost ancient texts.

The high priest said, "The vampires were the most powerful race of that era, but they were wiped out overnight. To this day, no one knows what happened that night."

"Now, the power of the Earth's core is weakening, and the contaminated land is spreading faster and faster. It can no longer protect this continent."

The high priest's voice grew increasingly heavy, "Your subject has foreseen a great calamity."

"A cataclysmic disaster."

"It is caused by this thing, but at the same time, it is also the hope for averting disaster."

"The core of the earth's origin can create the world and also destroy it."

"Its true secret is still unclear, but it must not fall into the hands of others; the Yiyuan Empire must obtain it..."

The high priest spoke at length.

After pondering for a long time, Shen Li nodded and said, "Thank you for your instructions, Master. I understand. I will get my hands on this item!"

"However, where is the core of the earth's source?" Shen Li asked curiously.

"at……"

The high priest suddenly coughed violently, his old but bright eyes suddenly turned gray and cloudy, as if he hadn't been able to catch his breath and collapsed.

"Master!" Shen Li rushed forward and helped the high priest lie down on the bed.

He sensed that the high priest's presence was so faint it was almost gone, and a pang of bitterness and helpless sorrow flashed through his heart.

Shen Li gently grasped that aged, bony hand and whispered, "Master, tell me."

The high priest raised his withered, twig-like fingers, trembling as he pointed northeast. "This old minister... used his last strength to divine that it is there..."

He breathed his last after saying those words.

Shen Li closed his eyes, took a deep breath, raised his hand to cover the old priest's eyes, and respectfully said, "Rest in peace, Master."

An eight or nine-year-old girl walked in.

She wore an elaborate and heavy robe, and her beautiful, youthful face held a maturity and composure beyond her years. Her silver-gray eyes conveyed a sense of vast, indifferent holiness that made it difficult to look directly at her.

When Yu Tong looked at her deceased father on the bed, a ripple appeared in her eyes. She took out a white candle and lit it by the bedside.

No one knew that the high priest had given birth to twins, a son and a daughter.

This daughter is the true heir to the priesthood, who is being secretly groomed in the shadows.