While Irving and the others were dealing with the disaster caused by Sophia, deep within the Shelter Game world, Shadow Celestial was also grappling with the troubles that Sophia had created. Although Irving and his group had returned to the real world, Shadow Celestial remained deeply worried.


    "One of my secret bases has been destroyed by Irving! And he took the Chaotic Arrow with him! If he brings the Chaotic Arrow back to the Shelter Game world, I won''t be able to confront him head-on," Shadow Celestial yelled at his trusted subordinates. His dissatisfaction with them was growing by the day.


    In recent times, Shadow Celestial''s subordinates had offered him no support whatsoever. These so-called trusted aides had even failed to help him maintainplete control over the Night des. Shadow Celestial was acutely aware that many within the Night des secretly opposed him. He wanted to identify these individuals but had been unsessful thus far.


    One of his subordinates spoke up cautiously, "Why don''t we directly use the power of the Night des against Irving? Even though the Night des have suffered from Irving''s attacks, they still possess considerable strength."


    Shadow Celestial was even angrier at this suggestion. "Do you think I don''t know that I should do this? The Night des indeed have immense power, but those individuals might not fully obey my orders. Have you forgotten Elder Astra''s actions from before?"


    Although Elder Astra''s actions had caused some trouble for Irving, they had created even greater problems for Shadow Celestial. He had long suspected Elder Astra, yet he could never find any concrete evidence. Despite being under Shadow Celestial''smand, Elder Astra consistently managed to lead Shadow Celestial''s trusted subordinates into significant troubles during their operations, which made Shadow Celestial reluctant to let Elder Astra carry out further missions. Thus, in recent times, Elder Astra had remained in the Shelter Game world and had stoppedmanding any direct forces of the Night des.


    "I think we should continue cooperating with Sophia. Although she doesn''t seem very sincere about it, she possesses tremendous power," another subordinate expressed his opinion.


    At this point, Shadow Celestial was already in a terrible mood, and his emotions were on the verge of spiraling out of control. "You''re all useless! None of you can provide me with a single useful suggestion! The ideas you''ve all put forth have no chance of sess! Get out of my sight!" Shadow Celestial roared, driving all his trusted subordinates out.


    After all his trusted subordinates had left, Shadow Celestial finally calmed down. He was carefully contemting what actions to take next. For Shadow Celestial, no one was worthy ofplete trust. The only person he could fully rely on was himself. This meant that he could not delegate the core tasks of his ns to anyone else. Previously, Shadow Celestial had merely been using the elders of the Night des and Sophia.


    However, as time passed, Shadow Celestial gradually realized that not everyone else was foolish. While the elders of the Night des did not openly challenge him, they were clearly stalling his orders behind his back. Sophia''s attitude was even more pronounced; she had never regarded Shadow Celestial highly and merely hoped that he could provide her with some assistance.


    "It seems I must change my approach! At the very least, I should choose to trust others. Or I should put in more effort to make others believe in my sincerity," Shadow Celestial muttered to himself.


    Just then, one of his trusted subordinates barged in. "Didn''t I tell you all to leave? Did you not hear mymand just now?" Shadow Celestial was furious at the sudden intrusion.


    However, his anger quickly dissipated when he learned that his subordinate brought him a very important piece of news.


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    "You mean to say that Sophiaunched an attack on Starling City? And her attack caused devastating damage? There were severe casualties among the ordinary citizens of Starling City?"


    The news his subordinate brought was about the disaster that had struck Starling City. Shadow Celestial had not anticipated that Sophia''s actions would be even more extreme than he had imagined.


    "That''s correct! Sophia indeed inflicted a devastating blow on Starling City. As far as we know, there are almost no surviving ordinary citizens in the city center. Even the members of the Angel Guild in Starling City had very few survivors. If it weren''t for Irving and hispanions taking action, Starling City could have beenpletely destroyed by Sophia."


    After hearing the detailed exnation from his subordinate, a satisfied smile finally appeared on Shadow Celestial''s face. "It seems that Sophia is indeed a very valuable ally. Although our cooperation has not made much progress, her actions alone can severely restrain Irving and hispanions."


    Having received such good news, Shadow Celestial''s spirits quickly lifted.


    "I absolutely cannot miss this golden opportunity! Although I can''t take action myself right now, I can still have the members of the Night des take action. Bring the elders of the Night des here," Shadow Celestial dered, deciding to use the power of the Night des to create trouble for Irving.


    His orders were swiftlymunicated, and soon the elders of the Night des gathered. However, upon receiving Shadow Celestial''smand, they felt a slight sense of conflict. Along with the orders, they learned about Sophia''s actions in the real world. Most of the elders believed that they would likely need to continue their operations in the real world as well. Yet, they all felt that this was not a good time to act.


    One elder approached Elder Astra directly. "Can you persuade Shadow Celestial? While Sophia''s actions have dealt a significant blow to Irving, we shouldn''t rush into action right now. Our strength is not on par with Sophia''s. Moreover, during our operations, Shadow Celestial will certainly not provide us with any assistance."


    Elder Astra nodded slowly. "You''re right, but I cannot persuade Shadow Celestial. Once he makes a decision, no one can change his mind."


    Elder Astra certainly had no intention of trying to persuade him. In Elder Astra''s view, this was an ideal time for him to take action. The Chaos Entity had already made preparations in the Shelter Game world. If Elder Astra could create sufficientmotion in the real world, the attention of Shadow Celestial and Irving would be directed toward him. At that point, the Chaos Entity could act in the Shelter Game world.


    As long as the Chaos Entity could obtain one or two chaotic artifacts, their advantage would be very pronounced.


    When all the elders of the Night des had gathered, Shadow Celestialid out his n. "Sophia has caused significant destruction to Starling City. All you need to do is continue attacking Starling City. Who among you has the courage to step forward and carry out this task?"


    In response to Shadow Celestial''smand, not a single elder of the Night des stepped forward. Shadow Celestial snorted in disdain. "Each of you is an elder of the Night des, and each of you possesses immense power! Why is it that none of you dares to step forward now?"


    Still, no one answered Shadow Celestial''s question. His mood was deteriorating rapidly. Not wanting to waste any more time, he turned his gaze toward Elder Astra. Although initially he thought that letting Elder Astra take action might lead to unforeseenplications, Shadow Celestial had already set up other arrangements with his trusted subordinates.


    He felt that this time, perhaps Elder Astra and Irving would both meet their end.


    "Elder Astra, you are very familiar with the real world. Would you like to carry out this task?" Shadow Celestial inquired.


    In response to Shadow Celestial''s question, Elder Astra did not immediately agree. Instead, he chose to decline. "I believe I am not suited for this task. During thest operation, I suffered a devastating defeat. Ick the confidence needed this time."


    "Last time wasst time; this time is different. You will definitely seed!" Shadow Celestial interrupted, refusing to give Elder Astra any more room for excuses. Having decided to send Elder Astra on this mission, he was not going to ept any objections.


    "Just focus on preparing for the mission. I will send enough Night des members to assist you," Shadow Celestial said, turning on his heel and leaving.


    The other elders of the Night des expressed sympathy for Elder Astra''s situation, but he did not seem to mind much. In fact, Elder Astra had been looking forward to this operation for quite some time. He was also nning to acquire some powerful items from Shadow Celestial.


    Elder Astra was confident that his actions would be sessful. He knew that Shadow Celestial had to bolster his strength; otherwise, there would be no chance of sess in this mission.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Elder Astra then began to prepare for the uing operation. His preparations were not swift, as he had many things to coordinate. At the very least, he needed to familiarize himself with the current members of the Night des in the real world. The members of the Night des in the real world had changed several times since hisst involvement.