Evelyn had no idea what to say.

How can Stella say something so ludicrous with such certainty when so many have failed? My tyrant of a husband dead by the end of the week? Can such a reality even exist?

"Stella, I don't think such a thing is possible..." Evelyn felt her skin crawl, and a chill spread through her body as the image of her husband came into mind. Albis Lunarshade was a towering figure with broad shoulders and round features. He was also baldhairless from head to toe and had pupilless eyes so white they mirrored the emptiness of his soul. He was evil to the core, someone who relished another person's suffering and seemed to find no pleasure in anyone's company.

That was the person she was forced to pleasure to survive all these years, and his Father, the Grand Elder of the Lunarshade family, was even worse. He was a grotesque man who shared similar features to his son but was more round than tall and spent most of his time bathing in a moonlit pond while being tended to by a team of maids like a stranded animal. He would hurl insults at her whenever she walked nearcalling her a whore that only came when she needed something and laughing in her face about the downfall of her family, and pelting her with spirit stones.

Albis is that man's son. There's no way he could die... it's not possible... those two sit upon a mountain of corpses and dictate the lives of everyone else. Only the Celestial Warden can hold a candle to their power...

"Eat this," Stella said, dangling something before her eyes like a hypnotic coin.

Evelyn blinked away the visions, "What's this?"

"This truffle is the raw ingredient used in our higher-grade pills." Stella smiled, but with how crazed her eyes were, it was hard not to feel uncomfortable, "It's rare and expensive for us to grow, and it has a miraculous effect."

"What's the effect?"

"This is the Heart Demon Expelling truffle. I am sure you can guess its effect from the name." Stella lightly grabbed Evelyn's hand and placed the truffle into her palm. "Usually, I wouldn't hand them out like this, but I can tell from your actions and gaze that you are plagued by inner demons that stagnate your cultivation and cloud your judgment. This won't be an immediate fix, as you have a lot of mental hurdles to overcome, but it will help."

Evelyn looked down at the truffle in her palm. This thing is far too precious... how can I possibly afford it? Our family looks prosperous, but I am barely scraping by and owe rogue cultivator gangs in the city thousands of spirit stones and a few bounty hunters Yinxi coins.

With a heavy heart, Evelyn went to give it back.

"What are you doing?" Stella asked.

"I don't have any money to buy it from you," Evelyn sighed, "And I don't want to be in anyone's debt. Just give me some time... I will sell lots of pills for you and scrape together the mon"

"Oh, that's what you were worried about? I said I take care of those who are loyal to me, remember? So there's no need to repay me for this. It's a gift from me." Stella firmly handed the truffle back. "Now eat it. Diana and I will return to the Ashfallen Sect soon, and I guarantee you will want to eat it while we are still here."

"You're really giving me this for free?" Evelyn couldn't make sense of Stella at all. What is her motive? Actually, does she even have one? Her actions are all over the place and are nothing like the other scions from noble houses I have interacted with over the years.

"Just eat it," Stella insisted with a frown.

Evelyn hesitated, "Could you tell me why I should want you two to be here while I eat it..."

"Admitting that ruins the fun," Stella said as she slowly raised her hand.

Unable to muster any more strength or care to resist, Evelyn reluctantly threw the truffle into her mouth and gulped it down. "Bleh," Its distinct earthy taste made her wince.

Stella stepped back to join the ranks of the Grand Elders, who were watching on from afar as if she were about to explode any second.

Meanwhile, Diana strode forward, licking her lips, "This is going to be a big one."

"What do you mean" Evelyn choked as she felt something surging up her throat. A sense of terrible wrongness flooded her body, making every muscle spasm and tighten. Something was trying to get out, and it made her scream in agony and fear.

"The truffle forces the heart demons to gather and leave your body out your mouth," Diana explained, but her words felt distant to Evelyn as her ears rang. "And since you have led such a miserable life, there are bound to be many negative emotions that have condensed into the heart demons plaguing your soul."

"Help..." Evelyn gasped out, "Please help me..."

"Just let it happen," Diana replied, "It will be over soon."

Evelyn let out a howl as she threw her head back. She tried to claw at her throat as an extremely itchy burning sensation swelled upwards, but nothing she did helped ease the horrific discomfort. Once the burning reached her mouth, it forced her jaw open.

"What in the nine realms is that?!" Evelyn heard Grand Elder Frostveil cry out. The other Grand Elders also seemed to shout and step back.

"That is a heart demon. A phantom made entirely from demonic Qi created from Evelyn's negative emotions twisting the world's Qi," Diana said, "It lived within her soul and is the main cause of her bottlenecks. All of you will also have one festering inside you, though it's unlikely to be this big."

"Demonic Qi?" The Mystshroud Grand Elder said with concern, "How will we kill this thing before it kills Evelyn? Demonic Qi reacts violently to other Qi types, and since it's a phantom, physical attacks won't work."

Diana snorted, "Did you forget I am a demon? I will handle it."

Evelyn felt the thing being pulled out of her throat. The terrible wrongness that had been making her want to escape her own skin vanished alongside the burning sensation. She blinked away the tears and glanced around.

Diana stood in the middle of the room, holding a phantom of shifting darkness in her claws. It was huge, about the size of a human child, and almost reached the floor. Gazing upon it made Evelyn want to throw up at the thought of that thing having been inside her.

"Thank you for the meal," Diana grinned as she raised the phantom over her head. A mist curled up her arm and engulfed the phantom, making it screech as it melted. Diana opened her mouth wider than should be possible, stuck out her pointed tongue, and savored the liquified phantom that dripped down into her throat.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Evelyn shuffled backward and diverted her gaze from the display. Diana really is a demon! Who in the nine realms have I sworn my loyalty to? I thought only Stella was insane, but they both are!

Diana side-eyed Evelyn while licking her lips, "That was delicious."

"I-I'm glad you enjoyed it...?" Evelyn had no idea what to even say to that.

Stella strode over and crouched down before Evelyn. They locked eyes, and Stella grinned. "Looks like it worked!" She patted her shoulder enthusiastically, "That dead look in your eyes is gone. Try to cultivate and let me know if you feel any different."

What is she on about? How did my eyes look dead... Evelyn let out a sigh and began reluctantly cycling Qi through her body. To her shock, she immediately started going through a breakthrough to the next stage in the Star Core Realm. Her Star Core greedily pulled in all the Qi within her body and the room as shadows pooled toward her. It then rapidly expanded in size, letting off a pulse of Qi that made the Grand Elder's take a step back.

Evelyn exhaled as she stabilized her new cultivation at the 3rd stage of the Star Core Realm. The bottleneck that had halted her cultivation had been removed, and now, it seemed like an unobstructed path to power lay ahead.

"Did Elder Evelyn just break through after all these years?" Grand Elder Blightbane asked as he stroked his chin, "How unbelievable... Forgive me, but is there any way this old man can get his hands on that truffle you gave Elder Evelyn? I have likely formed quite a few heart demons myself after years of listening to the dead and would love to have them purged and this bottleneck that had troubled me for years gone."

Stella smirked as she stood up and faced the Grand Elder of the death affinity. "I don't hand them out so freely. As the leader of the Duskwalker family and you lot, I felt it important that Evelyn had a clear head and less depressive thoughts. Hence, there was a need for such an extreme solution as consuming a heart-demon-expelling truffle."

"Ahem, as much as I respect Elder Evelyn, she is not our leader." Grand Elder Mystshroud said. "We were brought together under Grand Elder Duskwalker, Evelyn's mother."

"She's dead." Stella casually replied, "And so is Nox. Which makes Evelyn the next in line, right? So she should now be promoted to the Grand Elder of the Duskwalker Family."

Evelyn's eyes widened, and she felt her heart pound in her ears as she jumped to her feet, "Dead? How can my Mother be dead?"

Stella sighed as if explaining things annoyed her, "Was she out on a stroll with guards when she went missing earlier today?"

"Yes..." Evelyn hesitantly nodded. "How do you know that?"

Stella tapped her nose, "The same way I know she's dead. Though don't be mistaken, I wasn't the one who killed her or had anything to do with her death. Nor is the Ashfallen Sect. The killer won't cause us any trouble, though; we are in a mutual pact of sorts. It was an unfortunate... accident. But don't worry, with our protection and resources, the Duskwalker family will soar to heights unreachable by relying on your Mother to ascend."

"I... guess that's true?" Evelyn massaged her temples. This was all far too much to take in. How was she even supposed to feel about this?

Mother has been distant my whole life and even more so since Father's death. She locked herself away for years at a time in an endless pursuit of cultivation for a vain dream of revenge against the Lunarshade family. Whenever she did emerge from closed-door cultivation, she would demand more cultivation resources, even going so far as to empty my spatial rings and sell anything we had to the pavilion. I put up with it because she was the strongest in the family and our only hope at rising up again, but now that the Ashfallen Sect is here...

Evelyn briefly closed her eyes to offer a silent prayer for her Mother.

You may have been a terrible person and an even worse Mother, but I hope your death wasn't too painful, and don't worry. I will continue your revenge in your place. Rest in peace, and don't bother Grand Elder Blightbane with your nonsensethe poor guy has enough lunatics to listen to.

Opening her eyes with a sigh, Evelyn glanced at the gathered Grand Elders, "Assuming my Mother and Sister are dead, that makes me next in line. I may be inadequate compared to those who have led this family in the past, but I hope you can give me a chance." Evelyn gave a brief bow. "Of course, if either return alive, I will relinquish this temporary position. Is that acceptable?"

The Grand Elders exchanged a glance.

"Fine with me," Grand Elder Frostveil said.

"Me too," Grand Elder Mystshroud added, "Without your talentless Mother around, we might have a chance to escape our terrible debts. The fear of your Mother wouldn't keep those savage debt collectors at bay for much longer. They have already started putting bounties on our junior's heads and torched the fields. It was only a matter of time until they came for us."

Evelyn nodded, "And what about you, Grand Elder Blightbane? Do you approve of me as a leader?"

The man briefly opened one of his eyes and studied her. "Hmm, for now."

Evelyn let out a sigh of relief, "Thank you."

Stella clapped her hands to draw everyone's attention. "Okay, with that sorted, let me tell you about the pills since Grand Elder Blightbane has already expressed interest. The pill bottles that I handed out earlier contain pills made from fruits we grow." She then held up one of the bottles with a flower emblem engraved into the porcelain, "This one is called Florist's Touch. It helps with the harvesting and handling of plants and would be heavily sought after by alchemists."

That does sound useful, but it's not very impressive. Evelyn thought as Stella showed a bottle with a sun emblem. I wonder what that one does...

"This pill dramatically increases the chance of enlightenment and comprehension of Daos." Stella then held up the other two bottles. One had the emblem of a root with spikes, and another had the emblem of a person sitting in a cultivating pose. "Neural Root pills help the cultivator feel and control every part of their body and boost their reaction time and control. Meanwhile, the Deep Meditation pill helps drown out the unnecessary whispers of heaven while cultivating."

Evelyn was far more impressed with these pills. Such powerful effects, and I get one pill for free with every bottle I sell? No way...

"These are our low-range pills," Stella laughed at the Grand Elder's shocked reactions as she brought out a wooden box from her spatial ring and opened the lid before the Blightbane Grand Elder. "You asked if you could get your hands on that truffle, Grand Elder Blightbane? Well, here is your answer. It's a pill made from a quarter of a Heart Demon Expelling truffle, so the effect is less severe, but with multiple, you could achieve the same result Elder Evelyn experienced. Just make sure someone is nearby to help you dispose of your heart demons once they break free."

The Grand Elders shot glances at Diana, who licked her lips in return.

Stella snapped the lid shut. "These pills are far too dangerous to sell as of now, as even the Duskwalker family will struggle to shrug off the scrutiny if we sell them."

"Really?" Grand Elder Mystshroud said, "They just remove heart demons. That can't be enough to start a war..."

"What about a pill that permanently improves your spirit roots? Or an ointment that makes anyone beautiful?" Stella laughed, "You don't even understand the miracles our high-range pills can achieve."

Grand Elder Mystshroud gulped, "Even the 'low-range pills,' as you call them, have effects that sound far too good. I am sure they will sell for a high price, even at auction."

"Auction?" Stella tilted her head.

The man nodded, "Once verified, the pills are evaluated and sold in one of two ways. They can be sold through the Trading Hall or at an auction."

"Oh really? What's the difference?"

"The Trading Hall is better for wholesale stuff, so if you plan to sell hundreds of cheap things, you will get the most eyes as it's where the merchants go to buy and sell. Meanwhile, an auction is better for selling one-off items or things with rarity."

"Interesting..."

"Um," Evelyn said, drawing Stella's attention. "I could take you to get the pills verified at the pavilion tomorrow? I know a Lotus Informat that is trustworthy."

Stella smiled, "Sure, that sounds good."

The portal in the middle of the room began to flicker as if inviting attention.

Stella chuckled, "Well, I better get going. My Father is getting a little impatient the longer I hang around here, as he hates staying up at night, and he's the one keeping this portal open, so enjoy the pills, I guess? See you tomorrow!"

With that, Stella strode through the portal with Diana and Larry, the mythical spider in tow. The portal snapped closed, sending a cloud of dust and rustling the robes of the Grand Elders.

They exchanged a silent nod and dispersed toward their cultivation rooms to test the new pills.

Meanwhile, Evelyn collapsed into a nearby chair, too tired to even think. Her body and mind were in shock, and her life had changed.

"Well, that was something." She muttered as she stared up at the ceiling.