Chapter 836: A Queen’s Wisdom

Third Person’s POVErius immediately shook his head.

"No... I don’t believe that, Mother."

He lowered his gaze slightly before continuing in a far calmer voice.

"I simply wish to understand your thoughts... and the reason behind your decisions."

His embarrassed expression made it obvious that he had indeed been shaken by Ethan’s incomprehensible strength.

After all, according to his mother’s account, Ethan had defeated Elis while every one of his mana veins remained completely sealed.

Such a feat simply defied common sense.

If everything Shixea had said was true, then even the geniuses occupying the forty coveted seats of the Crystal Formation Batch, the strongest young Crystal Formation mages throughout the Northern Glacial Region, would likely struggle to match him.

That realization alone had forced Erius to abandon much of his earlier arrogance.

He now genuinely wished to understand what his mother intended to do.

Seeing that her son had finally calmed down enough to listen, Shixea nodded inwardly before speaking once more.

"No matter how talented or powerful Eryndor may be, in the end he is still nothing more than a Crystal Formation Realm mage."

A faint smile gradually appeared upon her lips.

"Granted, he is an exceptionally rare monster capable of contending with, or perhaps even defeating, newly advanced Sky Realm experts who have only just stepped into the Realm of Blue Heaven."

"Even so, he remains a Rank Three mage."

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

"And precisely because of that, I choose to accommodate his arrogance instead of suppressing it."

She leisurely leaned back into her chair.

"I allow him to satisfy his pride, I indulge his confidence, and I let him believe that he possesses the initiative because as long as he continues believing that, he has no reason to openly oppose me."

A calculating glint quietly flickered within her pale-blue eyes.

"In the end, I still possess the key to his locked ascension path."

The confidence within her voice immediately eased much of the tension lingering inside Erius’s heart.

Shixea smiled faintly before continuing,



"And even if one day he manages to free himself from my influence..."

"So what?"

She spoke those words without the slightest concern.

"By then, your father, your grandfather, and I will still be standing behind this empire."

"No matter how extraordinary he eventually becomes, he will never be foolish enough to openly make enemies of all three of us."

Her calm confidence was infectious.

"So tell me, why should you fear him, my son?"

Erius instinctively straightened his posture before replying with an embarrassed expression.

"I... I don’t fear him, Mother."

He hesitated briefly before continuing,

"It’s just that... his strength sounds too absurd."

Shixea chuckled softly, as though his worries were nothing more than childish concerns.

"And why should that trouble you?"

She looked directly into his eyes, her own filled with confidence and pride.

"When you eventually step into the Crystal Formation Realm, your strength will naturally far surpass that of ordinary geniuses.

By then, defeating someone like Eryndor won’t be an impossible task."

She smiled faintly before asking,

"Have you forgotten whose blood flows through your veins?"

"You are the direct descendant of the Ice Emperor himself."

"The bloodline flowing through your veins is among the noblest and strongest in the entire Northern Glacial Region."

"As long as you continue walking your divine ascension path without wavering, your future achievements are destined to eclipse the overwhelming majority of mages in this region."

Those simple yet confident words immediately dispelled much of the uncertainty lingering within Erius’s heart.

His shoulders gradually relaxed, while the hesitation in his eyes slowly disappeared, replaced by the confidence that had always accompanied him since childhood.

Seeing this, the faint smile on Shixea’s face deepened slightly.

"Besides..."

She leisurely crossed one leg over the other before continuing,

"Don’t forget that Eryndor will become the hound that tears apart every obstacle standing in your path."

"I have already made it perfectly clear to him that throughout the Glaciem Ice Abyss, he is to cooperate with you and protect our interests whenever necessary."



"He may be arrogant, but arrogance doesn’t change the fact that, for now, he is forced to work for our interests and do our bidding."

Her pale-blue eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly.

"And tell me, do you truly believe he would dare betray you after making enemies of both me and your father?"

She let out a soft, amused laugh.

"He isn’t foolish."

"On the contrary, that young man is frighteningly intelligent."

"And precisely because he is intelligent, he knows exactly where his place is."

As Shixea’s calm and confident voice continued echoing throughout the study, the last traces of doubt gradually vanished from Erius’s face.

The resentment he had felt earlier was quickly replaced by renewed confidence and the arrogance befitting an imperial prince.

After all, regardless of how mysterious or powerful Ethan might be, he would ultimately become nothing more than another powerful subordinate clearing away every obstacle standing in Erius’s path within the Glaciem Ice Abyss.

Seeing that her son had finally regained his composure, Shixea’s expression gradually turned serious once more.

She lightly folded her elegant hands together upon the table before saying in a calm voice,

"Now, let us discuss the true reason I dismissed everyone from this room."

Hearing the subtle change in her tone, Erius immediately cast aside every distracting thought.

His expression became solemn as he unconsciously leaned forward, giving his mother his complete and undivided attention.

"The Glaciem Crown Empire didn’t merely leave behind fragments of its lost legacy within the Glaciem Ice Abyss."

Shixea’s expression gradually became solemn as she looked directly into Erius’s eyes.

"It also left a terrifying secret concealed within the depths of this realm... one that, to this day, is known only to your father and me."

The weight behind her words instantly caused Erius’s expression to become serious, as he had never seen his mother speak with such gravity before.

Originally, he had assumed the discussion after everyone left the room would revolve around Ethan or the expedition itself.