In the early morning, as the sun rose and cast a red glow over the earth, everything came back to life, creating a scene of vibrant vitality.

The Shuowang Empire had regained its former prosperity and glory.

The failed Uprising of the Black Dragon had not caused a major catastrophe, but instead became a topic of conversation after meals. The officials involved and their descendants became targets of criticism. Although they had been executed, they would forever carry a notorious reputation.

The streets were bustling with people coming and going.

Smiles adorned people's faces, and their hearts were filled with joy. After three years, Princess Iris, who had the bloodline of Cecilia, had returned and regained control of the empire. This was a cause for celebration and happiness.

To celebrate Princess Iris's return, many shops started promotional activities, attracting a larger crowd.

At this moment, Iris sat on the throne, looking at the written papers of Yingying and Baiying, with a satisfied smile on her face.

Not bad, not bad, these two little ones are quite capable.

"Victor," Iris suddenly called.

"I am here. What instructions do you have, Your Majesty?" Victor respectfully replied.

"Announce nationwide preparations for the martial exam. Only those who are qualified in Forbidden Spells may sign up," Iris instructed. "Go and arrange it."

"Understood!" Victor nodded and left.

After handling government affairs, Iris walked to the palace's garden for a walk.

At this moment, a black-armored demon soldier hurriedly ran into the garden and stood in front of Iris.

"Your Majesty," the black-armored demon knelt on one knee, bowing his head. "Martial Angel has awakened."

"I already know. You may leave," Iris nodded, signaling for the black-armored demon to leave.

"Yes!" The black-armored demon responded and quickly left.

Half a month to wake up, this Li Lanzu is truly weak. Could it be because of the collar, hindering her awakening time?

Well, this collar is a prototype of the elder's experiment, so it's normal to have some minor issues.

In any case, Iris dared not return to the Cloud Palace. After all, all these things were taken secretly from her elder. The elder would definitely investigate. It would be better to hide for a while and return to the Cloud Palace when the storm subsided.

Immediately, Iris walked towards the infirmary.

"Isn't this Martial Angel? How come you've become so weak after half a month? It feels like even ants could overpower you," Iris joked when she arrived at the infirmary and saw the person on the sickbed.

She waved her hand to dismiss the demon physician, then entered the ward and closed the door.

Li Lanzu remained expressionless and did not speak.

She was only worried about her sister's mental state, perhaps she had gone completely insane, or perhaps she had forgotten about her.

Iris approached the bedside, gently pressing on the other person's wound, causing Li Lanzu to groan in pain and showing a painful expression on her face.

"You can't escape from my grasp. The collar around your neck restricts your magic, and your strength has been limited to a low point," Iris sneered and said, "Any ordinary person could kill you. The outside world is dangerous, as a beautiful angel, you might face humiliation."

Li Lanzu still did not speak.

Then Iris exerted a bit more force and said, "It's fine if you don't speak. I will make you speak."

"Ah~!"

Li Lanzu couldn't help it and let out a scream of agony.

"Without the freezing effect, the wounds will be painful," Iris said indifferently. "But don't worry, you won't have to endure it for long. As long as you tell me Lilia's whereabouts, I will naturally let you go."

"I won't tell you my sister's whereabouts. You will never find her in your lifetime!" Li Lanzu said in pain.

"Oh?" Upon hearing this, Iris's face still maintained a faint smile, as if Li Lanzu's words couldn't possibly affect her.

Iris's force didn't weaken; she continued to exert pressure.

Li Lanzu howled in pain, her whole body soaked in sweat, her face pale, beads of sweat like grains of rice covering her forehead, making her look extremely disheveled.

"I know you're Martial Angel, so this pain means nothing to you. But what if I bring your great-niece here, cut off her limbs in front of you, and then stew those limbs into soup for you to eat? How would you feel?" Iris's light words entered Li Lanzu's ears, but they felt like thunder, rendering Li Lanzu unable to move.

Amputate the limbs and make soup to drink?

Lanzu felt as though something was tearing at her deep within her soul.

"You...you crazy person!"

Lanzu cried out in pain, her face as pale as a sheet of paper, and her body trembling uncontrollably.

"Yes, I am indeed crazy, a kind of rational madness."

"I also have a plan. How about you kneel down and beg me, and maybe sing a conquering song while you're at it. Perhaps then I'll have a change of heart." Iris said lightly, with a playful gleam in her eyes.

She did it on purpose, wanting to see if Lanzu would be willing to make a humiliating gesture.

"Don't even think about it! I will never submit to a demon like you!" Lanzu stubbornly declared, her body continuing to tremble, her fists clenched tightly with nails digging into her flesh.

"Oh! Why is your wound bleeding again?" Iris exclaimed, looking at the blood on her hand, furrowing her brow. "Didn't I tell you not to move? Your body is shaking. It's not good for the wound to heal like this. If you die, how am I supposed to explain to your sister?"

With that, Iris licked the blood from her finger, as if savoring a delicious dish.

"The taste is quite good actually. It should be quite nice to cook with your blood." Iris said casually. "Or maybe you should have a taste too?"

Before Lanzu could even speak, Iris dipped her chopsticks into the blood that had overflowed from the wound and fed it into Lanzu's mouth.

"Mmm... from now on, you can fend for yourself. That way, there's no need to send you any food." Iris smiled faintly and said, "Don't worry, I will definitely not kill you. I will make sure you and your sister are reunited. Let me tell you one more secret. I am a Warlock Arts mage, a true mage who can use sorcerer magic. I can use divination to find out where Lilia is. To me, whether you tell me or not is not important; I will find her regardless."

With that, Iris got up and left.

Before leaving, she lightly patted Lanzu's cheek and said with a smile, "The agreement still stands. Kneel down and sing 'Conquer'."

"Ah!!!" Lanzu suddenly let out a roar of anger, her body violently shaking as she struggled to stand up, but it was all in vain and she fell back onto the bed, motionless.

Iris left the medical room and instructed the demon physician, "The wound has reopened, bandage it again."

"Yes, Your Majesty." The demon physician quickly bowed and complied.

Lanzu lay on the bed, unable to utter a word, with tears rolling down her cheeks, wetting the pillow.

"Sister... I'm sorry... I couldn't help you."

...

Dugu stood at the entrance of the temple, waiting for Her Majesty to return.

"Ah..." Dugu sighed heavily. "It's been half a month and Your Majesty still hasn't returned. It's probably not a good sign..."

He turned around and looked at the back of Her Majesty as she held the doll, feeling a sense of sadness in his heart.

Her Majesty always talked to herself, and he couldn't understand what Lilia was saying at all. He could only silently accompany her, hoping to restore Her Majesty's sanity as soon as possible.

It seemed like Her Majesty only had Iris in her eyes, and she had even forgotten about Princess Iria.

"Ah..."

Dugu couldn't help but shake his head.

"The one with a mole under the left eye is Xiaoyuan... The one with a mole under the left eye is Xiaoyuan..." Lilia's voice was muffled and unclear, and Dugu couldn't understand what Her Majesty was saying.

Lilia's memories were becoming increasingly fuzzy, and she had already forgotten what her eldest daughter looked like. However, she still remembered the mole under Iris' left eye.

Her ability to speak had started to deteriorate, to the point where Dugu couldn't understand what Lilia was saying at all.

All Dugu could do was try to provide three meals a day for Her Majesty, he couldn't do anything else.

"Her Majesty, it's time for your meal." Dugu handed a bag of blood to Lilia.

Lilia ignored Dugu, remaining seated in her spot motionless, murmuring, "The one with a mole under the left eye is Xiaoyuan..."

Dugu sighed and turned away.

Just as Dugu walked away, Lilia, who had been sitting on the straw bed, suddenly moved.

Her body trembled a few times, her eyes filled with bloodshot veins, and her lips turned pale.

After drinking the blood on the floor, she scratched her wrist with her nails.

Lilia knew very well that she couldn't sleep. Once she fell asleep, she might forget even the slightest detail about XiaoYuan.

Lilia forcefully bit her wrist with her teeth, causing blood to flow out. Only the pain could keep her awake.

She needed to stay awake, she must stay awake!

No matter what, she couldn't lose consciousness, absolutely not!

Dugu smelled the scent of blood and turned back. He was shocked to see Lilia's actions and quickly ran over to grab her hand.

"Your Majesty, what are you doing?" Dugu asked anxiously.

Just as Dugu was about to bandage Lilia's wound, she pushed him away.

Lilia's body burst into blood flames, and she looked at Dugu with a vigilant expression, her eyes becoming sharp.

Dugu was stunned but quickly understood that Your Majesty was having a stress reaction. He could only withdraw.

As Dugu left, the blood flames on Lilia gradually extinguished. She knew that he was a bad person. He would make her wounds painless, and then she would feel drowsy and fall into a deep sleep. When she woke up, she would forget the only feature of XiaoYuan.

Lilia's body trembled even more violently, tears falling continuously from her eyes as she murmured, "XiaoYuan has a mole below the left eye..."

Dugu stood outside and sighed, shaking his head, "What should we do..."