The Return Of The Exiled Villain

Swirl...

The blood vortex in the center of the chamber spun faster, thickening into a swirling pillar of crimson liquid.

From within it, a figure slowly descended, as if stepping out of another realm.

That supposedly was the Goddess of the Crimson Night, Sanguina.

She was gorgeous... not even that word was an understatement as no words could express how beautiful she truly was.

She had a face and body shape strikingly similar to Jasmine’s, yet every color and aura around her felt colder, deeper, and far more dangerous.

Her hair was a rich, dark wine-red, almost black under certain lights, cascading down her back in silky, perfectly straight strands that shimmered like fresh blood under moonlight.

A few loose locks framed her face elegantly, accentuating her sharp, elegant features.

Her eyes were the most noticeable difference, dimly glowing crimson-orange, like two suns filled with killing intent.

The shape was almost identical to Jasmine’s, but the coldness within them made them feel infinitely more indifferent.

Long, graceful lashes framed those eyes, giving her an alluring yet terrifying presence.

Her body was the epitome of divine perfection.

Massive, full breasts, slightly larger than Jasmine’s already impressive ones, strained elegantly against the fabric of her dress, rising and falling with each breath she took.

Her waist was impossibly slender, flaring out into wide, fertile hips that gave her an hourglass silhouette of absolute temptation and authority.

Her legs were long, toned, and endlessly elegant, visible through the high slits on both sides of her dress.

She wore a luxurious black dress that clung to her body like a second skin.

The dress had a deep plunging neckline that revealed a generous amount of her cleavage, while the sides were cut out in elegant, artistic patterns, exposing the smooth, pale skin of her slender waist and shoulders.

Golden-red accents ran along the edges of the fabric, glowing faintly like veins of lava.

The dress flowed down to her ankles but featured long, daring slits that revealed her long legs with every step, making her movement both graceful and dangerously seductive.

A thin, blood-red crown rested atop her head, shaped like intertwined thorns and roses.

Her skin was flawless porcelain, glowing with an inner divine light, and a faint crimson aura surrounded her entire figure, making the air itself feel heavier and more sacred.

Yet despite all this divine beauty, her expression was as cold as the harshest winter, indifferent, distant, and filled with authority that made it seem that she was superior to everything.

Her dimly glowing black eyes didn’t even spare a glance at Duke Caelis, who was still kowtowing on the ground.

Instead, they turned directly toward Gray.

More precisely... they locked onto the delicate black ruby mark on his forehead, the Mark of Beauty that had appeared after his breakthrough.

”...You...”

Her lips parted, revealing a soft, endearing voice that somehow still carried the coldness of winter.

There was a faint trace of confusion in her tone, as if she had seen something she didn’t quite expect.

Her eyes furrowed slightly.

Then, without another word, she waved her hand dismissively toward the side.

Fwoosh....

Both Alina and Duke Caelis instantly dissipated into crimson mist, vanishing from the chamber without a sound.

”G-Gray?!” Alina managed to call out in shock right before she disappeared completely.

Now, only Gray and the Goddess of the Crimson Night remained in the blood-filled underground chamber.

Sanguina’s dimly glowing black eyes locked onto the delicate black ruby mark on Gray’s forehead with an intensity that bordered on obsession.

Her cold, divine expression changed for the first time.

”...Why do you have that mark?” she demanded coldly.

Before Gray could even respond, she moved.

Her hand shot forward like a blur, her delicate fingers wrapping around his throat with terrifying speed and strength.

Grip!

She lifted him off the ground effortlessly, slamming his back against the blood-covered wall of the chamber.

”Answer me, mortal,” she hissed, her wine-red hair swaying as killing intent poured out of her like an unstoppable tide.

The pressure was suffocating, far beyond anything Gray had ever felt.

His mind grew numb, his vision blurred at the edges, and his body refused to move properly under the overwhelming divine aura.

Gray’s hands instinctively grabbed her wrist, but it was like trying to bend steel. His legs dangled uselessly in the air as he struggled to breathe.

Sanguina’s grip tightened, her black eyes burning with a dangerous mix of curiosity and fury.

”That mark... it belongs to my sister. Why is it on your face? Speak, before I crush your throat and rip the answer from your soul.”

Gray’s face turned red from the lack of oxygen.

His black eyes, however, burned with complete anger. Even in this helpless position, the killing intent in his gaze didn’t waver.

”...J-Jasmine...” he managed to force out through gritted teeth.

The name hit Sanguina like a thunderbolt.

Her grip loosened instantly.

”Cough... ugh...!”

Gray dropped to the blood-covered floor, coughing violently as he clutched his throat. The goddess took a half-step back, her cold expression fracturing further.

Gray slowly raised his head.

His eyes were ice-cold, filled with a killing intent so sharp and pure that even Sanguina, a true Goddess, felt a faint shiver run down her spine for the briefest moment.

’This mortal... what’s with his killing intent? It actually made me shiver...’

Gray massaged his bruised neck with an irritated expression. Then, without saying another word, he closed his eyes and focused inward.

His cultivation realm suddenly plummeted, going from the Early King Realm right back to the Early Master Realm.

Swoosh...

At the same time, a thick, smoking black mist began leaking out of his body, coalescing in front of him into a faint, ethereal figure.

The presence was weak, but strangely familiar to Sanguina.

”J-Jasmine...?” Sanguina’s eyes widened dramatically as the mist took shape.

It really was Jasmine.

Though much weaker and translucent, it was undeniably her, the same elegant face, the same graceful figure, the same beauty that could make the world kneel.

”Big Sister!” Jasmine called out, her voice soft but filled with overwhelming emotion.

She rushed forward and threw her arms around the smoke-like figure that had manifested, hugging Sanguina tightly.

Sanguina stood frozen for half a second before her arms slowly wrapped around her little sister.

Tears welled up in her dimly glowing black eyes, something no one in this world had ever seen before.

”Jasmine...” she whispered, her voice stammering with a rare vulnerability.

”It’s really you... You’re alive...”

The two sisters embraced tightly in the middle of the blood-filled chamber, their reunion raw and emotional.

Jasmine’s form flickered slightly due to her weakened state, but she clung to Sanguina as if afraid she would disappear again.

Gray, however, had already sat down in a lotus position a few meters away.

He closed his eyes and began meditating, slowly gathering and refining soul power to recover what he had spent nullifying the portal and enduring Sanguina’s pressure

He couldn’t hear a single word of what the two goddesses were saying to each other.

A thin, invisible barrier seemed to separate their conversation from the outside world, something Sanguina had subconsciously created the moment Jasmine appeared.

Sanguina stroked Jasmine’s back gently, her usual cold demeanor completely gone.

”I thought I lost you forever...” she murmured softly.

”After the war... after everything... I searched for so long. How are you here? And why are you with that mortal?”

Jasmine smiled softly, still hugging her big sister tightly.

”It’s a long story, Big Sister... But Gray... he’s now my Vessel, and he’s been protecting me this whole time. He even used the demonic energy he gathered for me just to call you here.”

Sanguina’s eyes softened further as she glanced toward Gray, who was now deep in meditation, completely ignoring the divine reunion happening right in front of him.

”...He has my Mark of Beauty on his forehead,” Sanguina stated quietly, almost in disbelief.

”That mark only appears on those who have reached the pinnacle of beauty and charm. How did a mortal obtain it?”

Jasmine’s smile turned a little shy.

”That’s because of me... and because of how he is. He’s really special, Big Sister. More than you can imagine.”

Sanguina’s black eyes softened slightly as she continued stroking her little sister’s hair, but her expression remained mostly cold and regal.

Jasmine hesitated for a moment, then continued gently.

”Gray... he spent a huge amount of the demonic energy he had gathered in the Demon Converging Gourd just to call you here. He didn’t want to kill Father if it meant turning the Crimson Night Order into his enemy... because he knew how important you are to me. He wanted permission... so he could finally have his revenge without hurting our relationship.”

Sanguina was quiet for a few seconds.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, she spoke.

”He has my permission. Kill Duke Caelis if you wish... that man means nothing to me.”

Jasmine’s expression brightened with relief, but Sanguina wasn’t finished.

”However, tell him that you can now stay with me. I am much stronger, and I am not sealed like before. I can take care of you far better than any mortal ever could.”

At those words, Jasmine’s face changed instantly. She frowned, looking hesitant and conflicted. Her hands tightened slightly on Sanguina’s dress.

Sanguina noticed the change of expression immediately. Her eyebrows furrowed as she gently caressed Jasmine’s silver hair.

”You... don’t want to stay with me?” she asked, her voice carrying a rare hint of hurt beneath the cold exterior.

Jasmine nodded, then shook her head, looking troubled.

”Gray... he’s... my Husband,” she admitted softly.

”We have a Permanent Soul Contract.”

The moment the words left her mouth, Sanguina’s killing intent erupted like a volcanic explosion.

A terrifying wave of crimson-black aura burst out of her body, filling the entire blood-filled chamber. The temperature dropped sharply as her eyes turned icy and murderous.

”That mortal dared to—”

Before she could finish, Jasmine quickly grabbed her sister’s arm, stopping her.

”Big Sister, please!” Jasmine pleaded.

”I... I fell in love with him. Truly.”

Sanguina froze.

Her divine demeanor, usually cold and indifferent, cracked completely.

Her eyes widened in pure shock, and for a moment, the Goddess of the Crimson Night looked like she was about to pass out.

She staggered slightly.

”My sister...” she mumbled dazedly, her voice filled with disbelief.

”The most beautiful Goddess... the strongest Goddess ever... actually fell in love with a mortal?”

Jasmine laughed lightly at her dazed words. She reached up and gently held Sanguina’s face with both hands.

”Then why don’t you test him yourself?” she suggested with a soft smile.

Sanguina blinked, still recovering from the shock.

”...What do you mean?”

Jasmine’s smile turned a little playful, though still shy.

”...Switch bodies with me for half a year, and you’ll know why I fell in love with him.”

Sanguina’s expression darkened immediately. The mere thought of being so close to a mortal, living as one, clearly disgusted her.

”I won’t do that,” she denied flatly.

But after a few seconds of silence, seeing the confident and hopeful look on her little sister’s face, Sanguina let out a long, tired sigh.

”...But we can share our visions. What about that?” she offered instead. ”I am still building my organization, so I cannot leave for half a year.”

Jasmine’s eyes instantly lit up with happiness.

”Deal.”