Chapter 622: Seventh Princess

"I...look like your master?" Laia replied, her voice still heavy with confusion. "I'm not sure what you're talking about. Are you sure we look the same?"

"Almost the exact same," John replied without hesitation. "You may be younger than her, and your aura's couldn't be more opposite from one another, but in terms of facial appearance, you're the same."

"I...I still don't know how to answer," Laia replied, "I have no idea what you're talking about. Who is your master?"

"You wouldn't know her," John replied, as Lilian had grown up on the Yuan Continent, far removed from Laia and her Astral Empire. "But she goes by the name Lilian."

The name seemed to strike Laia like it was a battle art that was hitting her, as her face lit up in surprise and shock. John's eyes narrowed as he saw Laia's expression, as he could tell that the name had meant something to Laia.

Laia fell silent as her face scrunched up in deep contemplation.

"What is it?" John asked, as Laia clearly seemed to know something. Laia continued to remain silent for some time before her gaze shifted back to John, a strange look on her face. She sighed deeply and took a deep breath.

"As I said earlier, I'm the eighth princess of the Astral Empire," Laia said to John, who fell silent as he waited to hear what Laia had to say. "I know all my sisters, except for the seventh princess."

John's serious face changed slightly as the thought of where Laia was going with her explanation struck him, but he remained silent as he allowed her to continue her explanation.

"While I've never met my older sister, the seventh princess, I've heard many stories of her," Laia continued. "She was supposedly the most talented princess, and was the crown jewel of the Empire, and my father. However, when she was fifteen, my father took her to a secretive location to continue her training, and that was the last I ever heard of her. She's supposedly still training in secret, although I'm not sure."

"What was the name of your sister?" John asked, although he could already guess the answer.

Laia's gaze lingered on John's face for some time, before she finally answered his question.

"Lilian," she replied, confirming John's suspicions. He felt like a mountain had landed on top of him, as the weight of the truth came to light. John's mind raced at a million miles an hour as he struggled to focus his thoughts.

"Wait...does that mean my sister is your master?" Laia asked, coming to the same conclusion John had come to. Her confused expression was replaced with curious excitement, as she realized she may have finally heard some news about her mysterious sister.

"How is she? Is he alright? Where is she?" Laia asked, spewing off a barrage of questions at John.

John remained silent as he ignored the questions and instead thought over the entire situation, which didn't make sense to him.

'If Laia's story is true, then the Astral Emperor took my master to the Yuan Continent to learn under Thunderzen? But something doesn't feel right about all of this. According to Laia, my master would have been fifteen at the time, and while Thunderzen is strong, it doesn't make sense that the Astral Emperor, one of the strongest beings in this world, would have him train her. Something seems off, but I can say one thing that's almost certain to be true....my master truly is the seventh princess of the Astral Empire.'

The story had too many coincidences to be wrong. Lilian looked almost exactly like Laia, as if they were twins, only different ages. While Laia's face was softer and more vibrant, like the most beautiful spring flower in full bloom, and while his master's face was colder and sharper, like a beautiful ice-lotus, they were still beyond similar.

"You're from the Heavenly Lightning Sect! Does that mean my sister is living there?" Laia asked, excitement and hopefulness still in her voice.

"Your other sisters...what do they say when you ask them about your seventh sister?" John asked, ignoring Laia's questions and asking his own.

Laia was caught off guard by the question, but quickly answered nonetheless.

"That's the odd part," Laia replied, her mood calming down slightly, "when I ask them about her, they give short, vague answers, almost like they're avoiding the questions entirely. I always found that quite strange, but never pressed any of them further. I'm sure they have their reasons"

John fell into a deep contemplation once more, something that Laia noticed immediately.

"What is it?" Laia asked.

"It's nothing," John dismissed as he snapped out of his deep thought. "When we leave this realm, I can ask my master about this directly. In the meantime, we should focus on my tribulation."

"Ah, right!" Laia said as John reminded her of the most important thing. Figuring out the truth would have no meaning if they didn't leave the Dao Transformation Trial alive. "I'm almost fully recovered, and should be ready in half a day."

"Good," John replied with a firm head nod, "then my Heavenly Tribulation will start in half a day."

...

Flash!

A flash of light appeared for a moment as a figure stepped out of a glowing green barrier. The person's gaze shifted sideways as they gazed about the surrounding area, while a smug smile appeared on their face.

"As expected, I'm the first to make it through the Heavenly Tribulation trial," the youth said out loud to himself, his voice filled with prideful arrogance. "This should be the last area of this realm, which means...."

The figure's gaze shifted sideways towards the distant mountains that rose up hundreds of miles away. The mountain range lined the edge of the trial realm, while a massive glowing green barrier pierced up from them and surrounded the land overhead, protecting the trial land from any outside influence.

"That spot should do nicely," the youth said as they sped forward. They arrived before the mountain range some time later and inspected the spot. It was well hidden within a forested valley, which was out of the sight of others should they arrive.

The youth waved his hand, and over one hundred items suddenly appeared on the ground before him. The items were varied, containing formation disks, high grade spirit crystals, and other fantastic objects. The runes on the formation disks were beyond intricate and profound, something that rivaled the most profound runes John had ever seen.

A jade piece appeared in the youths hands as he sent in his divine sense to study it. Various instructions flooded into his mind, and the youth put it away after studying it for quite some time. The youth then began walking about to various locations in the nearby area, placing the formation runes in a seemingly organized fashion, as well as completing other tasks.

"Once this is done, the true fun should finally begin," the youth said out loud as a large, menacing smile appeared on his face.